Farang

'Farang' is a crime thriller centred on Swedish expatriates in Thailand. It's quite entertaining, but also quite shallow. I'd have been more interested had it shown us a more detailed picture of expatriate life, or a more particular portrait of criminality in Thailand; instead, the outlines of the story feels somewhat generic, in spite of the exotic setting. The best character is Birdie, a drug-dealer but not a completely rotten man, caught in between all sides as his chickens come home to roost.Overall, 'Farang' isn't awful, but it doesn't quite capitalise on the opportunity of its intriguing premise.

Smoothly mixing themes like "running away", "blind trust", "getting lost", "falling into trouble", "fatherly instincts". Farang (which is the Thai word for foreigners that are European) is a prime example that good television is not about big budgets but more about interesting flawed (and therefore realistic) characters and character driven story telling! The story is well written, but smartly uses few words, and the suspense well done, peeling back the characters background like an onion, never telling you too much too fast. The location of Thailand is beautifully used as a character itself. If you enjoy suspense this show is for you.

True, the thrill is there and maintained, episodes well composed and connected, the number of cliches limited, but apparently the different dimensions of Swedish and Thai acting and sporadic use of beautiful nature as a filler did not let me enjoy Farang as much as e.g. Bron/Broen, Kodnamn Hunter, Röd snö - to name a few... Ole Rapace is good, but too dominant; as for other characters, it was to my liking that some "good guys" died as well. Also, I liked realistic round-ups, with some loose ends left, without the U.S. type of spreading happy end.

How did this slip through the net? Don't think money was uppermost in the minds of the makers of 'Farang', but they've woven together a rich suspenseful thriller-drama that restores my faith in Scandi-noir. Shot in Thailand, locations are used cleverly and action filmed with handheld cameras so you feel like you're there on the ground (road, marketplaces, cafes, beaches etc.) with the chief protagonists. Ola Rapace plays Rickard, a man with a mysterious past, joined by his estranged 15-year old daughter Thyra played by Louise Nyvall. Most of the characters in the series are flawed and double-edged with 'history' which leaves you guessing, but information is cleverly revealed a bit at a time. The acting throughout 'Farang' is first-rate, and, after seeing some pretty lame efforts recently ('Modus' and 'Acquitted', please take note!) finally it felt like "the grown-ups have entered the room". Ironic in a way, as Nyvall's performance is a real standout in the series. There are too many good performances to mention here (good supports from the Thai's, for example), but delighted at Claes Ljungmark's appearance late on as the double-crossed Kovac (people may remember his chilling psycho 'P' in Danish thriller 'Follow the Money' last year?).

I'm not sure if the storyline for 'Farang' is based on a novel series, but I hope it gets picked up for another season.