The Killing

I've just finished watching all the episodes and I've not been so engrossed in a series since 24 (the original series) was on TV many years ago. In many respects it does remind me of 24.. 20 episodes spread over 20 days, many twists and turns, the main characters stumble from one wrong turn to another until the final denouement.

But that isn't its main appeal, I'd even go so far to say that it detracted slightly from the series as a whole. The absolute best part of this is just the sublime acting. The whole thing is about characters wrapped up in a mild cliffhanger plot, its how they react to each other and developments that really makes the difference from what we usually get on TV.

The filming is very good, and little touches abound in it - my favourite is still how Sarah Lund can breeze along with her eyes shut, yet Jan Meyer cannot follow behind her without stepping in something. That's a double act that Hollywood will never be able to match.

There are faults with it though. Unless the Danish police are really well funded I found forensics turning up at a snap of Sarah's fingers in the middle of the night to be somewhat unrealistic (they must have good overtime payments in Denmark), similarly a DNA sample would be tested and the results back in less than an hour, and its nearly always dark too - maybe they all sleep during the day. Either way, these are things you just live with as its a TV show and reality has to be strained.

In short - watch it, even with subtitles, you won't miss the developing characters and their reactions to their changing lives.

This is series is a little like 24, in that each episode is a day, not one hour.

Its pace is slow and like Wallander its based on characters and relationships.

The plot is complex and detailed.

If you liked the BBC series State of Play, you will love this!

All the actors are very convincing and its so realistic.

Theis Birk Larsen and his wife are convincing and at times make it seem like a documentary.

Its worthwhile watching and once pass episode 3 you will be hooked.

Well done BBC for showing it!

There aren't many programmes where I feel I mustn't leave the room for a moment for fear of missing something - but this is one of them. As I write, the serial is around the middle of its run on BBC4 (so there are no ad breaks), with two episodes back-to-back each week. I can't remember the last time I saw a twenty-part serial. I didn't think anyone still made them. If they can be this good, there should definitely be more of them.

I don't yet know where the story is going. So far suspicion is falling on one person after another and there is a lot of (not always completely believable) politicking at City Hall. It doesn't sound much, but the direction and acting put this into a very superior category.

Sarah Lund, the main investigator is an obsessive, but a very believable one. I don't know how her more impulsive colleague Jan Meyer avoids strangling her out of frustration with the way she treats him. Her family and boyfriend likewise. Perhaps these are plot developments still to come!

One unusual feature is the focus on the reactions of the family of the murdered girl. The actress playing her mother deserves every award going.

Update 27 March: it ended last night on BBC4. Whew! Saturday nights won't be the same. I stand by what I wrote above, but, if you see it, be prepared to be a bit frustrated with a lot of unanswered questions at the end, and you may be wondering at one or two coincidences. Still, my enjoyment of the serial did not really come from its being a whodunit. The characters and the atmosphere were what really made it.

After finishing watching The Killing (US version) several years ago, of which my review is available, I happened to notice from some of the reviews that it was based on the original Danish series Forbrydelsen and how much the original version was way better and honestly recommended.

I had my doubts, thinking how could a series (even in its original version) be better than The Killing (US) and outshine it, until I happened to watch the first season of Forbrydelsen in its span of 20 episodes (each over 55 minutes long to my true pleasure) and already half-way through understood why it is so much better and why it can be compared to a blindingly brilliant gem.

• The script, storylines, plot and sub-plots_ are awesomely developed, unfolded, without rush, meticulously and with brilliance.
• The atmosphere is very well set, in each episode, depicting the thrilling events and various feelings that every protagonist is going through.
• The series has depth and complexity in the most superb form. Again, without any rush while slowly unfolding, at the same time, digging deeper and deeper. The ~one-hour-long episodes were such a joy that I cannot describe it. That's how it should be done, without doubt and hesitation.
• The cast. Oh the cast! Never have I seen such a stellar cast, altogether in a series. Everybody shines and I mean it. The parents do a wonderful job with gripping and realistic emotions, both passive and active, that get hold of your throat. Troels Hartmann (the mayor candidate) is a stellar actor with such a strong presence and charisma that few ever surpassed it in series and movies. And last but not least,Sofie Gråbøl (Sarah Lund), the main detective protagonist in the case, does such a job that words come short of describing it; her acting, emotions, stubbornness (oh my goodness), wittiness completed with such a belief in her intuitions, create so much magic that viewers cannot help but be riveted to the screen and keep following her quest for the truth. In some scenes, she brought tears into my eyes and made me gasp in awe by her superb and timely actions, her unparalleled stubborn strength and her shiny green eyes discovering part of the truth. At times, she reminded me of Jack Bauer and believe me, that's not a light thing to say! Kudos, Kudos to her and to the producers for casting her.
• The soundtrack and music were so good, gripping and timely that this section alone deserves tons of awards. The upbeat music accompanying emotionally intense scenes depicting various protagonists' actions and feelings at the end of each episode is the most suspenseful and fitting one that I have ever listened to in any motion picture / series.

A brilliancy to fully appreciate and understand, only by watching it and getting immersed and drowned in its deep, multi-layered and suspenseful storyline. Highly-recommended to all lovers of the genre.

It will change your views on thrillers forever.

This is the third and final season of Forbrydelsen (The Killing). It combines all the best elements of the Nordics thriller tradition: a very good written storyline, superb acting and very good art direction and filming. The main character - Sara Lund - has some way to get back to her rather unorthodox way of policing but gets in her stride after several episodes. The story is an intriguing triangle of murder, politics and business and reveals several corrupting involvements that we so-called sophisticated Europeans (I'm Dutch) think mainly exist in the USA etc.

Highly commendable, both entertaining and something that makes you think about the world at the same time.