The Unlikely Murderer

It was always a strange assassination because in a decade full of terrorism a prime-minister walked the streets without bodyguards. It's almost incomprehensible then and now. And however peaceful Sweden is/was the reality is that you are always going to come across an Oswald type oddball who happened to have a gun. Prominent people attract these types and there is no way around that.

The movie needed some serious editing to cut it down and it needed to explore the motivation more - it was never clear and everything got put in the proverbial pot.

It's strange to see a world without CCTV cameras and smartphones. If this happened today there would be dozens of cameras on him before the event and dozens of phones on him after it. He wouldn't have stood a chance.

I do appreciate that they at least informed viewers at the beginning of each episode that this crime is still unsolved. I also like how they captured the time-period: Things like clothing, cars, and architecture feels really true to the mid-1980s Sweden. Robert Gustafsson's performance is also really solid, even if the writing of his character (Engström) is not really in line with how most people in his close proximity described him in real life.

Now, I feel like I need be honest. You see, when it comes to the murder of Palme, I'm a bit of a nerd. I've gone through some of the material revolving the investigation and I've even read the book of which this series is based on. With that being said, I was quite shocked when I saw how poorly this series re-enacts the actual murder. For someone who is at least somewhat well-informed, there are fatal mistakes to be found everywhere. Several witnesses being placed in entirely wrong places, the murderer running on the opposite side of a street, the size of the weapon, plenty of accounts that are totally ignored. I can go on and on.

It is abundantly clear that the people who directed/filmed this didn't do their research and it begs the question; why would you try to present this as a credible and legitimate theory if you're not going to pay any attention to many of the most fundamental facts? Personally, I'm not a believer in the theory presented but I still liked the idea of being able to immerse yourself in it though a tv-series. But it turned out near impossible to take any of it seriously due to the sloppy execution...

4/10.

If this shows us one thing, that it is impossible to trust eye witnesses. At least you should question most of them - so best way to know for sure is surveilance? Do we really want every inch of this planet to be filmed at all times? It would solve certain questions and problems ... on the other hand, forget about privace, not to mention that even that wouldn't be something that you could trust entirely (with hackers and software that can alter video footage and so forth).

All that aside (conspiracies be damned), the show goes on to bring us close to a murder mystery that some still may feel is not entirely solved. The main thing missing is the why - although if you google the case, you may be able to find an answer to that. But also just if you believe what this show is based on. It may be the most likely case (no pun intended) of what occured back then ... but who really knows? Still this is quite the intriguing if very slow burning retelling of what happened ... something that will excite certain people and not be enough for others.

The actors are great in this - and the subtle treatment works most of the time. You may feel like certain things are pointless, but such is life ... (un)like it or not.

Its more of a personal portrait than a thriller. A depressing portrait. The disastrous police investigation was mostly shown in the first parts of the series.

The hypothesis is not bad and Engström is clearly someone the police should have investigated further - but ignored. However...the explanations - the constant insinuations the creators have given Engström to enigmatically mumble from time to time - feels somewhat forced a lot of times. Every one of Engströms odd behaviors that is presented to the viewer and that tells you why he had the motivation and did the murderer, can easily just explain that he did and said all the contradictions just because he wanted some attention. Add the alcohol problems and the results will probably be confusing. It could have gone either way and we will never know.

To sum up - decent theory but not convincing.

Very interesting if a little annoying with all the jumping around between timeframes. An amazing story of gross incompetence by the Swedish police in contrast with the detectives in The Bridge and The Killing. Saga Noren would have solved it by episode 4 !!

Glad I watched it though as it's an amazing story and the acting was excellent by the main characters. I do hope the Swedes have tightened up on security in the light of these events.