The Breakthrough

My cuppa. I love international dramas and especially Scandinavian (Beck, etc).

I watch this with subtitles - never dubbed. Please watch it with subtitles if you can.

This is Swedish and it is luxurious how it unfolds for us along its four episodes. Brilliantly done covering many years and very poignant. At first the makeup may seem a bit odd - trying to make the main characters younger than the actors are but you quickly accept it.

The focus is on the development of genealogical forensics (if you've watched the documentaries on it you'll know it has revolutionized police work).

In this case it's taking place in the EU, which has far stricter controls than the U. S.

At any rate this is based on a true story and it's fascinating stuff. The two main characters are acted so well. And in fact all the acting is fantastic.

The four hours fly by and this becomes a rare thing (for me) that I wished it was longer. I did not want it to end.

Speaking of the ending there's a very nice twist as to who the murderer is, which I greatly appreciated. I love clever endings.

I gave it a 9 and not a 10 because there's a bit of an insidious agenda about people who live alone - loners - being messed up. It's a weird and disturbing bias. And it bothered me quite a bit. It's almost "racist" in a way - that "loners" are not quite right. At one point in a discussion they actually say it out loud: that there is something wrong with "loners".

But don't let that get in your way of enjoying this! Highly recommended!

A veteran cop is on duty when a double murder is committed in the small town they live in. He promises the victims' families he will find the murderer, but his hard work goes on for years at great personal loss to himself and with little result to the murder case.

Years later he reads an article about a man who is promoting genealogy to make the world a better place. He wonders if he should meet that man.

I was not familiar with the actors in this Swedish show, but the lead, Peter Eggers was excellent as the cop who is hooked on trying to solve the case

Excellent performances and a thoughtful, well- constructed story make this well worth watching.

As a fan of Scandinavian TV and films, I thought this show was really well-made. I am not Swedish so I wasn't familiar with this story (I was too young when it happened to have seen it on the news) so it was surprising to hear that this is Sweden's 2nd largest case in history.

It is atypical for a Nordic show in that there is very little action and few characters outside of the main cast of about 4 actors. There are no big name stars or pointless, dragged out filler scenes or dialogue. There's a lot of detail that shows how the case developed and the writers were wise not to make us wait 10 episodes before getting to the arc of the plot. The show is more about the story and less about the actual characters beyond short bursts of their personal lives.

The acting is better from the families, whose lives we don't get to see too much of. This was fine since I think subplots can take away from the main points of the show. It was slower than many Hollywood productions but I appreciate how this was actually a mini series with 4 episodes and not anything longer!

A poignant, subtle and well-paced Swedish true crime drama. There is sadness permeating every scene in the four episodes but it's captured in a very thoughtful way so it never feels like misery p*rn. The series doesn't ring sensational at any point and I thought it has been done with a lot of respect for the real people behind the story, including the families and the police officers.

Great performance by all the actors from beginning to end. I found the understated urgency and perseverence of the lead detective really touching and well acted. Overall, I watched it all in one day and felt on the edge of my seat to the very end.

It's subtle, emotional and atmospheric.

Actors did a good job.

Simple and yet impactful storytelling.

In 4 episodes that they did quite well. No unwanted plot twists.

A miniseries which I enjoyed after quite sometime.

Went into it without any seeing any review and end up writing one.

Touches upon the pain of loosing and many other topics without being over melodramatic.

I will recommend this miniseries for you all the watch. It's a good watch for cold winter day.

One of the best swedish drama to come out way.

Go watch and let me know how did you like it.

Enjoy your day and have a good year.