Cardinal

Told over six 45 minute episodes, this was a very good 'tec drama from Canadian TV. Set in the wintry setting of Algonquin, we meet whispering, silver-bearded, middle-aged Detective John Cardinal. A dogged, committed, old-school detective, he's pursuing here a killer or killers who abduct, torture and kill youngsters. There's a strong sub-plot involving a young female detective Lisa Delorme ostensibly brought in to assist Cardinal's investigation but who in reality is investigating him for suspected corruption in relation to a police bust that went wrong and cost an officer his life. Both these main characters, as it happens, have relationship problems at home, Cardinal's wife has bi-polar disorder and Delorme and her husband are struggling to have a family.

It was hard not to see the influence of Nordic Noir predecessors like "The Killing" and "The Bridge" here, with the mix and match male / female cop pairing, the bleak, snowy geographic settings, as ever filmed with numerous, on-high drone shots and the brutal activities of the killers towards their hostages not to mention the by now obligatory lo-fi contemporary music used as the theme tune.

Derivative it may have been but that didn't detract from a gripping story told well. I think I prefer my mini-series played out like this over a shorter running time as it brought more dynamism and pace to proceedings. Sure it was tough at times to watch the excruciating treatment meted out to the victims and spare a thought in particular for the young lad whose whole role was to be trussed up naked and be intermittently tortured, I hope his next part is as the male lead in a rom-com or something.

The acting of the two leads was very good as was the chemistry between them. Their interplay is mutantly reflected and contrasted in the bizarre relationship which subsists between the two young male / female murderers they track, both these parts chillingly well played too. Tension reigned throughout with some surprising twists along the way and a suitably dramatic climax to finish things off. As you'd imagine, there wasn't much humour in all this bleakness but at the end there's one laugh-out-loud moment which will strike a chord to anyone who's ever been sent for a long stand on their first day at work.

I for one would be pleased to see this new detective pairing return for future investigations. Recommended.

Highly intriguing first episode, with a lot of Scandi vibes. Ominous music score, vast cold open spaces, lots of torches used, missing kids and an apparent clash of the sexes between Det.John Cardinal and his unwanted new assistant, Delorme whom he fobs off by giving her some B&E cases to occupy her while he tackles the more exciting homicide work. Apparently very routine but wait...is John Cardinal a dirty cop ? We discover that he is being discreetly investigated and suspected of being in cahoots with a local drug lord and...his innocent new assistant is a police snoop, planted to keep an eye on him. The main crime story is about missing children (reminiscent of The Killing) with searches in dark cold uncomfortable places where the need for torches is paramount. A very well directed and acted episode and having the transparently honest upright good guy Billy Campbell as a "dirty cop" is inspired casting. Karine Vanasse as his assistant Delorme catches the eye too. There are other subplots, mainly a spate of burglaries which look like an unconnected open-and-shut case, at this time..but are they. I have high hopes for this one

I have to say, Canadian shows are catching my attention. It's the pacing as much as the quality of the production. American editing is a real problem for me as the scenes flick so fast I don't have time to take in the images and process to enjoy the emotions before you have to absorb the next image, and the next and next in split second action. I like lingering on a face (as long as you hired a real actor that is trained in the arts, not the couch) in order to capture what they are feeling. A technique that compensates for some lost book context if you have the right scene played out so you feel like you get inside their head. Non-American movies have always been attractive to me because of the more relaxed pacing that relies more upon acting. It's good to see this Canadian TV offerings as it captures you with a good story, moodiness and good character development. Except the young criminals. They are not as intense and believable as twisted, tortured beings. Next season will have new villains, and I hope they devote budget to those characters now that it's such a success. Also, perhaps second season bigger budget might mean more forensic realism and less relying on lingering dead body images. That's the one place I'd prefer the split-second images!

In all honesty, I've watched only 3 of the seasons. It is a very good, hard core noir Nordic-like mystery. That's a compliment. Well, Canada is a bit north too.

The first three seasons I've watched have good stories and characters and some of the wickedest villains I've seen. Billy Campbell is not a favorite of mine and in this series, he affects an inconsistent soto voce whisper that is, frankly, irritating as well as often hard to understand. So, I am still not a fan of his and I had to turn on Close Captioning.

It IS worth watching!! Please don't let me scare you away. Don't let Billy Campbell soto voce you away either!

What might blow you is all the blood and guts that are prevalent in this series. All kinds of it. It is everywhere - except it is "gore lite" in season 3. Thank goodness. Guess everyone needed a break. Don't get me wrong, there's still a bit of it, but nothing compared to the first 2 seasons.

Even outside of the bad guy and police station, gore and gruesomeness is brought in for you to observe with the keen eye and camera of Detective Cardinal's sometimes wife, Catherine. (Billy Campbell is Det. Cardinal.) She's an interesting character on her own. She made me very nervous from the start, and as the series went on, I, personally, liked her less and less.

There are lots of bad guys in this series, absolutely zero giggles and laughs for a break in the tension. And gore galore!! Season 3 is a bit less gruesome - thank goodness.

This series is taken from books, apparently. The writer must have had a strange childhood. Bet he's fun date!!

This is definitely worth the watch! I took away one star because of Campbell's whispering 98% of the time. So unnecessary. Added nothing to the character, in fact hurt it.

Following closely the story arcs from the BBC hit HINTERLAND, although with more dollops of sadism, this could be the best Canadian show ever produced in terms of script, direction, casting, and production. The problem is that this specific type of series is so depressing (not really a police procedural at all!) that the day eventually comes when even the most loyal viewer has to choose between jumping to the next episode ... or seeking psychiatric help.