Wallander

There is a great pleasure to be had in watching cinema in a language that you do not understand;an adventure and straining of your faculties in trying to derive the meaning of phrases that sometimes do resemble English, but not totally.The sub-titles help.Henriksson is the consummate actor, at once the father figure and also the failed father-man.I have always found a certain attractive sparsity in Swedish drama that contrast the more over-weighty and over-wordy cinema of British and American traditions,a leaner more trenchant quality.Sometimes quite a bit less is more, especially in convoluted and complex narrations that seemingly have no apparent solution but deliver more satisfaction and amusement in the final denouement. This is without a doubt much better that what was a very good English production.Intelligent acting,enticing cinematography,and story plots to match!

Both the first series of Swedish TV's Wallander and the second collection of British TV's interpretation have recently been aired on British TV, and whilst they share a number of elements and qualities (locations, excellent filmatography, thoughtful and impressive 'takes' on the central figure of Kurt Wallander), it's the differences that seem to separate a good television drama from an outstanding one.

Obviously the two productions differ in a number of basic ways and it's worth highlighting these as a given. For the most part Swedish Wallander uses Mankel's stories as inspiration, creating unique plots per episode, whilst British Wallander uses the source material and thus far has for the most part faithfully adapted 6 of Mankel's books (interestly the choice has been to adapt out of sequence, although the original stories were also published out of sequence, in Britian at least). An exception is the depiction of Kurt's father and his struggle with dementia, which logically has to progress through the overall TV series.

A second key difference is the interpretation of Kurt Wallander's relationship with his daughter. Swedish TV puts Linda into the police force from the outset, and uses this device to explore their legendary troubled relationship with the added frisson of professional, hierarchical tensions. Also into the mix is the relationship between Linda and her colleague Stefan Lindman. British Wallander maintains the original Linda/Kurt story arc, with Linda not yet having enrolled for police duty.

A third difference is the inclusion/exclusion of the Ann-Britt Höglund character. It seems the Swedish version quickly came to view this character as unnecessary within the looser story structure, as she is dispensed with well before Series One concludes. For British TV Höglund remains integral, just as she is in the books.

However, setting aside these givens, there are a number of factors which set the two interpretations apart in terms of quality, success and viewer experience. British Wallander is quite pacey, moving the story along briskly from scene to scene. Whilst this mostly works, it does occasionally occur at the expense of scene and/or character development - the camera (and therefore the viewer) is forced to follow Kurt, leaving other characters as cyphers. This is most notable during scenes with colleagues at police HQ. Swedish Wallander adopts a slower style, allowing characters and stories to develop and unfold with greater subtlety. This approach leads to a second and quite fundamental difference, and it is this element that underlines the superiority of the Swedish Wallander. The combination of writing, direction and editing for a slower pace allows the Swedish actors to effectively 'do less' and achieve more. Accordingly, Henricksson, Bergman, Sällström, Rapace et al are repeatedly given the time and direction to use economy and skill to enable the viewer to understand what they are thinking, feeling etc. The final episode of Series One was a particular example of this, with all concerned but particularly Sällström and Henricksson underplaying beautifully to create scenes of desperate sadness, bewilderment and loss whilst actually 'doing' very little. In comparison, a combination of misjudged casting and actors being let down by script and scene construction in the British version means for the most part the viewer receives less reward. Branagh, Warner and most notably McCabe as Nyberg are the exceptions, the former not least because Wallander remains the prime focus through the British drama, and is therefore given more time, scene-by-scene, and Warner because he is quite simply an experienced and clever film actor. Yet it is McCabe who shines, underplaying beautifully, especially during scenes in Episode 4 - The Faceless Killers.

Views on casting are always contentious. Suffice to say, the Swedish series has somehow managed to secure a host of clever actors who know a thing or two about camera work, and particularly scenes in close-up. From the moments of occasional humour gratefully received from Mörck's Ebba and Gunnarsson's Svartman (an incidental and unsung masterpiece of a performance) to the brilliance of Henricksson and Sällström, it's the Swedish production which holds the treats and subtleties and warrants repeat viewings.

Let's hope the BBC transmits Series 2 as soon as possible, and let's also hope the absence of Rapace and Sällström doesn't diminish what has been an excellent television production.

It's as if Krister Henriksson has just stepped off the page of one of Henning Mankell's books and transferred to the screen with his portrayal of the Swedish detective. Everything about this tv series is just right. The best of all the scandi noir crime dramas.

First of all, greetings from Finland, Kurt Wallander! I usually do not watch a lot film series, but this is just so much different. Better. Much better than ANY other detective series out there. Right now one of our TV-channels are presenting a Wallander movie on Saturdays every week! I'm always eagerly waiting another one and it's easily a highlight of my whole week/weekend at the moment!

Krtister Henriksson is the main reason. Absolutely fantastic actor. He really may be the most memorable and impressive character which I've ever seen. He's calm and clever. I have always good feeling when I watch him playing the role of Kurt Wallander. It's.. Almost like a magic.

Of course the script and screenplay is also very important factor in detective stories. Of course there's couple things here and there which are just slightly impractical or clichés but that actually hasn't never bothered me.

Conclusion; After every movie, I'm happy. And when Wallander usually just walks away at the end of the movie and music starts playing, I feel great, I smile and get shivers. What could be better feeling after watching a movie?

I'm absolutely loving these movies. Krister Henriksson, thank you for being Kurt Wallander for all these years. Golden times that we will never forget.

I've seen both recent episodes on the BBC4 channel, and think the show is simply excellent. The gritty style of Kurt Wallander, played superbly by Krister Henriksson, along with some very skilled direction and scriptwriting, make this a gripping detective series. It's not for the faint-hearted either as some scenes are very graphic. The nasty stuff genuinely sends chills down your spine, something very difficult to achieve. While the general character of the Swedes is one of reserve and ice, the scenes of violence and gore differentiates this from the normal stereotype. The cinematography is excellent, and it is a show I would recommend to many Film Studies students.

The supporting cast is the one possible weakness in this show, and more could be done to bring them into it more. Otherwise a very good show. BBC have unearthed a winning detective series