Case Histories

Jason Brodie is a private investigator whose goal in life is to bring closure to lives on hold. His own sad past is the springboard from which he throws himself - sometimes reluctantly - into the problem of others.

Like many heroes of modern literature, Brodie is a flawed character whose personal failings never cease to amaze him: a failed marriage from which came a child he adores; an ambiguous friendship with a feisty female police inspector that could be going somewhere or nowhere;and a private detective business groaning under the weight of his inability to take on lucrative jobs rather than exercises in humanitarian kindness where the paycheck isn't always bankable and his carping secretary is only too willing to let him know.

It's ingenious the way Kate Atkinson's narrative sees apparently disconnected stories seamlessly interweave and overlap. Jason Isaacs is just right as the tough, selfless, good-hearted Brodie and each of the six episodes is filled with excellent acting and direction. 9/10

Jason Isaacs stars as detective Jackson Brodie in "Case Histories," which is a miniseries filmed in Edinburgh. Brodie works on several cases at once. This episode concerned a child who disappeared 30 years earlier, a young woman who was murdered years earlier, a woman engaged to be married attempting to find her niece, plus he's helping a paranoid old woman who never pays him. And her nephew is after him to stop. Divorced, Brodie often takes his daughter on cases when he has visitations, and she's quick to tell her mother, "Dad beat up a man," and things of that nature when she gets home.

The series is based on books by Kate Allison. The stories are dark and brooding amidst the glorious scenery of Edinburgh - absolutely spectacular cinematography. The stories intertwine and have more than a few twists. In short, "Case Histories" makes for very absorbing viewing.

Jackson Brodie is a likable character in the hands of Jason Isaacs - he's handsome, adventurous, and really tries to help his clients. He has sadness, too -- his brother was killed, and the case has never been solved. Everyone has secrets on "Case Histories." The acting is very good, but Millie Innes who plays Brodie's daughter is irresistible, a beautiful child as well as a good actress. What sets Brodie apart a bit from some other detectives is the human touch. He's a man of great humanity, and he brings this to his cases. Highly recommended.

Yes, stories tie together with a number of coincidences, but they make it work. Fast moving, excellent characters and truly surprising twists and turns. I was HOOKED from the first episode...

Jason Isaacs says he hates detective series, and yet he has proved in this BBC mini-series that he is one of the best detectives ever cast in a film. He has all the human qualities that so many of them lack, and his well-rounded portrayal is a triumph, in lifting detective stories onto a higher plane. It is impossible to praise Isaacs highly enough for his superb realisation of this sympathetic character who just happens, as a disgraced ex-policeman, to have taken up work as a detective. The setting is the beautiful city of Edinburgh, exploited visually to the full. Edinburgh is above all the British city with the most magnificent vistas of them all, surpassing even Bath in that respect. The mini-series is based on some novels by a prize-winning Edinburgh-based writer named Kate Atkinson. This explains the fantastically complex and interweaving plots of the films, which go far beyond the normal intricacies of even the most elaborate scripts. The rich tapestry which is thus woven is satisfying in a way that so much of television is not. This mini-series is thus an exemplar of what those of us concerned with quality should all hope for. Three different directors (Marc Jobst, Bill Anderson, and Dan Zeff) helm the three double-episodes, and are uniformly excellent. The series was 'devised for television by Ashley Pharoah', who although he seemingly can't spell 'pharaoh' properly, is a well-known figure in British and American television. The supporting performances in these tangled tales are all excellent. Two of the most charming are by the child actress Millie Innes, who is as winsome as they come and plays the daughter of Isaacs, and the teenager Gwyneth Keyworth, who plays a fascinating waif in the final story. Fenella Woolgar is, as usual, compulsively watchable in a harrowing character role, and Natasha Little as her glamorous sister manages to add extra twinkle and sparkle to a character who might have been flat in the script but got proper three dimensions in her portrayal. Amanda Abbington is excellent as the police woman with a love/hate relationship with Isaacs, and once again a part which might have been hackneyed comes alive as a rounded individual at her hands.

This is a beyond good series. I had not read her books, but will now. The stories are edge of the seat as well as being sad and funny. The settings are beautiful or interesting and the characters are complex. I don't agree with any of the criticism,my husband and I were mesmerized. We turned on the closed captioning so as not to miss a word of dialogue. I am now motivated to see the Harry Potter movies, just for Jason Isaacs. I never fail to be amazed at the over the top talent of the British ,it is so refreshing to watch actors that are not Hollywood, and look like real people. This is as good as Luther. Seriously.