Lo que queda en el desván

'What Remains' takes the classic Agatha Christie formula and updates it to the modern age: take a dead body, a house full of individuals all on the nasty end of normal, and a determined, dogged retired detective, and save the unveiling of the criminal to the final moments. In fact, whereas Christie's characters were generally thin, the characterisation is more convincing in this, although never truly surprising. The direction and acting are also highly competent, although the conclusion descends into (almost inevitable) silliness. Until that point, it's quite gripping, but also quite shallow: whatever remains, not that much lies beneath the surface.

This show was actually really good! I've spent so much time scrolling through Britbox looking for something to pull me in, and this one did the trick. I watched all but the thrilling conclusion in one day (it was cold out!) So many twists and turns. So creepy. Direction and photography excellently crafted. Set design really sets a mood and wardrobe was good. Acting always top notch in Brit shows. One of the prettiest girls in the world in starring role. Moments of suspense last just the right amount of time. Touches on many subjects of forms of abuse, dying alone, teenagers experimenting with being terrible people, loneliness, desperation.

The only problem I had was the treatment of obesity. Do adults really act like such children mocking fat people to their face? Maybe it's because I'm American and half the people here are fat, but we don't usually puff out our cheeks and call someone "Fatty" and say things like "She's a big girl, you could hardly have missed her." Bit of an outsized (har har) focus on the victim's weight.

All in all this show ranks high on my list of favorite brit mysteries, and I've watched a LOT.

At heart, What Remains is an updated version of the country-house who-dunnit, a woman is murdered in a house that's been converted into 5 flats, and it's assumed that one of the other residents did it.

There's few tangible clues as to what happened so there's little for forensics to do - this is not CSI/Silent Witness. Instead the clues lie in the psychology and relationships of the residents - it's a bit Stephen Poliakoff in the way they're all prisoners of their pasts. So it explores the relationships of the suspects in a depth that you wouldn't normally see from Miss Marple.

Then on top of that you've got a few classic horror-movie buttons being pushed (not altogether successfully) and the hangdog detective working past his retirement date on just one last case. "You've all given up on finding the murderer, we owe it to this girl to find out what happened". It's a cliché because it works.

I can see why some people find the first half a bit slow, it's deliberately meant to be "static" and a bit claustrophobic with the vast majority of the action happening within the house. It maybe helped that I recorded it and watched the whole thing in one sitting, so didn't have a week to think about how little had apparently happened in any one episode.

On the other hand there's a few sub-plots in the middle that don't move the plot forward at all, they're just there so Giedroyc can expand his theme of loneliness in the city. It feels a bit self-indulgent when some of the residents' stories are left hanging at the end, either because he didn't know where to go or 20 minutes got left on the cutting room floor, it would be more satisfying if they had been resolved. I suppose it says something that you do care enough to want to know how things work out for them.

So this is not a show for people looking for car chases and shootouts. Personally I preferred Jane Campion's Top of the Lake which the BBC aired in the same slot a few weeks before. But if you've run out of Scandinavian detective box-sets to watch then this is a decent enough way to spend an evening.

The Brits have made and are making so many good (mini-)series that, for the sake of novelty, one should find a distinctive feature from time to time. In the one in question, the events happen in a tenement house mostly, and their origins bring us back to the time years ago. The occupants of the house are different and seem happy, but soon it appears that nothing is so good as it seems...

The tensions are maintained, the flashbacks are clarifying (not annoying and enhancing length as sometimes), and the cast measures up to their characters - without someone who is evidently "better", i.e. more interesting than others. Well, David Threlfall as DI Len Harper spent most time on screen and depicted his odd character very well, but as it is my first conscious perusal with his talent, he was just "good among the goodies". But I have certainly fixed him in my memory.

The ending / final solutions could have been less trivial, with a twist or something, but, luckily there were no supernatural forces included. And last but not least - the title! With a sophisticated and versatile meaning.

Classic who done it, but done with a modern take. Great character development, some real nasty neighbours living here. The best British show I've seen in a long time, even if it is five years old. If you like Broadchurch and similar crime shows, you won't be disappointed. AAA+++