Messiah 2 - Rédemption

Messiah 2 continued where the previous left off,the script and story were spot on with a plot equal to todays serial atrocities.ken stott again delivered the goods as our lead in a gruesome tale,with a stellar cast to help him (neil dudgeon especially)one can only hope the bbc have more planned.

Last year, the first MESSIAH was shown on BBC 1. Adapted from the excellent novel by Boris Starling, it was a chilling, London-set tale of murder, religion, and gallons of blood. This year round, we get the sequel - VENGEANCE IS MINE. After a teasing set of trailers, shown after nearly every single programme after seven o'clock, turned me into an excitable bundle of anticipation, and after six months of waiting (it was postponed from August 2002, after the events in Soham), we get the best damn British thriller in years. Ken Stott returns as grumpy DSI Red Metcalfe, a man haunted by his own dark past, and trying to track down the killer of his brother Eric. The plot really starts moving when a man is found bound and buried alive on Wimbledon Common, in the same fashion as another man several years ago. Are we talking about a copycat killer? Is this revenge? As the bodycount rises, so does the tension, as Red and his team (including Neil Dudgeon and Frances Grey) race against time to find the next target before the killer does. In the first MESSIAH, the serial killer was bumping off the 12 disciples in the particulary gruesome ways that are depicted in the Bible; but this time, it is more a outright guessing game, a true murder mystery. Some of the deaths are extremely inventive and horrible (although not quite as grisly as last time, when we had flaying alive, beheading, and sawing in half). Stott, Dudgeon, Grey are terrific, and are well supported by Art Malik, Emily Joyce and Vincent Regan. The direction is such a high-point in this, because it is sutiably moody, castign huge shadows and cold blues against the London back-drop, and the waves of blood. At times the direction can be quite distant, but it is always tight, always focused, and never strays from the downright thrilling. This was shown in two parts, over a Saturday and Sunday, and I can tell you that the 24 hours between Part 1 and Part 2 was agonising, absolutely agonising. The first MESSIAH was unfairly compared to SE7EN (mainly because of it's religious content), but I actually think both the first one and this MESSIAH are miles better. Perhaps this is because I know London very well and I can relate to that, but I think that the acting, the direction, and the script are all so much better. Plus, this is a more traditional mystery: at least we actually get a chance of guessing who the killer is, instead of having to wait for some nobody to turn up, like in SE7EN. The mark of a good horror story is that it should stay with you. And this. As you lie in the dark, pushing yourself deeper into the matress, close your eyes. . .and you'll see men being buried alive, hearts cut out. . .rivers of blood. . . Essentially, this is a fairy-tale for adults; we all like to be terrified in the safety our armchairs, but it's a bloody good one. I hope they do a MESSIAH 3, because this truly was the highlight of the year (and it's only January). Lizzie Mickery's script is so brilliant, the characters and the plot so deep, and the deaths so imaginitive. This is fantastic.

Messiah 2 is the sequel to 2001's grisly Messiah, which concentrated on an elite CID investigation into bizarre and seemingly motiveless murders. Soon enough it became apparent that the murderer chose his victims as their names corresponds with the twelve apostles.

Again, Messiah 2's killings have a biblical twist- the killer is targeting people who have literally got away with murder and thus have gained vengeance for wrongful convictions and unsolved murders. Yet, soon the killer branches out to specific targets, and a there could be a personal motive for this killer.

Messiah 2 begins with a sequence involving Red and his estranged brother. Unfortunately, when they meet up, Eric is dying from a stab wound, and Red begins trying to solve this case in conjunction with the main murder inquiry. There are some brutal scenes in Messiah, including a man being buried alive, bloody murder scenes and a man having his heart cut out. All it did lack was a decapitation. There is also a child murder, and its understandable therefore why release date was early 2003 rather October 2002, following the child murders in Britain.

Ken Stott returns as brooding, brilliant DCI Metcalfe, with Art Malik, Neil Dudgeon and Frances Grey making up his team, plus a plethora of new faces and british stars including Alums Armstrong who seems to be starring in everything these days, Vincent Regan and Shaun Dingwall (Touching Evil). Stott looks bored at times, yet is a magnificent character actor who really shines as the leading man. Malik is wasted in a small role, and Alun Armstrong excels as a destructive and tortured character who disappears about halfway through.

Although a little slow burning at times, and there is a tendency to stay at murder scenes a little too often (Another criticism of the first film), Messiah 2 is a gritty thriller, which will keep you on the edge of your seats right to the end, and the acting quality on offer is enough to keep you watching. The ending is typical of most thrillers, yet is completely absurd, as the identity of the killer is quite obvious. The character stood out completely as irrelevant in the context of the film and may as well had an `Iam a serial killer' Tattoo on their forehead. I wont name names, but try and look for the `Cracker' Connection. Also, Frances Grey as a full blown DS in a serious crimes squad at what, 25? That's ridiculous! Overall, Messiah is implausible and a little boring at times, yet it is an involving and memorable thriller, a rarity from the politically challenged BBC.

To me 'Messiah' was a great and near blameless show in which the first two seasons were particularly strong, and should have lasted longer than it did.

It got off to a great start in the first series, which set the tone for the show brilliantly with a taut and dark atmosphere, always engrossing storytelling, great acting and production values, intelligent scripting, very disturbing and inventive murders if not for the faint-hearted and a genuinely surprising final reveal (if slightly let down by a slightly implausible and not-as-developed-as-it-could-have-been motivation).

'Messiah 2: Vengeance is Mine' is every bit as good and quality-wise it is about equal. It is stylishly and beautifully filmed with a lot of atmosphere, while the locations are also used to great effect. The music is suitably ominous while never being too obvious. A great job is done with the directing, always tight and resolutely moody and nothing is rushed or plodding.

Both parts of "Vengeance is Mine" are tautly and intelligently written, with an always natural flow and the mystery is always kept alive and fresh. The story here is darker and just as disturbing as before, with a great ominous atmosphere and plenty of surprising twists and turns while taking time to develop it enough to stop it from falling into incoherence. Susan's deafness also gives it some welcome heart too. The deaths are shocking and imaginative, if not quite as gory as in the first series (then again, it doesn't get gorier than deaths based on the deaths, ones that are as brutal as you can possibly get, of the twelve disciples).

The final solution was a surprise to me, though I know of people who felt they found out too early or found it too obvious, and the motive was a little better developed and easier to swallow than the first series, though the physical competence of the murderer and how they were able to carry out the murders has been brought into question and understandably. The characters continue to be interesting, and the acting continues to impress.

Ken Stott is exceptional in the lead role, some of his best acting has been on this show. Neil Dudgeon also excels, don't think he has done better work than his acting in 'Messiah', Michelle Forbes is touching and Alun Armstrong is earth-shattering as a very totured character. Frances Grey's role is a bit limited, but she does much with it.

Overall, wonderfully done second series to a great show and just as compelling as the first. 9/10 Bethany Cox

I didn`t see the original MESSIAH and couldn`t help feeling that perhaps that I should have after seeing the first half hour of the sequel , but not to worry even though it`s perhaps not as stand alone as the QUATERMASS serials or the James Bond franchise you don`t need to have seen the original to follow MESSIAH 2 : VENGANCE IS MINE

That said however no one can accuse VENGANCE IS MINE of being a groundbreaking crime thriller . It`s all filmed in the same extremely dark way as HANNIBAL , SEVEN , TOUCHING EVIL etc . In fact it`s so dark it`s sometimes difficult to see what`s going on . And it tries to shock the viewers with cruel deaths that these " shocking " deaths end up being laughable due to their OTT manner , instead of feeling sorry for the victims you can`t help giving an involuntary laugh as they meet their demise , especially the chap who gets bumped off beside the railway line . In fact so many people get abducted and murdered in relatively public places without the murderer being seen or interupted that I couldn`t help feeling there might be a supernatural angle to all this . This doesn`t happen and strangely enough when the killer is revealed the story doesn`t fall apart as much as I expected . Okay it`s unlikely for the reasons I`ve outlined but it does make logical sense .

One special word of note - for the first time ever we have an American actress playing a British character without a hint of an American accent , you`d have no idea at all that Michelle Forbes is an American actress . There is a very good reason for this . Watch VENGANCE IS MINE to see what I mean