Wallander

I usually enjoy British-made mystery series, and "Wallander," starring Kenneth Brannaugh, is one of the recent series that particularly stands out.

Based on the mystery novels by Henning Mankell, "Wallander" maintains the Swedish setting of the novels, and the slightly moody tone of the books. Wallander is a complex character with many foibles, but he remains sympathetic, and Brannaugh's portrayal is spot-on. The relationship of the title character with his daughter and his colleagues rings true both to life and to the original novels.

As to another reviewer thinking it's odd that they're speaking English when it's set in Sweden, unless it's being dubbed from English into another language (particularly Swedish), I would find nothing odd about it. I wouldn't expect a British series to be written in Swedish, regardless of the setting or the original source. No more did I expect "The Last Emperor" to be filmed in Chinese or the characters in "I, Claudius" to be speaking Latin. The Swedish setting is highly evocative, and the series is true to the spirit of the books.

I highly recommend "Wallander" for anyone who likes character-driven detective mysteries. (ETA: BTW, anyone who has a chance to see the original Swedish "Wallander" series, it is somewhat different, the drama more implied through the circumstances of the particular crimes, and is more subdued; there's also more of a "police procedural" feel to it. They're sometimes shown on U.S. television w/ English subtitles. I don't know if it's available dubbed or not -- but as I prefer not to watch things that are dubbed even when I don't speak the language, I'm very glad to say that I'm only acquainted with the subtitled version. I'd say that the Swedish version picks up more the plot and action of the books, whereas the British version is more interested in the characters, particularly Wallander, but also the characters and motivation of the perpetrators.)

Wallander is a British television series adapted from the Swedish novelist Henning Mankell's Kurt Wallander novels & starring Kenneth Branagh as the depressed gloomy police inspector (who is also separated from his wife). Wallender is the Swedish equivalent of Inspector Morse. The six-episode series from BBC Scotland was broadcast first on BBC One from November to December 2008. It is the first time the Wallander novels have been adapted into an English-language production. The protagonist, Kurt Wallander, is played by Kenneth Branagh. He describes Wallander as "an existentialist [...] who is questioning what life is about & why he does what he does every day, & for whom acts of violence never become normal. There's a level of empathy with the victims of crime that's almost impossible to contain, -one of the prices he pays for that sort of empathy is a personal life that's a kind of wasteland. Primarily filmed in Ystad Sweden. The 1st disc includes the episodes Sidetracked & Firewall. This series was also partially produced by Branagh personally. See IMDb 1178618 for info & synopsis of all episodes. For some reason n flix is only stocking episode 3 of season 2 leaving us viewers with 3 episodes unseen. This series is so excellent I will buy them on Ama/zon if I have to. To me this series is just the BEST crime drama I have ever viewed. Great sets with highest production values- great plots from the famous Mankells books. The cinematography is just phenomenal—really stunning photography. Branagh as the police detective with personal demons is so powerful in this role. He portrays a complex Wallander with all his character defects-but Branagh helps the character remain sympathetic to us the viewers. Films presentation enables the viewer to understand what they (the ensemble cast) are thinking, feeling. Murder is grotesque & there are some very bloody scenes in this. This absolutely the most spellbinding 180 minutes of film I have seen in a long long time.

This is a series of high quality with storyline based on the successful novels of Henning Mankell and on an outstanding actor in the leading role.

Why you MUST see it?

• Incredible character development! Wallander's personality is an open book to the viewer who is in sympathy with him and is able to share their feelings with him as the plot reveals itself. The series manages to depict a great and charming contradiction. Wallander is a compassionate inspector who suffers from the murders he encounters during his investigations. He is inappropriately compassionate for this job yet he does everything for it. Although misery follows his personal life he doesn't lose hope and believes in the goodness of people. This is that gives him the dimension of a hero even though he is presented incredibly ordinary and human who often make mistakes.

• Really good acting from the most of the cast.

• Amazing directing which transfers completely the atmosphere of Sweden. It is really good that BBC decided to film the series in Sweden as it provides ideal landscapes for photography and directing and greatly matches with the melancholic personality of Wallander and with the original script of course.

• Solid script that follows consistently enough Mankell's novels.

If you prefer a series that is based on quality and not visual effects you should definitely go for it.

The other thing is that Kenneth Branagh is an international star, thus his Wallander is more distinguishing and less team player: his colleagues have less importance and less time on screen than in the Swedish version. Branagh's Wallander is also more unsociable and seems more depressed, underlined by long scenes focusing on his face expression under driving or walking. The big plus is that the Brits have tried to create the Swedish atmosphere as much as possible, signs are in Swedish etc. Well, the UK and Sweden have same latitudes, so the filming of Swedish nature was also possible in England.

Nevertheless, if you like Scandinavian crime thrillers (with slower pace, minimum explosions/chases, long nature frames), then the Wallander series is definitely for you. However, the "trinity" series is better to watch in a temporal sequence, they have some references to earlier events.

Watching two episodes of "Wallander" makes me think of Isabelle Huppert's line in Hal Hartley's great "Amateur": "everything I write comes out sad. Why do you think that is?" Kenneth Brannagh's shambling, weary detective Kurt Wallander is as far from TV's 'Columbo' as it's possible to get, despite certain physical similarities.

In a way that I seem to recognise as uniquely Nordic, Wallander goes about his daily business – solving murders – with a residual sadness on him and his world, and everything in the show – from the art-house photography and pared-down sets, to the score, to his life and to each episode's stories themselves – helps create a consistent portrait, so that by the time I settled down for episode two, Wallander's appearance was an automatic trigger to a certain state of mind.

Each classy episode takes its time, draws visual comparisons, sets Wallander up in his world, makes you know him better. I'm loving it : it's on a par with the excellent French TV thriller "Engrenages" that previously appeared on BBC4, and anything ever so slightly formulaic about the story lines in each episode is offset by the serious and committed acting, the well-drawn characterisation, the consistent visual tone. I'm so glad they avoided the Meryl Streep world of accents and wholesale removal of the drama to the UK (or USA). These are Swedish characters in a Swedish town who write in Swedish – it's just that we're hearing them in English. And this technique allows them to cast truly excellent English supporting actors without any fear of uneven accents or geographic transitions that don't work so well. (No English forest ever looks quite like a Scandinavian one. And the British don't so much do sadness and mournful humour, as bleakness and black humour – they're quite different.)

I saw Kenneth Brannagh as an electrifying 'Hamlet' on stage in the late 80s, and this feels something like being reacquainted with an old ghost. He's no longer young, and he's not beautiful, but he makes masterful use of his eyes, his voice, the very weariness life has given him – to create a memorable man, not just a cartoon portrait. Highly recommended.