1985

This mini-series tells the story of 3 main fictional characters from 1983 until 1987. Their dramatized lives are intertwined with real events and real characters while the main historical events are resumed at the end of each episode.

Overall, the actors were quite good. The story is also engaging and very well paced to create zero moments of being bored. Eight episodes seemed quite the right amount for this particular story: not over stretching it but still creating time to engage fully with the characters. I also enjoyed the mix of Dutch and French.

The production is also great. I highly recommend watching this.

Please watch this TV series as a document, nothing else. It is awesome if you remain in the learning of what happened in Belgium in the eighties, with the Brabant killers case. Many brutal and bloody killings occured in those days, without any explanations, killings perpetrated by commandos who first stole automatic weapons from the Gendarmerie arsenals.... This case was never solved, because those killings seemed to be covered and unofficially approved by the power, the governments. All those who tried to understand what really happened were threatened, lost their jobs and also maybe were killed. This plot is interesting only if you like this kind of scheme. But the dialogues, story telling and making is lame, flat. However the acting is not so bad. Another movie from Belgium evoked this story; TUEURS, from 2017. Excellent ending, though, for this TV show.

The series depicts events surrounding "De Bende Van Nijvel" (Gang Of Nivelles) that happened in the early eighties.

The main characters Mark and Frank (as well as Frank's sister Vicky) are fictional but many of the other characters featured are based (and very accurately too) on the real people thar were involved in the actual events that the series centers around.

The so called "Gang of Nivelles" has always been tied to or was at least suspected to have ties to special forces divisions of the Belgium state police (comparable to SWAT in it's early days - it takes place around 1985 after all). Politics and corruption however have always thwarted a conclusive investigation into the heists and robberies comitted by the members of the gang.

There were a few minor convictions for things like the "handling of stolen arms" because additional evidence and even complete indictments just seemed to disappear.

In later years however some of the people convicted or otherwise linked to the gang have authored books in which more details of their crimes are told.

Much of this series is based on that.

I fear that we'll have to wait 2 more generations to know the harsh truth of this "cold" case because of too many people still living being (partially) implemented.

That said this TV series gives a very good view of the period of terror Belgium lived in for almost 7 years, the manipulation of the public and most of all the system that should have protected us.

Casting is well done and as usual remarkable acting from Peter Van Den Begin. Even for the generation which did not live in those years it gives a clear view on the storyline being able to follow this TV serie.

Also well done is that at the end of each episode you see real tv/news footage of that period and an explanation of the facts actually known.

I also enjoyed the very beautiful soundtrack.

This TV serie made me to read more on the still unsolved subject. A must see, not only for Belgian citizens because each country will have a similar " unsolved mess".

This is brilliantly presented.

The main storyline of three friends finding their way in world and the paths they take is very believable and all credit to all the actors involved. You like the goodies and hate the baddies.

The really harrowing background of the story is the corrupt judicial and law enforcement in early 1980s Belgium. This is not fiction, this happened and some real news footage is used at times.

These people were/are criminals, right wing extremists with no respect for life, law or society.

The fact that to this day justice has not been done is quite abhorrent and maybe indicative of just how deep the rot was.

Having featured the worst of it all it is a shame that the ending could not have been more satisfying for the viewer for Marc, Franky and Vicky.