Midnight Sun

I watch a ton of foreign murder series. All the "big" name ones, and tons of mediocre, not so great ones. Midnight Sun was gripping.

I enjoy when I watch a series and learn about other cultures at the same time. A big part of this story involved the "Sami" people. The Sami people (also Sámi or Saami, traditionally known in English as Lapps or Laplanders) are an indigenous Finno-Ugric people inhabiting the Arctic area of Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the Kola Peninsula of Russia. ( hat tip to Wiki). The series has a mix of French, English and Swedish, so you do need subtitles. I enjoyed the mix.

I had never heard of these people, and it was interesting to do a little research and learn. I felt the actors were top notch. Some of these reviews complained when one of the policemen makes an early exit from the show. I was disappointed as well, but the other policemen grows on you. ( Trying to avoid spoilers, so no names).

The French actress, Leïla Bekhti is mesmerizing. I would like to see her in more series available for a broader market. The rest of the actors were very good, right down to the town people. I am usually able to guess the murderer/s quite early on, since I watch so many shows like this, but this one keeps you guessing.

There are many layers that unfold as the story continues, and you are not sure what is going on exactly.

I enjoyed that. Also there were some new and gruesome ways to murder people in this show. It is not the same old, that is for sure. This was not the usual dark setting of many Nordic series. The scenery is beautiful. It is always sunny. The are in the constant sunlight period of the region.

I binged watched this over two days. Sometimes with some of these shows that unfold more slowly, you get into the rhythm better with binge watching it.

I enjoyed that this show was not depressing. Which is a surprise maybe since people do die in gruesome ways. Some of these tend to be so dark and sad with their main characters. These main characters had back stories, but were more hopeful in tone.

I find it refreshing to watch the slower pace and the use of silence to make a point, and punctuate moments. This tends to not be the way of American shows, that is for sure! I highly recommend this. It was done by the same writers who did "Swedish/Danish TV series Bron/Broen or The Bridge". which is amazing.

After a French national is murdered in Sámi territory in north Sweden, troubled investigator Kahina Zahdi (Leïla Bekhti) is sent out to investigate. She quickly learns there's a lot more at play.

The small local police force is faced with the task of solving a gruesome murder, unheard of in the otherwise sleepy mining community. And when lead investigator Rutger Burlin (Peter Stormare) unexpectedly takes his leave, the investigation suddenly lands on the shoulders of the somewhat clumsy public prosecutor Anders Harnesk (Gustaf Hammarsten), whom hardly anybody holds in high regard. Tensions only worsen when it turns out the French murder is only the tip of the iceberg, which puts both the mining community as well as the Sámi on edge. There's even a minor role for the Kven people.

Midnattssol offers an interesting window into Sámi culture, while succesfully contrasting the beauty and tranquility of the northern Swedish landscape and its six-month daylight with the dark cruelty of a troubled mind. While the mystification of Sámi customs may be a bit overdone, with at times incessant traditional joik singing and visions of reindeer, having a nåjd (Sámi shaman) make unexpected jokes lightens the mood sometimes.

The series touches on quite a few issues, such as racism, the treatment of minorities and their fight for basic rights, acceptance of (homo)sexuality, the bonds between parents and children, greed, honesty, revenge, and international relations. Almost all main characters grow and develop considerably during this multilingual drama, and they all have their own issues to overcome.

As a viewer, you really find yourself divided between the mining community and the Sámi, the motives of the murderer and the (not so innocent) victims, which in itself also reflects the inner turmoil of lead investigator Harnesk, who is half Swedish, half Sámi himself.

Small wonder both Hammarsted and Bekhti were nominees for Outstanding Actor and Outstanding Actress in a Drama TV Series at the Montecarlo TV Festival, and Midnattssol won the Kristallen Best Drama of the Year award.

Nice detail: the town of Kiruna does exist in real life, and it really plans to move in its entirety a few kilometres because of the iron mine.

What a great show. Set in a beautiful town, the mystery deepens with each episode and will leave you on the edge of your seat. Character development has been done really well also. A must watch. Brilliant!

I enjoyed this series. The thrills start with the very first scene. Fantastic scenery and thrilling plot. Some characters could have developed more such as the prosecutor but overall I thought it was great. The scenery is fantastic.....the starkness surprised me. The sub plots about the french detective and her emotional and physical struggles and her relationships was interesting though at times frustrating to me. I'd like to have known more about the prosecutor the prejudices against him and his relationships. It was left open to the last few episodes and the chase to try to find and stop whodunit. There are surprises however right up to the end.

I have watched a few series where there are more episodes than the plot could carry so the series becomes bogged down and boring. This series is the opposite to this. I watched two or three episodes per night. I had to force myself to stop watching. The writing is over the top great. They story is never predictable and there are to many story lines to follow to be boring. I will probably watch it again. I enjoyed the language mixture and most of the casting was perfectly done. The loose ends at the end are story lines that are still developing and will be for years to come. The Sami people deserve to have their story told and this production was an excellent start.