Often once can criticise mainstream film an television for falling into the standard conventions of genre. Danish drama 'The Killing', for example, is only pseudo-naturalistic: it's highly manipulative, and, if you take all of its plot twists together, as risible as any other story where one death magically leads to a chain of others to keep the story alive. But it's also the best thing I've seen on TV for years. Over twenty episodes, those plot twists actually come pretty slowly; the drama treats its audience like adults; there's some highly absorbing interplay between a police investigation and political circles (as in the later series of 'The Wire'); and above all else, there are some of the best characters I've ever seen in a TV drama. The lead parts, Lund (Sofie Grabol) and Hartmann (Lare Mikkelsen), are especially good (and in a strange way, not altogether unlike each other): neither is a conventional hero (or villain), neither is even particularly personally likable, but you still will them on. But the lesser characters are no less absorbing; and even the guilty man is still plainly human, although as episode twenty throws up a new and surprising twist, one can't be altogether certain what he is guilty of. Few other programs have left me so entranced; if the second series keeps this up, it will be a true great.
Review of Forbrydelsen
