When it comes to television, The Fall is as good as a television series gets. Once I started watching, I had no intention of turning off the five hours of content that comprise season 1. Even though you may not have heard of this show, it ranks up there with American dramas such as "House of Cards", "True Detective", "Breaking Bad", "Homeland",and "The Wire".
Despite the compelling content, the show is hardly a mainstream event. It exists well below "the radar". At least it will remain below the radar until the world discovers that Jamie Dornan, the star of "Fifty Shades of Grey", which opens February 14, 2015 costars with Gillian Anderson of "The X Files".
Dornan is the antagonist with Anderson playing the protagonist. He delivers a five star performance as Peter Spector, a loving father, philandering husband, professional bereavement counselor whose career is spiraling towards termination, and a psychotic serial killer. He is smart,physically fit, and is prone to allowing his heart dictate actions that will challenge his brain to fix when things go haywire. He supports his practices with pearls of wisdom from the Irish bard T.S. Eliot and German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
Anderson plays the protagonist, Detective Chief Inspector Stella Gibson of the Metropolitan Police Force who has been brought to Belfast to assist in the capture of the murderer of professional female who is the former daughter-in-law of a well-connected, corrupt member of the Belfast police board. We are forewarned that politics plays a big role in policing Belfast. The viewer must also keep in mind an adage about Northern Ireland, "To see what it was like during Victorian times, go to Northern Ireland. The laws that govern women's sexual rights date back to 1861."
We are not in Kansas, Dorothy.
Even though Dornan is the villain and Anderson is our hero, the audience is made aware of the many personality nuances that they share . Both characters are feisty, independent, domineering, well educated, ruthless, and indefatigable in pursuit of their goals. The difference is that Spector murders his chosen victims and Gibson specializes in catching psychotic criminals. To paraphrase Anderson's character, "Gibson is tasked with apprehending a serial killer known as "Peter". Gibson is the subject and Peter, the serial killer is the object. The act of apprehension expresses the verb function". Beyond this clear directive, the storyline is blurred by both diligent and dysfunctional behaviors occurring within the corrupt, corporal environment of Belfast. We see the charms and curses of this volatile city. If police business occurs near the infamous Shankill or Falls Roads, they must employ tactics used by the allied armies in Iraq and Afghanistan. The simplest steps carried out by law enforcement require a para-military police presence in order to succeed.
The supporting cast is expertly played by a mostly Irish cast. Niamh McGrady is wonderful as Constable Danielle Ferrington, who becomes DCI Gibson's personal assistant while pursuing the killer. As the two police officials get to know each other, the show injects a splash of levity, which is needed to break the dark nature of the story. The assistant commissioner of police is played by John Lynch. Lynch portrays this tortured public official who has allies himself with dark side whenever it serves his purpose.
A handful of characters who display scruples manage to keep this "house of cards" from collapsing.
The six episode, second season of "The Fall" will air this fall on BBC2 & Netflix.
Despite the compelling content, the show is hardly a mainstream event. It exists well below "the radar". At least it will remain below the radar until the world discovers that Jamie Dornan, the star of "Fifty Shades of Grey", which opens February 14, 2015 costars with Gillian Anderson of "The X Files".
Dornan is the antagonist with Anderson playing the protagonist. He delivers a five star performance as Peter Spector, a loving father, philandering husband, professional bereavement counselor whose career is spiraling towards termination, and a psychotic serial killer. He is smart,physically fit, and is prone to allowing his heart dictate actions that will challenge his brain to fix when things go haywire. He supports his practices with pearls of wisdom from the Irish bard T.S. Eliot and German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
Anderson plays the protagonist, Detective Chief Inspector Stella Gibson of the Metropolitan Police Force who has been brought to Belfast to assist in the capture of the murderer of professional female who is the former daughter-in-law of a well-connected, corrupt member of the Belfast police board. We are forewarned that politics plays a big role in policing Belfast. The viewer must also keep in mind an adage about Northern Ireland, "To see what it was like during Victorian times, go to Northern Ireland. The laws that govern women's sexual rights date back to 1861."
We are not in Kansas, Dorothy.
Even though Dornan is the villain and Anderson is our hero, the audience is made aware of the many personality nuances that they share . Both characters are feisty, independent, domineering, well educated, ruthless, and indefatigable in pursuit of their goals. The difference is that Spector murders his chosen victims and Gibson specializes in catching psychotic criminals. To paraphrase Anderson's character, "Gibson is tasked with apprehending a serial killer known as "Peter". Gibson is the subject and Peter, the serial killer is the object. The act of apprehension expresses the verb function". Beyond this clear directive, the storyline is blurred by both diligent and dysfunctional behaviors occurring within the corrupt, corporal environment of Belfast. We see the charms and curses of this volatile city. If police business occurs near the infamous Shankill or Falls Roads, they must employ tactics used by the allied armies in Iraq and Afghanistan. The simplest steps carried out by law enforcement require a para-military police presence in order to succeed.
The supporting cast is expertly played by a mostly Irish cast. Niamh McGrady is wonderful as Constable Danielle Ferrington, who becomes DCI Gibson's personal assistant while pursuing the killer. As the two police officials get to know each other, the show injects a splash of levity, which is needed to break the dark nature of the story. The assistant commissioner of police is played by John Lynch. Lynch portrays this tortured public official who has allies himself with dark side whenever it serves his purpose.
A handful of characters who display scruples manage to keep this "house of cards" from collapsing.
The six episode, second season of "The Fall" will air this fall on BBC2 & Netflix.