Last night I finished watching the six-part British TV Drama, "River"
and thought it the best thing I'd seen in ages, but I didn't trust my
opinion since the main character, River, is mourning the loss of his
partner, Stevie (DS Jackie Stevenson) throughout. I checked a couple of
reviews & the reviewers were a bit bothered by the "cliche" of dead
people appearing as malevolent ghosts, but I don't watch that much TV
and wasn't bothered. Besides, the people who appear to detective John
River aren't ghosts but manifestations of his own thinking. They don't
tell him anything he doesn't know or doesn't believe at the time.
The series ran on BBC One beginning on 13 October 2015 and on Netflix
internationally on 18 November 2015. I should watch it again to form a
more balanced opinion. I don't recall seeing the actor who plays River,
Stellan Skarsgard, before, but I recall seeing Nicola Walker in
"Touching Evil." I don't think I was impressed by her acting in
Touching Evil but I thought her brilliant in "River." My impression is
that she outshines Stellan Skarsgard -- maybe because she does an
excellent job playing differently, but not too differently, depending
upon what is going on with River at the time; whereas River is dark and
brooding in the first episode and only blossoms as a character toward
the end. Stevie is fully blossomed in the first scene, riding in a car
with River, singing along with a song playing on the radio "I love to
love" and trying to get River, who insists he can't sing (and I gather
the actor Skarsgard really can't; which detracts a little, especially
because Nicola Walker is so good).
River is bent upon solving the murder of Stevie and does despite the
"cliche" of his bosses boss who wants to get rid of him and has him
undergo a psych evaluation figuring that will do it, but the
psychologist turns out to be someone who has a special interest in
patients who have dead people appear to them and doesn't think that
disqualifies River from doing his job.
There are crimes beyond Stevie's murder and River solves them all, and
somehow despite the evil we have seen the ending is satisfactory. River
is still crazy, but he'll go on being a brilliant detective solving
crimes. Those who doubted him doubt him no longer. In fact they adjust
to his seeing "manifests" and are okay with it.
I didn't know there were only six parts to the series when I was
watching. I thought this was but the first season of an ongoing TV
series, but apparently not. I was hoping there would be more but
couldn't imagine how a season two could be written or that it could
possibly be as good.
Lawrence
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