Category Archives: Revenge

2012, Abduction, Abortion, Abuse of Women, Adopted child, Adultery, Arson, Asperger's Syndrome, Bloody scenes, Child abduction and murder, Child abuse, Child Molestation, Complicated, Crime, Dark, Detective, DO NOT MISS, Dysfunctional Lives, Emotional child abuse, Extramarital Affair, Failing Marriage, Family Conflict, Forensics, MHz Choice, Mildly Violent, Mother-daughter relations, Murder, Murder by poison, Murder Investigation, Pedophilia, Police Culture, Police Politics, Psychopath, Revenge, Serial Killer, Spousal Abuse, Suicide, Suspense, Swedish, Swedish crime series, Swedish Detective

Camilla Läckberg (2012)

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From MHz Choice:

Camilla Läckberg’s beloved characters return in a TV series based on three of her bestselling mystery novels. Set in Fjällbacka on the west coast of Sweden, Detective Patrik Hedström and his fiancée, the novelist Erica Falck, become enmeshed in complex crimes affecting all the residents of the tiny coastal community.

Jean Edith Camilla Läckberg  is a Swedish crime writer. As of the early-2010’s, her work has been translated into at least 40 languages in 60 countries.

Our last review was for “The Hidden Child” which was a stand-alone presentation streamed from MHz Choice of one of Camilla Läckberg’s stories.

This review of a series streamed from MHz Choice contains 3 more stories from Camilla Läckberg:

“The Preacher”: presented in one 1.5 hour episode.

“The Stonecutter”: presented in two 1 hour episodes.

“The Stranger”: presented in two 1 hour episodes.

Amazon sells all 8 books of the author’s “Fjällbacka ” series.

As with “The Hidden Child” the stories are grim, and the inter-personal relationships important. Another DO NOT MISS!

 

 

 

2017, Acorn TV, Arson, Bloody scenes, Child custody, Contract Killing, Crude Talk, Dark, Depression, Detective, DO NOT MISS, Dysfunctional Lives, Fishing, Forensics, Gloomy, Lawyers, Murder Investigation, Nazis, Nudity, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Sexual Tension, Small Town Atmosphere, Suicide, Suspense, Swedish, Swedish crime series, TV Series, Violent

Rebecka Martinsson (2017)

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From Acorn TV:

Swedish with English subtitles. Based on Asa Larsson’s celebrated and popular crime novels, the series takes place in the bleak Northern Environment and revolves around Rebecka Martinsson (Ida Engvoll) a Stockholm lawyer. When a childhood friend suddenly dies Rebecka reluctantly returns to her hometown. But not everything is what it seems and she’s drawn into the gripping pursuit of a killer.

Although MHz Choice offers only foreign language TV with English subtitles, in this case it is exceptionally Acorn TV that streams this particular TV series. Recall that Acorn TV claims to offer only shows from countries associated with the British empire.

Season 1 offers 8 episodes. Each two episodes comprise one complete story.  Each episode lasts about 45 minutes.

Watching from the beginning is important because, in addition to the detectives solving murders,  all 8 episodes show continuous developments in Rebecka’s life  as a young adult.

This series was a lucky find. Not only are the stories original and out of the ordinary, but the writing and acting are excellent.

Daily life in Sweden is presented in all its frigidity,  gloom, and hardship. But one of Rebecka’s conflicts is whether to continue her successful career as a Stockholm corporate lawyer (and marry one of her fellow employees) or to remain in the cold north where she grew up. Rebecka is played by a Swedish actress named Ida Engvoll. Despite her golden-haired beauty, the story line puts her through much anguish, including a stint in a mental hospital for clinical depression. For much of the series her eyes are made up to be sunken and red making her look downright miserable.  Her relationship with a one-armed police dog handler is an important part of the series, and in fact seems to lead to an as yet unavailable new season.

For a detective series I vote DO NOT MISS!

1997, Abduction, Abuse of Women, Addiction, Bloody scenes, Child abuse, Child Molestation, Complicated, Computer geeks, Contract Killing, Corruption, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime thriller, Detective, Disturbing Image, Drugs, Father-daughter relations, Financial malfeasance, Forensics, Grim, Made For TV, MHz Choice, Murder Investigation, Pedophilia, Police Culture, Psychological Drama, Revenge, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Spousal Abuse, Suicide, Suspense, Swedish, Swedish crime series, Thriller, Violent

Beck (1997)

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From MHz Choice:

He’s got no style, he’s got no flash and he’s squarely in middle age. But Swedish detective Martin Beck is good at one thing: methodically catching criminals so that they can be put away… for a long time. His tightly-wound partner, Gunvald, is his opposite: an impulsive man who cuts a dashing figure, is in no way politically correct and who never met a boundary he didn’t leap across.

MHz Choice lets you stream 5 seasons of the Swedish detective series “Beck”.  All seasons offer 8 episodes except Season 4 which only offers 2 episodes. Each Episode is approximate 1.5 hours.

Harsh and sometimes hard-to-watch, the episodes are well done. If you want something less tense, try the MHz Choice series “Magellan”.

Through the 5 seasons Beck’s physical appearance does not change much. But the difference between the Season 1 Gunvald and the Season 5 Gunvald is striking in the way that the actor has aged.

Part of the appeal of the series is that the personal lives of the characters continue from episode to episode. Therefore it is best to view the episodes in order. However the mystery story for each episode is self-contained.

When you browse to MHz Choice, just enter “Beck” in the search box. Then you can see all the seasons and episodes listed. If you pause over one of the episode boxes, you get a short description of that episode.

Choosing categories for this series is difficult because after 34 episodes, there is hardly an untouched category.

Never boring, never relaxed viewing.

2001, 2003, 2012, Abduction, Abortion, Abuse of Women, Alcoholism, Bloody scenes, Career Competition, Child custody, Computer geeks, Corruption, Crime thriller, Detective, Divorce, Explicit sex, Extramarital Affair, Failing Marriage, Family Conflict, Financial malfeasance, Jealousy, Journalist, Lesbian Theme, MHz Choice, Murder Investigation, Nudity, Personal Betrayal, Private Versus Professional Life, Psychopath, Revenge, Serial Killer, Suspense, Swedish, Swedish crime series, Terrorist Attack, Thriller, TV Series, Unmarried mother, Violent, Vulgar

Annika Bengtzon (2012)

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From MHz Choice:

Based on author Liza Marklund’s best-selling crime novels, Annika Bengtzon is a journalist and working mother of two struggling to raise her family. Fearless in her search for the truth, she won’t take no for an answer from anyone: not from prestigious academicians or drug dealers or from colleagues inside her own profession.

MHz Choice streams this Swedish TV crime series (with English subtitles) in two seasons. Season 1 includes 6 episodes all of which were made in 2012. Season 2 includes only 2 episodes made in 2001 and 2003.  First watch Season 1 in which Annika is played by the beautiful Malin Crépin.  Season 2 contains “Paradise” which is a prequel that tells how a young Annika fights to be a reporter, and “Deadline” which takes 2 hours and features Annika as a second-in-command at the newspaper. All the other 7 episodes last about 1.5 hours. In season 2 Annika is played by Helena Bergström who is extremely different in appearance from Malin Crépin. Visually, for example in the physical appearance of actors, season 1 is more of a crowd pleaser.

As is the case with many crime shows featuring a woman doing the sleuthing, the theme is how the woman must battle male prejudice while trying to balance her obsessive drive to do her job (here to deliver news stories)  with the demands of her family (here husband and two children). Quite a bit of really NOT boring film footage is devoted to jealous bickering in the newsroom.

Only one episode was somewhat boring. In every episode, however, the suspense is palpable, especially because  Annika’s life is usually in danger.

If you like an intense rush, try these two series.

2008, Abuse of Women, Acceptable for teenagers, Amusing banter, Catholic Church Corruption, Comic Moments, Extramarital Affair, Failing Marriage, Financial malfeasance, Flirting, German, German Detectives, Insurance Fraud, Interest in automobiles, Jealousy, Kidnapping, Made For TV, MHz Choice, Mixed Martial Arts, Murder Investigation, Police Politics, Religious Theme, Revenge, Suspense, Unbelievably smart detective, Uncategorized

Marie’s Mind for Murder (2008)

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From MHz Choice:

After the death of her policeman father, Inspector Marie Brand (Mariele Millowitsch) said goodbye to homicide – or so she thought. But after being called in to consult on a difficult case she finds herself back on the job, working with the very handsome Inspector Jürgen Simmel, a ladies’ man with a soft spot for Marie. With her brilliant, analytical mind for murder and Simmel’s more hands-on approach, these two form a perfect team!

From MHz Choice ($7.99 per month) you can stream 10 episodes of Season 1.  Each episode lasts about an hour and a half. Speech is in German with English subtitles.

To the above summary I can only add that these detective stories are easy to watch (no gore, no serial killers). Brand and Simmel engage in amusing quasi-combative banter. Simmel gets involved with many beautiful women, who unfortunately are often part of the crime du jour. Brand has some personal troubles. Simmel is often clumsy while physically active most of the time ( since he really wants to show off his martial art skills).

All in all, this series is a pleasant way to pass the time.

2011, Abduction, Adultery, Arson, Bisexual theme, Bloody scenes, Child abduction and murder, Complicated, Corruption, Could Be Hard To Watch, Dark, Detective, Emotional abuse, Extramarital Affair, Father-daughter relations, German, Grim, Mental Illness, MHz Choice, Murder Investigation, Police Culture, Psychiatrists, Psychological Thriller, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Violent

Anatomy of Evil (2011)

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From MHz Choice:

Heino Ferch (Downfall) stars police psychologist Richard Brock in this dark mystery series set in Vienna. Brock is a loner, still blaming himself for the suicide of his wife and trying to reconnect with his daughter, newly graduated from the police academy. The only constants in his life are his faithful housekeeper, Mrs. Anni, and his friend Klaus Tauber, the owner of the coffee house where he inevitably eats all his meals.

From MHz Choice you can stream 5 episodes of this superb but truly grim Austrian TV series spoken in German with English subtitles. Each episode lasts about an hour and a half.

UPDATE March 20, 2021:

MHz Choice now offers  four episodes of season two  as well as season one.  Season 2 now contains:  “Desire,” “Rage,” “Yearning,” “Guilt.”  In the fourth episode of season two, Brock must defeat a psychopathic police commander in yet another brooding, GRIM episode.

UPDATE August 17, 2019:

MHz Choice now offers  the three episodes of season two  as well as season one.  All are at least as GRIM as season one.  See below for a discussion of season two.

ORIGINAL REVIEW:

From the best online description I could find, I quote:

I’ve finally met a character more morose than Kurt Wallander.

Sad, isolated, injured detectives who cannot connect with their offspring  are all the rage now. Nonetheless, if you enjoy grim (and I mean G-R-I-M-!!!) you will love these stories. Even my wife Kathy (who usually leaves the room during especially tense or violent scenes) is addicted. In fact both of us manage to stay awake during the entire show.

Episode 3 “Fear” ends with a really devastating scene. You are warned!

SEASON TWO:

“Desire”, “Rage”, and “Yearning” are the titles of the three season two episodes. All, as in season one, are characterized by dark, beautiful, careful cinematography. All are slow moving except for the violent scenes.

“Desire” is perhaps one of the strangest murder mysteries that I have ever seen because not until close to the end does it become clear that there even was a murder.

Brock barely survives “Rage”. When it is over Brock now has a dangerous and corrupt enemy in the police force. Brock’s daughter continues to work in that police force. That corruption and its many murders must eventually (we hope) see justice.

In “Yearning” Brock is recuperating both physically and mentally in his apartment. He spends his time with a pair of binoculars spying on his neighbors across the street. In a story reminiscent of “Rear Window” he witnesses a murder and needs all the help he can get to bring the killer to justice.

“Yearning” concludes with a situation that cries for another season.

What an amazing discovery this series is, even if it possibly means a harrowing viewing.

 

1999, Acceptable for teenagers, Based on a Book, Boating, Catholic culture, Comic Moments, Complicated, Computer geeks, Conspiracy, Corny at times, Crime, Detective, Dog Story, Extramarital Affair, International thriler, Italian, Italian culture, Italian detective, MHz Choice, Murder Investigation, Nudity, Police Culture, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Small Town, Sometimes seems silly, Spousal Abuse, TV Series

Detective Montalbano (1999)

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From MHz Choice:

Murder, betrayal, office politics, temptation… it’s all in a day’s work for Detective Salvo Montalbano. Filmed in the ancient, sun-washed Sicilian city of Ragusa Ibla, the series is based on the international best-selling mystery novels by Andrea Camilleri and stars Luca Zingaretti.

Until June 27, 2017 MHz Choice offers only Season 1 which includes “only!” 35 Episodes.

As far as drama goes, these episodes are fun but not masterpieces. For me the attractions are the Italian language, the somewhat goofy Italian personal interactions, the tantalizing scenery, and the stories. It would not surprise me that you might find the acting sometimes corny.  You may have to be a real Italophile.

In the past I have read several of these mystery novels by Andrea Camilleri whose Italian vocabulary often uses words from the Sicilan dialect, but the actors speak so quickly that I am not sure if they ever use any Sicilian words.

Plots tend to be complicated. Each episode is about one hour and 45 minutes. Running through the series is Montalbano’s romance with Livia. There is nothing grim or even violent in the stories.

Just plain fun if you enjoy friendly, wacky Italians.

 

 

2016, Action Film, Action Hero, Bloody scenes, Contract Killing, Corruption, Cowboy, Crude Talk, Frontier Life, Gangs, Greed, Horses, Mercenaries, Miners, Murder, Netflix DVD, Police Corruption, Psychopath, Revenge, Small Town, Sociopath, Suspense, Violent, Western

The Magnificent Seven (2016)

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From IMDB:

Seven gunmen in the old west gradually come together to help a poor village against savage thieves.

With the DVD from Netflix you can watch, read, and listen in at least seven different languages.

In 1954 Akira Kurosawa co-wrote, edited, and directed the film “Seven Samurai“.

In 1960 Jul Brynner, Eli Wallach, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and others starred in the film “The Magnificent Seven“.

In 2016 Antoine Fuqua directed yet another version. This time some of the actors are:

  • Denzel Washington as Chisolm
  • Chris Pratt as Josh Faraday
  • Ethan Hawke as Goodnight Robicheaux
  • Vincent D’Onofrio as Jack Horne
  • Peter Sarsgaard as a “magnificent” sadistic, greedy, sociopath Bartholomew Brogue. In some ways, this part steals the show.

You already know the story: Nasty Brogue kills and terrorizes a small town in order to steal their land and enslave their menfolk for his mine.  One by one Chisolm recruits his band of seven “Samurai” who then have a week in which to prepare for battle against a giant gang of Brogue’s hired guns. During the ensuing battle zillions of people die by gun and knife and arrow (one of the seven is an American Indian). Some of our heroes die (prepare to weep) but needless to say justice prevails. Shucks – you knew there had to be a happy ending somewhere.

Indeed the devil is in the details which are very well done. As I may have mentioned before I am a sucker for plots involving good guys versus bad guys. Such a guilty surge of joy I felt each time a bad guy got shot. Of course, the good guys never missed their shots.

As  kid every Saturday I got an allowance of 30 cents. For 20 cents I could go to the movies which inevitably showed one or two cowboy films. For the remaining 10 cents I went to the Five-and-Dime store, read every comic book but one, namely “Captain Marvel Junior”, which I then purchased. Had they shown this version of “The Magnificent Seven” and had my mother gotten wind of just how violent a film it is, then I would not have been allowed to see the film.

What fun!

 

2014, 2015, 2016, Acorn TV, Bloody scenes, British Mystery Series, Child abuse, Clever Plot, Conspiracy, Corruption, Crime thriller, Detective, DNA, Family Conflict, Father-son relations, Forensics, Made For TV, Mildly Violent, Murder Investigation, Personal Betrayal, Physical child abuse, Revenge, Suspense

Suspects (2014)

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From Acorn TV:

Suspects is a “fresh, very different, and absolutely cracking drama” -Daily Mail (UK). With improvised dialogue and using filming techniques and a directorial approach usually associated with factual programming, this unique procedural crime drama follows D.I. Martha Bellamy (Fay Ripley, Cold Feet) and her team as they investigate hard-hitting crimes in contemporary London.

From Acorn TV you can stream 5 seasons, each with more or less 5 episodes. Each episode lasts approximately 45 minutes.

Granted that 27 episodes is a lot to watch. However, the story line is compelling and kept Kathy and me eager to see the “next” episode. Scenes change so rapidly that you have to pay attention. But that speed is what keeps the plot zipping along.  Episodes continue from one to another, but each season is a self-contained story. For my money the last season was a knock-out.

Characters are important:

  • Damien Molony plays DS Jack Weston who is somewhat of a lone wolf trouble maker. Because he is not a team player, he often does damage to an investigation.
  • Clare-Hope Ashity plays DC Charlie Steele (yes, she is a woman) who spends a lot of energy trying to keep Jack Weston in line, usually to no avail.
  • Fay Ripley plays DI Martha Bellamy the hard hitting boss lady. She is with us for four seasons but is found murdered at the start of season five.

You won’t go wrong sitting on the edge of your seat for these exciting episodes.

 

2016, Abduction, Abuse of Women, Alcoholism, Amazon Prime, Based on a Book, Bloody scenes, British, Computer geeks, Conspiracy, Contract Killing, Corruption, Could Be Hard To Watch, Cynical, DO NOT MISS, Drug Dealers, Drugs, Gambling, Greed, Grim, Illegitimate Child, International thriler, Love Story, Marital Infidelity, Mercenaries, MI-6, Military, Murder, Nudity, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Sociopath, Swedish crime series, Thriller, Torture, Unmarried mother, Violent, Weapons Dealer

The Night Manager (2016)

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From IMDB:

The night manager of a Cairo hotel is recruited to infiltrate an arms dealer’s inner circle.

From Amazon Prime you can stream this one season, six episode British TV series based on the 1993 novel of the same name by John le Carré.

Easily one of the most suspenseful and engaging undercover TV series I have ever watched, this series grabbed my attention and pushed me into  binge-watching.  Wikipedia offers this synopsis:

Luxury hotel night manager and former British soldier Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) is recruited by Angela Burr (Olivia Colman), an intelligence operative. He is tasked to navigate Whitehall and Washington, D.C. where there is an alliance between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. He must infiltrate the inner circle of arms dealer Richard Onslow Roper (Hugh Laurie), Roper’s girlfriend Jed (Elizabeth Debicki), and associate Corkoran (Tom Hollander).

Angela Burr has spent decades trying to bring down Richard Roper. Note from the synopsis above that she must simultaneously fight several corrupt members of the British intelligence community who profit from the weapons sales. Roper, played to chilling perfection by Hugh Laurie, is a very clever, ruthless and amoral weapons dealer who is permanently attached emotionally to absolutely no one. He will kill anyone who interferes with his cynical drive to enrich himself by selling illegally obtained weapons of war (napalm, sarin,  rocket launchers, heat seeking missiles, you name it) to whomever is willing to pay his price. He surrounds himself with a coterie of loyal, equally brutal henchmen.  By showing displays of weapons in action and relating past outrages (such as disfiguring children taking part in a sports outing by dropping chemical weapons) the story tries to emphasize the inhumane horror of Roper’s crimes. Roper is more than likely a sociopath.

What is equally chilling is the unemotional complacency of the corrupt intelligence officers who either don’t even attempt to rationalize their behavior or offer some bland excuse. As a result, the efforts of the other officers, i.e. those who have consciences, take on the character of a sacred mission that could easily fail.

What adds to the suspense is the complication that the night manager Jonathan Pine (played by Tom Hiddleston) falls in love with Roper’s girl friend Jed (played by Elizabeth Debicki).  However this attraction is no side piece, but an essential part of the plot.

You may recognize some of the actors from older productions. As far as I am concerned I especially noticed:

  • Alistair Petrie (Sandy Langbourne) was George Forsyte in “The Forsyte Saga”. His resume is very long.
  • Tom Hollander (Lance “Corky” Corkoran) first came to my notice as the famous British spy Guy Burgess in “Cambridge Spies”.
  • David Harewood (the American Joel Steadman) was Francis Warrender in “MI-5” and David Estes in “Homeland”.
  • Olivia  Colman (Angela Burr) was D.S. Ellie Miller in “Broadchurch”.

Make no mistake, this series is violent and suspenseful enough that you might have trouble watching it. Of course that is why I felt compelled to binge-watch. Every episode seemed to end with a nerve wracking cliff hanger.

If you can stand the tension, DO NOT MISS!