Blue Murder: Set 2
by Alex Pillai, Paul Wroblewski
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DVD Cover Information
Director: Alex Pillai, Paul WroblewskiAudio: English (Original Language)
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.66:1
Running Time: 274 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-01-29
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Acorn Media
Movie Reviews of Blue Murder: Set 2
Movie Review: This May Just Be Your Cuppa
Summary: 4 Stars
"Blue Murder, Set 2,"a crime drama/police procedural, chronicles the doings of a Manchester-based contemporary female British detective who's both a top cop and a single mum to four. It was made by the British Independent Television (ITV), and is a ratings hit in the United Kingdom, but has not yet been broadcast here. It is, inevitably, reminiscent of Helen Mirren's "Prime Suspect," though the mysteries tend to be somewhat kinder and gentler.
In the lead role, DSI Janine Lewis, Caroline Quentin("Jonathan Creek," "Men Behaving Badly") gets a chance to prove herself a substantial actress, as well as a talented comedienne. In her job, she faces drive-by shootings, abducted children, and police corruption; at home, the, praises be, no longer all that young, nor all that slim, detective interviews nanny candidates, and attempts to comfort her bullied young son. Ian Kelsey ("Casualty") co-stars as her second in command, handsome DI Richard Mayne; he provides romantic and sometimes professional tension. And as Detective Schapp, Nicholas Murchie turns in particularly flavorful performances. The series is filmed on location in Manchester, a busy Midlands city that we don't get to see much of here, and it looks good. Enough extras have been hired so that the city bustles as it should, too. The actors have been encouraged to trot out their Manchester accents, which add a lot of atmosphere to the productions, and, thankfully, Acorn Media has added unadvertised subtitles, so that we can actually follow what's happening, local slang and all. However, the series' direction could be tightened a bit; the actors sometimes tend to stand around, posing.
In Episode 1, "The Spartacus Thing," we meet a fairly dysfunctional family. Mrs. Hickson has killed her husband's dog: he has strangled her with a dog chain, and served only eighteen months for it. Upon his release, he is strangled in strikingly similar fashion. Fifteen members of his dead wife's family confess to the murder. This episode piles up the most unlikely events to reach a conclusion.
Episode 2, "Make Believe," concerns three-year old Sammy Wray, who apparently vanishes into thin air from a neighborhood playground. Soon, the body of a child of similar age turns up nearby, wrapped in a sheet in a drainage tunnel. The plot's tight, has some good twists and turns, is emotionally involving, and will keep most viewers' attention.
Episode 3, "In Deep," follows a group of four college friends who used to fish together at a nearby lake, where the body of a man eventually identified as Mickey Day, small-time crook and drug dealer, is found. Now someone's picking off the college friends, one by one. This episode, too, must pile up the most unlikely events to reach conclusion.
Episode 4, "Steady Eddie," tells the story of Eddie Carter, popular copper's cop, who preferred walking the beat to climbing the slippery ladder of departmental promotion. When a jewelry heist goes wrong, and Carter is killed in a drive-by shooting, Janine and her team are forced to investigate him, and find out some things about him that they'd rather not have. Again, an absorbing mystery, with plenty of twists and turns.
Now, I'm not sure who's been asking for kinder, gentler British mysteries; surely, not me. I find "Hetty Wainthropp" acceptable, because, after all, the title character is played by Patricia Routledge, better known as our Hyacinthe Bucket, from the hilarious Britcom "Keeping Up Appearances." And "Rosemary and Thyme" works, because you've got those lovely gardens to look at, and the female leads are both, also, apt and talented comediennes. However, if you like female-headed, female-oriented, mysteries, and prefer them softer-edged, this may just be your cuppa.
Summary of Blue Murder: Set 2
The first season of Blue Murder was very good; the second season verges on great. It may not reach the brittle heights of Prime Suspect--the writing isn't as psychologically rich--but it's in the same weight class. DCI Janine Lewis (Caroline Quentin, Jonathan Creek) isn't a super-sleuth. She's a single mother with four kids, an uneasy relationship with her ex-husband, and sexual tension with her lead detective, Richard Mayne (tall and handsome Ian Kelsey). She runs her investigative team with brisk efficiency, while her home life tends towards chaos. She navigates the twisty plots of these four episodes not through lightning bursts of deduction, but by piecing evidence together bit by bit--and this diligence is wonderfully engaging. Seemingly simple events slowly unveil a more complex and troubling story: A drowned dog leads to identical twins and infidelity; a mean prank draws four men into murder and revenge; robbery, hit and run, and the killing of a cop are intricately connected. During the investigation of a missing child, Mayne starts a new relationship and Lewis starts to lose her cool reserve. Careful plotting, vivid dialogue, solid acting from all the regulars (particularly Paul Loughran and Nicholas Murchie as Lewis's detective sergeants), and consistently sharp turns from the guest cast make Blue Murder a must-see for any fan of American police procedurals like Law & Order or CSI. Who would have guessed, when Quentin was a supporting player on Men Behaving Badly, that she'd become such a superb dramatic actor? --Bret FetzerA top cop dedicated to her job and devoted to her family.
On the job, Janine Lewis deals with drive-by executions, decomposed bodies, and abducted children. At home, she interviews nannies, schedules parent-teacher conferences, and bolts breakfast on the run. Such is the life of a Detective Chief Inspector on the Manchester police force who also happens to be a single mum raising four kids. Caroline Quentin (Jonathan Creek, Men Behaving Badly) brings sensitivity, passion, and wry humor to her role as a woman balancing the demands of a high-risk, high-profile profession with the need to nurture her high-maintenance family. Ian Kelsey (Casualty) co-stars as DI Richard Mayne, Janine's sexy second in command - a source of romantic and sometimes professional tension on their tight-knit team.
In four taut crime dramas, Blue Murder realistically depicts the everyday toils and triumphs of police work alongside the insistent tug of family life for a single mother.
DVD SPECIAL FEATURES INCLUDE text interviews with stars Caroline Quentin and Ian Kelsey and cast filmographies.
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