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With the series ending, I hope the BBC will finally issue a score CD.
The link for the samples of Phipps's score has changed, the one I posted up top no longer works. This is the new link:
http://coolmusicltd.com/composers/martin-phipps/
Samples from Wallander are at the bottom of the list on the right side under the player.
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Posted: |
Jan 23, 2016 - 11:45 AM
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By: |
joan hue
(Member)
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I have been watching for the second time Seasons’ 1, 2, and 3. I’ve loved the series, and I’ve been especially mesmerized by the stunning scenery in this series. I love looking at the towns and farmlands. What a gorgeous country.
I do have one question which some of you many find silly, but I’m wretchedly curious. I’ll never forget the opening scene in the first Wallander episode called Sidetracked, and it opens with a girl hiding in what appears to be an endless field of yellow flowers. Wallander walks into this field to talk to her. The yellow flowers are up to his waist, and the farmer says to him, “Don’t damage my crops.” Crops? Does anyone know what crop these flowers are? I live in an agrarian area, and I’ve never seen anything like this crop. Curiosity is gnawing at me, and I hope someone and help. Thanks.
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Sadly, this series has now ended with 3 episodes in Season Four.
So what did you Wallander followers think of this final series?
We've only just had the first episode in the UK last Sunday, haven't gotten around to seeing it yet. The reviews seem to be pretty good though.
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Oops, I thought the UK got episodes before we did, so I better not post my opinions until all of you have seen the series. Thanks, Mark.
They were shown in Germany last Christmas (Dec 25/26/27)! No idea why it's taken so long for the UK and US to get them.
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Oops, I thought the UK got episodes before we did, so I better not post my opinions until all of you have seen the series. Thanks, Mark.
The UK had to wait till last, but they're lucky enough to get the full episodes. PBS broadcast abridged versions, for some deranged reason. The episodes are 89 mins long, but the PBS versions only run 80 mins.
I had never seen one of the PBS airings before, I always watched the BBC airings because they came months before PBS in the past. I suppose PBS has always shortened the episodes and I never knew.
I watched the first episode on PBS and found it incredibly choppy. Then I read a NY Times article , which mentioned the PBS re-editing. The female South African cop barely had five lines in the whole episode I watched. Then I saw the full BBC version, and there is a lengthy sequence with her at home that was cut, among other scenes.
What a shame PBS re-edits the shows. I've read that they do this with most of the British TV they run, including Downton Abbey. I can't figure out why, since they have no advertising and don't need to fit into neat 1 hour blocks.
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James, I'm also sorry we get edited versions. I really didn't care for the first episode in this season set in Africa and was glad to return to Sweden.
Can we discuss this series now? Have you Brits finally seen the last season? Thoughts?
The UK screening finished a couple of weeks ago: bluray and DVD of series 4 released today.
Sadly IMO the BBC Wallander's have been sliding for a while. The third series seemed to be rather less compelling than the first two (which I generally thought were excellent), whilst I found the fourth rather hard work in all honesty.
The White Lioness is, to be fair, probably quite a difficult one to get right. The novel is long and somewhat meandering - my least favourite of the books, (although I didn't like The Troubled Man much either) and I had a feeling it would prove quite hard to dramatize. I think the Swedes did this one with Rolf Lassgård and it was much better.
I'm a fan of the Swedish one's more anyway. Lassgård was probably the closest to the book (Wallander not being a particularly pleasant character in the books, lots of jealousy, insecurity and selfishness more than the depressive qualities highlighted by Branagh), and Krister Henriksson was more like the Wallander everyone really wanted to see - generally brave, noble, level headed and a bit of an action man too. I liked Branagh's version too up to a point, but it's very much his own interpretation and seemed a bit 'overdone' at times, to me.
Quite nice music scores throughout; a bit surprised that no-one at the Beeb or anywhere else seems to have been interested in releasing them. Very much background music to me though - not hugely noticeable in the films.
Good however, that the Adam Nordén and Fläskkvartetten scores for the Swedish Henriksson series are out there. Much better music for (IMO) more consistently better shows overall.
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Posted: |
Jul 5, 2016 - 8:55 PM
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By: |
joan hue
(Member)
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Thank you, Simon, for chiming in. I have heard that the Swedish Wallander series is very good, but I’ve not seen it.
Hopefully more of you have seen season 4, and I’m going to post my thoughts.
DON’T read further if you still haven’t seen season. I don’t want to black out everything.
I loved the first 3 seasons and have very much appreciated Kenneth Branagh’s acting. I was so excited
to watch the first episode of season 4, The White Lioness. Within about 40 minutes, I realized that I was very bored. I found the whole episode lackluster. During this episode, viewers were getting their first glimpses of Wallander’s encroaching illness.
I liked the last two episodes very much, although the last one, A Troubled Man, was very complex and not that easy to follow. I want to view it again.
I was sick that Mankell saddled Wallander with Alzheimer’s, especially at his young age and after seeing how that disease had ravished Kurt’s father. I see no reason for this event, but Mankell made that choice.
Branagh had a few marvelous acting scenes as he slowly descended into more bouts of dementia. I kind of resented the last scene with his daughter and granddaughter holding his hand on the beach, smiling at the sunset. That disease does not have warm sunsets at the end. It ravishes victims and their families, but I guess the series wanted to end with a bit more upbeat final scene.
I have loved all the scenes of Sweden. The landscapes are gorgeous.
I liked 2 of the last 3 episodes, and I’ll miss the series. I just wish Mankell had ended the series differently. I think Kurt Wallander would have rather met his end in a shoot-out with the villains.
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