martimusross Review of Darkness: Those Who Kill

Darkness: Those Who Kill (2019– )

Bland & Baggy, Very Disappointing!

[6/10 · 30 September 2019]

Darkness: Those That Kill

Whilst reasonably entertaining at the time with reflection there were lots of problems with this production. Nordic Noir has several key formulaic principles that ramp up the suspense and drama in basically a simple cops and robbers story. This show left the path and became baggy and slow and was just a shadow of what it could have been.

Problematic Areas

• the serial killers were just not sophisticated or indeed interesting they were largely opportunistic morons and they were revealed to the viewer too early in the plot.

• the cops both Jan and the psychologist Louise were bland, I was sick to death of small talk over an unfinished bathroom.

• the script was insufficiently inventive to hold the viewers attention over 8 long episodes.

• we had a vestigial investigative trail with little forensics, a key part of Nordic Noir, this made the show appear low budget.

• the women's shelter element was an unnecessary diversion that could have been cut out.

• The script just wasn't very tight so we had a lack of narrative drive or suspense

• Coercive behaviour on this level really is not sufficient to justify the concealment of multiple murders, so we all knew from the start there were two murderers.

• The actor that played Jan was stiff as a board also we all know that the average policemen are very well paid in Denmark at £48k per year and as a detective he would be paid £64k, so a shared room in a student flat is ridiculous.

Lastly when Jan stayed overnight at Louise's he was seen putting a pillowcase on the cheapest shredded foam pillow, quite absurd in Denmark to believe they have these nasty cheap pillows at all.....lol