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Watching this new Welsh series on Acorn--think it came from BBC
Dark--like Hinterland or Room or even The Handmaid's Tale since it revolves around the kidnapping and imprisionment of young women by one man in the Welsh "hinterland"...
Hard to watch at times and definitely based in reality--I have read/heard enough stories of it in America--I am certain it happens all over the world...
Men do that to women more than anyone wants to admit...
The local police are investigating one of his recent victims and we see the kidnapper early so--so his identity is never a secret--only whether or not he can be found before other innocent women become his prey...
in a weird way he has the look of a medieval friar, an aesthetic isolated by his beliefs from society...and his body bears proof of his torment like those who self-abused to purify the evil in their humanity
Main character is female DI who grew up in area, moved away, and came back recently because her father is dying...family disharmony there and in almost every other one shown...something happened to her (physical evidence) but no explanation at least so far...
These are not happy people--even the ones with a modicum of normality....
And while some shots of the countryside illuminate the beauty of the rural area and present a pastoral beauty reminiscent of the Garden of Eden pre-Satan, most of the shots are foreboding, dark (for a variety of reasons), and offer little in the way of grace...
Well-acted and paced to some extent to make us feel we are imprisoned--because it won't move as fast as we ache for the plot to unfold--
The police are definitely not glamorized--and definitely have achieved a poor record with past victims...
And there is only CC for the Welsh translation--which means you really have to watch every scene--
They jump from English to Welsh in same scene/same characters at times...
Spoiler
The character most unfathomable to me so far is the mother of the kidnapper--her motivation and level of participation, the antipathy she holds to his victims---so far no real explanation
this sounds very dark. i was never able to get through "happy valley". how would you rate the darkness of this in relation to happy valley (if you've seen happy valley)? thanks
I watched a few episodes of "Happy Valley"
I know it lasted many seasons on BBC but I thought it was pretty heavy handed--too obvious so didn't watch more than 2 of them
There is lot of violence against women in this needless to day on multiple levels--
that is one reason I can't watch The Handmaid's Tale--it is just too real...
Hidden does have some aspects of the investigation that deal with the police process and side story of the main cop and her dying dad---he was former police chief involved w/one of the kidnapped girls
But the animosity between men and women exists as just part of the air they breath...
I don't know if Wales is really like that--
Watched another series on Acorn set there--Keeping Faith--about a wife/attorney who has her husband go missing for a week and finds out all kinds of truths about him and their relationship she wasn't aware of ===that was "dark" because she and her children were threatened and her life was falling apart--
But she also had friends who helped her and she was smart/determined person
What I don't get watching this show--just started E6--is WHY all this is happening
The kidnapper you get some backstory so can see maybe why he is warped--
but the other guys who can't have a decent relationship with women just are non-functional...
Even the male detective has issues dealing with women in his life--although not his boss...
Is that a common problem in rural Wales?
Is it a problem because it IS rural Wales--
There is such a narrow slice of life vs a wide swath of social classes that I can't tell
It is dark--there is violence, sexual and physical and emotional--
But it is good acting, very suspenseful
In "Hinterland" the main character Mattias was his own worse enemy--very frustrating--
That is not the issue with Hidden
But it is tension-filled...
The intensity is weird--it is very uneven from show to show
Can't tell if that is deliberate to throw the audience off by not having an escalating pace of tension/fear/anxiety
I think I will likely finish it tonight
Don't know if it was well-enough received to get second season
UK shows work differently than US--
The female lead--top billing--really doesn't have lot of screen time or "big scenes" so far
In Keeping Faith, the female lead was in almost every scene
Like I said--US/IUK different kettles of fish.
this sounds very dark. i was never able to get through "happy valley". how would you rate the darkness of this in relation to happy valley (if you've seen happy valley)? thanks
Oh wow, I loved me some Happy Valley! But I digress.
Definitely going to check this one out. However, I didn't really love Hinterland so we'll see.
Started watching this yesterday. I was surprised to see that it is as many episodes as it is (9). I was expecting maybe six.
That’s not to say that it moves slowly, at least I didn’t find it so. There’s a lot going on with these characters, much like there was in the first series of “Broadchurch” so the story is as long as it needs to be, I guess.
I watched six episodes, one right after the other and likely could have finished it in one sitting but couldn’t stay up any longer.
Impressions:
Yes, it is dark. Yes, it is uncomfortable to watch in places. There are all sorts of complicated family dynamics going on, some blatantly awful, some more quietly insidious, almost all abusive in some fashion.
These are hard people, even the ones who are, or should be, sympathetic characters.
It reminded me of “Winter’s Bone” in that regard. Also reminded me of “Justified,” particularly the second season, with the focus on a set of people who are able to function in the larger world but adhere to some more ancient ideas about clan, personal justice and doing what they consider to be the right and proper thing.
In this story though, there isn’t a bit of humor to leaven the mood.
I have to give lots of credit to the casting people. The actors are all excellent and some simply mesmerizing when onscreen. Emotions are transmitted with the barest change in facial expression. There’s very little telegraphing of what will happen next.
I love that much of it is in-language and how effortlessly they change from Welsh to English in the same scene.
Not minding the sub-titles at all.
Planning to finish it later today and will be back with final thoughts.
Thanks for your comments
I found it both compelling and repelling at times--and after watching all episodes I was surprised to review and consider that most of the violence was predicted but not shown--
Like the shower scene in Psycho--we imagine/anticipate what is threatened vs actually seeing it acted out...
I thought casting was excellent as well but I was surprised to see the female detective given top billing when I thought she was actually a lesser character than the male criminal
He was top notch...
And I think this is so threatening a topic because we see it translated from the news
Men do this to women all the time...
Just watched Hidden this week...wow was very good with great performances!
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