River, BBC1 - TV review: It’s hard to feel sorry for Stellan Skarsgard’s Scandi-chic police officer
The Swedish actor cuts a relentlessly sullen figure in Abi Morgan’s latest TV drama
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Nicola Walker, the co-star of Last Tango in Halifax, gets another moment in the limelight in Abi Morgan's latest television drama, River. The two women are rather having a time of it. Morgan's screenplay Suffragette is in cinemas this week, while Walker is also currently starring in ITV's Unforgotten. But it is the Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård who takes centre stage as police officer John River in Morgan's eponymous crime drama.
This one is slightly different from the likes of Broadchurch and The Missing. It is still well-written and shot beautifully, but the criminal investigation is not the crux of the drama. River's mind becomes the crime scene as he struggles with psychotic hallucinations – or “manifests” as he calls them – of past victims, namely colleague Detective Jackie “Stevie” Stevenson, played by Walker.
The actress's impossibly green eyes make us question Stevie's plausibility from the start. She is instantly warm and fun, singing along to “I Love To Love” while slurping her drive-through milkshake, but she is too good to be true. Her feelgood factor is overshadowed by River, who cuts a relentlessly sullen figure with his big, puffy face. He is so emotionally distant that it's hard to even begin to feel sorry for him.
It's not quite clear what brought the Swedish officer to London. Perhaps it was the chance to fill his Scandi-chic flat with Seventies knock-backs from vintage shops in Brick Lane. His apartment is so well-designed it even has a fancy, ergonomic kitchen tap. There might be more than meets the glazed-over eyes to this solemn character after all.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments