Scandinavia is known for being something of a cold, somewhat gloomy and aloof place, with vast outdoors that stretch beyond the horizon. During the summer solstice, with the looming of the midnight sun, people seem to act a little awry, as this exaggered, high definition summer, gets to their heads. In the new PBS series Wallander, we follow the comings and goings of one Swedish police office, after whom the Masterpiece Mystery HD series is named. Wallander is played by the famous English actor Kenneth Branaugh, whom you can watch in any number of movies playing on satellite TV on any given night (he's been in quite a few different productions, among them Woody Allen movie, and several takes on Shakespeare's classics). Wallander sports a look worthy of not a famous Shakespearean actor, but rather of someone down on his luck. He's got a puffy, swollen visage, and a physique that has nothing to do with a football player you'd find on the NFL Sunday Ticket.
Wallander is actually a three episode affair put on by the popular Mystery series. It's based on a set of fashionable crime novels by the Swedish author Henning Mankell. Wallander, the character is a bit of a romantic hero, even though he may not seem like it upon first glance. He works alone, obsessively at times. He's a police officer who's always on the job, even when he's not. Other than that, there's really nothing extraordinary about him. He's no Sherlock Holmes, nor is he Inspector Clouseau. Wallander isn't a tragic figure. He drinks. He's divorced (no tearful widow stories here). He eats, probably too much for his own good, in fact. You can see the sort of regular distress in his red-rimmed eyes, so patently visible in HD.
Wallander does have a daughter, but he doesn't spend time with her. His father has Alzheimer's disease and spends his time painting the very same landscape over and over and over again. He lives in Ystad, a small seaside town near Malmo in the south of Sweden. It's cold, bleary and often shrouded in fog as much as it is in mystery. The cinematography is noticeable for his high contrasts, the dark darks, the dreary gloom, enhanced by the power of high definition.
The crimes that Wallander investigates are what really what make this series gripping and interesting. Most of the crimes have an air of oddness and they are certainly bloody, grisly things. In the first episode, a girl sets herself afire, after dousing her body with gasoline. Other such brutal crimes follow as it appears there is a serial killer set loose in this quiet town by the sea.
Branagh's performance alone is well worth watching. The other cast members, Sarah Smart as Wallander's daughter, Tom Beard as Svedberg, Wallander's colleague and David Warner as his father also put out some marvelous, if less obvious performances.
You can catch Wallander on PBS. Check your local satellite TV guide for listings.
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