Tied for the best movie I have ever seen

How sad is this?

Good concept, poorly executed.

Charming and brutal

Absolutely loved the first 'Prime Suspect' series. It was to me some of the best television to grace my television set. 'Prime Suspect II' was every bit as good, the two are about equal in terms of quality, for the same reasons as before.'Prime Suspect III' was watched with high expectations when seeing all the 'Prime Suspect' series over-time since reviewing the first series last year. Those expectations were not just met but also surpassed. It has all the things that made the previous two 'Prime Suspect' series so great, and stands out even more because of the characterisation which was even richer and because of the story and its heavier themes than before.It is stylishly and cleverly filmed, with slick editing and atmospheric lighting, and there is a consistently wonderful atmosphere throughout. It is a dark and gritty atmosphere, 'Prime Suspect' in general is both those things story-wise and visually but 'Prime Suspect III' is one of the stronger examples, while also being effectively claustrophobic. It is very hard to forget the music score too. The scripting, like its predecessor, is some of the best there is of any mystery/detective drama, being superbly constructed and intelligent.The story is 'Prime Suspect' at its darkest, most hard-hitting and grittiest for the intense subject matter alone, but in some ways also at its most honest, intricate and emotional. It is a complex story that keeps one guessing right up to the end while also being easy to follow. The interrogation scenes are some of the most harrowing of the whole 'Prime Suspect' franchise, both intensely shocking and even brings tears to the eyes.Jane Tennison continues to be an interesting character, the character and the depiction of the police force was very ahead of the time back in the 90s and holds much fascination now even if not so novel.Helen Mirren gives a typically magnificent performance in the lead, and she has one of her best supporting casts of all the 'Prime Suspect' series that include Peter Capaldi and Mark Strong in early roles and a standout turn from Tom Bell as oily Sergeant Otley. Excelling also are David Thewlis, who has never been more thuggish, and Ciaran Hinds at his most mysterious.In conclusion, along with the previous two 'Prime Suspect' series, 'Prime Suspect III' is the franchise at its best. 10/10 Bethany Cox

"Keeper of Souls" is IMO the best of the Prime Suspect series because it's the darkest of the lot. In the end, justice is only partly served by proxy - a muckraking, obnoxious journalist - and we don't even see it happening; we leave the plot as Tennyson, having failed to get a conviction from, or produce conclusive evidence on Parker-Jones (an excessively scary Ciaran Hinds) who is clearly guilty as charged, abandons the files in the interview room for the journalist to peruse and plunder.We have become used to crime stories without happy endings - most notably in the Law & Order series - but "Keeper of the Souls" is particularly disturbing because it deals with the organized abuse of children and a pedophile ring leading to Police HQ and hushed up by authority.However, the greatest feat is that the story - on such a bleak background - presents us with a string of extremely touching destinies; the drag artist who tries to help, but is too frightened to offer anything but vague clues that Tennyson is unable to decipher; the policeman who is placed on the squad to spy on Tennyson, but who switches allegiance after being bitten by an AIDS-infected boy, another policeman who earns Tennyson's respect by admitting in front of the team that he is gay, the two underage boys who die during the investigation, and, most notably, Tennyson suffering a 30 seconds breakdown after having decided to have her pregnancy terminated, thus giving up on having children altogether, a decision which will continue to haunt her throughout the series (until the final episode in which she befriends the 14-year-old Penny whom she sees as the daughter she might have had – only to find out that she is the killer Tennyson has been looking for).At the end of "Keeper," almost nothing is solved; we don't know if the bitten police spy (who turns out to be a good guy after all) has really contracted AIDS, and there is no legal prosecution of the killer, only an indication that he may be exposed in the press (and will probably not sue the paper for fear of further investigation, we must conclude).All of two unexpected star appearances flank Mirren: As the reluctant victim of abuse who refuses to testify in court we see Jonny Lee Miller just before he rose to stardom with "Trainspotting", and David Thewliss – fresh from "Naked" – appears as a terrifying hit-man.

The 3rd of the series is very honest and full of emotional reaction to the life of all most everyone in the series. But was very confused and at least wanted the "bad guy" to get pinched for the murder! Thought I missed out on something. It was like reading a mystery and then finding that the last chapter was missing. But, beyond that, it truly was and is outstanding! Good job all around! Mirren is strong and yet we see a very touching side of her when it comes to a medical question. The seediness of the whole "rent boy" world was well shown without pointing fingers or moral questions answered, which in all honesty is for better minds then wrote, acted and viewed this series. Perhaps that is why, "the end" is, after all, correct for this look into what we outside see as an almost "unreal" world/way of life.

The director did a superb job pulling PS 3 together. There are many twists and turns and unexpected endings. This shows the fullness of human nature in graphic, dark but jarring peeks into a modern police investigation. It also is a thought provoking portrayal of how powerless we often are to bring about meaningful change in erasing the root causes of such crimes from our communities.The interjection of the investigation teams personal and sexual lives adds to the drama and richness of PS 3. The beginnings of life, childhood interrupted and the degradation of some of humanity is well portrayed. The dialogue is often excellent and you have to listen to some of the questioning sessions carefully to pick up nuances that become important later. The resolution is not as expected leaving the audience with a lot to think about about the rent boy issue today.Mirren again bucks the system and the old boy network. the crusty Sergeant Bill Otley also surprises -- sometimes hard and occasionally "soft" when faced with the grit and horror of the crimes they are investigating.There is no sugar coating hear. Highly recommended.