River
River
| 13 October 2015 (USA)
River Trailers

John River, a brilliant police officer whose genius and fault-line is the fragility of his mind - a man haunted by the murder victims whose cases he must lay to rest

Reviews
GamerTab

That was an excellent one.

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Protraph

Lack of good storyline.

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Platicsco

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

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FirstWitch

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

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stairways

The. Best. TV. Detective show/short drama. Ever. Stunning script. Flawless, moving acting, beautiful cinematography. Humour and heartbreak. Exceptional. Nothing else comes close. Watch it. Then watch it again

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kckidjoseph-1

There are cop dramas, and there are cop dramas. Sometimes the cop dramas that don't want to be like other cop dramas try too hard. But "River" _ a six-part British TV series airing on Netflix _ tries very hard to be different _ and gets it spectacularly right.The story focuses on DI John River (Stellan Skarsgard) who is grappling with the death of his partner, DS Jacqueline "Stevie" Stevenson (Nicola Walker), who is shot to death outside a pub where they had been having dinner.So far, nothing new, right?Think again.It seems that since his youth, River has seen and communicated with dead people. They haunt him (no pun intended), while he's sitting at his desk, attending meetings, interviewing people, driving, riding the subway, sleeping, eating, you name it. And they're not always Casper the Friendly Ghost (like Thomas Neill Cream, "The Lambeth Poisoner," here played by Eddie Marsan, who attempts to goad River into losing his cool).The series opens innocently enough with River and Stevie driving along chatting, laughing and even breaking into song. The first reaction is that this series is going to be slow, slow, slow and hackneyed. Then they stop at a drive-through to order a shake and burger. Something isn't quite right, the communication is off.As they drive on, River thinks he sees a suspect, we don't know for what crime, he bails out of the car and gives chase. His prey, a frightened young man, leaps to his death as Stevie trails behind and radios for backup. Or does she? As she turns and walks away, we notice the back of her head has been blown away.And we're off.Swedish actor Skarsgard is excellent as the brooding lead detective who tries to piece together the murder of his partner, who is also, as we learn, his great love. The ubiquitous Walker ("Spooks," "Last Tango in Halifax," "Unforgotten") is perfect as the wide-eyed, offbeat counterpoint to the stoic River, the female, we can't help but imagine, who could have brought him out of his shell, which makes the whole thing that much more tragic and urgent (Stevie warns River that at some point she will just fade away).The serpentine storyline never gets out of hand to the point of confusion, but challenges us to pay attention to every element, right up until the final denouement in the last part of the last episode. The conclusion is a shocker, but not so much that we think it could never happen in real life (minus the dead people chatting with the detective).Adeel Akhtar is terrific as DS Ira King, River's new sidekick, an innocent tough whose alarm at his detective partner's unconventional ways evolves into true friendship, even if we're never sure whether he thinks River is actually talking to dead people or is merely unbalanced.Sorcha Cusack of the great Cusack family of Irish actors, recently seen as the straight-laced Catholic housekeeper on "Father Brown," polishes off her acting chops as Stevie's angry mother.The rest of the cast is uniformly brilliant, from Marsan's wailing Lambeth Poisoner Cream to Rosa Fellows as the understanding police psychologist and Lesley Manville as the beleaguered head of the homicide unit. Not a weak link in the bunch."River," beautifully photographed in a cool, shadowy style to match its mysterious aura, is worth every moment of its six episodes. But you'll have to pay attention _ and you'll be glad you did.

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Luce

So glad I found this. Genuine masterpiece. Acting is believable and tender. The plot is complicated but not unbelievable. It has grit and charm and love and pathos and comedy and music. "Sing! You nutter"

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kiwijws

I don't often give a 10 but I was left with no alternative after binge watching this amazing show. I was hooked after watching the first 15 minutes. A wonderful story line, well written dialogue and fabulous acting makes this stand out in its genre. I would highly recommend to all and have done so since watching it.

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