The Bridge (Bron) [ Spoilers ]

brian_t · 18-04-2012 5:46am #1

Danish/Swedish subtitled drama The Bridge starts on BBC4 Saturday 21st April 9pm-11pm. Showing episodes 1 & 2 of 10.

Eps 1 is repeated on BBC4 Monday 23rd April 11.00pm.
Eps 2 is repeated on BBC4 Tuesday 24rd April 10.50pm.

A woman is found murdered in the middle of Oresund Bridge, exactly on the border between Sweden and Denmark. Saga Noren from Malmo CID and Martin Rohde from the Copenhagen police department are called to the scene. What at first looks like one murder turns out to be two. The bodies have been brutally cut off at the waist and joined together - the torso of a high-profile Swedish politician and the lower body of a Danish prostitute. The Swedish and Danish police need to cooperate in a race against the clock, desperately searching for a murderer determined to go beyond all moral limits to get his message across.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01gmbvb

Nibble tonight’s first two episodes of The Bridge and you will imediately want to devour the whole series. Just be careful not to break your teeth, because this is hard: a tough kernel of a gripping story wrapped in layers of rock. It makes The Killing seem cuddly.

But The Bridge is immensely rewarding: a proper, grown-up thriller dense with characters who aren’t instantly likeable or likeable at all, even after due consideration. Nordic noir fans will love it, and they will fall for its odd, brittle “heroine”, twitchy Swedish detective Saga Noren (Sofia Helin).

Saga isn’t a gimmicky maverick cop; neither is her Danish sidekick, Martin Rohde (Kim Bodnia), a hairy, shambling dad to many children, a mere jokey foil. The pair are thrown together when a body is found in the middle of the Oresund bridge linking Denmark and Sweden. As the joint investigation begins, prepare to enter the murky netherworlds of the dispossessed and the damaged as a determined serial killer decides to right society’s many wrongs.

http://www.radiotimes.com/episode/qdrch/the-bridge--series-1---episode-1

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2129868/The-Bridge-Icy-blonde-leather-clad--meet-BBCs-new-Scandinavian-crime-sensation.html

I enjoyed watching "Forbrydelsen" (The Killing) and "Spiral" so I am looking forward to this latest scandinavian import.

mike65 · 18-04-2012 10:19am

That's Saturday nights sorted until the summer!

mike65 · 21-04-2012 2:47pm

starts tonight.

groovie · 21-04-2012 3:40pm

Anything is better that Inspector Montayawn (imho, ymmv etc). Been looking forward to this since the end of Forbrydelsen and Borgen. I need my danish!

adox · 21-04-2012 7:57pm

Sky+d. Still to watch Birgen so will finish that first.

TwoShedsJackson · 22-04-2012 7:51am

Are they repeating this?

RichT · 22-04-2012 10:29am

Episode 1 repeated this Monday 23rd at 11pm.

Episode 2 repeated this Tuesday 24th 10.50pm.

ejmaztec · 22-04-2012 1:39pm

After watching Forbrydelsen and the first two episodes of The Bridge, I'm now beginning to wonder whether Scandinavian female cops are all barking mad, and in need of constant psychiatric care.

Anyone recognise the Forybrydelsen perpertrator playing the part of a parent refusing to allow his brain-dead son's heart to be used in a transplant, only to have the heart used anyway?

Eod100 · 22-04-2012 2:53pm

This is probably a silly question but can BBC4 programmes be Sky plused?

ejmaztec · 22-04-2012 3:07pm

Eod100 wrote: »

This is probably a silly question but can BBC4 programmes be Sky plused?

BBC4 is on the EPG so It must be possible.

patrickn · 22-04-2012 7:57pm

Yes BBC 4 can be SKY+

TeRmInAlCrAzY · 23-04-2012 2:27pm

Wonder if Saga is related to Lisbet?

Eod100 · 23-04-2012 3:03pm

Am I right in saying that each Saturday there'll be 2 episodes shown?

Think I read that somewhere but can't find where.

TeRmInAlCrAzY · 23-04-2012 3:21pm

Eod100 wrote: »

Am I right in saying that each Saturday there'll be 2 episodes shown?

Yup

ejmaztec · 23-04-2012 3:45pm

TeRmInAlCrAzY wrote: »

Wonder if Saga is related to Lisbet?

I think they have the same psychiatrist.

mike65 · 23-04-2012 3:57pm

Just over a 1,000,000 viewers for the first episode, not bad at all for BBC4 subtitled drama.

The Black Oil · 25-04-2012 11:05am

Liked it a good deal...trying not to get too beard strokey about it.

Liked the first scene,

a pretty ballsy move for the killer to do that. Not too much jurisdiction stuff given the location of the body. Liked the office banter, though wasn't always clear when they were speaking Swedish or Danish and I think sometimes the subtitles were possibly a bit off. Saga (?) is a bit of an amateur pathologist, but I guess you pick up a few notes and skills on the job. Will try not to compare her to Lund. Am guessing the Danish guy - Rhode will probably turn out to have a pretty decent investigative skillset after all.

Thought the car bomb scene was quite effective. Not sure on the other plots, the heart surgery, etc.

Think I'm a bit fed up now of the grey/blue shots of buildings and such. No need to keep turning down the colours.

Bit of a sniffy review in the Guardian re the current slew of imported drama.

mike65 · 25-04-2012 11:10am

Ah that was just a page views/ad clicks special!

I commented on the blue/grey thing myself on the guardians series blog.

The Black Oil · 25-04-2012 12:42pm

Which page - the link above? Works fine here in different browsers and when logged out of boards.

patrickn · 25-04-2012 2:59pm

I enjoyed the first two episodes. Full of quirky characters and plot similar to the movie seven.

bnt · 25-04-2012 3:24pm

After the first episode, I'm curious to see where this is going e.g. the idea of

literally

splitting the crime between Sweden and Denmark is intriguing, and hints at some larger international political issues. Which may be where that old guy comes in, the one needing the heart transplant.

PS: in case anyone's wondering, that weird building they keep showing is called the Turning Torso, in Malmö on the Swedish side. They're quite proud of it, though it was designed by a Spanish architect.

ejmaztec · 25-04-2012 5:56pm

The Black Oil wrote: »

Bit of a sniffy review in the Guardian re the current slew of imported drama.

The main reason that I watch these programmes is because I get bored sh1tless watching the same old formulaic crap being churned out by the US networks, and then English-speaking networks e.g. those in the UK, trying the same formulaic stuff in an attempt to sell their output to the US.

I'm even glad that I watched that crap Inspector Montalbano, because now that I know what a kip Sicily is, I'd never waste any time or money going there.

The Guardian can feck off with its sniffiness.:D

LadyMayBelle · 26-04-2012 9:49am

It gripped me anyways for sure. I loved The Killing, but watched and episode of Wallander last week which I thought was quite meh... looking forward to the next installment of The Bridge though.

Saga is a gas character tho, that scene where she

robitically copped a feel and then went out on the hunt for a fella

was quite bizarre! Keen to find out where

the heart transplant guy

comes into it.

Oh yeah, how many of ye went

It's the guy from The Killing!!

I did

Tak!

ejmaztec · 26-04-2012 11:37am

LadyMayBelle wrote: »

Oh yeah, how many of ye went
It's the guy from The Killing!!
I did

Tak!

Is that the one mentioned in post No 8 in this thread, or did you spot another one?:p

LadyMayBelle · 26-04-2012 3:06pm

ejmaztec wrote: »

Is that the one mentioned in post No 8 in this thread, or did you spot another one?:p

same one actually, sorry about that!!

ejmaztec · 26-04-2012 4:19pm

LadyMayBelle wrote: »

same one actually, sorry about that!!

There's no need to apologise.:D

Birneybau · 27-04-2012 12:18am

Watched the first 2 tonight, intrigued.

bnt · 27-04-2012 1:54pm

I wrote my previous comment before I got to the end of Ep.2, at which point

the old guy got his heart transplant, but died soon afterwards

- which has left me confused as to where he and his wife fit in to the big picture. Is that a flashback? There are no cues I can recognise to indicate that. It might be related to

the way she obtained the heart for transplant, by strong-arming the donor's father

. I could probably look this up on the internet, but it's quite fun to be left hanging like this - good for the suspense.

BullBauld · 30-04-2012 4:34pm

I missed the first 2 episodes. Where could I see them now?

The Black Oil · 30-04-2012 10:40pm

Caught up with episodes 3 and 4 now. Spoilers to follow.

So the killer's a bit of a ninja warrior - in more ways than one, perhaps. Anja, the shoplifter girl, really is quite naive. The apartment she's staying in seems rather sterile, maybe fitting in with the whole ninja thing.

Yes, going in without proper SWAT backup is stupid, but what TV show in this area hasn't done this? The hostage situation was askin to something from 24, but without too much of the time ticking feel to it.

Both leads are likeable. You couldn't help but laugh at Saga's scrotum line - what a way to start a phone call. I'm getting little weary now of newspaper columnists dropping an autism diagnosis on whomever - she may be that way, but she could equally be conversationally dense. Seems daft the way she has to put a round the in the chamber of her gun each time she draws it, at least that's what I assume she's doing as it seems more drawn out than a safety switch click.

Still one or two threads that are detached, but they're generally pulling them in now.

The Black Oil · 06-05-2012 11:39am

Episodes 5 & 6

So, Saga's uber directness continues and the actress is playing it very straight.

Spoilers -

The death of the 14 year old was horrible and yes, she was only kept alive for a cliffhanger dun dun dun. So, Martin's son has the horn for Saga, eh? Bit hypocritical for him to question this after he slept with Charlotte, though it is still a little awkward. I wonder if August's online girlfriend is really a girl.

Sometimes I get a bit confused about what side of the bridge we're actually on.

mike65 · 06-05-2012 11:49am

I never know!

The moment when the cop jumped into bed with the businessmans widow was daft. Quite impossible to believe, whereas Saga bedding the cops son (August) actually made perfect sense - he couldn't wait and she has no manners!

bnt · 06-05-2012 9:45pm

The Black Oil wrote: »

Sometimes I get a bit confused about what side of the bridge we're actually on.

The makers are assuming a good deal of local knowledge. I know that part of episode 4 took place in Amager, which I know is the island south of Copenhagen where the airport is - the scenes around the garage. In general, it's been far more Sweden than Denmark.

In episode 5, the police spot Anja at "Adelgatan near Östergatan", and "-gatan" is the Swedish style of street names, so Anja was in Malmö - specifically, here. But there are very similar street names in Copenhagen: Adelgade and Østergade - the latter being their equivalent of Grafton St. i.e. a shopping street. "-gade" is the Danish style of street name, vs. "-gatan", so that may be helpful to remember.

I have to say that I'm finding the theme song very annoying. You can't hear what the singer is singing, and if I turn on the subtitles, the words look like they've been translated from Swedish Danish by some very bad software:

Echoes start as a cross in you,
Trembling noises that come too soon,
Spatial movement which seems to you,
Resonating your mask or feud.
Hollow talking and hollow girl,
Force it up from the root of pain.
Never said it was good, never said it was near,
Shadow rises and you are here,
Goes back to the beginning ...

coley · 08-05-2012 1:22pm

bnt wrote: »

I have to say that I'm finding the theme song very annoying. You can't hear what the singer is singing, and if I turn on the subtitles, the words look like they've been translated from Swedish by some very bad software:

The theme song is Hollow Talk from Choir of Young Believers
http://www.lyricsmania.com/hollow_talk_lyrics_choir_of_young_believers.html
Granted the lead singer is hard to make out.

-Coley.

Eod100 · 08-05-2012 5:46pm

coley wrote: »

The theme song is Hollow Talk from Choir of Young Believers
http://www.lyricsmania.com/hollow_talk_lyrics_choir_of_young_believers.html
Granted the lead singer is hard to make out.

-Coley.

Was going to link this as well. My theory is that he mumbles because he doesn't speak English fluently and so is sounding out the worda. Pretty good song though!

Eod100 · 08-05-2012 5:50pm

BullBauld wrote: »

I missed the first 2 episodes. Where could I see them now?

Think it's probably too late now but they show repeats on Mondays I believe.

Or else download a program called Expatshield (basically it gives you a U.K ip address so you can watch episodes from the BBC iplayer)

The Black Oil · 12-05-2012 11:23pm

bnt, thanks for that.

I did laugh at

the camp bed situation and Martin meeting Saga's sex friend. Anyway, looks like they're starting to piece things together now, but there's still a fair bit of storytelling time left.

Daffodil.d · 13-05-2012 12:27pm

xwhere does charlottes wig fit into this?

pinkypinky · 13-05-2012 3:40pm

I really want to know this too! Her having a wig seems so random and unimportant. She hasn't been in the last couple of episodes so is her role finished?

Eod100 · 13-05-2012 5:55pm

pinkypinky wrote: »

I really want to know this too! Her having a wig seems so random and unimportant. She hasn't been in the last couple of episodes so is her role finished?

I really hope so. Don't think that side-plot added much to the series.

The Black Oil · 13-05-2012 6:06pm

For a while there I was wondering if she might be somehow connected to the

child labour angle.

Daffodil.d · 13-05-2012 6:50pm

iit doesn't seem to have any relevance but why is she shown takin it off. So it must be there for a reason.

DeepBlue · 15-05-2012 2:05pm

Saga trying to make small talk at the coffee break was hilarious - "I had my period this morning".

Did Jens look a bit like that software salesman who's getting a bit close to Mette?

TT didn't shoot Martin when he had the chance in one of the earlier episodes but had no trouble shooting as the SWAT team so there is probably a reason he left Martin alive.

bnt · 19-05-2012 9:33pm

After the repeat of the last episodes next week, we can probably drop the Spoiler tags...

DeepBlue wrote: »

Did Jens look a bit like that software salesman who's getting a bit close to Mette?

If you're watching Ep. 9 now, then

well spotted

.

DeepBlue wrote: »

TT didn't shoot Martin when he had the chance in one of the earlier episodes but had no trouble shooting as the SWAT team so there is probably a reason he left Martin alive.

Makes sense now that we know Jens and Martin were colleagues.

Sardonicat · 19-05-2012 9:39pm

OMG! Mette :eek:

Sardonicat · 19-05-2012 11:08pm

I enjoyed that!

What am I gonna do for my Scandi fix now?

mike65 · 19-05-2012 11:21pm

Was very good, a couple of nice twists in the end.

Bridge 2 - The Tunnel?

The Black Oil · 19-05-2012 11:26pm

Whilst I generally enjoyed it, I do think anyone who has seen a certain David Fincher film might have a quibble or two...

Anyway.

Revenge and affairs, the oldest motives around, but it's all in the execution. I won't deny I did groan a little as soon as the suicide vest appeared.

The grenade scene was tense, bloomin' heck. Figured August's online friend was really a girl while back...scenes in the box were also tense.

Saga being back on her feet more or less straight away after being shot was a bit contrived (along with some other elements), but I think you can let that go as it's so in keeping with her personality. Had to laugh at her repetition of the 'I've had blood and painkillers' line. You could see how crushing it was for her to have to lie to Martin. Nice scene then at the end between Saga and her boss about her not being great at lying.

At one point the subtitles actually said 'red herring', heh.

Also, lol at 'MILF?' :pac:

Daffodil.d · 19-05-2012 11:29pm

I would like to see another series with Saga in it.

The Black Oil · 19-05-2012 11:47pm

Also loved the aerial shot of the bridge when

Saga's was the only car on it.

brian_t · 20-05-2012 12:54am

The Season 1 box set is released on Blu-ray & DVD on Monday May 21st by Arrow Films’ Nordic Noir label.

http://www.noblepr.co.uk/Press_Releases/arrowfilms/thebridge.htm

The Telegraph had an interview with Sofia Helin yesterday.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/9275562/The-Bridges-Sofia-Helin-interview.html

So what can we expect from the second series of The Bridge?
I’ve just had a meeting and it sounds very exciting. I have just read one part. From Saga’s perspective, we’re going to see her in situations where she has never been in her private life. So I’m looking forward to that. There will be another very big case, obviously.

Sebastian Bergman starts next Saturday.

This police thriller stars Rolf Lassgård, one of Scandinavia's most popular actors (Wallander, Beck), in a powerful new role as profiler Sebastian Bergman. Strong-headed, politically incorrect, abrasive and grief-stricken, Bergman has still not come to terms with the loss of both his wife and daughter in the 2004 Thailand tsunami. In the first of two 90-minute thrillers, he helps police in his hometown solve the murder of a 15-year-old boy. In the second, he attempts to catch a serial killer who seems to be modelling his attacks on those of a jailed killer whom Bergman put behind bars himself.

The Bridge (Bron) [** Spoilers **]

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The Bridge (Bron) [ Spoilers ]