Posts Tagged ‘the Shield’

BRAQUO Out on Blu Ray and DVD on April 30

Just when I was anticipating a heavy duty cluck coming off my fix of Euro-Crime as BBC 4′s retro Sicilian Sleuth Sizzler Montabano came to end-lawdf have mercy-Season One of Francais latest Crime Epique came a tumblin’ through my letter box.  I have just finished watching the last episode (and I might as well tell you now that it ends on a cliffhanger!) and before I immerse myself into the first two episodes of The Bridge, I need time to catch my breath and tell you Believe The Hype!

Looking at the trailers I was expecting a Franco version of The Shield (which I have to admit I avoided as a) it doesn’t have subtitles b) it isn’t set in Baltimore c) it doesn’t star James Gandolfini) Rogue Cop having a meltdown/midlife crisis etc. But no, as expected this follows the tradition of the Gallic Cop Thrillers which means there’s violence, corruption and a bit of the old ooh la la!   The story revolves around four police officers of the SDPJ Hauts-de-Seine, Eddie Caplan, Walter Morlighem, Theo Wachevski and Roxane Delgado who set out to prove the innocence of their boss Max, who (without giving too much away) tops himself when wrongly accused of corruption.  Oh sure his interrogation techniques (as demonstrated with a drug addled rapist) wouldn’t pass health and safety guidlines but it soon becomes apparent that these guys have to deal with the sub scum and therefore contstanty blur the lines of what is known as kosher.

Although the main characters are solid and defined, it’s the supporting cast that take this series to a whole new level.  Take Roland Vogel the internal investigator who looks like a weasle-like version of Andy Warhol and is more immoral than any criminal lowlife in the gutters of Paris.  Or howabout retiring boss who initially comes across like a downtrodden subversive but turns out to be a much tougher proposition than one would have imagined.  And ofcourse there’s the supervillan-Serge Lemoine-who looks like a compressed version of Shaun Ryder and is without a doubt the star of the show.  I would love to tell you more, but I don’t want to spoil it for you. Just expect a white knuckle, adrenaline ride through the sleazier, darker alleys of the Chant Elysee’s as each episode leaves you breathless and gagging for more.  This is Cop drama at its best.  It’s The Sweeny with added garlic. Fermez La Bouche, my son.

PS-While Season Two has already started on FX, there is already talks of a Season Three. You have been warned!

Pete says… 5/5