6.7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
DCI Tennison's investigation of a racially charged murder is complicated by unanticipated developments in her personal life.
Starring: Helen Mirren, Colin Salmon, John Benfield, Jack Ellis (III), Craig FairbrassDrama | 100% |
Mystery | 26% |
Crime | 24% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
English SDH
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
(Spoiler alert: The following assumes that the reader is familiar with the previous series of Prime Suspect. If you haven't seen the previous series, proceed at your own risk.) First Broadcast: December 15-16, 1992 (U.K.); February 11, 1993 (U.S.) In Series 2 of Prime Suspect, Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren) discovers that it isn't enough just to be a good detective. With greater responsibility comes greater dependence on the judgments—and the mistakes—of those around her, and some of them have baggage even heavier and more unwieldy than hers. Also, Tennison's private life intrudes on her work in ways she never imagined, and a high profile case triggers social forces that no cop can hope to control. Series creator Lynda LaPlante developed the story for Series 2, but turned over scriptwriting to Alan Cubitt, a budding talent who would go on to a prolific career of both original writing and major literary adaptations such as Anna Karenina. Directing duties fell to John Strickland, who has continued working in the crime genre with episodes of Poirot, Agatha Christie's Marple and numerous entries in the long-running cop series, The Bill.
For a discussion of Series 2's reformatted 1.78:1 aspect ratio, please see the Video section of The Complete Collection review. The extra screencaps with this review include sample comparisons between the Blu-ray and Acorn Media's DVD release of Series 2, which retained the original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. (Note that the DVD image has been slightly squeezed; this was not uncommon on DVD to compensate for overscan.) The 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray opens with the disclaimer quoted in the Complete Collection review. Series 2 was photographed by two cinematographers, Ken Morgan, who shot Series 1, and David Odd, who later shot Series 3 and 4. This accounts for the consistent look of the first four series. The Blu-ray image quality on the two parts of Series 2 is comparable to that of Series 1, which is to say that it varies from sharp with detailed clarity and some remarkably vibrant colors, to fuzzy with soft edges and more pronounced grain. Fortunately, the latter is the exception, not the rule. Overall, the image reflects a strong rendition of a 16mm filmed image. Some light noise reduction has clearly been applied, but not at the expense of detail or at the cost of motion artifacts. Certainly enough film grain remains in the image to indicate that any filtering was done with a light hand. As with Series 1, compared to the DVD, the Blu-ray image of Series 2 is considerably brighter, but I see no reason to regard the DVD's image as some sort of "standard". Blacks, when they occur, are sufficiently black to suggest that the brightening remains within appropriate parameters. Like its immediate predecessor, Series 2 runs 213 minutes in two parts. A BD-50 has provided enough room for the compressionist to accommodate the program without noticeable errors.
Series 2's stereo track is presented in lossless DTS-HD MA 2.0, and the mix is somewhat more full-bodied than Series 1's, especially when dealing with a visit to a sound studio where a reggae band is recording and with tapes of a reggae concert acquired during the visit. (The concert becomes a key element in the investigation.) Steven Warbeck's score continues to be used sparingly, but Series 2 is bolder in its sound design, deepening the bass extension for background noise, interweaving sonic elements in distinctive environments such as David Harvey's hospital room and overlapping voices in interesting ways (e.g., an extended scene in the police station's lockup).
No extras are included with Series 2. At startup the disc plays a trailer for Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, which can be skipped with the chapter forward button.
During the course of Series 2, Tennison applies for a promotion and learns that getting ahead isn't just a matter of doing your job well. She is also reminded that a woman's personal life is evaluated differently from a man's when it comes to professional advancement. Taking all this in during the final moments of Series 2, Tennison comes to a major decision regarding her career, which she announces just before the credits roll. One of the most intriguing subplots that creator Lynda La Plante wove throughout the first three series of Prime Suspect is the story of how Tennison learns to "play the game" against the big boys—and beat them at it. That narrative reaches a conclusion in Series 3, but one can't fully appreciate its resolution without knowing Tennison's first failed attempt in Series 2. This is essential Tennison.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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