The Killing Season II

November 19th, 2011

Great Britain can generally be divided into two principal groups: those who have seen season I of Danish thriller The Killing, and unlucky people. It’s that simple.

I became hooked one sickly weekend during which I downloaded episode upon episode in a feverish flurry of wall-to-wall watching. Like a smoker pondering their next cigarette halfway through the previous one, I was already lamenting its passing by episode eight (there were 20).

This time round there are only 10 episodes, meaning the missing-you-already factor is likely to crop up earlier. Having attended the BAFTA preview of episode one of season II I can reassure fans that everything appears to be in order: naturalistic dialogue (tick), captivating storyline (tick) and at least one jumper to marvel at (tick).

The story begins with our hero, Sarah Lund, working nightshifts at a cargo port in South Denmark. It’s bleak, she’s bleak, we are clearly witnessing the fallout from episode 1. Yet there has been a murder, Lewis, and Lund is drawn back into the fold by her former boss; he clearly knows she’s good even if she’s forgotten. The new season appears to have grander ambitions than the first and the military bent that rears a somewhat gruesome head will take Lund out into the battle fields of Afghanistan.

The success of The Killing (in Danish – Forbrydelsen – literally “the crime”) has many facets, but the quality of the writing is paramount. Søren Sveistrup is the genius with the pen. His methods are unique within television. Rather than writing the series in advance of shooting he’ll sketch a very rough outline then write the episodes as they are being filmed, often with extensive feedback from the actors. His methods are expensive but you can’t deny his results. I doubt auntie beeb will ever have funding again to take such risks.

During the Q+A with actor Sofie Gråbøl who plays Lund and producer Piv Bernth I had my question ready for Sofie (“What are you doing later?”) but for some strange reason never put my hand up. So what did we learn? That there will definitely be a season III. I just hope it isn’t only five episodes.

Words > Saul Wordsworth

Tags: Sarah Lund, Sofie Gråbøl, The Killing