Anyone else watching or watched "River", a BBC mini-series starring Stellan Skarsgard?

[djean111]

I am watching it on Netflix, it is six episodes long, and it is so riveting. Skarsgard is one of my favorite actors, it is true, but really good story.

[Warren Stupidity]

1. Skarsgard and Nicola Walker, what's not to like?

great show. Right now streaming is on overload. Man in the high castle on amazon, river, master of none and jessica jones on netflix, the knick on cinemax, leftovers on hbo, the affair and homeland on showtime. Help!

[djean111]

2. This is the first thing I have watched on Netflix, although we have had it for over a year.

My son and grandson binge, I can't sit still that long, usually. ADHD. Read a recommendation for River somewhere, decided that anything with Stellan Skarsgard would likely be awesome. And yes it was!

Just finished River, I am glad it is a one-off. Perfect, and done. And I never noticed Eddie Marsden before Ray Donovan, now he pops up everywhere.

I watch Homeland and The Leftovers, one on Sunday night, and then the other when it is re-broadcast. Can't wait for Banshee and Ray Donovan and Penny Dreadful to return.

[catchnrelease]

3. Eddie Marsden

He was also in the BBCA mini series made from the book Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. Was good in that one too.

I did a recommendation for River a week or so back after just an episode or two. Really loved it. And yes, Stellan Skarsgard was amazing in it.

[nationalize the fed]

4. Thx for the River reminder- Episode 1 was pretty good

Last edited Thu Jan 21, 2016, 08:03 AM - Edit history (1)

Nicola Walker was superb as "Ruth Evershed" in one of the greatest TV series of all time- "Spooks" (MI-5 in US). If you can find that you have 10 series of fun ahead. It's even worth buying the DVD. Few UK shows run for 10 series. It's adult TV, no question about it. Riveting and not afraid to delve into plot lines that US tv avoids like the plague.

"Go Brit for TV and You'll Never Go Back"- British TV makes US tv look like childrens hour. Everything about it is (usually) Top Notch. Acting, Directing, Music etc. British Actors also seem less filled with themselves (usually) than American actors.

A couple of other recommendations - both of these are must see tv.

"Happy Valley"- coming back next year
"Line of Duty" also returning in 2016

And here's a glimpse into British Aristocracy that you won't see anywhere else- "Life is Toff". A strange cross between "The Osbournes" and "Downton Abbey"- the story of the Fulford Family in Devon. They live in Great Fulford Manor, given to Francis Fulford's Ancestors by King Richard I the Lionhart in about 1191, as a reward for military service on the Third Crusade

There are 8 F bombs in the 1 minute 40 second intro! And the kids smoke like chimneys. It's unique and something Americans will never see on broadcast tv.

(EDIT: The BEEB took down the only full episodes on Youtube. Here's 2 of only 3 existing clips for replacement. It's a funny show- highly recommend. There's nothing like this in the US- ever.)

Life is Toff at the BBC http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04n64wm

The panel shows are funny and interesting too- middle aged women routinely drop the F bomb at 4 in the afternoon.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. Echo the recommendations for "MI-5," "Happy Valley," and "Line of Duty"

MI-5 was exciting because main characters were killed or disgraced or turned traitor (so you could never count on a happy ending, although there were a few), and the situations were morally ambiguous. All ten season available on Hulu.

Happy Valley is about a policewoman who blames a local lowlife for driving her daughter to suicide. There is also a subplot about a fake kidnapping. On Netflix.

Line of Duty (of which I've seen the first season), is about a corrupt cop whom nobody wants to see as corrupt. On Hulu and AcornTV.

I haven't gotten around to "River" yet, because I'm bingeing on another series, but I always look forward to a new British drama. The characters have depth, and the plots are not afraid to tackle controversial subjects in an intelligent way. The main characters are flawed, not always attractive looking, and not always likable.

[djean111]

8. Thank you so so much!

I do love the BBC, and remember when BBC America was so much better - now it seems it is always Top Gear, Star Trek, Dr Who, and David Ramsey. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Used to work in Den Haag in the nineties, and caught quite a bit of BBC there. Really good.

[catchnrelease]

10. Agree 100%

You just can't beat the Brits for good tv. I loved Happy Valley and am excited to hear it's coming back. I think it was Waking the Dead also was good, their version of CSI stuff. The Fall just so many excellent series.

I will be checking out Life is Toff, sounds interesting. I think I caught some of the MI series way back, but will check them again too.

A couple of US series that can stand up to UK tv are Fargo and Longmire. (Longmire is short on action drama and long on character development I would say. And it has done a good job of portraying realistic situations re life on the reservations, and realistic modern Native people.)

I've also watched the first season of Legends with Sean Bean. The second season is being filmed in Europe so I'm interested to see if it has more of a UK flavor vs US. I wouldn't say it's anything great, but a different premise than I've seen before. At least it's not another stupid sitcom!

Anyone that likes British tv should subscribe to Acorn. It's only $4.99/month, so even if you don't find tons to like, it's cheap enough to find a few gems.

ETA: Two more good ones are Broadchurch and The Escape Artist. Both starring David Tennant. The escape artist is amazing imo.

[whathehell]

6. Is it a mystery of any sort?

Love British mysteries.

[djean111]

7. Total mystery!

And I could watch Skarsgard and the rest of the cast forever!
That being said, it is just the six episodes, perfect episodes, and that is that. As far as I know.

[whathehell]

9. Thanks for the tip..

I can access it on Acorn, so I'll be watching!

[Liberal_in_LA]

11. Thanks for the tip

[truebrit71]

12. Just binged it this weekend... superb...

Well worth watching...

[djean111]

13. Glad you liked it!

I am always a little hesitant to post about shows I like - sometimes (because everyone is different) I just get a bit of scorn or whatever. But River is just so good! Also, I watched it on my grandson's giant many-many-pixeled monitor, and I can say that I still have a bit of a crush on Stellan Sarsgard, even though I now have seen every pore and nose hair. Great suggestions in this thread, too.