It doesn’t necessarily offer us a new insight on the compulsive and obsessive detective, but it does do an excellent job of using those archetypal traits to tell a compelling story.

However, One Step Behind actually manages to make the central character interesting in his own right. Throughout Sidetracked and Firewall, Branagh was very much the most fascinating aspect of the lead character. It doesn’t hurt that Branagh seems to have remarkable chemistry with every other actor he encounters, even when spouting exposition or furthering the plot. Branagh is exceptional, and he manages to take this archetype and make him compelling to watch – that’s no small accomplishment. At times, it seemed like the episodes were constructed as sinister Rube Goldberg machines designed to chip away at whatever faith he had left in mankind.ĭon’t get me wrong. His father was suffering a debilitating illness. He was scruffy and unkempt (and unsocial), but he was smart and observant. He was an inspector haunted by the job, with a failed marriage and a daughter who took care of him because he was unable to live outside his work. While there is a serial killer on the loose, the episode hinges very much on small-scale character drama, in particular the nature of Detective Kurt Wallander as brought to life by Kenneth Branagh.ĭuring the first two episodes, I’ll confess that I wasn’t necessarily “sold” on the character of Wallander, who appeared to be a collection of television detective clichés.

In contrast,One Step Behind feels like a decidedly more intimate affair. Firewall was a more conventional thriller, as the investigation into a seemingly random murder led to the discover of a far more sinister and far-reaching conspiracy. Sidetracked presented a brutal exploration of the dark underside of Swedish culture, calling to mind the classy and overwhelming uneasy of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, albeit with fewer former Nazis. While the stories do cover quite similar thematic ground, and there’s an obvious tonal overlap, there’s enough variety in the three episodes that none of them ever become stale or boring. The fact that it doesn’t rigidly adhere to a particular plot formula helps each adventure to feel like a movie that happens to star the same character.

I think that adds to the appeal of the detective series. In fairness, the first three adaptations where a fairly eclectic mix, and the show hasn’t quite settled into a familiar pattern.

One Step Behind by Henning Mankell