spiral tonight on BBC4 (merged) - TV Programmes

Ads · 28-05-2006, 18:29

This could be interesting, a French tv crime drama. Can't be any worse than the crap ITV1 serves up these days.

DBC · 28-05-2006, 18:41

There is a preview of the series in today's Sunday Times. To quote:-

A thriller in 8 parts that owes a lot to CSI , with its realistic tone and subdued colours. But this is all about prosecutors and lawyers rather than forensics. Its not entirely successful , yet it has lashings of Gallic charm, the characters are good looking and it also improves your French.

I'm going to give it a try , but I doubt it's as good as my beloved Maigret books .

mb@2day · 28-05-2006, 20:19

All i'm interested in is, is it any good and is this a show for adults.

More foreign drama and films on 4 please.

Ads · 28-05-2006, 20:58

Yes I thought it was pretty good, and wil be tuning in next week. If anything I would say its more influenced by The Wire, rather than any other show I can think off. Certainly better than most the formulatic UK cop shows about these days.

*Bex* · 28-05-2006, 21:02

Bloody hell that was great! I had a bit of trouble following some of it, but hubby kept me up to speed

Must try not to forget to watch next week!

Did find I just wanted to switch up the contrast it was all washed out, but I find that with a lot of French films and TV

DBC · 28-05-2006, 21:13

Excellent programme. Good, convoluted story line and interesting characters. If you are ever in Paris you are free to go into the Palaise de Justice (that place with very wide corridors) and just wander around. Fascinating place.

tinker.bell · 28-05-2006, 21:51

Bugger I missed it. But i see its repeated twice more - nice one BBC4

So would those who've seen it recommend?
Also anyone know when this was made? Is it fairly recent?

Lakeuk · 28-05-2006, 21:51

I missed it, but it's shown again at 23:50 and on Weds at 22:30

Ads · 28-05-2006, 21:55

It was made in 2005 according to the credits. I think its well worth a watch, its easy to get into and a couple of the leads are easy on the eye. Also there is a bit of black humour mixed in. The autopsy scene isn't for the squemish though

DeepSix · 28-05-2006, 23:15

Very entertaining and as I 'm learning French - it was also educational!

tinker.bell · 29-05-2006, 00:11

It was trés bon. Apart from the fact I couldnt put the sound up and make a cup of tea. Oh and I missed some of the corpse scene due to having to pull my hoodie over my eyes and so coudn't read le subtitles....

Kept getting a little confused with who was police and who was law. And who knew who.. but maybe that'll become clearer later. Bit of a grammar lesson thrown in there too; Pierre:"she is beautiful" Pierre's mate: "she was beautiful" If only i'd caught the French!

It is good to see a Euro drama though as I do often forget that countries other than UK & US (and oz) make tv programmes. And good advertising for Renault too.

DBC · 29-05-2006, 09:27

The French Judicial system can be a bit confusing . Luckily for me I have read dozens of Maigret stories which does give me an insight on how it operates. Basically there are three departments that are deal with any major crime. There is the police itself, the examining magistrate, and the public prosecutor who takes the case to court. Technically the police follow the orders of the magistrate and do his bidding, but I think they prefer to do their own thing at times.

This is the impression I get from the Maigret books. He resented any interference from the magistrate and sometimes would absent himself from his office so as not to deal with him. In his ideal world he would solve the crime, get the confession and then hand over the case to the magistrate. It will be interesting to see if we get this sort of conflict in Spiral

tinker.bell · 29-05-2006, 10:31

'scuse my ignorance but whats the difference between a examining magistrate and a public prosecutor?

DBC · 29-05-2006, 11:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinker.bell

'scuse my ignorance but whats the difference between a examining magistrate and a public prosecutor?

The French justice system has a distinctive aspect: the judicial investigation of crimes are undertaken by the juge d’instruction (examining magistrate). When the Prosecutor turns over a case to an examining magistrate, the latter will delegate some of his powers of investigation and coercion, within strict limits and under his direct supervision, to police or gendarmerie officers

The tasks of the officials of the French Parquet or ministère public ( public prosecutors) are to defend society by acting as its advocates and to ask the deliberating judges to apply the criminal law. They decide on the advisability of instituting criminal proceedings and set them in motion by transferring cases to an examining magistrate. However, they supervise and control all police and gendarmerie investigations before such transfers. Once a case has been transferred and a judicial investigation has begun, the police and gendarmerie officers act under the direct authority and supervision of the examining magistrate.

Once the examining magistrate decides that he has gathered sufficient information to summon the accused before the courts for trial he sends the file to the public prosecutor.
The public prosecutor draws up the charges, bringing together the various elements on the file, on the basis of which he instructs the accused to appear before the Assize Court

I hope that makes sense !

alternate · 29-05-2006, 11:30

It was okay. I think only the fact that it is French makes it worth watching though. I imagine that if all the Frenchy procedural and legal nuances were know to you then the actual nuts and bolts of the story would be a bit pedestrian.

Rather heavy handed use of scene setting music too.

tinker.bell · 29-05-2006, 12:52

Thx DBC - I'll have to re read in a minute!

Quote:

Originally Posted by alternate

Rather heavy handed use of scene setting music too.

Yea I know what u mean.
And what did people think of the camera work/direction? It was quite random at times. I cant decide if it ws annoying as it didnt run smoothly or if I liked its originality.

Willyfan2bibi · 29-05-2006, 15:03

Hello!
I'm a French member, and I missed this show on January in France...

.
But I was wondering : is there only subtitiles on the BBC 4? Or voices?
And If you enjoy the first season, I can tell you there's gonna be a second one if we believe some websites.

tinker.bell · 29-05-2006, 15:12

Salut!
Are you in France?

It has subtitles here.
What was it called in France?

Its very annoying as I cant find it in any of the main tv show (English) websites.

DBC · 29-05-2006, 15:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willyfan2bibi

Hello!
I'm a French member, and I missed this show on January in France...

.
But I was wondering : is there only subtitiles on the BBC 4? Or voices?
And If you enjoy the first season, I can tell you there's gonna be a second one if we believe some websites.

The programme was subtitled.

lonepiner¹ · 29-05-2006, 17:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinker.bell

Salut!
Are you in France?

It has subtitles here.
What was it called in France?

Its very annoying as I cant find it in any of the main tv show (English) websites.

It's called Engrenages, here is the IMDB page with the actors' names.

The announcer before the programme started said it was like State of Play meets CSI, and while not having seen the latter, I certainly concur that it is reminiscent of the former. Which is a recommendation, by the way.

Willyfan2bibi · 29-05-2006, 17:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinker.bell

Salut!
Are you in France?

It has subtitles here.
What was it called in France?

Its very annoying as I cant find it in any of the main tv show (English) websites.

Yes I'm in Lyon, France. And lonepiner said it, the name of the series is "Engrenages" there. It has been broadcast in the end of year 2005, until January 2006. But i missed it...
Praying Canal+ to re-broadcast it before the 2nd season.
For the rest, Spiral is the first TV series created by this network. Two other ones are coming soon, so they maybe will be broadcast on BBC4 too.

I discribe them quickly, we've not a lot of informations about them. An article say :

"Mifiosa is themed on Corses crooks, and Sécurité Intérieure takes place in the general informations and anti-espionage universe. These both shows are gonna have 8 episodes. [in the first season? are in all the series?]"
(i summarized it).

DBC · 29-05-2006, 19:32

I have another suggestion for a French-language detective programme that BBC4 could show. These are the fifty Maigret episodes staring Bruno Cremer. Made by French television, they date from 1990 to the present day. Seeing that the BBC wiped most of the original Rupert Davies episodes, this would be one way to see the stories again. I know there are a dozen episodes starring Michael Gambon, but they have been flogged to death by ITV3.

Willyfan2bibi · 30-05-2006, 09:57

It's maybe possible because Maigret is still broadcast in France, and maybe in other French-language countries.

DeepSix · 30-05-2006, 10:01

Bonjour! Ca va?

Sorry, I'm just learning French. Spiral was really well made - I'm looking forward to the next episodes.

What does "Engrenages" mean please?

NoEntry2k · 30-05-2006, 11:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSix

Bonjour! Ca va?

Sorry, I'm just learning French. Spiral was really well made - I'm looking forward to the next episodes.

What does "Engrenages" mean please?

Engrenages is a French work given to describe the linkages between clockwork cogs, so i believe. Makes you wonder why it was re-titled 'Spiral' in a way.

I really enjoyed this, by the way next week there is no late night repeat on Sunday, but the Wednesday repeat is still there which is handy becasue Sunday is a VERY busy TV night for me right now!

28-05-2006, 18:29	#1
Ads Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Pimlico, central London, UK Posts: 4,847	spiral tonight on BBC4 (merged) This could be interesting, a French tv crime drama. Can't be any worse than the crap ITV1 serves up these days.

28-05-2006, 18:41	#2
DBC Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: East Midlands Services: Freesat and Freeview . Topfield TF5800PVR Posts: 3,626	There is a preview of the series in today's Sunday Times. To quote:- A thriller in 8 parts that owes a lot to CSI , with its realistic tone and subdued colours. But this is all about prosecutors and lawyers rather than forensics. Its not entirely successful , yet it has lashings of Gallic charm, the characters are good looking and it also improves your French. I'm going to give it a try , but I doubt it's as good as my beloved Maigret books .

28-05-2006, 20:19	#3
mb@2day Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Services: VMTV - VM4MB , Sky TV , DAB , Orange Posts: 5,376	All i'm interested in is, is it any good and is this a show for adults. More foreign drama and films on 4 please.

28-05-2006, 20:58	#4
Ads Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Pimlico, central London, UK Posts: 4,847	Yes I thought it was pretty good, and wil be tuning in next week. If anything I would say its more influenced by The Wire, rather than any other show I can think off. Certainly better than most the formulatic UK cop shows about these days.

28-05-2006, 21:02	#5
Bex Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 3,977	Bloody hell that was great! I had a bit of trouble following some of it, but hubby kept me up to speed Must try not to forget to watch next week! Did find I just wanted to switch up the contrast it was all washed out, but I find that with a lot of French films and TV

28-05-2006, 21:13	#6
DBC Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: East Midlands Services: Freesat and Freeview . Topfield TF5800PVR Posts: 3,626	Excellent programme. Good, convoluted story line and interesting characters. If you are ever in Paris you are free to go into the Palaise de Justice (that place with very wide corridors) and just wander around. Fascinating place.

28-05-2006, 21:51	#7
tinker.bell Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: here... for now Posts: 4,479	Bugger I missed it. But i see its repeated twice more - nice one BBC4 So would those who've seen it recommend? Also anyone know when this was made? Is it fairly recent?

28-05-2006, 21:51	#8
Lakeuk Forum Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Kendal, Cumbria Services: FreeSat, FTA-DSAT, FTA-SKY, DAB Posts: 1,258	I missed it, but it's shown again at 23:50 and on Weds at 22:30

28-05-2006, 21:55	#9
Ads Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Pimlico, central London, UK Posts: 4,847	It was made in 2005 according to the credits. I think its well worth a watch, its easy to get into and a couple of the leads are easy on the eye. Also there is a bit of black humour mixed in. The autopsy scene isn't for the squemish though

28-05-2006, 23:15	#10
DeepSix Forum Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 170	Very entertaining and as I 'm learning French - it was also educational!

29-05-2006, 00:11	#11
tinker.bell Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: here... for now Posts: 4,479	It was trés bon. Apart from the fact I couldnt put the sound up and make a cup of tea. Oh and I missed some of the corpse scene due to having to pull my hoodie over my eyes and so coudn't read le subtitles.... Kept getting a little confused with who was police and who was law. And who knew who.. but maybe that'll become clearer later. Bit of a grammar lesson thrown in there too; Pierre:"she is beautiful" Pierre's mate: "she was beautiful" If only i'd caught the French! It is good to see a Euro drama though as I do often forget that countries other than UK & US (and oz) make tv programmes. And good advertising for Renault too.

29-05-2006, 09:27	#12
DBC Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: East Midlands Services: Freesat and Freeview . Topfield TF5800PVR Posts: 3,626	The French Judicial system can be a bit confusing . Luckily for me I have read dozens of Maigret stories which does give me an insight on how it operates. Basically there are three departments that are deal with any major crime. There is the police itself, the examining magistrate, and the public prosecutor who takes the case to court. Technically the police follow the orders of the magistrate and do his bidding, but I think they prefer to do their own thing at times. This is the impression I get from the Maigret books. He resented any interference from the magistrate and sometimes would absent himself from his office so as not to deal with him. In his ideal world he would solve the crime, get the confession and then hand over the case to the magistrate. It will be interesting to see if we get this sort of conflict in Spiral

29-05-2006, 10:31	#13
tinker.bell Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: here... for now Posts: 4,479	'scuse my ignorance but whats the difference between a examining magistrate and a public prosecutor?

29-05-2006, 11:30	#15
alternate Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 5,538	It was okay. I think only the fact that it is French makes it worth watching though. I imagine that if all the Frenchy procedural and legal nuances were know to you then the actual nuts and bolts of the story would be a bit pedestrian. Rather heavy handed use of scene setting music too.

29-05-2006, 15:03	#17
Willyfan2bibi Forum Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 18	Hello! I'm a French member, and I missed this show on January in France... . But I was wondering : is there only subtitiles on the BBC 4? Or voices? And If you enjoy the first season, I can tell you there's gonna be a second one if we believe some websites.

29-05-2006, 15:12	#18
tinker.bell Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: here... for now Posts: 4,479	Salut! Are you in France? It has subtitles here. What was it called in France? Its very annoying as I cant find it in any of the main tv show (English) websites.

29-05-2006, 19:32	#22
DBC Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: East Midlands Services: Freesat and Freeview . Topfield TF5800PVR Posts: 3,626	I have another suggestion for a French-language detective programme that BBC4 could show. These are the fifty Maigret episodes staring Bruno Cremer. Made by French television, they date from 1990 to the present day. Seeing that the BBC wiped most of the original Rupert Davies episodes, this would be one way to see the stories again. I know there are a dozen episodes starring Michael Gambon, but they have been flogged to death by ITV3.

30-05-2006, 09:57	#23
Willyfan2bibi Forum Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 18	It's maybe possible because Maigret is still broadcast in France, and maybe in other French-language countries.

30-05-2006, 10:01	#24
DeepSix Forum Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 170	Bonjour! Ca va? Sorry, I'm just learning French. Spiral was really well made - I'm looking forward to the next episodes. What does "Engrenages" mean please?