The Tunnel: The Complete First Season

A clever idea can survive many permutations. The 2011 Scandinavian police series The Bridge began with a corpse—or, more precisely, halves of two different corpses found right on the border separating Denmark and Sweden—which necessitated a joint investigation. The series was remade for the FX Network in 2013 as The Bridge (VL-9/14), with the remains found on a bridge linking the U.S. and Mexico. Now comes the first season of this 2013 PBS-aired version, in which a controversial French politician and a Welsh prostitute are the joint victims found at the mid-point of the Chunnel railway tube running under the English Channel. Apart from the change of locale, the plot mechanics remain close to the original: the gruesome crime turns out to be only the initial step in the scheme of a maniacal serial killer who is apparently determined to use grisly murders to point out major social problems (although he actually has more personal motives), and efforts to unmask him bring in a number of ancillary characters. While the twists here will not surprise fans of the earlier incarnations, the chemistry works nicely between Stephen Dillane as rumpled, world-weary English detective Karl Roebuck and Clémence Poésy as intense, by-the-book French inspector Elise Wasserman, the supporting cast is strong, and the visuals convey an aptly menacing mood. Presenting all 10 episodes, extras include a behind-the-scenes featurette, and cast and crew interviews. Recommended. (F. Swietek)