The Fall

[hollyisalovelyname]

Watched it last night. Tis good, but disturbing. Gillian Anderson very good. Jamie Dornan scary. Anyone else see it?

He is pretty darn gorgeous I agree, isn't he a model turned actor? He's too pretty to be a psychopath!!

See, I don't think her character is 'cold' particularly. I think we're just so used to seeing women on telly and in films being always slightly ingratiating and trying to please that it comes as a shock to see a woman who just stays cool and collected and does the job.

I'd love to see a parallel programme where the character was a man, and see how we all responded to him. Of course it might prove me utterly wrong but it would be interesting.

Fedup, I have read (on here) that Jamie D used to be a model, yes. He used to go out with Ikea Knightley too. They're the only things I know about him .

I suppose it's meant to be scary/challenging that someone who's attractive, young, has a 'normal' life and a family can behave as he does.

Yes, Jamie Dornan was a successful model before he turned to acting although he does nothing for me dribble

Jesus H, MrsBert! I don't know where to look oooh, actually I do

He does nothing for me on The Fall. Though that pic could change that
Looks a bit like Jamie Theakston in that pic

I do wonder how sustainable this is going to be as a series - as a one-off conceit of seeing the murderer and detective in parallel it's interesting, but I think it's going to fall apart after a while. I don't think you will necessarily be able to repeat the trick. Alan Cubitt wrote for Prime Suspect and I wonder if the Beeb think that with an actress of GA's calibre they potentially have another long running Prime Suspect type series on their hands. I think probably not. We shall see though. She is potentially a good character to base a series around.

There's not actually a lot of plot on the GA side of the story, is there? They don't seem to be doing an awful lot of detecting - the story on her side is being filled up with the subplots about Olson's murder and the bent copper. So although we have this impression that GA is incredibly competent and professionally awesome, I'm not sure we've actually been shown that by anything she's done other than linking the murders and being GA. The show is entertaining us by teasing us about how the case is going to be cracked, but if it gets wrapped up in the next episode it's going to be by someone else noticing something like the necklace or dumb luck like the pathologist knowing a woman who was strangled by Spector, not by actual cool police work. It's quite cheap because there's no puzzle to be solved by the viewer - it could be any of those things that cracks the investigation and we're just playing a waiting game to see which it is.

Another thing worth asking is whether it would be as gripping if it weren't specifically about sexual murders. Would we be as interested in the killer's story if he was committing a different kind of murder? And he doesn't really ring true for me as a character - if he's supposed to be a psychopath then why isn't he more charismatic IRL, or if it's all about control and hatred of women why has he been able to sustain an apparently non-abusive relationship?

I know this seems very over nitpicky to some of you, but I like analysing stuff on the tellybox, because I adore television and that's how I get my kicks! I do like GA's blouses though and wonder where she gets them from

It's amusing me greatly how many of you are coveting GA's wardrobe!

Speaking of her wardrobe, I wonder if the reason for the heels is that she is tiny IRL. When they filmed the X Files, she had to stand on a box when being shot in the same frame as David Duchovny.

yep, she's totally kylie sized irl, apparently.

now the thing about the nail varnish that i found confusing (but i may just have missed something) was that she seemed to be parading herself in front of Dornan in some way? or at least i thought at the time 'oho, she's onto him, or at least trying to provoke a response form the people who are in to help with enquiries'.
but then no, it seemed like she really did just want to try nail varnish on, to see what it was like to wear red nail varnish of the same type as the killer uses? i didn't get it. (but was a bit irritated at that point so may have missed something vital.) what was the point of her trying on nail varnish?

her silk shirt is unimaginably lovely, but must surely be a bit whiffy by now.

Loving it - exactly my kind of entertainment!

GAs character is not particularly likeable. Female characters so often have to have some empathetic quality to them and display some softer side in some area, but GA is a cold fish by male or female standards, she's not motivated at all by being liked, and whilst not ground breaking, it's good to see that within a female character.

Agree about she is not motivated by being liked. I don't think she is cold, more cool and professional. She seems to keep a tight rein on her emotions But that helps with the job, and helped when the copper shot himself. However, I do think she has empathy though - with the victims and with their families.

On a different tangent, didn't anybody else find it weird when GA was with the pathologist and they were at the victim's house and GA was lying on the bed pretending her arms were tied and the pathologist was taking photos. I found that a bit weird.

She put the nail varnish on in front of the female PC.

I think she wanted to go back to the house as it was being given back to family so it was the last chance before they moved stuff, maybe cleared it of furniture etc.

I thought the bit were GA put the nail varnish on was very natural. I know as soon as I buy nail varnish or if someone is showing me a colour, the first thing I do is try it out.

Remind me again, why do people think that the path is the leak? Is there an "official" leak? I thought that GA's lover gave the reporter the first leak?

I don't know, I must have missed the importance of the "leak" as well.

The last 10 minutes violence was a bit much. But I don't find it frightening, and certainly don't have nightmares about it.

LOVE GA in her silk shirt, which is so sexy, in an understated way, and I too want to know where that silk shirt is from.

I am so used to seeing GA as x files , red-head that the blonde ice-cold copper is a bit of a shock.

I've always had a bit of a girl crush on GA I must admit. Loved her as Scully first, thought she was fab in Bleak house (along with John Lynch) and now this. She plays really cool characters!

Okay, there's a very interesting article, by Allan Cubitt, the writer of The Fall, on The Guardian site.

NB Doesn't contain spoilers for the current series, but he gives a tiny hint about what to expect in the next series in the final paragraph.

Interesting article mrsbert. I didn't read the last paragraph - thanks for the warning.

Counting down the hours till the series finale tomorrow night!

Plan to have a luverly M and S ready meal and delish dessert whilst watching with DH!

I personally think another series would work brilliantly, where we'd get to find out more about GA's back story. This particular crime should be put to bed.......Jamie Dornan, bed, oo-er missus

Please please please let him get caught, after having read Gone Girl recently I feel in need of a good old-fashioned Happy(ish!) Ending where good triumphs over evil. And then Jamie could get his own show, late night........oh dear

Bacon it's on here tonight. Just hope to goodness that the storyline gets wrapped up tonight. Will be very disappointed if there is a cliffhanger and Jamie has kidnapped GA or something and we are left wondering.
P.S. You can keep Jamie Dornan. Not my type

Thanks holly, gratefully received

worried this is going to end unbelievably,
after reading the guardian review of the programme