Spiral (TV series)

Spiral
Format Drama
Created by Alexandra Clert
Guy-Patrick Sainderichin
Starring Caroline Proust
Grégory Fitoussi
Philippe Duclos
Fred Bianconi
Thierry Godard
Audrey Fleurot
Composer(s) Stéphane Zidi
Country of origin France
Language(s) French
No. of series 3
No. of episodes 28
Production
Running time 52 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel Canal+
Original run 13 December 2005 (2005-12-13) – Present
External links
Website

Engrenages (French for "cogs") is a French television police drama series created by the TV production company Son et Lumière. It is marketed in the English speaking world as Spiral. The first eight episodes series started on Canal+ in France on 13 December 2005.[1] It returned for a second series of eight episodes on 12 May 2008,[2] and a third series of twelve episodes on 3 May 2010.[3] A fourth, fifth and sixth series have been ordered.[4]

Engrenages primarily means "cogs" or "gears", but also has the sense of figurative spirals (into violence, for example).

Spiral has been a great export success, with sales to broadcasters in some 70 countries, among them Switzerland, Mexico, Japan, Italy, Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom and Australia. The series was first shown in the UK on BBC Four during the summer of 2006. It was the channel's first French-language drama series, attracting a modest but loyal audience (around 200,000) and firm critical approval. On 13 September 2009, BBC Four started showing the second series,[5] and on 2 April 2011 the third series.[6][7] In Australia, the first series was broadcast in 2008 on SBS1 and the second series on SBS2 from September 2009.

The first series was released on DVD in France on 26 August 2006 and in the UK on 6 October 2008.

Contents

Production staff

Plot

The series describes the day-to-day work and life of six employees of the judicial system: a police captain and her two lieutenants, a judge, a prosecutor and a lawyer.

Series 1 (2005)

Main article: Spiral (series 1)

The badly beaten body of a young Romanian woman is discovered on a Parisian rubbish dump. Her identity and past life are gradually uncovered as the various parts of the French justice system investigate her death. However, it becomes apparent that her story ties to a network of corruption touching the very people charged with uncovering the truth about her.

Series 2 (2008)

Main article: Spiral (series 2)

A burned corpse is found in the boot of a car, a seemingly isolated case of urban violence. However, the case grows in complexity and danger, each new piece of evidence unearths a duplicitous world of international trafficking, informers, double lives and arms dealing. An audacious plan to strike at the heart of the crime network means that the slightest slip will result in certain death.

Series 3 (2010)

Main article: Spiral (series 3)

When the mutilated body of a young woman is found on a disused railway track in the North of Paris, near La Villette, Captain Laure Berthaud takes the opportunity to restore her image after her involvement in the death of Mustapha Larbi. She quickly thinks the murderer could be a serial killer, and her intuition is confirmed a few days later by the disappearance of a second young woman with the same physical apparence in the same neighbourhood. Time is running out to avoid new victims but the investigation goes badly: Berthaud and her men make mistakes, losing the confidence of their hierarchy, whilst newspaper articles on the so-called "Butcher of la Villette" increase. Moreover, the prestigious Brigade criminelle, led by Commissionner Vincent Brémont, Berthaud's former supervisor when she was a young police intern, now wants to get back the case.

In the meantime at the Palais de Justice, while investigating an ordinary case of a child attacked by a dog in the wealthy suburb of Villedieu, Judge Roban discovers that the mayor may be involved in a bribery scandal. Prosecutor Machard immediately asks Pierre Clément to use his friendship with the judge to spy on him discreetly, in order to prevent a political scandal: the mayor of Villedieu is a personal friend of the President of France. Upon Clément's refusal, Machard is determined to get rid of this uncooperative subordinate. Meanwhile Joséphine Karlsson and Szabo are eventually caught out by their shady transactions when they are shot at in the street by two gangsters.

Cast

Main Cast

Regulars

DVD releases

Series Region 2 (France) Region 2 (UK) Region 4 (Australia)
Series One 28 August 2006 6 October 2008 1 October 2008
Series Two 22 July 2008 9 August 2010 2 March 2009
Series Three 15 June 2010 1 August 2011 To be announced

International broadcasts

Country TV Network(s)
 Australia SBS
 France Canal+
 Italy Fox Crime
 Japan AXN Mystery
 Mexico Once TV
 Switzerland SF1 and TSR1
 United Kingdom BBC Four

References

  1. ^ IMDB: "Spiral, season 1" retrieved 18 April 2011
  2. ^ IMDB: "Spiral, season 2" retrieved 18 April 2011
  3. ^ IMDB: "Spiral, season 3" Accessed 10 December 2009.
  4. ^ http://www.commeaucinema.com/serietv/engrenages-connaitra-3-saisons-supplementaires-sur-canal,157058
  5. ^ Holmwood, Leigh (4 April 2007). "More European drama for BBC4". London: MediaGuardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/apr/04/broadcasting.bbc. Retrieved 14 April 2007. 
  6. ^ The Guardian 1 April 2011: "Will Spiral become your new favourite Saturday night Euro cop drama?" Retrieved 18 April 2011
  7. ^ Eurocrime blog 27 March 2011: "BBC4 is spoiling us (aka the return of Spiral)" Retrieved 18 April 2011

External links