Review: The "Red Riding" Trilogy

For those of you who don't know, I'm on furlough this week. "What's furlough?" you ask? Well, basically it's a company-wide mandatory week of unpaid vacation. So, what have I been doing with my time? Well, I've done a bit of cleaning, a bit of cooking, a bit of guitar and piano work (I have a show on Friday night in Keyport, after all.) But mostly, I've been watching movies.

So far during this furlough period, I've caught the original "Wolf Man" (it was good), "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man" (it was better, really), the Coen Brothers' "A Serious Man" (it was great) and Frank Capra's "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (it was also great). By the way, I didn't mean to watch two Claude Rains movies in one week, but that's the way it worked out.

However, as you can probably tell from the title of this blog post, those aren't the movies I want to talk about. After all, this is my blog, where I do what I want! And I want to talk about a trio of movies you guys and gals probably haven't heard of and even more probably haven't seen: the "Red Riding" trilogy.

No, these movies aren't kids' stuff, nor are they porn, although the title could be applied to either of those things, I guess. No, what "Red Riding" is, basically, is "Ellroy Goes to England." Based on a quadrilogy of novels I haven't read by English author David Peace, the "Red Riding" trilogy looks at systematized crime and corruption in West Yorkshire in the years 1974, 1980 and 1983. (There was also a book set in 1977 which didn't make the journey to film due to budgetary restrictions).

The same screenwriter, "Brothers of the Head" and "Tideland" scribe Tony Grisoni, wrote all three films, which also share some of the same cast members when characters cross over from one year to the other, and some folks even appear in all three.

Each separate film, however, was directed by someone different, who brought their own style to the table. "Red Riding: 1974" was handled by "Becoming Jane" and "Kinky Boots" director Julian Jarrold, "Man on Wire" director James Marsh handled "Red Riding: 1980" and "Red Riding: 1983" was directed by "Shopgirl"'s Anand Tucker.

OK, so now that all of those formalities are out of the way, you probably want to know if the movies were any good on their own, and if the trilogy worked as a whole.

(Note: Now that we're entering the proper review section of this review, I'm going to remain as spoiler-free as possible. However, since the plot depends so heavily on secrets being unraveled over the course of the three films, that means you'll be getting my general thoughts on the three films rather than a plot synopsis.)

Well, here's the thing with trilogies: usually, the weak link of one is its final chapter (for examples, see "Back to the Future III" and "Return of the Jedi"), but that isn't the case with "Red Riding." Here, we have two fine sequels in search of a strong starting point. And when you get right down to it, all of the problems of the second and third films stem from the fact that the first installment drops the ball so badly.

With "Red Riding: 1974," Jarrold and Grisoni should have known that they had a lot of groundwork to lay in painting a picture of a rotten-to-the-core region that makes Polanski's "Chinatown" seem like "Mr. Roger's Neighborhood." But they don't really do that. Much like the fine gray and hazy cinematography that is a defining characteristic of the series, "RR: 1974" never really comes into focus. We're given the entire story from the perspective of rookie beat reporter Eddie Dunford, played by Andrew Garfield, also known as Anton in "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus." Eddie quickly realizes he's in over his head, becomes overwhelmed with the case and as a result the viewer never really gets invested in the child abduction case Eddie's investigating or the corrupt city as a whole.

The best parts of "RR: 1974" are the characters, themes and plot elements that get fleshed out in the sequels. For example, Sean Bean (playing local real estate tycoon John Dawnson) gets a fraction of the amount of his "RR: 1974" screen time in "RR: 1983," but he's put to so much better use it makes you wish a better or more appropriate director had been given the reigns of "RR: 1974."

Which brings us to "RR: 1980," which is easily the best of the three. After seeing him bring a thriller-like sense of tension and suspense to the world of documentaries with the Oscar-winning "Man on Wire," I was really looking forward to seeing what James Marsh did in the world of genre fiction and hot damn, he didn't disapoint. The shortest of the three films by about 10 minutes ("1980" clocks in at around 90 minutes, whereas "1974" and "1983" are both around 100), this is a crisp, tight character piece and thriller that is basically a stand-alone picture until its final act.

Part of the reason "RR: 1980" works so well is because of its cast; Paddy Considine (one of the Andys from "Hot Fuzz" and an early contender for Rorschach in the "Watchmen" movie, that's him in the picture accompanying this review) takes the lead role of Peter Hunter, an honest but complex cop investigating a series of murders and a possible tie-in with corrupt cops, and runs with it -- his work here is just awesome, and reminds me a bit of a British, darker and clean-shaven take on Gary Oldman's Jim Gordon.

Unfortunatley, "RR: 1980" stumbles a bit when Marsh has to tie his film to the events of "RR: 1974" and "RR: 1983." Frankly, it felt like he was working on a separate level from Jarrold and Tucker and he had to lower his game a bit to tie into the other installments.

That's not to say "RR: 1983" was bad; it was actually pretty good. However, it's more of a direct sequel to "1974" and a spin-off of "1980," so it becomes an issue of trying to built a good house on a weak foundation. But "RR: 1983" is worth watching for its pair of lead performances: first there's David Morrissey, whose corrupt copper Maurice Jobson is a supporting player in "RR: 1974" and "RR: 1980," gets to step into the spotlight in "RR: 1983" and reveal a crisis of conscience -- yes, it's a cop flick cliche, but Morrissey and Tucker handle it well.

Also comiing up aces in "RR: 1983" is Mark Addy a a soul-music loving ambulance-chasing attorney who decides to take on the West Yorkshire police force head-on, just like Garfield and Consadine did before him. How do things work out for him and his clients? Watch and find out, if you want to know.

By the time "RR: 1983" comes to a conclusion, it can't help but feel sweeping and grand; after all, if the viewer has watched all three films in order that means they've spent 295 minutes, or just shy of five hours, with these characters and this city and even if they've enjoyed all three films, this will most certainly be a city they'll be hoping to leave. Still, the conclusion would have resonated more if the quality of "Red Riding" had been more consistent across the board.

The "Red Riding" trilogy aired on Channel 4 in England in early 2009, and was released in theaters in the U.S. this month. I believe it's still playing at the IFC Center in New York City, and all three films are currently available on IFC on Demand (that's how I saw them).

If you're a crime film buff, I'd say go ahead and check out all three films; "Red Riding" is a grand experiement in cinematic storytelling that really works, for the most part. However, if you think you may be on the fence, check out "Red Riding: 1980" first, because it's be best of the bunch and feels the most like a stand-alone (although there is information contained in the film that could spoil the end of "RR: 1974" if you haven't seen it yet.) And if you dig "RR: 1980," then go back and check out "RR: 1974" and "RR: 1983."

Quick technical note: The northern English accents in the films, especially in "RR: 1974," can be a bit difficult to decipher at times. However, if you've seen "L.A. Confidential" or "Zodiac," or if you're just familiar with cop flick cliches and archetypes, you can probably just press on through the way I did, or wait until the movies hit DVD or Blu-ray and throw on the subtitles.)