Waking the Dead
Waking the Dead
TV-14 | 18 June 2001 (USA)

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SEASON & EPISODES
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  • Reviews
    Diagonaldi Very well executed
    SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."
    Sanjeev Waters A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
    Payno I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
    ladybug2535 I adore this show--the writing is excellent, the cases are intriguing, and the actors are very, very good (especially the lady who place Grace, the far-too patient Psychiatrist profiler of the team.The one part of the show I can't stand is the way Boyd, the leader of the team treats his people. He talks down to them, berates them, humiliates them, and is a blatant hypocrite. Some of his actions during interviews of suspects are so out of line that in real life, he would have--and should have been fired. In at least one show, he is directly responsible for the deaths of others, due to the way he handles the case (and I am tempted to believe that this occurs--directly or indirectly, more than once).I'm currently into the 6th season, and if anything, his behavior gets progressively worse, but like abused children forever trying to earn their abusers' love, his team is desperately loyal while at the same time overtly exasperated and upset by the way he treats them. In real life, no one would willingly work for this jerk. None of this dynamic is accidental or incidental, the characters and their interactions are obviously written this way--and the acting by the cast is spot on, not a false note among them--including the actor who plays Boyd. I just can't fathom why the writers would continue to paint this character in such a dreadful light. I find it extremely distracting and perplexing in an otherwise excellent and interesting crime show.I've grown to hate Boyd so much that I actually stopped watching the show for several months. And that's just sad, because it really is an excellent program with interesting and unique cases that avoid cliché, and characters that avoid stereotype. I keep waiting for Boyd to get a wake-up call and change his ways, but so far, after watching most of the 6 seasons, his behavior gets progressively worse with no improvement in sight. Just be forewarned.
    clotblaster Twice in the last few years I have given this show a chance--viewings at least two years apart. Both times, same reaction. The show is the most Americanized (NCIS, The Shield (The Shield, however, does have compensatory features) etc. ad nauseam) Brit cop show that ever worked its insidious way onto the screen and into the hearts of many people who like to be mindlessly silenced by a show that depends almost solely on a kind of smart aleck quick pace that leaves no time for character development, thematic development, plot development. This show throws images and speech at you at a cyper speed that first baffles, then disgusts, and then reaches the apogee of t.v. non-sense--we've made it through the episode and something must have happened because we have good acting, seemingly a compelling plot and interesting stories--not.Trevor Eve is supposed to have charisma, but it is lost in the miasma of stories that refused to be told in a way that is comprehensible, not to mention compelling. A show to be missed if you enjoy other Brit suspense/detective shows such as Midsomer Murders, Foyle's War, The Last Detective (okay L.D. is a comedy/drama not a hard ass cop show. The most successful cop shows usually have a proper amount of mystery, but essentially a large dose of humor--Rumpole, Morse, New Tricks,--and they move at a reasonable pace so you don't think you're in a blender. This show reminds me of Criminal Minds--with one impt. exception-- CMinds slows down once in awhile and the characters seem more real.
    kayaker36 This show is making the rounds now on a local Public Broadcasting channel, as a lead-in for the more exciting--and more violent--MI-5 (original title: **Spooks**).There is some good acting here, led by Trevor Eve, fifty-something veteran of British television and films (I just saw him in the 2007 version of "David Copperfield"). His is a face with mileage on it that evidently has never had the services of a cosmetic surgeon. Sue Johnson, an actress also not in her first youth, does creditable work as well, as a psychological profiler. She is a sort of human lie detector. The guest parts are also surprisingly well acted.The problems begin with a low budget, particularly by our American standards. This is evidenced by a preponderance of indoor scenes giving the whole production a static, stagey quality. Key events in the plot must be recounted by one or another cast member because they cannot be depicted--additional sets or actors would cost--a clumsy way to tell a story. The scripts are "loose". Scenes ramble on when they should be cut off. The spoken dialogue often differs in minor ways from the closed captioning, which implies that there is a much greater degree of ad libbing than would be found in a normal, scripted program. I think the writers often don't know how to fill the extended running time of the series. It is presented here as two, fifty-minute episodes with no commercial interruptions.The plots will start with an interesting, novel premise, then become hard to follow or just plain preposterous. The science is always absorbing, however and the continuing theme--a search for truth--inspiring.
    paul-1186 No spoilers here but I have been a fan since Waking the Dead started but the last series, of which only 3 have been on so far is awful. The stories bear no resemblance to the original idea of the series. I found these 3 in the last series jaw droppingly ludicrous. As a BBC licence payer, after the show I rang BBC complaints to pass on my disappointment. I'm amazed that actors of the calibre of Trevor Eve and Sue Johnstone didn't object to the story lines. These actors have been with these characters for 8 seasons, surly they can see it's lost all direction. It's a good job it is the last series or the next series may start with the team investigating the death of Father Christmas!Paul Bentley, West Yorkshire, England.
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