This series is far better than its title (reminiscent of juvenile fiction) would lead one to believe. The series, adaptations of the books of Liza Marklund, comprises six 90-minute episodes, each representing a story that the main character, Annika Bengtzon, a crime reporter for a Stockholm newspaper, is pursuing. Each story is complete in itself, the thread that runs through them being the newspaper's staff, Bengtzon, and her personal life. Filmed in Sweden with a Swedish cast (and thus with English subtitles), the series features excellent cinematography and high production values. The stories are interesting; the time devoted to Bengtzon's pursuit of the story and the effect of her career on her personal life is well balanced; and the cast, especially Malin Crépin as Bengtzon, are effective. All six episodes can be streamed on Netflix.
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GilBlas2 February 2013
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bjarias29 October 2014It's unfortunate this great series was only six episodes, it was such a pleasure to watch. This crime drama is all Malin Crepin.. bit.ly/14ierxC... and she is sensational. She could easily come to the US and be a huge success.. cameras just adore her. There are few women having such natural beauty, where makeup adds so little to their allure. As for the show, it's more like six movies strung together with her characters job and immediate on-screen family linking them all. The remainder of the cast is good... but by script design, and her beauty and talent, no one stands out anywhere near as much as she does. There are not many thirty-something actresses that could be dressed down into loose t-shirts, dungaree shorts, black & white sneakers, and look as desirable. One unrealistic part of the plot, you'd have to be completely out of your mind to even consider divorcing her.
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keithandlinda67 August 2012The Red Wolf (2012) aka Den röda vargen
Plot: A journalist is murdered in the frozen white landscape of a northern Swedish town. Annika Bengtzon, a reporter at a Stockholm-based tabloid, was planning to interview him about a long-ago attack against an isolated air base nearby, and now she suspects that his death is linked to that attack. Against the explicit orders of her boss, she begins to investigate the event, which is soon followed by a series of shocking murders. Annika knows the murders are connected. At the same time, she begins to suspect that her husband is hiding something, and nothing can counteract the loneliness that has crept into her life. Behind everything lurks the figure of the Red Wolf, a cold-blooded killer with the soul of a lover. In the end, she must discover the truth not only about the murders but also about the lies that are destroying her own family. -
BeneCumb22 September 2014The film in question follows the footsteps of several famous Scandinavian crime dramas with "feminine approach", i.e. the leading character is a strong woman who does well in masculine environment or even outperforms her associates. Usually they are based on book by female authors, and topics deal with "softer" values rather than harsh and nasty felonies. Similar to e.g. Dicte, Annika Bengtzon is a journalist, but both the character itself and performance are somewhat weaker than Iben Hjejle's Dicte; moreover, there are some sidelines not providing additional value to the course of events (Annika's family problems), and the ones depicting evil are quite inexpressive. On the other hand, the plot itself is intriguing and as I did not figure out the real killer, I can give 7 overall points. And as it was my first familiarisation with Liza Marklund / Annika Bengtzon, I would not like to express blunt criticism, perhaps they did not just "open" fully to me at first sight.
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this whole series is actually a mediocre one if compares to other mysteries out of Scandinavian TV industries. screenplays were so badly crafted and then further deteriorated by poor directing and editing. the only thing that this series still worth viewing was the main female crime reporter herself, played by Malin Crépin, a female actor who performed naturally, a quite likable persona that viewers would like to watch just because of her. the settings related to her work, those supporting roles in the newspapers were not quite good, the whole series relied heavily on flash back, all crimes had to be rewound back and back again, one by one. it's like Korean TV drama series, characters have to talk to themselves by murmuring all the time to help explaining something that poor screenplays and directors usually could not do. this series also got limited actors to play the roles, we often saw an actor in one episode appeared in the next one with different role, but the face was just too familiar to be smoothly transformed into another one. the whole series only got one above average episode, the one about the Nobel prize murder case. others episodes, like this one and "prime time" were simply too flat, dumb and awkward to be watched, you need two factors that might enable you to complete the whole series: time and patience, i.e., if you got some leisure time to waste and if you got enough patience. otherwise, it's a pain in the neck to watch along.
i was also disgusted by the poor screenplay of this episode that showed the heroine's true color: a news hound without emotion and empathy. she told the tabloid to expose the teenager who was later killed by the serial killer. when she heard that young man was killed because of her, she seemed to give no darn at all; when she saw her longtime boyfriend/husband had an affair, her reaction also not quite like a normal female. the poor screenplay just made her with a robotic personality, a woman only got certain degrees of emotions to her two kids, but remote and almost without any feeling to others. -
ndk539 August 2013I looked in here to get some clarification about the time line of the Red Wolf episode. In the office Annika was talking to Berit, one of the other reporters who was apparently an old-time lefty. Berit mentions she and a woman on the TV, perhaps the minister of culture, protested the Vietnam war together. But both the actress who plays Berit and the one who is the culture minister are too young to have been protesting the Vietnam war. The actress was ten years old in 1972, the last big year for protests.
In another episode Annika recalls being nearly raped as a young girl. This is an unfortunate cliché, as it seems so many female detectives are survivors of rape. Most male detectives (on US TV at least) on the other hand are not only war veterans but also combat veterans. Both are unimaginative attempts to layer world-weariness onto characters who more likely have led ordinary comfortable suburban lives. I noticed in particular in TV series the Vietnam-vet trope was really stretched, giving detectives war cred who were too young to have been there. There was a period where it finally became too implausible, with detectives in their 30s, in the 1990s, being Vietnam vets, so they started making them be veterans of Grenada (!), and even Panama. Then the first Gulf War came along, and they could be veterans of that at least, even though it was a very brief war. Now with Iraq and Afghanistan police depts will be well stocked with the necessary gravitas that only combat experience can provide, for many years to come.
The home life seems a cliché and predictable--the kids are tacked on. Would anyone notice if they were different from one episode to the next? You'd think the perennially put-upon spouse would have resigned himself to her schedule after all these years. And Annika's newsroom, with its "stop the presses"-type reporting seems an anachronism. No layoffs in this place! The gruff suspender-wearing editor is a pale copy of J. Jonah Jameson from the Spiderman comics of an earlier era.
Still, I enjoy the show because the cinematography is beautiful, and it's nice to see the ridiculously glamorous Malin Crepin poking around in various interesting locations in Sweden, which we in the US don't often get to see. -
Rupert171 June 2015Malin Crepin stars as crime reporter Annika Bengtzon. Annika has a partner and two children, but her job as a crime reporter often and summarily sends her on cases away from her family and into a degree of danger. Her sudden absences put pressures on her family life.
The stories are quite good,the acting is very competent and the production values high. It's what you expect from Scandanavian productions and this series of six movies doesn't let you down.
Not at the same level as The Bridge and The Killing, but enjoyable nevertheless. Worth watching in the knowledge that what you see won't send you into convulsions of pain and horror, nor will it make you reassess your life. But most of us just want to be entertained and for me Annika Bengtzon does that. -
DimitrisPassas-TapTheLine21 August 2019I am familiar with Liza Marklund's body of work and I've enjoyed many novels from her series having Annika Bengtzon, a young crime reporter trying to set her own mark in a male-dominated working environment, as a protagonist. Unfortunately, this attempt in adapting "The Red Wolf" (original title: "Den Röda Vargen") into a TV movie was mediocre -at least- as the production values didn't correspond to the high standards of the major Nordic noir films and television series. On the plus side, I liked Malin Crépin's performance as Annika and her physique was close to the one I've imagined when reading the books. Nevertheless, nearly all the other aspects of this movie, like plot and characterization were off the mark and disappointing in general. This story is set in Luleå, one of Sweden's northernmost cities, capital of Norrbotten County. I think that it is better to read the book than watching this uninspired adaptation.
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laurabaker1089 April 2013I really enjoyed this series. Luckily, I didn't check out the ratings on IMDb, or I might never have tried it. Well-written, well-acted, and well-directed. I have seen the first six episodes (which seem to be listed separately here). Some are better than others, but all were worth watching.
Malin Crepin is a treat to watch, as Annika. The continuing story of her marriage and motherhood make Annika a much fuller character than "reporter." Like the best of series, there is both an episode resolution and continuing character development.
If you like Scandinavian TV series like "The Protectors," you'll probably like "Annika Bengtzon."
Check it out if you like well-done mysteries. I hope there are more of these shows to come. -
As a woman, it's especially fun to watch this program. Annika is so fearless and yet so believable a character. There's a twist to the usual family dynamic in that Annika is the more workaholic and absent parent and her poor, long-suffering (and extremely hot) husband is often stuck home with the kids, or lying languidly shirtless in bed waiting for her just as she has to go out and investigate a tip.
All of the acting is wonderful and the direction very natural. One gets completely sucked into the plot and the pathos. You see how Annika steels herself from being impacted from most of it, and yet some cases really get to her. The Kvallpresse newsroom has its amusing cast of characters, from the tubby, barking and be-jowled news chief, to the lovable and mannish old socialist Berit, to the smarmy young toady Patrik.
Some of the crimes are pretty grisly so this series is not suitable for children. I've read reviews elsewhere in which men complain about having to hear about Annika's family life (also with Irene Huss, another Swedish crime solver I love) so this may be more something women and those interested in women's lives would enjoy. -
cliffmacdev31 July 2014It's really an excellent series with great flow and pacing. Tense and gritty. Only Malin Crépin is simply too distracting. It's enough having to read the subtitles, without being distracted by this ridiculously beautiful woman. I think casting should consider that males although evolved with some ability to control themselves, might be viewers and maybe unable to control biology. She is an excellent actress but detracts from the sheer quality of the show, with her looks. The story lines are superb and the scenery is brilliant. It has great atmosphere as well. I like the fact that even such a stunning woman, can have marital problems. Her problems balancing work and children resonates as well.
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jotix10029 August 2013We are given a recreation of a terrorist incident where a military plane is blown by persons obviously against the government. To aggravate things, no one of the perpetrators were ever caught. Now, after so many years, Benny, a journalist who never lost interest in the case, is the victim of a voluntary hit and run as he is getting home. Linus, a young man coming home from a hockey practice, witnesses in the shadows how the driver, not content with having struck the victim, returns and runs over his moribund body.
Annika Bengtzon is asked to go to the town of Lulea to get information on the incident. She finds herself in a hostile environment, as it appears no one in town welcomes her presence. She gets lucky in finding Linus, the young hockey player, who tells her what he saw. Unknown to Linus, the same assassin, has a surprise for him, when the unknown man returns to take care of him.
Annika's own life is in turmoil. Her domestic situation is a mess. To make matters worse, her own husband, Thomas begins an affair with a colleague, something Annika discovers in a strange fashion. At the office, her situation could not be more complicated with her boss. With the help of Bertil, Annika is able to go to the past and the activities of the Red Fox leftist gang. She will come close to being a casualty, but her intelligent approach to the case, helps her unmask the culprits, in a surprising ending.
Directed with style by Agnetta Fagerstrom-Olsson, this series is a winner. Based on Liza Marklund's novels, the figure of an indefatigable newspaper reporter, Annika Bengtzon is a woman with high principles who believes in the pursuit of justice by the power given to her by the newspaper where she is clearly, the star. This episode was adapted by Bjorn Paqualin and Antonia Pyk. The casting of Malin Crepin is key to the success of this series. A lot of Swedish excellent players, many seen in other series, show up here to create an ensemble unit that probably made the director happy to rely on them to deliver. -
alethea-hall17 January 2014This Swedish television series captures the work and personal life of Annika Bengtzon, a tenacious journalist who relentlessly strives to unveil the truth and identities of criminals. She is also a doting, young mother and her conviction to her work often conflicts with her lion-hearted longing to be a good mother and supportive spouse/lover. The quick-paced show is artfully done (both visually and auditorily) and gives the viewer a sense that time is of the essence and moreover, it gives Annika's life a sense of edginess, fragility and most importantly, freedom, as she plunges headlong into tracking down criminals without thinking twice about the consequences. Annika is beautiful by American standards and average by Swedish standards. But she is not portrayed in any glossy fashion - she wears dark eyeliner, sloppy t-shirts and has pronounced bags under her eyes. The show does an excellent job at portraying a passionate, hard-working woman's struggles and it does an average job in creating compelling mysteries. The mysteries are somewhat formulaic, which is why we love them. However, a smart audience will eventually want to see more grit and complexity in its criminals. - Looking forward to Season 2.
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resukcs22 February 2021Good story lines, interesting characters. Fits well intro the Nordic drama mold but not as dark as some of them. Malin Crepin is a great actor.