Prime Suspect 2 (1992) (TV)

User Rating:

8.5/10   

Director:

John Strickland

Writers:

Allan Cubitt (writer)
Lynda La Plante (story)

Release Date:

15 December 1992 (UK)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Plot:

DCI Jane Tennison's investigation of a murder is complicated with the unexpected participation of her secret lover in her detective unit.

Plot Keywords:

Investigation | Detective | Lover | Murder | Secret

Awards:

Won Primetime Emmy. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Helen Mirren	...	DCI Jane Tennison
Colin Salmon	...	Sergeant Robert Oswalde
John Benfield	...	D Supt Michael Kernan
Jack Ellis	...	DI Tony Muddyman
Craig Fairbrass	...	D.I. Frank Burkin
Richard Hawley	...	DS Richard Haskons
Philip Wright	...	DC Lillie
Ian Fitzgibbon	...	DC Jones
Andrew Tiernan	...	DC Rosper
Stafford Gordon	...	Commander Trayner
Lloyd McGuire	...	Sergeant Calder
Stephen Boxer	...	DCI Thorndike
Nirjay Mahindru	...	Asian PC
Claire Benedict	...	Esme Allen
George Harris	...	Vernon Allen

Also Known As:

Prime Suspect 2: Operation Nadine (Europe) (DVD title)

Runtime:

203 min (4 parts)

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | USA:Approved

Company:

Granada Television

Trivia:

In a 2006 interview, Helen Mirren stated that 'what did shock me profoundly was we had a storyline, where a house had been bought and they're re-modeling the garden and they find a dead body and then they find another one. And in my mind I was going - that's a little bit, you know, that's pushing it a bit - and then very shortly after that the Rosemary and Fred West case came about and I thought - my god. My god. Not only was it realistic. The real world went so much further'.

Quotes:

Mrs. Duhra: [At the inquest into Tony Allen's death in police custody, Duhra has forced Oswalde to admit that he forced Allen to return to his police cell when the suspect was mentally unstable] You had an exemplary record, Sergeant. Could it be that in some subtle way you were being tougher - harder - on this black suspect because you too are black?
Sergeant Robert Oswalde: I'm afraid your question is too subtle for me.

Movie Connections:

References Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (1988)

Bit of a Dip

This one isn't written by La Plante and it shows. The cacophony of the station room is replaced by a hum. Things are more sorted, the plot details pointed to ostentatiously.

This one is about racism - about how racial tensions cause destruction all around. Many of the familiar faces from the first episode are back, but others are unfortunately gone.

This one goes on forever. All these episodes are four hours long but this one feels that long. Two hours through it and you'll expect an ending and then you'll check the clock and you're likely to yelp 'OMG another two hours?'

It's not bad - but it does drag. As all these stories, it's incredibly complex and intricately woven - and it will beat most television crime drama fare. But odds are at the end of the game you'll long for the return of La Plante.