"Trial & Retribution" Episode #6.1 (2002)

Director:

Ferdinand Fairfax

Writer:

Lynda La Plante (written by)

TV Series:

"Trial & Retribution" (1997)

Original Air Date:

6 October 2002 (Season 6, Episode 1)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Missing Person | Police | Criminal Investigation | Detective

Cast

Juliette Cheveley	...	Jane Mellor
Gemma Bourne	...	Tara Mellor
Katie Angelou	...	Diana Leach
Kate Buffery	...	Det. Insp. Pat North
Dorian Lough	...	D.S. Dave Satchell
David Hayman	...	Det. Supt. Michael Walker
James Simmons	...	D.C. Doug Collins
Jacqueline Tong	...	Lynn Walker
Martin Wenner	...	James Mellor
Tim McInnerny	...	Eric Fowler
Ben Robinson	...	Richard Walker
Dani Harmer	...	Amy Walker (as Danielle Harmer)
Inday Ba	...	D.C. Lisa West (as N'Deaye Baa-Clements)
Ben Goddard	...	Crispin Yates
Barbara Thorn	...	Barbara MacKenzie

Runtime:

UK:240 min (including commercials) (2 parts)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

La Plante Productions

Movie Connections:

Followed by "Trial & Retribution: Sins of the Father: Part 1 (#10.1)" (2006)

It just gets better and better....

...everytimer Lynda La Plante puts pen to paper. Apart from the series 'Lifeboat' that failed to grip me from the start, everything else has always kept my interest from start to finish. Trial and Retribution has now, in my humble opinion, surpassed the level of excitement experienced in the Prime Suspect series however the production and cinematography was always better in Trial and Retribution from the start. The split screen work that was recently championed by the critics in '24' was in fact pioneered by Lynda from the first installment a good few years earlier and was a fundemental part of the storytelling. (to better effect than in 24!) This is largely due to Lynda La Plante's hands on approach, bringing her already proven writing skills (she is a very successfull crime thriller novelist) together with the added dimension of being able to play with images on o screen. You can never show more than one word at a time on the pages of a book but with split screen you show simultaniously two, three, or maybe even four elements of the story unfolding at the same time.

Storywise this is the most complex chapter of this series of usually one off two part, four hour thrillers. Without giving the storyline away it is firing on many differant fronts and it twists and turns more than anyother Lynda la Plante story that I can remember. I have never bee more gripped by a TV thriller, so much so that I did wonder what would have happened if it had received a theatrical release in the States as it is artistically strong enough and if you removed all the adverts coupled with some smart editing you would have something that would thrill in this age of very glossy but devoid of depth Hollywood thrillers.Please do not stop there Lynda! (as if she would!)