The Eye of the Storm 

When the charred remains of woman are found, Säpo, the Swedish Security Services, suspect Gunvald Larsson of being mixed up in her murder. The dead woman was wanted internationally and a ... See full summary »

Director:

Harald Hamrell

Writers:

Cilla Börjlind (story), Rolf Börjlind (story)

Stars:

Peter Haber, Mikael Persbrandt, Måns Nathanaelson

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Haber	...	Martin Beck
Mikael Persbrandt	...	Gunvald Larsson
Måns Nathanaelson	...	Oskar Bergman
Ingvar Hirdwall	...	Grannen
Kirsti Eline Torhaug	...	Kim Reeshaug (as Kirsti Torhaug)
Christoffer Hedén	...	Tom Reeshaug
Stephen Rappaport	...	George - EJM
Daniel Goldman	...	Andy - EJM (as Daniel Goldmann)
Stefan Marling	...	Timh - EJM
Suzanna Dilber	...	Birgitte - EJM
Erik Johansson	...	Gert - EJM
Johannes Alfvén	...	Pino - EJM
Isak Hjelmskog	...	Philippe - EJM
Leila Haji	...	Merlina - EJM
Ann-Sofie Rase	...	Anita Åstrand - SÄPO

Storyline

When the charred remains of woman are found, Säpo, the Swedish Security Services, suspect Gunvald Larsson of being mixed up in her murder. The dead woman was wanted internationally and a member of a group of militant eco-activists carrying out attacks around the world. Gunvald sets out on his own to find the woman's murderer, with Säpo on his heels. Martin Beck is ordered to arrest Gunvald and his loyalty to his colleague is now put to the test.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Sweden

Language:

Swedish

Release Date:

29 November 2009 (Germany)

Also Known As:

The Eye of the Storm

Filming Locations:

Frihamnen, Gärdet, Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmlance International AB

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The book Gunvald has that Kim Reeshuag left at the diner is titled "Slouching Toward Bethlehem" by American writer Joan Didion. The book is 1968 collection of essays by Didion that mainly describes her experiences in California during the 1960s. The title essay describes Didion's impressions of the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco during the neighborhood's heyday as a countercultural center. In contrast to the more utopian image of the milieu promoted by counterculture sympathizers. One critic describes the essay as "a devastating depiction of the aimless lives of the disaffected and incoherent young."

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Goofs

In the end of the movie, when Gunvald is entering the car after the funeral, Gunvald's face is covered with the same amount of facial hair as he had throughout the entire movie. However, in the following scene, inside the car, it is clearly visible that it is covered with a lot less facial hair.

User Reviews

Pointless Episode

One doesn't like to criticize a favorite detective series, but this particular episode of BECK proved particularly pointless, with lots of money being spent on expensive car-chases and location filming to little effect.

The plot was particularly far-fetched involving a radical environmentalist group threatening to blow up a nuclear plant led by crazy American George (Stephen Rappaport). One of that group was Kim Reeshaug (Kirsti Torhaug), who happened to be a former lover of Gunvald (Mikael Persbrandt). Initially Gunvald thinks that Kim has been charred to death in a cold-blooded murder, but discovers that she is still alive. There follows a quest in which Gunvald sets out to discover the truth, save Kim and ensure her son Tom's (Christoffer Hedén) continued existence. Oh, and we must not forget that Tom might or might not be Gunvald's illegitimate son (the point is left fascinatingly unanswered).

Unlike most mainstream episodes of this series, Harald Hamrell's production did not concentrate much on characterization: Beck (Peter Haber) was left as a peripheral figure trying to remonstrate with Swedish MI6 about Gunvald's unprofessional conduct. There were lots of close-ups of Gunvald's worried features as he sat in a car or stared longingly at his ex-lover, but little in the way of explanation as to why he should be carrying the romantic can for someone he knew so little. There were several fight sequences, including one thoroughly implausible sequence where Gunvald was shot, fell into a weir, and emerged shortly afterwards with only a scratch to his waist.

There were car-chases aplenty for those who like that kind of thing, but the overall impression of this episode was that much noise had been created for little effect.