Beck (1997– ) User Reviews

Beck - finally a Swedish series worth watching!

[summer_of_joy · 8/10 · 20 January 2007]

To be honest I haven't seen all the Beck movies in the series, which are 21 and counting, but the ones I've seen are well worth watching! I'm from Sweden myself and have a lot of thoughts, most of them negative, regarding Swedish movies. But Beck I like and that's quite an achievement from their part. The Beck series revolves around Martin Beck, Gunvald Larsson and their colleagues at the police force in Stockholm, Sweden. Beck is a divorced, middle-aged man while Larsson is young, forward and a quite violent man (against suspects that is). Together they make a perfect team, investigating crimes committed in Sweden, around Stockholm. The movies have a well written storyline, with diverse crimes, with no fear of showing brutal murders, horrible cases, or to go outside the Swedish border, making this series of movies great! Plot twists are only to be expected at the ending, making sure that everyone is kept in the dark of the outcome until the very end, which isn't always that easy to accomplish.

The series of movies are well-known here for a couple of things; Gunvald Larsson's short temper, and his great sarcastic lines! The neighbor of Beck, who always seem to be on sick-leave - wearing a lovely neck-collar, and who always is willing to give Beck some alcohol. And last but not least; the great actors! Peter Haber and Mikael Persbrandt are brilliant in their interpretations of Beck and Larsson.

Beck comes well recommended from my part!

An outstanding series

[GilBlas · 8/10 · 20 March 2013]

After having exhausted, it seemed, the supply of British mystery/police-procedural series, I turned my attention to foreign (non-English-language) productions. If you are not averse to subtitles, you will find among foreign productions some outstanding series in this genre, and "Beck" is one of them.

"Beck" – after "Wallander" and "Van Veeteren" – is the third Swedish-language police- procedural series I have watched, and it may be the best, which is high praise. I should qualify that by saying I have watched only the first 18 episodes of "Beck" (produced from 1997 to 2005), available in the USA as sets 1 through 6. Eight subsequent episodes have been produced and released on DVD, but not yet, as far as I can tell, with Region 1 encoding.

"Beck," which aired as a Swedish TV series from 1997 to 2009, is based on the books of Mai Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö in which Inspector Martin Beck, the lead detective of a special homicide team of the Swedish police, was the central character. I gather that the team (in this series) is based in Stockholm, but the crimes they investigate are not limited to that city. Each episode is approximately 90 minutes in length and represents a complete case. I found the stories to be uniformly engrossing, and in several there were twists at the end that I did not see coming.

Tying the episodes together is a cadre of well-cast, well-acted characters that appear in all, or nearly all, episodes, and other characters whose tenure spans fewer episodes. Three characters, who appear in all episodes, merit special mention: Beck: level-headed, insightful, possessed of more of an everyman quality than most leading characters (he reminded me of my junior high biology teacher); Gunvald, Beck's right-hand man: brash, swaggering, politically incorrect, tough – the iron fist in Beck's velvet glove; Grannen: Beck's wonderfully eccentric neighbor - he rarely failed to make me laugh.

Note: As a result of having read a user review (on another site) that lauded the series but was critical of the quality of the video transfer, especially in light of the fact the reviewer considered the DVD sets to be pricey, I purchased just one set and was attentive to image quality when I watched the first episode. What I found was that the video transfer is not state of the art but neither is it bad. More importantly, it quickly ceased to be an issue as I was pulled into the series. And after I finished the first set, I purchased the remaining five.

Earlier episodes better than the later ones!

[qui_j · 7/10 · 30 January 2019]

I have watched all episodes in this Swedish series and have to say that as the series progressed, the quality of writing decreased. The newest offering, produced in 2018 is a much lighter version than the earlier ones. The central character comes across as very tired, and just going through the motions. There isn't the passion and enthusiasm as before. Perhaps this is intentional i.e to show the effects of aging and "burn-out". The newest season has more subplots than the earlier ones, some of which seem to have little bearing on the main story. Although interesting, they can also be a bit distracting from the main focus. Beck's silly and annoying neighbor is still there but adds little to the series other than to insert some Swedish type humor that does not translate well to other audiences. The new episodes deal with current issued of immigration etc in modern day Sweden. Again, in keeping with a need to have a happy ending that is neat, and is a common thread in many of the newer, lighter Scandinavian noir series, Beck is also going in that direction., sometimes to the detriment of logic.

Despite all I've said, the series still is worth a watch but the writing needs to pick up the pace and go back to its roots. .

Simply Delightful

[zigzagtom · 10/10 · 6 April 2017]

My wife and I enjoy mystery/crime drama series, particularly those from Europe. This series is one of the best, even though it has been around for quite a while. The plot lines are interesting, sometimes even captivating, the characters are sometimes fascinating (such as Beck's friend in the adjoining apartment), the character interrelationships sophisticated, and the settings well thought-out and realistic. Because I've spent some time in Sweden (particularly Stockholm), I also enjoy the series for personal reasons. I'm particularly enthusiastic about the lead character, Beck, who is not cast as an exceptional, almost super-human individual but, rather, as a thoughtful, sometimes vulnerable, but still very intelligent and caring human. My wife and I give it two thumbs up (to use another rating system). Tom Nelson

Wonderful series

[SurstrommingKing · 10/10 · 1 September 2012]

This series has been around for quite a few years, and it has been airing as of lately on the MHz Network during the international mystery and drama hour each week. I'm quite enjoying it—as aforementioned by other users, the two main actors, Haber and Persbrandt (who play Martin Beck and Gunvald Larsson, respectively) are phenomenal at interpreting the roles they are assigned. The series is well-written, and each character has a great deal of personality—the viewer is able to grow with the characters as they continue their assignments throughout the series. That being said, the other actors deserve applause as well.

I would definitely recommend this program to other fans of mystery and suspense... I think this series is a bit under-appreciated where I am (I'm not from Sweden), and it deserves more publicity here, although it isn't as recent as many other shows.

Understated excellence....

[s3276169 · 9/10 · 7 April 2017]

Beck offers up understated excellence in the form of a Swedish crime drama.

There are several seasons of Beck. I have been fortunate enough to watch two and four, with English subtitles. Unlike many US shows, the Swedish approach to crime drama is modest and down to earth. For me, this approach makes the characters and story, far more accessible and believable.

The crime stories Beck and his team investigate are in many ways familiar. This obstacle is overcome by quality narrative and fleshed out characterizations, that really lift this series above the ordinary. A good cast of well known Swedish actors, does this series no harm either.

In short Beck is a a worthwhile watch, I can happily recommend. Nine out of ten from me.

My favorite Police procdural

[woofan2 · 10/10 · 24 June 2019]

Gunvald alone makes this series so worth while. A Swedish 'Dirty Harry' Well written stories and great locations. Addictive and rewatchable.

Always full of action and mystery

[jpc-19 · 9/10 · 1 January 2019]

Only reason I wouldnt give this a 10 is sometimes the detectives just dont act like professional law enforcement, except for Gunwald, they go into situations without weapons drawn when you can hear there is a standoff. Gunwald has great attitude and makes it look easy. Sure in the US the police are very heavy handed, i dont know if in Sweded they are actually gentler or just in this show, its a different perspective. In my area it is subtitled and I dont mind the read every episode on MHZ. The inclusion of the characters personal problems adds more realism. I recommend it to everyone, some viewers are too lazy to read.

A Very Good Swedish Mystery Series

[LauraAnnG · 24 February 2015]

I have written at length already about my ideas as they relate to international mystery shows. For those of us in the U.S. accustomed to Law and Order and CSI, with maybe a little Masterpiece Mystery thrown in for good measure, it may or may not surprise that many other countries have a robust tradition of detective and cop shows. Italy, France, Finland... The list goes on and on. Many of these shows are wonderful.

Some of the very best of these come from Scandinavia. They include the omnipotent Wallander -- the mother of all mystery shows. But there are also less well-known series, like Beck. (I always have to laugh because evidently "Beck" is trademarked... I can't help but wonder how the internationally famous musician feels about that...).

At any rate, Martin Beck and his compadres in the Homicide Division have been solving murders on television since the late 90's (there have been about 30 episodes made since then). The shows are "movie" length -- 90 minutes, so you have plenty of time to get thoroughly engaged. The stories are based on books by Mai Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö that I have not read (but admit I should). Thanks to the invaluable MHz International Mystery (and also my local provider, Comcast), I have watched several episodes.

Beck (played wonderfully by Peter Haber) has a sidekick (of course he does!), Larsson (played by the smoldering Mikael Persbrandt), and where Beck is a pretty decent, well-intentioned chap (especially compared to some of his maladjusted counterparts in other Scandinavian series), his partner is a sort of Darth Vader to Beck's Luke. Larsson is the ultimate Bad Cop. He is bigoted. He's violent. He's snarky. He's funny and yet he's frightening. He does things cops shouldn't do. The discordance between the two characters is pitch-perfect, and adds to the fascination.

The plots are very good indeed. The pacing is perfect -- not too frenetic, and yet not too languid. They are right in the Goldilocks Zone. But be forewarned that the stories can be extremely disturbing. For example, a baby in a bassinet is viciously dropped to her death from a balcony. I can't help but think in most U.S. shows, the threat of such a terrible death would be made, but the action would not occur. But here, we see it happen, and to be honest I'm pretty sure I wish I hadn't. The audience is in no way protected from the brutality.

Amazingly, and unlike many of the other series out of Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, there is some blessed comic relief provided in the episodes, in the guise of Grannen, Beck's bizarre (to put it mildly) next-door neighbor. I don't want to spoil anything about him for you here. So I'll just say if he doesn't make you laugh out loud at your TV, then you might need to work on your sense of humor.

These are really quite good. If you're a mystery fan, they'll be worth your time to watch, and your money if you want to buy the DVDs. And, as always, thanks to MHz International Mystery for all you do!

started out alright, quickly went downhill

[kurtolson_5 · 1/10 · 10 September 2014]

the beck series are one of the earlier Swedish-cop-genre movies (yes these are technically movies) i watched each film so far and while some of the earlier movies did have some great stuff, such as dark and gritty atmosphere, suspenseful soundtrack and interesting story lines the second season had lost everything completely, the first season became a big hit and entered mainstream, so when they made the second season it became basically pg-13 family movies, the dark atmosphere was replaced with soap opera sets, the suspense soundtrack was replaced with generic and completely useless piano garbage, the story lines became dull and boring and its obvious they try to shove moral messages down our throats, having a moral message in a movie isn't wrong by any means, but when you force it, it breaks the illusion which is what happened here, but these movies makes money cause some people love bad movies, and Swedish film companies along with Germans finance about 100 000 movies of this kind in Sweden every month, it has gotten so far that no other movie genres exist in Swedish cinema anymore simply cause producers wanna make the same movie over and over again rather than trying something new and fresh, thus these movies have no more artistic value than a toilet roll (except maybe the first 2 or 3) so while i despise these movies i despise Swedish cinema even more, nowadays i only watch independent films from Sweden, i can recommend these movies to people who hate art in general, i recommend anyone who respects art to not support these movies, remember that supporting these movies kills Swedish cinema more and more. if you like these beck movies i highly recommend the works of directors Michael bay, ulli lommel and tommy wiseau, they are better artists than the beck writers/directors could ever dream of becoming

Absolutely one of the best procedurals & characters

[Jonpow · 10/10 · 23 May 2023]

This tv series has little to do with the classic Beck book series, beyond location and titile. Yet, it's a wonderful, wholly invented new character-driven police procedural that no doubt paved the way for so many Scandinavian and German, in particular, series. Beck is perfect, square and a worrier, yet he has a life outside the crime tales. The real invention, though is his sidekick, counterpart, Gunvald Larsson, played so well by his co-star, a very accomplished stage and film actor. Really, it's the secondary characters and storylines that work so well, quirky and ever-evolving that makes this a model production. Inger, Beck's daughter, the nutty neighbor to Beck, and even the senior police execs who drive Beck nuts. So much depth.

A very, very good crime serie

[etpvsrw · 10/10 · 13 June 2022]

It's already a bit old but I just found out about it. It's a very good scandanavian crime serie, I am binge watching it right now. I am really enjoying it the characters do a great job. I was binge watching the Americans, also a very good serie, but I am putting it on hold to watch all the Beck series first :-)

Now this is a good one.

[zwanorama · 10/10 · 5 April 2021]

Yes. I like scandinavian police series. They are like the Dutch. Only.... Dutch people can not make any good police series.

So. Really good acting. Real life like. Personal problems of the people in the series do play a large part. Which is good. It is SO much better than an American police series.

Yes I am a fan....

Dark series with excellent cast to make it work

[pensman · 9/10 · 8 January 2017]

Beck is a solid series and Beck is a good detective with a terrible blind spot when it comes to his daughter who is a selfish pain in the arse. She is a great taker and she knows how to play her father. She constantly hits him up for money as she perpetually makes bad choices. And her actions have indirectly been responsible for deaths, but Martin never seems to catch on that he has fathered a completely selfish adult. While no one is a better detective or friend then Beck, when it comes to his life he is in denial about his personal choices. His relationship with co-worker Lena Klingstrom frustrates them both because of his indecision.  And when Beck has to make a decision about going forward with anyone, he generally wusses out Beck has an able assistant in Gunvald Larsson, but Gunvald can be hot-tempered and has a problem with authority, especially with women in authority; and he is a bit of an instigator who likes to create fiction among colleagues he doesn't like. Yet, he is a solid cop who always has Beck's back. As we move along from series to series, we get exposure to more of Gunvald's background and understand his complex characterization. Best scene with essence of character is Gunvald heading into a biker bar and pulling his out his gun and checking it's loaded and cocked. When his younger associate, Oskar, asks if he thinks that will be necessary, Gunvald says he hopes so.

Lena Klingstrom is brought into the team initially for her IT skills but those seem to fade away as the series goes forward. At one point, she just disappears and it isn't until a later season we find she had transferred to another district. She returns eventually but her relationship with Beck has now completely changed.

Oskar Bergman is the tyro of the team who Gunvald treats with complete disdain much to the displeasure of his co-workers but no one really steps in to halt it. But as we near the end of the series, Oskar has his heroic moment when he saves his boss.

Beck also has the neighbor from Hell in Grannen who provides humor in what can otherwise be a dark depressive series. Some of the murders in this series include cutting bodies into parts while victims are alive, skinning them while alive, burying them alive, killing just for the joy of killing, dealing with corporate misadventures, and a variety of bosses from bikers to board rooms. The mysteries can be excellent whodunits with lots of twists you don't see coming. Other times we know who is guilty but have to wait and see how Beck finally puts the clues together. When things get too depressive, Grannen's character becomes even more bizarre and laughable. He constantly wears a neck collar which we assume is his key to obtain medical benefits because we never see him at work just frequently drinking telling Beck outrageous stories of his misspent life. And without a doubt, you will roar at some of his antics.

The series spans about twenty years from 1997 to 2016, and Beck goes through several partners and bosses which keeps the series fresh and topical. While Beck gets close to women, there is always something that steps in and ends what might be a promising relationship.

The biggest purely physical change takes place between series one and two. The station house Beck works in goes from 20th to 21st Century in a huge leap. In series one everything is old and crappy; and in series two everything has become ultra-modern, even the doors to the various offices now slide open as the detectives have hand held remotes just for that purpose. However, those remotes disappear pretty quickly as the writers must have seen how ridiculous they were.

Beck also undergoes some changes from maverick detective to more organization man. If you can, try to watch the episodes in order to better understand who the players are and why they disappear and reappear. You will also notice as the series became more popular, the producers found more money which shows up in the opening sequences which become more sophisticated, to Beck finally getting his own theme song.

Beck is a solid series and well worth the time but don't get attached to any of the characters as you can't be sure of a return.

Big fan of Mikael- Gunvald

[braquecubism · 8/10 · 8 November 2019]

Watched S#1-3 a few years ago- and had to search for 4&5- so it's hard for me to evaluate the seasons- But I fell in love with Mikael (Persbrandt, Gunvald) as have many. Searched to find his films So anything I can see him in, I enjoy. From what I remember, it is a good detective show. I can't say how true to Swedish police it is. some of the personal stuff about Peter Head Detective, I could have seen less. He's gruff but fair. Peter and Mikael forge a relationship of subdued respect, and kind of a friendship. Gunvald keeps to himself, He is chivalrous and protecting of women. He seems to have a private life, at times. Somehow, this seems like Mikael (minus his untreated bi-polar) I don't say this often, I am a fan.

Cameraman!!

[theinterloper-90698 · 3/10 · 16 February 2023]

After just about half an hour of watching this, I can confirm that my vision was struggling and a headache was looming.

Reminds me of NYPD when it aired, one of the first TV series I saw which used cameras more freely, and less on wheels.

Didn't mind that at all but is too much.

The constant close ups, the extremely wobbly camera all the time. Trying to read the subtitles as my Swedish is not up there was quite difficult with the bouncing visuals.

I enjoy Nordic TV and particularly liked watching Wisting, Bordertown, Arctic Circle, The Chestnut Man, Trapped, The Thin Blue Line, Borgen, and especially, The Bridge! (Malmo-Copenhagen version)

Started Strong Then Nose-Dived!

[martimusross · 8/10 · 26 February 2022]

Beck

Watched the lot!

Unfortunately this was a case of the good, the bad, and the other ugly. The 8 series effectively divided into 3 sections of varying quality. In truth when the actor play Gunwald left to star in Sex Education they should have cancelled the series.

Series 1 to 4

It is so refreshing to find a programme from Sweden that is not Nordic Noir. A new formula was applied here, if anything it was nearer in style to Montalbano.

Every show started with a murder, solved by Gunwald, a Swedish "Dirty Harry" doing whats required to get his man and Beck the methodical and insightful investigator.

The contrast between the brutal murder and the great fun, humour and friendship of the whole team from pathologist to administrator was the unique determiner of this show. Not to mention, the unexpected twists brilliant acting and Beck's quirky neighbour.

These first 4 series were an 8 outta 10.

Series 4 to 6

Steiner, Gunwald replacement was miscast, he couldn't fire a gun, couldn't work a computer or crack a joke. The introduction of an insecure humourless bullying female boss destroyed these series.

At best this was a weak 5 outta 10

Series 7 to 8

These last two series should never have been made. Watching Beck, our hero, wither and fall into shade was not good entertainment.

Every show had either, immigrant drug dealers, racial elements or religious overtones, combined with refugees and crime gangs. We all know that culture and race issues are not best explored in works of fiction.

I hated these series with a vengeance please don't make any more.

This was a 1 outta 10, miserable, no humour, poor plots!

Down to earth

[TinaMarga · 8/10 · 13 October 2021]

I only saw S#5-8, while some argue the first series are better. But I found these already excellent. It is so down to earth. The tense relationships in the office, the investigations regarding the crimes and the conversations. Beck is such a trustworthy person and performed by an excellent actor, and so are Oskar, Jenny and Alex. Once I start watching this, I do not regret one single moment. This Nordic detective reminds me of the Swedish Wallander, although it plays in a more sophisticated environment. At least, the city is bigger and these people move in a team, though sometimes disintegrate.

A found classic

[liamomeara-01298 · 10/10 · 28 July 2021]

The latest series has begun on the BBC and I watched one episode. Not sure where Martin Beck fitted in, so have begun from the start.

So glad I have.

The characters in the team, Beck, Gunvald and Lena work really well. Really strange to see how commonplace some technology now is.

The stories are punchy, with some great ambient back beats playing in the background.

One thing I do like is that it does not pull punches and can at times be depressing showing how evil people can be.

Thankfully this is reduced by the humanity of the main charactets, and of course.. The neighbour.

Sara Key

[crobin-555-737304 · 9/10 · 14 October 2009]

Excellent for this wonderful actress Sara Key. It s a pity we don t see her any more. Productor and director have to engage her ! we can see her in some famous movies, especially Varuhuset, TV serial saw by many people. Actress of theater she still one of the best actress in Sweden. Remember her in "Don Juana"...incredible piece. You know her as an actress from TV-productions and from films as well as performing on the stage. For many the impact of serials like Varuhuset and Rederiet make them easy remember you, but as an actress the work as with Brustna Hjärtan and Strindbergsbarnet is what you hold as precious moments. I work mostly in Stockholm, Sweden, but also travel for interesting work and spend a part of the year in Europe.