A brooding eight-part murder investigation miniseries finds veteran Reykjavick police detective Kata (Nína Dögg Filippusdóttir) working on what proves to be Iceland’s first serial killer. Police profiler Arnar (Björn Thors), cold and efficious, originally from Iceland, is transferred from Oslo to assist in the investigation. Both have deep-seated family issues.
As two bodies with multiple stab wounds and slashed eyes are discovered within a day or two, the police are soon led to a now abandoned boys’ home, the isolated Valhalla. A third body is found. Identifying the dead as former staff members, Kata and Arnar find themselves in a race against time to ensure there are no more victims. The level of abuse inflicted upon the boys is slowly revealed as the investigation continues, which is in direct conflict to official reports.
The Valhalla Murders is far from original. Distracted cops with home-life concerns leading the investigation. Kata being passed over for promotion in favour of a relatively new female colleague. And, whilst wholly engaging, five episodes in, the case finds itself embroiled in serious melodrama. But there’s a sudden and much needed twist. Yet even then, a boys’ remand home, abuse, cover-up, revenge all feels somewhat predictable.
What makes this so different is the extraordinary location – a wintery, snowbound Iceland with days so short and nights so long a sense of foreboding constantly exists. The abandoned Valhalla sits alone in the snowy wastes: the threat contained within darkness in suburban Reykjavick: even the oppressive rejection of a Jehovah’s Witness family of their son, Arnar, is moodily rendered in the grey half-light of winter’s snatched daylight. Add a well-written script, an ominous yet emotive soundtrack, stunning cinematography and fine performances and the result is a pretty thrilling narrative that sufficiently hooks the viewer to overlook its faults.
Rating: 72%
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