Are River’s “manifestations,” as he calls his ghosts, real?
The ubiquitous Nicola Walker is already dead when this six-episode series starts, but she tends to turn up frequently to banter with her former partner, police officer John River, played by Stellan Skarsgard. Are River’s “manifestations,” as he calls his ghosts, real? Is he mentally stable enough to stay on the force, despite his amazing case-solving record? Lesley Manville co-stars in this psychological mystery that even introduces a historical criminal by way of River’s imagination, which conjures the deceased to give insights on his cases. Tracking down Walker’s murderer is just one of the cases the haunted and rather grim detective tackles, and if you can set aside skepticism about his mental fitness, it’s an engrossing and manageably-sized watch.