5 out of 5

Director: Daniel Lind Lagerlöf

SPANK.  It’s like all of the various plot threads got together and tried to get along BUT ENDED UP FIGHTING AND WE, THE PRIVILEGED AUDIENCE, HAVE FRONT ROW SEATS AND THIS COULD BE A METAPHOR FOR CONFLICTING STORY ASPECTS BUT I MEAN IT MORE LIKE A GOOD THING.

So I’ve criticized the other installments that featured a writer or director without a link to series creator Anders Nilsson, but Mr. Lagerlöf makes this the first entry since the prequels to feel like a legit movie, even though we’re still in DTV here.  His handling of the actors feels tighter and his framing is just more intense in general; action scenes explode on you (literally at one point) and the dramatics are shocking when needed, drawn out and creepy when needed.  Which is especially surprising given that his previous entry (Näktergal) felt so phoned in… but I dunno what goes on behind the Swedish Curtain; perhaps his first attempt was a contractual thing and was rushed, perhaps it was another movie adapted into a Johan film, who knows.  Maaybe it was the script.  Writer Fredrick T. Olsson returns, thank frucks, as the dude has a good grasp on the whole team and understands the right blend of character building spice to make the world real and effective and yet keep the crime and procedural focus boiling.  As we’ve seen with several of these films now, there are so many earned moments that just twist the screw that little bit more – and everyone gets it here, newbie Dick getting knocked down a peg in the rankings, Sophie standing up to the steadfast image she presented when in temporary charge of the team and having it twisted in her personal life in a smartly plotted manner that goes form interesting to Oh Shit in a blink, and god damn, poor Frank.  Every time I think they’re going to let that thread go, they find a cruel way to tamp it down. 

And Johan.  Never really apologizing, quick to anger.  I like that his profanities have become catch phrases but that he never feels ineffective.  There have been films where his role seems anterior, but something that’s worked in the better entries is when he’s just as important as all of his teammates (or co-stars) – because there’s a trust of competency there, and fredlösa executes this very well.  Helen pops up for just one brief moment, and it’s a sad little exchange that’s, again, just the right amount of flavoring needed to add a twinge to Falk’s 9 movie (at this point) evolution.

I also frequently mention Bengt Nilsson’s score being a good thing when present, and whoever made the decision to ACTIVELY use the score in this one (we’ll credit Lagerlöf again since the whole flick just feels energized) did right for the audience – Bengt’s themes are unique and yet not distracting, acting as great segues for moments of relative inaction or when we’re building to something. 

The plot starts with a seed – a bomb goes off in a political officials home, and GSI must first find out who, and then why, and then who’s next… and that seed blossoms into some pretty evil stuff that threatens to bring down GSI.  It sounds like a cliche, but the Falk series doesn’t go for those tropes easily, and the manner in which it comes about is absolutely believable thanks to to the political context that’s been built into the movies. 

De fredlösa obviously will have more resonance for Johan followers, but it got a nice tune up that makes it successful on its own terms.  A good cop movie; a great entry in the series.