The Killing, or the Killing?

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dafman

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#150283 17-Jul-2014 12:13

Ok, so I want to watch the Killing. Do I watch the Killing (original Danish production) or the Killing (the US remake).

I only want to watch one, not both, so would be great to see views on which production is the best?!

ps. I'm not bothered by subtitles, so discount these as a differentiating factor between the two.

jonb

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#1090628 17-Jul-2014 12:32

I would watch the Danish one. I watched the first season of the US one first, and then second season of Danish one, and then the first season of Danish.

The first season of US is basically a carbon copy of the first season Danish, but apparently the later US seasons differentiate more.

Glassboy

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#1090634 17-Jul-2014 12:44

jonb: I would watch the Danish one. I watched the first season of the US one first, and then second season of Danish one, and then the first season of Danish.

The first season of US is basically a carbon copy of the first season Danish, but apparently the later US seasons differentiate more.

Carbon copy is misleading. They are similar stories and some of the differences are quite nuanced but they're still there. They do diverge in a more obvious way as they go on. They are both really good shows, and if you're only going to watch one then you should watch Forbrydelsen. With the money you save from not buying both you should buy Broen/Bron (The Bridge).

jonb

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#1090638 17-Jul-2014 12:51

Glassboy:
jonb: I would watch the Danish one. I watched the first season of the US one first, and then second season of Danish one, and then the first season of Danish.

The first season of US is basically a carbon copy of the first season Danish, but apparently the later US seasons differentiate more.

Carbon copy is misleading. They are similar stories and some of the differences are quite nuanced but they're still there. They do diverge in a more obvious way as they go on. They are both really good shows, and if you're only going to watch one then you should watch Forbrydelsen. With the money you save from not buying both you should buy Broen/Bron (The Bridge).

Agree.

The US version of the Bridge is also supposed to be very good, set on the US/Mexico border.

Glassboy

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#1090647 17-Jul-2014 13:00

jonb:

The US version of the Bridge is also supposed to be very good, set on the US/Mexico border.

It would have been much funnier set on the US / Canadian border. There's a piece early on when one of them says "do you understand my Swedish" and the other says "yes do you understand my Danish", and as an English speaker you're sure they're speaking the same language (if not actually just mumbling in English). The same scene done US\CA would be hilarious .

tangerz

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#1090859 17-Jul-2014 15:59

I've watched all seasons of both Forbrydelsen and The Killing and would certainly recommend the original Danish series over the US remake.

Both were worth watching but I found the characters in Forbrydelsen far more real and engaging than those in the US version which were, (for my taste), more 'scripted'.

Glassboy

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#1090899 17-Jul-2014 17:08

tangerz: I've watched all seasons of both Forbrydelsen and The Killing and would certainly recommend the original Danish series over the US remake.

Both were worth watching but I found the characters in Forbrydelsen far more real and engaging than those in the US version which were, (for my taste), more 'scripted'.

I think it would be fair to say the characters in the US version end up in situations that are far more formulaic and familiar. I think that both Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman put in performances outside what you normally see in US shows. So much so I found it hard to believe that Mireille was actually an American actor.

But similarly the subtitles on Forbrydelsen are not exact translations. We first noticed when the subtitles said something like "excuse me I need to go to the toilet" (the visuals didn't jell with any politeness), and what the actor actually said was "must piss". There were some scenes where played with Google translate to get a better sense of what was actually happening.

dafman

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#1092965 21-Jul-2014 12:53

And the winner is ... the Danish version. Thanks all for feedback!