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Sunday, December 3, 2017

Trapped and Trippers

The Cooker signed up for Netflix and since we got broadband hooked up it seems time to move into the 21st century, albeit kicking and screaming. I just went along for the ride until I was alone and took a look for the things that might interest me. While I read mostly for entertainment I latched on to a genre a number of years ago that came from my first trip to Iceland. After reading most of the translated works of Halldór Kiljan Laxness, with guidance from Professor Batty and a few others, I needed more Iceland in my life. I started reading Arnaldur Indriðason's Detective Erlendur series and Yrsa Sigurðardóttir's crime novels. I was hooked. I had appreciated an occasional mystery, but now I was onto something more exotic and continued my quest into Nordic Noir which has included the Scandinavian countries, the Baltic Sea area and islands of the North Atlantic.

In real life Iceland's murder rate is practically zero, but these books have killed off a few more than that. Maybe it's the settings or the darkness that comes this time of year that adds to the mystery, I just don't know. It seems that most of the mysteries are in the harshest times, the worst winter storms, or the darkness that pervades in the winter. I digress.

I decided to watch a show that I found called Trapped. It looked interesting and was only about an hour long. I had heard of Baltasar Kormakur, the director, and recognized some of the actors from watching some things on Icelandic Cinema Online. What I didn't realize until the end of the first episode was that there were nine more 50 minute episodes to follow. Too late! I was hooked!

Set in a coastal town in East Iceland in February, The story takes place over about 5 days. A fishing boat coming into the harbor nets a plastic bag with a male torso in it, just after the ferry from Denmark passes by. This is a larger town so it has three police officers who all seem quite competent. However, they will need forensic help from Reykjavik and the police in Reykjavik want to run the investigation. Of course there is a huge blizzard that isolates the town for a few days. This isolation by weather is not unusual for towns in Iceland. This had everything in it, from human trafficking, to revenge, hate, love, mafia, arson, and more murder. It was a nightmare for this sleepy little village and it plays out beautifully. There are subtitles when the characters speak Icelandic or Danish, but there is some English spoken, as well.

The protagonist, Andri, is living with his ex in-laws and his daughters and awaits the arrival of his ex who is coming to visit with her new boyfriend. Andri hasn't let go of her yet, but he must, although his work is very intense and demanding at this time. The majestic mountains that surround the port have their own part to play in this series that had it's debut in Toronto two years ago. It looks like there will be a second season in 2018. Woohoo! I can't wait!

Here's the trailer (I hope).
If you like this kind of thing or if you're willing to give it a try, please do. You won't be disappointed. I watched it all in less than 48 hours. Guess I binged.

And now for something completely different.

If you need a little energy and can get it from a toe tapper. Here is a jig called Tripper's or Tripper's Jig. It is short and intense. Piano on the first part before the fiddle and the rest of the band kick in. It is difficult to sit still for this.



15 comments:

  1. I read Nordic Noir, but can't watch it. How lovely to find a series you enjoy enough to binge on it.
    Loved the toe tapper you finished with.

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  2. Hmmm, Nordic Noir, eh? Not so much "Netflix and Chill" as "Netflix and Freeze to Death."

    And I have always loved the Rankin Family too!

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  3. Trapped just might be the cause of me signing up for Netflix.
    Olafur Darri is one of my favorite actors, and I glimpsed many others in the trailer.

    Personal story: I was almost run over by Baltazar Kormákur!

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  4. I'll have to check out Trapped. Make good use of my Netflix. That's all I've got in this household. No tv service. Just Netflix. Guess I'm living in the 22nd century.

    Oh, and great jig. Now I'm all amped up in my computer chair with nothing to focus that unnecessary energy on.

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  5. That's quite an impressive, lively jig. I'm still listening to it, as I type. It's helping to wake me up. Thank you, Jono.

    Cheers, and have a warm, fun week.

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  6. The message says the video is not available, I don't know why. A previous comment says it's the Rankin Family. I met Jimmy Rankin not too long ago when he was playing in our local theatre and I was a volunteer there.
    I haven't watched TRAPPED but perhaps I will soon, as I share my son's Netflix account. But first I will have to finish watching Peaky Blinders, only halfway through the first season so far and already I am totally hooked. And I already watched both seasons of Happy Valley, what a great show! Yes, as you can tell I like the British shows. Another very special show is The Detectorists, very gentle and funny, no violence, just really good entertainment. Try it.

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  7. Trapped looks good. Also try The Fall (takes place in Ireland) and maybe Lillyhammer (Norway, not quite as good, imho, but still pretty entertaining).

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  8. I haven't noticed that on Netflix. I'll try to remember to do a search for it.

    Love,
    Janie

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  9. The video isn't available to me either, unfortunately. It might be because we need to update our Flash driver or whatever it's called, though.

    It's nice to find a good series and be able to watch it all in a short time instead of sitting through ads and then having to wait until the next week, or even the next year, to see the rest. Ah, what did people do in the old days before binge-watching? :)

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  10. I love Det. Erlendur and all other Nordic noir. I'll have to check this out. I'm relatively new to Netflix too and am bumbling around the world of streaming services. :)

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  11. Elephant's Child, I'm a novice at watching it. This is about the first time I've had convenient access.

    Debra, There is often an underlying "freeze to death" portion to many of these stories. I will always love the Rankins.

    Professor, I can easily understand that. Getting nearly run over by Baltazar would have been an honor. Sort of.

    ABFTS, I have to follow in your footsteps just to keep my impending geezerhood at bay a little longer.

    Robyn, Keep those toes a-tappin'!

    Shammickite, The trailer can be found on YouTube, but it is a little obscure. Jimmy is a terrific songwriter. He was trying to make it in Nashville, but I don't think that was working all that well. I also love British shows. Me mum was a Brit, after all. I will check these out. Thanks!

    Tom, Thanks for the tips! I just started watching Lillyhammer last night. Funny stuff! I will look for The Fall, also.

    Janie, It took a while for me to find, but I'm new at this.

    jenny_o, I need a new computer, too. Mine is ten or eleven years old and getting fidgety and outdated. Binge watching seems a little justifiable because of the lack of commercial interruption. In the old days we had to get up to change the channel or adjust the volume.

    Donna, Netflix is a bit like finding a new world to explore. I hope there is no danger to be found. I am always a little suspicious and skeptical.

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  12. The trailer for Trapped made me shudder! Partly because of the tension, but also because of the winter memories that all that snow brought back. I didn't realize what a knee-jerk reaction I have to snow and cold until we moved here to the Pacific Northwest where (theoretically at least) I'll never have to worry about freezing my extremities off... but I still got anxious when the snow came down and the power went off. Guess it'll take a while to get over fifty years of conditioning. :-)

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  13. This came at just the right time. I've been flipping sadly between a few different lackluster series on netflix and wanted to find one worth binging at night.

    I'll report back.

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  14. Don't you love modern technology and how it allows you to watch TV from other countries?

    That trailer looked very intense...I'll have to check it out, if I find the time for it.

    I gave my husband a Netflix subscription for a year as his Christmas present last year. I think we'll keep getting it.

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  15. Diane, I can't even imagine a year without the challenge of winter. I might like to try sometime, though.

    Harry, This one is definitely worth it.

    Pixel Peeper, Your gift giving to your husband is quite thoughtful. He is sure to stick around for another year. :)

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