MORE BLOOD ON THE DOCKS

Based on the Joe Faraday novels by English crime fiction writer Graham Hurley, the excellent French crime drama Deux flics sur les docks (Blood on the Docks) came back yesterday for a second series on pubcaster France 2.

In Mauvaise pente, adapted by Bernard Marié from the book One Under, Capitaine Richard Faraday (Jean-Marc Barr) and Capitaine Paul Winckler (Bruno Solo) investigate the death of a professional activist chained on the tracks of the Havre funicular and ran over by one of its cars, but also the disappearance of a photographer. The seemingly unrelated cases lead them to an art gallery and to a "Little Princesses" child beauty pageant - which raises painful memories for Lieutenant Julie Fabian (Liza Manili). Paul's sense of loyalty is once again tested, not only as usual with local entrepreneur and mobster Bazza Swaty (Emmanuel Salinger), his childhood pal, but also with his friend the medical examiner Brice Thorrens (Antoine Oppenheim).

After Les Anges brisés and Lignes Blanches (respectively adapted from Angels Passing and Cut to Black) last year, Blood On The Docks returns with absolute brilliance. Directed by Edwin Baily, Mauvaise pente is a superb piece of television served by a perfect cast - particularly Bruno Solo, Emmanuel Salinger and Liza Manili. Mata Gabin plays Faraday and Winckler's boss Lucie Dardenne, Guillaume Viry is police computer expert "Bill Gates" and Jean-Marie Hallégot is Lulu - Richard Faraday's deaf-mute son. Filmed in Le Havre, Deux flics sur les docks is produced by Gétévé (Zodiak France) and France Télévisions with the support of Région Haute-Normandie. It is distributed by Zodiak Rights (Being Human).

Mauvaise pente caught 3.177.000 viewers (12.6 %) and the third place against the French version of Survivor on TF1 and NCIS on M6. For the anecdote, Franco-German channel Arte premiered ITV's DCI Banks (distributed by BBC Worldwide) the same night for 799.000 viewers (3.2%) and TMC fared even worse with an opportunistic repeat of Poirot's Hallowe'en Party. Next friday France 2 will air Du sang et du miel, adapted from Graham Hurley's book Blood and Honey.

Special thanks to Michèle Dubray.

http://geteve.fr/en/productions/series/blood-on-the-docks.html
http://www.grahamhurley.co.uk/
http://www.ozap.com/actu/audiences-retours-gagnants-pour-koh-lanta-et-qui-veut-epouser-mon-fils-m6-resiste/443852 (Ratings - In French)

See also:

http://tattard2.blogspot.fr/2011/11/blood-on-docks-deux-flics-sur-les-docks.html