Review of Prime Suspect 3

Introduction

British television has a proud history of delivering high quality serious Police drama - both in series form like the critically acclaimed (and simply brilliant) Between the Lines and in mini-series form like Cracker and Prime Suspect. The latter two ITV produced shows have recently been released on DVD, with each of the seven and ten respective episodes available as single discs or box sets. Each box set contains the same discs as the individual releases, repackaged in a fold-out slipcase. The discs themselves are identical.

After the critical acclaim lauded upon the first two Prime Suspect series, made in 1991 and 1992, Helen Mirren as returns as Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Jane Tennison for a third time to deliver a trio of excellent Police drama. This time around, Tennison has been transferred from murder investigation to the vice squad, but immediately becomes involved in an investigation into the murder of a young rent-boy. As the investigation progresses, Tennison is warned off by senior officers, and she soon discovers a web of sickening sex crime that goes right to the top of the establishment.

Video

The video is presented in the 4:3 full-frame as broadcast on British television long before the introduction of 16:9 television sets. The image is free from dirt, but a little grainy (although an improvement on the two, older series).

Prime Suspect always has been a series made with movie production values, and this third series is, like its predecessor, is superbly filmed with chilling scenes and locations. Concentrating on the seedy London sex scene, Prime Suspect 3 delivers hard-hitting and depressing visuals as the exploitation of young children is investigated by the Police.

Audio

The soundtrack is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, which is shame because a full 5.1 channel remix would have given the soundtrack the bite to match the visuals - something that would have increased the impact of the series even further.

As it stands, the Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack is more than adequate and delivers solid vocals and a reasonable reproduction of the series` score and sound effects.

Features

Sadly, the disc is totally devoid of extras, featuring only a static menu offering "Play" and "Chapter Selection".

Conclusion

Three series down, three absolutely excellent dramas, each one of the highest quality and each one thoroughly watchable.

Once again, an excellent story-line, a superb cast delivering top-notch performances, a wide range of conflicting and interesting characters and excellent visuals combine to make Prime Suspect 3 a riveting watch. This episode is much darker and more depressing that it`s predecessors, concentrating on the despair of young boys trapped in the sex industry.

There are no extras on the disc, but three and a half hours of high quality drama for ten pounds represents fantastic value for money - even more so when bought as part of the box set.

Recommended.