An image of a dead angel, tinted blood-red, adorns the advertising posters for the "Red Riding" trilogy. This image gives a proper introduction to the bleak world that this trio of crime films inhabits, in which characters search for truth but find only corruption and death. The gloomy, overcast skies of northern England are an ever-present backdrop, and their darkness is so pervasive that it threatens to snuff out all sources of light and hopes of escape.
A real-life series of murders and a subsequent investigation of police corruption form the historical basis of the trilogy, which aired on television in England last year before being released in the United States this year.
The film "Red Riding: 1980" takes place in the middle of this crisis, when an outside police officer is brought in to assess the integrity of the police investigation surrounding the Yorkshire Ripper murders. This installment, directed by James Marsh ("Man on Wire," 2008) follows Peter Hunter (Paddy Considine) as he uncovers evidence implicating members of the police force in one of the murders.
Peter's choice of team members for his inquiry also becomes a source of his problems. The local police officers find out that he has had an affair with one of his partners, Helen (Maxine Peake), making him an object of ridicule. With threats of blackmail looming over him and a constant worry for his wife's safety, Peter continues his investigation. He is contacted by a male prostitute who witnessed even more questionable police involvement with a barroom murder that occurred in the first film, leading him to suspect the culpability of his own team members.
As the film progresses toward its final revelation, the feeling of overwhelming dread and hopelessness weighs down on the characters to the point where they find it hard to function. Helen practically stops working on the case, while Peter presses on despite being almost totally alone in his struggle. Although he finds some explanations to the mysteries afoot, there is one final gut-wrenching twist that Peter never expects.
One of the truly amazing feats that "Red Riding: 1980" and the other films achieve is their pervasive atmosphere and mood. A different filmmaker directs each movie, but the style remains fairly consistent throughout. The subtle differences in cinematography, however, function in service of the stories.
"Red Riding: 1974," shot with grainy 16mm film, simultaneously has a documentary-like look as well as an ambiance that is uniquely '70s. The alternatively colder approach that director Marsh brings to "Red Riding: 1980" suits the more procedural aspect of the picture well.
Marsh also uses small, stylistic techniques to his advantage. The home video-style footage of one scene with Peter and his relatives contrasts their happiness, which is slipping away, with the harsh world of crime and corruption. "Red Riding: 1983" uses digital video to show the color and life-drained existence of its protagonists as the story wraps up.
Yet another aspect that remains consistent within the series — and is particularly prevalent throughout "Red Riding: 1980" — is the sense that the film itself views the events of the story through a predetermined lens of doom and failure. It is as though everyone in the film's world knows that there is nothing to be done about the corruption and no solution to be found to the murders — but certain individuals push back against this knowledge despite the inevitability of their fall. Even with this feeling of eminent failure, the conclusions to the films still manage to arrive naturally and with a certain sense of surprise.
The uniformly excellent acting in each film can also explain the constant sense that events are occurring just as they unfold onscreen. Each film has a different lead, and the entire supporting cast delivers pitch perfect performances. When the characters finally realize the futility of their endeavors, their reactions and despair are plausible.
The "Red Riding" trilogy leaves few lessons for the characters lost in its world and equally few for its audience. Against the face of what seems like an unbreakable wall of corruption, the few decent characters beat their heads to no avail. In presenting a dark, hopeless, claustrophobic place where betrayal and murder lurk around every corner, "Red Riding" presents a question with no answers — but a beautifully crafted epic trilogy nonetheless.
