Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1659 in DVD
• Released on: 2008-10-06
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Original language: French
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 392 minutes

DVD Description
This recent French TV sensation is a dark and labyrinthine Parisian crime drama with shades of CSI, The Wire and 24.

When the badly beaten body of a young Romanian woman is discovered on a Parisian rubbish dump, the investigation plunges us deep into the murky worlds of prostitution, drugs, business, politics and justice…

The investigation is led by Pierre Clément, a young recently-named public prosecutor, who teams up with Police Captain Laure Bathaud and investigating magistrate Judge Roban – three indomitable characters with their own methods, beliefs, demons and visions of justice.

As the young woman’s identity and past life are gradually uncovered, it soon becomes apparent that her story is tied to a network of corruption touching the very people charged with uncovering the truth about her.

Starring Gregory Fitoussi, Caroline Proust, Philippe Duclos, Guillaume Cramoisan and featuring Anne Caillon.

Synopsis
When the badly beaten body of a young Romanian woman is discovered on a Parisian rubbish dump, the investigation plunges us deep into the murky worlds of prostitution, drugs, business, politics and justice…


The investigation is led by Pierre Clement, a young recently-named public prosecutor, who teams up with Police Captain Laure Bathaud and investigating magistrate Judge Roban – three indomitable characters with their own methods, beliefs, demons and visions of justice. As the young woman's identity and past life are gradually uncovered, it soon becomes apparent that her story is tied to a network of corruption touching the very people charged with uncovering the truth about her.

The Observer
There's an element of CSI in the graphic autopsy scene, a bit of 24 in the fancy camerawork and a lot of the wonderful State of Play in the hints of wrongdoing in high places.

Customer Reviews

Compulsive
I bought this series for two reasons. I speak french so like to watch french films to stop getting too rusty. I also like series like The Wire, 24, the shield and to a lesser extent CIS. So I thought this would be entertaining.

I wasn't expecting to be blown away.

I sat down yesterday, a lazy Sunday afternoon, to watch the first couple of episodes and went to bed at 1am, after having watched the entire series back-to-back.

A complicated storyline, about a murdered young woman found in a skip, that reveals itself episode by episode with surprises right up until the end. A police investigation with flawed detectives. A politically sensitive criminal justice department that will happily persecute anyone without political clout. Shameless lawyers with heart. A dark and twisting crime thriller wrapped up in french flair. Spiral is the name, and the name reflects the plot - don't expect anything to be straightforward.

I'm not sure exactly what it is about the series that gripped me so much. The acting is very good, the interplay between characters is subtle and real, the storyline is fairly straightforward but is interwoven with many subplots, some simple some convoluted. Production values are high. It is the sum of the parts that makes the series excellent.

However, the series does have some flaws. The major flaw is that the storyline, as it reveals, depends on some quite striking coincedences of who knows who, which do stretch credibility once you sit back and think about it. The point is, though, that you don't think about it as the drama is so engrossing.

Another flaw, for some, is that the storyline does not resolve as neatly or as clearly as you might want. Personally, after enjoying the ride so much whilst it lasted, I am not going to complain now.

Full of grit and atmosphere
A superb series and well worth the money, a dense plot that slowly unravels at a measured atmospheric pace. The coke snorting damaged detective is well worth the price of this set on his own.Interesting to see how the French Justice system works or doesn't as the case may be. I hear a second series is out soon just hope the BBC give it a better time slot as the first series was far superior to much of the so call drama on the UK networks.

great gallic tv
It takes something special to take me away from a World Cup final, but the final episode of this took me from the 2006 final. I never thought I would be drawn into a foreign language tv series but this one was so enthralling, with all it's twists and turns.Compulsive viewing. come on BBC, get on with both showing this on the main channels and hurry up and buy season 2.