It is so very rare that TV series from Australia and New Zealand are shown on German TV. Series like "Cloudstreet" and "Underbelly" never made it to the small screen here, maybe because they are too specifically Australian to sit well with a European audience.
However, it looks as though this is changing. ARTE recently showed the
Australian mini-series "The Slap" set in Melbourne and based on the book by Christos
Tsiolkas.
Next up, also on ARTE, is Jane Campion’s first foray into TV since "An Angel at my Table": Top of the Lake.
It is set and shot in the South Island of New Zealand. And, like everything done by Jane Campion, it looks visually stunning. So much so that it has actually become the first TV series to screen at major film festivals: both Sundance and Berlin screened it in its entirety this year.
The story centres around Detective Robin Griffin (played by Elisabeth Moss of Mad Men fame) who, while visiting her ailing mother in New Zealand, begins investigating the disappearance of Tui Mitcham, a twelve-year-old pregnant girl from the small town of Laketop.
Apart from Elisabeth Moss, the cast also includes some other wonderful actors: Holly Hunter, Peter Mullan, David Wenham and Thomas Wright. Jane Campion created and co-wrote the series with Gerard Lee, an Australian screenwriter/director, and co-directed it with Garth Davis.
The Guardian described it as a "complex, dark crime story". Elsewhere it has been described as "moody and mysterious", and "beautifully shot in a menacing landscape"… all of which should add up to a great viewing experience.
So, whatever you've planned for Thursday night, cancel it, put your feet up and see you at the Top of the Lake!
Top of the Lake: 7 and 14 November at 8:15pm on ARTE.
Three episodes each evening.
Watch the trailer:
More on Top of the Lake
BBC
An interview with Jane Campion
The Independent
Jane Campion's new scandal melodrama starring the extraordinary Elisabeth Moss
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