Borgen

[Scooter]

I was prompted to recommend this program by an exchange Jim and I were having about how absurd our political systems have become (I include Canada in this even though the discussion was about U.S. politics).

This is a Danish production that ran for three seasons of ten episodes each. It is in Danish with subtitles, so if that turns you off, well.... The central character is the leader of a second tier political party who unexpectedly becomes prime minister; the show deals with issues like ideology vs. pragmatism, security vs. human rights, the sustainability of the welfare state, the role of the press, etc. in a very thoughtful way, without the overdramatized treatment they would receive in similar American fare.

I had thought about recommending this for a while, but after that exchange with Jim earlier, I sat down to watch the last episode which I had recorded, that really brought home what a very different political culture it portrays. Without giving anything away, one of the parties goes aggressively personal against the lead character during an election campaign, something that would be considered par for the course in our political cultures, but which is covered in the Danish media as a phenomenon that they need to explain to their viewers. And those around the lead character experience some sort of existential crisis about whether to use an opposing leader's heretofore unpublicized drunk driving accident, in which his passenger was injured, against him, which would be the sort of information our own politicians would salivate about getting their hands on and would not think twice about using.

I am watching it on our provincial public TV channel, and am unaware of its availability on any internet sources, but if you find it, it is definitely worth a watch.

[rubato]

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll look for it.


update: Netflix has it, i just put the first two seasons in our queue.


yrs,
rubato

[rubato]

Well it took quite a while to get it and then even longer for us to find time to start watching it but this is a great series.

Interesting characters and very well written.


yrs,
rubato

[Scooter]

This is back as a rebranded series - Borgen: Power & Glory. As good as the original series. There's definitely a more cynical, calculating streak among the characters. which is probably a better reflection of political realities than the more idealistic tone set in the original series.

On Netflix.

[Long Run]

Thanks for the tip. Enjoyed the prior shows. One of the positive things about streaming is that it opens up a world of entertainment.