Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 6, 1993 TAG: 9302060321
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: S-12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: PATRICIA BRENNAN THE WASHINGTON POST
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
`MYSTERY!' FANS READY FOR DETECTIVE TENNISON
Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison is back on "Mystery!" to head the investigation of another murder, this one the death of a young woman whose decomposed body is found in London's Afro-Caribbean neighborhood.Tennison also finds that her short love affair with a tall, handsome black detective unexpectedly complicates her work when he is assigned to her homicide team.
"Prime Suspect 2," with its theme of racial conflict and starting Thursday (at 9 p.m. on WBRA-Channel 15), is every bit as compelling as last year's tale, which was one of the season's best offerings. The original "Prime Suspect" won a string of awards in Britain and Canada and at the Chicago International Film Festival.
Writer Lynda La Plante drew the character of Jane Tennison partly from the few real-life women on the London force, and actress Helen Mirren invested Tennison with believability. Allan Cubitt wrote the current four-part mystery from La Plante's story.
Mirren thinks her character has evolved since last year's story.
"This one is different," she reflected. "I loved the first one, because I introduced myself to that character. This one, she's more relaxed, she's more easy with herself and I in myself was more easy doing it, because you know it's been a success."
Both stories present discrimination against women on the police force, but this time, now that Tennison is more comfortable with her authority, it's a little more subtle.
"I only ever wanted to deal with it to the extent that it was realistic," Mirren said. "That's simply what the realities are. As you climb higher, sexism retreats further and further behind closed doors and becomes more difficult to deal with."
Behind Tennison's short love affair with Bob Oswalde (Colin Salmon) there is some implication that they may have been drawn to one another because both are outsiders in an overwhelmingly white male police force.
"It was a one-night stand," Mirren said. "At least, she certainly goes into it with that view. I think he, because of his race, rightfully gets offended and thinks he's being used, and he's rightfully [annoyed]."
Mirren will get at least one more opportunity to portray Jane Tennison: She's already making "Prime Suspect 3," to air next season. There's a possibility of a fourth story as well.
So why not make a more traditional TV series?
"I think once a year is enough," Mirren said. "Interestingly enough, we did discuss with the television company whether to turn it into a series of two-hour episodes. But we sort of decided between us, and the thing that interested me in the first place, was to do one for drama every year and a half. You do revisit the same character, but I think it's better to leave [viewers] hungry for more."
Mirren, who has come to appreciate that police must be particularly observant, has become a fan of reality-based television programs. When she's in Los Angeles, where she maintains a home, she tunes in to Fox's "Cops."
"I just love `Cops,' " she said. "It's mesmerizing, from both the police side and the humanities side. I get so sick of the television writers' version of what people are like. I like, as an actor, to observe real behavior and the reality of life. It's very valuable, I think it's interesting, and I don't get bored.
"I find that more interesting than the heightened pseudodrama of soap opera, where you have a divorce and a murder and suicide and love affair all in 30 minutes. Whereas to me, 30 minutes of just seeing a policeman slowly interviewing some sort of pathetic person is fascinating."