All Movie Guide

Produced and aired in 2006, the final, four-hour installment of the 15-year Granada/WGBH television series Prime Suspect -- entitled Prime Suspect: The Final Act -- nominally continues to follow author Linda La Plante's literary character, Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren), but segues dramatically away from Tennison's casework and toward incidents and developments from her private life. This alteration reshapes Prime Suspect, in its concluding installment, from a detective mystery program centered around hot-button social issues (child molestation, bigotry, gender bias) into more of a domestic drama with an incidental detective subplot. The tale opens with Tennison poised on the edge of retirement, with only a few weeks of work ahead of her. In her off time, she struggles to care for her dying father (Frank Finlay), and battles her own periodic blackouts, brought on by encroaching alcoholism. The central crime plot involves Tennison's attempts to pinpoint those responsible for the sudden death of a pregnant teenage schoolgirl and bring the unsavory characters to swift justice. As she investigates, she comes into increasing contact with the girl's family, and begins to perceive the broken relationship that existed between the victim and her deeply dysfunctional father (Gary Lewis); she also befriends Penny, the best friend of the deceased -- a relationship that imparts her with much-needed insight into the case at hand. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

From the Studio

In yet another subtle, powerful performance, Helen Mirren truly inhabits the role of Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison. The Final Act finds her searching for Sallie Strudy, a 14-year-old girl presumed murdered. Facing the hospitalization of her father, descending deeper into alcoholism, and resisting pressure to retire quietly, Tennison vows to bring Sallie's killer to justice before ending her career. Along the way she forges a surprising friendship with Penny Philips (Laura Greenwood), the missing girl's best friend. In the teenager's longing and fierce independence, the aging cop sees something of her younger self. Tennison emerges as a deeply flawed but ultimately sympathetic human being -- one who accepts responsibility for her choices, knowing full well the price she and others have paid. The Final Act serves as the perfectly fitting conclusion to what some critics have called the best crime series ever televised. Special features include a 50-minute behind-the-scenes featurette, a photo gallery, and cast filmographies. Prime Suspect: The Final Act originally aired on PBS's Masterpiece Theatre on November 12 and 19, 2006.

Product Details

• UPC: 054961975693
• Source: ACORN MEDIA
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Language: English
• Time: 3:04:00
• Sales Rank: 3,010

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