Red Riding

Just watched all three. I gotta say, besides being extremely violent, it was a really well told tale that stretches over the 3 movies. 1974 gives you the perspective of the young crime reporter that links 3 abduction/child murders and tries to do an expose on it. Pressured by his boss who gives it to a more experienced reporter, assaulted (sexually and physically) by the West Yorkshire cops, and corrupt land developers - he finds the truth and what a truth it was. The entire story revolves around how corrupt the west yorkshire police department is - they call themselves 'The North - we do what we want'. NO shit.

1980 brings in an outside detective not at all liked by the yorkshire police because the events that transpire at the end of the 1974 movie's investigation. He's brought in to evaluate (secretly) Yorkshire's bungling of a serial rapist/murderer in the area that spans over several years. There's issues with the main cop and the two people he brings onto his team to help him investigate. Of course there are twists and a fucked up ending.

1983 introduces Mr. Pigger (seriously) a lawyer who grew up in the area where the abductions happened and ties with the one person that the Yorkshire cops tie the murders on - he's mentally handicapped and of course didn't do it, but turns out - he knows who did and was helpless to stop it. Another murder happens, just like the ones in 1974 and the events in this movie tie all three movies together.

Spoiler - There are constant characters that you see across 3 movies, one in particular Detective Jobson. The ONLY cop who has a conscience but went along with everything till he's forced at the end of 1983 (it's from his and the lawyer Pigger's point of view) to retire quietly because he 'whined too much'.

They figure out in 1974 who did all the killings. Turns out the police force was involved with the local King land developer who planned on building a 100 million pound shopping mall, the first of its kind, in West Yorkshire. The upper echelon police cops are in on the deal and protect the land developer who turns out to be the serial killer. He was helped by the priest that is in all three movies and is responsible for the disappearance of the last girl - a mystery to the cops since the land developer dies in 1974. Jobson tries in vain to figure out who his accomplice is and Piggers finds out that the developer and the priest had a place underground where they took the girls and had other men (Pigger's father included) watched as they raped and tortured the girls.

The newspaper buried stories and used the media to accuse and publicly try the people the cops said killed the girls.

The cops benefited initially but in the end they just wanted to cover their asses and killed MORE people.

The land developer - Jack Dawson dies in 1974 by the reporter Eddie Dunsford who puts everything together after he gets involved with the mother of one of the missing girls. Her husband had killed himself after their daughter never came back, but it kind of hints that he may have done it because they had no choice. Jack Dawson does whatever he wants, does whomever he wants, and the cops protect him.

Eddie Dunsford, the reporter, ends up killing Dawson who confesses to his 'little indiscretions', beats the fuck out of the two cops who torture him, and shoots up the club that Dawson uses as his place. He ends up crashing his car and killing himself at the end since he had nothing else to live for after they show him the body of the mother of one of the daughters - the woman he fell in love with.

Jobson retires but kills the priest who is about to kill 'BJ' who is in all 3 movies but you never really know what he's about, other than being a male prostitute. Turns out he was the very first victim of Dawson and the Priest. He comes back to kill the priest but can't do it, then the priest is about to kill him (after he shoved Pigger down the hole where they put the girls) and Jobson redeems himself and kills the Priest. Jobson finds Pigger as he comes out of the hole with the last girl that was abducted and she's alive and fine.

Ridiculously complex storyline that 1983 finally ties up nicely at the end.

A seriously fucked up movie but extremely well done. Worth sitting through - on netflix streaming.