SERIES REVIEW – The latest season of the True Detective series, Night Country, invites us on a dark and mesmerizing journey to an Alaskan town where the sun doesn’t rise for weeks. In this perpetual night, not only do old and new crimes and chilling mysteries become increasingly menacing, but the main characters’ deepest fears also intensify as they confront their own demons. The fourth season is characterized by the fresh perspective and dynamism of Issa Lopez, the Mexican writer-director, as the two new detectives, Liz Danvers and Evangeline Navarro, delve deep into a peculiar case. The plot, rich in supernatural elements and impressive acting, ensures this season will be a truly memorable experience.

They say the darkest moments often come before dawn – except for the characters of the HBO series “True Detective: Night Country,” who reside in an Alaskan town engulfed in darkness for days, even weeks. Here, every day is dark, darker, the darkest – like the series’ crimes, oppressive mysteries, and the characters’ inner demons and horrific memories. The rare bright spots, occasionally seen, originate from the cold, white light of snow covering corpses and wrecked cars, and from our heroes’ flashlights.

Back to the Roots

Since its 2014 debut, the “True Detective” series has had a fluctuating success story, starting with the unforgettable first season featuring Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey, followed by two less convincing subsequent seasons. Night Country, whose six episodes were available on HBO Max Hungary before the premiere, debuting on Sunday evening, returns to the original style but with fresh new energy. Issa Lopez, the Mexican writer-director, takes over from the original creator, Nic Pizzolatto.

The season swiftly engulfs us in serious, somber events and twists, mystical, supernatural clues, and harsh landscapes, so effectively that we crave more than the six episodes – unusual in today’s era of lengthy series. Lopez skillfully exploits the omnipresent night, which feels like a lurking monster constantly trailing the characters.

Two Detectives, Mismatched Again

True to the series’ tradition, here too, two detectives with differing personalities and worn experiences take on an intricate case. Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis) had worked together previously but fell out after a botched case, still troubling Navarro. They reunite to unravel a mysterious and complex case that starts when eight scientists vanish without a trace from a northern research station, where every light and TV remains on. What could have been their fate? In “Night Country’s” impenetrable darkness, it sometimes feels like only a thin wall separates them from another world.

And what’s that object on the research base’s floor? Yes, a severed tongue – belonging to an indigenous woman murdered years earlier after protesting against a local mining company’s negligence. What’s the connection between the new case and the old, unsolved one? The story’s threads unravel slowly, occasionally reminiscent of horror films with bloody events and cunning fear-mongering.

Two More Great Performances

Foster delivers an outstanding performance, reminiscent of Kate Winslet’s in “Mare of Easttown.” It’s one of her most natural and charismatic roles. She fully embodies Danvers, obsessively working on the case, often irritably, or with draconian strictness directing her colleagues, while seemingly cynically letting the rest of her life drift. Danvers is analytical, pragmatic, and procedural, not emotional, even when she sleeps with one of her many old lovers, she does so calculatingly – though enjoying it. Indeed, Danvers has a deservedly bad reputation for messing with married men, but for her, it’s just a bluff and a compulsive sideline to “kill time” while fleeing her past. In the small town, Danvers is not overly popular among the predominantly indigenous population (particularly the cheated wives), which includes her teenage stepdaughter, Leah (Isabella LeBlanc) – but Danvers isn’t overly bothered by this unpopularity.

Reis is an excellent counterpart to Foster and a real revelation as an actress. Navarro, a state trooper, has had a tough life but maintained her humanity and cares for her mentally ill sister. Younger than Danvers, she is yet more emotionally mature. At one point, Danvers mocks Navarro for admitting she prays. “You talk to God,” Danvers says sarcastically. “No, I listen,” replies Navarro. Navarro is the soul of the season, and Reis portrays this movingly, without unnecessary sentimentality. At a certain point in the story, Navarro eventually yields to Danvers, despite their strained relationship due to past conflicts, and Danvers is even rougher with Navarro than usual. The essence, of course, is that they are both intelligent, professional, veteran detectives, seeking an increasingly brutal truth.

True Detective Noir

The horror-tinged, supernatural phenomena in this season are particularly potent, especially in the depiction of the afterlife and the dead, who often appear extremely threatening and chilling, as if waiting to assault the living world. However, every event is rooted in harsh reality, with abuses against indigenous people, racism, environmental damage, and the torn familial bonds of major characters, wounds that may never heal. This fourth season of True Detective is brutally cold and dark, but if you appreciate the “noir” style, you won’t be disappointed.

– Gergely Herpai (BadSector) –