The chain smoking, pot smoking, grumpy Italian detective – with more lines on his face than on the tread of a tyre from a London bus – is back; and not just for one more series, but two. Walter, you are spoiling us this festive season!
If you want to avoid spoilers, stop reading this article now.
If you’re not familiar with ‘Rocco Schiavone’, it’s probably sensible to watch the first two seasons before dipping into S3 and S4. It’s worth in investment, because he’s a great character, played superbly by Marco Giallini. Rocco is a Rome cop who – because of various indiscretions and circumstances – has been demoted and posted to Valle d’Aosta in northern Italy, a skiing district near the Swiss and French borders. Rocco hates it. He misses the warmth and energy of Rome. The Alps are remote and cold – he hates the cold.
Episode one of the third season begins with the death of an elderly man in a remote house in the mountains. Rocco has a temperature, so he conducts the investigation from his sick-bed, using the debatable talents of his rag-tailed police-force. Did the old man have a fall, or was that mark on his head as the result of a blow? The victim, Donato, was a former priest, and in his isolated property he had a collection of photographs from his past. There’s also a mysterious stain on the wall where a picture or painting used to be. Was something taken from the house? Suspicion also falls on his neighbours; an odd couple (the wife found his body) who seem to have something to hide from the authorities.
And when the flue of Donato’s heater is examined, it becomes apparent that someone has tampered with it – resulting in the house being filled with smoke, leading to his death. But why kill an old man in such an elaborate way? He was, on the face of it, just a former priest with no obvious wealth or valuables in the house.
Parallels with ‘Inspector Montalbano’ are inevitable. Simply swap the warm Mediterranean backdrop of Sicily for the cold, mountainous landscape of the Italian Alps, and you do have very similar shows – particularly with the comical accompanying cast. But Schiavone has a sadness about him that Montalbano doesn’t, mainly relating to the loss of his beloved late wife.
We also get tantalising glimpses of Rocco’s previous life, too – which is why watching the earlier seasons is probably the way to go. Otherwise, you might struggle to understand the relevance of characters such as his Rome colleagues Furio and Brizio.
Marco Giallini is a huge star in Italy – he must have a massive trophy cabinet, having picked up eight awards and received fifteen nominations for his talents. He’s an excellent actor, and Rocco is a gift of a character. If you’re already a fan, two new seasons will be much cause for celebration. But if Rocco is new to you, go back to S1 and binge the lot.
Walter Presents: ‘Ice Cold Murders: Rocco Schiavone’ Seasons 3 and 4 are available as a boxset on All 4 now.
