NYWIFT Blog

If you enjoy The Killing, currently on AMC, then the Top of The Lake, an original mini-series that aired recently on the Sundance Channel should be at the top of your list. Currently on Netflix, the series is written and directed by Jane Campion and features hypnotically, spectacular cinematography by Adam Arkapaw.

Taking a break from Madison Avenue’s Peggy on Mad Men, Elisabeth Moss shows her range and atypical screen presence as lead character Robin Griffin, a cop who has come back home to the New Zealand back country to sort out her past, spend time with her terminally ill mother and mull over an engagement decision.  

Robin takes on the case of Tui, a pregnant 12-year-old girl who goes missing when Robin tries to investigate the baby’s paternity. While Campion sketches this nuanced portrait of small town life from a decidedly female point of view, her vision of the natural landscape as a suspect behind Tui’s mysterious disappearance, is also reminiscent of David Lynch’s Twin Peaks.

Campion’s ace up her sleeve is also the masterful, not-to-be-missed performance of Holly Hunter, who plays the guru/therapist/leader of a group of unmoored and previously abused women.

I highly recommend this excellent series for weekend bingeing.

— M.A ST JOHN