--- title: "Red Riding: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/tv/red-riding/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/tv/red-riding" critics_score: 79 critics_reviews: 8 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Red Riding (2009): what the critics said Critics' score 79 from 8 reviews: 8 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. All eight reviews are positive, with most critics praising Red Riding’s disturbing portrayal of police corruption and violence in Yorkshire. The praise centres on its oppressive atmosphere, strong performances and adaptation of David Peace’s novels. Critics find the drama powerful in its attention to how evil operates through everyday connections and institutions. Its grimness is widely seen as purposeful, giving the crime stories weight beyond the question of who committed the offences. The reservations concern clarity and plotting rather than ambition, though enthusiasm ranges from measured approval to strong praise. Several critics find the interlocking stories difficult to follow; The AV Club argues that their complexity overwhelms a rushed ending. Empire identifies archetypal plotting in the early instalments. NME offers a different reservation, finding the first episode uneven but the later chapters more successful, with added humanity. There is no outright dissenter, but agreement on the series’ strengths does not mean everyone finds it equally coherent. ## The Independent Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 8 March 2009. The critic calls Red Riding genre drama at its most powerful and a great achievement for Channel 4. They single out its deep, dark Yorkshire noir that maps a landscape of violence and evil connections. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/red-riding-channel-4-heston-s-victorian-feast-channel-4-1639589.html) ## The Telegraph — James Walton Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 5 March 2009. The critic praises the first instalment as a triumphantly unsettling drama that lays a strong claim to being one of the most darkly powerful of the year. They single out its ambitious Yorkshire noir style and powerful impact. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/4944616/TV-Review-Red-Riding-Channel-4.html) ## The AV Club — Keith Phipps Rating B+. 4 February 2010. The five-hour Red Riding trilogy is a remarkable achievement that adapts David Peace's novels into a grim, interlocked portrait of police corruption and social blight in 1970s-80s Yorkshire. It singles out the series' depiction of regional avarice and moral murk—likened to Ellroy and The Wire—for praise, even as plot intricacies overwhelm the rushed ending. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-red-riding-trilogy-1798164275) ## Empire — Dan Jolin Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 27 May 2009. Praises the series as a bold, ballsy British crime drama with strong performances and a grim, twisted take on recent Yorkshire history intertwined with the Ripper case. Notes it falls short of being the full 'British Wire' due to some archetypal plotting in early parts. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/tv/reviews/red-riding-review/) ## The Guardian — Sam Wollaston Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 20 March 2009. The critic finds the series fabulous and the most interesting British TV drama in a while, despite some confusing details. They single out its beautiful adaptation, writing, acting and observation of evil and corruption. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/mar/20/last-nights-tv) ## The Hollywood Reporter Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 November 2009. Finds the trilogy strong in performances and atmosphere but a daunting tangle of characters and plots more about corruption than whodunit. Notes fine craftsmanship and engagement despite the complexity. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/red-riding-trilogy-film-review-93774/) ## Variety — Todd McCarthy Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 2 September 2009. Calls it a compelling, disturbing crime drama about corruption and venality across a decade, with strong adaptation, acting, and atmosphere, though dense and sometimes hard to follow. Highlights the grim vision of evil in everyday life. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2009/film/reviews/red-riding-1200476516/) ## NME — NME Blog Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 18 March 2009. The TV adaptation of David Peace's Red Riding books largely succeeds in capturing their unflinching, grotty horror and police corruption across the Yorkshire setting. While the first episode felt wretched and uneven, the later ones (especially 1983) are amazing and add humanity through direct prose lifts. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/channel-4s-red-riding-its-worth-sticking-with-honest-42736) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/tv/red-riding.md