---
title: "The Killing: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/the-killing-2011/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/tv/the-killing-2011"
critics_score: 54
critics_reviews: 7
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."
---

# The Killing (2011): what the critics said

Critics' score 54 from 7 reviews: 3 positive, 1 mixed, 3 negative.

The reviews divide almost evenly, and the split follows the show’s lifespan: the first season is received warmly, the later ones much less so. What critics agree on is the cast. Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman are praised across the run, Enos for an understated Sarah Linden and Kinnaman for making Holder the character worth following. Michelle Forbes and later Peter Sarsgaard are singled out, and the direction and sound design are credited with real atmosphere even by those who dislike the writing.

The complaints cluster on pace and plotting. The Hollywood Reporter admires the slow build; Vulture and Variety find it sluggish and overextended, with mysteries that meander rather than tighten, and Vulture calls the writing hackwork dressed as art-house drama. The Guardian notes the remake sits in the shadow of the Danish original. On the final season, Paste is forgiving and Den of Geek finds it bingeable but indecisive. The spread is wide, from near-rave to dismissal.

## The Hollywood Reporter — Tim Goodman

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 27 March 2011. 

Goodman calls the series excellent, absorbing, and addictive despite its deliberate pace. He especially praises Mireille Enos’s riveting, understated performance as detective Sarah Linden.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/killing-tv-review-171764/)

## The AV Club — Meredith Blake

Rating B+. 2 May 2011. 

Blake finds the episode lively and engaging, restoring the series to her good graces. She especially praises Holder as the show’s most interesting character.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-killing-what-you-have-left-1798168125)

## The Guardian — Sarah Hughes

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 4 April 2011. 

Hughes finds the opening compelling and largely successful, though the remake is overshadowed by the Danish original. She especially praises the strong characterization and Michelle Forbes’s performance as the missing girl’s mother.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2011/apr/04/amc-the-killing-review)

## Vulture — Matt Zoller Seitz

Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 30 March 2012. 

The critic finds the second season only slightly improved, with weak writing and sluggish plotting undermining the series. The atmospheric direction, performances, and sound design stand out, but cannot overcome what he sees as hackwork dressed up as art-house drama.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2012/03/the-killing-season-2-review.html)

## Variety — Brian Lowry

Fi1m's normalised score 15/100 (inferred from the text). 28 May 2013. 

Lowry finds the third season dull and overextended, concluding the series is not worth getting excited about. He praises Peter Sarsgaard’s compelling addition to the cast, while faulting the slow, meandering narrative.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2013/tv/reviews/the-killing-review-1200486504/)

## Paste — Amy Amatangelo

Rating 7.5/10. 24 August 2014. 

Amatangelo finds the final season flawed, though she is glad the finale gives its leads peace. She singles out Joel Kinnaman’s performance and praises a cemetery scene between Holder and Kallie’s mother.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/the-killing/the-killing-review-eden)

## Den of Geek — Rebecca Stokes

Rating 2/5. 1 August 2014. 

Stokes finds the season entertaining to binge but ultimately disappointing and indecisive. She praises Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman’s performances, while faulting the competing storylines for feeling distracted and unsatisfying.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-killing-season-4-review/)

---
© 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/the-killing-2011.md