Netflix is now streaming the Danish series Dicte. The series is named for the title character, Dicte Svendsen, played by Iben Hjejle. Dicte is a crime reporter who goes back to her hometown of Aarhus after a divorce. She has an 18 year old daughter named Rose (Emilie Kruse) and an ex-husband (Lars Ranthe) who hopes for a reconciliation.
Mild spoilers ahead.
The series is subtitled in English. This is a review of season 1 only. (Here’s my review of season 2 of Dicte.)
Iben Hjejle may be familiar to American audiences from Wallander, Defiance and High Fidelity. The show follows the tradition of other successful Danish series with well-written female leads such as The Killing and Borgen and the Swedish series Annika Bengtzon: Crime Reporter. Dicte’s definitely a well-written character. She works closely with the police, but often leaps to wrong conclusions based on her own background. She’s an excellent investigator and often is instrumental in helping solve crimes.
Dicte’s background is an important part of the story. I won’t give you spoilers, but she has a troubled history that colors her behavior at work and her personal life.
The police officers Dicte often interacts with are John Wagner (Lars Brygmann) and Bendtsen (Ditte Ylva Olsen). You may recognize Lars Brygmann from Borgen – here he’s a more likable character. Wagner and Bendtsen banter about Bendtsen’s sex life a good bit when they aren’t investigating a crime. Bendtsen has a long string of female sex partners, a fact that seems to fascinate Wagner. She’s a terrific investigator and regularly gives Wagner the info he needs to make a case.
Ditte Ylva Olsen is fairly new to acting, but there are lots of photos of her dancing.
Two friends of Dicte’s play important parts. They are Anne (Lærke Winther Andersen) and Ida Marie (Lene Maria Christensen).
Another major character is Bo, (Dar Salim) a photographer from the newspaper where Dicte works.
American audiences will know Dar Salim from Game of Thrones. He was in the Danish version of The Bridge and in Borgen. He’s a major hunk. Dicte notices.
Dicte’s family and personal life are significant parts of her story arc. The crimes that Wagner investigates and Dicte reports on are often related to Dicte’s backstory in one way or another – a fact that sometimes makes her emotionally involved with the people or the crimes she’s reporting about.
I was impressed with the other Danish series about real and layered women that I mentioned above. This series doesn’t disappoint by following in their footsteps. The actors are excellent, the stories are interesting. The characters are real and complex. I recommend that you take Dicte for a spin on Netflix. I think you’ll like it.
Trailers
Unfortunately there are no English subtitles on the trailers, but you can get a sense of the action from them.
This one begins with the same material, but there are new scenes starting about halfway through.
Update
In December 2015, Netflix US obtained season 2 of Dicte. Here’s my review of season 2 of Dicte.
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I loved Annika Bengtzon so I will give this a watch. For me, I seem to love the foreign TV shows more then the Amicans. The stories seem better as well as the acting.
Super. Let me know what you think.
This Amican loves the show!
I watched the first two seasons – love the storylines. The only actor I didn’t like was “Bo” who I suppose was meant to be a heart throb, but just isn’t – bad casting there. He can’t act either. But the plot, visual aesthetics of the backdrops and the acting, for the most part, are all done extremely well – much better than most. Can’t wait for the next season (hoping Bo will get bumped off).
Would you be able to enlighten me on the difference between Dicte II and season 2 of Dicte?
Netflix is now streaming all of season 2 now. And I would love to know if Dicte II is season 3 or what!!
Oh, thank you for that news!
Hmmm, I’m not seeing season 2 on Netflix. Will keep watching for it.
what country are you in Kat? I cant find season 2 (w/english subtitles) anywhere on the internet!
I loved this series and it amazes me how quickly I got used to the sub-titles. It beggars belief however, after Dicte’s understandable obsession with her son in the first series that there would not even be a mention of him in the second. It is a glaring absence that distracts from the overall excellence of the show.
No comments from her, Anne, Rose – no one, about Peter. Nothing to explain his utter absence – no comment like (for instance) how much she misses him but wasn’t it great that he’d gone away to school. Or wasn’t it horrific the way he got hit by a bus after the wonderful party they through for him… It wouldn’t have taken up a lot of plot space, but it would have helped. His complete and utter absence is distracting.
I haven’t seen the second series yet (Netflix isn’t offering it where I am), but he was such an important part of the first season. Wanting consistency from writers is a big part of getting hooked on a story, to me.
I just finished watching the two seasons on Netflix here in Canada. I loved the show. But I agree with you that writers dropped the ball with regards to Dicte’s son. I understand that they wanted the ’emotional arc’ of the second season to be about her relationship with her parents, but it definitely felt like sloppy writing to completely omit any mention of him. Similarly, I was bothered by the way Ida Marie completely disappeared. They mention in passing that she moved to Germany in the first episode of the season, which doesn’t make any narrative sense, considering the last we heard from her was that she was leaving her husband (who is the one who wanted to move to Germany). Ida Marie was so close to Dicte and Anna, so it seems bizarre that there would be no other mentions of her throughout the second season (phone calls to Germany, etc). In this case, I suspect it was probably due to the show’s budget. ie, they needed to add Grace as a supporting character, so they ditched the ‘least important’ friend.
… threw… for him.
Absolutely loved the show! Have watched both seasons and am waiting for more!!! I too found the absence of Peter quite odd. The subtitles were done so well that I was at once completey engrossed in the show! Excellent!
I’m waiting for season 2 to show up on American Netflix. Lucky you to have seen it already.
I love the show and am waiting for season 3. Please give us more of the excellent Scandinavian movies, i.e. The Swedish “Wallander series,” as well as “Beck”. These are very good movies. No problem with subtitles.
Loved this and can’t wait for more on Netflix. Think the Dicte character is real and very likeable.
I love hearing from so many people about how much they love Dicte. Thanks for your comments!
Why do they refer to Jehovah’s witnesses on the show why not buddist?
Aren’t Dicte’s parents Jehovah’s Witnesses?
Yes but they show them in a very negative way!!!!
Yes, they did. But it was more about what her parents’ interpreted the religion to be than about the religion itself.
Very much enjoyed both series of Dicte on Netflix. The characters really get into your heart, and there is humour and good cinematography. Hoping for a 3rd! Will check into Dicte II, though it may just be a renaming for the 2nd series?
Thanks for the info,
G
Graham, Thanks for commenting. Netflix is being slow about bringing season 2 of Dicte to the U. S. viewers, but I’m more than ready to watch it!
Just watched Seasons 1 & 2 on Netflix Canada. Binge watching on my weekend off (which coincided with a snowstorm today). Can’t wait for Season 3!
Nothing can compare to a good show, a cozy couch, and a snowstorm outside the window!
I love that Dicte has made it’s way abroad. I’m a Scandinavian girl and I love Iben Hjejle and this amazing show.
As for “Dicte II” – I’m 99% certain that it was just another name for the second season. The imdb information is not always correct when it comes to small productions like Danish tv shows. According to Dicte’s facebook page, there’s no news of a third season (or any spin-offs) yet. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for another season, though!
Thank you for your comment! The Dicte Facebook page is in Danish, and although translations are provided, they are always a bit iffy. It seems to me that all of Europe neglects IMDB, I wish it were otherwise, but it’s often hard to get good info on any European series or actor there.
I really enjoyed the storyline of Dicte and can’t wait till I can see Season 2. Hurry Netflix!
Yes!
Agreed! So happy to find a group of people who enjoy this series as much as I do!
Another great show from Europe..thank you Netflix! I really enjoyed the Annika Bengtzon program. This one is very similar….great plot development, interesting story lines, and superb acting. Highly recommended for murder mystery crime story buffs.
I love the show. I think I am A”Dicted! Can’t wait to see any new episodes. Canadian fan!
A’Dicted! Perfect!
Watched all of season 1 in marathon fashion and am anxious for season 2 to become available. Stories are good, actors are all excellent. Wagner is fascinating–cool, aloof, and a sweet cupcake. Dicte….amazing and tough. More please!
Thanks for your comment. Do agree, more please. I’ve started tweeting Netflix about it. Might help if everyone else joined in as well.
Love Dicte..1 and 2..can’t wait for 3..
Update me on what Rose graduated to be ??
I’m so glad to find out there is a second series of Dicte – hurry up, Netflix! I am really getting into Scandinavian TV.
I’m 3/5 of the way through Season Two. In addition to no sign of the son Peter, there’s no sign of Ida Marie either. She was mentioned quite early in the first episode of Season 2.
This is a well made series that occasionally causes eye-rolls because of Dicte’s abilities to think out of the box, and find things usually ahead of the police. But the show works best as it seamlessly blends Dicte’s personal and professional lives. And that’s what I love best about the show.
She does regularly solve the crime ahead of the police, doesn’t she? I like that about her, too.
I love Dicte’s passion for life, love and her work. She’s and addictive character. We just finished season 1 last night and are dying to start season 2. Come on netflix!
I totally agree with all of the other positive comments from Americans. I binge watched the first season and eagerly await the second on Netflix. I will write to them to request season 2 asap! This is a quality series!
If you find a good address or email to write to Netflix, would you let me know? Thanks.
I couldn’t find it so just asked the help people to pass it along to the right department. Probably a futile effort! I will check in with Netflix periodically to see if they have added season 2. I, too, enjoy the foreign women-centric mysteries. Loved Scott snd Bailey and Vera! Any others that you can recommend?
Have you seen Rita and the other two Sally Wainwright creations Happy Valley and Last Tango in Halifax? Rita is really tearing it up right now on Netflix.
Thanks! Just downloaded Rita and look forward to it since I was a teacher in CA for 35 years. Loved happy Valley and Halifax- in fact, anything that SW does! Loved Luther too , albeit a bit tough to watch. Favorite was George Gently series too
Once you finish Rita, come on back and read my interview with the series creator Christian Torpe. http://oldaintdead.com/exclusive-interview-with-christian-torpe-creator-of-the-danish-hit-series-rita/
We just finished watching season two of Dicte on Netflix. The story line was excellent and we were totally engrossed in all the episodes. However, we found some of the episode’s English subtitles were not in synch with what was unfolding on the screen. A little disconcerting, but still a very enjoyable show to watch. Loved the story and all the subplots.
Thanks for commenting, Russ. I’m hoping we get to see season 2 soon.
You must be watching on Netflix Canada or something. In the USA season two is not available yet. So sad! I’m eagerly awaiting it!
I watched Season 1 over the past 2 weeks — really enjoyed the show and am eager for Netflix to make season 2 available (I’m in the US)!
I cannot wait for season 3.
I was raised as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses and feel Dicte’s pain.
Just finished Season 1 of Dicte. Loved it. Can’t wait to see Season 2 and hope there are more seasons to follow.
This is the fourth or fifth Danish series that I’ve watched on Netflik. I search for BBC or Danish productions given their overall quality. I love the complextity and credibility of the characters. Well written and well produced. As a bonus, I enjoy the avant-garde architecture one occasionally gets a glimpse of in the program.
Dicte, Season 2 is now streaming on DailyMotion, though the captions are a tad off (they’re translated from Danish to Swedish & then to English via Google Translate). It’s every bit as good as the first season, so I’m looking forward to Dicte II!
I have some issues with buffering and poor quality with DailyMotion. But it may be wonderful for other people to use to see season 2.
Excellent show! I just finished the first season on Netflix and cannot wait for the second. Any suggestions for a similar series?
Kerri, You might enjoy the British show Scott & Bailey. (http://oldaintdead.com/5-reason-love-scott-bailey/) You’d have to hunt around on streaming services, or maybe YouTube, to find it, but it’s very good.
Dicte was appealing and impossible to stop watching from the first scene. I disagree about the quality of the writing, though. The characters were all beguiling and the acting topnotch, casting perfect – which is why some of the absurd plotting was so annoying. Some of it, particularly in the last 4 episodes, was straight out of U.S. Daytime soap operas. I will not post any spoilers, but if you watched the Alan Alda episode on 30 Rock, you might find episode 8 hard to take seriously. I wish this wonderful program had writers equal to the quality of the acting and directing. Loved having real adults playing adult roles
Thanks for commenting, Terry.
I love the show but would have to agree that the plots have holes you could drive a truck through. Dicte goes on her own anywhere she wants. She finds a little boy in a closet. No one else thought to look through the house? Would the little boy have died otherwise? Silly. She goes to the cremator’s place and walks right in. She gets everywhere before Wagner does. Predictable about what will happen next. Who didn’t know that was her son? That said, great fun and compulsive to watch.
There are a long line of stories where some outsider finds the answers before the police can. Holes in the plot help with that. She’s kind of the Danish Sherlock Holmes.
The second season of Dicte is now on Netflix and its a very enjoyable show.
I have also seen all of Rita and that, too, is a great show. No idea if there will be a season 4.
Thanks for the heads up, Brad. Must watch ASAP!
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After one month Netflix has remove season 2. WTF?
Seriously? That’s nuts! Tweeting them about it now.
Thoroughly disappointed when season 2 ended-wanted more. Have to disagree with comments about Bo. Think he is a heart throb and also can act. I mean that megawatt smile is pretty special. Wish Netflix would have a way of communicating whether or not they are going to continue a series. When a season ends, they could give the audience a heads up. It’s very frustrating. I am waiting for River, more Wallander, The Bridge, and more and have no idea if I have to go elsewhere to view.
I don’t know if you clicked through to read my review of season 2 of Dicte, but there is an announcement at the end of it that season 3 is in the works. No idea when Netflix will pick it up, however.
Love it, just finished season 2 here in Canada, and can’t wait for season 3
I’m eager to see it, too. Quality television!
cannot believe you got rid of one of the series’ most likable characters. Forget it! Won’t watch any more.
U.S. Netflix is currently streaming all 3 seasons of Dicte. It seems to take them a while to get a deal made for it, but it is available now.
Shallow characters – a mom who had a son she obsessed over, found and then forgot about. Ida Marie was a lifelong friend, she moved a few miles south and was then immediately 100% forgotten. Dicte borrowed a dog, it was brutally murdered within hours and guess what, no guilt or remorse or apology to the dog’s owner, she just dragged it’s dead body around in a plastic bag….I couldn’t stop laughing. This is a Danish comedy.
They change partners a lot, divorced 1st husband, seduces married coworker, friend marries her ex husband, she hates her mother, her daughter hates her; all very selfish shallow people, hated them by end of season 1.
Almost finished with S1. Watching on PBS, where it is “Flagged” as a Walter Presents choice, which is how I found it.
Wonder how I might search to find other shows on your blog that are high quality, older. Any tips would be appreciated. I was late to streaming and realize there are so many shows like Dicte that are still left to discover. What draws me to this one and others – international, strong characters, strong acting, could be crime but also other genres.
I watch a lot of international shows like that, but finding reviews isn’t organized. My best advice would be to search on a language like “Danish” or “French” to see what comes up. Another way would be to search for a particular actor like “Nicola Walker” that you know you like. Hope this helps.
Thanks for your reply. I do searches that way, by country or actor, a bit randomly. (Love Nicola Walker!) Was thinking also whether you might go back 5 or 10 years, look at what you reviewed in a given year and come up with “Ages Well” recommendations in a few categories, like Still Strong, Hidden Gems, WWII & the bomb perspectives, etc. Given the current SAG and writers’ strikes, it might be perfect timing to remind people of great shows they missed a few years back. Just tonight, on a call with a friend, discussing plans to see Oppenheimer, she recommended The Man in the Hightower, a reflection on what was at stake had the US not dropped the bomb. I have not seen (I was very late to streaming) and your review was the first one I checked on imdb.com – I’ll start watching tonight. Again, thanks for your thoughtful reply.