In America, the BBC is mainly known for comedies and costume dramas (as well as Doctor Who), but their output is more varied than that.  British TV also creates some solid detective programs including the subject of this review, The Stalker's Apprentice.  This psychological drama about a young editor who is influenced by a manuscript he's reading isn't perfect, but is does offer some solid entertainment.

Marcus Walwyn (Gideon Turner) is an upper-class lad who has a cushy job in a publishing house going over submissions.  Though he has a rich attractive girlfriend, Marcus is really infatuated with a girl he sees on the street Karen (Natalie Walter), a blond cutie who works in a tea shop.

One day at work Marcus receives a book, a thriller about a man who kills and enjoys it.  The manuscript sets out in minute detail how the main character commits his crimes, but it also talks about how the murderer feels and how he revels in the death.  The book strikes a note in Marcus and he realizes how he can have Karen for hsi very own: by killing her fiancee.

He starts to follow the book like a map, doing what it says and carefully planning the murder.  The first step it proscribes is to gain some experience with a test killing.

Peter Davison (Doctor Who, All Creatures Great and Small) plays the Maurice Burt, the detective in charge of the investigation.  Though the movie covers Marcus' planning of the murders and Burt's work trailing the killer, this isn't a procedural, it is a psychological thriller.  Watching the clean cut and attractive young man killing in cold blood is creepy just because he's such an unlikely looking criminal.

That's also a problem with the movie.  Marcus is well spoken, well to do and has a beautiful girlfriend.  It's hard to see his motivation for becoming a killer or being so obsessed with Karen.  The reasons, aside from the fact that he wants Karen, aren't ever gone into and that leaves a void in the film that's never filled.

There are a couple of other problems with the plot, a few amazing coincidences that help the police and some not-so-bright moves by Marcus that are hard to swallow, but these aren't hard to overlook.  The ruthlessness of the main character and the creepy feeling of the film as a whole overcome the shortcomings of the plot.

The acting is very good, as is usual for British dramas.  Peter Davison plays a supporting role, but he's capable as always.  The success of the film is due to a large part to Gideon Turner.  He manages to be eerie and charming at the same time.   The best performance in the movie however is given by James Bolam who plays Helmut Kranze, the writer of the novel that sends Marcus off the deep end.  A stirring and understated performance, Bolam come across as much more dangerous than Marcus in a much shorter time.

The stereo soundtrack in standard for this type of made-for-TV film.  There isn't a lot of dynamic range but being dialog driven this isn't a large flaw.  The sound is clear and there aren't any audio defects worth noting.

Video:
 
The full frame color image looked about average.  There's a slight grain to the picture but the detail is fine.  The colors are a bit muted, but only just.  On the digital side, there's a bit of aliasing but other comprssion artifacts are absent.  The worst offense is that there's been a good amount of edge enhancement applied to the image.  Overall a standard looking disc.

Extras:

This is a bare-bones discs without any extras at all.

Final Thoughts:

This was an unexpectedly good film.  Though it was made for TV, there is a fair amount of tension and the plot has some nice twists that add a lot to the film.  While there are some weak moments that may bother some viewers, this is still worth watching.  Recommended.