Reichenbach Falls
Alec Newman plays Detective Inspector Jim Buchan
When it comes to hard-nosed detectives with the weight of the world on their shoulders, Jim Buchan, played by Scots actor Alec Newman, is up there with the most embittered of them.
Ìý
He was previously married to Clara – the love of his life – but she left him for his former friend, and best man at his wedding, celebrated crime writer Jack Harvey (Alastair Mackenzie).
Ìý
On top of all this, the gruff cop is carrying the burden of guilt over the death of his former partner, Gerry, after an undercover sting to catch his arch nemesis, The Monkey (also Mackenzie), went horribly wrong. He's a broken man who relies on a bottle of whisky and a slightly scary photographic shrine to his ex-wife to get him through the lonely nights.
Ìý
Buchan may be a man on the edge but, as far as Alec is concerned, the character has his own unique appeal.
Ìý
"What was quite worrying for me – and maybe I should be concerned about this – was that I found the character very accessible. I could empathise with everything that makes him what he is when we find him at the start of the story. I really got him. Maybe that means I'm a total f*** up as well?" jokes Alec.
Ìý
"Basically, life has flattened this guy Buchan and it's close to destroying him. Having said that, right from the beginning, you feel like this guy and this story is something out of the ordinary and you can't really put your finger on it."
Ìý
All is not as it seems in Reichenbach Falls and, for Alec, the twists and turns of the surreal drama made it all the more appealing.
Ìý
"You know there's something quite weird going on, you know to an extent you're in this man's head and, on that basis, it very quickly draws you into the psychological equivalent of the Edinburgh tunnels where they later find a dead body.
Ìý
"That was definitely one of the attractions of the part for me, because I had the challenge that, regardless of any twists or turns or anything like that, I just had to play it straight. The other attraction was that there is something extraordinarily Scottish about the whole affair, from the characters to what happens.
Ìý
"When I was preparing for the role, the director talked about Buchan being Edinburgh, being Scotland – there's no joy, no light and certainly, absolutely, no nookie! And I think that kind of encapsulated the whole thing for me."
Ìý
In fact, for Alec – who has lived in Los Angeles for three years and has starred in the likes of Angel and Murder Rooms – filming Reichenbach Falls in Edinburgh last year resulted in a re-appreciation of his roots.
Ìý
"At this point in my life I'm more fond of, and more involved in, my national identity and my country than I ever have been and I think this job is partly, if not completely, responsible for it. I became very fond of Edinburgh when we were up there, which for someone who was born in Glasgow, I could possibly be hung for saying," he laughs.
Ìý
In Reichenbach Falls, following the death of his former police partner, Buchan is given a new colleague, Sinead Burns (played by Nina Sosanya), and is assigned to "cold cases" – which he considers a career snub.
Ìý
To Buchan, it appears that his life is in tatters so he drinks (heavily) and listens to loud rock music.
Ìý
"There's a gentle discussion in the script about what it means to be Scottish and obviously, when it comes to emotion, we're not a slushy nation," explains Alec.
Ìý
"For some reason, Scots have a real problem letting that come through, so you end up with the kind of self-denial and self-abuse that Buchan has to deal with. As an actor, I found all that fascinating," says Alec, who is currently starring in the restoration comedy The Soldiers' Fortune at the Young Vic in London, alongside Anne-Marie Duff.
Ìý
Most of Buchan's hatred is focused towards The Monkey, who has threatened to kill anyone whom he holds dear.
Ìý
And, although Buchan displays a lot of the clichés associated with a hard-nosed detective – a drink problem, socially withdrawn and generally disagreeable – there's another side to him. He can be warm and funny, he's a bit crazy and definitely a lot more unstable than first meets the eye.
Ìý
"Buchan is a man on the edge, who smokes and drinks himself into oblivion in order to cope with his situation. But then his situation isn't quite as straightforward as it initially seems and you do get to the point watching this where you start wondering if anything at all actually is as it seems..." teases Alec, with a grin.
Ìý
But while Alec relished the role of DI Buchan, he confesses that there was one unforgettable downside. "My only problem making this film is that Buchan is a heavy smoker, but I kicked the habit two years ago," he reveals.
Ìý
"I didn't want to get hooked again so I used herbal cigarettes, which were awful and just made me smell of fish. They were dreadful. Absolutely dreadful. I don't think I'll ever be able to eat haddock again!"
Ìý
Printable version