ANeary Reviews

Screen Two: Persuasion (1995) Season Unknown, Episode Unknown

Perfect cast, definitive adaptation

[10/10 · 17 July 2022]

Lovers of the novel will find little to fault here.

Anyone seeking refuge from the 2022 travesty with the same name will be delighted by the faithfulness to the novel and fine performances throughout. There is appropriate deference to Austen's literary genius - not a lame excuse to diminish her work as a simplistic "rom-com".

Royal Shakespeare Company: Richard II (2013 TV Movie)

Like being there

[10/10 · 3 December 2013]

I was lucky enough to see this at the theatre in Stratford, and took the opportunity to see it in my local cinema when it was transmitted live a couple of weeks later.

It was surprisingly like being there for real, while at the same time, being able to see things you wouldn't be able to see when seated in the theatre. The quality of filming & direction was excellent, much higher than I have seen in other filmed live performances.

Greg Doran keeps the work in period (as opposed the modern dress Hamlet). The RSC still reigns supreme for Shakespeare (as well it should) and the verse is well-spoken. Tennant is charismatic as usual; Jane Lapotaire astonishing in her pivotal scene.

Highly recommended.

Jericho (2005)

Atmospheric, and some great performances

[6 November 2005]

Jericho is a middle-aged over-achieving Scotland Yard detective, tormented by witnessing the death of his father as a child. This may sound somewhat formulaic, but that would be unfair to this tremendous series. The evocation of 1950s London is superb: even down to details like a "blink-and-you-miss-it" sign in a window advertising for tenants stating "no Blacks, no Irish" (A common sight in post-war Britain: I can vouch for this - my parents were Irish and told me about it).

The performances are superb, and the cast includes the cream of British acting: Robert Lindsay of course, but also Peter Bowles, James Wilby, Jane Horrocks, among others.

Anyonewho has seen "Foyle's War" will appreciate the sense of period and the way the stories intelligently explore contemporary issues. Highly recommended.

The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004)

Interesting film of a deeply disturbed, unpleasant person

[7/10 · 17 October 2005]

I never thought I'd find myself feeling sorry for Britt Ekland: this film of Peter Sellers' life and career achieved that. One must assume that many of the details are based in truth - his behaviour to his children in particular was awful.

There is no doubt that Sellers was an amazing talent, and troubled as so many are (Tony Hancock, for instance) - the toll that took on those closest to him must have been great.

But to the film: it's worth seeing for the extraordinary performance from Geoffrey Rush, uncannily portraying Sellers. There is fine support, in particular from John Lithgow as Blake Edwards, Miriam Margoyles as Sellers' mother, and Charlize Theron's Ekland.

Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell (1999 TV Movie)

A tour de force

[10/10 · 26 March 2005]

Jeffrey Bernard was a legendary bon viveur in London, with a passion for drink, horses & women. He was a regular in the Coach and Horses pub in Soho, immortalised in satirical magazine Private Eye.

This play, written by a friend of his, Keith Waterhouse, imagines Bernard locked in said pub overnight: his reminiscences range from the poignant to the hilarious, and are illustrated by characters played by the supporting cast.

Nonetheless, this is essentially a one-man show, with O'Toole on stage throughout and on tremendous form. This captures the definitive performance of a hugely entertaining play.

Relative Values (2000)

Inconsequential but fun

[7/10 · 20 March 2005]

This is based on a Noel Coward play, so you should know what to expect.

It is very nicely done - the locations look great (Isle of Man standing in for Kent), the cars and clothes are fabulous, and the casting is excellent. Stephen Fry plays a butler (again) with some Jeevesian touches, but is pretty low-key. Colin Firth plays against type in the role Coward so obviously designed for himself - and is funny (again, not something one expects from Firth). Jeanne Tripplehorn looks suitably glamorous as the Hollywood star, and Baldwin This does make a few digs at class and snobbery, but it is really a bit of fluffy comedy to pass a pleasant hour.

Foyle's War (2002–2015)

Much more than a detective drama...

[9/10 · 13 August 2004]

Foyle's War follows the life of a detective and his team based in Hastings in the south of England during the Second World War.

Although he is obviously called on to investigate crimes, the programme deals with so much more - there is a real feel for what it must have been like to be in Britain when it stood alone against Hitler, when the outcome was not just uncertain, but may well have meant invasion and persecution. The period is therefore much more than a "backdrop". For instance, Foyle's son is in the RAF, and his sergeant was seriously wounded in Norway.

The scripts are intelligent, the plots engrossing and, with casts drawn from the cream of British actors, the performances are impeccable.

A Ghost in Monte Carlo (1990 TV Movie)

Soooo bad...

[1/10 · 8 August 2004]

Well, what can you say about a Barbara Cartland adaptation?

There are some amazing actors in this (Oliver Reed, Sarah Miles, Christopher Plummer) but they clearly are clocking up the money.

Lysette Anthony and Marcus Gilbert have appeared in two other Cartland epics - Anthony with Hugh Grant (who looks suitably embarrassed) and Gilbert with Helena Bonham Carter.

If you really want to see a "watchable" adaptation of Cartland, the Bonham Carter one is the one to go for ("A Hazard of Hearts" - what a title!!). Gilbert is the weak link in that, but Bonham Carter is suitably beautiful and of course can actually act, and the rest of the cast play it to the hilt with tongues firmly in cheek (Edward Fox & Diana Rigg)

A Very Open Prison (1995 TV Movie)

Precursor to Crossing the Floor

[9/10 · 4 August 2004]

David Hanratty (Tom Wilkinson) makes his debut as a self-serving, venal Home Secretary dealing with a breakout from a private prison (run by the Alcatraz Prisons company..) Anyone who remembers the mid-1990s in the UK may recall how frequently this appeared to happen to the Tory Home Secretary at the time.... The cast also includes Stephen Tompkinson as a Psychotic escapee and Emily Mortimer as the minister's aide. Ronald Pickup also appears as the head of the Alcatraz group who has made a miraculous recovery from Alzheimers' (brought on by prosecution....) Written & directed by Guy Jenkin from "Drop the Dead Donkey" and includes a cameo by Andy Hamilton (co-writer).

America's Sweethearts (2001)

Under-rated

[7/10 · 31 December 2002]

This is not a "Great Movie", but it's very entertaining, with some excellent performances. Catherine Zeta-Jones' selfish diva and Stanley Tucci's studio head are wonderful, blackly-comic creations. I can't really understand why it got such a negative press: maybe they don't like us seeing what a junket might really be like....?