After five extraordinary episodes, the BBC/HBO miniseries
produced by Mammoth Screen and written by Sir Tom Stoppard has
screened in its entirety in the UK. Moving from the demise of
Edwardian England, through the horror of the First World War, and
the hope for a better future, the drama tells of the love triangle
between Christopher Tietjens (Benedict Cumberbatch), his adulterous
wife (Rebecca Hall) and a young suffragette (Adelaide Clemens).
Benedict Cumberbatch as Christopher Tietjens.
The greatest sense you take away from the series is that of an
evolution, both in its participants and the world they inhabit.
Christopher Tietjens is very much the last of his kind, even when
the series begins; an intellectual who can summon verse and compose
sonnets under duress, and by the close his own growth away from his
norms and values becomes a necessity, both due to his desires, the
actions of others, and the seismic shifts in the wider world. From
his strict, self sacrificing yet incredibly warm introduction, you
get the sense of a man desperately trying to hold onto the past and
his honour - the 'Parade' that forms the title and is referenced
numerous times throughout the duration. The degree that this
nobility verges on is sometimes absurd, and arguably even a form of
mental self abuse at times. By the time that war is declared -a
conflict Christopher has been predicting for years - he sees the
chance to enlist as an escape while also an opportunity to retain
his nobility - after all, there is no greater calling than serving
one's country. Instead though, instead of escaping the growing
clerical buffoonery he faced at home he is instead plunged even
deeper into it, unsafely sheltered in an administrative role that
forces him to deal with the requisition of fire extinguishers and
organising the draft of men whose destination is unknown even hours
before their departure. Benedict's portrayal of a man under fire
from all sides, be it German ordnance or the emotional fall out of
his tangled, whispered about love life, is impeccable throughout,
quite possibly the greatest performance he has given thus far,
being both chilly but warm, buttoned up yet fracturing. By the time
he finds himself redeployed to the Front in the final episode, a
spiritually broken man rises up into an exceptional commanding
officer - one that in a final, decisive moment under fire forges
the bonds with his soldiers irrevocably and with complete
decency.
Rebecca Hall as Sylvia Tietjens.
If there's one true standout performance in a series built from
standout performances, it's arguably Rebecca Hall. Quite fearless,
she makes Sylvia by turns hateful, sympathetic, vulnerable,
spiteful and honest, a woman bound by religion and social graces
but not afraid to openly mock them. While initially focused
solely on provoking her husband, both through affairs and her
general behaviour in his company, she begins to soften towards him
and starts to display an increasing sense of nobility towards
Christopher, laughing off and even defending him against increasing
rumours with an air of incredulity due to her own inability to stir
him - and of course, all in ironic contrast to her own actions. But
her discovery of Valentine Wannop provokes an unexpected reaction
in herself, causing genuine upset, anger and disbelief. At times
she displays barely restrained fury at events, bubbling with an
undercurrent of selfishness that rears up despite her outward
appearance. With suitable absurdity, she begins to want her husband
to act like her when the chance is right in front of him just to
see any form of passion from him, even though it would not be
directed towards her. Later, having exposed her vulnerability and
honesty while visiting Christopher in France, she reverts to bad
habits after the possibility of redemption. Culminating in the
destruction of the Groby Tree, a final symbolic act of childish
spite that destroys his traditions and surpasses all else that she
has done, it's a calculated and desperate final play to provoke a
reaction, no matter how small it may end up being - and oddly, she
succeeds, as Christopher makes his final choice between her and her
rival.
Adelaide Clemens as Valentine Wannop.
Which in turn brings us nicely to the final part of the trinity
- Valentine Wannop, as portrayed by Adelaide Clemens. After her
sparkling introduction and the subsequent, highly charged trip with
Christopher in the first hour, she later becomes more tightly
embroiled in the militant aspects of the suffragette movement. In
perhaps the most crucial scene for the character, Tom Stoppard's
script inserts her as fictional witness to one of the most famous
real-world moments of the campaign for women's rights on March 10
1914 at the National Gallery - the slashing of the Rokeby Venus by
Mary Richardson, an event absent from the book entirely. This
reveals an intriguing reaction from Valentine, one of admiration
and respect of great art that others find offensive and indicative
of all they are fighting against, which later evolves into a
striking and impactful visual moment where she sees herself as the
figure in the painting, revealing her true appreciation of beauty
coupled with the burgeoning desire and sensuality that lie in her
heart. Adelaide is often allowed to let loose emotionally in
the series, at times revealing the lack of knowledge her character
has about her own sexual biology that fundamentally marks her out
as a child in many aspects, but is also emblematic of the need to
balance the sexes. This in turn shapes her once women have won the
vote, expanding to a wider intent for an expansion of women's
knowledge and control over their own bodies. Valentine thus remains
a character of contrasts throughout the series, ostensibly
completely opposed to Christopher and his worldview but drawn to
him through their mutual intelligence and spark - a literal example
of opposites attracting. Adelaide Clemens handles this gently
complex character with consummate skill, her inherent intelligence
but also total desperation for the man she loves forming a tricky,
countering balancing act.
The cast is rounded out with a broad range of characters, from
the flawed aspirations of Macmaster (Stephen Graham), the comedic
bluster of General Campion (Roger Allam) the fragile and eventually
spiteful Edith (Anne Marie Duff) and her unbalanced husband (Rufus
Sewell), to the kindness of Valentine's mother (Miranda
Richardson), the class obsessed yet respectful tone of Sylvia's
mother (Janet McTeer) and of course the initially harsh and
joshing, but eventually warm, and finally broken form of Mark
Tietjens (Rupert Everett). All bring different facets and colour to
this world, portraying distinct elements of the era that avoid
archetypes while forming a rounded portrait of the death of
Edwardian England. Each character ends up differently from where we
first encounter them, for good or ill.
From clockwise top left: Stephen Graham as Macmaster, Anne
Marie Duff as Edith Duchermin, Roger Allam as General Campion,
Rufus Sewell as Reverend Duchemin.
Technically, the series is almost flawless. Susanna White's
direction is measured and direct with bursts of artistic flair,
capturing the rolling Yorkshire hills of the opening hour and the
shattered, brittle landscape of No Man's Land in the last with
equal assurance. Moments of combat and violence in the later hours
are directed with an intimate terror, their impactful suddenness
standing in contrast to the sparkling social comedy that may
intercut them. The most striking visual motif she uses are the
kaleidoscopic, vorticist angles on shots in the opening credits and
in the flashback sequences. Initially surprising, it becomes clear
that they are used to represent Christopher's memories, be they the
first encounter with Sylvia in a train carriage or a
near-passionate moment with Valentine in the fog, with the
fracturing, twisting angles of the shots indicating his state of
mind.
Tom Stoppard's adaptation of the source material is faithful but
also surgical, deftly cutting through much of the prose of the book
to find the true meat of the four novels that form the singular
work. For basic reference, he has transformed the first book (Some
Do Not...) into the first three episodes, the second book (No More
Parades)into the fourth episode and the third book (A Man Could
Stand Up) into the fifth, while completely ignoring the narrative
of the fourth book (Last Post) entirely. He has omitted much of the
bulk of the piece, focusing solely on important narrative events
and then trimming them down to specific character beats,
jettisoning much of the introspection while retaining Ford Madox
Ford's dialogue. In addition, the chronology of the novel has been
rearranged from the page, with events being shown as they occur,
rather than recounted afterwards by the characters. He also
arguably makes Christopher more sympathetic and Sylvia more
spiteful than on the page, with her role sizably increased.
From clockwise top left: Miranda Richardson as Mrs
Wannop, Janet McTeer as Mrs. Satterthwaite, Rupert Everett as Mark
Tietjens, with Benedict Cumberbatch as Christopher Tietjens.
As a whole, the most striking thing about Parade's End are the
tonal shifts that occur between each hour, rather than within the
hour. The first episode is simultaneously an introduction, hugely
romantic, and very, very funny. The second shifts more to a
character piece, expanding upon elements established in the first.
The third is pure, emotional drama, tinged with tragedy but also
hugely pumping up the romantic angle, which is in turn absent in
the fourth episode, replaced instead with a return to the humour
that marked the opener, but here reconfigured into pitch black. And
the final, fifth episode combines all elements, with the addition
of a remarkable depiction of the combat of the First World War,
before settling into tying off all the narrative threads and
putting these characters to bed - in some cases, quite
literally.
There are other concerns bubbling beneath the surface too, aside
from the romance. There is a constant contrast between the social
status of the characters, with some, like Macmaster and Mrs
desperately clawing to reach a standard of living that matches that
of the Tietjens family - one that Christopher is at times all too
happy to abandon. The final moments of the series sum this up
beautifully, with Macmaster and Christopher, now separated by
experience and the war briefly greeting each other from across the
street, wordlessly separated by glass. Christopher has found solace
and companionship in those he has fought alongside, a bond that
transcends class, while Macmaster has strived to reach
Christopher's level since the very beginning. Their roles are now
somewhat reversed, but from these final moments it is all too clear
whose life is now the richer.
Indeed, by this final moving scene, there is a distinct sense of
sadness that this remarkable mini-series has ended so soon. With
its complex, well drawn characterisation, superb writing and
focused direction, we've easily seen one of the best dramas of the
year. Parade's End is ultimately a story of a time lost, complete
with its values and symbolism, to the onward march of technology
and consumerism. Framing the First World War makes this crystal
clear, and the themes of love and the emergence of friendship
through shared adversity, rather than a hunger for success and
wealth, makes this both an evocation of an age long past but also
one of remarkable prescience for the world as it is
today.
Parade's End has yet to officially announce a broadcast in the
United States, but is rumoured to screen on HBO in early 2013.
Parade's End will be released on DVD and Blu Ray in the UK on
October 8 2012.
The DVD is encoded for Region 2 [UK, Europe] and Region 4
(Australia, New Zealand) and while the Blu Ray will likely be
region free it will be subject to 1080i 50hz encoding, which
renders the disc unplayable on NTSC based players from Panasonic
and Sony, including the Playstation 3, in regions including the
United States. We recommend checking your player manual or your
player model on Google for compatibility before ordering.
It's also worth considering that any future home video release
in the United States will be handled by HBO, and has every
possibility of featuring additional extra features not included on
the UK release.
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