Wartime

Wartime was the first independent Doctor Who spin-off (made when the show was still in production in 1987) and is pretty good. John Levene stars as Sgt. Benton of U.N.I.T. (from the Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker years) on a delivery mission who gets sidetracked to a haunting landscape that holds a painful secret from his past. Younger versions of himself and his brother, who died in a tragic accident at the location he finds himself in, assault his senses, as do images of his mother and father (the latter played by original Doctor Who Davros, Michael Wisher). Benton's confrontations with his father are well handled and sometimes quite eerie. A major issue that had haunted Benton is finally resolved and it is never really clear whether the images of his family are mental projections brought on by the previously unresolved trauma or actual ghosts and this ambiguity is a positive attribute of this production. The acting itself varies, with John Levene putting in an adequate performance (with a couple of minor lapses) and Wisher contributing a marvellous and occasionally spooky one. The overall look and some of the effects are strictly low budget but credit must be given to the crew who proved people outside the BBC could treat characters in a sensitive and interesting fashion. Also on the video is a Making Of Wartime section that is revealing in the trials and tribulations of a low budget production. Some of the remembrances are long winded but most are fresh and sometimes quite funny. Buy this to see where the Doctor Who spin-off phenomena began and give it a few viewings before passing judgement on it as it is really very intriguing and moody.

Well, this is technically a story, and it's a Doctor Who spin-off in the absolutely loosest sense possible. Wartime's budget is about the price of a ham sandwich. It's story is almost non-existent, and it could be summed up in literally 5 minutes of screen-time. It's acting is pretty awful. Am I glad to have seen it? No, except to check off that box of having watched all Doctor Who-related media. I watched it to the end at least, or else I would have scored it lower. If you're a completionist, watch it. All others, SKIP THIS ONE, please.

...and it's pretty good. RSM Benton is given more depth than he was during the series. The story ends abruptly, but that's fine. Exposition probably would've dragged it down a bit. Mark Ayres' music is a bit overpowering for the most part. It generally works only when it's low key. Some of the jump cuts are effective, some are jarring. My biggest gripe on the technical side came during the scenes where the UNIT soldier was guarding the jeep. Why shoot it in slow motion? I was initially under the impression that time was slowing down, but apparently that wasn't the case. The confrontation between Benton and his dead father was great, and there's a realistic fight scene at the end. All in all, a pretty good first go.

Rounding out the tape is a "Making of" special where you get an idea of how enthusiastic Keith Barnfarther was over filming the whole thing, and how long-winded collaborator Nicholas Briggs is. There's also a summary of some of the independent spin-offs produced by Reeltime Pictures since.