The English

The English is a pretty good western that's absolutely worth watching. It does start a little slow but by the end of episode 2 it picks up. Each episode just gets better and better. You really come to care for these characters by how well written and acted they are. I'd be shocked if Emily Blunt wasn't nominated for some awards for her job in this. She's that good in this. As is the vastly underrated Chaske Spencer, who's good in just about everything I've ever seen him in. It's a beautifully shot series that captures the reality of the old West. It's a mini series that's only six episodes long so it won't take long to binge it and it's worth every second?

The first thing that occurred to me when I finished the six episodes of The English was to watch them again.

This show is an absolute tour de force and works on every level. A fabulous script (Hugo Blick) with deft ducking and weaving and some clever conceals and reveals, a great sound-track and music (Federico Jusid), phenomenal cinematography (Arnau Valls Colomer), and some extraordinarily sensitive and carefully paced acting from a great cast of actors, with Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer taking the lead. The supporting cast also offers real depth and some delightful performances. Every word spoken and minor action adds to the dramatic tension and exposition - and the camera catches a lot of subtlety along the way. It all adds up to truly top shelf direction and production (Blick and Blick & Blunt respectively).

Having said all of that, the story will be difficult for some people to stomach. It has found a poetics (which is heart wrenching) in its difficult subject matter and much of the violence occurs off-screen, but it is still covering matters that are uncomfortable and confronting to think about and witness.. On the other hand The English offers a realistic and pragmatic encounter with these harsh realities - realities that the native American Indian population are still struggling with to this day - a tragedy when one considers their deep wisdom and connection with the land. The stories also make it clear that for settlers in the new land the reality was also harsh and brutal - but it's much harder to find sympathy there.

The English leaves one in no doubt that America was founded and built upon blood and violence and life threatening struggle - and that 'the land of the free' is a sentiment that some citizens are probably yet to experience.

On the other hand, The English is not sentimental. Its main characters endure their 'lot' with a resigned pragmatism and with little resentment - saving their revenge for those who truly deserve it, and otherwise only handing out justice when left with little other choice.

I can't quite believe this is a TV show as opposed to a movie such is its depth and quality.

2022 has been a treat full of some really good television shows and The English deserves to be right up there amongst those judged as the very best of the crop.

It's a very solid 9.5 stars, and I can see why some reviewers have given 10.

Exceptional TV!

Starts off real slow so requires patience; only 6 episodes but you're in for a long ride and it's a show that needs to be watched in it's entirety so if you're not going to finish it, don't bother starting.

It's a western, feels a lot like 1883 so if you enjoyed that, this is down the same street. I loved that they didn't change the lighting to that dusty shade of yellow just to show it's desert, the green plants actually look green, small detail but a lot of western or movies based in the middle east or Mexico always feel like you're watching it with the night light or reading mode setting on.

You can say Emily blunt and Chaske Spencer were bound to carry the show since they're the only omnipresent characters, but they actually did a great job while at it. They also had this "will they, won't they?" chemistry, wasn't annoying although it is the second time Emily blunt has had such a role after Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, also in the desert but completely different movie, just thought of mentioning it.

This is an elegantly made western, yeah sure it's the land with no law, survival in the wild Wild West with constant conflicts between cowboys, outlaws and Indians; but it's not just mindless bullets and arrows flying. The plot isn't that long really, similar to 1883 you could summarize it as the characters move from one part of America to another with things happening in-between. In this case it's Cornelia(Emily blunt) looking to revenge her son.

It isn't dialogue heavy for the most part, but it puts the little it has to great use. Also makes it feel like every scene serves purpose, there aren't any fillers. However I still think some of the side plot stories felt off, I didn't know were they were heading yet a decent amount of time is spent on them. Several graphic scenes and characters, some even horror-esque, most notably black-eyed mog with her nightmarish stare.

The ending is well thought out, I never saw it coming. There's a big reveal moment in the finale that I thought was a wrap on the show, but it's then followed by another. They made sense, there were subtle inklings throughout that you only realize their significance at the end when stories come together.

I suggest binge watching it; if you can't just pay attention. At first glance it's a series that doesn't seem to require it but it does need attention to fully grapple everything. There were several moments in the last episode were I thought 'oh now that scene/that detail makes sense now'. Great miniseries but could've easily been a movie as well.

This is not a series for those who want a fast moving plot and lots of action. The English is a slow burn, beautifully shot and wonderfully acted, with a story that develops gradually over the six episodes. Chaske Spencer is absolutely spellbinding as Eli Whipp, the Indian scout who accompanies the always excellent Emily Blunt as she traverses the American Midwest on her revenge mission. I expect to see much, much more of him after this. Rafe Spall is also outstanding playing a particularly awful character, while I feel Tom Hughes - who is also very good - is perhaps let down a little by the only part that lacked a proper resolution. This is not a happy series, quite miserable at times and often very nasty, but it still uplifting in its own way. A Western series (ironically, shot in Spain) that, while very different, compares to Unforgiven for its feeling of reality.

I have to admit, I wasn't going to buy into Emily Blunt as a lead in a western. But it turned out to be thoroughly enjoyable show you didn't know you had to watch. The cinematography is beautiful, as is the theme music. It feels like it's been a while since a western was made of this quality (I'm thinking, maybe Unforgiven?). Like great westerns in the past, the story need not be overly complicated. And it's got sweeping panoramas of the West, capturing the freedom, cruelty and brutality that was the Wild West.

Blunt and Spencer dazzles. What may have sounded like a contrived story to place some Brits in late 19th century American West, ends up weaving a deep, moving tale of a woman who risks it all to seek vengeance upon a man who wronged her, whom she blames for the death of her son. In the beginning scenes, you may think it makes little sense, but there is much more to her journey and objective. Blunt does a superb job as the story develops and reveals its secrets.

Spencer, whom I've never seen on screen before, really impresses. Although he portrays a Pawnee who was raised by a white man and served in the Union army, his seemingly indifferent attitude to the plight of the people of other tribes is but a façade that eventually gives way to the long suppressed pain, anger and pride of native Americans. Spencer does an amazing job of giving his character good depth, when more often than not, native American actors tend to play to one-dimensional stereotypes.

Perhaps a small nit is that the climax feels a little rushed; some may find it a tiny bit anti-climatic. An extra episode or two might have tidied up a few things here and there.

Very sad it's a mini-series and ends after a short but satisfying six episodes, but it's better to think of it as a very long movie!