Jude the Obscure

Jude the Obscure is Thomas Hardy's last novel and his most controversial. It's not his best work, personal favourite is Far From the Madding Crowd followed by Tess of the D'Urbevilles, and while the one of his books that can translate most successfully as a play- of the book it is perhaps the most character-driven- it is also his least accessible, mainly because the themes and the depressing nature. It is however still a very powerful and vividly written book, especially the sixth part, that wasn't deserving of the negative press it got, though you can also understand why. People who've not read the book will find this adaptation and the Christopher Eccleston film depressing in tone, the thing is though the book is depressing as well as well as very ahead of its time, it is a very truthful story but the truth here is very unpleasant and Hardy presents it very bluntly.

As an adaptation, while not completely faithful in detail this mini-series is the easy winner, it does capture the spirit and themes of the book better than the film version. On their own, both have many great things and pack a real emotional wallop but again this gets the edge. The production values and atmosphere are very meticulous and give a good idea of what it was like living in Hardy's time as well keeping with the unpleasantly honest nature of the storytelling. Hardy's writing is vivid and specifically descriptive and the adaptation does well in respecting that. The photography is unobtrusive and not too stage-bound, though it definitely could have been sharper.

The music has a very haunting tone to it, while the dialogue is very literate and you can hear Hardy's prose and way of words coming out and the story is as you'd expect dramatic and powerful. The last hour is both harrowing(the children's deaths is enough to have your heart in your mouth) and heart-wrenching(Jude is one of those characters that you sympathise with every step of the way). The acting from Robert Powell is some of the best he has ever done, a very moving performance. Fiona Walker is very beautiful and initially charming though eventually with a darker, more sinister side, a change from the more sympathetic female characters like Tess and readers who have read Tess many times before and have been introduced to Jude for the first time may be shocked by this. Alex Marshall is a coarsely sensual Arabella, and John Franklyn-Robbins is very good also.

Overall, a fine mini-series with lots of drama and emotional power. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Robert Powell plays jude, a self-educated young man who can't escape the role of stone mason in class-conscious england in the 1800s. He falls for his cousin Sue, a beautiful strong-willed woman played by Fiona Walker. The ups and downs of their romance make up most of the movie.

This is a 4 1/2 hour BBC soap and i don't like soaps but this one was OK. Fiona is a very attractive woman and added immensely to the movie. No action and not a very exciting film but i did get caught up in this sad story. In the last hour, an extremely disturbing thing happens. I didn't see it coming at all and it really knocked me over.

I was very sceptal about this movie when I rented it. I usually like English period pieces. And it took some time to get into it. But once I did it kept me captivated. Because you could see where the lines conflict was coming together. It was a very good illustration of what 19th century england's social mores was. I myself or the audience can see the obsession that Jude had for his cousin. Even today marriage between cousins is considered bad. I don't really what rank cousins they were. It was interesting to me. Jude started out being very religious and Sue was'nt. The last hour of the story seemed to point this out. The experience had changed them both. Its interesting how Jude gave up on his Ministerial aspirations so easily and fell into his role as a stone mason to support he and his cousin. They really brought out the social mores about marriage in that time. I also recognized Robert Powell from his playing Jesus of Nazareth. That came through a few times also. Even though this was a few years before he did that work. It was very well acted. Especially the scene in the church after the death of the children. A very intense kind of story. I started out looking for his success as minister and wound up thinking in a way how tragic it was going for them and subject of marriage between cousins. He came full circle when he said at the end well I have done something here and I may as well make the best of it. He did'nt seem to recognize that he said the same thing when he married Bella. I recommend this movie highly because of its intense drama and the subject and period that it was about. And just to see excellent acting. I have looked for other work by Fiona Walker on your Web site but came up with nothing. Thank you for letting comment on this.