glasslens

This is a good watch for those of us who want to see Television Drama that sits above most of the lowest common denominator stuff that fills our TV schedules these days. David Mitchell's way over the top character totally dominates the show and Anna Maxwell Martin backs him up with her usual solid and delightful performance. The rest of the cast however seem to be rather forgettable with no personalities at all, so what we have is almost a 2 hander - howbeit an excellent one. The first episode gave me some concern about how it would work as a series, but by the second one, the quality of the writing came through and made me look forward to the rest of the series. Production values, direction, the cinematography, editing etc have all been top class after a slightly off sound quality in the first episode. The plots are complex and devious so you have to concentrate! Intelligent TV.

Incidentally, the "Professor T" TV series, also based in Cambridge, where the main character's similarly odd personality is superbly played by Ben Miller, was also excellent - worth watching if it is repeated.

Great acting from everyone and a great script - howbeit never letting the facts getting in the way of the truth! But......

Up to now, this series of The Crown has been a triumph of direction and an example of the very finest visual quality. If you listen to DP Adriano Goldman talking at great length about how he worked with the director and production designer you realise how beautifully crafted the look and feel of the production so far has been. Goldman talks of the "adult" pace, of using one camera to photograph each scene without any unnecessary camera movement, and making scenes last for as long as it takes. Each scene like a painting in which the characters andplot develop. The result is a thing of beauty to see. Sadly Goldman hints that for the later episodes that he is not responsible for, starting with this one, the pace will be quickening and becoming more "modern" to use that ghastly euphamism.

And, here is the first episode that shows this, and what a dog's dinner it is compared to the previous ones. It looks more like a soap opera directed by someone just out of film school, with lots of fast, unnecessary and crass reaction shots and unnecessaty camera movement. It's all about moving along at pace almost as though the Director was scared that people would loose interest or fall asleep. But, perhaps to be more charitable, the big-wiggs at Netflix forced this on her.

I always knew it would be too good to last.

Now onto the subject matter and how it was treated. There were far too many shots of far too many people with learning difficulties - it just went on and on. I have no idea how some of these people could have agreed of their free will to be in the production. To feature so many of them so much was simply ghoulish in the extreme - it should have been much more subtle, concentrating more on the small number of people in the group that were important to the story. But this is probably the first sentance you have ever read in which the words Subtle and Netflix appeared.

With the same DP and Director in future episodes I fear we have lost something very special in this otherwise fabulous series.

I have been writing reviews for this site for 17 years. Mostly films but also TV. Some great films, some very bad ones. Even the best ones had flaws - the acting was great but the direction was so-so etc. etc. But in Black Earth Rising, I think that I may at last have seen perfection - and I don't say that lightly. Where to start? I'll try to break it down then summarise.

Extrordinary complex but wonderfully constructed and written script. Acting to die for - from everyone. Certainly the best directed piece of film or TV I think I have ever seen. Blick's sense of timing is immaculate and his eye for detail stunning. Stunning visuals - the photography by Hubert Taczanowski is an example of perfection - the lighting, the perfect camera movement - just turn off the sound and watch each camera movement and each shot's lighting and composition. A masterclass - watch on a plasma or OLED not an LCD though. Perfect sound - every word, even every rustle of the actors clothes perfectly recorded with absolute clarity. The animated sections were a stroke of genius and so sensitively made. The music always a perfect choice - Lou Reed's Vanising Act especially.

There might be better made TV drama, but I have yet to see it.

I have come away from episode 5 absolutely mesmerized. Compelling, beautiful, powerful - stunning in every way.