"Vincent And The Doctor" Is A Powerhouse Episode Of Doctor Who!

The Good: Incredible performances, Memorable characters, Decent plot development
The Bad: Mixed special effects, Predictable plot
The Basics: "Vincent And The Doctor" takes an average Creature Of The Week Doctor Who episode and makes it extraordinary through impressive performances and cool supporting characters.


When it comes to Doctor Who, one of the conceits of the new Doctor Who is the inclusion of historical figures for guest shots in the episodes. Usually, the famous historical figures pop up at a rate of one per season, so when Matt Smith took over as The Doctor, fans had good reason to figure the pattern Russell T. Davies had created would endure when early in the season "Victory Of The Daleks" (reviewed here!) included Winston Churchill. But the pattern was altered by Steven Moffat took over as Executive Producer and multiple historical figures popped up. "Vincent And The Doctor" featured the second appearance of a historical figure in one season.

"Vincent And The Doctor" is notable both for bringing Vincent van Gogh into the Doctor Who narrative and for the fact that it was written by Richard Curtis. Richard Curtis is a genius who might well have been the one who made dramedies popular. After getting his start with audacious comedies, Richard Curtis began a film career where he wrote brilliant movies that effectively blended humor and drama. For his Doctor Who outing, Richard Curtis brings the incomparable Vincent van Gogh to life and combines the tragedy of a man struggling with his own sanity with the absurdity of an invisible alien creature. "Vincent And The Doctor" is memorable for how it effectively blends humor and angst.

The Doctor and Amy Pond are on an art kick as The Doctor tries to comfort Amy, who does not know what she is missing. The Doctor and Amy are in Paris at an installation of Vincent van Gogh's work, when Amy Pond is enamored with his painting of a church and The Doctor notices something in the church's window in the church. Consulting the curator, Dr. Black, The Doctor learns exactly when van Gogh painted the painting and the pair goes back to meet the artist. Shortly after arriving and finding van Gogh at a cafe, a little girl is found dead.

Returning to van Gogh's home, Amy wanders off to look at some of his paintings, when she is knocked down. The Doctor and Vincent rush out to aid her and van Gogh finds himself fighting an invisible creature. After rescuing Amy, van Gogh sketches the creature and The Doctor takes the sketch to the TARDIS for identification. The Doctor identifies the entity as a Krafayis, but when The Doctor offhandedly remarks that once they find the creature, he and Amy can be out of van Gogh's hair, the artist freaks out. Soon thereafter, as The Doctor worries about what might happen to the Musee D'Orsay should they fail, van Gogh commits to painting the church. Once there, the trio has to survive the encounter with the alien that only van Gogh can see!

Tony Curran rules "Vincent And The Doctor" as Vincent van Gogh. Curran is moody and somber as van Gogh and he delivers the lines to characterize the self-defeated artist with a quality that never makes the viewer believe that he is casually whiny. Instead, Curran embodies van Gogh as a man absolutely passionate about art, while oscillating between mania and depression. Perhaps most impressive is how Curran performs opposite the invisible creature and his body language and eye lines are entirely convincing!

Amy Pond is incredibly careless in "Vincent And The Doctor." In addition to referencing things that indicate she is not necessarily native to the timeline, Amy goes off on her own even after she and The Doctor learn about casualties in the area. "Vincent And The Doctor" allows Doctor Who to explore the emotional ramifications of a non-event; Amy carries a sadness from losing Rory, but because he never existed, she does not recall him at all. The idea that Amy would feel the pain and loss without the memories is a clever one and Karen Gillan manages to find the right balance to embody that.

Gillan and Curran play off one another masterfully and Bill Nighy's two scenes allow the veteran of Nighy's works to absolutely steal the show. Matt Smith plays The Doctor is his most effective blend of humor and pathos in "Vincent And The Doctor." When The Doctor expresses concern over the potential of van Gogh getting killed, Smith is able to embody well that concern.

"Vincent And The Doctor" is a rare "creature of the week" Doctor Who episode that is little more than a monster hunt - and one that does not go in the typical Doctor Who direction. But Curtis, director Jonny Campbell, and the performers do an amazing job of making the predictable plot feel fresh again. While some of the effects - most notably the early moments of when the Krafayis is first spotted - are irregular, the episode is well-directed and there are some impressive visual effects with both creature design and editing.

Arguably the stand-out episode of Moffat's first season as showrunner of Doctor Who, "Vincent And The Doctor" is brilliant and fun and makes the audience wish it would just keep going on in this direction!

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Doctor Who - The Complete Fifth Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the debut season of Matt Smith as The Doctor here!
Thanks!]

For other works by Richard Curtis, please visit my reviews of:
About Time
Love Actually
Blackadder

8.5/10

For other Doctor Who episode and movie reviews, please visit my Doctor Who Review Index Page!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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A Worthwhile Addition To The Richard Curtis Library, About Time Is Much More Than The Time Traveler’s Wife 2.0

The Good: Acting, Characters, Direction, Plot development
The Bad: Somewhat derivative
The Basics: About Time is funny and heartwarming and is arguably the very best alternative to the big, special effects-driven blockbusters this autumn!


When it comes to films, there are few that I will go back to and re-evaluate after my first viewing. I think that the purpose of a review is to give thoughtful analysis of the movie one is presented and to consider it for exactly what one sees on-screen. The only weakness of such an evaluation process is that it does not take into account how a film ages upon multiple viewings (unless one watches it multiple times before reviewing it). One of the few films I have gone back to and re-rated and found I appreciated it more upon subsequent viewings was the Richard Curtis masterpiece Love Actually (reviewed here!). Because I felt I had been too harsh on the movie the first time around, my enthusiasm for Richard Curtis’s new film, About Time was tempered with a reasonable fear that I might be too lenient in evaluating it. However, as the weeks passed and I struggled to get out to the movie theater to take in new movies, I was surprised to discover that the movie I was pining to see (having learned about it only a week before its U.S. release and having watched no trailers for the film) was About Time. After the brief, but intense, anticipation, I finally managed to get to a theater playing the film.

And it’s good.

Actually, About Time is great on a number of levels and the one that is most germane to me is this: it made me feel something. As a movie critic who has watched, literally, thousands of films with a critical eye, it takes a lot for a movie these days to get me to feel something. The ones that have the most difficult time evoking an emotional reaction are the movies that are romances. Romantic comedies are formulaic and romantic dramas are usually designed to tug on the heartstrings, so it is a tough sell for me because I come into the movie expecting the play on my emotions and I remain guarded against it for the sake of objectivity. With About Time, emotional barriers do not work; the film is smart and legitimately charming, without trying so hard. In fact, some of the best moments of the movie work because there is an effortless quality to the characters and the film’s direction that leads the viewer to witness and experience (what appears to be) genuine emotion and react accordingly.

The other big concern for me when going into About Time was that the plot seemed incredibly derivative of The Time Traveler’s Wife (reviewed here!), which also starred Rachel McAdams. Fortunately, writer and director Richard Curtis is aptly able to manage not making a cheap retread of the popular novel/film and he creates something legitimately smart on his own. Instead of belaboring the time-travel aspect in About Time, Curtis focuses on the human aspect and the way people relate. The film has a very brief lesson on the conceit before exploring the effects of how the protagonist, Tim, deals with having the ability to travel in time.

On New Year’s Eve, Tim goes through the usual routine with his family, which for that day includes a terrible party. At it, Tim knocks over some drinks while being rushed by his friend to the living room and then shakes the hand of the girl who clearly wants to kiss him. The next morning, his father – who mysteriously retired at age fifty and is always available to Tim for conversations and table tennis – reveals to him the big family secret: the men in the family have the ability to travel in time. They can only go back in time, to their own life, to make changes. Tim immediately tests this theory and is amazed when it works; he goes back to the prior night, misses the glasses and kisses the girl. The following summer, he spends attracted to his sister’s visiting friend, Charlotte. Through that incident, he learns that love does not change just because he can go back to influence events.

Moving out to London, Tim moves in with a playwright (Harry) who knew his father and one fateful night, he has a date in a blackened restaurant where he meets an amazing woman. Meeting Mary out on the street after the date, Tim and Mary hit it off and he gets her phone number. Upon returning home, though, he learns that Harry’s play was an utter disaster and, in fixing things for Harry, Tim and Mary never meet. Recalling that Mary is a big fan of Kate Moss, Tim spends the summer hanging out at London’s art museum where there is a Kate Moss photo exhibit. When she finally passes through the exhibit, he learns she has a boyfriend she met about a month before and he goes back in time to stop them from meeting so he might meet her instead. Having managed to finally meet Mary and get her interested in him, Tim and Mary develop a real relationship going forward. Though their love grows, Tim finds complications in marrying, having a child (which becomes a fixed point he cannot travel back before, lest he unmake his daughter), and tragedies surrounding his impetuous sister and loving father.

About Time is one of those films where one knows almost immediately that the two top-billed actors in the film are going to end up together. Fans who recognize Rachel McAdams’s voice will know the first time Mary speaks in the dark that Domhnall Gleason’s Tim has met the woman he will be with and the magic of the film is in how the two actually come together and then the effects their being together have on the other people in their lives. Tim sets of a potentially catastrophic series of events in motion when he tries to save his sister, Kit Kat, and rectifying his temporal mistakes is glossed over (does he simply fix the mistakes of traveling back before fixed points by then willing himself to not make the disastrous time travel attempt? It’s not clear). Instead of worrying about much in the way of temporal mechanics, Richard Curtis smartly remains focused on the human element.

The love story in About Time works in large measure because Rachel McAdams and Domhnall Gleason have great on-screen chemistry. While there seems to be a wink and a nudge to the audience from McAdams in her describing Mary as “plain” when she’s a Hollywood-beautiful actress, the somewhat goofy and very real-looking Gleason compliments her look marvelously. The two sparkle on screen and they interact like a realistic, viable couple which entirely sells the realism of the fantastic elements.

The supporting cast, which includes the ever-magnificent Bill Nighy and versatile Lindsay Duncan and Tom Hollander, makes About Time seem much more realistic, as opposed to larger-than-life. Richard Curtis, in addition to delivering a mostly-solid script with a lot of charming lines, directs About Time wonderfully. He uses music as an auditory cue in several of the time travel scenes and when he defies that convention while using recognizable music, that plays well to the audience that is trying to anticipate the film’s next move.

Curtis is also smart enough to not bombard the viewer with clichés, as well. When Tim runs into Charlotte after having a pretty magnificent run with Mary, he neither blows the relationship with Mary, nor takes the cheap opportunity to have sex with Charlotte and then go back and “fix” the infidelity. Instead, it leads to a deeper character revelation for Tim and that plays as remarkably fresh.

Ultimately, About Time succeeds where so many romantic films fail: by creating viable characters and putting them in a situation where it reminds the viewer of the delights of love in our complicated world.

For other films featuring time travel, please check out my reviews of:
The Back To The Future Trilogy
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
Men In Black III

8.5/10

For other film reviews, please check out my Movie Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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As Much As I Love Blackadder, Blackadder Back And Forth Is A Tough Sell To Non-fans!

The Good: Moments of humor, Some decent acting, Good-enough DVD bonus features.
The Bad: Repetitive humor from the series, Requires a lot of information not in episode, SHORT!
The Basics: A curtain call made for the fans, Blackadder Back And Forth is a Blackadder time travel adventure that puts the series to rest well!


For those who might not follow my reviews regularly, with this review, I have now finished my review of all things Blackadder, but do not despair! Coming this month and until I am done with them will be reviews of the episodes of Monty Python's Flying Circus! Yes, I cater to geek culture! The truth is, the two collections of British comedies are truly great and worthwhile ones and while I ultimately "recommend" Blackadder Back And Forth, my real recommendation is always going to be that people go out and buy The Complete Blackadder (reviewed here!) instead, as the complete collection is a far better overall value.

But on its own, Blackadder Back And Forth reunites the principle players in the Blackadder saga for one last go-around. It is more an homage to the series Blackadder than it is a standalone episode, but at a little over the thirty minute mark, Blackadder Back And Forth caps off the franchise in a way that has the distinction of not being as depressing as the episode "Goodbyeee" (reviewed here!) did. Fans of the franchise are likely to enjoy that as there was such melancholy in the last moments of that other episode. And while several of the performers are showing their age and while many of the jokes are so similar to those from the television series, Blackadder Back And Forth makes for a decent addition to the franchise and sends it out on a high note.

Edmund Blackadder is throwing a party for his friends on the eve of the Millennium changeover, December 31, 1999. As his witless friend friend George goes on about an optimistic future and his religious comrades Melchard and Darling back him up, Edmund finds himself disagreeing. Instead, he takes the much more bleak view that humanity is filled with wars, pestilence and horror that shall not simply be overturned with the changing of the date. The point becomes moot when the party begins to break up because of the cooking of Edmund's septic tank cleaner, Baldrick. To scam his friends - which seems pretty easy in the case of the lushy Elizabeth - Edmund introduces his friends to his newly-built time machine with which he wagers he can retrieve objects from the past in order to win bets with each.

Much to the surprise of Blackadder and Baldrick, the time machine Baldrick has built from one of DaVinci's notebook's plans actually works! Instead of having to scam his friends, Edmund and Baldrick kill off the dinosaurs using Baldrick's trousers before acquiring the authentic items Edmund promised his friends, plus a Shakespeare autograph! Upon returning to the present, though - after discovering themselves lost in time for a period - Blackadder and Baldrick discover their meddling with time has irrevocably changed history and they must attempt to undo some of their temporal infractions!

Because this is a comedy, things are hardly ever as dire as they might seem. So, for example, upon returning to the present, Blackadder discovers no one is impressed that he has William Shakespeare's autograph. Shakespeare, having taken a berating and a beating from Edmund on behalf of four hundred years of students, apparently took the ball-point pen Edmund had him sign the title page to The Tragedy Of MacBeth with and became known instead as the inventor of the ball-point pen! Shakespeare is played brilliantly in a cameo by Collin Firth and Firth is given surprisingly little to do, save be kicked by Atkinson's Blackadder. Firth pulls off the humor well, though, as he takes on a nervous affect and takes the beating.

Fans of the Blackadder franchise will enjoy the return to one of the most popular settings: the court of Queen Elizabeth the first. Edmund finds himself there and bribes her with a Lifesaver mint, which saves his life from the mood swings of the queen. Of course Melchard is there as well, but fans are likely to enjoy the five frames on screen Nursie has in the scene! There is a feeling of returning home with wonderful, beloved characters and it works perfectly in Blackadder Back And Forth.

Not content to simply recycle and revisit the already established Blackadder time periods, Blackadder Back And Forth presents at least two periods unique to this presentation. Viewers are treated to the Roman version of Blackadder - who complains wickedly about Hadran's wall - and to an encounter with Robin Hood and Maid Marion. Hood is an extension of the jokes with Flashheart from the series as he is an oversexed, somewhat crazed man whom Edmund escapes using his cunning. And Robin Hood is played by the same actor who played Flashheart and it is a welcome reprisal.

As well, the battle of Waterloo is featured, which allows viewers to see the past Darlings! In fact, Tim McInnerny's scenes are largely independent of Atkinson's and those who love the franchise might similarly be disappointed by the lack of screentime Hugh Laurie has as George. The actors successfully step back into the shoes of their established characters and in that way, Blackadder Back And Forth works.

But it is Rowan Atkinson and Tony Robinson who rule the Blackadder saga and this is still the case in Blackadder Back And Forth. Atkinson is sarcastic and debonair as Edmund and Robinson is appropriately clueless as Baldrick. Still, too many of their lines are delivered for the audience, as opposed to in character. So, when Robinson delivers his catchphrase about having a cunning plan, he draws it out, almost like he is saying good-bye to the line. Again, this is wonderful for the fans, but it holds up poorly for random viewers.

On DVD, Blackadder Back And Forth has a video diary of the Blackadder saga and a function that explains the historical allusions some might not otherwise get. There is no commentary track and fans might well be left feeling like it is ultimately a draw. Those who have not been into Blackadder will likely find things like the mechanic Tyrannosaurus Rex and the space battle effects utterly campy, but those who love British comedies will appreciate the camp quality.

In other words, Blackadder Back And Forth is best appreciated by the fans as the humor in it tends to be so self-referential as to be stifling to those not already invested in the series. And for those who are, there might be no greater good-bye than this one.

For other works featuring Colin Firth, please check out my reviews of:
The King's Speech
A Christmas Carol
Love Actually
Bridget Jones's Diary
Shakespeare In Love
The English Patient


5.5/10

For other television reviews, please be sure to check out my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2012, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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The Great War Takes Its Toll When Blackadder Goes Forth!

The Good: Funny, Good character development, Interesting DVD bonus features
The Bad: Short, Some of the humor is more predictable than in the past.
The Basics: Funny - and daring to not be funny - pushes Blackadder Goes Forth out of "average" territory on DVD.


There are only a few television comedy series' found on my shelf. This is largely because I am not so much into humor because I see that it tends not to endure all that long. Humor is largely based upon surprise and as a result, it is hard to find truly great comedy series' that I want to add to my permanent collection. One of the few is the television series, from the BBC, called Blackadder.

Blackadder is a historical comedy, and each season was set in a different time period. By the fourth and final season, the show was up to roughly Modern times and Blackadder Goes Forth, the final regular series of Blackadder was set in the trenches of World War One. The basic concept was to take a twist on British history and make a situation comedy that would have an immortal quality to it. Largely, series creators Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson succeed because the humor is both universally funny and historically smart. This series relies on British wit and Atkinson's amazing sense of comic timing. And it works.

With only six episodes in this season, Blackadder Goes Forth tells the story of Captain Edmund Blackadder, trapped in the trenches fighting Germany in World War One. As the Great War reigns, Blackadder looks to survive and he is accompanied by the idiotically patriotic Lieutenant George and the just plain dim Baldrick. Given orders by the oblivious General Melchard and sparred with by Captain Darling, Blackadder finds that war truly is hell.

From the trenches, Blackadder attempts to survive the war by feigning communications problems to prevent him and his troops from going over the top (an act that gets him court martialed), posing as a great artist and sneaking into HQ as a cook. As well, he gets his troops out of the trench by making them into an acting troupe (which almost leads Melchard to marry George in drag) and by joining the air force, which gets Blackadder captured.

Blackadder Goes Forth tells a darker story of living in war and what people will do to survive. The wit in the show is colder and the comedy - when not being predictable to those who are fans of the series - is utterly hilarious. In fact, it is so funny one wonders why the BBC has a laugh track to it; there is plenty that is amusing without the tiresome laugh track going off letting viewers know when it is appropriate to laugh. I mention this because this series has one of the most intrusive and annoying laugh tracks of any series I have ever seen. The only time the laugh track is not engaged is for the bulk of the final episode, "Goodbyeee," which is a strong, unfunny, antiwar episode that works beautifully to enhance the characters and provide viewers with something truly new, even if it is not funny.

The only other real strike against this series is the fact that it was released in the late 1980s and it looks like it was released in the 1980s. The special effects are campy even by BBC standards and it is clear this was never the top of the BBCs list for cleaning up when making the transfer to DVD. As a result, there is quite a bit of footage in the series that is grainy and some that even has lighting washouts.

But what makes Blackadder Goes Forth worthwhile, timeless and funny is the quality of the writing. Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson wrote scripts with fairly straightforward plots with Edmund suffering much like most downtrodden and loathed protagonists. This series is preoccupied with Edmund surviving using his razor wit. And in that, there are some absolutely hilarious bits. For example, when dealing with HQ and pretending the phone has gone wonky, Blackadder goes through an impressive array of voices and noises to convince Captain Darling that he could not possibly be understood. And in the trial, when General Melchard enters as one of the judges, it is impossible to not laugh, especially considering he is the one bringing the charges against Edmund!

But more than most comedies, certainly the ones that are this short - Blackadder Goes Forth episodes are less than thirty minutes long each - this series is about characters. Here are the primary characters of "Blackadder Goes Forth:"

Edmund Blackadder - Captain in the royal army. Having survived the war in Africa, he considers colonization foolish and he treats his men with disdain, but does his best to keep them alive. Frequently ignoring orders to go over the top, Blackadder tries every way he knows how to get out of the trenches in ways that will keep him alive,

Lieutenant George - Dimwitted subordinate of Edmund, he is eager to die for King and Country, witlessly believing that going over the top is a chance for glory (Edmund soon illustrates the error of such thinking). He becomes a leading lady for Blackadder's acting troupe and is wounded protecting his captain,

General Melchard - An idiot with a giant mustache, he unquestioningly follows Field Marshal Haig's witless orders to keep sending British soldiers in front of German machine guns,

Captain Darling - Sycophantic assistant to Melchard, he is a coward who frequently spars with Edmund when Blackadder comes to HQ,

and Private Baldrick - The idiot noncom, he tries his hand at poetry, balancing a slug on his upper lip to impersonate Charlie Chaplin, and painting with bodily fluids. Resourceful, but stupid, he is Edmund's most loyal companion.

The characters are vivid and the acting is pretty decent, all things considered. Hugh Laurie's George is ridiculous and funny in a way most American audiences would be surprised, given his performances on "House, M.D." Similarly, Tim McInnerny's return to the Blackadder franchise as Captain Darling is a welcome one with him sniping at Blackadder as his equal, instead of his dimwitted sidekick.

It is Rowan Atkinson who holds most of the series together and moves it. He has a great sense of comic timing and he delivers his period-specific references beautifully with the complete sense that he knows just what it is he is saying. As well, he is adept at physical comedy, erupting when necessary to flinch, jump or fall as needed to sell the physical gags that balance out the scripted comedy.

On DVD, Blackadder Goes Forth has three bonus features, plus trailers for other BBC DVD releases. These simplistic features include cast biographies of all of the major players in the Blackadder series, narrated references to historical events alluded to in the series and an extensive interview with Richard Curtis that describes his take on the history of comedy. The historical information is actually intriguing and some of the more obscure allusions, like to specific military personnel, provide information that I did not have before watching the series.

Those looking for something different from a comedy will find much to enjoy with Blackadder Goes Forth.

For a more complete idea of exactly what is in this DVD set, please check out my reviews of the individual episodes at:
"Captain Cook," "Corporal Punishment," "Major Star"
"Private Plane," "General Hospital," "Goodbyeee"

And while the one-disc season is fun and interesting, I certainly prefer "The Complete Collection" (reviewed here!) because part of the fun of Blackadder is seeing how the line evolves over the various "generations!"

5/10

For other television reviews, please be sure to visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2012, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Still Funny, Blackadder The Third Begins To Show Its Wear Some!

The Good: Funny, Moments of acting, Hugh Laurie makes a good addition to the mix
The Bad: Repetitive plots and concepts, Joke style becoming more familiar than funny.
The Basics: Funny, but wearing a little thinner after ten years of watching the same six episodes, Blackadder The Third is enduring historical comedy!


Have you ever returned to one of your favorite things from your youth only to discover in your adulthood that it is not as wonderful as you remember it being? I think that is precisely where I am with Blackadder The Third, the third season/series of Blackadder. I have been going back through my collection of Blackadder DVDs (I have the Complete Collection, reviewed here!) and I have been watching each of the discs and I was surprised to find I enjoyed Blackadder The Third less this time through than I ever had before. This was, in fact, the series (season) of Blackadder that I had initially fallen in love with the series watching. This time, it felt more familiar than audacious, which I suppose it so be expected some.

Where Blackadder was the story of Prince Edmund, the Blackadder, in the Dark Ages and Blackadder II was the tale of Edmund Blackadder, minor lord in the court of Queen Elizabeth, Blackadder The Third follows Mr. Blackadder, manservant to the Prince Regent, George. Like his ancestors, Edmund is a deeply sarcastic man who is accompanied by his servant (called a dogboy in this time) Baldrick and they wait upon the dimwitted Prince Regent. As well, they take regular trips to Mrs. Miggins' Pie Shop and interact with her. The Prince Regent, largely an idiot, is neglectful but stupidly rich, allowing Blackadder to frequently take advantage of him. In this time period, Edmund is quite intelligent and seldom takes Baldrick up on his "very cunning plans."

Edmund Blackadder is a snobby servant who is abused, neglected and ridiculed by Prince Regent George, who Blackadder is quite a bit smarter than. In his time Edmund tries to get ahead, usually by lying to all involved about his wealth and status, while working to achieve the latter by getting some of the former! Often forced to entertain the Prince Regent, he escapes his social better to pick on his intellectual inferiors, Baldrick and Mrs. Miggins.

In this time, Edmund finds himself struggling for money and eager to keep his employer rolling in the dough. As a result, he attempts to get Baldrick into the House Of Commons and himself into the House Of Lords. He spars with the leading writers of the day, avoids the Francophiles as the French Revolution reigns and despises Baldrick all the more for adoring a highwayman's lifestyle. He treats actors with utter contempt and when the time comes, he becomes part of a cunning plan to save the Regent's life by swapping places with him in a duel!

Three of the principle characters will be familiar to fans of Blackadder as Edmund Blackadder and Baldrick are each played by the same people in roughly the same capacity as they appeared in the first two series' of Blackadder. Gone is Percy and Tim McInnerny, though McInnerny appears in one episode as a liberator of French aristocrats! As well, Mrs. Miggins appears in this new incarnation to add some new blood to the series. This has the effect of keeping the series fresh and she works in one or two scenes, but otherwise does not add anything extraordinary. Instead of simply being Edmund criticizing the Regent's stupidity and insulting Baldrick's hygiene, he is often forced to be deferential to the Regent or George's visitors, who are considered Blackadder's social betters.

The principle characters of Blackadder The Third are:

Mr. Edmund Blackadder - A manservant, he is educated but fairly poor. Waiting on the Prince Regent has left him bitter and he is often dry and ironic. He uses his innate intelligence and disdain for the order of things to scheme to try to get money. He still uses Baldrick to do his dirty work, which includes, standing in as an example of the foul ways the Regent would have to dress if he wanted to go to France,

Baldrick - The completely worthless dogboy of Edmund. His best idea is to have Edmund rewrite the world's only dictionary over the course of a weekend after he burns Cooleridge's only copy in a fire,

The Prince Regent George - A bit of a thicky, he is stupid, lusty and spoiled. He is gullible and Blackadder uses his gullibility and stupidity to advance himself with his own schemes,

and Mrs. Miggins - The somewhat crazy pie shop owner, she secretly lusts for Blackadder and is one of the few people who is kind to Baldrick.

Blackadder The Third works, in part, because the primary actors have great comedic chemistry. As a result Rowan Atkinson as Blackadder plays beautifully with his dry sarcasm off Hugh Laurie's utterly stupid Prince Regent. Similarly, Tony Robinson and Laurie play off one another in a way most comic do not get the opportunity to. In most standard comedies, there is only one buffoon, but in Blackadder The Third, Baldrick and George both fill that niche and it provides a wealth of comic give and take between Robinson and Laurie that works out extraordinarily for the series!

On DVD, Blackadder The Third is a bit of a wash. There are the usual historical notes letting fans know what various obscure jokes are actually referring to. There is also Blackadder's Christmas Carol (reviewed here!) as an added bonus and while it is nice to not have to pay for this separate, it is not a great feature. Despite how unfunny that is and the lack of commentary tracks, the presentation on DVD is still worth the inexpensive price of this.

Despite how I might sound about this, one needs to keep in mind that I have seen all six episodes on this disc at least twelve times each. With humor being based largely on surprise, it is no surprise it is less funny to me now. And if you think that for less than $15, ten years or more of entertainment out of a DVD is a good value, then Blackadder The Third is probably for you, too!

For a more complete idea of exactly what is in this DVD set, please check out my reviews of the individual episodes at:
"Dish and Dishonesty," "Ink And Incapability," "Nob And Nobility"
"Sense And Senility," "Amy And Amiability," "Duel And Duality"

For other works with Hugh Laurie, please visit my reviews of:
Monsters Vs. Aliens
Friends - Season 4

7/10

For other television reviews, please check out my television review index page by clicking here!

© 2012, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Hilarious And Clever, Blackadder II Makes For A Worthwhile DVD!

The Good: Funny, Well-acted, Interesting characters, Rewatchable, Decent DVD bonus features
The Bad: Only six episodes
The Basics: Clever and funny, Blackadder II is liable to satisfy anyone who loves a good historical comedy!


There are few comedies that attempt a concept - in my experience - that actually work. Blackadder is one of them and one has to give credit to the BBC for trying the concept out and for giving writers Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis free reign to be creative, esoteric and brilliant with the idea. Blackadder (entire series reviewed here!) is a historical comedy where each season is set in a different era of British history with characters who are essentially the same, but facing obstacles indicative of their time. As a result, Blackadder II bears little resemblance to Blackadder Series 1 (reviewed here!) outside the use of several of the primary actors from the first in the second.

Where Blackadder was the story of Prince Edmund, the Blackadder, in the Dark Ages, Blackadder II tells the tale of Edmund Blackadder, minor lord in the court of Queen Elizabeth. Like his ancestor, Edmund is a deeply sarcastic man who is accompanied by his servant Baldrick and the dimwitted Lord Percy. Unlike the Dark Ages incarnation of Blackadder, this Edmund actually sees some action with the women (probably a result of the very fetching beard he sports) and he tends to be more the brains of the operation than relying on Baldrick for the cunning plans (which seldom were as cunning as the servant thought).

Lord Edmund Blackadder is a snobby lord who is favored by Queen Elizabeth, who is more than a little crazy. In his time, Edmund tries to get ahead, usually by lying to all involved about his wealth and status, while working to achieve the latter by getting some of the former! Often forced to entertain Queen Elizabeth, he finds himself verbally sparring with the educated Lord Melchard, advisor to the Queen.

In this time, Edmund finds himself falling for his manservant, who is actually a woman disguised as a boy to try to earn money for her crazed father. As well, he deals with his inability to hold his liquor, attempts to connive his Puritan relatives out of a hefty inheritance, and the ramifications of becoming the Lord High Executioner. To one-up Sir Walter Raleigh, Blackadder and his companions become explorers to sail around the Cape Of Good Hope (praying to reach land before they enter the urine-drinking phase of exploring) . As well, Edmund finds himself in debt to a sadistic bishop who prefers tormenting his debtors rather than getting paid back, which might work out well for the bishop because Edmund finds himself broke when the debt is called in!

Three of the principle characters will be familiar to fans of Blackadder as Edmund Blackadder, Baldrick and Percy are each played by the same people in roughly the same capacity as they appeared in the first series of Blackadder. As well, Queen Elizabeth, Melchard, and Nursie all appear in this new incarnation to add some new blood to the series. This has the effect of keeping the series fresh and it works. Instead of simply being Edmund criticizing Percy's stupidity and insulting Baldrick's hygiene, he is forced to be deferential to Elizabeth and actually use more highbrow wit in opposition to Melchard.

The principle characters of Blackadder II are:

Lord Edmund Blackadder - Educated but fairly poor, Edmund is favored by the Queen and is blessed with a wicked and fast wit. He uses this to scheme to try to get money and to impress Baldrick to do his dirty work, which includes roughing up people he doesn't like or shaking them down for money. Despised by the local children for his stodginess, he is happiest when in control,

Lord Percy - Utterly idiotic, Percy is the companion Edmund cannot seem to shake. In love with a new woman each week (usually a woman so cheap both Edmund and Baldrick have known her at some point in the past) he is strangely loyal to the abusive Edmund,

Baldrick - The completely worthless servant of Edmund, he is replaced almost immediately by Bob (Kate in drag) and when her engagement to Edmund falls apart he is able to return. His best idea is to use his mouth as a mousetrap by dangling a piece of cheese over it and laying on the floor,

Queen Elizabeth - The virgin queen appears to have gone quite mad, possibly from not getting any. She delights in having her enemies executed and treats those below her as playthings. She has crushes on many of the great men of the time and puts up with Melchard and Nursie . . . barely,

Melchard - Witty but boring, the learned advisor to Queen Elizabeth often delights in keeping Edmund below him socially,

and Nursie - The deranged nursemaid of Queen Elizabeth, she is completely crazy, recalls the most inappropriate stories at the worst possible times and has a fixation on cow's udders.

Blackadder II works, in part, because the primary actors have great comedic chemistry. As a result Rowan Atkinson as Blackadder plays beautifully with his dry sarcasm off Miranda Richardson's over-the-top crazy Elizabeth. Similarly, Tony Robinson and Tim McInnerny play off one another in a way most comic do not get the opportunity to. In most standard comedies, there is only one buffoon, but in Blackadder II, Baldrick and Percy both fill that niche and it provides a wealth of comic give and take between Robinson and McInnerny that works out extraordinarily for the series!

On DVD, Blackadder II includes trailers to other BBC productions, biographies of the main cast members and significant guest stars and the (standard for Blackadder) historical references guide. The latter is a handy portion narrated by Tony Robinson (who plays Baldrick) providing historical data behind some of the more obscure historical reference jokes. This is a real boon as even educated people might not catch some of the allusions and it's handy to get them! But the best DVD bonus feature on this set is the skit "Blackadder - The Cavalier Years." This fifteen minute program fills in the gap between Blackadder II and Blackadder The Third, putting a Blackadder and Baldrick in 1682 as loyalists to King Charles I in opposition to Oliver Cromwell and his impending Puritanical takeover of England. Blackadder is hiding the dimwitted Charles I in his manor when Cromwell comes a-callin' and Baldrick accidentally lets slip that Charles is in the house. Moments of humor ensue, then, as Blackadder and Baldrick attempt to alternately save and execute Charles I. It's a cute little skit and it's nice it is included as a special feature!

This is a wonderful DVD collection and one that fans of British humor will want to pick up!

For a more complete idea of exactly what is in this DVD set, please check out my reviews of the individual episodes:
"Bells," "Head," "Potato"
"Money," "Beer," "Chains"

For other works featuring Miranda Richardson, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, Part 1
Southland Tales
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire
The Phantom Of The Opera

9/10

For other television reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2012, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Blackadder Holds Up Remarkably Well, Despite The Limited Nature Of The Series!

The Good: Hilarious, Wonderful acting, Interesting characters
The Bad: SHORT!
The Basics: Funny and enduring, Blackadder hardly takes up shelf space proportionate to its greatness.


Looking over my DVD library, there are dreadfully few comedies. I think this is largely because comedies tend to hold up poorly over time because humor tends to rely on surprise. We find funny what is unexpected, not what we see coming. A DVD permanent collection like mine, then, has very few comedy television series' and I can think of even fewer I would consider adding to my arsenal. One of the few sets I find myself watching and rewatching - and have recently been falling in love with again - is Blackadder.

Blackadder is a historical comedy, set in the Dark Ages. The basic concept was to take a twist on British history and make a situation comedy that would have an immortal quality to it. Largely, series creators Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson succeed because the humor is both universally funny and historically smart. This series relies on British wit and Atkinson's amazing sense of comic timing. And it works.

With only six episodes in this season, Blackadder tells of the reign of Richard IV, beloved king who immediately followed the poor, decapitated Richard III only to have records of his reign destroyed afterward by Henry Tudor. Richard IV takes charge of England only to immerse himself in wars throughout Europe, leaving his devout and studious son Harry and his slimy son Edmund to manage the day-to-day operations of the kingdom.

Over the course of the episodes, Edmund the Blackadder - whom witches have prophesied will become King - deals with the ghost of King Richard III, who he accidentally killed. As well, he attempts to kill a Scottish warrior until he realizes that the Scotsman brings with him evidence of the Queen's affairs in the past, which Edmund thinks will disqualify Harry from assuming the throne! In the process, Edmund becomes Archbishop of Canterbury, almost marries the Spanish Infanta to seal a deal with Spain and falls prey to a witchhunter. In his final act of defiance, Edmund hires six goons to help him take over the kingdom, only to be betrayed by his new servant and his childhood enemy!

Blackadder tells the story of the fictional reign of Richard IV and it is utterly hilarious. In fact, it is so funny one wonders why the BBC has a laugh track to it; there is plenty that is amusing without the tiresome laugh track going off letting viewers know when it is appropriate to laugh. I mention this because this series has one of the most intrusive and annoying laugh tracks of any series I have ever seen.

The only other real strike against this series is the fact that it was released in the early 1980s and it looks like it was released in the early 1980s. The special effects are campy even by BBC standards and it is clear this was never the top of the BBCs list for cleaning up when making the transfer to DVD. As a result, there is quite a bit of footage in the series that is grainy and some that even has lighting washouts.

But what makes Blackadder worthwhile, timeless and funny is the quality of the writing. Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson wrote scripts with fairly straightforward plots with Edmund suffering much like most downtrodden and loathed protagonists. Twist is Edmund protects himself with his razor wit and surrounds himself with a lowly assistant Baldrick and arguably the stupidest lord in the land, Lord Percy Percy. And in that, there are some absolutely hilarious bits. For example, in when describing the Spanish Infanta, Lord Percy relays to Blackadder that her eyes are supposed to be more blue than the stone of Galveston, a bit that quickly degenerates into Blackadder learning that Percy has never seen the stone in question and the people who have have likely never seen the Infanta, which prompts the quip, "So you're telling me that the Infanta's eyes, which you've never seen, are slightly more blue than a stone, which you've never seen."

But more than most comedies, certainly the ones that are this short - Blackadder episodes are less than thirty minutes long each - this series is about characters. Here are the primary characters of Blackadder:

Edmund Blackadder - Duke of Edinburgh, one of two sons of Richard IV. Neglected by his father and despised by women, he schemes to rule all of England, usually by trying to ruin his older brother Harry,

King Richard IV - Successor to Richard III, following the Battle Of Botswick Field. He is loud, crazy and often inappropriate in his conversations. His ambition is to increase the wealth and power of England by taking over neighboring countries through force,

Prince Harry - Richard IV's beloved son. Deeply religious and educated, he is much loved by the people and a thorn in Blackadder's side,

The Queen - Richard IV's wife and mother to Harry and Edmund. She is a sorceress who hates sex,

Lord Percy Percy - The dimwitted sidekick of Edmund, he makes Blackadder look like a potentially great king by comparison,

and Baldrick - Son of Robin the Dung Gatherer. He always has a cunning plan to help Edmund thwart his enemies and is genuinely interested in seeing Edmund become king.

The characters are vivid and the acting is pretty decent, all things considered. Brian Blessed portrays King Richard IV with an energy that is convincing. Every scene he seems to be committed to being a bloodthirsty maniac and Blessed makes it work for him! Similarly, Tim McInnerny is utterly believable as the brainless Percy, making the viewer wonder how he manages to get through his lines he is so adept at portraying the witless sidekick. Actor Tony Robinson makes the catch phrase "I've got a cunning plan . . ." work for him and he presents Baldrick as the power behind the throne . . . or attempt to seize the throne in Blackadder.

It is Rowan Atkinson who holds most of the series together and moves it. He has a great sense of comic timing and he delivers his period-specific references beautifully with the complete sense that he knows just what it is he is saying. As well, he is adept at physical comedy, erupting when necessary to flinch, jump or fall as needed to sell the physical gags that balance out the scripted comedy.

On DVD, Blackadder has three bonus features, plus trailers for other BBC DVD releases. These simplistic features include cast biographies of all of the major players in the Blackadder series, narrated references to historical events alluded to in the series and a singalong feature that plays the title song with the lyrics for fans to sing along to. The historical information is actually intriguing and some of the more obscure allusions, like "Morris Dancers" provide information that I did not have before watching the series.

For a more complete idea of exactly what is in this DVD set, please check out my reviews of the individual episodes at:
"The Foretelling," "Born To Be King," "The Archbishop"
"The Queen Of Spain's Beard," "The Witchsmeller Pursuivant," "The Black Seal"

And while the one-disc season is fun and interesting, I certainly prefer "The Complete Collection" (reviewed here!) because part of the fun of Blackadder is seeing how the line evolves over the various "generations!"

8/10

For other television reviews, please visit my Television Index Page!

© 2012, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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The History Of Funny, Or Is It A Funny History? Blackadder: The Complete Collection!

The Good: Funny, Rewatchable, Good acting, Fun characters, Nice premise
The Bad: Style repeats too much by the end, DVD bonus problems
The Basics: Edmund Blackadder and his servant Baldrick journey through historical England trying to get noticed and move up the social rungs without being killed. It's funny how they fail.


I can think of no other comedy that attempted to use essentially the same characters in various historical time periods, which would make Black Adder a true original. The boxed set The Complete BlackAdder is a true comic masterpiece and a treat to those who have seen the show and those ready to fall in love with a smart, funny comedy that quits (mostly) before it gets dull.

The boxed set has five incarnations of Black Adder (okay, seven if you're a real fan!) and they run as follows: BlackAdder finds Prince Edmund Blackadder, unloved son of King Henry the Fourth of England (history scholars know there was no such man, but that's dealt with in the first five minutes of the series), Blackadder II which finds Blackadder as a courtesan to crazy Queen Elizabeth, Blackadder The Third wherein Edmund finds himself a servant to the idiot Prince Regent, Blackadder Goes Fourth where Edmund is a general on the German Front in World War I, and Blackadder Back And Forth where Edmund creates a time machine and goes on a fun adventure, basically rewriting the series. There are two specials on the discs, Blackadder: The Cavalier Years and A Blackadder Christmas Carol (which is hilarious), though Back And Forth is technically a special as well, with the other four being six-episode seasons.

Basically, Edmund Blackadder is a British person whose social standing and position alter radically through history as his descendants find themselves in different historical periods. So, while all of the protagonists in Blackadder are named Edmund Blackadder, they are not the same person (which isn't as difficult to follow as it might sound as we see some of the Edmunds die). Getting beyond the strange family line of Blackadder is quite easy. Figuring out how his sidekick, Baldrick mates in order to reproduce to keep the Baldrick line running concurrent to the Blackadders is the real mystery and stretch of the imagination.

This is a historical comedy and the nicest thing about it is that it is funny. Hands down, episode after episode, this is a funny series. You watch it, you laugh. You want to rewatch it. It's a DVD, you can! The comedy of Blackadder is basically in watching the repugnant Blackadder, along with his sidekick Baldrick try to weasel his way into power and out of responsibility. For example, in Blackadder II, there is an episode devoted to money (entitled "Money") wherein Blackadder and Baldrick scheme to make money, while their dimwitted friend Percy tries his had at alchemy. Percy creates green instead of gold and every attempt Blackadder makes to make money is foiled by the insane queen who calls on Blackadder on her whims and subtly robs him each time.

Blackadder is populated by interesting characters. Usually, after the first BlackAdder, Blackadder is a cunning man surrounded by idiots who have all the power, while he has little or none. Blackadder attempts to manipulate British politics, for example, by whispering his plans through the Prince Regent in Blackadder the Third. The standards throughout history (in the Blackadder universe) are:

Edmund Blackadder - Whose greed, ambition and intelligence are often thwarted, but he survives and remains interesting with his rapier wit, his biting sarcasm and his knack for getting out of trouble at the last second,

Baldrick - Blackadder's servant throughout time. He's a filthy, smelly idiot who Blackadder barely tolerates, though he does occasionally have a cunning plan,

Lord Percy (later Darling) - An utter moron who is usually the easy whipping post for Blackadder,

George - The more powerful moron who replaces Percy as Blackadder's whipping post,

Melchett - A wise person usually a rung or two above Blackadder on the social scale, giving him opportunity and position to thwart Blackadder,

And, despite what you might suspect from that line-up, there are women, too. They usually play supporting roles (especially in Blackadder Goes Fourth, as that is a military story), some of whom are quite powerful. Obviously, Blackadder II would be quite different were the Queen and her Nursie absent from it. However, the inclusion of Mrs. Miggens in Blackadder The Third does make one wonder; going out of the way to put a female character there works slightly to the detriment of that series as she feels added.

The acting here is top notch. Rowan Atkinson plays Blackadder and he is hilarious as him. Atkinson has a way of twisting his full face up that can make one laugh. Combine that disgusted look with witty dialog and you have the magic of BlackAdder. Atkinson's sense of comic timing truly is genius and BlackAdder, being his first big project, allows him to utilize that most organically.

Accompanying him in all of the incarnations is Tony Robinson as Baldrick. Robinson plays off Atkinson's extreme physical expressions with perfect blankness. He makes Baldrick fun and intriguing by being more than simply a wall to bounce ideas off of, but by playing off Atkinson to use Blackadder's conceits against him. It is truly a perfect pairing as the two play off one another with timing that keeps the intelligence and humor at the forefront. That is a rare thing.

The supporting cast includes Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie (before their Jeeves and Wooster days!), Tim McInnerny, and Miranda Richardson. These are all people who are fine actors and actresses and do an amazing job at giving Rowan and Tony things to work with. The ensemble that is built by "Blackadder Back and Forth" is truly impressive and it makes that special seem like a welcome trip with some old friends.

The only real blemish against this boxed set is that by the end of it, Blackadder's sarcasm wears thin. His ability to put Baldrick down becomes repetitive. I recommend watching one series a week, that stretches it out and mitigates this problem. The only other problem with this otherwise wonderful DVD set is that each disc has a gallery for historical background (so you can understand better some of Blackadders specific references) and for information on the actors of the series. Both bonuses have audio tracks that cut out before they are finished. So, mid-sentence trying to learn more about Stephen Fry and the disc will bring you back to the menu.

All in all, this is fun, intelligent comedy at its best. BlackAdder develops as one family's quest to rule England and all of the historical forces that stop him. It's funny, well acted and it holds up well after years of watching.
For a more complete idea of what this boxed set entails (including links to each episode) please check out my reviews of:
BlackAdder
Blackadder II
Blackadder The Third
Blackadder's Christmas Carol
Blackadder Goes Forth
Blackadder Back And Forth

8/10

For other television reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2012, 2009, 2004 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Actually Better Than The Average Romantic Comedy: Love Actually Is A Great, Enduring Christmas Movie!

The Good: Excellent casting, Charming, Funny, Great theme, Interesting characters, Not entirely predictable
The Bad: What isn't unpredictable, is terribly predictable
The Basics: With its massive ensemble cast, Love Actually illustrates that love is all around by taking multiple storylines and weaving them together beautifully.


I am a bit of a fan of complex movies. If a film is done right, it can have several threads going simultaneously and I'll love it. Magnolia is a perfect example of a film that takes several different storylines and expertly weaves them together. It is with a similar appreciation - but on the love, not despair, end of the spectrum - that I watched and rewatched Love Actually. There is no film I reviewed originally that I have looked forward to going back and re-rating like Love Actually; time has certainly smoothed out the edges on this one and it is a near-perfect film in my pantheon! With Batman Returns, it is an annual Christmas tradition in my home, as far as movies go!

You might have seen previews for Love Actually and resisted it because you are not a Hugh Grant or Winona Ryder fan. For the former, Grant is not in much of the movie and where he is, he is actually interesting, charming, and genuinely funny. For the latter, Ryder is not in the movie at all; the lookalike in the previews is actually Keira Knightley, who is made up to look pretty much identical to Winona Ryder. Go figure.

Regardless, Love Actually is a surprisingly good film, especially for a romantic comedy, which is usually such an overdone, obvious genre. Instead, Love Actually begins with a simple premise; love is all around us. And it then seeks to prove it.

This is achieved through the telling of various tales of love, love lost, or near-love that loosely intersect in England in the weeks before Christmas. The stories include: David, the new Prime Minister, taking a fancy to his intern, Daniel, a widower, counseling his son on how to win the girl of his dreams, Colin going on an insane quest to the United States to find women, Sarah trying desperately to express her love to her coworker, while being plagued by a love for a mentally ill brother, and Harry and Karen's marriage coming to a crossroads when Harry finds himself more and more open to the advances of Mia. There is something for everyone here, including a reclusive writer with a broken heart finding love with the woman who is simply the nearest person to him.

These are cool stories set against a backdrop of an aging musical artist's attempt to get the number one song in the Christmas season even though he knows it is terrible. What makes it work is the writing and the characters. Whenever any one plot seems to be going on too long or going nowhere, the focus of the movie changes entirely. And when it returns to the story one might have though dull, it feels new again. The movie works out quite well in that regard, because as the film progresses, we come to wonder what is happening to other characters that we may not have seen in some time.

In short, though, the characters are interesting and it is quite cool to see how the different characters resolve their problems. David, for example, uses his feelings of love for Natalie to restore national pride to England by standing up to a bullying U.S. President (I cheered when that happened). Jamie - the writer - uses love to overcome love lost by realizing that sometimes, the most simple act of love is simply communicating with the person one loves. Daniel, the widower, experiences a profound sense of love for his son and his aid to his son allows him to overcome his own grief. And the relationship that is growing between Mia and Harry keeps the viewer guessing. Mia is the perfect example of a character that works quite extraordinarily in the movie; her character is presented as perceptive and playful, which creates a character that is quite different from the homewrecker or outright slut one might wish to brand her as.

The characters are challenging as well. There is no firm resolution between Harry and Karen when Karen realizes she is losing Harry and that makes the conflicts and ideas they share much more interesting. The Peter, Juliet, and Mark relationship is in some ways more infuriating because of the implications of the last scene where the three of them are together. And the movie works because it is not all happy. It is, in fact, agonizing to watch Sarah as she and Karl get closer and then love - her love for her brother - tears them apart. Love is complicated and Love Actually does an excellent job of not trivializing that, but actually accepting and exploring it. Love comes with different priorities for different people and Love Actually does an excellent job of illustrating that as well.

The other thing that aids the movie spectacularly is the acting. The actors are perfectly cast to represent a decent cross-section of the population, resulting in a very diverse look and feel to the movie. The actors and actresses, furthermore, are playing at some of their best.

Alan Rickman is wonderful as Harry, playing someone both cranky and open to love in a way very different from his character in, say, Galaxy Quest. Opposite Rickman is Heike Makatsch, who is a refreshing sight without being Hollywood beautiful, and a strong Emma Thompson. Thompson carries an amazing ability to go from strong and funny to crying and vulnerable with remarkable fluidity. Hugh Grant is surprisingly good as the Prime Minister and his boyishness is accented by the dignity portrayed in the body language of Martine McCutcheon, who plays Natalie.

The couple to watch, though, has to be Collin Firth as Jamie and Lucia Moniz as Aurelia. Moniz is amazing and has an incredible ability to transform from her initially homely appearance with poor posture and a demure attitude to a strong, proud woman that is quite beautiful. She is funny and charismatic, no mean feat to pull off when the character is speaking a different language throughout the movie! Firth is great opposite her, taking his usual bland British demeanor and opening up into someone who is actually quite charming as Jamie.

At the end of the day, though, it is a romantic comedy. That means there are few surprises awaiting us in how the film resolves itself, but the truth is, it works in this context. Why? Because love truly is all around us and it is something that may fill us and be quite wonderful, no matter its context.

And writer and director Richard Curtis does a smashing job of taking what is all around us and making it genuinely entertaining.

For other Christmas movies, please check out my reviews of:
Dr. Seuss's How The Grinch Stole Christmas
The Muppet Christmas Carol
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

9.5/10

For other film reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2010, 2005 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.



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