Review of Anglo Saxon Attitudes

Introduction

I don`t think I`ve seen such a completely compelling adaptation of a damned good novel since `Brideshead Revisited` and can only wonder why it passed me by on its original airing in 1992. Made by Euston Films for ITV (Minder, Sweeney) this has the familiar gritty filmic look that you`d associate with their more contemporary output, but it`s also a very fine piece of historic drama.

Based on a novel by one of Britain`s first openly gay novelists, Angus Wilson, and adapted for this three part serial by Andrew Davies (Bridget Jones` Diary) in 1992, it went on to win a BAFTA for Best Serial Drama, and it`s easy to see why.
It`s a complex story that on first reading would not seem to readily lend itself to dramatisation, with its complex intertwining of lives, loves, tragedies and triumphs.

The anchor of this weave of inter-locking tales is 60-year-old Gerald Middleton who, despite being a man of wealth and status, sees himself as an unmitigated failure. Filled with regret about what he has failed to achieve in life, as well as posessing a burning conscience, he resolves to start righting these wrongs.

As a young man, we see him witness a significant historical discovery. It`s only later that we learn that someone involved in the dig had confided in him that the whole discovery was a hoax, which would call into question many of the presumptions made as a consequence of the discovery.

To now reveal what he knows would destroy his comfortable reputation, as well as dig up old relationships from his past. But he determines to go through with it.
In the meantime, his family is falling apart around him. His estranged wife is now mad as a hatter, and his sons and daughter have their own dramas to contend with. But perhaps most significantly, the detective work that he is determined to do to discover the real truth about the discovery will bring him back into contact with the real love of his life, the vivacious Dollie, wife of a now deceased friend and rival.

The three 90 minute episodes frequently cut from flash-back to the present, from one characters sub-plot to another, and yet it retains cohesion and is a really rewarding watch.

The cast is simply superb with Richard Johnson excelling in the difficult role of Middleton. His performance is simply sublime - with the tortures of his past subtly evident on his otherwise stiff upper lip.

Elizabeth Spriggs (`Sense and Sensibility`) is brilliant in her role as his mad, controlling ex-wife, playing a part that literally demands a swing from laughter to tears in the space of a single sentence.

Dollie is played to perfection by both Tara Fitzgerald (Brassed Off) and later by Dorothy Tutin (South Riding) as an older incarnation.

Gilbert Stokesay, his friend and love-rival, who dies in the madness of the trenches in World War I, is played by a young Daniel Craig in his pre-Bond days.
There`s even an appearance by a rather weightier and younger Kate Winslet, proving that even the bit part players of this excellent drama are a cut above the norm.

Video

In common with Euston films late eighties / early nineties output, this has a grainy film look suggesting it was shot on 16mm. That said, some of the sequences are fairly lavishly set and it may be that this was shot on 35mm but with grading that suited the style of programme making at the time. It`s not a look I like though it`s possibly the only negative thing I can say about this otherwise excellent series. The blacks are a little washed out too giving the impression of low contrast though it`s unclear whether this is the transfer or the look of the original. Oh…and it`s 4:3, just as it aired.

Audio

A very acceptable Dolby Digital stereo track. Dialogue is warmly recorded and well balanced throughout.

Features

None.

Conclusion

`Anglo Saxon Attitudes` is a brilliant adaptation of the brilliant novel by Angus Wilson. If you`ve read the novel then you`ll appreciate just how ambitious a project this was, and it`s a tribute to screenwriter Andrew Davies that it works so well.

It`s a complex, multi-layered story that frequently uses flashbacks and slow-motion replays, as well as inter-cutting between several sub-plots in quick succession. But spread out across three feature-length episodes it plays out superbly.

The cast, with Richard Johnson in the principal role, is superb and the lavish settings and sets betray some serious spending.

The programme won several awards on its release in 1992, and it`s easy to see why. I think I`d be prepared to stick my neck out and say that, for me, this was the most enjoyable literary drama since `Brideshead` and is a thoroughly rewarding watch.

In an effort to sound slightly critical, I should add that the grainy film-grading is not really to my tastes, though if you let a little thing like that put you off purchasing this set then you`re mad.