"DOCTOR THORNE" (2016) ReviewTwo years ago, the ITV aired "DOCTOR THORNE", Julian Fellowes' four-part television adaptation of Anthony Trollope's 1858 novel. As it turned out, the latter was the third novel in Trollope's literary series known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire. From what I know, the 1858 novel seemed to have little in common to the rest of Trollope's Barstshire series. Dr. Thomas Thorne, the main character in "DOCTOR THORNE", was a distant cousin of Mr Wilfred Thorne, a minor character in "Barchester Towers". Aside from that, the rest of the characters in "DOCTOR THORNE" seemed to have very little or no connections to the remaining Barstshire series. The plot for "DOCTOR THORNE" seemed pretty straightforward. Our main protagonist is a respected doctor who has been raising his niece, Mary Thorne, on his own. Years earlier, Doctor Thorne's ne'er-do-well older brother Henry had seduced one Mary Scatcherd. When her stonemason brother Roger Scatcherd had learned about his sister's pregnancy, he engaged in a fight with Henry and killed him. Scatcherd ended in prison for several years, his sister gave birth to a daughter before moving to Australia with a new husband, and Doctor Thorne ended up raising his niece and keeping her parents' identities a secret. Following his release from prison, Roger Scatcherd becomes wealthy as railway project undertaker, got married, became a father and acquired a baronet. He also becomes a chronic alcoholic. Thorne becomes the family doctor to the Greshams, a local family of the landed gentry. He he persuades Scatcherd to lend money Mr. Francis Greshams, the local squire, who has troubles managing his finances. Within time, much of the Gresham estate is put up as collateral. Meanwhile, Mary forms a close friendship with the Gresham children and falls in love with Frank Gresham, Squire Gresham's only son and heir of the squire, and he with her. But due to the family's finances, Squire Gresham's wife, Lady Arabella, plots to end Mary and Frank's romance and find a wealthy wife for her son. However, Sir Roger's only son and heir, Louis Scatcherd, also falls in love with Mary. And like his father, Louis has also acquired a drinking habit. Dr. Thorne is forced to struggle to help his niece find happiness, while at the same time, deal with Lady Arabella's scheming for her son, and the tenuous financial situation between the Scatcherds and the Greshams."DOCTOR THORNE" received mixed reviews when it aired on both British and American television. I suspect that many critics believed that the production seemed to lack the bite of previous Trollope adaptations. And if I must be honest, I agree with them. Overall, "DOCTOR THORNE" struck me as a fluff piece into the life of Victorian society, despite the social snobbery portrayed in the miniseries, along with the fact that two of the characters were alcoholics. I believe it had something to do with the production's tone. Thanks to Julian Fellowes' writing, the miniseries felt more like a light comedy with flashes of melodrama. Especially for a story that featured social bigotry, family secrets and alcoholism. It did not help that the only characters in this story who truly suffered in the end were the members of the Scatcherd family. Personally, I wish that Lady Arabella Gresham had suffered a lot more than a slight embarrassment over the discovery of Mary Thorne's newly inherited wealth by the end of the story. I found the aristocratic matriarch's efforts to break up Frank Jr.'s romance with Mary a lot more perfidious than the Scatcherds' financial hold over the Greshams or even the malice and hostility that Sir Roger's son Louis had harbored toward the high-born family. After all, the Greshams had found themselves in financial difficulties, thanks to Squire Gresham's mishandling of the family's income and the family's spending habits.But despite my qualms over the production, I still managed to enjoy it. "DOCTOR THORNE" proved to be a humorous and romantic story about Mary Thorne's relationship with Frank Gresham Jr. and the obstacles - both socially and emotionally - they were forced to overcome. I also enjoyed the humorous subplot involving the political going-ons in Barsetshire and the upcoming election between Sir Roger Scatcherd and Mr. Moffat, another self-made man who had managed to gain support from the Gresham family. The miniseries also proved to be a poignant family drama involving the Thorne and Scatcherd families, with a big emotional payoff. And all of this romance and family drama was witnessed by the always dependable Doctor Thorne, who seemed to serve as the story's backbone.The production values for "DOCTOR THORNE" proved to be top-notch. Production designer Kristian Milsted did a solid job in re-creating Barsetshire, the fictional mid-19th century community (for its middle-class and upper-class citizens) featured in this story. Her efforts were ably assisted by Caroline Story's art direction and Jan Jonaeus's sharp and colorful photography, which did justice to various locations utilized in various counties in Southern England. I especially enjoyed the costumes created by Colleen Kelsall as shown below:
However, I felt a bit disturbed when I noticed that the day dresses worn by some of the women characters exposed a bit of cleavage:
Unless I happened to be wrong, 19th century women did not reveal any cleavage during the daytime. It was considered appropriate to do so in the evening for formal dinners and parties. I also noticed in the image above that actress Gwyneth Keyworth is also wearing a flower crown. A flower crown with daytime casual wear? I do not think so. Flower crowns - popularized by Queen Victoria during her wedding to Prince Albert - were usually worn by brides and bridemaids during wedding ceremonies, formal dinners and parties. I have one last complaint. The mid 19th century hairstyles worn by the women cast members seemed spot on to me . . . with one exception:
What on earth was the production's hairstylist thinking by allowing this modern touch to actress Stefanie Martini's hairstyle? Or was the hairstylist trying to copy the following look?
The problem is that the above style was prevalent in the 1840s, a decade before the setting for "DOCTOR THORNE". And Ms. Martini's "curls" are a tad too short.The miniseries featured a mixture of solid and excellent acting. I can honestly say that there was not a bad performance in the production. Performers such as Nicholas Rowe, Alex Price, Cressida Bones, Janine Duvitski, Danny Kirrane, Tim McMullan, Nell Barlow all provided solid performances. More solid performances came from Edward Franklin, who seemed a tad over-the-top as the hostile and alcoholic Sir Louis Scatcherd; Harry Richardson, whose portrayal of Frank Gresham Jr. struck me as a bit bland; and Stefanie Martini's performance as Mary Thorne struck me as charming, but not quite interesting. The real problem proved to be the character, who seemed to lack any interesting personality traits.One of the more interesting performances came from Rebecca Front, who did an excellent job in conveying Lady Arabella Gresham's snobbish and ruthless nature. Phoebe Nicholls' Countess de Courcy (Lady Arabella's sister-in-law) proved to be equally snobbish and ruthless. However, Nicholls skillfully conveyed how Lady de Courcy's ruthlessness proved to be more subtle. Richard McCabe did an excellent job of portraying Francis Gresham's likable, yet slightly weak nature. Gwyneth Keyworth gave an excellent performance as Frank Jr.'s complex and slightly mercenary sister, Augusta Gresham. Kate O'Flynn gave a skillful performance as Augusta's equally mercenary cousin, Lady Alexandrina de Courcy, who proved to be a lot more manipulative. Alison Brie gave a very charming, yet sly performance as the wealthy American heiress Miss Dunstable, who proved to be a very sensible and wise woman. One of two best performances in the miniseries came from Ian McShane, who gave a superb performance as the alcoholic, yet proud and loyal Sir Roger Scatcherd. The other best performance came from Tom Hollander, who did a superb job as the leading character, Doctor Thomas Thorne, a sensible and put upon man, who constantly struggles to look after his niece from the likes of Lady Arabella and keep Squire Gresham from folding under the weight of debts.What else can I say about "DOCTOR THORNE"? It is not one of the best television productions I have seen. It is probably the least impressive Anthony Trollope I have ever come across. But despite its flaws, I rather enjoyed it. I found it rather charming and likable, thanks to Julian Fellowes' screenplay and the excellent cast led by Tom Hollander.
"MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION" (2015) Review
When I first learned that a fifth movie for the "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE" movie franchise would be shot, I must admit that I was not particularly thrilled. As far as I was concerned, three or four movies were enough. The last film, "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - GHOST PROTOCOL", struck me as the high note of the franchise. I had doubts that the next film could be an improvement of the last film.
Paramount Pictures and the film's producers (which included star Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams) went ahead to produce and release the franchise's fifth entry, "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION". The movie begins with IMF (Impossible Mission Force) agents Ethan Hunt and Benji Dunn engaged in a mission to intercept nerve gas being sold to terrorists. But when Hunt is captured and escapes from the customer who wanted the nerve gas, he becomes aware of an international criminal consortium called the Syndicate. He also meets a disavowed MI6 agent and Syndicate operative named Ilsa Faust, who helped him escape. But C.I.A. Director Alan Hunley does not believe in the existence of the Syndicate. Hunley also goes before a Senate committee to disband the IMF, despite Agent William Brandt's efforts to stop him. Declared a rogue agent by the C.I.A., Hunt enlists the aide of Ilsa Faust and his former IMF colleagues - Benji, Luther Stickell and Brandt - to provide evidence on the existence of the Syndicate and bring down the organization's leader who had earlier captured him.
If anyone had been reading some of my past reviews of the Summer 2015 movies (which I doubt), that person would noticed a good number of complaints on my part regarding the pacing of these movies. I will say this about "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION", it possesses a strong finish. And screenwriters Christopher MacQuarrie and Drew Pearce also managed to create a very interesting and complex tale that involved deception, double-crosses and misconceptions. And thanks to MacQuarrie, who also served as the movie's director, "ROGUE NATION" featured both some first-rate dramatic scenes and outstanding action sequences.
My favorite dramatic scenes included Brandt's clash with Hunley over the future of IMF; Faust's attempts to convince the Syndicate's leader, former MI-6 agent Solomon Lane, that she is loyal to him; Faust's encounter with her MI6 Director Atlee, the quarrel between Hunt and the always skeptical Brandt on how to handle Lane, a USB flash drive that everyone seems to want, and Dunn's kidnapping; and the confrontation between Hunt, Brandt, Hunley, Atlee and the Britain's Prime Minister. But my favorite episode proved to be one of the last. It featured Hunt's efforts to convince Lane to let Dunn go in exchange for the information on the flash drive. Thanks to the performers in that scene, I thought it was a phenomenon scene filled with tension.
But "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION" is also an action film. And it featured some very outstanding scenes. Trailers and television spots made a big deal of the movie's opening action shot featuring Tom Cruise and a cargo plane. I would have been impressed if I had not seen it so many times. But I was impressed by the high tension sequence at an opera performance in Vienna. I thought both MacQuarrie and film editor Eddie Hamilton handled it very well. Another favorite sequence proved to be Hunt, Faust and Dunn's attempt to steal information about the Syndicate from inside an underwater turbine tank in Morocco. In fact, I think I was even more impressed with MacQuarrie and Hamilton's work in this sequence than I was with the one in Austria. And I thought the film's last action sequence in the streets of London was well handled and suspenseful . . . especially the fight scene between Faust and Lane's right-hand man, Janik Vinter.
There is a good deal to like about "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION". But I would never regard it as my favorite movie from the franchise. Heck, I would not even rank it as my second favorite. As much as I liked the movie . . . I had some problems. One, "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION" featured the fourth movie in the franchise in which either Ethan Hunt finds himself on the run as a rogue agent or when the IMF is in danger of being permanently disbanded. In the case of this movie, both happened. A senate committee disbanded IMF and Hunt ended up on the run, hunted by the C.I.A. Four movies out of five . . . this strikes me as a bit too much after five movies. And unoriginal. And why would the C.I.A. director go before a senate committed to disband the IMF? I could have sworn that the latter was a division or section of the C.I.A. It certainly seemed that way in the 1996 movie, "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE". Following the death of Jim Phelps, Ethan's Hunt immediate supervisor proved to be then Director Eugene Kittridge (portrayed by Henry Czerny). And the IMF was located at the C.I.A. Headquarters in Langley, Virginia. Hunt also answered to Director Theodore Brassel (Laurence Fishburne), who also worked out of Langley. See what I am getting here? Why is this movie portraying the C.I.A. and the IMF as two separate agencies? I also could not help but shake my head that Hunley wanted to disband the IMF for what happened in "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - GHOST PROTOCOL". I understand that Hunley was upset that Hunt allowed those nuclear weapon codes to get into the hands of the main villain. But that happened four years ago. And why bring down an entire agency or division over the actions of one agent? Hunley should have simply went after Hunt. Speaking of the latter, while he was making goo-goo eyes at Elsa Faust, did he remember his estranged wife, Jules? Are they still legally married? Does he still love her?
What exactly was William Brandt's current position at IMF? I never heard of a mere agent having enough authority to report before a Senate committee? I read somewhere that in this movie, IMF was currently without a director? Huh? This would never happen in the intelligence community. Even if there was no permanent director on hand, there would be an interim director before a permanent one could be found. Was MacQuarrie and Drew Pearce trying to hint that Brandt had risen up the IMF ladder? Why not Hunt? Why not allow Hunt to become the temporary director and allow Brandt to be the field agent? It would make more sense. What did not make any sense was that opening action sequence involving the retrieval of those nerve gas canisters. It would have been a lot easier for Hunt and Dunn to snatch the nerve gas before it could be loaded on that cargo plane. But the way the whole stunt was planned and carried out, I got the feeling it was nothing more than a glorified stunt planned to show audiences that Cruise still had what it took to be an action star. And it bored me. Also, I found myself slightly confused about the movie's plot - namely the goals of Elsa Faust and Solomon Lane. At first, I thought Faust wanted the information that would expose the Syndicate. As it turned out, the information that she, Benji and Hunt had stolen was the same information that Syndicate leader wanted . . . MI6 funds that could finance his terrorist organization. So . . . was Faust playing Hunt and MI6 all along? Was Lane playing Hunt? Or did the screenwriters make a rather confusing switch in the plot in order to surprise the audiences? I have no idea.
I certainly had no problems with the movie's performances. Tom Cruise gave a top-notched performance as Ethan Hunt . . . as always. But I got the feeling that there was nothing particular new or mind blowing about his performance. Many critics seemed to be more than impressed by Rebecca Ferguson's performance as the allegedly disavowed MI6 agent, Elsa Faust. Yes, she did an excellent job in giving a very complex performance. But the "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE"movie franchise has always been blessed with excellent and interesting women characters. She is not the first. Simon Pegg was very funny as IMF tech/agent Benji Dunn. More importantly, he did an excellent job in conveying Dunn's growing confidence as a field agent. Although he did make a cameo appearance in the fourth "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE", it was nice to see Ving Rhames appear as a supporting player again, reprising his role as the talented hack/IMF computer technician, Luther Stickell. And it was nice to see Jeremy Renner reprise his role as IMF Agent William Brandt again. He gave first-rate performance, as always. But I was very disappointed that he was not feature in any major action sequences, other than the Morocco car chase.
The role of C.I.A. Director Alan Hunley must be the first bureaucrat I have ever seen Alec Baldwin portray. Being the consummate actor he has always been, Baldwin gave an excellent portrayal of a limited-minded man whose resentment and anger toward another man led him to disband an entire agency (or division). I was very impressed by Simon McBurney's performance as the MI6 Director, Attlee. He did an excellent in conveying the character's manipulative and slightly malevolent personality. Sean Williams's character, Solomon Lane, definitely struck me as malevolent, thanks to the actor's performance. There were times when his character came off as a one-dimensional James Bond villain. But fortunately, his scenes with Cruise later in the film allowed audiences to fleetingly see the emotional toll that Lane had endured as an MI6 agent. "ROGUE NATION" also featured a very funny cameo appearance by Tom Hollander as the Prime Minister. I find this ironic, considering the tense nature of the scene he had appeared in.
In a nutshell, "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - ROGUE NATION" was an entertaining and exciting addition to the movie franchise. I thought Christopher MacQuarrie and Drew Pearce managed to create an interesting tale filled with intrigue, double-cross, first-rate action and excellent acting from a cast led by Tom Cruise. However . . . I thought the movie slightly suffered from some plot holes and a writing formula that is starting to seem a bit tired. I understand that Paramount has already green-lighted a sixth film for the franchise. I hope that it will prove to be a bit more original.
