I'm normally a lover of British fantasy (Harry Potter, Doctor Who, etc.), so I've been interested in checking out Gormenghast ever since it was first released. I happened to catch the first two episodes on PBS last night - and realized that I was better off skipping the rest of it!
Gormenghast is a distillation of everything I find irritating about BBC productions, without any of the usual benefits of their house style. The acting is ludicrously over-the-top; after a few minutes, I got sick of watching normally respectable actors making stupid grimaces, shouting, whooping and generally carrying on like twits. The direction is rigid and unimaginative, and the film quality is cheap-looking, particularly in the bright outdoor scenes.
Perhaps unusually for a BBC production, the sets and the costumes look great. However, the special effects are predictably woeful (I've seen better-looking models on Blakes' 7!)
I was hoping that the script might contain a whiff of wit or social satire, but I'm afraid it failed to impress me. The jokes are pretty predictable, particularly those involving the university professors, who all fall asleep during their lectures and speak in mock-academic language. Talk about taking potshots at an easy target! As for the other characters, they tend to have dull and portentous dialog, such as "There is much that needs to be done." In fact, I think that particular phrase is uttered about six times in the first two episodes.
I can't say if the original book is better. But I can say with confidence that this miniseries (or at least the first half of it) is rather rubbish. Unless, of course, you really relish the idea of watching venerable character actor Richard Griffiths attack venerable character actor Christropher Lee with a meat cleaver, while simultaneously making funny faces and snorting like a pig. Pfft!
Gormenghast is a distillation of everything I find irritating about BBC productions, without any of the usual benefits of their house style. The acting is ludicrously over-the-top; after a few minutes, I got sick of watching normally respectable actors making stupid grimaces, shouting, whooping and generally carrying on like twits. The direction is rigid and unimaginative, and the film quality is cheap-looking, particularly in the bright outdoor scenes.
Perhaps unusually for a BBC production, the sets and the costumes look great. However, the special effects are predictably woeful (I've seen better-looking models on Blakes' 7!)
I was hoping that the script might contain a whiff of wit or social satire, but I'm afraid it failed to impress me. The jokes are pretty predictable, particularly those involving the university professors, who all fall asleep during their lectures and speak in mock-academic language. Talk about taking potshots at an easy target! As for the other characters, they tend to have dull and portentous dialog, such as "There is much that needs to be done." In fact, I think that particular phrase is uttered about six times in the first two episodes.
I can't say if the original book is better. But I can say with confidence that this miniseries (or at least the first half of it) is rather rubbish. Unless, of course, you really relish the idea of watching venerable character actor Richard Griffiths attack venerable character actor Christropher Lee with a meat cleaver, while simultaneously making funny faces and snorting like a pig. Pfft!