BBC North and South

[kiki1982]

I agree, it kind of spoiled the whole film. It was just completely random; I think the producers must have had to rush the ending for one reason or another.

That would be a little bit puzzling, because, had they done it like 1997 (?) with Hinds, then everything would have gone much faster instead of still having seconds and seconds of her running through the city. Just post Wentworth downstairs and off we go.

But (bad) film-makers have never been the most logical beings on this planet.

[Three Sparrows]

I just watched North and South and I must say, it was quite good. However, the beginning proposal scene with Henry seemed rather awkward; the short, abrupt shots made everything seem strange and cut off. After that though the movie flowed along quite nicely, and I just love the way the Mr. Thornton and his mother interacted. Mrs. Thornton was exactly how I pictured her in the book. Another pet peeve that I have(and seems to bug more people than me) is the train station scene. When I saw it I was like "What? In a train station?! What about Henry?" Perhaps it was because the ending seemed so "modern" that I did not like it much. I do see the significance of that scene being in a train station though; there are some recurring shots of Margaret in a train, traveling, and of course there was a train station scene with Frederick. I think the movie wanted to make trains an important part of the Margaret character, but I am not quite sure what that would be. A sense of placelessness, maybe?

I have to agree that Persuasions scene was pretty bad, but not quite as bad as that last kissing scene. *shudders at the thought*
Yeah, that was bad.

[Period_Dramas97]

I need to say straight up, that I have never read the book, and so this review will be based souly on the miniseries and my thoughts on it.

I have to admit, when I first watched it, the characters and setting took me awhile to get used to, but after the second episode, I was completely sold and watched the last half with bated breath. My heart is utterly and unconditionally lost to Richard Armatige's portrayal of the emotionally restrained and yet hopelessly passionate John Thornton. While I was less eager to embrace Daniela Denby-Ashe as the heroine Margaret Hale, she gradually grew on me, and I ended up thoroughly enjoying her performance. The chemistry and tension between these two characters is palpable, and I think reminiscent of Darcy and Elizabeth's in Pride and Prejudice.

I have no complaints what-so-ever about any of the supporting cast, and was particularly impressed with Lesley Manville, Brendan Coyle, Sinéad Cusack and Tim Pigott-Smith.

Not only are the themes of social and gender equality explored, but so is the relationship of master and worker (between Thornton and Higgins), and parent and child (Margaret and her father, John and his mother Hannah, and Nicholas and Bessy), in such a way as to give the story an emotional and historical depth both believable and endearing.

Now to address the two most heated arguments raised in this particular forum: firstly, that of Thornton and Margaret's first meeting, when she witnesses him 'beating' up one of his employees. As Henry IX points out, Stevens had already been warned about smoking while in the mills; not only does it endanger his health further, but is an extremely dangerous fire hazard...thousands of people could have died. Not that that explanation in any way justifies what Thornton did.

The second issue deals with the last scene. I in no way found it offensive or unnecessary...I thought it was the perfect ending. It was like the world seemed to melt away, and they were by themselves in their own little universe where it was just the two of them.

Sandy Welch was the one who orchastrated the emphasis on the train-station and railway, and the reason she did this was in order to visually draw attention to the industrial landscape of the story.

Lastly, I just want to mention what my favorite scenes were:

1: The last scene
2: The last conversation between Nicholas and John
3: All of Bessie and Margaret's conversations
4: The Thornton's dinner party
5: The Great Exhibition
6: When Margaret finds out about John losing Marlborough Mills

[wordeater]

Daniela Denby-Ashe was a pleasant surprise. I knew her from "My Family", but I didn't recognize her at first. It's one of my favorite miniseries.