Post by sarahbot on Feb 9, 2007 17:51:10 GMT -5
I just finished watching this and may have a new obsession on my hands. It's a period drama - wait, listen!
North & South is a four-episode BBC miniseries about Margaret Hale, a woman from the south of England in the 1850s, whose family moves up to the north. There she meets Mr. Thornton, a cotton-mill owner whom she hates just about immediately. You can see where this is going.
It's a lot like Pride & Prejudice, but with a few elemental differences. The characters are a bit less genteel, as well as the whole situation, as this is taking place during the Industrial Revolution. There's also changes in who is nobler than who - in her world, he's just a tradesman, and in his, she's just a poor clergyman's daughter.
There's also a great deal of the story devoted to the workers who are unionising for better wages, which was fascinating to me. I know there are other people on this board who have professed to being history nerds who would probably like that part too. In particular, there's a real even-handedness to the portrayal of the worker-employer relationship. This isn't Newsies, with mustache-twirling villains; the mill owners have problems just trying to keep their businesses afloat.
Another thing that clinched this for me were the production values. Not to hate on my beloved BBC dramas, but it's clear often that they didn't spend much on the little things, like, oh, lighting. This is way different - I felt like I could breathe the cotton buds and coal smoke in the air.
The acting is good, the story is compelling, and the setting is extraordinary. Hey - I had season 3 of Buffy waiting to be watched, and I still watched the whole miniseries without pausing. That's really big kudos coming from someone as Buffy-obsessed as I am lately. I heartily recommend watching this if you can get your hands on it.
North & South is a four-episode BBC miniseries about Margaret Hale, a woman from the south of England in the 1850s, whose family moves up to the north. There she meets Mr. Thornton, a cotton-mill owner whom she hates just about immediately. You can see where this is going.
It's a lot like Pride & Prejudice, but with a few elemental differences. The characters are a bit less genteel, as well as the whole situation, as this is taking place during the Industrial Revolution. There's also changes in who is nobler than who - in her world, he's just a tradesman, and in his, she's just a poor clergyman's daughter.
There's also a great deal of the story devoted to the workers who are unionising for better wages, which was fascinating to me. I know there are other people on this board who have professed to being history nerds who would probably like that part too. In particular, there's a real even-handedness to the portrayal of the worker-employer relationship. This isn't Newsies, with mustache-twirling villains; the mill owners have problems just trying to keep their businesses afloat.
Another thing that clinched this for me were the production values. Not to hate on my beloved BBC dramas, but it's clear often that they didn't spend much on the little things, like, oh, lighting. This is way different - I felt like I could breathe the cotton buds and coal smoke in the air.
The acting is good, the story is compelling, and the setting is extraordinary. Hey - I had season 3 of Buffy waiting to be watched, and I still watched the whole miniseries without pausing. That's really big kudos coming from someone as Buffy-obsessed as I am lately. I heartily recommend watching this if you can get your hands on it.
