The Crimson Petal and the White(TV serial)
| The Crimson Petal and the White | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Based on | The Crimson Petal and the White byMichel Faber |
| Screenplay by | Lucinda Coxon |
| Directed by | Marc Munden |
| Starring | Romola Garai Chris O'Dowd |
| Theme music composer | Cristobal Tapia de Veer |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom/ Canada |
| Original language | English |
| No.of episodes | 4 |
| Production | |
| Cinematography | Lol Crawley |
| Editor | Luke Dunkley |
| Production companies | Origin Pictures Cité-Amérique |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Two |
| Release | 6 April– 27 April 2011 |
The Crimson Petal and the Whiteis a 2011 four part television serial, adapted fromMichel Faber's 2002 novelThe Crimson Petal and the White.StarringRomola Garaias Sugar andChris O'Dowdas William Rackham, the drama aired in the UK during April 2011 onBBC Two.The supporting cast includesShirley Henderson,Richard E. GrantandGillian Anderson.Critical reviews of the drama were mixed but generally positive.
Plot[edit]
In Victorian London, William Rackham is the heir to a perfume business and has a mentally ill wife, Agnes, who is confined to her home. Despite his dreams to become a renowned writer, he has no talent for it, and his father decides to cut his allowance until William starts working seriously in the company. William meets and becomes infatuated with a young and intelligent prostitute named Sugar, who is writing a novel of her own, filled with hatred and revenge against all the men who abused her and her colleagues. William moves Sugar into a flat of her own on the condition that she sees him exclusively, while she helps him emotionally and financially by giving good advice on how to handle the company. Sugar becomes more and more attached to William and, as she comments to one of her old friends, "the world that comes with him". Eventually he moves her into the Rackham household under the pretence of working as a governess to his young daughter Sophie, the daughter Agnes has never acknowledged the existence of due to her madness. Agnes becomes increasingly unstable and desperate and, having caught glimpses of Sugar, believes her to be her own guardian angel who will bring her to the imaginary Convent of Health.
With time Sugar grows close to Sophie, becoming the mother she never had, and Agnes, by reading her journals and helping her. Agnes' irrational behaviour risks her being incarcerated in an asylum and the night before she is taken and William is away, Sugar helps Agnes to escape. Later on a body is found that William identifies as Agnes (he recognises only her hair, not knowing that Agnes had cut her hair before escaping). William and Sugar's relationship grows distant, with William treating Sugar more and more like a servant and adviser rather than a lover. Sugar becomes pregnant, but realising that William no longer wants her, induces a miscarriage. William begins to court another woman, despite telling Sugar things would get better, and when he discovers Sugar's pregnancy (not knowing she has already miscarried), he coldly tells her to leave.
Enraged by the betrayal, Sugar gathers Sophie's belongings and runs away with her. While running away, Sugar loses her manuscript and buys a new notebook to start a new story and a new life with Sophie. Meanwhile, William discovers what Sugar has done and tries to catch up with them, but after being mocked by Sugar's old friends he realises he has lost everything.
Cast[edit]
- Romola Garaias Sugar
- Chris O'Dowdas William Rackham
- Amanda Haleas Mrs. Agnes Rackham
- Shirley Hendersonas Mrs. Emmeline Fox
- Mark Gatissas Henry Rackham Junior
- Katie Lyonsas Clara
- Eleanor Yates as Letty
- Elizabeth Berringtonas Lady Constance Bridgelow
- Richard E. Grantas Doctor Curlew
- Clare Louise Connolly as Janey
- Isla Watt as Sophie Rackham
- Tom Georgesonas Henry Rackham Senior
- Liz Whiteas Caroline
- Branwell Donaghey as Cheesman
- Blake Ritsonas Bodley
- Bertie Carvelas Ashwell
- Sarah Jane O'Neill as Factory worker
- Gillian Andersonas Mrs. Castaway
Film locations[edit]
The production visitedKent,where they filmed atThe Historic Dockyard ChathamandEastgate HouseinRochester.[1]The scenes set in Chepstow Villas were filmed in Canning Street, Liverpool.
Reception[edit]
In a review of the first episode forThe Independent,Tom Sutcliffedescribed the opening scenes as a "bad laudanum dream" and said "it looks fabulous".[2]Writing forThe Daily Telegraph,Michael Deacon compared the drama negatively to its source material. He found that the "limitations of television" had had a detrimental effect on the story, criticising the "demure" sex scenes, faster pace, and the inability of television as a medium to get into the characters' minds.[3]Also writing forThe Daily Telegraph,John Preston gave the series a mixed review. He was critical of the production as chaotic and unfocused, and noted "a certain flabbiness" and lack of character development. However, he praised the actors, particularly Chris O'Dowd, and Gillian Anderson.[4]
In another article forThe Daily Telegraph,Benji Wilson gave the series a positive review, saying "it was certainly bold, experimental and it worked". He was particularly complimentary about the "look" created by director Marc Munden and cinematographerLol Crawley.He described Cristobal Tapia de Veer's soundtrack as "bizarre and contrary" and went on to say "[de Veer] set out to subvert – he welded the squelchings and rumblings of modern electronica to a tableau from the 1870s in the way thatRadiohead'sJonny Greenwooddid in his score forThere Will Be Blood."[5]Writing forThe Observer,Andrew Anthony was enthusiastic about the drama, calling the acting "richly subtle" and the cinematography "intoxicatingly woozy". He praised Romola Garai and said that Chris O'Dowd's performance was "a revelation".[6]The Guardian's Sarah Dempster described the atmosphere as "woozy, gauzy [and] brilliantly claustrophobic"; a result, she said, of Munden's "exceptional, stylish, unselfconscious direction" and de Veer's score.[7]Rachel Cookein theNew Statesmancalled the series "a compelling thing: vivid, nasty and rank with the stench of hypocrisy". She praised the director and actors, especially Gillian Anderson ( "so sly, so convincing" ).[8] In a blog post forThe Guardian,novelistMichel Faberdescribed the experience of watching the adaptation of his story. He was pleased with the result and credited screenwriterLucinda Coxonfor placing "parental nurture or the lack of it" at the centre of the story.[9]in an interview forThe List,he said "They’ve been very clever. I think they’ve done an extraordinary job with it."[10]
Awards and nominations[edit]
| Year | Award | Category | Recipients and nominees | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Royal Television Society Craft & Design Awards[11] | Best Costume Design | Annie Symons | Won |
| Best Make-Up Design | Jacqueline Fowler | Won | ||
| Best Production Design | Grant Montgomery | Won | ||
| 2012 | BAFTA Television Awards[12] | Best Actress | Romola Garai | Nominated |
| Best Mini-Series | The Crimson Petal and the White | Nominated | ||
| Broadcasting Press Guild TV Awards[13] | Best Actress | Gillian Anderson | Nominated | |
| Romola Garai | Nominated | |||
| Irish Film & Television Awards[14] | Best Television Actor | Chris O'Dowd | Nominated | |
| Royal Television Society Awards[15] | Best Drama Serial | The Crimson Petal and the White | Nominated | |
| 2013 | Critics' Choice Television Award[16] | Best Movie or Mini-Series | The Crimson Petal and the White | Nominated |
References[edit]
- ^Kent Film Office."Kent Film Office The Crimson Petal and the White Article".
- ^Sutcliffe, Tom(7 April 2011),"Last Night's TV: The Crimson Petal and the White/BBC2 Vacation, Vacation, Vacation/Channel 4",The Independent,Independent Print Limited,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Deacon, Michael (6 April 2011),"The Crimson Petal and the White: A Victorian Horror Story Too Big for the Small Screen, Review",The Daily Telegraph,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Preston, John (6 April 2011),"The Crimson Petal and the White, BBC Two, review",The Daily Telegraph,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Wilson, Benji (28 April 2011),"The Crimson Petal and the White, Final Episode, Review",The Daily Telegraph,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Anthony, Andrew(1 May 2011),"Rewind TV: When Kate Met William; Kate and William: Romance and the Royals; The Suspicions of Mr Whicher; The Crimson Petal and the White",The Observer,Guardian Media Group,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Dempster, Sarah (17 April 2011),"The Crimson Petal and the White: Episode Four – Season Finale",The Guardian,retrieved15 May2011
- ^Cooke, Rachel (7 April 2011),"The Crimson Petal and the White (BBC2)",New Statesman,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Faber, Michel(6 April 2011),"The Crimson Petal and the White: Watching My Novel Reborn on TV",The Guardian,retrieved1 May2011
- ^Sawers, Claire (24 March 2011),"Michel Faber Interview — The Crimson Petal and the White",The List,no. 679,retrieved1 May2011
- ^"RTS Announces Winners of Craft & Design Awards 2010/2011".Royal Television Society.November 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 17 December 2013.Retrieved20 May2012.
- ^Goodacre, Kate (24 April 2012)."BAFTA Television Awards 2012: The nominees in full".Digital Spy.Hearst Magazines UK.Retrieved24 April2012.
- ^Douglas, Torin (23 February 2012)."Shortlists announced for Broadcasting Press Guild TV Awards".Broadcasting Press Guild.Retrieved19 May2012.
- ^"IFTA Nominees 2012 announced".RTÉ Ten.Raidió Teilifís Éireann.10 January 2012.Retrieved20 May2012.
- ^Frost, Vicky (28 February 2012)."Royal Television Society awards: the nominations".The Guardian.Retrieved20 May2012.
- ^Bibel, Sara (23 May 2013)."Nominations for Third Annual Critics Choice Television Awards Announced Including 'The Big Bang Theory' & 'American Horror Story: Asylum'".TV by the Numbers.Archived fromthe originalon 11 June 2013.Retrieved23 May2013.
