allangjerulff
I have read that, some character's in this series was not known to the public, due to lac of description and/or screen time. At the same time it was to be very slow. I believe, you have to enjoy every kind of film in their own way. This is about feelings and surviving in the time of action. I could feel almost every character's influence on the main story, strong and weaker people reacting like they were brought up to believe was right. I laughed and felt sorry for both types. Camera angles and timing are also great, making it even more clear to see for some, this is not live action, it is perception of feelings. You are in the trenches, the heart and in the room! It is hard to see how much they go through, prevail.
maria-prokaeva
I had mixed feelings when I started watching the BBC drama. Having read some comments I had some fears. One of them was that I expected the series to be some kind of copy-paste of Downton Abbey. It wasn't. It is more subtle, evolves more slowly and has an almost inaudible air of pain and suffering. I couldn't help but compare it to Maughem's "The Painted Veil" that tells the story of a couple - a flippant wife of a doctor who is intellectually superior to her but too noble and and at the same time too proud to divorce her for betrayal. This story might seem similar however it has a greater depth. It's not only a man's parade trying to stand for what he truly believes in and finding himself abandoned by life and failing as a man. It's a vivid portrayal of virtues that are believed to be outdated but are in fact so modern and thoroughly relevant to today. And that's what salvages these series from being just another costume drama.What surprised me most about the drama was Benedict Cumberbatch's performance. He has an incredible acting prowess to play roles that are so different from him. There is no Benedict neither in Sherlock nor in Mr Tiejens. He completely vanishes within the characters he plays altering his movements, speaking, laughing, joking etc. It's interesting to note what Benedict said speaking about the role "Christopher has many admirable qualities I'd like to siphon off into my life." I believe Mr Tiejens is one of Benedict's best roles. He uses his voice like an instrument tuning it sometimes so deep and strong and sometimes subtle and gentle. It's an astonishing performance that definitely transcends TV dramas.
jeansheridan
No spoilers here at all! I love Rebecca Hall and I enjoy Cumberbatch a lot, so together in a film? Dreamy. This is the same era as the first season of Downton Abbey, but the tone is vastly different. Much funnier and drier, which suits Cumberbatch. What doesn't suit him is the blond hair! Rebecca Hall has the same issue too. What were they thinking? I'm not sure why they wanted Cumberbatch to look like Dan Savage or James Wilby, but there you go. Not a good look. And Rebecca Hall usually has glorious dark hair. The light reddish color doesn't suit at all. I know this is minor complaint because the performances are fantastic, but it was very distracting.In short, a smart mini-series with a smart writer and smart actors. What's not to love?
Vicki Hopkins
Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch (yes, that's his full name) has been busy. Between filming episodes of Sherlock Holmes, he worked elsewhere starring in this interesting and entertaining series entitled Parade's End. The story is based on a series of novels by Ford Maddox Ford.Benedict plays the character of Christopher Tietjens in five episodes. After one indiscretion, his life takes an unexpected turn when he meets a woman on a train. She seduces him, and they end up copulating quite wildly in their private quarters. He deposits his seed into Sylvia on a one-train stand and ends up marrying her after she declares the child in her pregnant womb belongs to him. The entire affair is questionable because of her many lovers, but Christoper does what he does best--the right and proper thing.He is not a man that is necessarily well liked and is socially awkward. The relationship with his family members is poor, he's the object of gossip, and appears to have trouble communicating his feelings. However, he is intelligent, and works at the Imperial Department of Statistics crunching numbers. In his spare time, he reads the encyclopedia and jots down corrections to the content in the sidelines of the book.Sylvia, on the other hand, is quite the opposite. She's not exactly the stellar wife. To her shame she parties, flirts with men, and ends up having an extramarital affair. She blames her motives for living on the wild side on Christopher, who is the picture of perfection. She loathes him and his values, and is determined to destroy him one way or the other. In fact, she seems to treat all her men with disdain. When she leaves Christoper for another man because she's bored, abandoning even her son, Christopher keeps the proverbial stiff upper lip and parades before society, friends, and family that all is well. He refuses to divorce, because he's a good Catholic. You just don't do those things. You bear it. Live with it. And parade onward.However, during his wife's escapades with another man, Christopher meets Valentine Wannop, played by Adelaide Clemens. She is young, intelligent, and a suffragette. It's one of those love at first sight moments for the two of them. Unfortunately, he's too proper to do anything about it even though they keep running into each other exchanging heartfelt glances and having pleasant conversation. When they are not in each other presence, they daydream of being lovers, but Christopher cannot cross that line.Eventually, Sylvia returns to Christopher, after having a spot of remorse. She turns to religion, though you don't believe there's an ounce of purity in her conniving mind.World War I breaks out, and the series takes a diversion toward wartime and life in the trenches. However, during this period of time, Christopher begins to change for the better. He becomes a stronger man who leads, and finally realizes that times are changing. It's no longer necessary to parade around as if life is peachy and all can be handled. The parade has ended, and he needs to do what is right for him as an individual--even if that means making immoral choices in order to find love and happiness.It's a fairly good series, and you'll find that Benedict is not the Sherlock Holmes you know. The portrayal of this character is vastly different, but also extremely convincing and well done. He looks rather dashing in his military uniform with blond hair. You'll also enjoy the Edwardian fashions worn by Sylvia, the manipulating wife.Parade's End is streaming on Amazon Prime for free. You might want to check it out. Only negative point is that I don't seem to be the only one complaining that you cannot understand what is being said about 10% of the time. Sometimes Benedict talks very fast, and it's difficult to catch the words with that thick British accent. On the other hand, it just might be poor sound quality on behalf of the producers of this film.
