There isn't all that much of a plot here, and the writers weren't given the opportunity, given time constraints, to include a lot of what makes this one of Trollope's best books. But what does make this show very much worth watching is the acting (with only two exceptions). David Suchet gives one of the best performances of any novel adaptation -- his Melmotte is simply riveting. Equally terrific is the under-rated Shirley Henderson, making her character the most complicated, unpleasant, and yet totally sympathetic. She's incredible. Also outstanding are Matthew Macfayden as an unsympathetic rake and Helen Schlesinger, managing to steal every scene she's in with just her facial expressions. Jim Carter does his usual excellent work, as does Richard Cant, Douglas Hodge, and, well, almost everyone else.
The only exceptions to the excellent performances are Cillian Murphy and Miranda Otto. Murphy excels at playing dark and villainous characters, but he's just too offbeat, his face too exotic, to work as the hero of this show. Otto is just outright bad, as she doesn't seem to understand that a Southern accent isn't an affectation, it's the way people actually talk in various parts of America. Her attempt at an accent ranges from a Texas accent to a Louisiana accent to a Virginia accent to nothing at all.
Still, two lackluster performances in a show where everyone else is superb is quibbling. Twenty years after its filming this show is very much worth watching.
The only exceptions to the excellent performances are Cillian Murphy and Miranda Otto. Murphy excels at playing dark and villainous characters, but he's just too offbeat, his face too exotic, to work as the hero of this show. Otto is just outright bad, as she doesn't seem to understand that a Southern accent isn't an affectation, it's the way people actually talk in various parts of America. Her attempt at an accent ranges from a Texas accent to a Louisiana accent to a Virginia accent to nothing at all.
Still, two lackluster performances in a show where everyone else is superb is quibbling. Twenty years after its filming this show is very much worth watching.