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Topic:
TV Miniseries: Now Discussing: "The Devil's Whore"
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soitscometothis
Registered:
Jul '03
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Date Posted:
4/14 7:43am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "Children of Dune"
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I, Claudius
Based on Robert Graves’ novels I, Claudius and Claudius the God, this was a BBC production first shown in 1976. The series was set in ancient Rome, post Julius Caesar, post republic . It chronicled the history of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, from the reign of Augustus to the death of the emperor Claudius, and what a bloody, back-stabbing history it was!
The episodes of the miniseries are framed by an aged Claudius, played by Derek Jacobi, recording his family history. Brian Blessed, Sian Phillips, George Baker, Patrick Stewart, John Rhys-Davies, and John Hurt also star.
My Opinion
One of the greatest miniseries ever made, I have seen this several times from beginning to end, and it is powerful stuff, full of schemes, betrayals, murder, and politics. The strength of the series lies in two places: the script, and the performances. There was no budget for action sequences or location shooting, but the series proved that you do not need these things to give exciting TV. I don’t think there is any background music, and again, it doesn’t need it. When you have a script this good, and actors of this calibre, you really don’t need anything else.
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I am not an eel popsicle. Art: http://boards.theforce.net/Fan_Art/b10020/17816752/?21 Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/14 7:54am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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I don't know about background music, but the buzz-saw theme played over the credits is smashing.
You are right about this one: it's great. I would add to the good stuff the writing--witty, to the point, and when it adds to the book, does it right.
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darthdrago
Registered:
Dec '03
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Date Posted:
4/14 10:29am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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Best miniseries ever. 
This show is proof that less really can be more: stationary sets, lengthy scenes shot in the same room/set, clever use of off-camera noise & sound effects, shooting it on videotape instead of film (quite a departure for a story on ancient Rome). So instead the writing takes over and the spectacular performances make you quickly forget that all the action is based almost entirely within the dialogue.
Sian Phillips as Livia is in my view the single greatest villain of all time. In the Drago list of 'greatest villainz evah', Livia ranks just above Darth Vader. And the kicker is that she achieves damn near all of her goals throughout her lifetime, with little punishment for it (unless you count her son Tiberius' scorn for her as she grows old). Watching this series now makes it look a who's-who in top notch British performers.
PBS rarely broadcasts this in America, and when it does, it usually has to edit/censor a few scenes so that delicate Yankee sensibilities won't be offended. 
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/14 11:52am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
- Date Edited:
4/14 11:52am (1 edits total)
Edited By:
Zaz
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The Poison Queen gives one hell of a performance, doesn't she? How was this woman not a Great Big Star?
And Messalina is well done, too. I loved the retort of the Queen of the Prostitutes: "My hobby is gardening!"
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soitscometothis
Registered:
Jul '03
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Date Posted:
4/14 1:58pm
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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Zaz posted:
I don't know about background music, but the buzz-saw theme played over the credits is smashing.
Yes, it's very good. The flute playing its own tune behind the main instrument (trumpet? not sure, no ear for music) is kind of creepy.
Strangely, it kind of reminds me of Blake's Seven's theme in places.
There are so many really terrific performances in this, I find it difficult to know where to start, but I'll try...
Augustus
Played by Brian Blessed with frightening intensity, at times kindly and regal, at others, cruel and vengeful; in any other drama his would have been the standout performance, but in I, Claudius he almost gets lost in the shuffle. I find Blessed's Augustus both likeable and frightening, but then Blessed has always had that ability, and it's in his quieter moments that he is best, showing a barely suppressed rage.
Here is a great clip of him as Augustus, having learned a few home-truths about his daughter.
I always find it weird to compare his performance as the Emperor Augustus with Roddy McDowall's younger Octavian in the 1963 epic, Cleopatra. Very different takes on the same character.
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I am not an eel popsicle. Art: http://boards.theforce.net/Fan_Art/b10020/17816752/?21 Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/14 4:09pm
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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McDowall looks more like the real Augustus than Blessed, but he camps it up. Blessed's performance is very subtle--it's not a showy part, compared with Livia, but you get the impression that Augustus could be a terror if necessary.
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darthdrago
Registered:
Dec '03
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Date Posted:
4/14 7:59pm
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
- Date Edited:
4/14 8:01pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
darthdrago
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Definitely.
On the one hand, when I think of I, Claudius, I usually think of Augustus as a soft man given to emotional outbursts (bipolar, maybe?). But when he's angry (like at his daughter's whoring around Rome or at Postumus' alleged rape of Livilla), Blessed shows flashes of Augustus barely keeping his rage and capability for cruelty in check. Not the kind of guy you'd want to cross, because you can't really gauge how harshly he'd retaliate.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/14 8:03pm
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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The real Augustus was one tough customer; he outlasted all his competitors.
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Excellence
Registered:
Jul '02
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Date Posted:
4/15 3:53am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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ABC just aired Jekyll last month here. It was nothing less than brilliant, and just perfect being a three-parter. Absolutely chilling and suspenseful.
Also had the Wedge Antilles actor. Heh.
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The Brits gave the world Doctor Who
We owe them
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soitscometothis
Registered:
Jul '03
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Date Posted:
4/15 12:52pm
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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Excellence posted:
ABC just aired Jekyll last month here. It was nothing less than brilliant, and just perfect being a three-parter. Absolutely chilling and suspenseful.
Also had the Wedge Antilles actor. Heh.
Yeah, I thought it was great. Seems to have a polarising effect on people, though - a lot of people didn't like it, or a least didn't get it. I will reiterate my opinion that Moffat is one of the smartest writers working in TV today.
Livia
What can you say about Sian Phillips' performance as Livia? I think it is a pretty much flawless portrayal of one of the coldest villains in literature. Sian Phillips never once goes over the top or camps it up, and her character is never one-note - you see the genuine love she has for Augustus, and she displays a surprising vulnerability in the scene where she makes Claudius promise to have her deified, worried that she might be called to pay for her sins in the afterlife; she has charisma and wit, but boy, you would not want to be eating at a dinner party that she was throwing!
"Don't eat the figs", indeed!
I think her performance as Livia is perhaps the best in the miniseries, and in a series with performances of such high quality, that is really saying something.
Sian Phillips, coincidentally for this thread, played Reverend Mother Mohiam in David Lynch's Dune. She also had a role in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, (which I will cover in this thread at some point as it is one of my favourites) and its sequel, Smiley's People. I knew that she had been married to the great Peter O'Toole, of course, but until I looked at her entry on Wikipedia, I had no idea she had later married Robin Sachs, best known for playing Buffy villain Ethan Rayne.
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I am not an eel popsicle. Art: http://boards.theforce.net/Fan_Art/b10020/17816752/?21 Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/15 8:34pm
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
- Date Edited:
4/15 8:41pm (2 edits total)
Edited By:
Zaz
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She's just pure style, and she dominates any scene she's in. You don't doubt for an instance she'd poison her son, grandson, and more; and you don't doubt she's believes she's in the right all the way. One of my favorite scenes is the one in which she gossips with the professional poisoner from Egypt, Martina (who has poisoned Germanicus, Livia's grandson). They compare poisons, and Livia mentions one that Martina hasn't heard of. Martina asks Livia what it does, and she replies something like, "Well, if you swallow some, it'll do more than clear your head." The infection she gives the line is priceless. Poison is Queen, indeed. One of the greatest villainesses evah.
And like Claudius, you hate her marrow, but you really miss her when she's gone.
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darthdrago
Registered:
Dec '03
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Date Posted:
4/16 7:57am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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Man, Phillips has way too many great scenes in this show. The one with Martina is a yet another great one: I love the fact that for once she drops her constant aristocratic demeanor and just talks shop with a fellow poisoner (she could afford to: she outwitted her son yet again in securing Martina before anybody else did).
It's already been said, but the "Queen of Heaven" episode is my all-time favorite. Her birthday party scene where she & Claudius finally drop all pretension and talk to each other as equals is pure gold. I love how her face slowly brightens into a grin as she realizes Claudius isn't as stupid as she thought. And her death scene with Claudius as the only one present is surprisingly tender. It's a rare moment of reconciliation in the show. The show isn't known for tugging the heart strings, but this episode did it well. Contrast that with the bloodbath in the following episode... 
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soitscometothis
Registered:
Jul '03
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Date Posted:
4/16 9:03am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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I also love the scene in which she compares notes with Martina, one master poisoner to another. There is a lovely moment where Martina feels unwell and looks suspiciously at Livia, wondering whether she has been poisoned - Livia's reaction, iirc, is dismissive rather than shocked. She wouldn't have to stoop to covert poisoning to get rid of someone like Martina, after all.
I have to admit that I never read the second book, Claudius the God.
-----signature-----
I am not an eel popsicle. Art: http://boards.theforce.net/Fan_Art/b10020/17816752/?21 Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/16 10:58am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
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I have read it. What concerns Claudius and his stint as Emperor is very interesting, but it is padded out with Herod's conviction that he is the Son of God, and his misadventures thereafter.
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Zaz
Title: Manager, The Ampitheatre
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
4/16 11:10am
Subject:
RE: TV Miniseries: Now Discussing "I, Claudius"
- Date Edited:
4/16 7:48pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
Zaz
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After Livia murders Marcellus:
Livia: We know what he died of.
Doctor: Do we?
Livia: FOOD POISONING! You said so yourself.
Doctor: Yes, but I couldn't swear to it.
Livia (to self): No, but I could.
Claudius: Grandmother, after all these years you didn't invite me to dinner just to tell me this.
Livia: The wine has made you bold hasn't it?
Claudius: You said you've kept in with Caligula because he was to be the next emperor...
Livia: Lost your stutter too I see.
Claudius. But if by then you're dead, what difference can it make to you?
Livia: Oh it makes a lot of difference, and that's really why you're here... I want to be a godess Claudius.
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