It's not as socially conscious as The Way We Live Now or Lark Rise to Candleford or some of the Dickens productions are but it hooked me and reeled me in nonetheless.A widower country doctor with an incredibly beautiful daughter meets and marries a woman with a 'troubled' daughter of her own. The new wife of the doctor turns the doctor's household upside down, much to the chagrin of his lovely daughter Molly. Molly takes solace in the friendship of a neighboring down on their luck aristocrat family. Secrets are shared, reputations nearly ruined, and romance is thwarted at nearly every turn but in the end true love triumphs.
I enjoyed this one because it focused so much on the women in the story. Yes, the men were still integral to the plot and the action but overall, this one is about the women. And what a bunch of lovely women they are. I found it hard to look at anyone but Justine Waddell, who played Molly, when she was on screen and she's on screen a lot. She's in 85 percent of the scenes, which suits me just fine. Keely Hawes plays her not so virtuous step sister and she looks magnificent but to me she pales in comparison to Ms. Waddell.
Bill Patterson, as Molly's dad, the country doctor, is very good in this production. As are Tom Hollander and Anthony Howell. But the best male performance is turned in by Michael Gambon, he plays the down on his luck neighboring squire. He's full of himself, full of bluster, and full of piss and vinegar towards those he looks down on, especially the French. He turns in a hugely winning, sometimes hysterically funny, and always great performance.
If you're a fan of British period drama, this one should be right up your alley. I highly recommend it. But don't blame me if you fall in love with Justine Waddell like I have. And no, you can't have her, she's mine. I claim her. And one of these days I'll let her know about it. I'm sure she'll be ever so pleased.
