Trial & Retribution

[Scrivener]

Phil, you old devil. This is wonderful news.

Heartfelt congratulations. Not bad for a wonky bike rider!!!

http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=69882

Up next is Curriculum Vitae, comfortably the best of this five-episode series and the only one to hold a candle to some of the earlier, one-off outings. Written by Phil Gladwin, it returns to a more sedate pace and deals with a single mother, Suzie MacDonald (Victoria Hamilton), who returns home from an aborted business trip to discover her baby daughter, Poppy, dead in her cot, while the recently appointed nanny, Leanne Taylor (Sinead Matthews), has apparently done a runner. The post-mortem rules out accidental death and the mother is eliminated as a suspect, so all eyes are on the mysterious Leanne, whose glowing references and background, and even her name, are quickly revealed to be fabrications. As Walker and the team dig deeper, they come across worrying evidence which suggests that the woman claiming to be Leanne may in fact have been employed as the nanny of another baby who died under similar circumstances.


What’s impressive about this episode is that the writer actually seems to get back to the heart of what Trial & Retribution used to be about. More than any other episode in this five-part series, Curriculum Vitae concentrates on establishing the circumstances surrounding a murder, following the investigation to the point when an arrest is made and the suspect charged, and culminating in a tense court case, all the while building up a compelling portrait of the accused, while at the same time concentrating on how the victim’s immediate family are affected first by the death itself, then the inevitable investigation, and finally the trial. It is this latter element that has been missed most in recent episodes of the show – a by-product, no doubt, of the greatly reduced running time when compared to the glory years. Gladwin’s solution to this conundrum is to eliminate any unnecessary focus on the regular characters’ private lives. Reference is made in passing to what they get up to outside work – there’s an effective scene, for example, where DS Satchell (Dorian Lough) frantically calls up his wife to check the credentials of their own baby’s nanny – but this episode is first and foremost about the death of baby Poppy and the battle to locate and prosecute Leanne. Leanne, incidentally, is a very compelling character, wonderfully portrayed by Sinead Matthews, who has that rare ability to turn on a dime between sycophantic sweetness and spine-chilling menace. In a sense, what makes her scary is that she seems so utterly plausible, to the extent that, even when her story is being torn apart by the prosecution and she is resorting to altering key facts at the drop of a hat, she still seems to sincerely believe the rubbish she’s spewing. She also gets a wonderful scene during an interview shortly after her arrest when, presented with the evidence against her by Mike and Roisin, she laughs uproarious and declares “You two must be really stupid! How did they let you run a police department?” Well, yes, took the words right out of my mouth.

What started out as a unique and inventive take on the investigative and judiciary processes is now left with precious little sense of its own identity, and while the three episodes included in this set are all of a decent standard, all but one of them are a far cry from what was being produced in the series’ heyday. At least the relatively agreeable price tag – less than £15 at our cheapest affiliate – helps cushion the blow somewhat, with Curriculum Vitae coming close to justifying the cost alone.


PS: There are some questions I would really like to ask you:
http://www.screenwritinggoldmine.com...ead.php?t=1064

[manfred von]

outstanding, phil--
very well done
your work, the sweat of your intellect, on screen--
your words
your images
your vision
and a review full of praise...
that's what we strive for
that's why we're here;
very well done.

m.

[Phil]

Ha! Thanks for posting that Scrivener - Charlie mentioned it in passing in the Newsletter, but I like your style!

I'll look at those questions and see about posting some answers.

[Ben]

Dyno and good news indeed Phil.

Sometimes, I'm so busy running around like my hair in on fire, I miss so many good news.

But thanks to this forum that I catch up.

And we are waiting for your movie review of SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE.


;;;;
;;;;
;;;;
;;;;

[Phil]

Slumdog Millionaire - there's no resisting it. I hope to take my daughter to it this coming weekend...

[Scrivener]

Just wanted to raise this to the top of the pile so that anyone in
Australia remembers to watch Phil's episode tomorrow night (Friday 20th) - ABC 8:30.

The promo is riveting.

[Phil]

Absolutely! Get some popcorn in - and those of you with young children, make sure you know precisely where they are - and with whom - before it starts!

(Am aware I am slacking on the Slumdog Millionaire review front Ben - still haven't managed to see the darn thing! One day...)

[Michael_C]

Great stuff Phil! Very inspiring indeed.

Wish I could see it.

[Tonja]

Go Phil! Like Mike said, very inspiring.

Sidenote: Phil, I thought I was the last one in the universe to finally see Slumdog Millionaire and now I see I wasn't.

[craktactor]

I'm watching it tonight... at home... on DVD... Studio Copy (for your consideration).... mm hmm... it's good to know people... sorry... I'm bragging again, aren't I?