Decline and Fall (BBC)

I've probably ranted about how much I love Evelyn Waugh at least fifty million times already, and I'm always apprehensive about books I like being put onscreen, but I thought I'd give this a try because I trust the BBC and because I thought it was a very strange choice for an series, since it's Waugh's earliest and most surreal novel. I absolutely loved it. Waugh's books usually tend to make pretty good screen adaptation, but this one was especially good. The way it was filmed wonderfully translated the tone of the novel, especially the symmetrical composition of many of shots worked very well to convey the absurd, unreal world of the novel. The costumes were also excellent, in that they somehow made everyone look completely unreal, like they were cardboard cutouts (which suits the novel exactly). I was also extremely impressed with how they fleshed out the characters, especially Grimes, Philbrick and Prendy, who I didn't care for in the book at all, were actually sort of endearing and definitely engaging. In the book, Paul Pennyfeather is also much less likeable and interesting, they made him too relatable and sympathetic, but I think that's perfectly justifiable for a mainstream television adaptation. I think the full measure of how pathetic and cringe-worthy Waugh's characters are would scare audiences away, and I actually enjoyed this slightly different take on the characters. The adaptation brilliantly kept Waugh's satirical tone through its cinematic language, making good use of sharp cuts and visual irony, and it certainly made me laugh a great deal. There was one scene in the third episode that nearly finished me; (spoilers!) one of the prison inmates cuts off (or rather saws off) Philbrick's head and holds it up triumphantly, ranting about the end of the world, at which point Philbrick's wig comes off and the head falls down a flight of stairs. I don't think I've ever encountered a scene that made me both so nauseated and so amused, I was choking with both horror and laughter at the same time. An absolutely wonderful production, with especially standout performances from Douglas Hodge (Grimes), Matthew Beard (Arthur Potts) and Stephen Graham (Philbrick).