Forum Topic

Marriage

I was so looking forward to this programme - good writer, brilliant actors, what's not to like? But, Oh dear! dreary and too many silences will not be bothering to watch the rest. Yet the same writer wrote the excellent 'Mum' - after wasting so much time with the awful 'Chloe' (by a different writer) a few months ago and trying to work out what the hell was going on, I do wonder what some of these writers are on.

Vanessa Smith ● 1498d29 Comments

I agree! I was very disappointed too. I will give it another go though, to see if it improves.

Margot Crowther ● 1498d

Brave!

Vanessa Smith ● 1498d

I spent the first half hour being annoyed by the banality of the dialogue but then it began to engage me. Him (accidentally?) freaking out the receptionist at the gym. The daughter's ghastly new boyfriend. I shall stick with it.

Susan Kelly ● 1498d

I haven't seen it yet, so have to reserve judgement. I would just say that banality of dialogue isn't necessarily boring. If it were, then we'd have to dismiss much of Pinter's work. What matters is what's going on under the surface.

Robert Fish ● 1498d

Personally, I loved it.  The relationship between the couple was so natural and believable.  The ‘banality’ was part of that.  But there was obviously a lot going on beneath the surface and I’m sure that is going to emerge as the story proceeds.

Alastair Banton ● 1498d

Ah, snap!  I would add that banal dialogue also worked to great effect in Mike Leigh’s work - Abigail’s Party, Nuts in May for instance.

Alastair Banton ● 1498d

Well, we shall be celebrating our Golden Anniversary next year (I was of course a child bride!) and I wouldn't have lasted five minutes with a tw*t like Sean Bean's character, I'd have been bored witless.

Vanessa Smith ● 1498d

" I wouldn't have lasted five minutes with a tw*t like Sean Bean's character "Indeed, Sean Bean possibly surprised a lot of people with his sensitive portrayal of a broken remorseful character in playing Mark Cobden, a forner teacher imprisoned for killing someone in a drunken road accident in "Time", only last year Unfortunately he seems to be simply transposing that character into this. With a pathological fear of flying added to the mix.And up against Nicola Walker an actor whose greatest strengths are clearly in playing strong forceful characters.I gave up when it was revealed that he'd lost his jobmichael adams

Michael Adams ● 1498d

Yes, he was good in 'Time', and to be fair I think it's more the writers than the actors. I am a simple soul who likes a beginning a middle and an end - preferably in that order, when I have to try and second guess what the writer is getting at I just lose patience. Give me the triumphant 'Sherwood' any time.

Vanessa Smith ● 1498d

I would commend to any and all a series (actually three series)  where dialogue is all. Being radio there are no distracting visuals.Excellent work from Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam.Conversations from a Long Marriage is available on iPlayer.Worth a listen.

N V Brooks ● 1498d

I'm not a fan of banal dialogue. Yes, it's how most of us speak most of the time, which is why Art has to offer something more.

Susan Kelly ● 1498d

I do want to see the daughter dump Mr Controlling, though, or at least to learn why she is allowing him to control her. Nicola Walker's father claimed that Sean Bean controlled her. Seeing no sign of that yet, but will be interested to do so.Okay, I'm hooked!Could have lived happily without the 'baked potato' dialogue.

Susan Kelly ● 1498d

James Bolam still magic at 87, drawn back from retirement to do this so he must see something in it.

Susan Kelly ● 1498d

I'll shut up now.

Susan Kelly ● 1498d

Roger Allam - that voice!  must listen to this.  If he was Prime Minister, he could surely persuade us about anything.

Vivienne Cox ● 1498d

A Chiswick connection. We used to see James Bolam eating on his own in the Moonlight Tandoori on Devonshire Rd.1988 ish.

Will Watson ● 1498d

Glad I watched second episode after falling asleep in the first.A 100% improvement

James Roy ● 1497d

Do they have to have a dead kid? That's become such a cliché in drama lately. And what the hell is that shouty 'music'?

Susan Kelly ● 1497d

"Dead kid", awful "shouty music", unlikely chemistry between a considerate, competent lawyer's assistant and an incredibly dull husband, and one obnoxious Tory hating youngster make this play an intriguing melting pot.Throw in Sean Bean and Nicola Walker's acting pedigrees makes following Marriage to the end worthwhile.

Denis I. Fox ● 1497d

I reckon there's some dark, hidden secret that they are all skirting around.  At least I hope so.

Lucy Chambers ● 1496d

I've watched it all now and can't say it was a good use of 4 hours but then I'm retired so I do have some spare time. I had to mute the shouty 'music' at the start and finish of each episode as it was doing my head in.People who love it say that this is what long marriages are like. Not in my experience, they aren't. I suppose I should feel sorry for anyone who thinks that.

Susan Kelly ● 1492d

For those who are watching this "live", there was a trailer for the second episode shown before "Match of The Day" (sniff, sniff).  This week they go around the supermarket together !michael adams

Michael Adams ● 1492d

I enjoyed the last episode when the daughter told them to open up and communicate and then was offended by their honest reaction to her ex-boyfriend.

Lucy Chambers ● 1491d

££££ signs?

Brian Coyle ● 1489d

I have just caught up with all 4 episodes now. Oh dear! I thought it was awful. Didn't relate to either of the main characters and didn't understand why 'Emma' had to have such a potty mouth. Ian was so awful and Emma no better. I quite liked the adopted daughter, Jessica, who at least had some personality about her. At the end I started to feel some (but not much!) sympathy for Jamie when he was shown attending counselling. Overall, a waste of 4 hours and I was neither entertained, made to think, nor informed.

Margot Crowther ● 1489d

Obviously it’s not everybody’s cup of tea but personally I loved it.  This review from the New Statesman rang true for me.https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/tv/2022/08/stefan-golaszewski-marriage-review

Alastair Banton ● 1489d

It's a real Marmite drama, all right. If you can call it a drama. For my money, deliberately making a serial with no dramatic tension is like deliberately cooking a meal with no flavour.

Susan Kelly ● 1489d

I disagree, Margot, even though I failed to stay the course, as ultimately I found the pace just too slow for me. I wonder why you couldn't relate to either of the main characters. Their personalities hardly constitute an adequate basis for criticism. I found them much more interesting than you did. The clues were all in what wasn't said. The banalities of the dialogue as Ian and Emma pursued their domestic life revealed the affection which bound them, and the profound sadness at the heart of the relationship. I thought both actors were absolutely brilliant at conveying the hidden emotions. It could have been more concise without losing effectiveness, but I certainly wouldn't describe it as a waste of four hours. It was very interesting to follow the clues as to what was going on under the surface.

Robert Fish ● 1489d

But there was ample dramatic tension. Either you didn't pick up on it, or you refuse to recognise it.

Robert Fish ● 1489d