Wolf Hall

[tealin]

How much am I enjoying Wolf Hall? A LITTLE TOO MUCH. This is especially notable given how little interest I've had previously in the soap opera of the Tudor court. Turns out I just needed the right way in, which happens to be arguably the baddest baddie in a lot of bad'uns – the trick, of course, being that Wolf Hall is the sordid story told from his point of view so of course he makes himself out to be in the right, and throws in the crooked smile and warm kind eyes and kitten-fondling for good measure. Oh it's so delicious! The clues are all there but you don't see them because he's that good a lawyer! It makes my brain fizz and I love that. I can only imagine this is how people feel about Game of Thrones.

Anyway, from the first scene I thought Mark Rylance's Thomas Cromwell looked like a Jeff Turley design, so here is my somewhat hamfisted attempt at reverse-engineering one. Sorry, Jeff.

I would say 'let me talk your ear off about Wolf Hall' but my most excellent friend has already permitted me that luxury and I can't find the time to say what I want to say, so ... maybe later.

It airs in April on PBS, so keep an eye out Stateside for the sort of smart filmmaking so absent from the cinema these days ...

Comments

[inevitableentresol]

I've been watching Wolf Hall and enjoying it, but it was like something was missing until I read your take on Cromwell. I can totally get behind your reasoning. When I watched the latest episode it made it a much more rewarding experience.

I'm just not used to an unreliable narrator on television. Books, yes (which is what it's based on, and why it's there so strongly in this adaptation I imagine).

Or perhaps not exactly unreliable. More like so strongly partisan that the whole thing is tinged with second guessing.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on it.

[tealin]

Yeah, 'unreliable narrator' would be a bit more obvious, I think ... The way I see it, Cromwell is a lawyer, and Wolf Hall is his argument for the defence; A Man For All Seasons and, well, history being the argument for the prosecution. 'Strongly partisan' is more like it; professionally partisan in fact; it has to be a solid enough case that 'unreliability' won't creep in, but it's up to the jury (us) to keep a clear enough head to sift objective from subjective and not to be suckered into the spin. I don't know if this was the author's intent or if it's a lucky coincidence of historical fact and authorial spin, but it's absolutely brilliant.

[inevitableentresol]

I love the idea of the whole of Wolf Hall being an argument to the jury for the case of the reputation of Thomas Cromwell.

I read Man for All Seasons but don't otherwise know a lot about this time period, so I'm like the perfect stool pigeon to buy the story Wolf Hall is peddling.

I've been watching since I read your post with the assumption that although partisan, the facts presented are essentially true. It's just that the weight given to each part of the story creates a tale designed to mislead. Seeing that mask every now and then slipping by accident is part of the joy of watching. It's become a detective story for me, and makes it several times as interesting.

I almost don't want to know the historical facts. I'd rather let Wolf Hall's argument unfold first, and see how much I'm swayed.

[tealin]

I have nothing to add but

Yes. YEEESSSSS.

Especially paragraph No. 3. This is my great amusement also.

[inevitableentresol]

The setup reminds me of the first time I read the Harry Potter books. As an adult, what really drove me on was less the magical kid shenanigans and more the question of which side Snape was really working for. A little bit of uncertainty and an ambiguous puzzle to unravel turned out to be the key to really hooking my attention.