The quiet power of this television series caught me by surprise and I was hooked by the end of the first episode. It's also quite different from most mainstream TV series out there in terms of its subject matter. Yes - it's based on a real-life event, but more than that, it's a fantastic adaptation of the Margaret Atwood novel. it's provocative and will make you think about the nature versus nurture issue as well as the injustices women and girl must endure to live and survive in a man's world. That being said, you don't have to have read the novel to enjoy or understand this series.
There are multiple layers to this story: on one level Alias Grace is a psychological thriller and crime story, but also an examination of the injustices perpetrated by the ruling classes against the poor, immigrants and the downtrodden in 19th Century Canada. What struck me the most, though is Atwood's message about the treatment of women and girls at the hands of men and the male ruling elite. Although women and women's rights have made great strides in recent decades, on some levels, not much has changed. Women still suffer sexual harassment in the workplace - much like Grace and other servants do in the story.
The beauty of this series is that it doesn't hammer the viewer with any of these issues but rather lets the story interpretation speaks for itself. The topic is not only disturbing but there is a powerful aura of mystery surrounding both Grace and her story. You aren't sure what to believe and the director and script ensure this mystery and suspense are sustained throughout. Furthermore, this series is also thoughtful and realistic in its portrayal of an era and of the inequalities and suffering of the servant class.
I read the novel shortly after it was published and it's not surprising that this and Atwood's other novel, "The Handmaid's Tale" is currently a powerful and gripping TV series. While Atwood is a literary star in her native Canada, she does not have a large international following outside of literary circles. Like The Handmaids Tale, Alias Grace is about the injustices of being born female in a male-dominated society, whether the ruling classes hijack women's reproduction or their sexuality, a woman can never feel safe in a male-dominated world that is also enforced by females. (The character played by Anna Paquin comes to mind). The real theme in this story is about survival and what people will do in order to survive.
The story also examines some of the social trends regarding mental illness and trauma that were precursors to modern psychiatric medicine prior to Freud and Jung, such as the growing popularity and belief in seances to contact the dead, hypnotism and other forms of the paranormal practiced among the merchant and wealthy social classes both in Europe and North America. Juxtaposed with these trends is the character of Dr. Jordan, who is a forerunner of modern psychiatric medicine in terms of his approach. He gets Grace to talk about her life as a servant girl and woman - and he also encourages her to revisit the trauma of the murder itself. However, his goal is not to judge her - as he mentions several times throughout the series - but to determine from a medical standpoint, what was her state of mind that leads to the committing of the murder.
The main character, Grace, is a complex study in not only the human mind and its darker recesses but also the power of the survival instinct in all of us. Sarah Gadon plays her brilliantly: Grace is both modest but cunning; verbally witty but also withdrawn; traumatized but spunky. It takes a great actor to pull off this kind of character complexity and Gadon's performance is stellar. She also manages to create an aura of mystery surrounding Grace, which is a key element to her character and to the viewer wondering: is she really guilty or an unfortunate victim of gender, social class and circumstance?
I give this series a 9 out of 10. It's not often you find a great novel to film adaptation. This is one of them.
There are multiple layers to this story: on one level Alias Grace is a psychological thriller and crime story, but also an examination of the injustices perpetrated by the ruling classes against the poor, immigrants and the downtrodden in 19th Century Canada. What struck me the most, though is Atwood's message about the treatment of women and girls at the hands of men and the male ruling elite. Although women and women's rights have made great strides in recent decades, on some levels, not much has changed. Women still suffer sexual harassment in the workplace - much like Grace and other servants do in the story.
The beauty of this series is that it doesn't hammer the viewer with any of these issues but rather lets the story interpretation speaks for itself. The topic is not only disturbing but there is a powerful aura of mystery surrounding both Grace and her story. You aren't sure what to believe and the director and script ensure this mystery and suspense are sustained throughout. Furthermore, this series is also thoughtful and realistic in its portrayal of an era and of the inequalities and suffering of the servant class.
I read the novel shortly after it was published and it's not surprising that this and Atwood's other novel, "The Handmaid's Tale" is currently a powerful and gripping TV series. While Atwood is a literary star in her native Canada, she does not have a large international following outside of literary circles. Like The Handmaids Tale, Alias Grace is about the injustices of being born female in a male-dominated society, whether the ruling classes hijack women's reproduction or their sexuality, a woman can never feel safe in a male-dominated world that is also enforced by females. (The character played by Anna Paquin comes to mind). The real theme in this story is about survival and what people will do in order to survive.
The story also examines some of the social trends regarding mental illness and trauma that were precursors to modern psychiatric medicine prior to Freud and Jung, such as the growing popularity and belief in seances to contact the dead, hypnotism and other forms of the paranormal practiced among the merchant and wealthy social classes both in Europe and North America. Juxtaposed with these trends is the character of Dr. Jordan, who is a forerunner of modern psychiatric medicine in terms of his approach. He gets Grace to talk about her life as a servant girl and woman - and he also encourages her to revisit the trauma of the murder itself. However, his goal is not to judge her - as he mentions several times throughout the series - but to determine from a medical standpoint, what was her state of mind that leads to the committing of the murder.
The main character, Grace, is a complex study in not only the human mind and its darker recesses but also the power of the survival instinct in all of us. Sarah Gadon plays her brilliantly: Grace is both modest but cunning; verbally witty but also withdrawn; traumatized but spunky. It takes a great actor to pull off this kind of character complexity and Gadon's performance is stellar. She also manages to create an aura of mystery surrounding Grace, which is a key element to her character and to the viewer wondering: is she really guilty or an unfortunate victim of gender, social class and circumstance?
I give this series a 9 out of 10. It's not often you find a great novel to film adaptation. This is one of them.