ARTHUR
& GEORGE (2015) British TV mini-series Director(s): Stuart Orme Writer(s): Julian Barnes, Ed Whitmore Cast: Martin Clunes, Arsher Ali, Charles Edwards,
Art Malik… Motion Picture Rating (MPAA): PG-13 Runtime: 240
minutes (Three 60-minute episodes) Genres: Crime drama/Mystery List Price: $17.45 (DVD) $25.48 (Blu-ray) Reviewed by Cherie Jung George Edalji (Arsher Ali), a young Parsee solicitor
served a jail sentence for writing threatening notes and mutilating farm
animals. Now he is seeking assistance from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Martin
Clunes) to clear his name and restore his reputation so that he may once again
be licensed to practice law. Unable to settle down to writing “The Wisteria
Lodge,” his next Sherlock Holmes adventure, Sir Arthur takes on the case and
immediately pronounces George’s innocence to his secretary, “Woodie” Alfred
Wood (Charles Edwards). He proclaims the arrest and trial were a sham, and a
vaguely concealed racist attack on George. He suspects and insinuates that the
cops in the district were derelict in their duty, rushed to judgment without
sufficient evidence, and/or were corrupt; or at least some of them were
corrupt. Sir Arthur is determined to rectify what he perceives was a
miscarriage of justice, just as he imagines his famed detective would. Woodie becomes Watson to Sir Arthur’s Sherlock. They head to the countryside of Great Wyrley,
Staffordshire. Sir Arthur’s “butting his nose in where it’s not
wanted” has unforeseen and dire consequences. Plus, the more Sir Arthur and
Woodie investigate, the more it looks like George was actually guilty. I am a fan of Jeremy Brett’s portrayal of Sherlock
Holmes and was pleasantly surprised that Arthur
& George captured the same feel as the Holmes tales in the PBS series
starring Jeremy Brett. I know little
about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle but I found the idea intriguing that the writer
would jump into an investigation as if becoming his famous detective, accompanied
in his exploits by his secretary, Mr. Wood. The three-part series held my
attention and entertained me throughout. While Arthur
& George is based on the novelization of a true incident involving Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle, I would enjoy seeing this duo (Martin Clunes and Charles
Edwards) reprise their roles in further adventures, though I realize they would
have to be totally fictional cases next time around. Arthur & George first aired on ITV in Britain then later on Masterpiece: Mystery! on PBS. Copyright © 2017 Cherie Jung. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of the author is prohibited. OMDB! and OMDB! logos are trademarks of Over My Dead Body! Read older movie reviews |