The Pillars of the Earth

Does anyone have the Starz channel besides Dezmond and myself? If so you should check out the special they've been airing on Friday nights this summer. It's a mini-series adaption of a great novel from the 80s called The Pillars of the Earth, which was written by Ken Follett.

It's a Scott Free production which if you aren't familiar with the company simply means that the Scott brothers, Ridley and Tony of Blade Runner, Gladiator and American Gangster fame are executive producers. That doesn't mean much artistically since neither one of them directed or produced the films or wrote the screenplay, but their involvement is evident in the attention to detail. It's a television production so of course there is not the big budget feel of a Hollywood blockbuster, but the plot of Pillars is too convoluted for a 2-3 hour film anyway.

If you've never read the book I would definitely suggest it. I haven't read it for years but I do recall enjoying it quite a bit. Ken Follett isn't the greatest wordsmith ever. His prose doesn't flow like McCarthy's or resonate like Tolkien's, and his dialogue does not have the snap of a Leonard or Price, but what he can do, and what he does VERY well is craft memorable characters who he intertwines into the most epic, complex and thrilling plots.

Much of his work is historical fiction but he is probably most famous for Eye of the Needle and On Wings of Eagles. It's not highly literary work but the books have been very commercially successful and the ones that I have read have all been fun, engrossing stories. But anyway, back to the TV version.

I especially enjoy the cast in this adaptation. It stars some well known character actors but only Donald Sutherland is famous, and he only has a small role in the beginning. Some of the other actors whose portrayal's I've been enjoying are:

Ian McShane, as Bishop Waleran.
Rufus Sewell, as Tom Builder.
Matthew MacFayden, as Prior Philip.
Hayley Atwell, as Aliena.
and Eddie Redmayne, as Jack.

Of course this is not the greatest show ever. It's certainly not as exciting as True Blood, as funny as Glee, or as entertaining as Entourage, but it is good, and it's historically educational and not so violent that we can't watch it with our older daughter, who loves it. If you have Starz and you enjoy political intrigue involving the church and crown set in the Middle Ages I suggest you check this show out.