The Durrells in Corfu: Disappointing on So Many Levels
My husband found this British series on Amazon Prime movies after watching some of it on PBS. The opening title sequence got me interested, so over the past week we have watched the six episodes in the series. That is time I will never get back again, and the only really good thing I can say is that when the prices come down on the original books, which seems to be spiking in popularity, I will have a go at reading one of them. In that way perhaps I can feel somewhat better about the Durrells, who in this series are portrayed as just about the most unlikable family ever.
I can think of three ways that this was disappointing. The first it's hearsay; the other two are from my direct experience.
First, according to reviews on IMDB, the series bears little resemblance to the family in the real book. They did live on Corfu, there were four children, the youngest loved animals and became a naturalist, and he wrote about them. I realize a film version cannot be 100% faithful to a book, but this one is not faithful to the culture and history of that time in such a way that it lacked any credibility for me.
The children's and the mother's behavior exist in some type of time warp. People from 2015 have gone back to 1935 in a traditional society and lived like 2015-ers and unbelievably gotten away with it. The mother talks like a sailor, chases men, is entirely codependent with her children, and makes pretty bad decisions with no regard to ethics all around. The oldest son keeps telling his mother she needs sex, the daughter wears a bathing suit in public, the second son shoots guns randomly, and no one says anything. They are just charmingly eccentric, in a socio-pathological sort of way.
The various misdeeds of this family do not deserve to be recounted here, but the Greeks of the town apparently just find them so wonderful and everyone is their friends, when in reality they would have been shunned. But hey, those crazy Greeks, they love life and whatever they do is fine.
However, the bigger problem is the overall writing. The family has a tragedy or big bad event, and everything comes out perfectly. The oldest son (it's neck and neck to decide which of the two older sons is a bigger douche bag, as my son would say, and they seem to hate each other) gets appendicitis and goes through surgery by non-doctors. The second son is on trial, but it all works out. They are starving to death on an island surrounded by fish. (This really makes no sense). They treat each other like crap but it's ok; everybody makes up at the end and we move on to the next life-threatening struggle that all works out fine.
No one get smarter or grows much or suffers the consequences of their actions although the daughter does get a clue eventually from her relationship with the Countess, which is one of the good parts--seeing Leslie Caron as the aged aristocrat. Her butler was on Downton Abbey playing the same part. The other good part is the scenery. I would love to be there.
The last episode was the most disappointing and downright angering. For most of the series the mother had been chasing a nice-looking Swede named Sven (of course) who is a farmer on the island. He has no back story, so what is this guy doing there? At one point (episode 4) she starts to take his clothes off to have sex with him in broad daylight--yes, a common occurrence in 1935. He proposes and they are supposed to be married. However, the oldest son figures out that Sven is a homosexual but doesn't tell her; while alone in the house, she decides to look into his things and finds photos of him with another man (after she destroys his accordion because she doesn't like accordion music--who does that?) Well, she can't marry a homosexual, although she has no problem with the fact that he is one (say what?) so the wedding is off, but they have a party anyway without much of an explanation and he shows up at the party. So it's all ok again.
I do have to say there was a clue earlier that he might be gay, but it sort of comes out of left field in the last 1/2 of the last episode. He says he came to the island to get away from that part of his life, but he has high end art work of nude men in his house. He wants a married life and he cares for the mother, so he would try to be good at the husband thing. I admit that small piece where she confronts him was well done, but the "we got over that, everything's ok now" arc of the series overwhelms any part where one is impressed.
Every BBC/PBS show has to have a gay plotline somewhere (Grantchester, Downton Abbey, Foyle's War) , and the main characters, because we have to like them, all act like it's ok and they think the laws against homosexuality are awful and they show compassion. That kind of laissez faire acceptance is a stretch of believability. People of that generation didn't even say the word in public (I'm old enough to remember).
The youngest son fares the best and the parts he is in are most enjoyable, although he can be a little twit to his mother. Her children treat her awfully and she takes it on the chin. She can be very vindictive, telling the oldest son's lover girl (who comes from England to visit and apparently stays in the bedroom having sex all the time, another out-of-place bit) that he want to cheat on her. Well, it's all a mess and a big soap opera, so I suggest you don't waste your time on it unless you just want to waste it. Maybe you do. I wish I had read a book instead (I'm reading the Emperor of All Maladies right now, which is excellent).
I can think of three ways that this was disappointing. The first it's hearsay; the other two are from my direct experience.
First, according to reviews on IMDB, the series bears little resemblance to the family in the real book. They did live on Corfu, there were four children, the youngest loved animals and became a naturalist, and he wrote about them. I realize a film version cannot be 100% faithful to a book, but this one is not faithful to the culture and history of that time in such a way that it lacked any credibility for me.
The children's and the mother's behavior exist in some type of time warp. People from 2015 have gone back to 1935 in a traditional society and lived like 2015-ers and unbelievably gotten away with it. The mother talks like a sailor, chases men, is entirely codependent with her children, and makes pretty bad decisions with no regard to ethics all around. The oldest son keeps telling his mother she needs sex, the daughter wears a bathing suit in public, the second son shoots guns randomly, and no one says anything. They are just charmingly eccentric, in a socio-pathological sort of way.
The various misdeeds of this family do not deserve to be recounted here, but the Greeks of the town apparently just find them so wonderful and everyone is their friends, when in reality they would have been shunned. But hey, those crazy Greeks, they love life and whatever they do is fine.
However, the bigger problem is the overall writing. The family has a tragedy or big bad event, and everything comes out perfectly. The oldest son (it's neck and neck to decide which of the two older sons is a bigger douche bag, as my son would say, and they seem to hate each other) gets appendicitis and goes through surgery by non-doctors. The second son is on trial, but it all works out. They are starving to death on an island surrounded by fish. (This really makes no sense). They treat each other like crap but it's ok; everybody makes up at the end and we move on to the next life-threatening struggle that all works out fine.
No one get smarter or grows much or suffers the consequences of their actions although the daughter does get a clue eventually from her relationship with the Countess, which is one of the good parts--seeing Leslie Caron as the aged aristocrat. Her butler was on Downton Abbey playing the same part. The other good part is the scenery. I would love to be there.
The last episode was the most disappointing and downright angering. For most of the series the mother had been chasing a nice-looking Swede named Sven (of course) who is a farmer on the island. He has no back story, so what is this guy doing there? At one point (episode 4) she starts to take his clothes off to have sex with him in broad daylight--yes, a common occurrence in 1935. He proposes and they are supposed to be married. However, the oldest son figures out that Sven is a homosexual but doesn't tell her; while alone in the house, she decides to look into his things and finds photos of him with another man (after she destroys his accordion because she doesn't like accordion music--who does that?) Well, she can't marry a homosexual, although she has no problem with the fact that he is one (say what?) so the wedding is off, but they have a party anyway without much of an explanation and he shows up at the party. So it's all ok again.
I do have to say there was a clue earlier that he might be gay, but it sort of comes out of left field in the last 1/2 of the last episode. He says he came to the island to get away from that part of his life, but he has high end art work of nude men in his house. He wants a married life and he cares for the mother, so he would try to be good at the husband thing. I admit that small piece where she confronts him was well done, but the "we got over that, everything's ok now" arc of the series overwhelms any part where one is impressed.
Every BBC/PBS show has to have a gay plotline somewhere (Grantchester, Downton Abbey, Foyle's War) , and the main characters, because we have to like them, all act like it's ok and they think the laws against homosexuality are awful and they show compassion. That kind of laissez faire acceptance is a stretch of believability. People of that generation didn't even say the word in public (I'm old enough to remember).
The youngest son fares the best and the parts he is in are most enjoyable, although he can be a little twit to his mother. Her children treat her awfully and she takes it on the chin. She can be very vindictive, telling the oldest son's lover girl (who comes from England to visit and apparently stays in the bedroom having sex all the time, another out-of-place bit) that he want to cheat on her. Well, it's all a mess and a big soap opera, so I suggest you don't waste your time on it unless you just want to waste it. Maybe you do. I wish I had read a book instead (I'm reading the Emperor of All Maladies right now, which is excellent).
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