Parade's End (2012) User Reviews (50)

Parade's End (BBC2) – Review

[mail-479-241123 · 7/10 · 18 September 2012]

Parade's End is Tom Stoppard's new adaption of Ford Madox Ford's First World War novel. One knew it was going to be good as soon as one noticed that the novelist's first and last name were the same – a sure sign of a serious and thoughtful writer.

The series stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Christopher Tietjens – a tightly wound, deeply honourable English gentlemen with an annoying penchant for not having sex with beautiful women who want to have sex with him. They pursue him, they flirt with him, they sometimes get down on their knees and beg him, but old Christopher doesn't want to know. He is far too busy being tightly wound and deeply honourable.

Directly by Susannah White, Parade's End is BBC costume drama at its most costumy, with plenty of expensive tweed, pinched in waistlines, and heaving powdered cleavage.

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Cumberbatch must have watched many thousands of hours of Edward Fox movies, as he seems to have perfectly mastered Fox's uniquely contorted lower facial expression – that of pressing one's lips together and using one's cheek muscles to somehow force one's down-turned mouth painfully southwards towards the chin.

Rebecca Hall, (daughter of Sir Peter) plays Tietjens' beautiful but sex-starved socialite wife, who on one occasion strips naked in front of her husband, only to be told that he can't bear to turn away from the wall and look at her. On another occasion the poor woman is so desperate for intercourse that she jumps into a taxi in London, drives hundreds of miles to where he is fighting in France, and practically throws herself on top of him in the trenches. Meanwhile, Christopher's sagging mouth slides further and further down his face as he daydreams about his beautiful suffragette admirer Valentine (Adelaide Clemens), and what it might be like to not have sex with her again when he returns home to Blighty.

Clearly Parade's End is intelligent, beautifully crafted drama, without the TV soap-like qualities of the more mainstream Downton Abbey, and Benedict Cumberbatch is destined to become one of our finest serious actors. That is, of course, if he manages to avoid being cast as Doctor Who.

Impressive

[ferdinand1932 · 8/10 · 24 September 2012]

The first thing about this series is that the photography and production design is sumptuous and stunning. Even if the story and characters were of no interest, the visual appeal of this is memorable.

The only strange thing in this aspect of the production is that the music in scenes for the parties is jazz - 1920s sounding jazz. It is very odd and historically inaccurate for the social status of the story as jazz entered England in 1919, apparently.

As to the core of it, well, it is an abbreviated working of a complex set of novels written in a certain way and Stoppard has done well with the time limits etc of the medium. It works but one is always aware of what is being abridged to make it fit.

Cumberbatch is the most intense, internal English leading man in a long while and seems to have borrowed Jeremy Irons's mandible crunching pensiveness. But he is absolutely right here.

Hall as Sylvia Tietjens is ravishing and confused in right order. Her performance is entitled' and arrogant, though it might be a bit too modern in its overtness.

Highly recommended.

Tom Stoppard adaptation of Ford Maddox Ford novel

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 1 March 2013]

"Parade's End" is a five-part miniseries from England starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Rebecca Hall, Rupert Everett, Miranda Richardson, and Janet McTeer. Based on the novel by Ford Maddox Ford, the script was written by Tom Stoppard.

The story is about the British upper class pre- and during World War I, focusing on Christopher Tietjens (Cumberbatch) and his wife Sylvia (Rebecca Hall). Christopher is an honorable man and extremely repressed, it seems - he won't sleep with the woman he loves (Adelaide Clemens) because he's married, but then he's not sleeping with his wife, who has been unfaithful to him and may or may not have given birth to their son.

Tietjens eventually joins the war office rather than staying in safety because he considers it more honest than what he's being asked to do at his job as a government statistician.

I didn't read the book -- according to the reviews, the role of Sylvia is not supposed to be sympathetic, and Rebecca Hall has been criticized for this. I would submit it's not her fault, it's the director's - I'm sure she could have acted the role any way she was requested to do it.

The director cast young Adelaide Clemens as Tietjens' would-be mistress, though their relationship isn't consummated before or during the war. I have to agree with reviews, for a suffragette, she's pretty vapid.

Benedict Cumberbatch is one of the greatest actors today, and again, as reviews have pointed out, he has now achieved matinée idol status. Originally HBO did not want him in this series because they didn't know who he was; by the time the series was ready to be filmed, they said it had to be with Benedict or they wouldn't do it! Christopher isn't supposed to be a matinée idol - he's described as bulky and unattractive. Cumberbatch gained weight for the role to make himself look a little bigger, though by no means bulky, and he wore inserts in his face to kill those incredibly high cheekbones. He also does something with the jaw area - he had jowls and an unusual way of using his mouth, which has been compared to Edward Fox's and Jeremy Irons' jaw movements. It's part of his characterization, so he actually doesn't look like the dashing Sherlock, between that, his weight, and his lighter hair. He's also lowered his voice, which was pretty low to begin with.

All in all, it's a brilliant performance. He really is a true chameleon. Christopher, however, to Americans anyway, is difficult to understand with his uptightness and his honor, just like one lost patience with Ashley Wilkes and his mixed messages to Scarlett.

And since Cumberbatch is now a matinée idol and if you're a woman, what you're waiting for is some sex and boy, there wasn't much of that, though we did get to see his bare chest when his shirt was open. Wow. We who have seen him do love scenes, such as in The Last Enemy, were left pretty much like Sylvia -- frustrated.

There are some beautiful scenes and some very gritty war scenes, plus lots of symbolism to be had. This series has been compared to Downton Abbey but it is in no way a soap opera. It's much more subtle; it moves slowly, as that way of life did, with everything looking good on the surface but bubbling with scandal and problems underneath.

A great effort that succeeds in part, with some wonderful acting.

Huge rendition of WWI British society

[vlad-leu-506-625642 · 10/10 · 20 December 2015]

I personally doubt that keywords such as 'love triangle' or 'suffragette' do any justice to this excellent rendition of Ford's novel. Christopher Tietjens' so very noble, honorable and occasionally heroic behaviour in every aspect of his intentions and actions, as well as the overall background of WWI petty intrigues, the so vivid rendition of the atrocious human suffering & desperation on the front line are the true show stealer. Excellent performances by all cast, in particular Benedict Cumberbatch (huge in his role !!!), Rebecca Hall and Adelaide Clemens... Oops ! This is the very 'love triangle' I was arguing against just a few seconds ago... One more actor who's absolutely perfect in his role is Roger Allam, as General Campion. Drawing the line: viewers of all ages and every level of education should find this series to match every bit of their expectations... Irrespective whether these rather look towards the 'love triangle'... or they go much deeper into psychoanalysis of intimate family, friendship, love relations or the noblesse of human behaviour under deeply stressful conditions. Today's human society is in serious need of individuals such as Christopher Tietjens... (not really the 'last' parade... I hope...). Highly recommended, absolutely nothing is obsolete or worthless in this movie rendition of British society during the WWI years !

One of the best TV adaptations of a literary classic, ever!

[The_late_Buddy_Ryan · 9/10 · 14 February 2014]

I'm sure that HBO marketing execs were relieved that, if they were going to get behind a 5-part series based on Ford Madox Ford's complex and not terribly well known 20th-century masterpiece, at least some of it would be set in a stately home in the north of England, like that other show about the downtown abbey.

Ford's a great one for interior monologue and multiple points of view and such, but Tom Stoppard's masterly adaptation channels the great muddy river of his prose into a lively, involving narrative—though there's still enough time-shifting and flashbacking, even some Eisenstein-style montage, to do honor to Ford's avant-garde intentions. Considering what difficult material he's dealing with, it's one of the best TV adaptations ever!

Benedict Cumberbatch has always done well in period films, and he seems like the only possible choice for Christopher Tietjens, a self-styled 18th-century gentleman (the time period of the series is roughly 1908-19) and omniscient civil servant, but obstinate, brusque and arrogant as well (maybe even a little like Sherlock?). Rebecca Hall is riveting and surprisingly sympathetic as Tietjens's deceitful wife, Sylvia, and Aussie actress Adelaide Clemens is a revelation as Valentine, the virginal suffragette he meets and falls in love with in two of the series's most powerful scenes. (Tietjens and Sylvia, though usually at cross-purposes, are determined not to divorce—it's complicated….)

Tietjens is described by one of his wife's admirers as a "bloody great bolster" of a man—BC didn't have time to bulk up for the part, obviously—but he emerges as a poignant, even romantic, figure, with only the memory of the night he falls in love with Valentine to sustain him through six years of frustration, disappointment and danger. Perhaps it's easy to see why some viewers didn't find this storyline or this character very "relatable."

Long story short, '"Parade's End" isn't as accessible as an original costume drama devised for a contemporary audience, like "Downton," but it's decidedly worth watching. We didn't have a problem with BC's enunciation, but some of the dialogue, especially in the scenes with excited Welsh soldiers in the trenches, is admittedly not so easy to follow. (Next time we'll try the subtitles.) Great cinematography; kudos to the first-rate British cast, with special mention to Stephen Graham as Tietjens's fair-weather friend Macmasters and Rufus Sewell in a Pythonesque turn as a sex-crazed clergyman. An interview with Stoppard on disc two sheds some light on his process.

First-class drama, outstanding, unusual, rewarding.

[alfa-16 · 19 September 2012]

Not since A Dance to the Music of Time has such a stellar cast been allied to such an artful and unusual script.

Ford Madox Ford is not a popular novelist. His work often approaches its subjects on an elliptical curve, his principal characters are seldom in the mainstream of society, forming odd relationships, requiring his audience to assimilate their understanding of them over the course of a whole work rather than categorise from their experience (or jump to conclusions based on genre). This explains why we don't see his work adapted very often. Or even at all.

Susanna White and Tom Stoppard have both grasped the nettle of demonstrating this sideways approach, though I'm not sure quite so many kaleidoscopic shots were necessary to drive the point home. Benedict Cumberbatch joins in, underlining his character's isolation with some rather off-putting facial gestures. Ronald Hines played Tietjens in the now lost 1960's adaptation and casting to type may have worked better than struggling with toning down the matinée idol status Cumberbatch has acquired since hitting Sherlock Holmes out of the park. Maybe if he and Stephen Graham had swapped roles the other characters might have found it easier to deal with Tietjens' self-enforced oddity but that may have impaired Ford's central point, beautifully delivered as the the climax to Episode 4.

But acting idiosyncrasies cannot mask the quality of the fabulous script or the overall adaptation which has a towering performance from Rebecca Hall and glittering additions from Rufus Sewell, Rupert Everett, Miranda Richardson, Roger Allam, Ann-Marie Duff and beautiful, note-perfect newcomer Adele Clemens.

With so much glossy soap about, it is extremely refreshing to have high quality, thought-provoking, challenging drama this good whatever the lead chooses to do with his jaw muscles.

A keeper.

Patience will be rewarded.

[prashant-63677 · 7/10 · 4 June 2022]

The show was a very intelligent yet slow paced adaptation of very high quality source material. Sometimes I got impatient in certain episodes, but am glad that I stayed the course. Benedict cumberbatch was OUTSTANDING in the role. Just brilliant. His expressions, that quiver of emotion...it said much more than words. There were some deep moments, very poignant as well. Some witty ones also. I would have rated it 7.5 if option was there. Just stay with this show, it will be a rewarding experience.

Outstanding Drama

[spambouk1000 · 10/10 · 3 March 2013]

This is an impressive adaptation. It is obscure in many ways, but that is, I think, the point. An old-fashioned, decent Englishman, Christopher, has a fling with an aristocrat on a train, Sylvia, and this sets both of them on a downward spiral. Why did they do it? Why do people get mixed up with the absolute wrong person? I think their attraction is that they are both completely outdated types: She is the worst of a selfish, dissolute aristocracy, who gets its way through clubby connections and manipulation. He is the best of the old ways: honorable and self-denying. She sees his value as nobody else does and she uses her nasty, underhanded tactics to defend him as much as to corrupt him. He on the contrary uses his code to admire her as much as repress her. It is the last gasp of Old England. Complicating the story is Valentine, the suffragette. She is truthful, unselfish and decent to others, like Crissy (as they call him), but she hates the old ways and offer him a choice. Is there a place for such values in the dawning 20th century? The stories about corrupt government ministers, crazy churchmen, nasty adulterers, cruel gossips and the horror of WWI unfolds against this basic conflict between the dying gentlemanly code and the unfolding new century. Benedict Cumberbatch is outstanding as Christopher: he always balances the exterior coldness and interior passion, and we can like him without sharing his dated beliefs. Rebecca Hall also does a lot with Sylvia, who could have been a cheating nasty B but shows us how much she hopes for love and is unable to find it in the narrow upper-class world.

This series demands that the viewer do the work. It never plays down to the audience, and I'm glad of it. It's worth pondering why people make the choices they do, especially under the pressure of a World War. Really top-notch.

Is this a parody or what?

[percyporcelain · 7/10 · 26 October 2020]

Look, I'm usually a sucker for the stiff-upper-lip emotionally repressed English costume drama, but this one seems to be taking the mickey. Cumberbatch is faintly ridiculous, as is his trollop of a wife, while the young Suffragette with whom he is infatuated is scarcely adolescent and certainly not very characterful, which makes him seem more than a little creepy. Ann-Marie Duff is miscast as the neglected wife of a perverted vicar, while Miranda Richardson does her usual Queenie thing while Rupert Everett skulks around being homoerotically ambiguous. Hard to take it all seriously, and even Brits will struggle with some of the dialogue, especially Cumberbatch's aristocratic circumlocutions.

Subtle Brilliance

[sridhar-e · 10/10 · 1 November 2012]

I don't like watching series or movies based on the wars but I watched this because of Benedict Cumberbatch and I have fallen in love with this series. I have not read the novels or have any idea about the writer but if the books are even half as good as the TV adaptation, they must be a must- read. Christopher Teijens is a brilliant, very committed and decent gentleman. He has a wife who cheats on him and he is love with a girl. At the backdrop is the world war 1. If you are looking for a story, there is not much of it but the true star of the show is the direction, cinematography, amazingly poetic dialogues and unblemished acting by the whole cast. The music compliments the settings and the backdrop very well. Benedict Cumberbatch has shown the world how talented he is. Flawless acting, deep emotions and superb voice modulations. Rebecca Hall and Adelaide Clemens have made the characters of Sylvia and valentine unforgettable.

Don't watch this if you are a fan of fast paced action. This is for patient, connoisseurs of literature and romantics. Watch it for intelligent viewership.

Unsatisfying

[steven-222 · 6/10 · 5 October 2012]

Scene for scene, there's some beautiful writing here, but the overall exposition is obscure, and becomes more so as the story progresses; the significance and relationships of some of the secondary characters remained murky to me throughout, as did the workings of the ruling class and the military command structure of the time.

The mood also seemed to fluctuate. The first episode was brilliant, funny, sometimes breathtaking; after that, the story just seemed to become cluttered with weak subplots, while the motivations of our hero and his wife seemed either implausible or simply uninteresting; as the story progressed, these characters became less fascinating to me, not more. Only the suffragette Valentine Wannop retained my interest and sympathy.

I think it's very hard for filmmakers to capture the "tone" of these poignant/satirical British novels of the first half of the 20th century. Charles Sturridge seemed to pull it off with "A Handful for Dust," but not with "Where Angels Fear to Tread." Merchant and Ivory managed it with "A Room With a View." This production succeeds in fits and starts, but by the closing credits I was left unsatisfied and glad to be done with it.

Needed 10 episodes to do justice to Ford Maddox Ford

[ezshuter · 10/10 · 15 March 2013]

An outstanding series for the director and all actors. Having read the four books by Ford Maddox Ford, I was disappointed so much good material was not included in the script. Considerable history of Christopher's family, for which he was so fiercely devoted, was not included. Christopher's personality would be more understandable to an audience if they knew more about him. Young Valentine was not developed as a character nearly as fully as I would have hoped. I wanted more, I tell you, far more....this wonderful novel deserved 10 episodes to do it justice.

The acting, photography, costumes and sets are superb. Rebecca Hall was perfect. Americans like myself will struggle with the sound and the actor's words now and then. However, that provides an excuse to watch the series repeatedly until satisfied. Thank you for this wonderful production.

Surprisingly Powerful and Sympathetic Costume Drama

[l_rawjalaurence · 7/10 · 2 August 2014]

Set in the early twentieth century, PARADE'S END revolves round a love-triangle involving Christopher Tietjens (Benedict Cumberbatch), his wife Sylvia (Rebecca Hall) and Tietjens' mistress Valentine Wannop (Adelaide Clemens). With a screenplay ably written by Tom Stoppard, director Susanna White situates this story in the repressive world of bourgeois England, where appearances matter and emotions should be kept hidden at all costs. So long as people "seem" to be respectable, then everyone will be happy. Tietjens tries his best to maintain such (false) standards, but the experience proves too much for him, especially in the later episodes when he goes to fight in France and falls foul of just about everyone. In Hall's performance, Sylvia reminds me of the characters in Scott Fitzgerald's THE GREAT GATSBY in the sense that she seems hell-bent on destroying those around her. She refuses to play the social games required of her, and spends much of her time deceiving her husband. Valentine remains faithful throughout despite her mother's (Miranda Richardson's) entreaties, proving beyond doubt that love can conquer all. Martin Childs' production design is a wonder to behold, particularly in the scenes set in the First World War, where he manages to recreate the atmosphere of desperate squalor in the trenches, contrasted with the elaborate formality of life back in Groby Hall, Yorkshire. In the context of the First World War, British bourgeois life in the Hall seems symptomatic of a lost world. In the new world following the conclusion of the War, the characters can no longer rely on old certainties; they have to determine their own lives. Cumberbatch is particularly good at communicating this altered view: through a series of close-ups we watch his features harden as he finally rejects Sylvia and embraces a new life in his deserted London apartment. It might not have the opulence of his past life, but at least he can be himself. The narrative zips along at a brisk pace, offering viewers a lesson in changing values in British history as well as telling a thoroughly compelling tale. Definitely worth repeated viewings.

Parade's endless

[Lejink · 4/10 · 1 November 2012]

I read Ford Madox Ford's most celebrated novel "The Good Soldier" only last year and came to this dramatisation of his "Parade's End" with a good degree of expectation, tempered by some reservations about the anticipated over-writing by Tom Stoppard in bringing it to the small-screen. Reservations because I knew in advance that every character would be miraculously blessed with extreme loquaciousness, with almost no room for the plain everyday conversation that surely made even the Edwardian world go round, particularly in the trenches. Thus even ordinary soldiers in the heat of battle boast about their skill in translating sonnets into Latin pentameter, that most mundane of talents! At another point, Benedict Cumberbutch's Christopher Tiejens' character's young lover Valentine declares that their love is "like literature", which was probably the most opaque of a whole army (pun intended) of similarly opaque phrases proffered here.

As for the characters, I found them too many and too shallow and callow. I couldn't imagine cold-fish Tiejiens having an impulsive stays-busting romp in a train carriage with the venal but voluptuous Victoria, who, we learn later, uses her soon-afterwards child-birth as the means to trap him into marriage, for a child who isn't his. Other characters come and go, a mixture of the snobbish, the eccentric and the parasitic, individuals amongst them often re-emerging at the least expected moment, which for my money didn't help the narrative.

Acting wise, I found Cumberbutch underwhelming as the central character in the drama. He can do stiff upper lip crossed with pained guilt but little in-between. Rebecca Hall as his harlot of a wife does better as the promiscuous go-getter while Adelaide Clemens as his too obviously boyish-looking suffragette mistress never once appears natural and likewise fails to project her grand passion which supposedly outlasts the war.

The war scenes themselves are magnificently rendered in their realism and horror. I just wish that some of that realism had extended deeper into this drama of upper-class nabobs the likes of which I couldn't give a damn about.

Riveting performances by leads Rebecca Hall and Benedict Cumberbatch

[literacy2007 · 10/10 · 20 September 2012]

Before "Parade's End," Rebecca Hall and Benedict Cumberbatch were last paired professionally in an unassuming romantic comedy called "Starter for 10," a film anchored by their friend James McAvoy. All three played university students. Although each turned in a good performance, the roles were not ones that required much acting range. In Parade's End, however, the roles of Sylvia and Christopher Tietjens allow both Hall and Cumberbatch to flex their considerable acting muscles. When both are in a scene, the scene is so riveting that it is hard to know which actor to watch.

Over the years, the 36-year-old Cumberbatch has built an impressive portfolio of work. He has been accurately described as a chameleon. He so completely invests himself in a role that it is sometimes hard to recognize the actor behind the character.

As Sylvia Tietjens, wife of wealthy landowner Christopher Tietjens, Hall holds her own against Cumberbatch. Her Sylvia is smart, narcissistic, beautiful, lusty, manipulative, and utterly fascinating. Her rival, suffragette Valentine Wannop, pales in comparison. While the younger Valentine is sweet, loyal, and plucky, she doesn't have Sylvia's fire.

Which woman will Christopher choose? You'll have to watch the series to find out. Along the way, you'll enjoy not only the performances of the three principal actors, but also the performances of a wonderful ensemble of able actors, including Rupert Everett, Anne-Marie Duff (coincidentally, the wife of James McAvoy, who joined Hall and Cumberbatch in "Starter for 10"), and others.

Loved it!

[maria-prokaeva · 9/10 · 31 August 2015]

I had mixed feelings when I started watching the BBC drama. Having read some comments I had some fears. One of them was that I expected the series to be some kind of copy-paste of Downton Abbey. It wasn't. It is more subtle, evolves more slowly and has an almost inaudible air of pain and suffering. I couldn't help but compare it to Maughem's "The Painted Veil" that tells the story of a couple - a flippant wife of a doctor who is intellectually superior to her but too noble and and at the same time too proud to divorce her for betrayal. This story might seem similar however it has a greater depth. It's not only a man's parade trying to stand for what he truly believes in and finding himself abandoned by life and failing as a man. It's a vivid portrayal of virtues that are believed to be outdated but are in fact so modern and thoroughly relevant to today. And that's what salvages these series from being just another costume drama.

What surprised me most about the drama was Benedict Cumberbatch's performance. He has an incredible acting prowess to play roles that are so different from him. There is no Benedict neither in Sherlock nor in Mr Tiejens. He completely vanishes within the characters he plays altering his movements, speaking, laughing, joking etc. It's interesting to note what Benedict said speaking about the role "Christopher has many admirable qualities I'd like to siphon off into my life."

I believe Mr Tiejens is one of Benedict's best roles. He uses his voice like an instrument tuning it sometimes so deep and strong and sometimes subtle and gentle. It's an astonishing performance that definitely transcends TV dramas.

Period Drama which may be slow but worth it

[rahulgreenday8 · 28 September 2015]

Christopher Tietjens is a man of immense character. He does what is right and what tradition demands of him. He is the sort of person you can expect to back upon, whether one is cheating wife, an untrustworthy friend or a fellow soldier. The plot revolves around what are his limits, how much can he bear his cheating wife, how much can he trust his emotions about a simple minded sorta rebellious girl who makes an unexpected arrival in his life. After all he is the last man at the end of parade of honorable men. Damn if he does damn if he don't. Watching this series is like reading the book. You want to keep it down because it may not go where you expect or want to go but you want to know how much Tiejens can take it further. You feel sorry for the fellow. It does justice to the book. Acting is brilliant, characters do come to life especially of Silvia who is played by Rebecca Hall, Benedict is awesome as he usually is. Pace is very slow but it does capture the emotion behind the plot. I Would recommend you to watch it if you haven't read the book.

Times Are Changing - The Parade's End

[VickiHopkins · 7/10 · 21 September 2014]

Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch (yes, that's his full name) has been busy. Between filming episodes of Sherlock Holmes, he worked elsewhere starring in this interesting and entertaining series entitled Parade's End. The story is based on a series of novels by Ford Maddox Ford.

Benedict plays the character of Christopher Tietjens in five episodes. After one indiscretion, his life takes an unexpected turn when he meets a woman on a train. She seduces him, and they end up copulating quite wildly in their private quarters. He deposits his seed into Sylvia on a one-train stand and ends up marrying her after she declares the child in her pregnant womb belongs to him. The entire affair is questionable because of her many lovers, but Christoper does what he does best--the right and proper thing.

He is not a man that is necessarily well liked and is socially awkward. The relationship with his family members is poor, he's the object of gossip, and appears to have trouble communicating his feelings. However, he is intelligent, and works at the Imperial Department of Statistics crunching numbers. In his spare time, he reads the encyclopedia and jots down corrections to the content in the sidelines of the book.

Sylvia, on the other hand, is quite the opposite. She's not exactly the stellar wife. To her shame she parties, flirts with men, and ends up having an extramarital affair. She blames her motives for living on the wild side on Christopher, who is the picture of perfection. She loathes him and his values, and is determined to destroy him one way or the other. In fact, she seems to treat all her men with disdain. When she leaves Christoper for another man because she's bored, abandoning even her son, Christopher keeps the proverbial stiff upper lip and parades before society, friends, and family that all is well. He refuses to divorce, because he's a good Catholic. You just don't do those things. You bear it. Live with it. And parade onward.

However, during his wife's escapades with another man, Christopher meets Valentine Wannop, played by Adelaide Clemens. She is young, intelligent, and a suffragette. It's one of those love at first sight moments for the two of them. Unfortunately, he's too proper to do anything about it even though they keep running into each other exchanging heartfelt glances and having pleasant conversation. When they are not in each other presence, they daydream of being lovers, but Christopher cannot cross that line.

Eventually, Sylvia returns to Christopher, after having a spot of remorse. She turns to religion, though you don't believe there's an ounce of purity in her conniving mind.

World War I breaks out, and the series takes a diversion toward wartime and life in the trenches. However, during this period of time, Christopher begins to change for the better. He becomes a stronger man who leads, and finally realizes that times are changing. It's no longer necessary to parade around as if life is peachy and all can be handled. The parade has ended, and he needs to do what is right for him as an individual--even if that means making immoral choices in order to find love and happiness.

It's a fairly good series, and you'll find that Benedict is not the Sherlock Holmes you know. The portrayal of this character is vastly different, but also extremely convincing and well done. He looks rather dashing in his military uniform with blond hair. You'll also enjoy the Edwardian fashions worn by Sylvia, the manipulating wife.

Parade's End is streaming on Amazon Prime for free. You might want to check it out. Only negative point is that I don't seem to be the only one complaining that you cannot understand what is being said about 10% of the time. Sometimes Benedict talks very fast, and it's difficult to catch the words with that thick British accent. On the other hand, it just might be poor sound quality on behalf of the producers of this film.

Beautiful...

[joyfuljaymac · 8/10 · 21 October 2013]

Parades end is an adaption of the tetralogy by Ford Madox Ford. It follows the love triangle between the old-fashioned Christopher Tiejens, His vindictive wife Sylvia and a young suffragette called Valentine Wannop during world war one, with Europe on the brink of change. As war comes upon them, Christopher enrolls in the army to help his country, he soon must decide who he wants to spend the remainder of his life with his wife, whose son may or may not be his from her numerous affairs, or Valentine, who would do nothing to hurt him.

Benedict gives an outstanding performance as Christopher, you completely forget about him as Sherlock as you see him take on a brand new character. You really feel for him, as he loves his son so much but has doubts whether he's his or not. You feel yourself routing for him to leave Sylvia but he won't as he is too much of a gentlemen to leave his wife penniless in the street.

Rebecca Hall plays his wife, Sylvia. She has a number of affairs which she brings up to annoy Christopher,She also goes out with other men in order to get a reaction from him but he never reply's. Hall does a brilliant job as a character you just love to hate. You will find yourself yelling at the screen at her.

Adelaide Clemens also brings her game as Valentine Wannop, the feisty, free spirited suffragette. She plays the character beautifully as she has a hidden love for someone she can't have, which many of us can relate to. You so want her to get together with Christopher, you will literally pull your hair out with the antagonizing waiting game.

This is another example of Original British Drama a it's best. It's beautifully shoot, written and performed. Parades End will make you believe in true love and how ever impossible, it will find a way.

Not my cup of tea but grew on me

[bubbles-118-232316 · 7/10 · 17 January 2019]

My review is about to be pretty basic, mostly because I was too bored to pay deep attention to other than the love triangles. Brilliant performances by Benedict Cumberbatch and Rebecca Hall. Adelaide Clemens was alright but nothing special. I don't think she was right for the role and Hall's character supposing to be a kind of antagonist, blatantly outshined her. Honestly, the ending just made me mad because I was rooting for Sylvia (Hall) and Christopher (Cumberbatch), but they both annoyingly failed to make things work despite their deep love for each other; especially Christopher in my opinion, but maybe I'm biased because I'm a woman. I think the show could've been a lot better if they had cast someone else for Valentine (Clemens), because she made me irritated every time she came on screen. Hall's incredibly charismatic and magnetic performance didn't make matters better for Clemson. There was just no comparison between the two and it was a heavily unbalanced casting. As for the storyline, it was entertaining if you're into plays and these types of films, but the old style of talking made it a bit difficult for me keep up, and being an American, the accents didn't help lol. It wasn't a bad watch, but the actors sold the show more than the story in my opinion.

A Very Pleasant Surprise

[gpeevers · 8/10 · 1 April 2019]

Wonderful performance by Benedict Cumberpatch for which he was nominated for an Emmy. Features a very good well known cast.

Adapted by the Tom Stoppard who has collected 4 Tony's and an Oscar for the script of Shakespeare in Love, this BBC/HBO miniseries is based on a highly regarded but relatively little known set of four novel by Ford Maddox Ford.

As always BBC proves they are the masters of the period piece/costume drama. The series is set largely during the First World War, though it begins a few a couple of years earlier. But it's not really about the war though a substantial part of the story takes place there, and the characters and the society in which they live are forever changed by it.

It's a wonderful story about love, and the challenges of the class structure, the still prevalent 19th century morals and in particular the anathema of scandal or embarrassment.

The series was nominated for five Emmy's and many other awards, it also got some great reviews. I'm quite surprised it isn't better known.

Soaper of the upper class

[kennprop · 7/10 · 14 March 2021]

Aristo soaper ? Is this a send up of classic English upper class WW1 pieces? I almost wonder. Its kind of a strange story. Is it to be taken seriously? Its hard not to wonder. Lots of problems of the English upper class. A man with a rigid code ,not in sync with the modern,1912 , times. He marries a pregnant party girl because the child maybe his. Of course it isnt. That wife comes and goes and wants what she wants. She decides she wants him, in the end. He becomes repulsed by her or at least indifferent. He meets an intelligent young woman to love , more in sync with his intellect and values. Of course they can't marry. Feeling it is his duty, he enlists in WW1 as an officer. He is of the officer class qualified or not. Lots of gossip , backbiting, undermining and affairs permeate it This is a very slow story. Beautiful scenery shots , period clothes, and lifestyle instead. This type story is always set in a similar upper class lifestyle, as if no other class existed. I guess they would not be as interesting? No miners, no factory workers,no poor, no reality ? The one man not of this class ,Mcmaster seems a rather dubious climber with no morals to speak of. I assume this is to make a point? Lots of loyal servants. High class fantasy. Perhaps it's a spoof. 7 stars is about right.

doesn't get any better than this

[mathomas-28053 · 10/10 · 22 September 2020]

I marveled over it in 2012, and am re-discovering it in September 2020. Quite simply the best thing I've ever seen. Tom Stoppard is a genius. Great films like this are for all seasons. Thank you to all the participants.

Character driven love triangle, slow vintage but superbly brought to life

[mgumsley · 7/10 · 24 September 2020]

Benedict Cumberbatch and Rebecca Hall are probably the two most outstanding thespians of their generation so it was probably fated that they should appear together in a filmed version of a classic novel, even if Ford is a less well known author. The subject matter is a love triangle brought to life by the opposing personalities of the two leads and the deceit that lies at the heart of their relationship. The introduction of a third party in the form of a young suffragette, completes the picture. Hall's slow realization that the man she married is an almost perfect husband despite her many faults and her inability to turn things around almost makes the viewer sympathetic and the caltalysing effect of World War I on all the leading characters is mesmerising. Whilst the story isn't as gripping as I hoped, the characterisation and interaction between the leads is perfect. If they wer'nt man and woman, I would have difficulty deciding who was the better of the two. So all in all, an interesting series beautifully crafted with superb locations, breathtaking cinematography and sure handed direction, but not quite a classic for me, even if it is an acting masterclass.

So much potential, So disappointing

[jenn_harris85 · 1/10 · 3 March 2013]

The costumes and sets are the only things going for this awful miniseries. One might compare it to a poorly written Downtown Abbey with better costumes. I was so disappointed by this series. It had so much potential, great acting and a lot of hype, but the script totally let me down. The plot and timeline were horribly ambiguous. significant events were either totally left out, or completely brushed over and you were expected to understand what had occurred without any explanation. There were too many unexplained loose ends which made the overall series painful to and frustrating to watch. Half the time I couldn't follow the dialogue at all because it jumped around, and you were expected to read between the lines of what was being said. But unlike a novel, you cannot hear the inner thoughts of characters and as such, are not privy to the themes running behind what is actually being said. The lines were brilliantly delivered by the cast, but even the most skilled of actors cannot overcome a sub par script. The only other thing that can be said of this mini series is that the sexual frustration of all characters was likely due to the fact that nobody had any idea of what was going on ever.

Oh, and they made Valentine incredibly annoying. She could have been awesome, but came across as a naive, whiny, self absorbed would-be suffragette chasing after a married man she was "in love with" after one night in the mist. Laughable.