The Day of The Triffids

TV, The Day of The Triffids (2009) miniseries

This is one of those classic science fiction tales that I've never encountered, while having some basic knowledge of that has seeped into general culture, much like 'War of The Worlds' and '1984'. Going on most BBC dramas in the modern era I wasn't expecting all that much, but since one of my favourite films is 'Mission: Impossible 2' with Dougray Scott as a superb villain, I was interested to see him in another role. And it was a story I've had on my radar to see/read at some point.

It was a pleasant surprise to see this miniseries (two hour and a half episodes over two consecutive nights), was sensitively directed, had good music and sound, and characters that were believable and worth watching, when so much TV drama these days feels half-finished (case in point: 'Paradox'). I obviously don't know how close to the original story this adaptation was, and it's clearly been contemporised, not in the direction of gratuitous language, sex and gore, but in the setting and message of global warming.

Scott did a completely believable, restrained performance as Dr. Bill Masen. It's all in the eyes. If you watch 'M:I2' you see the evil in his eyes, but in this it's the concern and intelligence that comes through. I enjoyed the way characters met, and the blind masses, terrified and terrifying in their grasping at any stranger was creepy in a way that other, much-lauded programmes such as 'Dr. Who' can only reach once in a while. All the characters were interesting, well-played and I found myself wishing this was an ongoing series in the vein of 'Survivors', so we could see what happened to these communities. I wanted to know what and who Torrence was before he took destiny by the collar and decided he was boss. I wanted to see how the communities banded together on the Isle of Wight. But mostly I just wanted to spend more time with the people we were introduced to.

The performances were almost without fault, apart from the occasional bit of hammy, evil-villain craziness from Eddie Izzard's Torrence, and the fact that Jo Playton, the radio presenter seemed to accept Bill's death quite easily. It was great to see Brian Cox as Bill's Dad (though I sensed his fate as soon as we knew he was messing around with a Triffid), and Vanessa Redgrave still going strong as an evil or misguided Mother Superior of a Convent. The Triffids themselves had a starring role, appearing out of the mist or dark corners, to good effect. They were so effective in look that I wasn't sure if they were real or CGI which is the highest compliment to the effects.

The direction was nicely done, having none of the Bourne-inspired quick cuts that seem to be every director's favourite now, but allowing lingering camera shots where we see people move, and action unfold. The flashbacks to the mask and the tribesman, and the solution to evade the plants was clever, no doubt all credit should go to John Wyndham's original book for things like that.

'Dr. Who' and other popular TV series' often seem to be full of cartoon characters, illogical plot developments and no real tension or reason to care about those involved, leaving me with a feeling of disappointment that I didn't have when I'd finished watching this. It's not perfect, perhaps I would have injected some more dramatic moments or revealed more about some of the characters, but I'm just being picky, and that proves how good it was - if I'm not making any big observations about flaws then it's because there weren't any, and I'm only trying to wish it perfect. A thoroughly good job done.

***