...but that's not saying a lot. It might not to so bad if we couldn't compare it on YouTube with episode 1 of the 1991 Anglia TV version (sadly only that one episode). This is of such low quality in comparison. For one thing it's more cheaply made with about a third of the cast, according to IMDB. That was set in the P D James setting of Norfolk with local accents and atmosphere. Now we have moved to an unconvincing generic location which is described af Kent. (If it was really Kent, Dungeness would have been the place to set it.) Roy Marsden was a slightly sad but also human and likeable Dalgliesh. Bertie Carvel's is mainly just grim and glum. Now we have goodies and baddies, much like in a children's story. Back then there was actual nuance. Take for instance the caravan-dwelling protesters, Neil and Amy. Now they are just angry caricatures. In 1991, Robert Hines and Nicola Cowper included a gentle, touching, human quality to the roles. There was Gemma Craven and Suzanna York and various other excellent actors of the period. Nuff said. Why did they bother with this inferior remake?
Review of Devices and Desires - Part 2
