Pompey Mag June July

elationship which the restoration team have
with the vehicles and Johnny, who has never
done anything like this before and so has totally
unrealistic expectations!
There were some sad and poignant moments in
the story, and it was interesting how desperate
Johnny was to achieve something that was not
related to his comedy career – of course there
are lots of funny moments and one-liners too
in his dry Northern manner. It is rare to find
a series which has humour, drama, human
interest and nostalgia, all very successfully
rolled into one. The final episode is astonishing
when “Patricia” finally arrives at the site, I’ll
just leave it there, you need to see this!
*****
Dark Waters, (2019, Prime, 126 mins)
Possibly the antidote to Carry on Glamping,
but nonetheless worthy of recommendation. I
often find gems from dramatised “true” stories
- very belatedly I finally got round to watching
Bohemian Rhapsody the other week and
wasn’t surprised at all just how brilliantly the
story of Freddie Mercury was told. Dark Waters
is a “legal thriller” about a lawyers fight against
a big US corporation (DuPont) on behalf of a
community who are allegedly suffering serious
medical conditions including birth defects and
cancer, as a result of large scale dumping of
toxic chemicals.
Robert Bilott (played by Mark Ruffalo) is the
lawyer who is sought out by a farming family
(the Tennants) who are convinced that
something is seriously amiss with their animals
as a result of contamination of the nearby land,
resulting in 190 deaths of his cows, many with
strange symptoms. As might be expected, the
idea that a single family and their lawyer could
fight a huge corporation with their financial
and legal might, give us an overriding feeling
throughout that they can never win. If the
outcome were as might be expected (and
probably usually happens), you’d get a very
short film, but at just over 2 hours, there are
plenty of twists and turns in this case. Often,
when individuals sue large local employers,
the very many residents who rely on it for their
jobs will turn against that neighbour, creating a
huge moral dilemma for all involved.
ENTERTAINMENT
The terrible human tragedy of the Tennants,
and of many other residents of the West
Virginia town of Parkersburg, is told in a
fitting manner, and the portrayal of Bilott
is powerfully done, showing the great cost
to himself and his own family of pursuing
the case. Downright scary at times, and a
real lesson (if one were needed) in why big
corporations need regulating.
****
The Terror (2018, aired in 2021, BBC
iPlayer, 10 episodes, 45 mins each)
granted, this was a marathon watch (I did it 2
episodes at a time), but I was always left at the
closing credits wanting to see more and find
out what was going to happen next. Things
are pretty tense much of the time. I hadn’t
actually realised that it was 10 episodes straight
away, but by the time I did, I was hooked and
delighted to see how long it was - perhaps I
might have been a bit wary of the time
commitment if I’d known from the outset?
What clinched it for me was seeing Ridley
Scott’s name attached as Executive Producer
(he of Alien fame).
If you like period dramas, disaster movies or a
bit of horror, this should suit you just fine.
Based on the book of the same name by Dan
Simmons, the said Terror is actually one of two
ships on an expedition looking for the North
West Passage in the 19 th Century, but it is a
fine play on words for what then happens to the
crew...(cue spooky music). The episodes cover
human conflicts and friendships, naval
discipline, ambition and redemption, survival,
superstition, and (very) dangerous wildlife.
The story is based upon real events when 2
ships, The Terror and The Erebus, advanced
vessels for their time, went missing with 120
crew in 1845. Amazingly, these 2 ships were
recently found, in 2014 and 2016.
One minor criticism is that using period
language makes it sometimes hard to follow
some of the dialogue, but this didn’t spoil it or
stop me understanding what was happening.
Rotten Tomatoes critics gave it 94% and
viewers 87%, and I’d say they got it right.
****
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