State of Play-Movie Review ***

State of Play-Movie Review *** 02/03/2011

Posted by Films to consider in BBC, British, Suspense, Television.
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STATE OF PLAY (British) 2003

Among other awards and nominations:
Won, Best Actor (Nighy); Best Sound (Fiction/Entertainment); Best Editing (Fiction/Entertainment), BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts
Nominated, Best Acto (Morrissey); Best Drama-Serial; Best Original Television Music; Best Photography and Lighting, BAFTA

Directed by David Yates; written by Paul Abbott
Starring David Morrissey, James McAvoy, Bill Nighy, John Simm, Kelly MacDonald

A BBC television mini-series presentation consisting of six episodes that are each nearly one hour long, so not suitable for one sitting unless you’re snowed in and have a lot of snacks handy.

No spoilers here: Some reporters for the newspaper The Herald start investigating a story about a woman who apparently fell to her death on the London Underground at the same time they are looking into what seems like a drug-related shooting of a teen. Soon they become embroiled in a tale that includes murder, sex, and politics, a combination that builds, taking many twists and turns, and lasts until a very satisfying conclusion.

A great cast that worked well together, and music that added to the suspense, excitement, and pacing of the story. Director Yates later was chosen to direct the final films of the Harry Potter series. Supposedly writer Abbott began but then abandoned a follow-up story.

The series was adapted as a film starring Russell Crowe, which was released in the U.S. in 2009. This was not as well-received as the television series, but it does get good reviews on Amazon, IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. One criticism seems to be that there are a few plot twists that don’t make much sense in the movie. I haven’t seen this film, but there were no such problems with the story in the mini-series.

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