Pillars of the Earth (miniseries)

For those not in the know, like I was, Pillars of the Earth is a nearly 1,000 page epic novel written by Ken Follett. Set in 12th century England, Pillars centers around...well...about 5 different storylines which are all far too detailed to try and summarize, especially when I haven't actually read the book. However, my dear girlfriend Amanda has, and so when the 8 hour miniseries was announced and subsequently released I decided to watch it with her based on her praise for the story and characters (and detractions for the repetitive writing). And after 8 long hours, it's done, and was quite worth it.

I am assured by Amanda that the plot of the miniseries is actually quite different in several places, sometimes for no discernible reason, but again, since I haven't read the book I can only remark on what I saw.

Now, first things first, 8 hours is a daunting number. Thankfully, and kudos to the production team for managing it, it never feels long. Each hour is somehow able to at once have the dramatic structure of a TV episode while maintaining the feel of an epically long movie, thanks greatly in part to the wonderful writing, sets, costumes, and high production values that went into this work. Add to that a high caliber cast portraying some wonderfully rich characters in very dramatic situations and you've got a recipe for one of the best miniseries I've seen.

To at least try to sum up what this story is all about, almost all storylines converge on the building of a cathedral over many many years. There's Tom Builder, who first dreams the dream and begins its construction. Ellen, a so called witch who lives in the forest with her adopted son Jack, who wears a strange signet ring and is eventually apprenticed to Tom after they meet when Ellen tries to save Tom's wife as she suffers complications from childbirth in the forest. The overly pious and proud prior Philip who commissions the work. Waleran, a man of the church who is overly ambitious, and after being spurned in his efforts by Philip tries in every way to stop the building of the cathedral. William Hamleigh, an evil bastard (not literally) who besieges the town of Kingsbridge at every turn, mostly at the bidding of his incestuous and slightly blemished mother Regan (different in the book) or Waleran. King Stephen, who having taken the throne under dubious circumstances arbitrates the disputes between Philip and William, often favoring William. Aliena, daughter of the Earl of Shiring who opposed Stephen taking the throne, who seeks to help her brother reclaim the earldom while he is enlisted with Stephen's army (under duress) by starting a sheep shearing business located out of Kingsbridge, and catching the eye of young Jack, as well as the lustful eye of William.

It's a lot of characters. Not only that, it's a lot of main characters. It's a lot of main characters who then each have their own distinct storylines. And each of those storylines converge and split apart and converge again over the course of many years. The point I'm trying to make is that it's a BIG story, with enormous depth, and it's obvious that even with 8 hours to tackle it, some parts got rushed or simply glanced over. However, that same large quality gave this miniseries a kind of robustness which made 8 hours feel like it was just the right amount of time to tell the story in.

But what really made Pillars of the Earth so wonderful to me was the acting. Ian McShane is spot on as the cruel and ambitious Waleran. Natalia Worner brings terrifying rage alongside playful affection and a grounded realism as Ellen. Matthew MacFadyen stands out as the proud, and ashamed of it, prior Philip. I could list each actor's name here along with their great accomplishment, but the man who really carries this show is the always brilliant Rufus Sewell as Tom Builder. While he normally plays a villain, and a damn good one at that, Sewell manages to bring one of the most brilliantly subtle performances I've seen recently. As a character Tom is kind of the everyman of the situation, looking only to do his job quietly in the background while the politics of war rage around him. Yet there is also great complexity that Sewell gives him, even in the simplest of moments while he scans the workers or looks up and imagines what these collection of rocks will one day become. There is far more that happens to him which gives even more substance to why I loved his portrayal so, but I'd hate to ruin anything more.

There are a couple moments that feel rushed or awkward/forced (more often than not things that weren't in the original story), and for me Eddie Redmayne as Jack got less interesting the more he talked, but on the whole there is very little bad I can say about this finely tuned work which much like the cathedral at it's center takes a long time to complete, and suffers some blows under its own enormous weight, but at the end shines brightly.

In short, if you're willing to invest the time, Pillars of the Earth will more than pay you back with a rich story, complex characters, and a high production value to back it all up.

Pillars of the Earth (miniseries) gets a 9.5/10.