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Criminal Justice

As I mentioned yesterday, last night saw the return of BBC's week long drama Criminal Justice.  Last year's installment saw Ben Wishaw as the frail accused struggling to clear his name. This year we get Maxine Peake as the frail woman entangled in the criminal justice system.

On first reflection last night's episode is an entirely different kettle of fish from last year.  Wishaw's character had no recollection of his alleged crime, whereas this year we are left in no doubt as to the crime and who committed it. Instead we are left with an ethical dilemma which has no simple answers.  Over the course of this week I am sure that we will be shown every side of the argument, whilst at the same time examining the way that women are (mis)treated by the British judicial system.

After this first episode I was reminded of exactly how good we Brits can be at drama when we really put a lot of effort into it.  Shorn of the need for resolution that so plagues American drama (aside from the Wire, obviously) our dramas can have room to breathe and really get into questions of morality, not just of society but of our own individual morality.

I wont go into much detail, in case any of you are planning on catching up on iPlayer, but this drama shows you just enough to think you've made your mind up before pulling the rug from underneath you and making you question everything you had thought, which is no mean feat.  Even the most ardent feminist (and I count myself as amongst their number) would find it hard to sympathise with the actions of this woman, but your heart goes out to her nonetheless.

Holding all this together are predictably wonderful performances by the great and good of British dramatic actors.  Maxine Peake manages to infuse a pretty unlikable character with real tenderness, while Matthew Macfadyen keeps the line between caring father and despotic husband so finely that when he steps into the latter, it's with a menace that is shocking.  On top of this are great supporting performances by the likes of Sophie Okonedo, Denis Lawson and Kate Hardie. The two standouts from the first episode were Steve MacKintosh's Sexton, who is such an evil shitbag that you would be excused for wanting to strangle your television, and Alice Sykes, who as 13 year old Ella, grounds the whole episode as the daughter unsure of what has happened to her life in such a short period of time. 

All in all a bright start, as good as last year's jumping off point, and certainly enough to keep me glued for the rest of the week, if only to see if they've worked out how to finish the story without being lynched by their audience.