Every Wednesday, George Hook is joined live in studio by Newstalk’s resident film and TV critic Philip Molloy, who does his best to convince George there’s more to watch than classic black and white movies.
To hear what Philip’s take on Julianne Moore’s Oscar-winning performance in Still Alice is listen below.
In terms of TV, the state of the medical drama on TV is the focus of much current debate. Here’s what Philip’s thoughts are on the new Sky One drama Critical, and the BBC’s remake of Poldark, starring Irish actor Aidan Turner:
In the US, House has completed its long run, and the likes of Grey’s Anatomy seem to be nearing their sell-by date. Personally, I’m looking forward to the second season of The Knick - the series set in a New York hospital in 1900 - a time of astonishingly high mortality rates and zero antibiotics – which Cinemax (a sister channel to HBO) is bringing back in the summer for another 10 episodes.
In the UK, the future of the genre, up to now, seemed to be dependent on medical soaps like the long-running Casualty and its spin-off Holby City – but Critical, the new series set in a major trauma unit, has a promising prognosis.
Created by Jeb Mercurio, who did the brilliant cop series Line of Duty, Critical focuses on an emergency case each week during the so-called ‘golden hour’ – that crucial sixty-minute period after the discovery of a trauma victim.
The drama is built around the operation – last week it was the victim of a bus/car crash with multiple injuries; last night it was a suicide attempt who had a seat post stuck in her neck - and the treatment is graphic and realistic. The filled-out storylines then come from the relationships, the pressure on resources and the medical politics which are subtly stitched into the main drama.
It is a Sky series, which looks expensive, and the first season will run for 13 weeks. We’ll keep an eye on it and see how it develops after a few more episodes.
Poldark, which was one of the most popular BBC series of the 1970s, returns to television screens on Sunday night with Irish actor Aidan Turner starring as the romantic lead Captain Ross Poldark.
The original Poldark - based on the books by Winston Graham - ran for 29 episodes between 1975 and ’77, proving a primetime staple on the Beeb and attracting audiences of 15 million.
It was reported at that times that church services in various parts of the UK were cancelled or rescheduled for fear of clashing with the series.
The title character in Poldark is described as a “stubborn but heroic” Cornishman who returns from the American War of Independence to find that his father has died and his fiancée is betrothed to another man.
The new series is based on the first two Graham books – if it succeeds the BBC plans to film all twelve. Poldark will run for 8 weeks in the 9-10pm slot.
