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(More customer reviews)Viewing this six-hour UK miniseries was an unusual experience. I expected the show to be a comedy - after all, it's premise of an ordinary middle-class woman becoming Prime Minister easily lends itself to lighthearted laughs. This isn't the case. While humor is definitely a strong element throughout, the show is very much a serious drama. The six episodes are very good - densely packed with multiple interlocking storylines, each episode moving along at a brisk pace. The acting is uniformly excellent as well. Based on those strengths, I'm tempted to rate the show higher - but there is a problem: it ends with a never-to-be-resolved cliffhanger.
Apparently the show did not perform well in the ratings when it aired last year in the UK. As a result, it seems the show is not returning for a second season. There are a couple of screens containing brief text in an attempt to tie up the most important aspects of the story. These, of course, can't be discussed without revealing too much of the story. But suffice it to say, this is a highly unsatisfactory ending to an otherwise involving TV show. Too many questions are left unanswered - it's literally only half the story.
The main storyline concerns the title character and her unlikely career change from grocery store manager to Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Her decision to run for such an esteemed position stemmed from her frustration with the available candidates, as well as her friends and family assuring her that she could do a better job than any of them. Surrounded by a skilled staff - all of whom she relies heavily upon - Ros Pritchard finds herself completely ovewhelmed with her immense responsibilities. Throughout the six episodes, we see her trying to adapt and adjust without compromising her most important principle: direct honesty to the people of the UK. She strives to be the people's PM to an unprecedented degree.
In addition to being politically out of her league, the show details the (mostly) negative effects her career move has on her family life. As a mother of two, Ros finds herself unable to devote nearly the same amount of time she once did to her two girls. Her marriage becomes strained as her husband finds himself more and more a bystander rather than participant in his own family life. And in a key plot development, some potentially damaging family secrets are uncovered and attempted to be dealt with.
I found all the character-based elements to be very compelling. The excellent acting by a mostly-female ensemble, achored by Jane Horrocks's Mrs. Pritchard, deserves special note. Horrocks does a good job of conveying Ros Pritchard's hesitancy at making decisions of such great importance. Jodhi May is superb as Pritchard's 'right hand woman' Miranda Lennox. Also particularly noteworthy is Carey Mulligan as Ros's college-age daughter. It's really a shame we won't be able to see any more of these characters.
As for the show's political content, I had a more mixed reaction. For one, not knowing much about the British political system I was often a little confused about who everyone was and what their function is. But the political issues that are dealt with, for the most part, are the same issues we face in the U.S. However, there is a somewhat haphazard approach to this throughout the show. Initially there is a focus on terrorist threats, which doesn't really go anywhere before switching gears to environmental issues. I'm guessing that the goal was to provide an overview of the many challenges Ros was facing, but it seemed a little less focused than it could have been.
All things considered, this was an intriguing and well-made miniseries that I would recommend cautiously recommend. The DVD offers nothing that wasn't shown on TV originally, with the exception of aforementioned brief text notes at the conclusion of episode six. It's unfortunate that the show's creative team wasn't able to discuss (via commentaries or interviews) their intent for the show beyond the initial six episodes. Perhaps they could have offered a clearer idea of the plan than the few lines that pop up on screen before the final credits roll. I couldn't help but feel cheated, even though that wasn't the intent.
Click Here to see more reviews about: The Amazing Mrs Pritchard (2006)
A bold engaging miniseries from the BBC "She’s got people talking!" That's what everyone says about Ros Pritchard, the successful supermarket manager and mother who ignites a political firestorm when she stands for Parliament and ends up winning the general election. Running on little more than charm, honesty, and common sense, Ros knows next to nothing about politics.Will her passion and determination be enough to guide her as Prime Minister? Jane Horrocks (Little Voice, Absolutely Fabulous) delivers a warm, winning performance as an ordinary woman who goes to extraordinary lengths to bring politics back to the people.She relocates Parliament to make it more accessible to the masses.She introduces "No Cars Wednesday" to tackle global warming.At the same time, she juggles the needs and demands of her increasingly frustrated family, which she fears is slipping away from her.With humor and charm, The Amazing Mrs Pritchard takes a bold unflinching look at the modern political process -- and the toll it takes on our leaders and their loved ones.Contains coarse language
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