With the popularity of BBC films and series more and more people are being exposed to quality historical dramas. I’m just going to give my recommendation right off the bat. If you are a BBC fanatic, if you love their Jane Austen film adaptations, then this four part series is a must see.
Taken from Elizabeth Gaskill’s novel of the same name, North & South addresses social issues of the time as seen through the eyes of its’ female protagonist, Margaret Hale. Margaret is forced to leave her beloved, sunny, southern England to transplant with her parents to cold, harsh, industrial Milton in the north of England. While acclimating to her new environment she meets proud and reserved mill owner, John Thornton. These two clash, both in personality and outlook as Margaret begins to befriend and encourage a few of the poverty stricken mill workers. Through her friendship with them and also her hesitant yet growing relationship with John Thornton and his mother, she is exposed to ideas and conflicts on both sides of the working relationship between mill owners and unions during the Industrial Revolution.
This really is an interesting look at the attitudes and beliefs of employers and employees during a time of great social change. The story is told with both points of views and with honesty without trying to sway the viewer’s sympathy for either side. You see the pros and cons of the argument from both perspectives. Continue reading “Film Review-BBC’s North and South (2004)”