Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
My first impressions of Great Expectations are that I quite simply love it! I had heard of the story previously, but I have not yet read the novel, nor have I seen any other version other than Gillian Anderson's... (I am looking forward to watching these as it will be interesting to watch the same story from another directors perspective, also I am quite interested to see how the films/series are interrupted differently to the novel). I read through some spark notes after I had watched Gillian Andersons version of Great Expectations, so that I could piece together any parts that I didn't quite understand. The spark notes that I read weren't based around Gillian's version but still, they helped create a better understanding of each character, and like I said they pieced together any bits that I didn't quite get whilst watching the series. The spark notes helped me to understand more in depth the symbolism of the plot. I was not expecting Magwitch to be Pip's benefactor! I thought this was a well thought out twist and I love a good twist! Who doesn't!?
I'm not a massive fan of T.V... and there are very few films/series that really grab my attention, but Gillian's version really captivated me and I found myself watching intently! (After my group had watched the first part to the series the first thing I did when I got home was watch parts 2 and 3... I couldn't wait)! I loved how none of it was too complicated but the story had strong fluidity throughout, I found that as a result of this the series had my attention the whole way through. I particularly liked the use of colours and music used in the series. It was well thought out and well suited to the moods that were being created. As the first part of the series is introduced, the colours used as a whole are very bleak and depressing. A few words that sprung to mind when I was watching it were cold, dark, gloomy, icy, wet and depressing. The music was very eerie and chilling. Great start to setting the scene! There were lots of sepia tones used throughout. This gave it an almost aged and vintage feel, which I felt was very fitting for the era the story is set in. As a whole, I felt tension and slight fear for Pip in the opening scenes! Right at the beginning I thought that it was great that the use of butterfly's were used, a great way to show the symbolism between life and death!
As I was watching the series I felt like I could relate to Pip in quite a few of the situations he got in to. I think that he showed many sides to his personality in this series and that kept it very interesting. I would say Pip was my favourite character ( and not just because he is gorgeous)! It was a toss up between Magwitch and Pip... but I felt like a related more to Pip, and I felt he portrayed his character very well throughout the series. Pip starts out as a young boy, a few words that came to mind when watching Pip were brave, quiet, curious, courageous, fragile, determined. A very mixed explanation! As he grew in to the Gentleman he set out to be, he became much more confident and spoke up for himself more. He new what he wanted and he set out to achieve, in this instance... he wanted Estella. He was in love.
Like I said, for me it was a toss up between Pip and Magwitch , but although I would have to choose Pip as my most favourite character, actually, Magwitch is a favourite too. I loved how he was made to be perceived as a 'monster' in the opening scenes, yet actually, he is a gentle giant. He showed compassion and an understanding of emotion, especially Pip's emotion. He showed a soft side towards Pip, and I thought this was a nice touch to the story. It drew me in.
I have only seen Gillian Andersons version of Great Expectations so far, so I can't comment at this stage about her interpretation of Miss Havisham compared to other directors/writers. I am looking forward to watching them so I can blog about this at a later stage!
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