The Chain

This is a modern retelling of Arthur Schnitzler's La Ronde, with property transactions standing in for Schnitzler's sexual ones. Rosenthal also effectively plugs in the seven deadly sins.

Whilst it may seem like a TV drama, this was made for cinema release so it's a bit depressing that the only version seemingly available at the moment is in 4:3.

I'd forgotten just how good a script it is. It has dated a little since its release, but the cleverness of it, and some of the performances make it deserving of preservation. Mitchell and Hill are spot on as usual and Nigel Hawthorne and Anna Massey are particularly hilarious.

It's not perfect though. The awful source music (i.e. What people are listening to on the radio/ghetto blaster) that's meant to be "what the kids are listening to" but has clearly been composed by Stanley Myers to save money, really dates it, and there are one or two truly shockingly bad performances from some of the younger actors. Billie Whitelaw is totally miscast, and a number of the lines (mainly from the character Paul) don't land, which is the fault of the director. For these reasons it loses a star from me.

Overall though, they don't write em like this any more.

The Chain is a film that I can only describe as a gem. It is set in London in the Thatcher era , and does not shirk in its light critical observation of a London at a time of polarised beliefs and values.

The film is not just a journey of London Boroughs , but a journey to the very inner motivations and ideals of the class-ridden characters portrayed in the film. The writer uses the Biblical seven deadly sins in which to drive the film along . Warren Mitchell is superb as Bamber , the leader of the removal crew. A philosopher who never loses his sight of humanity , somehow makes sense of the most complex insecure people and situations that surround him in the day. My favourite line is "I've got my bricklaying at two". This underlined the Black Economy that existed in London , during a period of economic uncertainty. A must see , for any film buff into social criticism of the eighties.

This is TV drama at its best. The plot is tightly constructed, involving seven linked house moves. Jack Rosenthal's writing is exceptional, blending comedy and pathos in just the right proportions, and the very realistic London settings are an integral part of the drama.

The script is delivered to perfection by a team of top-quality actors, led by Warren Mitchell and Bernard Hill as the linking furniture removers. The introduction suggests an overall 'seven deadly sins' theme, and on reflection that can be picked out. But the stories intertwine and grip the viewer so effectively that broader messages are of little consequence. The recent revival of Rosenthal plays on BBC's arts channel is a reminder of the high quality of TV drama in the 1970s and 1980s, now sadly diminished. And the overall IMDB rating is a complete mystery, given the votes actually cast for The Chain.

The sort of film that reminds us that a nice story and a great cast still make a great film.

The film centres around a group of Londoners who run across the social spectrum who are all moving home on the same day, some of whom are being ably assisted by a gang of removal-men fronted by Warren Mitchell.

Among others, notable appearances from Nigel Hawthorne, playing a socially obsessed miser, Leo Mckern as a plutocrat who's decided to go back to his roots, and of course Mitchell himself who is clearly the wisest person in the whole film.

The pace is excellent and the characters well realised - and for anyone who loves seeing London on film it's a treat too.

It's a charming and very humanitarian film that you'll enjoy immensely if you allow it to.

No negative comments by your other quite perceptive reviewers and rightly so. I agree with all of them as to this wonderful film's outstanding qualities and especially as to its being highly underrated. It's a kind of vignette movie like "Quartette" or "Tales of Manhattan" yet all the vignettes are thematically connected in time and process, each throwing light on the others and on the film as a whole. It's simply a classic in conception and brilliant execution. Bravo to all concerned.