Ken Follett is one of the most brilliant novelists of modern times. His stories immerse and engage the reader into worlds so real that it seems possible to step into them.
"Pillars of the Earth" is one of his most popular books. Originally published in 1989, it gained a cult following through word of mouth then achieved even greater prominence when Oprah discovered back in the mid 1990s.
Tandem Productions and Tony and Ridley Scott took the risk of adapting the sweeping historic novel into a miniseries. The novel is such an intricate spiderweb of lust, revenge, and triumph of an iron will that the mere act of adapting the screenplay for sound-bite and short attention span 21st century viewers was a daunting challenge.
After all, the book is almost 1,000 pages long and covers an approximate 40 year period. My original review of the series came just after it aired and I had only seen part 1. Having reread the novel recently and re-watched the entire series 14 years later, here are some new thoughts.
The best part is that all of the novel's characters are there. Practically all of them are true to how they were described in the novel, with the most spectacular casting being Jack Jackson. Then unknown actor Eddie Redmayne brought the character to life in a delightful way showing his sensitivity and strength at the same time. Natalia Woerner nearly steals the show with her portrayal of the mysterious Ellen, Jack's mother.
The other strong woman character is Lady Aliena, portrayed beautifully by Hayley Atwell. A Ken Follett hallmark is his ability to populate his stories with strong women characters going all the way back to "Eye of the Needle" where Lucy Rose outwits a dangerous Nazi spy. In "Pillars," Lady Aliena rises from pampered highborn daughter to one of the most important merchants in Kingsbridge.
Some reviewers who loved the novel blanched at the changes producers made for the miniseries. The kings and queens in England play much smaller roles in the novel, but in the miniseries more attention is paid to them since it gives context and scope to the struggles of the monastery in Kingsbridge and the odds stacked against them in building their "compass to God" cathedral. One of the most arresting scenes from an early episode happens when Prior Phillip must confer with King Stephen about assistance in building a cathedral and the king conducts the meeting outside the castle ramparts with archers bearing down on them.
The most glaring character change occurred with Regan Hamleigh, who is described in the novel as an ugly crone but in this miniseries is portrayed by the opposite-of-ugly actress Sarah Parish. Well, they made her personality ugly anyway, and her son, Lord WIlliam Hamleigh is as much of a fiendish villain in the miniseries as in the novel. The producers added an Oedipal element to the relationship between William and his mother, which may have disappointed or even outraged some novel purists but for me seemed ingenious. It added a further creepy element to both characters.
Speaking of creepy; Ian McShane as Bishop Waleran is a great character and performance for which he should have won an Emmy. His voice booms like a thunderclap as he is involved in one double-dealing after another between the Hamleighs and the Kingsbridge monastery.
The special effects and art direction masterfully create the grimy, gritty world of 1100s England and the stark contrasts between privileges of royalty and serfs wallowing in the mud beside the hogs they keep. Public executions and dismembering are commonplace as one plot change involving the deposed Earl Bartholomew of Shiring (portrayed aristocratically by Donald Sutherland) tears at the heart.
While the novel relied on straightforward storytelling, the miniseries offers deftly executed, haunting flashbacks to establish the mysterious Ellen's role in the dirty laundry of Percy Hamleigh and Archbishop Waleran's past. Her husband had been mysteriously executed around the time the ship burned. Ellen's son Jack, who is portrayed as an artistic savant, becomes a force in building the cathedral.
Overall, the television miniseries should thrill the fans of the novel. Even the opening credits contain a clever, metamorphosing animated sequence and a stirring dramatic musical score punctuates and accentuates the grandeur.
