Bouquet of Barbed Wire

I recorded all 3 episode of this series then ended up watching them back to back as it turned out to be so gripping! The casting and performances of the main characters was excellent, although I do think that that Peter should have been played by someone slightly more attractive. The actor who played Gavin was perfect for the part, as you have to be very good looking and sexy to get away with the darker aspects to that character. I can't really say much more without giving away the plot, other than to say do give this a go. Gripping, sexy, well made, well acted, good story. What more could you ask? By the way I did see the original series and read the book as a teenager, and really enjoyed the story back then but can't remember enough about it to really compare the two TV versions.

... after two and a half hours you get to the ending, and are completely disappointed-annoyed as a result of the time lost and misuse of good-acting-talents... by the ending, once you find out what actually happened it makes little sense... what a waste.

A stellar cast. There's absolutely no doubt about it. That said, what is missing is any plausible reason for committing this atrocious adaptation. All the characters have no redeeming features, save for two, the Gran and Son (with his natty Robert Smith style hairdo). Trevor Eve is more hammy than an Jamón ibérico. Hermione Norris is much the same. Imogen Poots and Jemima Roper should have read the script first before accepting the job. Tom Riley is just awful. Really bad. If I could have given it zero stars, I would have done so. I would heartily recommend that you avoid this at all costs. It really is a waste of your time, 3 hours of your time.

Before I begin, I have to confess that I have not seen the original series, so although I always aim to judge a film/series/episode on its own terms I can't compare. I saw this Bouquet of Barbed Wire because I was attracted to the cast which I have to admit are great on paper.

However in general, I found Bouquet of Barbed Wire disappointing. It isn't completely awful though, it is strikingly filmed and the music is quite fitting with the mood.

Of the cast, three really stood as excellent. Trevor Eve is never less than good, and here although his character is dozy is no exception. Hermione Norris is brilliantly understated, a style of acting she excels at, and Imogen Poots really holds her own against these two actors.

My feelings on Tom Riley were mixed. There are times where he is very effective and appropriately seedy, but there are others where the performance feels over-egged. Nicholas Farrell gives his all and does have some gleeful moments, but his character seemed over-the-top to me at times, while Jemima Rooper was underused in my opinion.

To me, the writing was rather trite and often unintentionally funny, particularly in the final episode. The character of Prue gets the worst of it. I was never particularly gripped by the story either, Prue and Gavin's relationship never came across as believable and some scenes don't flow from one to another coming across as jumpy. And please don't get me started on the scene with the balloon pilot being oblivious to his passenger jumping out.

Of the episodes, episode two was the best, with the pacing at its most relaxed and the black humour at its most effective. Episode 1 was rather slow, while the final episode particularly with the overdone, melodramatic ending was a real let-down. I have to say I didn't care for the characters, Cassie was the only one who I came close to caring for. Gavin especially seemed like a typical boyfriend character with not that much to him.

All in all, the cast is great, the series was disappointing. 5/10 Bethany Cox