Armadillo

"Armadillo" is an absolutely top-notch film with a complex, absorbing story and brilliant performances. On American tv (with commercials) the movie clocks in at three hours, but you will definitely not be bored. James Frain plays Lorimar Black, a successful young loss adjuster at a posh London insurance firm. He has a sleep disorder and is living something of a double life, but that is the least of his problems compared to what develops in his professional life.

This movie has many plot lines going on, but is always lucid and compelling, thanks to a fine screenplay adapted by the author of the original novel. The stand-out performance is the chameleonic James Frain, who is so natural he never seems to be acting at all. Stephen Rea is hysterical (in both senses of the word) as Frain's paranoid boss. The only bit that didn't quite work for me was Lorimar's romantic obsession with Catherine McCormack's character, Flavia. McCormack is luminous as ever, so we understand why Lorimar would be attracted to her, but she is so bitchy and manipulative with him, Lorimar's passionate pursuit seems slightly masochistic.

Hey gang, let's put on a show. All about an insurance adjuster! Or loss adjuster. Or forensic beancounter. Or whatever. I suppose it's possible. But it didn't work this time. 90 minutes would have been plenty but this drones on for three hours. The plot is confusing at first. But thats okay because when you finally understand it, you realize it's also horribly cliched and trite. For those who get off on artsey dartsey cinematography, the tedium may be relieved from time to time. I endured it, expecting some sort of a smash surprise ending. Uh Uh. I've seen Shirley Temple movies that were more clever.

Character-driven with a carefully-constructed plot, Howard Davies'

tautly-directed "Armadillo" is top quality television, more satisfying

than any theatrical movie in recent months, including "Road to

Perdition." William Boyd's script, about an insurance adjuster who

is not what he seems while he tries to puzzle out a claim that is

something other than what it purports to be, draws in the viewer

from the moment the film opens with James Frain walking

through the charred structure he's investigating. Frain is perfect for

the role--vulnerable, expressive, sympathetic. His developing

romance with Catherine McCormick is fully realized. Hugh

Bonneville somehow empathetically portrays one of the most vile

characters in memory, and Stephen Rea amuses with his over-the-top characterization of the insurance adjuster's enigmatic

and bombastic boss. Beautifully photographed, the camera

follows the adjuster as he pries into the mysteries of the claim

he's investigating and captures the tension between the two

lovers. At three hours it's a bit long, but I watched it twice. And I'll

probably take another look.

I didn't know what I was getting into with Armadillo. I'd seen the odd trailer, perhaps doctored by A&E to make it look like science-fiction; I knew nothing of the book; I suspected it might even be a TV series. My first ray of hope came when I heard Frain's voice; my second when he got out of the right side of his motor car; and from then on I was hooked. I still didn't know if it was a series or not, and so when the one hour mark approached, I looked at the clock and wondered if this was it, if there would be a quick denouement. But it went happily on, into a second hour, and as that hour neared its end I wondered the same thing again. Still I was not sure that this was not at least some kind of TV pilot, yet when we entered hour three I was fairly sure I was watching something of quality, marred only by the kind of butchering a colony channel like A&E could be guilty of. I was so in the dark that I didn't even recognise the main characters for a while (ok, Fox was relatively easy); then it suddenly went up for me who Hogg was, and Flavia looked familiar, but I couldn't place her either - it was just a good movie, and undoubtedly would have been better if it hadn't been butchered by a colonial channel hell-bent on selling laundry detergent at four o'clock in the morning. For me, one of its best features was how it was totally unpredictable: you really didn't know where the whole thing was going; another was Catherine - she was so delicious - and perhaps a bit 'picky' as others have suggested - but I just kept hanging on the 'get the girl' scenes, and for me the ending was quite yummy, although it didn't offer the same kind of exposure found in, for example, Tailor of Panama. Do see this gem, but try to get a copy sent over from England, or better yet, move to England. Oh - you'll find a good interview with Frain about the movie at the BBC site - just search for 'Armadillo'.

Does anyone know where i can get a copy of this TV series or a copy of the soundtrack i'm desperately looking for a friend. This is an excellent series. I have looked every where to get a copy and need to find it. Has anyone got any suggestions as to where i could purchase it or download it even. Any information about its availability would be appreciated. I know its not a real review but if you haven't seen it i recommend you do. Then give it to me to see again lol. Thanks I cant think of anymore to add but i need 10 lines apparently so sorry for waffling on. Cheeky i know but i am getting desperate and i don't know where else to post this request.