To the Ends of the Earth

This miniseries is a delightfully absorbing story that takes you out of your familiar time and place into a world of strange events and unique situations. Don't think of it as a sea-going adventure, though, for it doesn't seem that way, despite the occasionally lurching furniture and ocean views.

It is, in fact, a lovely "Bildungsroman" (journey of self-discovery), set in the early 19th century, and centered very clearly around the somewhat naively self-centered and very privileged Edward Talbot, who, despite his having reached maturity, is journeying out of his sphere for the very first time. The situations which beset him and force him to reexamine his life are not specific to sea voyages, but rather they are brought about because he is in the confines of a ship with a multitude of people from various walks of life, for a very long voyage across the world.

Fans of Benedict Cumberbatch should note that this is an absolutely unmissable performance by him. It's arguably his best -- and most wide-ranging -- performance in his very illustrious career.

If you like great stories, unusual period adventures, and/or Benedict Cumberbatch, this miniseries is a Must Watch. Don't let its apparently sea-going theme put you off, especially if you don't go in for that sort of stuff. This is a psychological study through and through (as might be expected from William Golding), and the sea is only a mere backdrop.

This is a 4 1/2 hour film about a voyage from England to Australia. On board is a young English gentleman who writes about his voyage.

At first his writings are distant and objective. But as the voyage progresses, and he learns about the sea and about a world he could not imagine (and other people who he had never been around), his writings become more personal.

Nobody is a hero. Everybody just "is." The acting is superb, especially by Benedict Cumberbatch and Jared Harris, the Captain. There is no fake drama on-board. The Captain is not a Captain Bligh.

Instead, it is a creaky old man-o-war trying to get to Australia on its last legs. Months at sea in a cramped space around the same old people.

Because there are no glorious battles the voyage is, in some ways, as slow for the viewer as it is for the sailors and passengers. But never boring.

The series has a heart. It is lovely, exciting, and interesting. Cumberbatch, in an early role, displays the talent that we have come to expect from him in recent years. He carries the show.

It is a must watch. One of the best things we have watched in years.

A journey from England to Australia, but not as convicts. They are traveling on a well worn man-of-war, but the crew was just rounded up in the days before they sailed. So it is a well done period piece-costume drama set on a ship. Talbot is a young man of privilege, from a noted family set to take a government position in Sydney Cove. His first experience with the sea was to get very sea sick. But his deference he receives is due to his class standing, and he seems to not understand that is the only reason. In the second episode, another British ship comes along, and they briefly party together. On the other ship is a Miss Chumley, who Talbot 'hears' is a prodigy of another passenger, but instead she is a protege and he falls madly in love with her and really makes a fool of himself, but alas the ships depart without his beloved Miss Chumley. In the third episode, the journey really has taken a beating on their ship, the situation gets very dire and there is also a wedding. The grittiness of the voyage came across, but not as well as in Master and Commander (2003).

To the Ends of the Earth is an exceptionally well written, directed, and acted film. It is probably the best sea voyage film I have ever seen. And I have see all three versions of Mutiny on the Bounty. The writers had an excellent trilogy by William Golding to work from. Benedict Cumberbatch is tremendous as the naive, somewhat pompous, self possessed Mr. Talbot. Jared Harris is formidable as Captain Anderson. The supporting cast is equally as talented, richly portraying characters from the early 19th century. However the real leading "character" is the ship, tossed and turned, battered and beaten. It determines the fate of all those on board.

I saw the second part of this beautiful period piece set on a ship sometime in the 19th century. Golding's book must be responsible for some of the superb dialogue but everything else was good too! I especially liked the way they created the period and feeling of being on the ship so well. For me this had a feeling of completeness about it which I know I won't be able to convey in words... Perhaps it was the way they mixed in technical and historical details about sailing in the eighteen hundreds to the story without messing it up. Benedict Cumberbatch was excellent, as was the rest of the cast. It's not often a mini-series sends me to the "zone", but this one did.