Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere
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Movie Reviews of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere
Movie Review: A True Cult Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Are you willing to forgive Neverwhere's ghastly technical flaws? The answer will determine if you characterize Neil Gaiman's miniseries as a masterpiece or a disaster.Neverwhere, an interdimensional murder mystery set in the bowels of bizarro-London, is a skillfully written film hampered by serious production problems. These are fairly well catalogued: horrible lighting washes out the actors' faces, the sound quality is so poor that parts of the dialogue are unintelligible, and the special effects would make even the most die-hard Doctor Who fans wince. Then there's the acting, which tends toward the lifeless and flat (the notable exception is Paterson Joseph's wonderful portrayal of the Marquis de Carabas). At times it has the feel of a Super 8 home movie.
So why would anyone watch Neverwhere? Because it's really good - IF you can look past its many defects. Gaiman is an excellent writer whose novels, stories and groundbreaking Sandman comics have brought respectability to the much-maligned fantasy genre. His dialogue is intelligent, the characters are genuinely interesting, and the visual puns (for anyone who has spent time in London) are outrageously funny. Characters named Old Bailey and Angel Islington feature prominently in the plot - and let's not forget the earl who lives at Earl's Court.
Neverwhere was first aired on the BBC in 1996, but it wasn't widely available in the US until 2003. The seven-year gap was ample time for it to become a cult classic seen only by people who had access to bootleg copies. Like many films that fall into this category, actually seeing it can be a bit of a letdown, especially for fans who read the Neverwhere novel that Gaiman wrote in 1998. And it all comes back to the production value.
Apologists claim that Neverwhere is a triumph of English skill over Hollywood flash. Hogwash. While it's true that special effects can camouflage poor acting and writing, there is no excuse for some of the truly terrible visuals in Neverwhere. Even die-hard fans have to admit that the enormous heifer in the London Tube is a joke. It's supposed to be the world's most dangerous monster, but it just looks like Millicent the Milk Cow ambling past a fog machine.
Fortunately, there are many excellent scenes that make the production worth watching - and make the bad ones even more maddening to endure. If Laurel and Hardy had ever been cast as hitmen in Hell they would have been Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemaar: it's almost worth buying Neverwhere just for their brief appearances. The "ordeal" scene is as imaginative as anything ever shown on television. And Dave McKean's opening credits will make you think twice about ever using your fast-forward button again.
No one is on the fence about Neverwhere. If you can get past the egregious production issues, it's a "must have" for your collection. If you roll your eyes every time Captain Kirk blasts some guy in a fakey rubber alien suit on Star Trek - well, it's going to be a long three hours.
Movie Review: Neverwhere is a must
Summary: 5 Stars
I first saw clips Neverwhere when Neil came to Dragon Con in 1996. I went with a friend who was an ardent Sandman fan. I had no idea until then who Neil Gaiman was. Neverwhere was enough to hook and land me as a fan. Since then, I've read everything Neil I could get my hands on.He heartlessly showed those clips to us, then told us that Neverwhere might not ever come to the US. A few years later, I managed to catch the last four episodes on my PBS station. I have been hunting the DVD ever since. (Unfortunately, the DVD did not even exist until last year. The grainy pirated copies that you see at conventions are not worthwhile.)
I'm going to say something now that will make everyone throw rocks at me. The production values were not that bad.
In spite of some mistaken comments, Neverwhere was done on location in various parts of the London Underground, not a set. They used miles of tunnel to keep it from having that repeating effect that you get in a lot of productions. Camera angles in that situation are undoubtedly difficult. Perhaps if it had been a set, camera angles would have been stunning and the shots would have appeared more authentic to some. Stunts were not amateurish. They were actually done by actors/stunt men. One of the actors even broke his leg during filming. We've gotten so used to seeing stunts done with all the camera tricks that we don't recognize when they aren't.
In the end, even the Great Cow of London was not as bad as everyone says. They did, at least, use a Highland Bull and they did a number of special effects which help mask his obvious Bullishness--not enough to make him look like a boar, I grant you, but at least he wasn't your average black and white dairy variety.
The acting...Well, the Marquis de Carabas was great, no matter how you look at it. I thought the other characters came off well and honestly. The Marquis definately stole the show, however.
All-in-all, I love this series. I wish there were more seasons. I want to find out what happened to Door's sister, what happened to Richard...
Movie Review: "Mind the gap!"
Summary: 5 Stars
The best tele-fantasy in a long, long time, writer Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere is an imaginative breath of fresh air.While technically a fantasy, this is not a fantasy in the dragons-wizards-elves vein, but rather "fantasy-punk," if you will, in the same way that cyberpunk SF is to spaceships and aliens SF.
Never mind all the comments and apologies about the production values. Anyone familiar with a typical BBC SF production will find no surprises here (In fact, Gaiman himself was disappointed in the look of the show, as the BBC had apparently agreed to treat the video with Filmlook in post production, but didn't keep it's promise).
I loved the whole thing: The acting, dialogue, characters (and look for another Dr Who inspiration in the character of the Marquis, who, Gaiman notes in his commentary, was inspired by the earlier, more mysterious and edgier characterizations of the Doctor, probably early Tom Baker if you ask me) costumes, prop design and general mood are all top notch, and the series is of course filled with that wonderful and unique Brit biting sense of humor.
I also loved all the incidental details of Gaiman's fictional world: The use of "Favors" as an important form of currency, or the specific "Talents" that various people/families have.
Edgy, mysterious, dark and disturbing, Neverwhere is a uniquely imaginative show and a long overdue return to the glory days of BBC imaginative tv.
Only negative thing I can think of is that it didn't continue on for a second season!
Movie Review: The best.
Summary: 5 Stars
I caught Neverwhere in England and was utterly entranced with it to the point of getting it taped and transferred so I could watch it here. To berate it because of these `English shortcomings' is ridiculous. What would you prefer...a low budget English affair with amazing and intricate story, full of mystery, confusion, and overflowing with cutting originality? Or would you like a high budget piece of US trash with uber T&A, gunshots, explosions, slang, car chases, overt brand name sponsoring crammed down your throat, and that is a complete story and new idea free zone presented by talentless bimbos and muscle boys? Pretty much what happened to Doctor Who in the movie.Personally, the choice is very, very easy.
The Marquis, Door, Kruppe and Vandermarr (we'll be hurting you badly, before killing you even badly-er), Hunter, Old Bailey, the Black Friars, Angel Islington, all of it creates a wonderful and enticing story amidst some of the most classic locations of London. The whole story leaves you spellbound and completely oblivious to these supposed `shortcomings.'
I'm not a huge Gaiman fan, but this is truly a masterpiece. It's amazing it has taken so long to come out over here.
A must see, a must buy, I'll get my US copy as soon as it comes out and bin my UK tape.
Movie Review: Urban Fantasy at its best
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought the original book version of Neverwhere some years ago and was intrigued by the characters, setting and story. When I found out they had created a BBC mini-series of the book, I immediately went out and bought it.Suffice to say I was not dissapointed. The cast, though mostly made up of unknown actors (perhaps more so to American audiences), is supurbly done, each person fitting their role just as you might imagine if you had read the book. This series is also a testiment to the fact that not everything good has a million dollar budget and high tech special effects. The effects that do appear, though low in quality are so uniquely done that you never laugh because they blend in.
The costumes are subtle but still unusual and surprisingly the script follows the original story very well. The opening and ending credits, done by Gaiman's long time collaberator, Dave McKean are simply beautifuly when accompanied by the music talents of Brian Eno.
The closest series I could recommend that has a similar feeling would be Lexx (though where Neverwhere is an urban fantasy, Lexx is a science fiction fantasy). If you like odd plots, interesting but quirky characters and dark visuals, or even if your a fan of The Sandman comics or Neil Gaiman's books, then you'll like this series.