'The Day Of The Triffids' - The Verdict

John Wyndham's classic novel has received a stylish update in this latest BBC adaptation, bolstered by an impressive cast and a gritty visual texture. A generally lacklustre first part failed to convince, despite a couple of well directed set pieces, but the gripping second episode was a vast improvement and rounded off The Day Of The Triffids in fine style. Nonetheless, it lacked the consistency and captivating characterisation of the definitive 1981 BBC series.

Part One wisely didn't overuse the Triffids themselves, ensuring that an air of mystery about their appearance and movements is kept for the following instalment. Yet there was a lack of interesting and intriguing material as the able-sighted survivors Bill Masen (Dougray Scott) and Jo (Joely Richardson) roamed around London, which suggested that the Triffids were unleashed from their captivity far too early in the plot.

In particular, the opening 90 minutes suffered from the lack of thought put into the depiction of the supporting characters and extras within the devastated city. The Day Of The Triffids relies on a 'what if?' style narrative to help us give credence to the events on screen, but the portrayal of the blind masses uniformly trudging around like zombies failed to convince. We were looking at a bunch of faceless extras, not heaps of distressed individuals who had lost their sight.

Stale dialogue also helped to propel everyone but the main characters into mere plot functions and ciphers. This is epitomised by the horribly hackneyed police officer who tried to take possession of Jo and her vehicle at gunpoint. Jason Priestley received a raw deal in his role as Coker, who lacked any kind of depth and simply came across as A Good Guy. The actor was done a better service by the writers on Beverly Hills, 90210.

The suicide of the violin-playing man also felt like unnecessary padding and irrelevance, and patronised the audience. Furthermore, the endless flashbacks of Bill's young jungle experience about tribal masks and his dead mother overegged the pudding somewhat, and frustrated rather than enhanced the narrative. It was up there with the overuse of The Master's laughing face in the Christmas Day Doctor Who.

Fortunately, the second part redressed the balance by the focus on the three leads, adding in the supreme talents of Brian Cox and Vanessa Redgrave into the equation, as Bill's father and a self-serving nun respectively. The central relationship between Bill and Jo, which was initially bereft of any chemistry, finally kicked into gear once the pair were reunited following Torrence's (Eddie Izzard) manipulation of the radio presenter. Similarly, the reunion of Bill and his rogue father was rather poignant, as the Triffid tragedy brought them together only for one of the evil plants to cruelly cut short their reconciliation.

The success of these narrative strands was mainly down to the quality of acting from Dougray Scott, who was perfectly cast as the world-weary, tortured botanist. Beneath his gloomy exterior, which was an ideal match for the ravaged environment of the show, Scott somehow managed to convey a sense of yearning for happiness that ensured the audience very much cared for his predicament. Joely Richardson nailed her part too, displaying the fragility and resilience of humanity, while Eddie Izzard was mesmerising as the selfish and megalomaniacal flipside to mankind.

Director Nick Copus deserves to be given a large-scale Hollywood movie on the evidence of The Day Of The Triffids. From the stunning opening plane crash featuring Torrence's ingenious escape, which felt epic despite the clear budgetary constraints, Copus excelled at every thrilling set piece and peppered the three hours with plenty of striking and morbid visuals like the Triffids lurking amidst the forest fog. One simple shot, in which the camera pans back from the fiery, explosive London cityscape to the lonely figure of Torrence staring outside from his bed, was truly magnificent and used stark visuals to convey a striking sense of emotion. The Triffids themselves were also rendered well throughout, bypassing the problems one would expect with the whole issue of making a moving plant look convincing.

Despite an opening episode littered with poor moments, The Day Of The Triffids left one wanting to know and see more about Bill and Jo's future. The story would have benefited from several script changes and excisions during Part One, but fortunately a group of fine actors came to the rescue and salvaged the brooding atmosphere conjured up by the director.

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