The Mad Woman In The Attic (by Jimmy McGovern)

[Admin]

Post your comments on 'The Mad Woman In The Attic' here

[ben]

I can't believe that nobody has posted their thoughts on the very first 'Cracker' story ever made!

'The Mad Woman in the Attic' shows many signs that 'Cracker' would be able to evolve into the greatest drama ever made, and although I feel that its the weakest of McGovern's scripts for the series, it does contain some brilliant moments, a memorable suspect for Fitz to interrogate and it also achieves the seemingly impossible task of introducing the viewer to all the principal protagonists. I remember when I first saw this film back in March, that I had several reservations regarding the character of Fitz, because his loud, arrogant and outspoken personality wasn't instantly likeable/relatable, and as a consequence I was doubtful that I'd be able to warm to the show or its leading character. How wrong was I? Fitz is the kind of character, that once you know him and understand him, becomes an utter joy to watch, and Robbie Coltrane's performance is almost flawless, and I believe that Robbie has established his alter-ego as the greatest character ever created for the small screen.

As for the story, it's quite a good one, and feels more like a whodunnit in comparison to later episodes. In future episodes, the killer is determined immediately, but the narrative follows a different pattern in this first story. When it was broadcast back in 1993, it was split into two episodes, and I have to say I found the first half much more enjoyable, interesting and engaging to the conclusion. The first half has some simply brilliant moments, the standout scenes being Fitz's conversations with Kelly. It's so well written and performed, and it was this sequence that made me fall in love with Fitz. I loved how he tried to get Kelly to confess, trying to get inside his head and return him mentally to the scene of the crime, and playing out how he'd imagine an encounter with the victim would go.

Robbie pretty much managed to define his character within the first five minutes, for as the story opens, Fitz is in his element... drinking, smoking, gambling. His marital affair is introduced straight away as well, and you can really sympathise with Judith. Beck also gets a great first scene too, and I loved how he tried to get Kelly to confess in the police car.

However, I do very much feel that 'The Mad Woman in the Attic' runs in a very different fashion to the later episodes, and I much prefer the format the show evolved into, because the focal point of the series' first episodes doesn't really fall on the central characters. The first story seems to play out in a much more formulaic manner, and seems much more like an average detective show, giving my the notion that 'Cracker' hadn't quite managed to find its feet and this point, and it's not until the next instalmment that the series was esculated beyond brilliance, becoming a ground-breaking, contraversal drama series. It's still a great watch and establishes Fitz perfectly, although I do feel the crime story lacks something that future McGovern exploits had. 8/10