Latest news with #TheVeil
Spectator
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Spectator
The power of BBC's The Narrow Road to the Deep North
It's been a good week for fans of TV dramas that are set partly in Syria, feature poetry-lovers confronting extreme violence, like to keep their viewers in the dark (sometimes literally) and have main characters with Australian accents (sometimes accidentally). But there are also significant differences between the two examples on display – with The Narrow Road to the Deep North the much more sombre and The Veil the considerably more bonkers. Adapted from Richard Flanagan's Booker-winner, The Narrow Road began in Syria in 1941. Through what would prove the programme's characteristic murk, a group of Australian soldiers led by one Dorrigo Evans could just about be seen rescuing a young boy and joshing about the respective size of their penises. Within minutes, however, they were interrupted mid-josh by an explosion that killed one of their comrades and the rescued boy. In the first of the constant time-shifts, it was then 1942, with Dorrigo's wife Ella anxiously awaiting news of him following the Australian troops' surrender to the Japanese. Immediately afterwards came 1989, where the older Dorrigo (Ciaran Hinds) was being interviewed about his wartime experiences by a smug young journalist to whom he explained that people like her think war is only one thing (i.e. wrong) whereas in fact it's many things at once. And with that, we headed to 1940 where the younger Dorrigo (Jacob Elordi) proposed to Ella, before starting an affair with his uncle's wife, Amy: an affair kindled by their shared love of Sappho's poem 'You Burn Me' (full text: 'You burn me'). A couple of minutes – and three years – later he was among the Australian prisoners arriving in the Thai jungle to build a railway… Although the TV adaptation makes a few of the usual inexplicable plot-tweaks, it's essentially faithful to the book – not least in all those time-shifts and the main reason for them. This is that, despite the unbearably vivid scenes of suffering and Japanese cruelty in the jungle, The Narrow Road isn't primarily a war story, but a piercing character study filtered through the memory of old Dorrigo and designed to show how he, too, has ended up many different things at once. He is, for instance, simultaneously guilt-ridden and rather chuffed about his long-ago affair with Amy, grateful to and resentful of Ella, determined not to be haunted by the war and haunted by the war. And it's that last contradiction in particular that lends the show its power, as Dorrigo finds himself unable to do anything so impossibly glib as 'move on'. However much you might wish it, this tough but gripping drama bleakly reminds us, some stuff just won't go away. In recent years, there's been a lot of talk about whether there'll ever be a female James Bond – but in The Veil we sort of get one. Sunday's opening episode even had a pre-credit sequence in which our heroine (Elisabeth Moss) completed her previous mission in an immaculate suit and with a few quips to the baddie, who also became the first of many characters to fix her with a wondering stare and ask, 'Who are you?' At this stage, the viewer's answer to that question was a firm 'search me' – and so it remained as she adopted the name Imogen and headed to a refugee camp in Syria. There, the man from Unicef was soon asking the same thing, especially after she'd overcome several assailants in a fight, having put down her omnipresent cigarette. (Ian Fleming readers might remember the striking sentence in Casino Royale: 'Bond lit his seventieth cigarette of the day.') In another Bondian touch, it also helps that everybody who shoots at her always misses. Very gradually, it became apparent that Imogen is an MI6 agent sent to the camp to find a suspected Isis commander who, this being television, is a woman too. Once she had, though, she naturally went rogue. Charged with driving Adilah to a detention centre, Imogen instead headed to Istanbul while the two women spent their road trip companionably discussing both terrorism and English poetry. After the downtrodden misery of The Handmaid's Tale, you can see why Moss might have wanted to go full-on alpha female. Less understandable is why she didn't spend more on a voice coach – because her English accent is all over the place: sometimes OK; sometimes accurate syllable by syllable yet still somehow sounding like no English person ever has; sometimes flat-out Aussie. The Veil is written by Steven Knight who can be great (Peaky Blinders) and can be dreadful (Great Expectations), but here is mostly somewhat annoying. The dialogue is often corny, the kickass heroine levels feel almost parodic and nothing is remotely plausible. Nonetheless – and this is the properly annoying bit – there's still enough intrigue and mad fun to keep us watching.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
CHRISTOPHER STEVENS reviews The Veil on Ch4: Homeland fans won't want to miss this clever and compelling spy drama
The Veil (Ch4) TV schedules are like lumpy porridge. Sometimes, you dig in and get plenty to chew on. At other times, it can be pretty thin gruel. A packed Sunday night saw the launch of new serials on BBC1, ITV and Channel 4. By Tuesday, we had nothing to pick from but women's football, the Sewing Bee, a Repair Shop rerun and the tail end of various dramas. But that's what catch-up services are for. When there's nothing on, you always have something else to watch. I confess I skipped Elisabeth Moss 's new thriller The Veil at the weekend. Ch4 has only just finished showing the final series of her dystopian fantasy The Handmaid's Tale, which long ago collapsed into nonsensical, repetitive hysteria. Still, The Veil is written by Peaky Blinders ' creator Steven Knight, and all six episodes are now available to stream at Channel 4 online, so I thought I'd give it a go. What an excellent decision that was. Knight's stories are usually convoluted, multi-character pieces of theatre, but this is different — practically a two-hander between Moss and her co-star, Yumna Marwan. Marwan plays Adilah, a Frenchwoman in a snowbound refugee camp run by the United Nations in Syria, where almost everyone is female because Isis fighters massacred all their menfolk. The other women suspect her of being an Isis commander herself. Given half a chance, they'll lynch her or stab her to death - and since the slimy UN aid co-ordinator is fully occupied with coercing hungry refugees into having sex with him, Adilah is left literally fighting to survive. Moss is the British secret agent, codenamed 'Imogen', sent to extract her and bring her to the West, where French and American security services suspect she is involved in masterminding a terror attack. Adilah insists she's a genuine refugee, and that's the real question at the core of this thriller: who is she? And who is 'Imogen'? Multi-lingual, handy in a knife fight, a natural liar, she also appears to be an idealist. When she learns Adilah has abandoned a 12-year-old daughter back in France, Imogen looks angry enough for a moment to strangle her with her bare hands. Blackout of the week: The Our Lives documentary Guardian Of The Night (BBC1) urged us to protect starry skies from light pollution. The Beeb must think it is being helpful by filming dramas such as The Narrow Road To The Deep North in near-total darkness. 'A mother should never have to lose her child,' she fumes - but she denies having children herself. The obvious comparison is with Killing Eve, another clever and emotionally compelling spy drama about the relationship between a British woman agent and a female terrorist. But the shifting layers of psychological mystery and the pervading sense of Western values under attack make this perfect fare for anyone who loved the first few seasons of Homeland, the 2012 thriller starring Damian Lewis as a suspected Al Qaeda double agent and Claire Danes as the CIA agent intent on exposing him. Plus, The Veil has Elisabeth Moss doing a hoity Kensington accent and smiling brightly a lot.
Metro
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Metro
Steven Knight's 'compelling' thriller series quietly added to free streamer
A thriller series starring Elisabeth Moss is now streaming for free (Picture: FX) A week after her long-running series The Handmaid's Tale came to an end, UK fans can now binge an 'underrated' thriller starring Elisabeth Moss. Released on Hulu in the US and on Disney Plus locally last year, The Veil was written by Steven Knight, best known for creating Peaky Blinders and SAS: Rogue Heroes. Ahead of its release, it was teased the cat-and-mouse storyline would appeal to fans of Killing Eve and promised to keep viewers on the edge of their seats. 'The Veil explores the surprising and fraught relationship between two women who play a deadly game of truth and lies on the road from Istanbul to Paris and London,' the official synopsis said. 'One woman has a secret, the other a mission to reveal it before thousands of lives are lost. In the shadows, mission controllers at the CIA and French DGSE must put differences aside and work together to avert potential disaster.' Elisabeth plays Imogen Salter, a veteran MI6 agent with a specialty in undercover work. The Veil follows two women engaged in a 'deadly game of truths and lies' (Picture: FX) To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page The Veil also stars Yumna Marwan as Adilah El Idrissi, a French woman suspected of being an ISIS leader planning an attack on the West, Dali Benssalah as Malik Amar, an agent with French intelligence agency DGSE and Imogen's boyfriend, and Josh Charles as Max Peterson, an obnoxious CIA agent collaborating with Malik and Imogen. After a two year wait for the show to hit screens, a year later UK fans can now finally also tune in for free. This week Channel 4 uploaded the entire series to its streaming service. Although the six-episode series divided critics and fans, those who did love it gave glowing reviews. 'Exciting and astonishing, The Veil beautifully balances stunt-filled escapades and a rich narrative,' Variety wrote. It was originally released last year and is now available on Channel 4 (Picture: FX) 'Overall, The Veil seems like a fun show to get lost in as you unravel the mystery each week,' Common Sense Media shared. 'By the end of the six episodes of The Veil, I was convinced that this is Moss' best role, and best performance, yet. She's amazing,' NPR added. Meanwhile fans said it was 'utterly compelling', 'underrated' and 'full of constant twists'. After her breakout role as Zoey Bartlet in The West Wing, Moss went on to star as Peggy Olson in Mad Men, before playing June/ Offred in The Handmaid's Tale, which ran from 2017 until this year. Speaking to RTE ahead of the initial premiere of The Veil, the actress said this had been one of her hardest roles to date. The series was created by Peaky Blinders' Steven Knight (Picture: Alan Chapman/ Dave Benett/ WireImage) 'It was much more challenging than I've ever experienced given the different skills and different things I had to do with the dialect, the stunts, fight training, and speaking a couple of different languages here and there, and then traveling around the world, so it definitely felt like, if possible, I've found something even more challenging than The Handmaid's Tale,' she said. During filming she even fractured a vertebrae in her back, an injury that left her lying on a roof in Istanbul for two hours. After 'hitting a wall the wrong way' when undertaking a stunt, Moss was still determined to push on and was back on set the next day, but with limited mobility. 'I didn't know if we were going to be able to come back and shoot on this rooftop in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. It's not like that is an easy thing to accomplish. But luckily, we, as a production, and then FX, thank God, let us go back and shoot it again. Which was incredible, an incredible opportunity,' she told Variety. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. Arrow MORE: South Park scores groundbreaking $1,500,000,000 deal after fans vow to cancel streaming subscriptions Arrow MORE: Malcolm-Jamal Warner's powerful 'last message' leaves fans heartbroken Arrow MORE: 7 of the most thrilling TV shows to watch for Shark Week
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Channel 4 viewers can stream Peaky Blinder creator's spy thriller with Handmaid's Tale star for free
Many viewers say they were immediately hooked Channel 4 viewers can now stream Peaky Blinder creator's spy thriller with The Handmaid's Tale star for free. The Veil has recently been added to the broadcasters streaming library. It was previously released and only made available via Disney+ with a premium subscription. A six-part mini-series, it was created and written by Steven Knight. Knight is also known for making Peaky Blinders, A Thousand Blows and Taboo. It stars Elisabeth Moss in the leading role, who is recognisable for appearing in the hit series and adaptation of Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaid's Tale. According to its synopsis, The Veil is an international spy thriller series that explores the surprising and fraught relationship between two women who play a deadly game of truth and lies on the road from Istanbul to Paris and London. One woman has a secret, while the other is on a mission to reveal it before thousands of lives are lost. In the shadows, mission controllers at the U.S. CIA and French DGSE must put differences aside, as difficult as it may be, and work together to avert potential disaster before it is too late. Upon its initial release, it was met with relatively mixed reviews. It only managed a 54% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However many agree on the high standard of Moss' captivating performance and explain the short length makes for a binge worthy show. One critic wrote: "By the end of the six episodes of The Veil, I was convinced that this is Moss' best role, and best performance, yet. She's amazing." Another penned: "The Veil has a star and enough of a hook to grab you -- and, at six episodes, seems algorithmically calculated to be short enough that you probably won't give up if you start... You'd almost feel guilty turning it off." Fans of the show have spoken highly of the show as well. One sharing their thoughts online, said: "Highly underrated show. Riveting, great leads, solid acting, gripping. Its an intelligent drama with the cold war style storytelling, intelligent, not just explosions and gunfire. Brilliant show so far. Savouring the episodes and saving the last. Don't want the journey to be over." Another added: "I couldn't help but watch it all in one day. It keeps you glued to the screen. Great show, great cast, great storyline and twists, action packed." Meanwhile a third posted: "Utterly compelling. Like a good book that you just can't put down until you've read cover to cover and end up with book grief! Having been gripped tight watching the first episode, it was impossible to wait another week. I watched all six in one sitting." The Veil is streaming on Channel 4 and Disney+.
Leader Live
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Leader Live
Channel 4 The Veil: Full cast list and when it's on TV
The Peaky Blinders writer is behind The Veil, which was released on Disney+ in the UK in 2024, but will now be coming to terrestrial TV. It follows MI6 agent Imogen Salter [Moss] and her boyfriend Malik Amar [Dali Benssalah], who are recruited by CIA agent Max Peterson [Josh Charles] to work with him on a mission. They must determine if French woman Adilah El Idrissi [Yumna Marwan] is part of an ISIS cell. The series follows the fraught relationship between Imogen and Adilah, "who play a deadly game of truth and lies on the road from Istanbul to Paris and London". The synopsis continues: "One woman has a secret, the other a mission to reveal it before thousands of lives are lost. "In the shadows, mission controllers at the CIA and French DGSE must put differences aside and work together to avert potential disaster." Discussing with the Radio Times about taking on the role, Moss said: "I love all the spy franchises, but I don't know if we've seen this kind of story on television before. "At least, not in a while. For that reason, I am excited for people to get hooked by how fun, entertaining and global this story is." She continued: "Imogen [Moss] and Adilah [Marwan] are the emotional truth and the emotional heart of the story. I think we've achieved a great balance between the character drama and the complexity of that, as well as a lot of fun." Elisabeth Moss as Imogen Salter Yumna Marwan as Adilah El Idrissi Dali Benssalah as Malik Amar Josh Charles as Max Peterson Thibault de Montalembert as Magritte James Purefoy as Sir Michael Althorp Dan Wyllie as Guy Joana Ribeiro as Sandrina Haluk Bilginer as Mr. Demir Alec Secăreanu as Emir Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as Johnson Nadia Larbioune as Nour Recommended reading: Everything to know on The Couple Next Door Series 2 starring Annabel Scholey 3 key things to know about new BBC drama Mix Tape that airs this week Everything to know on Channel 5's Murder Most Puzzling starring Phyllis Logan The first episode of The Veil will air at 9pm on Sunday, July 20 on Channel 4. After that, the remaining five episodes will air in the same timeslot over the next few weeks. Episodes will be available to watch on All 4 after they have aired.
