Martina Cole's The Take concluded last night on Sky 1 and Sky 1 HD. Billed as a gritty four-part drama it was certainly that, surpassing even The Sopranos when it came to blood, gore and sheer, downright nastiness.
Essentially a story about seedy, underworld crime, the action centered around Freddie, a psychopath if ever there was one, his dysfunctional family and their own emotional breakdowns into violence, alcoholism and drug abuse. Aside from countless murders (including child fratricide) committed with an unnerving level of venom, Cole also included torture, graphic rape and various instances of grievous bodily harm, which left victims in a vegetative state. Sounds like fun, doesn't it?
And yet, even though the writing lacked depth and its objective was clearly to shock, Sky's translation to the small screen was strangely compelling, largely due to the performance of Tom Hardy as Freddie, who absolutely nailed the role of psychotic, drug-addled thug.
Back when I was in high school, sitting behind me in maths class was a boy we called “Cocker”. He wasn't a bully, in fact if you were brave enough to get to know him he was actually quite sensitive with an engaging character, but he could turn, and he'd get a look in his eye that would strike fear into the whole school, teachers included. Everyone walked on egg-shells because of it. I haven't seen that look since 1986, until now, because Tom Hardy's Freddie had the same menace.
Kierston Wareing as the constantly disheveled (and rather snotty) Jackie and Charlotte Riley as sister Maggie both fared well, although there were a few weak scenes between them, probably as a result of having to continually cry on-cue, which was what both women spent most of their time doing. As Jimmy, the fourth lead, Shaun Evans was perhaps the least convincing of the quartet, but only due to the lack of character development on the part of the writer, an area illustrated by the naming of the major characters; Jackie, Maggie, Jimmy, Freddie, Ozzy...
At times it was all too easy to pick flaws in the story, such as the lack of accountability for all the crimes committed (floods of blood and a trail of evidence that a blind policeman could follow) with no sign of the law, but it was also easy to forgive such flaws on the back of Tom Hardy's performance, which constantly stole the show, including the only hint at humour. Explaining to his young son why he has to go and live with grandma: “I dont wanna go!” “I know, but you have to, because otherwise uncle Jimmy is going to kill you, right? Do you understand?”
Production values were excellent throughout with some notably polished cinematography benefiting from a sparkling high definition image. Only once was there any noticeable digital manipulation (applied to blur away the spots on actress Charlotte Riley's chin, such are the perils of HD), otherwise it was clean, grain-free and full of detail. Over 600,000 tuned in for the final, which is quite a healthy number for a subscription channel and drama that wasn't likely to be to everyone's taste.
Kudos to Sky for venturing into an area typically dominated by the BBC and ITV, and in many areas outdoing them. Homegrown drama, produced in high-definition, is to be encouraged, and with Martina Cole's The Take, the cast, Company Pictures, Warner Sisters and Sky's production team turned a rather distasteful, bland book into compelling, stylish and some would say unmissable television.
Tom Hardy and Shaun Evans in Martina Cole's The Take, gritty drama from Sky 1.
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