A Tale of Two Cities (1989)

Directed by: Philippe Monnier | 188 minutes | drama, war, romance, history | Actors: James Wilby, Xavier Deluc, Serena Gordon, John Mills, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Anna Massey, Kathy Kriegel, Alfred Lynch, Gérard Klein, Jonathan Adams, Karl Johnson, Michel Subor

The miniseries ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ (after the famous book by Charles Dickens) focuses on the characters of Alexandre and Lucie Manette, Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. The story begins in the year 1767, when the doctor Alexandre Manette (Jean-Pierre Aumont) is innocently imprisoned in a prison tower of ‘The Bastille’ in Paris. Eight years later, Alexandre reunites with his good friend Jarvis Lorry (John Mills) after his release. The doctor also meets daughter Lucie (Serena Gordon), who had to grow up without a father.

Then the miniseries makes another jump in time and we see Lucie together with Mr Lorry and her father in a courtroom. Lucie testifies for defendant Charles Darnay (Xavier Deluc). He is charged with treason. Lucie notices that her testimony does Charles little good. But Sydney Carton (James Wilby) is touched by Lucie’s plea and manages to turn things in Charles’s favour. Sydney is madly in love with Lucie from that moment on. He realizes that his love will go unrequited, but makes a special promise to Lucie. When the French Revolution sets in, Charles and Lucie’s happiness is cruelly disrupted…

Although ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ has a fairly long running time, the miniseries remains interesting due to actors such as Gordon and Deluc. They are very convincing as the love couple Charles and Lucie. But Wilby should certainly not be forgotten, he gives the – at first sight – superficial Sydney the right swing. Wilby knows well how to visualize with his eyes the inner turmoil going on in Sydney’s mind. You see him struggling wordlessly. For example, when Sydney’s colleague notices that he has to touch the woman, or when he sees Lucie and Charles kissing in the woods. The scene in which Sydney confesses his love to Lucie is one of the memorable moments of the film. The way in which Wilby as Carton passionately expresses his feelings does not seem forced. And the emotions that co-star Gordon shows through her lovely face are also strong.

When the French Revolution breaks out in ‘A Tale of Two Cities’, the tone changes drastically. In advance you will get enough indications that there is a lot going on among the French population because of the meetings at the inn of the couple LeFarge. You get to know these characters even better during the revolution. Kathy Kriegl plays Madame Thérèse LeFarge, the innkeeper’s wife who has given shelter to Alexandre. Thérèse likes to see the elite perish. This character is sure to stay with you because of Kriegl’s flaming blue eyes with which she radiates Thérèse’s intense fighting spirit and bloodlust. If looks could kill, she was one of the people they mean by this well-known saying.

The story of ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ is ingenious. Dickens sheds light on the abuses of the upper class versus the lower class through an apparently simple family story. But the good thing is that things are more complicated than you might think. It’s not just about Charles and Lucie’s family history. The makers of the miniseries have managed to turn this fact into their own hands. This adaptation of ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ is one that leaves you with a lump in your throat after the end…