Charlie (RTE1 Charlie Haughey Drama)

K-9

The_Captain wrote: »

Was that not the updated phone system that he could hear conversations on?

Maybe I missed that. I just assumed Haughey was coming round to the idea because of the cabinet leaks and he could eavesdrop on conversations from the day 1 anyway. I'd assume the new system would be a bit "fancier" plus Doherty was the senior Minister for Justice in 82, not junior, so they are more hinting at the why in this episode.

AFAIK it was never proven Haughey actually listened to the conversations, I don't think even Bruce Arnold went that far in his book.

The guy playing Doherty looks promising, you could do a whole episode on him alone!

Day Lewin

The unsettling resemblance between "Mara" and a young Woody Allen. Makes him appear more like a sardonic backstage Macchiavelli than a professional go-fer and póg-mo-u-know-what man.

Happyman42

John Murray covered this, Sean O'Rourke covered it, News at One covered it, Joe Duffy covered it and now the Mooney slot is covering it.

Did Ronan Collins not like it/ was off the planet last night or what?:rolleyes:

JaseBelleVie

CountyHurler wrote: »

I think the production/writers were overconfident in the quality of the script to not have captions underneath the characters as they first appeared on screen... Particularly given that none of the actors looked hugely like their counterparts...

There is a movie called Too Big To Fail, which covers the fall of Lehman Brothers in the US... There is a scene where Hank Paulson and Tim Geithner gather all the heads of the main banks in the US in to one room to discuss how THEY will save Lehmans... As each leader of the each bank walks in to the treasury offices, a caption appears under them saying "John Thain: Merril Lynch", even though i) the actors DO bear a significant resemblance to the real bankers and ii) most of the bankers would have been household names at that stage... This is what they should have done with Charlie...

Totally agree. In HBO films like Too Big To Fail, Game Change, etc. the names of the main players appear. I was a bit lost, I'll admit, but I picked up pretty quickly.

But it would have helped no end if there were indications as to who the key players were. Big time.

mbutler2007

anyone know were i can get a download of Charlie show from last night? im outside Ireland so no rte player (web line, torrent or what ever)

thanks

Ally Dick

Gillen is poor. Spending so much time on the accuracy of the accent, that he forgot he had to act too

Galwayguy35

Tom Vaughan Lawler looked like Harry Potters older brother, even harmless looking as he blinked behind the jam jar glasses.

I thought it would have been better tbh but I'll see what next week is like, the pace might pick up a bit.

DainBramage

Happyman42 wrote: »

John Murray covered this, Sean O'Rourke covered it, News at One covered it, Joe Duffy covered it and now the Mooney slot is covering it.

Did Ronan Collins not like it/ was off the planet last night or what?:rolleyes:

fair play for sitting through all of that!

HeidiHeidi

Ally Dick wrote: »

Gillen is poor. Spending so much time on the accuracy of the accent, that he forgot he had to act too

The way he dragged out the last "t" of some words into a kind of "tssss" was driving me nuts by the end of it!

Ally Dick

HeidiHeidi wrote: »

The way he dragged out the last "t" of some words into a kind of "tssss" was driving me nuts by the end of it!

Gillen obviously studied Haughey giving speeches and in interviews, and decided that was the way he needed to speak throughout the whole drama. Eh no. He has forgotten he has to act as well. He comes across as more wooden than Pinocchio

Heraldoffreeent

Montallie wrote: »

I was disappointed after all the hype (you'd think I'd have learned by now). I thought the characterisation on the whole (including the main character) was shallow, and we didn't learn anything we didn't already know from the media. While Charlie himself was reasonably well done, his speech was too fast and seemed to me to miss the threatening, reptilian quality of the man. I thought that Mara was portrayed more like an affable clown than the dangerous-to-cross guy of the newspapers.

It seemed to me that all Gillen based CJ's speech patterns on was one Ard Fheis address, where he would probably have spoken louder and quicker than normal, intent on rousing the audience.

I met Haughey twice, once when he was down the west canvassing and finished up in a pub of a supporter where he was the centre of attention for a few hours, and another time back in Dublin, and his speech was much slower, deeper and ponderous than Gillen portrays.

A bit like his resignation speech
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGEQtBID-HA

Or that clip you see from time to time on reeling in the years where he's debating with Garret Fitzgerald on RTE, the one where he says "nothing but a piece of paper, not an official document at all'.
Its in the first 10/15 minutes of this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCKOYU71zNI

When Haughey spoke, he uttered each word as if each and every one had greater significance because it was him saying it. I've no doubt he lost his temper and ranted and raved from time to time, but not always, Gillens interpretation though, seems to be just one dimensional.

galwaylad14

Will this be repeated on rte during the week?

brooke 2

Lumbarda wrote: »

It was common knowledge at the time but no one spoke about it!

Meaning the embedded media kept quiet about it!

Galwayguy35

galwaylad14 wrote: »

Will this be repeated on rte during the week?

11pm on saturday I think.

brooke 2

Pdoghue wrote: »

I think it's fairly good overall.

Have to say, Aiden Gillen is doing a good job playing Charlie.

I agree. Really enjoyed it. Thought TVL was great. Heard Paddy Duffy,
who knew CJH - maybe, even worked with him - on the radio this morning.
He thought the interaction between Haughey and Mara was very well
represented in 'Charlie'. Am looking forward to the next episode!

Well whatever of peoples opinion of Charlie or Love/hate or any of RTE's drama's at least they are having a go at making them.

Could be worse, we could have more shíte like Connected, or Maia Dunphy's what women want or you could even turn over to TV3 to watch Misunderstood travellers go bare knuckle boxing at their 4 big fat gypsie weddings and a subsequent funeral.

Id much prefer RTE to at least support a bit of creative writing then go down the route of other channels. And drama sure beats soaps any day.

mattser

chopper6 wrote: »

Absolute garbage..apalling acting and ridiculous accents..one character had a hybrid Cork/Louth brogue ffs

RTE right back on form with it's dreadfull fare..Love/Hate was a once-off.

+1.

They actually believe they can act. No doubt Tubridy, O'Connor, etc will be fawning over them for the rest of the year.

Coillte_Bhoy

Any reason its not up on RTE player yet?

Skid X

Coillte_Bhoy wrote: »

Any reason its not up on RTE player yet?

It is (on the irish version, anyway).

kenco

Deleted User wrote: »

Well whatever of peoples opinion of Charlie or Love/hate or any of RTE's drama's at least they are having a go at making them.

Could be worse, we could have more shíte like Connected, or Maia Dunphy's what women want or you could even turn over to TV3 to watch Misunderstood travellers go bare knuckle boxing at their 4 big fat gypsie weddings and a subsequent funeral.

Id much prefer RTE to at least support a bit of creative writing then go down the route of other channels. And drama sure beats soaps any day.

Nail on the head! The idea of RTE doing such a show would have been unthinkable even 20 years ago. Its only really since the Tribunal findings that the sacred cow has been seen through. Whatever you think of Charlie he is one of the most interesting personalities of modern Ireland. A bit like Nixon he 'could fly with the eagles and crawl with the lizards'

I thought Gillen was ok. Its a mad role to try to play and really there is not going to be any consensus on his portrayal. I 'encountered' CJ once and he was a small guy but definitely had a 'presence'. The voice was deeper and much slower than Gillen essayed but again he had to 'act' as opposed to just do an impression.

The rest were ok but I think Dessie and Colley were weak enough but again hard for the actors involved (this was 30 odd years back).

Coillte_Bhoy

Skid X wrote: »

It is (on the irish version, anyway).

Aha i had a vpn turned on, thanks

BlatentCheek

The acting was generally excellent, especially with the two leads, and in general the production values were stratospheric for RTE but at first I felt the script was a dud.

I thought the script in the first half had a bit too much clumsy introductions of well-known political figures, house of cards style obviousness masquerading as profound cynicism and wink-wink knowing dialogue like "Creevy wants finance, like that will ever happen hahahaha".

However the script really started to feel more fluid from about half-way through and by the end I thought it was great. If they maintain that quality for the rest of the series it will be an RTE classic.

katydid

Montallie wrote: »

I was disappointed after all the hype (you'd think I'd have learned by now). I thought the characterisation on the whole (including the main character) was shallow, and we didn't learn anything we didn't already know from the media. While Charlie himself was reasonably well done, his speech was too fast and seemed to me to miss the threatening, reptilian quality of the man. I thought that Mara was portrayed more like an affable clown than the dangerous-to-cross guy of the newspapers.

I agree, the actor playing Haughey didn't capture him at all. He had all the mannerisms, but totally lacked the reptilian stare he was famous for. Hard to reproduce, no doubt.

BuilderPlumber

Deleted User wrote: »

Well whatever of peoples opinion of Charlie or Love/hate or any of RTE's drama's at least they are having a go at making them.

Could be worse, we could have more shíte like Connected, or Maia Dunphy's what women want or you could even turn over to TV3 to watch Misunderstood travellers go bare knuckle boxing at their 4 big fat gypsie weddings and a subsequent funeral.

Id much prefer RTE to at least support a bit of creative writing then go down the route of other channels. And drama sure beats soaps any day.

+1. I think that RTE can produce good drama when it decides to.

I think Love/Hate is excellent and it would not have been the success it has been if it wasn't. It is a great show and very different to anything done before here. Very realistic depiction of the criminals in Dublin and Nidge has become iconic. Fran too.

I liked last years' Amber too. Again, realistic. The ending did not suit everyone but that is the ending for most people who experience this sort of thing. Interestingly, watching Love/Hate and Amber side by side and you can see the amount of disappeared characters never to be seen again. Doubt if Luke could be found again for example. Amber? The same, only she was innocent and he was not. A criminal can kill a person and the body may never be found. If this was the 1980s, a show like this would have a happy ending and she would be found. But we have gone beyond Glenroe et al (even Glenroe itself was exploring darker things by its ending seasons).

The Fall has also been a very good series. As with Love/Hate, it is a coproduction that works very well.

Charlie I liked so far too and again it is a lovely follow up to Love/Hate seeing Nidge and John among others in different roles. Charlie beats the hell out of The Frontline, The Week in Politics et al for my money when it comes to watching politics!! It also shows Haughey to be more interesting than any of today's crop.

CountyHurler

Have to say I've been very surprised to hear the reaction today on various radio stations with regard to last night's episode... There seems to be hardly a dissenting voice... Seems to be universally loved by everybody in the media... Though it may be a case of the media being unprepared to criticise an Irish playwright, radio dramatist, translator and academic....

Mick Clifford was the only one I heard criticising it. He agreed that it suffered from too much happening at once, with confusion over who people were and what was actually happening..

Gerry Rio

I thought, for once, that Aidan Gillan stole the show. TVL let me down big time. I wonder is that all h has in his range?

Surely not when you hear what he sounds like off camera Vs the Nidge character.

kravmaga

katydid wrote: »

I agree, the actor playing Haughey didn't capture him at all. He had all the mannerisms, but totally lacked the reptilian stare he was famous for. Hard to reproduce, no doubt.

Its Aidan Gillen, hes from Drumcondra originally.

Totally disagree with you, as another poster said he stole the show.

katydid

kravmaga wrote: »

Its Aidan Gillen, hes from Drumcondra originally.

Totally disagree with you, as another poster said he stole the show.

He had all the mannerisms, but he was very wooden at times, and came nowhere near the sinister way Haughey had. Just my opinion.

Woshy

Just watched this on rte player and we enjoyed it. It wasn't amazing but good for what it was.

My husband isn't Irish and the only thing he knew about Haughey before the programme us that he tried to feel my granny up once (it's a family favourite story, she always said he was a dirty bugger!). He was mostly able to follow what was happening and who was who. Obviously he doesn't know the historical background but he could follow the story well enough.

JaseBelleVie

Mother of god, that song actually existed! :eek:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih9m0WvAwFo