This Life - Series 1 And 2 (Box Set) (DVD)

...of the DVD boxset of This Life, a cult drama from the mid 90s based on a group of cohabiting twentysomethings in central London, mostly involved in starting their careers in law. For people of a certain age, this is a welcome reminder of their 20s, and seeing the friends a decade on in this setting is quite interesting.

'''THE SHOW'''

The show is based around the lives of the 5 main protagonists in their nascent law ...
...now looks strange. Add to this the total lack of reference to the internet.

It's a rather unlikely scenario on the face of it; law isn't exactly the most sexy profession you can think of, and there is in fact very little seen of clients or courts. Many scenes are played out in the offices (or chambers as they appear to be called, I'm no legal expert). The house is where most of the action is though, and it's really all about how the ... more

INTRODUCTION

If like me, you've never got over the fact it isn't 1996 any more, a retreat into nostalgia is always welcome. And herein lies the appeal of the DVD boxset of This Life, a cult drama from the mid 90s based on a group of cohabiting twentysomethings in central London, mostly involved in starting their careers in law. For people of a certain age, this is a welcome reminder of their 20s, and seeing the friends a decade on in this setting is quite interesting.

THE SHOW

The show is based around the lives of the 5 main protagonists in their nascent law careers. Having just graduated and moved into a house together, we see their day to day lives at work and friendships outside.

The method of shooting was at the time innovative, with the camera bouncing all over the place from one character to the other at breakneck speed. It is a big disconcerting sometimes seeing prolonged shots of people chins but it's part of the charm I suppose. I remember seeing it at the time and almost feeling dizzy, but these days it seems nothing new, perhaps a tribute to the impact the series had.

It's interesting to note all kinds of little details that remind you of that era. No doubt the production team put much thought into the "hip" soundtrack to the protagonists' lives, and you hear Indie period pieces such as Sneaker Pimps, Pulp, Portishead and so on, all played on portable radio cassette players. (One scene in the reunion 10 years on had them playing the same music but through a docked iPod.) The fact that a mobile phone is almost nowhere to be seen is also interesting, with people waiting for urgent calls holding the houses' cordless telephone close to hand; there is no need for the writers to use the "out of coverage" ruse if they want a character to be incognito. Take note of the references and they will also amuse; talk of how Princess Diana is dressed at the time. One scene involves a young boy and a comment is made that Anna can wait for him until 2010. You are reminded that although the setting looks the same, the world is a very different place a decade on. There is no Starbucks or Costa Coffee in sight; people are drinking flat, murky looking coffee from cheap glass mugs in Italian style cafes with cheap chequered plastic tablecloths. The proliferation of smoking all around, in bars, in the house, at work, now looks strange. Add to this the total lack of reference to the internet.

It's a rather unlikely scenario on the face of it; law isn't exactly the most sexy profession you can think of, and there is in fact very little seen of clients or courts. Many scenes are played out in the offices (or chambers as they appear to be called, I'm no legal expert). The house is where most of the action is though, and it's really all about how the characters interact with eachother. The house share closely resembles a student pad and is treated as such.

THE MAIN PROTAGONISTS

Egg is the liveliest personality of the gang. He seems to think of everything in terms of footballing analogies and has a framed Manchester United shirt on his bedroom wall. He seems to have trouble settling into the life of a lawyer and soon grows tired of it, leading him to interesting career decision which you see played out over the two series.

Andrew Lincoln is still noted for this role and despite starring in other shows like Teachers since then, he'll probably never shake the Egg tag completely.

Milly is kind of a Monica from Friends, but without the wit, personality or looks. Uptight, repressed and obsessed with order and planning, Milly has been with Egg since university, and is frustrated by Eggs's lack of focus or direction in his life. The consummate professional herself, Millie finds herself the teachers pet at work and is much favoured by her boss O'Donnell. Aware of her own failings, her repression and lack of adventure leads her to wonder if she is missing out on life and this craving for excitement consequently leads her into dangerous territory …

Miles is a high flying law graduate. Brooding, macho and yet quite sensitive when it comes down to it, although he manages to hide this most of the time. Quite the ladies man, we are treated to many sights of his various conquests around the house. There is an underlying sexual tension between him and Anna, which is always bubbling just under the surface. He doesn't always get on with Warren and seems to be at times homophobic, although his regard for Warren is apparent by the end.

Anna is a loud, brash Glaswegian who is also sensitive. Her underlying insecurity makes her quite vulnerable, which in turn appears to be what drives her on, always wanting to prove herself in the law profession. We see her trying to fix herself up with a position in chambers and fighting all the way to achieve it. Her love/hate interactions with Miles are often acerbic, and her one caustic liners see many a person off. She also likes to enjoy herself and seems to subscribe to the work hard & play hard school of thought, often getting very drunk and on occasions dabbling in hard drugs.

Warren is only really present in series one (and memorably, right at the end of series two). From a small Welsh village, he has managed to conceal the fact that he is gay from his family, but is very upfront about it at work (and even mentions it at his interview). His insecurity about his double life may be a factor in his ultra professionalism at work. His ventures into London gay life add a bit of spice (and probably controversy at the time) to the proceedings.

We are also treated to several characters that weave in and out, several of whom play a larger part in the second series; O'Donnell, Milly, Warren and Egg's boss at the law firm; Jo, the clerk at Anna and Miles' office; Kira, Warren's cousin who is temping at the law firm Milly, Warren and Egg work at. ; bunny boling Rachel, Milly's nemesis at work. Ferdy, a bisexual struggling to come to terms with his preference for men.

CONCLUSION

Without giving the ending away too much, two series of tension lead to an explosive conclusion and one of the best closing scenes and lines ever. This is one of the most memorable and best endings I can ever remember to a drama, and I hadn't really understood it until watching all the episodes in order this time, but I always remembered it as I'd seen it several times in isolation.

The ten year reunion show is also interesting, where the five main characters get together for a funeral, but no real mention is made of the other characters, which is a it of a shame in my opinion, as it would have been interesting to know what happened to them, too.

EXTRA FEATURES

None really, save from some short character biographies. It would have been interesting to see cast, production staff and crew interviews, but all we really have are the episodes themselves.

DVD DETAILS

Format: Box set, Digital Sound, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, PAL
Language English
Region: Region 2 ( DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: 14:9:1
Number of discs: 7
Classification: 18
Studio: 2 Entertain Video
DVD Release Date: 27 Feb 2006

DVD Features:

• Main Language: English
• Available Audio Tracks: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Hearing Impaired: English
• Disc Format: DVD 9
• Character Biographies

ASIN: B000CCE27S 

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