As anyone who knows me personally, or anyone who frequently reads my blog, will tell you, I'm a huge David Tennant fan. Ever since his role as Doctor Who, I've thought of him as my favourite actor, ever. Which is why it was so terribly heartbreaking and shocking when I discovered I didn't like his character in BBC Two's The Politician's Husband.
This isn't a criticism of Tennant's acting, however. Rather, it is an enormous compliment: he must be bloody good at acting if he can make such a fan of his hate him!
The Politician's Husband centres around the evolving power relationship between a man and wife as their personal and political worlds collide. At the beginning of the three-part series, Aiden Hoynes (Tennant) is a senior Cabinet Minister with considerable power and support within Parliament. However, his soaring success comes to an abrupt halt after a failed protest against the government, which leaves him with nothing. His wife Freya (Emily Watson), on the other hand, suddenly is able to step out of her husband's shadow and improve her career. What starts as a bid from Aiden to get revenge on former best friend Bruce, for his betrayal, turns into Freya's independent bid for power. It seems that when plotting, Aiden forgot his wife had ambition and dreams of her own. With this fraught affair, it is clear tensions within the household will come to a climax. The next two episodes explore the aftermath of Aiden's downfall as well as the disitengrating relationship of Parliament's 'golden couple'.
If you're like me, with no real knowledge or awareness of government and politics other than who our Prime Minister is, I can understand that the in depth nature of this drama can be offputting, and dare I say it, boring. But the real interest of this series comes from the psychological manipulation and power struggle between Freya and Aiden rather than the political roles they hold. As Tennant said himself in a recent interview, after losing everything, Aiden comes out "snarling and biting", becoming increasingly paranoid and controlling of Freya, whereas she increasingly distances herself from her husband: not only his political battles, but personally.
After Aiden's fall from grace, we see his desperate attempts to reclaim his position on the political ladder. These are shortlived after a false sex scandal concerning the family's nanny is leaked to the press. This really brings to light the severed ties between the Hoynes family; at times, it seems Freya and Aiden are too busy fighting for power to concentrate on their two children, one of which has Asperger's. After the turmoil of the press attention, it then seems that it is actually Freya who is being unfaithful. Prior to the final episode, I've always thought that it was just Aiden's paranoia which made him suspicious of Freya and Bruce, but when Freya has a late night meeting with Bruce and Aiden notices her contraception is missing from the house, things look very suspicious indeed.
It seems that Freya was playing Bruce at his own game, however, as she convinces him she is 'up for it' before laughing in his face and making him feel very humiliated indeed. Slight karma, perhaps?
The most horrific scene of the whole series, in my opinion, was the rape scene of episode two. It was truly tragic and shocking to watch - I'm seriously surprised the BBC allowed it to be aired - but aside from the brutality of the act, it was also heartbreaking to see a man so desperate and low that he resorts to these kind of power games to feel better about himself. Characters aside, this act was shocking as I don't think I've ever seen anything Tennant has done on television before that has been so horrific. Or even anything so horrific on TV before, ever.
The conclusion to the series was heartbreaking: Aiden's plan of revenge on Bruce succeeds, but then it is discovered he hoped it would tarnish Freya's prospects in Parliament too. As it was put so brilliantly, "there's only ever been room for you [Aiden] at the top table". And tragically, that seems the end of the reign of the 'golden couple', both politically and personally. Right until the very end, it is evident Aiden believed he could use his wife as a pawn and still finish 'the game' with his perfect marriage intact.
Right from the start, you ignore the obvious in the title of the drama and assume that Tennant is the real politician of the couple: he carries all the stereotypical traits, good and bad. But it is not until the very last scene of the series that you see who is really in power in this relationship (if you can still call it that).
I think it's phenomenal how raw and intense the acting in this series is. Both Tennant and Watson show brilliant talent in conveying the desperation and difficult nature of political lives whilst trying to maintain a facade of idyllic home life. It's remarkable how much I love this series considering the two protagonists are extremely unlikable, but that's why it works. It's different to the norm, thus much more captivating.
You can catch up on the full series of The Politician's Husband on iPlayer here.
No comments:
Post a Comment