The Singing Detective - Covenantesque !?

[SleeplessOne]

Having recently watched this excellent BBC mini-series again for the first time in decades, I was immeadiately struck by the many similarities the story has with the chronicles of Thomas Covenant –

an author (Phillip Marlow, a name the man shares with Raymond Chandler’s celebrated Private Detective – the character is played by Michael Gambon, aka ‘Dumbledore’ in 3 of the Harry Potter films) is struck down with an inexplicable condition which causes him to be alienated from his loved ones and community – in this case the protaginist suffers from a debilatating form of psoriasis which leaves him with unsightly flakey skin which covers his entire body. Parallels with leprosy are even made at one point, a psychiatrist notes that the skin is ‘very personal’, and even makes a comment about people ringing bells and yelling ‘unclean’ whenever Marlow walks by.

Whilst confined to a hospital bed, Marlow, a now-bitter and quite twisted man due to the effects of his condition, attempts to re-write one of his previously published novels in his mind (being unable to even grasp a pen with his stricken hands), casting himself as the main character of the story, ‘the Singing Detective’.

As his condition deteriorates Marlow finds himself retreating to the fictional world he is creating more and more often; a world of dames and gangsters and war criminals set in post WW2 England … this world is also frequently intruded upon by vivid memories of Marlow’s past, memories which reveal a bleak and damaged childhood.

And so the stage is set as Marlow attempts to work through his many issues with a sort of dream-therapy – sounds kinda familiar right ?

The mini-series was re-made into a film a couple of years ago, re-set in America and starring Robert Downey jr – it didn’t do too well … but the original BBC effort (written by Dennis Potter) was a ground-breaking and critically acclaimed series when it was aired in the mid-80’s – I highly recommend it, the dialogue is first-rate and bristles with dark humour, Marlow’s fictional world is full of intrigue and his real life in the hospital is sometimes oddly surreal and full of casual cruelties. The music is also great, lots of old timey crooners and Glen Miller band type stuff .. Gambon is stellar and the support cast (including a deliciously slimey Patrick Malahide, who plays several roles, always as Gambon’s nemesis) is great.

anyone else seen it ?


www.imdb.com/title/tt0090521/