Casanova’s final episode. Like episode 2, it doesn’t quite live up to episode 1’s promise for me, but my quibbles are relatively minor in the grand scheme of things and it’s still an awfully entertaining miniseries (one spoiler.)
Hard times have sent Casanova wandering, and he goes from country to country trying to find a means to get back to Venice. Along the way, he has a major reckoning with his rival Gramani, reconnects with an old flame, and examines the implications of the reputation he’s built for himself.
On the whole, I would put this above episode 2, mainly for the issues I discussed last week about the story feeling like the miniseries was written to be split into two parts, not three – the final hour feels more cohesive to me. It features plenty of the miniseries’ lively humor (I laughed out loud at the reveal of “scandalous” high London society,) all kinds of vibrantly-creative costumes, and some introspection along with the fun. For actors, Tom Burke (who I remember from State of Play) gets in on the fun as Jack, Casanova’s illegitmate son.
There are a number of places where this episode gets more thoughtful about different themes related to its eponymous character. As Casanova continues to romp his way across Europe, contriving various ways to keep himself on top, he’s also forced to confront what his carefree enjoyment leaves behind, the effect he has on others. And for all that he champions himself as a man who simply loves love and women, the present-day sequences return to the the notion of his exploits being more mercenary, more about conquest than affairs.
I’ve fallen completely on the side of this being a fine role for David Tennant. While I think he can sometimes hit the dramatic moments just a bit too hard (I thought that about his Doctor at times too – by Good Omens, he can navigate that much better,) but for the most part, he strikes the right chord with it. And the trickster/seducer side of Casanova just comes off so well. He has this puckish quality that makes it easy to see why people continue to fall for him, in every sense of the phrase.
The best scenes here are probably the ones Casanova shares with Gramani. He spends a good chunk of time being a mischievous thorn in his upper-class rival’s side, and that’s all delightful. But more than that, in between the barbs and needling, Casanova starts to understand Gramani and what makes him tick. It’s similar to the insight he employs to get women into bed, but it’s directed in a different way, with different intent. Cool to see.
Final thoughts:
Accent Watch
It’s mostly RP-ish, with lingering notes of London throughout. I have to give it to David Tennant – I pretty much never think about the fact that he’s Scottish whenever I hear him putting on an English accent.
Recommend?
In General – Yes, as long as you don’t mind all manner of naughtiness. You don’t find many period pieces that are this much fun and take such a fanciful tone.
David Tennant – Definitely. Even if the first few scenes had me thinking, “How is this going to work?”, Tennant easily won me over within the first 10-15 minutes. There are touches here of his Doctor to come, despite Casanova being a wildly-different character from his Doctor. I enjoyed this performance a lot.
Warnings
Sexual content, brief violence, drinking/smoking, language, and thematic elements.
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