Inside No 9 Season 1 Episode 6 Review
"Sardines" | |
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Inside No. 9 episode | |
Episode no. | Series ane Episode one |
Directed by | David Kerr |
Written by | Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith |
Produced by | Adam Tandy |
Featured music | Christian Henson |
Original air date | 5 February 2014 (2014-02-05) |
Running fourth dimension | 30 minutes |
Guest appearances | |
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"Sardines" is the first episode of British dark comedy album series Inside No. nine. Written by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, it premiered on BBC Two and BBC Two HD on five February 2014. In the episode, a group of adults play sardines at an engagement party. Rebecca, the bride-to-be, finds a boring homo named Ian in a wardrobe; he introduces himself equally a colleague of Jeremy, Rebecca'due south fiancé. The pair are afterward joined by family, friends and colleagues of Rebecca and Jeremy. As more people enter the room and pace into the wardrobe, secrets shared by some of the characters are revealed, with various allusions to incestuous relationships, child sexual abuse and adultery. The humour is both dark and British, with references to past unhappiness and polite simply bad-mannered interactions.
The story takes identify entirely in the bedroom of a state house, with much of the filming taking place inside the wardrobe. Pemberton and Shearsmith wrote the episode with the intention of evoking a feeling of claustrophobia in viewers. In addition to the writers, the episode starred Katherine Parkinson, Tim Key, Luke Pasqualino, Ophelia Lovibond, Anne Reid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Anna Chancellor, Marc Wootton, Ben Willbond and Timothy West. The bandage and writing were praised by television set critics, and the episode was chosen as pick of the day in a number of publications. On its first showing, "Sardines" was watched by 1.1 one thousand thousand viewers, which was 5.6% of the audition.
Evolution and production [edit]
Writers Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, who had previously worked together on The League of Gentlemen and Psychoville, took inspiration for Inside No. 9 from "David and Maureen", episode 4 of the first serial of Psychoville, which was in turn inspired by Alfred Hitchcock'due south Rope. "David and Maureen" took identify entirely in a single room, and it was filmed in only 2 shots.[2] The writers were groovy to explore other stories in this canteen episode or TV play format, and Within No. nine allowed them to practise this.[three] At the aforementioned time, the concept of Inside No. 9 was a "reaction" to Psychoville, with Shearsmith proverb that "We'd been and so involved with labyrinthine over-arcing, we thought it would be nice to do 6 different stories with a complete new house of people each week. That's appealing, because as a viewer you might not like this story, only you've got a different 1 adjacent week."[iv]
The format of the series also pays homage to Tales of the Unexpected, The Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.[5] Pemberton and Shearsmith returned to writing more macabre stories, according to the latter, as they "always feel slightly unfulfilled if [they] write something that's purely comedic, it simply feels too frivolous and light".[6] During the filming of "Sardines", Shearsmith professed excitement to exist working on Within No. nine, maxim that "beingness in the middle of filming a third series of Psychoville would exist utterly depressing".[iv] Pemberton and Shearsmith aimed for a simpler experience than Psychoville, describing "Sardines" by saying the episode is "just nearly some proficient actors in a wardrobe with a good story".[4] As each episode of Inside No. 9 features new characters, the writers were able to attract actors who might accept been unwilling to commit to an entire series.[two] In addition to Pemberton and Shearsmith, "Sardines" starred Katherine Parkinson, Tim Central, Luke Pasqualino, Ophelia Lovibond, Anne Reid, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Anna Chancellor, Marc Wootton, Ben Willbond and Timothy West.[vii] West had previously starred in Tales of the Unexpected,[8] and Shearsmith said that, due to this prior advent, "it was a dandy nod" to have W in the episode.[ix] "Sardines" has more than characters than any other episode of the offset series, and these characters were written before casting took identify. Pemberton recalls the fun he had in selecting a bandage for the episode, aiming to bring together a very varied grouping of actors who would work well as a group.[3]
Pemberton described the concept of "Sardines" as "a uncomplicated thought", and he was happy that the pair did non "have to worry most the consequences of it", due to the format of the series.[10] The writers were inspired by a large wardrobe in their workspace. They had already written several other episodes for the series, and solitude was a recurring theme; the possibility of putting characters into a wardrobe gave them the opportunity to develop the theme to a more than extreme level. The story was not initially about the game of sardines.[eleven] Pemberton said that the writers "talked virtually diverse ideas of why [the characters] were in a wardrobe", but that the pair "were certainly not working out [their] Freudian psychobabble".[12] A list of characters was written before the script, and the script included the introduction of a new graphic symbol every three pages.[6]
"Sardines" was written so that a feeling of claustrophobia would develop equally the story progressed; Pemberton said that "our outset consideration was, 'Tin we get 12 people in a wardrobe?' Then when nosotros did the script read-through, the designer bought a wardrobe off eBay and we checked whether nosotros could all make it it and shut the door".[vi] Writers for Circulate described seeing the assortment of actors "crammed within an imposing wardrobe" during filming as "an absorbing spectacle".[4] The story is filmed from within a single bedchamber, with much of information technology taking place inside the wardrobe.[13] [14] Filming presented a particular claiming, as the aim was to give the impression that the viewer was in the wardrobe with the characters, and not to "crook" by giving the impression that the viewer was outside the wardrobe looking in. The episode was filmed with two wardrobes; i complete one, and one "faked" 1.[11] The consummate prop was used to motion picture the characters entering the wardrobe, while the other was in a different room for close-upwardly shots from "within" the wardrobe. For director David Kerr, the difficulty was sustaining the illusion that everything was happening in a single place, ideally without viewers even realising that at that place was a technical challenge involved.[fifteen] The episode was filmed mostly in sequence, significant more actors arrived as the filming continued, reflecting the fact that more characters get in as the episode progresses.[xi] Kerr aimed for a peculiarly "immersive" filming style on the episode, with extensive use of wide angle shots. He aimed to avert "leading" the audience with regard to the more important characters by "not giving [them] coverage" earlier in the episode.[fifteen]
Plot [edit]
External video | |
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"Boo" Carl finds Rebecca and Ian in the wardrobe | |
"Someone brand a noise..." Marker and Liz share a moment, unaware that Rebecca, Carl, Stuart, Geraldine and Ian are watching from the wardrobe |
Rebecca and Jeremy host their appointment political party at her family's stately home. The guests play sardines, a variation of hide-and-seek in which one person hides and the other players join them in their hiding identify once institute. Rebecca finds Ian in a bedroom wardrobe. As they wait for more than people to arrive, Ian mistakenly calls her "Rachel". A young man, Lee, enters the room but does not find the pair, though they are later found and joined past Rebecca'south prudish brother, Carl, and then Carl's flamboyant partner, Stuart. Jeremy'south ex-girlfriend Rachel finds and joins them. Ian mentions that Jeremy often talks about "you lot", only it is unclear whether he is talking to Rebecca or Rachel. To Rebecca'due south badgerer, Stuart, Rachel and Ian leave the wardrobe for a break. Stuart enters the en suite where Geraldine is on the toilet. In the wardrobe, Carl and Rebecca talk; he is uncomfortable, and, when she asks why, he tells her to "look where we are".
Ian, Rachel and Geraldine bring together Rebecca and Carl. Geraldine says that the room is normally locked, but Rebecca rebukes her. Stuart rejoins the grouping after using the toilet. Every bit the group talk, Mark and his wife, Liz, enter the sleeping room, unaware of the people in the wardrobe. The pair talk candidly before beginning foreplay on the bed. Geraldine shouts to alert them, and the wardrobe occupants pretend they did not hear Marking and Liz's conversation. Mark and Liz reluctantly enter the wardrobe. Equally the doors close, Rachel'south boyfriend Lee re-enters the room, simply equally the wardrobe has get more cramped, Stuart and Lee hide under the bed and Ian moves to the en suite. Stuart and Carl fence, and information technology is revealed that Carl has a fear of intimacy. When "Stinky" John enters the room, the others claim there is no room in their hiding places, so he hides behind a curtain. Jeremy enters and tells Rebecca he is going to choice upward some other guest from the train station, merely every bit he turns to go out he mistakenly calls her "Rachel". Andrew, Rebecca's father, enters and becomes annoyed when he sees people hiding in unlike places. He forces Jeremy, Stuart, Lee and Stinky John into the wardrobe with anybody else and follows them in.
Everyone becomes uncomfortable, not least because of John's odour. Geraldine passes around mints as Andrew tells Mark that he no longer has contact with Dicky Lawrence, a potential business contact of Marker'southward. Andrew sings the "sardine song", but Carl angrily stops him. Andrew and Geraldine reminisce about a watch jamboree held in the house many years ago, but Geraldine remembers that a boy named Phillip Harrison, nicknamed "Little Pip", defendant Andrew of "horrible things", and that the constabulary were involved. Carl says Andrew paid Pip'due south family to move abroad, and Andrew counters by challenge he did nothing to Pip and was only teaching him how to launder himself. Carl implies that he and John were not as lucky as Pip, and John says he can olfactory property carbolic lather. At that place is silence, and Stuart points out no one else is looking for them, merely they realise Ian has not notwithstanding returned. Jeremy says Ian is the person he was going to pick up from the station, but when Mark claims Ian is already at the political party, Jeremy reveals the person Mark is referring to is non Ian. Exterior, "Ian" locks the wardrobe and sprays information technology with lighter fluid while singing the sardine song. Carl realises "Ian" is Phillip, and the episode ends with Phillip leaning against the wardrobe, a lighter in his hand.
Bandage [edit]
Analysis [edit]
It'due south like the backroom of Cinderella'southward at Wakefield. Has anyone got any poppers or lube?[notation one]
Shearsmith'due south Stuart,[2] whose lines include the episode's about overt jokes[thirteen]
We're non going down that road, Geraldine; it's a party, remember?
Rebecca rebukes Geraldine. Allusions to past unhappiness occur frequently in Shearsmith and Pemberton'south work.[16]
The episode is, in effect, a one-scene, ane-act, play.[8] [fourteen] Writing in The Times, Andrew Billen observed that Aristotle "ruled that plays should accept place over a single day in a single place", while "Sardines" takes place "over half an 60 minutes in a unmarried wardrobe".[17] The use of the wardrobe is reminiscent of Beckettian absurd theatre,[2] and presented particular cinematographic challenges.[18] For Ryan Lambie, writing for amusement website Den of Geek, the single-photographic camera setup and Kerr's direction gave the episode "the tense look of an early Hitchcock film, all low angles and illuminating shafts of light".[19]
The characters bring their corresponding agendas, relationships and backstories into the wardrobe.[20] The diverse interconnected plotlines are seeded towards the outset of the episode, and more is gradually revealed before they are resolved.[thirteen] [21] "Sardines" starts every bit comedic, before becoming darker;[21] as more characters arrive, their relatively cordial interactions become more unpleasant.[14] The increasingly claustrophobic environment serves to heighten the tension.[13]
The comedy is black,[thirteen] with the most overt humor coming from Stuart, a flamboyant graphic symbol played past Shearsmith.[thirteen] The sense of humour is likewise extremely British. Tropes of Britishness identified past PopMatters critic David Upton include the dated clothing, and interaction between Rebecca and Ian at the showtime of the episode. Despite not knowing each other, they converse courteously, which "smacks of more refined days";[18] the conversation is a "portrayal of social clumsiness".[9] With the introduction of the noticeably younger Lee, at that place is a clash of customs, illustrating the differing norms of the respective generations.[xviii] This "1940s aesthetic" and the fact the story took place in a unmarried location tied the episode to "a gilt age of plays on British tv set".[19] Broadcaster and writer Marking Radcliffe felt that the script "could exist a really absorbing stage play".[9]
As is typical of Shearsmith and Pemberton's work,[20] "Sardines" addresses nighttime topics.[2] Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Paul Kendall identified some of Shearsmith and Pemberton's "regular tropes" utilised in the episode; namely "a bunch of misfits, uncomfortable silences and allusions to dark crimes in the distant past".[sixteen] Billen felt that the treatment of dark issues was reminiscent of the work of Alan Ayckbourn.[17] Particular themes addressed in the episode include murder, incestuous relationships, child sexual abuse, vengeance and adultery.[2] [20] As the episode progresses, secrets related to these themes are revealed to be the explanation for manifestly innocuous tendencies, such as Carl's dislike for the sardine song and John'due south aversion to soap.[22]
Reception [edit]
"Sardines" was well received past tv critics. Kendall, Billen, Keith Watson and Dan Owen, writing for The Daily Telegraph,[16] the Metro,[23] MSN[eight] and The Times,[17] respectively, all gave the episode four out of 5 stars, while, writing for The Arts Desk, Veronica Lee gave it v out of five.[13] The episode was labelled "pick of the day" in The Times,[24] The Sunday Times,[25] The Observer [26] and the Daily Record.[27]
Reviewers responded positively to the cast. Kendall described the interim as "top notch"[16] and Owen said that all cast-members "played their roles to perfection",[viii] while Jane Simon, writing for The Daily Mirror, said that "every twinge of awkwardness and discomfort is played to perfection as the mood turns darker".[28] Harry Venning, writing for The Stage, described the cast as "impressively stellar", and also commended the writers' performances.[20] Comedy critic Bruce Dessau said that the "cast alone is almost recommendation plenty",[21] while another reviewer said that if "a bomb dropped on the cupboard where they were hiding, a proficient portion of the acting talent in this state would be wiped out."[24] Central's portrayal of Ian[2] [13] [23] and Parkinson'due south portrayal of Rebecca were peculiarly praised.[13] [21]
Journalists also lauded the script, with Kendall labelling the dialogue "perfectly pitched",[16] Dessau calling it "tightly written" and without wastage,[21] and Owen praising the fashion each character was "delivered into the story at the exact correct moment".[8] Brad Newsome, writing for The Sydney Morn Herald (the episode having been shown in Australia on BBC Start in 2015), said that the episode was "deftly written",[29] and Venning said the "lean, hateful narrative didn't just twist and turn, it folded back upon itself to provide a totally unexpected, profoundly disturbing and securely satisfying denouement".[twenty] On The Arts Desk-bound, Lee praised the direction of Kerr, saying that he delivered "a pitch-perfect piece with no character overwritten or line overplayed".[13]
Dean, writing for The Independent, commended the writers' "weaving together of the morbid with the express mirth-out loud",[2] and Mike Bradley, writing in The Observer, called the episode "wickedly funny";[26] similarly, Newsome said the episode displayed "a wicked sense of humor".[29] Dessau concurred on the darkness and quality of humour.[21] Watson was more clashing, saying the episode offered "more of a knowing chuckle than an outright belly express joy".[23]
Watson wrote that "the primary joy [of the episode] was the stealthy fashion the atmospheric story was built up layer past layer".[23] In The Times, Billen described "Sardines" every bit "a disciplined comedy, but a little bit of discipline, as one of the League'due south perverts might say, never did anyone any harm". With the exception of the catastrophe, Billen "loved information technology".[17] A divide review in The Times, even so, praised the twist ending; "this isn't just an inspired ready-upwards performed by a stellar cast – it builds to a macabre and horribly imagined climax."[24] Owen was ambivalent about the catastrophe of "Sardines", saying that it "worked very well in terms of narrative, but perhaps it landed with too much softness".[8] Mark Jones, writing in The Guardian, gave a more mixed review overall, describing "Sardines" every bit a "slow burner, but a decent introduction to a series".[xxx] Newsome called the episode a "gem of an opener".[29]
Viewing figures [edit]
On its showtime showing, "Sardines" was seen by ane.i 1000000 viewers, which was five.6% of the British audience. This was lower than the premiere of Psychoville, just higher than the audience towards the end of the second series. "Sardines" immediately followed the offset episode of the two-part Purple Cousins at State of war, a BBC documentary. This had stronger viewing figures, with 2 million viewers (8.6% of the audience).[31] All the same, "Sardines" was more than highly viewed than is typical for the slot.[32] Despite this strong kickoff for the series, the viewing figures for Within No. 9 later dipped;[33] the boilerplate viewing for the series was 904,000 people, or 4.9% of the audience, lower than the slot average of 970,000 (5.1% of the audience).[32]
Notes [edit]
- ^ The line is spoken approximately half-dozen minutes into the episode, but is misquoted in The Contained as "It's like the backroom of Cinderella'due south in Wakefield in hither, but without any poppers or lube."[two]
References [edit]
- ^ "Sardines affiche". BBC. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Dean, Will (5 February 2014). "Inside No 9, TV review: A summit-drawer cast puts these twisted tales in a league of their own". The Independent . Retrieved six February 2014.
- ^ a b Pemberton, Steve; Shearsmith, Reece (17 March 2014). Inside Inside No. ix. Inside No. 9 Series 1 DVD. BBC.
- ^ a b c d "Inside No. 9, BBC2". Broadcast. 22 August 2013. Retrieved 6 February 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ Lawson, Marking (v Feb 2014). "Inside No nine: How Shearsmith and Pemberton take revived a lost genre". The Guardian . Retrieved half-dozen February 2014.
- ^ a b c "Inside No.9 on BBC2: Hull-born master of the macabre Reece Shearsmith and partner Steve Pemberton back with tales of the unexpected". Hull Daily Post. 4 February 2014. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved vi February 2014.
- ^ "BBC Two - Inside No 9, Sardines". BBC. Retrieved 19 Jan 2015.
- ^ a b c d eastward f thou Owen, Dan (29 January 2014). "Inside No 9: Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton unnerve viewers". MSN. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Reece Shearsmith speaks to Mark Radcliffe". Radcliffe & Maconie. BBC Radio 6 Music. 4 Feb 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2014.
- ^ "Inside No. ix: interview with Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton". BBC. thirty January 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
- ^ a b c "Within the wardrobe". BBC. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
- ^ Dessau, Bruce (February 2014). "New Interview: Reece Shearsmith & Steve Pemberton". Beyondthejoke.co.united kingdom. Retrieved xx February 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lee, Veronica (vi Feb 2014). "Within No ix, BBC 2". The Arts Desk . Retrieved 19 February 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ a b c Seale, Jack (25 January 2014). "Inside No 9 - Serial one - 1. Sardines". Radio Times . Retrieved 20 February 2014.
- ^ a b Kerr, David (17 March 2014). Within Within No. 9. Inside No. 9 Series i DVD. BBC.
- ^ a b c d east Kendall, Paul (v February 2014). "Within No9, BBC Ii, review". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 6 February 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ a b c d Billen, Andrew (half dozen February 2014). "Television set review: Inside No 9". The Times . Retrieved six February 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ a b c Upton, David (26 March 2014). "'Inside No. ix' is a bit like a box of chocolates, albeit one full of dark, biting sweets". PopMatters . Retrieved 21 Apr 2014.
- ^ a b Lambie, Ryan (6 February 2014). "Inside No. 9 episode 1 review: Sardines". Den of Geek. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Venning, Harry (xiii February 2014). "TV review: Inside No ix; Line of Duty; The Life of Rock with Brian Pern". The Stage . Retrieved 13 February 2014.
- ^ a b c d eastward f Dessau, Bruce (1 Feb 2014). "Review: Within No 9: Sardines, BBC2". Beyondthejoke.co.united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
- ^ McMullen, Marion (x Feb 2014). "Dare y'all peek behind the door of Within No 9". Coventry Telegraph . Retrieved 1 March 2014.
- ^ a b c d Watson, Keith (6 February 2014). "Inside No ix matched Tales of the Unexpected for entertaining weirdness". Metro . Retrieved six Feb 2014.
- ^ a b c "Pick of the Twenty-four hours; Wednesday v; Inside No 9 BBC 2, 10pm". Saturday Review. The Times. 1 Feb 2014. p. twoscore.
- ^ James, Martin (2 February 2014). "Pick of the solar day; Wed five February; Critics' choice". Culture, The Sunday Times. p. 64.
- ^ a b Bradley, Mike (2 February 2014). "The New Review: Goggle box: Midweek 5: Picks of the Day: CHOICE: Inside No 9 BBC2, 10pm". Observer Review, The Observer. p. 44.
- ^ "Tape TV; Room for laughter". Daily Record. 5 February 2014. p. 31.
- ^ Simon, Jane (5 February 2014). "Inside No.9 volition be another hit for blackness comedy masters Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton". The Daily Mirror . Retrieved vi February 2014.
- ^ a b c Newsome, Brad (31 December 2014). "Inside No.9, (premiere), BBC Kickoff, 9.30pm". The Sydney Forenoon Herald . Retrieved five Jan 2014.
- ^ Wright, Jonathan; Jones, Marker; Aroesti, Rachel (v February 2014). "G2: TV and radio: Watch this". G2, The Guardian. p. 22.
- ^ Parker, Robin (half dozen February 2014). "Inside No. 9 debuts with i.1m". Broadcast . Retrieved 6 February 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ a b Farber, Alex (13 March 2014). "C4 space season blasts off with 1.6m". Broadcast . Retrieved 18 April 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ Dessau, Bruce (12 March 2014). "Preview: Inside No 9: The Harrowing, BBC2". Beyondthejoke.co.uk. Retrieved 18 April 2014.
External links [edit]
- "Sardines" at BBC Online
- "Sardines" at IMDb
- "Sardines" at TVGuide.co.uk
- "Sardines" at the British Comedy Guide
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sardines_(Inside_No._9)
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