Terry Pratchett's Going Postal

 

 

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In the city of Ankh-Morpork, all long-distance communication is done by the clacks (sort of platform telegraphs). But all of that changes in "Going Postal," the third miniseries adaptation of Terry Pratchett's Discworld books -- this one poking fun at the postal service, with a charmining conman, a golem, and a ragtag band of postmen at the helm.

Moist von Lipwig (Richard Coyle) was a very successful forger, conman and embezzler... until the Watch caught him, and he was hanged for his crimes. Fortunately, he's not QUITE dead. It turns out that Lord Vetinari (Charles Dance) wants to give Moist a choice: he can die for real, or he can revive the moribund Post Office.

So Moist finds himself saddled with a decaying building filled with undelivered letters, two slightly insane postmen, and golem parole officer named Mr. Pump. And every night, letters force Moist to see the fallout of his past crimes, including a terrible one against the prickly Adora Belle Dearheart (Claire Foy), whom he is starting to fall for.

But the biggest problem may be the owner of the clacks, Mr. Gilt (David Suchet), who is willing to do whatever it takes to destroy the post office. Though he's becoming a more honest man, Moist must put all his con-man skills to use in a war between the clacks and post office -- or he'll lose a lot more than just his job.

"Going Postal" a grittier, less fantastical story than the previous two Discworld miniseries. Sure, we still have fantasy stuff like banshees, golems, whispering letters and wizardly devices, but it all basically boils down to the Post Office against the telegraphesque clacks. But don't worry, the adaptation is pitch-perfect.

As with the original novel, the miniseries is a witty little affair with lots of funny moments, but it also has some darker moments (Moist being forced to see sepia-toned flashbacks of his crimes' fallouts -- suicide, bankruptcy, etc). The writers give it the usual Pratchett mix: dry, satirical wit ("How dare the Gods work against me! I don't remember giving them permission"), a striking central message, and a clever complicated plot.

Coyle really does a brilliant job as Moist, he's a charming rogue who starts out bratty and selfish, but becomes a kinder, better person as the story goes on... without losing his roguish charm. David Suchet plays Gilt with lip-curling relish, and there are some great smaller roles for Andrew Sachs, Nicholas Farrell, and the coldly Machievellian Charles Dance.

The one problem is Claire Foy. I don't know what it is about this actress, but her Adora is so relentlessly prickly and snarly that it's hard to see why Moist likes her.

It's hard to think of a communication service that makes the postal service look efficient, but "Going Postal" gives you a new appreciation for the written word. Another Pratchettian delight.

I enjoyed this video very much and while it missed much that was in the book and emphasized a romantic relationship more than was in the book it brought out some of the parts of the story very well and on the whole did an excellent job of presenting the core of the book in a balanced manner.

An entertaining adaptation of Pratchett's wonderful novel. Acting is very good and for the most part the actors are very true to the novel's original characters. (Except for Ridcully who is so bland as to be unrecognizable.) Costumes are very good as well.

Those who have not read the book will probably enjoy it. Material aspects of the book were changed - likely to adapt to the playing time but the screenplay remains overall true to the spirit. Those who read and loved the book run the risk of finding their favorite scenes missing or overly watered down while some new additions fall flat (Adorabelle trying to start up a Golem strike, totally unnecessary stunt robbing of stage coach etc). For some reason the screenwriters also thought it necessary to increase the centrality of Adorabelle - so she is the one who practices on the clacks and comes up with the smoking GNU. She tames the wild horse Moist rides on his first delivery to Sto Lat and accompanies him on the ride, etc. Also, the screenwriter's take on smoking is far less subtle (almost silly) than that in the book.

But a fun watch - probably better than the earlier Hogfather, definitely better than than the Colour of Magic, and worlds better than the earlier animated Wyrd Sisters and Soul Music.

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4.0 out of 5 stars True ot the spirit of Pratchett world
Running approximately three hours long, I'm surprised by how riveting this film was. In fact, I watched it twice in the first week we owned it; my son watched it three times. Read more

Published 7 months ago by Gerald Saul

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