As with most TV shows, I'm rubbish at keeping up to date so I've only just finished watching the electric The Handmaid's Tale. When I first heard that the classic Margaret Atwood dystopia was going to be made into a TV series, I was slightly apprehensive. I studied the book for A Level English Literature so I know it pretty well, thus my pre-conceived idea that visually it wouldn't be as good. However, it's safe to say that I was proved wrong. I was impressed within the first ten minutes of the first episode. It was dramatic and harrowing, keeping in tone with the Dystopian theme.
The Handmaid's Tale is set in the totalitarian Republic of Gilead, a theocracy in America. It follows the life of Offred, a Handmaid for a Commander and his wife. The Handmaid's job is to take part in what is known as the "ceremony", where the Handmaid must have sex with the Commander in order to produce a child. Gilead is an incredibly tough place to live. There are extremely strict rules, enforced by a secret police service called "The Eyes". If these rules aren't adhered to, the punishment is beyond unpleasant thought.
The series began with a high-speed car chase, making our chests pump with adrenaline before we even really knew what was going on. All we knew was that a man and woman were obviously trying to escape with their daughter from something seemingly life-threatening. The harrowing footsteps of The Eyes was every bit as sinister as the atmosphere that I could feel in my own living room. It's strange because I knew what would happen, I was aware of Offred's fate, and yet I was still excited. This extremely well-crafted, beautifully filmed opening set the bar high for the rest of the series and every single week the show delivered on every level.
We followed Offred on her disturbing and surreal journey, feeling her pain and crying her tears. During every episode we were educated more and more about who she is and where she came from. June was torn from her husband, Luke, and their daughter, Hannah. I found that the non-linear way the story took shape was extremely effective, where we would see Offred struggling to keep her sanity in one piece, and then flashback to her previous life and how she lived as most of us do now.
The visions of her past were powerful in the sense that it kind of makes the audience look at their own lives and assess the situation that we as a society are living in. For me, that is the mark of a very successful TV show. Atwood truly fulfilled the purpose of Dystopian literature when she initially wrote the novel, and the television series of The Handmaid's Tale has done an incredible job to carry through this idea of fragmentation within a once civilised society.
The character of Offred was pieced together brilliantly by the acting of Elisabeth Moss. To make an audience believe in a character's pain is one thing, but to encourage them to feel those emotions with you is a whole other thing. I can't think of anyone else who would be more perfect for the role or do it more justice. As well as Moss, Joseph Fiennes (The Commander), Yvonne Strahovski (Serena Joy) and Max Minghella (Nick Blaine) all gave their individual characters something remarkable that made The Handmaid's Tale so watchable.
It's difficult to choose but my favourite scene from the entire season has to be from episode 10, titled "Night". It comes after Offred lead the supposed rebellion against Aunt Lydia and her twisted orders. Refusing to murder Janine, Offred then lead the Handmaid's down the street to the classic 'Feeling Good', with Nina Simone's distinctive vocals becoming the anthem to what I hope is the beginning of the end for the regime.
One of my favourite quotes of the series and of any other TV show comes from the Commander, surprisingly. "Better never means better for everyone... it always means worse for some." The truth in this is baffling, and never more so than in the Republic of Gilead. That's one of the things I enjoyed the most about The Handmaid's Tale. It makes you think, even if you're not aware you're doing it.
So what happens next to Offred?
Though cliffhangers might drive some people insane with the endless possibilities about Offred's future, I for one loved it. That uncertainty gives you the excitement for the second series, as well as giving the audience the power to make their own mind up for now. The delivery of Nick's "trust me" gave us all that flicker of hope that appeared in Offred's eyes at that moment, is this really the end or has Nick just given her a new beginning?
My biggest hope for Offred now is that she is no longer Offred, that she reclaims her given name, June. We saw the poignant scene where Moira was reunited with Luke, so I want nothing more than to give Offred the same absolution. I want Offred to rise up and do all she can to release others like herself from their menial lives and bring down the regime. I'm aware this may just be wishful thinking, Nick could be completely different from the loveable Guardian we grew to know.
I also want to give Serena Joy a new beginning. The Wives are suffering just as much as the Handmaid's, forced into a life that has torn them away from their human rights. Throughout the series, Serena Joy's humiliation and resentment for the situation she has been placed in hasn't gone unnoticed. Although her actions seem cruel, I feel that she deserves liberation.
I've decided I've rambled on for longer than I intended but no amount of words can describe how captivating The Handmaid's Tale has been. But I'm interested to know, what was your highlight of the series? Do you see hope in Offred's future?
Written by Sophie Williams
@sophie_jw26
Comments
Post a Comment