Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell

Posted by pijon on 2018/5/7 7:16:55


I just finished watching Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. It's a BBC TV show from 2015 about 2 rival magicians that takes place in England in the 19th century. Apparently it was based on a Hugo winning novel by Susanna Clark. A friend had to convince me to watch it but I'm so glad I did. The storyline was engaging with lots of humor, mystery, action and twists, lots happening yet not hard to follow. Even the special effects were quite good. I think the part I found most fascinating though was the dynamics of the relationship between the two magicians. Mr. Norrell was an odd little man who had spent years studying and honing his craft and managed to establish himself as England's official magician through a public display of his powers. Jonathan Strange on the other hand, while studied, is more of a novice who just happens to display a strong talent for the magic. Strange becomes Norrell's student but quickly comes to realize that Norrell's style of dictating and insisting that his methods and only his methods are correct is actually stifling the magic and it's potential. So when Strange decides to pursue his own better methods, Norrell is quick to perceive him as a rival. It's Strange's joyful enthusiasm for the magic that leads to trouble for himself. Norrell's obsession with his own power and status leads him to try every dirty trick at his disposal to take down Strange. Norrell is as blind to the fact that Strange doesn't have the slightest concern about power and status as Norrell is to the fact that it's Norrell himself who is suppressing the magic's potential. Still, Norrell's attempts at manipulating control by spying on and campaigning against Strange do nothing to help his own cause and ironically, Norrell himself ends up being manipulated by a flattering yet conniving student with his own agenda. In spite of the fact that this was just a historical fantasy, it was so well conceived and written that the conflict between between Norrell and Strange actually drew strong parallels to a couple of people I know.
I don't want to give too much away but if you haven't seen this, I highly recommend it. It's only 7 episodes but it delivers a great story!

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