Close to the Enemy (2016)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Close to the Enemy – a mini-series in seven parts – is a historical drama which premiered on British television (BBC) in 2016.

 

Here is some basic information about it:

 

*** Producer: Helen Flint

*** Writer and director: Stephen Poliakoff

*** Released on DVD in 2017

*** Run time: ca. 405 minutes

 

The cast includes the following:

 

The first group

** Jim Sturgess as Callum Ferguson – a secret agent

** Freddie Highmore as Victor Ferguson – Callum’s brother - a former soldier

** August Diehl as Dieter Koehler – a German scientist

** Lucy Ward as Lotte Koehler – Dieter’s daughter

** Charity Wakefield as Julia

 

The second group

** Phoebe Fox as Kathy

** Charlotte Riley as Rachel Lombard

** Alfred Molina as Harold Lindsay-Jones

** Angela Bassett as Eva – an American singer and musician

** Lindsay Duncan as Frau Bellinghausen

 

This historical drama is set in 1946, shortly after the end of World War II. Most scenes take place in an elegant hotel surrounded by a bombed-out London.

 

The leading character is Callum Ferguson, a secret agent or an intelligence officer, who has been given a difficult task: he must convince a German scientist (Dieter Koehler) to work for the British.

 

The British government wants Dieter to help Britain build a jet engine, so Britain can have a good position in the Cold War between East and West that is about to begin.

 

Callum tries to do this job. But he also has some questions, because he has a conscience. He has a deep feeling about what is right and wrong.

 

During the war, scientists such as Dieter worked for Nazi Germany. They helped the enemy. They were the enemy. But now we want them to work for us? 

 

They are not being punished for what they did? Rather they are being rewarded for it! How can this be right?

 

Callum’s brother Victor raises similar questions. He thinks Dieter is not as innocent as he says he is.

 

When Callum tries to convince Dieter to work for the British, he is close to a former enemy. Hence the title of the drama.

 

Besides the main story, there are some secondary stories. Some of them are added for variation - to make the drama more colourful and interesting - while others turn out to be quite significant.

 

I will not offer any details about them here. I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone

 

Several characters – in particular the leading character Callum – act and speak in an unusual way. Some viewers will like this approach, but others will hate it.

 

I like it. I think it makes the drama dynamic and powerful. It drives the story forward from one episode to the next.

 

What do reviewers say about this drama?

 

Here are some results:

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 60 per cent, which corresponds to three stars on Amazon.

 

On Amazon there are at the moment more than 200 ratings of this product, more than 190 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.1 stars which corresponds to a rating of 82 percent.

 

In my opinion, the rating on IMDb is too low, while the rating on Amazon is quite appropriate.

 

Why do I say this?

 

I like this drama, and I want to give it a good rating, but I have to remove one star, because it has a significant flaw: the ending is not quite successful.

 

For obvious reasons, I will not offer any details about it. I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone. I will merely say that the ending is not quite successful.

 

This is why I think this product deserves a rating of four stars (80 percent).

 

PS. Stephen Poliakoff (born 1952) is a famous writer and director, who is best known for his work in television.

 

He has written or directed several television movies, including the following:

 

** Shooting the Past (1999)

** Perfect Strangers (2001)

** Summer of Rockets (2019)

 

*****

Close to the Enemy

A historical drama which premiered

on British television (BBC)

in 2016

 

*****