Dirty Tricks (2000) (TV)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Paul Seed

Writers:

Nigel Williams (screenplay) and
Michael Dibdin (novel)

Release Date:

24 September 2000 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

Dirty Tricks stars Martin Clunes, who plays an English tutor at an Oxford language school. Although Edward can be charming and thoughtful...

Plot Keywords:

Tutor | Suspicion | Murder | Oxford | Money

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Martin Clunes	...	Edward
James Bolam	...	Moss
George Potts	...	Root
Julie Graham	...	Karen
Neil Dudgeon	...	Dennis
Henry Goodman	...	Thomas
Matt Bardock	...	Clive Phillips
Fabiano Martell	...	Massimo
Martin Marquez	...	Garcia
Kanako Morishita	...	Kayoko
Lindsay Duncan	...	Alison
Anna Popplewell	...	Rebecca
Neville Phillips	...	Vicar
Robin Griffith	...	Welsh Flunkey
Barbara Kirby	...	Registrar

Runtime:

162 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Little Bird

Trivia:

Edward states that he learned French so that he could read "Thérèse Racquin" in the original language. "Thérèse Racquin" is about an adulterous couple who dispose of the woman's husband so that they may be together, a close parallel to the story of "Dirty Tricks."

Guilty fun...

I didn't actually go looking for this show, it just happened to be on one night during the Easter holidays when I was staying at a relative's place (He's very fond of shows on the less commercial channels). At first, I wasn't quite sure what to think, then I found myself quickly drawn into Edward's twisted little world, and enjoying every minute of it. How couldn't I? Sure, he's evil and manipulative, but at the same time, he lets out his story with a dark, biting humor that I found impossible not to love.

The plot itself was wonderfully guilty fun...A mild-mannered Oxford man suspected for a string of murders, and watching him manipulate his way out of the most twisted situations while maintaining his mild English charm and obviously high intelligence is just priceless. There are points where you actually find yourself on his side because he's just so good at what he does that you just want him to keep getting away with it so his adventures don't end.

This intelligent, well-scripted show (And yes, I know it's based on a novel, but I haven't read it yet) is truly a welcome break from all of those terrible Reality TV shows that are all about the ratings.