The Best Man (2006– ) User Reviews

Brilliant ITV Thriller

[mr_marchington · 8/10 · 22 March 2006]

This is in my opinion the best original TV drama that ITV has had to offer in a very long time.

The choice of some new (to ITV) faces was also a good choice. Richard Coyle, best know as Jeff in Coupling, played a very convincing Mike, a man haunted by his past and part of a complicated friendship with Pete, played by Toby Stephens, who plays an incredibly good, dominant, calculating and seemingly evil side of the pair. Add Keeley Hawes as the love interest and you have a very competent cast.

The story is very involved and has you guessing and second-guessing the whole way through. The clever use of flash-backs to slowly reveal the past between Pete & Mike paints the picture in your head but does not prepare you for any twists and turns in the plot and pleasingly the ending is not totally predictable. There are parallels in the story and bits that remind you of other things you have seen, but on the whole it is original.

I was drawn to watch The Best Man because of who i starred and it was very interesting to see Coyle and Stephens in more realistic roles than they would usually play. But I have to commend ITV and the production on this occasion for making a TV drama which didn't star Robson Greene or Julie Walters!! (No offence to them - there just seems to be an oligopoly of Brit actors who hold ITV TV dramas to ransom and i am glad that ITV have fought them!

I enjoyed it - CONTAINS Spoilers!

[Lizzie-20 · 8/10 · 5 September 2006]

I enjoyed this a lot, but I laugh/agree with the viewer who made the comments about using the borrowed raincoat. You could see that coming a mile away! What an old chestnut. And they didn't let you know if the cat was dead or not; you just assumed Toby Stephens killed it. And then at the very end, they have the son playing with another boy on the beach who looks annoyed when the mother tells him to quit playing and come in. Shades of the two other guys? Also, I may have missed this, but why did that policeman's son kill himself? And why was he blamed for that girl's murder? It wasn't really explained, or I must have slept/drank my way through that bit. :) All in all though I loved the actors, they are my faves ! I adore Toby Stephens, he is so funny but also a good dramatic actor, and I love Keely Hawes. She's awesome! I would have liked this to be longer, perhaps more fleshed out.

A fair effort but ....

[petra-59 · 6/10 · 2 June 2006]

Note: This review contains more than just "a spoiler". So if you haven't seen the play, don't read on. This was a good effort at a thriller, but many basic flaws prevent my giving it more than 6/10. The first 40 minutes were quite boring, and I only persevered because the guide in the TV Guide gave it a really wonderful review. So I stuck with it and overall it wasn't too bad. But that beginning really needs cutting down to about half. There were some areas that I really did have trouble with. Have you ever seen a film in which somebody lends somebody else a raincoat and the recipient doesn't immediately get targeted for murder? This is so old and worn an idea that a real author would shun it. And it seems to be part of the general movie scenes that it doesn't really matter who gets killed or injured in a movie provided it isn't the hero or heroine. And since when did women carry all their personal belongings in their coat pockets rather than in a handbag? And surely if someone is going to lend someone else a raincoat, then the pockets would be emptied first. The ex-policeman can't have been so stupid that having blackmailed a murderer, he just sits in a chair waiting for the man to leave the room to get a weapon with which to kill him. And what was with the final scene? Were we supposed to get an inkling of more terror to come (in a sequel perhaps) when we see Kate with her son on the beach? Or was it just to show that you can use the same actor as father and son in the same play?

Excellent two part TV Suspense Drama - looking forward to next week's conclusion!

[Min1-1 · 10/10 · 4 August 2007]

4 Aug 2007 : Suspense and intrigue abound in this cleverly written and directed mystery surrounding three disturbing interconnected key characters portrayed by very appealing male (2) and female (1) actors. Excellent opening maintaining non stop interest where nothing is obvious and second-guessing is (fortunately) futile. The boys' childhood friendship sets up the dramatic opening into adulthood with recurring flashbacks - an essential criterion in support of its splendid dramatic premise. Will not give anything away as it is an enjoyable ride from start to finish (pending) and a delight as the complexities unfold and gain momentum. Thoroughly enjoyed part one – part two awaited – where the writers have given intelligence to these otherwise flawed personalities of troubled character. Ten out of ten. PS: The ending is sure to deliver possibly exceed expectations with more likely surprises and twists ahead – if not … that would be the biggest surprise!