Mortimer's Rumpole of the Bailey series, both book and DVD, has been delightful, poignantly humorous and keenly telling of our frail and always hypocritical natures. These books will become classics as, like the Bard, they universally point out the inevitable failings of human intentions, but also illuminate the basic goodness of common people.
There is an honesty to these books that is rare. This wasn't the flat, pretentious hipper-than-thou cynicism you read in contemporary writing. Mortimer never sugar coated the buffoonery, greed or malice of his characters. He cut to the vein of truth. But still had a compassion for them despite their immense flaws. Plus, he made me laugh at the pathetic posturing of social climbers, idiot judges, religious pomposity and the high commands of She Who Must Be Obeyed, Rumpole's loving wife Hilda.
God love you, John Mortimer and thanks for a debt I cannot repay.
No comments:
Post a Comment