The Woman in the Wall Review: Thought-Provoking Drama with Strong Performances and A Unique Setting
Cast: Ruth Wilson, Daryl McCormack, Simon Delaney, Philippa Dunne, Mark Huberman, Hilda Fay
Created By: Joe Murtagh
Streaming Platform: Showtime and Paramount+
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3.5/5 (three and a half stars)
That Ruth Wilson was an exceptional actress had been known at least since Luther, but The Woman in the Wall, from January 20 on Showtime and Paramount+, thunderously reiterates the concept. The BBC miniseries is one of the most solid and convincing productions of the last television season, but also one of the most disturbing and dark. Halfway between crime drama and psychological thriller, the show reconstructs one of the darkest periods in Irish history: that of the Magdalene Houses, through the character of the tormented Lorna Brady. In 2015, Lorna is one of the survivors of the abuse of the nuns of the convent near the fictional Kilkinure which in the mid-1980s (the last laundry was closed, incredibly, in 1996) were inflicted on girls locked up against their will, at the mercy of sadistic nuns who forced them to work to the point of exhaustion in hand laundry laundries. Some of the victims were unmarried mothers sent away from the eyes of society by bigoted families, others had the “guilt” of being too showy and a temptation for men, and still, others were considered rebellious and not submissive enough. Yes, the same reasons why women were burned at the stake as witches in the 16th century.
At the center of the new series arriving on Showtime and Paramount+, we find a darker chapter than ever in Irish history, namely the so-called “Magdalene Laundries”, those structures managed by the Catholic Church where unwanted women were sent. Among them, many girls had become pregnant without being married, and who out of shame their families had had to send away, together with the fruit of sin they were carrying in their womb. Inside these buildings they were abused and exploited as free labor, the structures had often been converted into huge laundries, in which the young women “earned” their stay. The protagonist of this story is precisely one of these women, who many years after what happened to her in one of these convents/laundries is still trying to come to terms with the trauma she suffered. As we will see in this review of The Woman in the Wall, the series created by Joe Murtagh and directed by Harry Wootliff and Rachna Suri mixes drama, thriller, and some elements of the horror story to build an acute criticism of the sins committed by Catholic institutions and its representatives in Ireland. The mystery that kicks off the narrative is particularly interesting, and keeps you glued to the screen, a shame about the perhaps a little too slow pace of some moments, especially in the first episodes, which could discourage quite a few viewers.
The Woman in the Wall Review: The Story Plot
Lorna Brady is a middle-aged woman from Kilkinure, a town on the Irish coast, plagued by episodes of aggressive sleepwalking and tormented by nightmares of a traumatic past. When she was only fifteen she had been sent to a convent – in reality, one of the many Magdalene Laundries in the country – by her parents after she had become pregnant: there, amidst abuse and violence, she had given birth to her daughter, who however it had been taken away from her shortly after birth. Lorna has wanted to find her all her life, and one day, a newcomer to town seems to know what happened to her newborn baby. Too bad that before the woman, a former nun from the convent where Lorna had been locked up, even manages to speak, she dies mysteriously, right in her house.
Convinced that she killed her during one of her episodes, but still determined to find out as much as possible about what happened to her daughter, Lorna walls the body in one of the walls of her living room. However, things become further complicated when a priest from Dublin, who had worked in the Kilkinure convent many years before, is killed, and his car is found not far away: a young detective from the capital, Colman Akande (Daryl McCormack), arrives in town to find the culprit, and Lorna ends up at the center of his investigation. The two, who will soon become unlikely allies, are about to open a terrible Pandora’s box on Kilkinure’s past: what happened to all the children born in the convent (but also in the many similar structures in the country)? How is it possible that they disappeared without a trace? What did the nun want to reveal before dying mysteriously?
The Woman in the Wall Review and Analysis
As we mentioned at the beginning, the mystery that starts this story is particularly interesting, several deaths are intertwined with the dark past of both the town of Kilkinure and the rest of Ireland. The Catholic institutions so rooted in the country are responsible for terrible events, for indelible traumas for many women like Lorna, whose testimonies we hear throughout the episodes. The Woman in the Wall moves expertly between genres, between drama, thriller, and horror. The viewer goes from a story “a la The Spotlight Affair” to truly horrifying moments, Lorna’s trauma transforms into terrifying visions that haunt her, which at a certain point leads us to completely doubt her perception of the reality of her. It is a particularly interesting mix, which however loses its effectiveness due to the slightly too slow pace of the first episodes. Joe Murtagh takes some time to outline his story, slowly building the numerous characters who take part in it. However, once we have passed what can be considered the “introductory” part of the show, it is impossible not to be captured by the story, which keeps us glued until the end precisely because of the wealth of details with which it is outlined.
The characters are the heart of this series, from the splendid, fragile, and tormented Lorna of Ruth Wilson to the gruff detective Akande, from the sarcastic Garda commander Massey (Simon Delaney) to the other survivors of the Laundries, Niahm (Philippa Dunne), Amy (Hilda Fay) and Clemence (Caoimhe Farren). Their stories and those of all the inhabitants of Kilkinure, but above all the relationships that bind them to each other (between friendships, rivalries, and secrets), are put together in a picture rich in details, which drag and capture the viewer. The Church is represented as a cruel and unshakeable enemy, whose motivations vary from the delusion of omnipotence to simple greed. When we finally discover the true culprits of what happened to Lorna – she and Akande uncover a conspiracy much vaster and more complex than we could have ever imagined – there is very little time left to close the thriller plot in the best possible way, and the conclusion it seemed decidedly rushed given the ambition with which the story was outlined.
Despite the defects we have listed, however, The Woman in the Wall is worth watching, both for the true story it tells and for the intense and heartfelt performances of its protagonists. We’ve known it for some time (just watch the Luther series to understand it), but Ruth Wilson confirms herself as an interpreter of the highest level. The topic is certainly interesting, and the pace is fast-paced, but if we had to indicate just one reason to watch the six episodes of The Woman in the Wall it would certainly be the protagonist’s performance. Exhausted, and desperate, but at the same time full of anger and desire to know the truth, Lorna is a rebellious woman who will not be silenced by an entire city that not only considers her crazy but also lies to her. continuously.
The actress manages to distort her features and completely change her posture and way of moving: she is always curved, and bent, as if she were continually crushed by the weight of her traumas. Daryl McCormack, seen in Peaky Blinders in the role of Isiah Jesus, and in Bad Sisters, also offers a good performance, acting as the perfect supporting character to the protagonist. Tough and emotionally trying, The Woman in the Wall is a series that deserves to be seen, as we were saying, first of all for the interpretations of the protagonists, but then also for the courage it demonstrates in unmasking a corrupt system that hides behind everything it should be purer: that is, helping women and children in difficulty in the name of God. It’s a shame that at least as far as these characters are concerned, the god is the wrong one: made of hard cash and no compassion.
As the narrative progresses, we expect to see Lorna’s dreamlike and increasingly hallucinatory descent into madness, but author Joe Murtaugh distances himself from the predictable escalation of terror and imbalance to make The Woman in the Wall a ferocious and biased political accusation and a solid crime where the protagonist finds the strength to regain her sanity and go in search of a shocking truth. A truth that gives the already scandalous affair even more degrading contours. What was presented as a gothic horror adopts the contours of a social horror; the flashbacks that illustrate the conditions of Lorna and her companions in misfortune are much more gruesome and frightening than the dream visions and supernatural echoes. As mentioned, Luther‘s former scheming serial killer Alice Morgan, Englishwoman Ruth Wilson, is as good as ever as Lorna. Against every law of her physics, Wilson manages to shrink her figure by adopting a hunchbacked and almost crouched posture, the outward manifestation of years of psychological oppression, which makes her seem small and fragile.
His performance is sensational, magnetic, and powerful in portraying a character tamed and weak yet unstoppable, submissive yet combative, mentally unstable yet lucid. McCormack, cast from the brilliant 2022 comedy The Pleasure Is All Mine (but is also in Peaky Blinders) also does a convincing job as Colman. His calm attitude reveals the frustration and fragility of a young man who has crushed under the weight of self-control the disturbances of a buried past that resurfaces, amidst panic attacks and nightmares. Lorna and Colman’s journey is harsh yet cathartic and takes place against the backdrop of a rural Ireland immersed in a nature that appears cold and indifferent. The spectators of The Woman in the Wall have left anything but cold and indifferent, thanks to the series faced with the reality of a chilling recent past that reveals the abuses of the servants of God.
The Woman in the Wall Review: The Last Words
The Woman in the Wall is a series that mixes drama, thriller, and some elements of horror fiction. The characters are well developed and convincing. Too bad the pace of the first episodes was a little too slow. The Woman in the Wall is a thought-provoking drama with strong performances and a unique setting. However, its pacing and character development might not appeal to everyone. If you’re looking for a slow-burning mystery with complex characters, this show might be worth checking out. But if you prefer fast-paced narratives and clear-cut storylines, you might be left wanting more. As written in the review of The Woman in the Wall, the miniseries is based on the great interpretation of Ruth Wilson, an enormously talented actress, who here almost seems to change her characteristics, working a lot on the micro-expressions of the face and posture. The series is inspired by real events: in Ireland, women considered immoral were locked up in the Magdalene Houses, and their children were often entrusted to other families.
The Woman in the Wall Review: Thought-Provoking Drama with Strong Performances and A Unique Setting - Filmyhype
Director: Joe Murtagh
Date Created: 2024-01-19 19:14
3.5
Pros
- Captivating performances: Ruth Wilson delivers a powerful performance as Lorna Brady, a woman grappling with trauma and sleepwalking. The supporting cast, including Daryl McCormack, is also commended for their nuanced portrayals.
- Intriguing premise: The show tackles sensitive themes like the Magdalene Laundries scandal and its lasting impact on survivors. The mystery surrounding the dead woman keeps viewers engaged.
- Atmospheric setting: The Irish coastal town provides a moody and suspenseful backdrop to the story.
Cons
- Uneven pacing: Some viewers find the narrative slow-burning and meandering, particularly in the middle episodes.
- Unreliable protagonist: Lorna's mental state makes it difficult to discern truth from fiction, which can be frustrating for some viewers.
- Characterization issues: Some supporting characters feel underdeveloped, and the portrayal of women who have experienced trauma has been criticized as stereotypical.
