At the time of its release, Tipping th Velvet got a lot of hype for being perhaps the most "raunchy" lesbian thing that had managed to get onto the BBC. Ho hum.
I can see why people give it such rave reviews (well, sort of). With lesbian movies/TV shows/characters you can be hard-pressed to find a decent, fleshed-out representation without falling into ghastly clichés. So when this came out (no pun intended) I can 100% see why people went nuts over it.
But we are a lot of representation later now... and as a fan of the book, I have to disagree with all the rave reviews on here. Tipping the Velvet doesn't stand the test of time.
Firstly, I do not deny that the production value for TTV is brilliant. The stage shows are wonderfully directed, the scenes and costumes do not pose a problem for me. The acting is no great problem either.
It's the story and the mashing up of the original book into some cheap, clichéd ending that bothers me the most. That and the weird and obtrusive editing and background music.
The character of Nan, the main protagonist and heroine, is a far cry from her representation of the book. Racheal Stirling is not a bad actor, but she is too feminine for the role...and the voice? ...Hmm. The Nan of the original story could pass for a man. This nan walks around with slightly shorter hair slathered in make-up with a petite little body and we are supposed to believe she passes off as a man? Hmm indeed.
The biggest let-down of the entire film however was the relationship between Flo and Nan. What happened? They literally gave the characters each other's lines and swapped their personalities around. It skewed the point of Nan's story. Flo is supposed to humble Nan by showing her how little she really knows...not by batting her eyelids.
Lastly...aside from a cursory chase from a couple of cliché cockney thugs there is almost no mention of homophobia in the entire film. Without it, Kitty's betrayal makes little sense.
A bit like this film. It makes me yell every time I see it.
It's little but gaudy melodrama to me, if you want the best version of this film available on TV consult the French and Saunders parody.
A huge let down. Especially for someone who loves the book.
I can see why people give it such rave reviews (well, sort of). With lesbian movies/TV shows/characters you can be hard-pressed to find a decent, fleshed-out representation without falling into ghastly clichés. So when this came out (no pun intended) I can 100% see why people went nuts over it.
But we are a lot of representation later now... and as a fan of the book, I have to disagree with all the rave reviews on here. Tipping the Velvet doesn't stand the test of time.
Firstly, I do not deny that the production value for TTV is brilliant. The stage shows are wonderfully directed, the scenes and costumes do not pose a problem for me. The acting is no great problem either.
It's the story and the mashing up of the original book into some cheap, clichéd ending that bothers me the most. That and the weird and obtrusive editing and background music.
The character of Nan, the main protagonist and heroine, is a far cry from her representation of the book. Racheal Stirling is not a bad actor, but she is too feminine for the role...and the voice? ...Hmm. The Nan of the original story could pass for a man. This nan walks around with slightly shorter hair slathered in make-up with a petite little body and we are supposed to believe she passes off as a man? Hmm indeed.
The biggest let-down of the entire film however was the relationship between Flo and Nan. What happened? They literally gave the characters each other's lines and swapped their personalities around. It skewed the point of Nan's story. Flo is supposed to humble Nan by showing her how little she really knows...not by batting her eyelids.
Lastly...aside from a cursory chase from a couple of cliché cockney thugs there is almost no mention of homophobia in the entire film. Without it, Kitty's betrayal makes little sense.
A bit like this film. It makes me yell every time I see it.
It's little but gaudy melodrama to me, if you want the best version of this film available on TV consult the French and Saunders parody.
A huge let down. Especially for someone who loves the book.