Creepy Catholic secrets and sleepwalking-related twists kept me on the edge of this thrilling Irish TV series set in Kilkinure (Ireland).
With the immensely talented Ruth Wilson in the lead, playing Lorna Brady, the show established a high note from the get-go. Wilson's performance made the script in the mini-series "The Woman in the Wall" feel doubly compelling.
Daryl McCormack as Detective Colman Akande contributed plenty of noteworthy moments to the plot. His calm demeanour belied a sharp cunning. They also wove in some interesting empathy angles for his character that were worth watching.
He himself was an adopted kid, with ties to a Catholic-run adoption agency that was secretly connected to the goings-on at a certain convent (secretly a laundry) where a pregnant Lorna Brady suffered in her younger years under the Sisters Of The Seven Joys.
With Lorna going about committing crimes, apparently, though she never intended to, the early portion of the story took on a glaze of suspense. Her sleepwalking tendencies were rooted in similar challenges faced by actual people, but given a sinister twist in the show.
However, they barely explored the actual origins of Lorna's sleepwalking tendencies. A large portion of the plot was directly entwined with that habit, so to simply imply as to what that chapter in her life was all about felt a tad unusual.
Long-term abuse in the Magdalene Laundries and Lorna's youthful memories of the time she was pregnant and forced to 'hide' her shame in that establishment connected some riveting and heart-breaking dots in the script.
As the story progressed, Lorna was getting no closer to finding her daughter, Agnes, whom the nuns at the Magdalene Laundries had stolen from her. This suspenseful and empathic element grew into crisper focus in the final few episodes.
"The Woman in the Wall" was an interesting exploration of real-life cruelties and the struggles mothers who are put in this kind of position experience.
Missing children, falsified records, odd 'private donations', simple yet elegant twists, and great performances kept the entire mini-series going steady and finishing on a high note.
--- --- --- Great performances from Simon Delaney (as Sgt. Aidan Massey), Cillian Lenaghan (as Conor Skelly), Philippa Dunne (as Niamh), Hilda Fay (as Amy Kane), Abby Fitz (as younger Lorna Brady), Aoife Fitzpatrick (as Tabitha), Ciara Stell (as younger Clemence), Caoimhe Farren (as Clemence), Frances Tomelty (as Sister Eileen), Aoibhinn McGinnity (as younger Sister Eileen), Ardal O'Hanlon (as Dara), Mark Huberman (as Michael Kearney), Alexandra Moloney (as Leslie / Olivia), Chizzy Akudolu (as Lola), Aoife McAtamney (as Brida), Brian Doherty (as Thomas Cochlan), Fiona Bell (as Aoife Cassidy), Barry McGovern (as Dr. Gabriel), and Dominic Anglim (as the 'cruelty man').
With the immensely talented Ruth Wilson in the lead, playing Lorna Brady, the show established a high note from the get-go. Wilson's performance made the script in the mini-series "The Woman in the Wall" feel doubly compelling.
Daryl McCormack as Detective Colman Akande contributed plenty of noteworthy moments to the plot. His calm demeanour belied a sharp cunning. They also wove in some interesting empathy angles for his character that were worth watching.
He himself was an adopted kid, with ties to a Catholic-run adoption agency that was secretly connected to the goings-on at a certain convent (secretly a laundry) where a pregnant Lorna Brady suffered in her younger years under the Sisters Of The Seven Joys.
With Lorna going about committing crimes, apparently, though she never intended to, the early portion of the story took on a glaze of suspense. Her sleepwalking tendencies were rooted in similar challenges faced by actual people, but given a sinister twist in the show.
However, they barely explored the actual origins of Lorna's sleepwalking tendencies. A large portion of the plot was directly entwined with that habit, so to simply imply as to what that chapter in her life was all about felt a tad unusual.
Long-term abuse in the Magdalene Laundries and Lorna's youthful memories of the time she was pregnant and forced to 'hide' her shame in that establishment connected some riveting and heart-breaking dots in the script.
As the story progressed, Lorna was getting no closer to finding her daughter, Agnes, whom the nuns at the Magdalene Laundries had stolen from her. This suspenseful and empathic element grew into crisper focus in the final few episodes.
"The Woman in the Wall" was an interesting exploration of real-life cruelties and the struggles mothers who are put in this kind of position experience.
Missing children, falsified records, odd 'private donations', simple yet elegant twists, and great performances kept the entire mini-series going steady and finishing on a high note.
--- --- --- Great performances from Simon Delaney (as Sgt. Aidan Massey), Cillian Lenaghan (as Conor Skelly), Philippa Dunne (as Niamh), Hilda Fay (as Amy Kane), Abby Fitz (as younger Lorna Brady), Aoife Fitzpatrick (as Tabitha), Ciara Stell (as younger Clemence), Caoimhe Farren (as Clemence), Frances Tomelty (as Sister Eileen), Aoibhinn McGinnity (as younger Sister Eileen), Ardal O'Hanlon (as Dara), Mark Huberman (as Michael Kearney), Alexandra Moloney (as Leslie / Olivia), Chizzy Akudolu (as Lola), Aoife McAtamney (as Brida), Brian Doherty (as Thomas Cochlan), Fiona Bell (as Aoife Cassidy), Barry McGovern (as Dr. Gabriel), and Dominic Anglim (as the 'cruelty man').