+3
Shadows: The Other Window (TV, 1975) – 6/10
This was co-authored by J. B. Priestley and Jacquetta Hawkes and it's fascinating to see their combined interests reflected in the story. My memory must have had its handbrake on, because I know An Inspector Calls very well and really like it, but Priestley's name didn't register with me. I'm intrigued that he had such an interest in time and explored it in his other work.
Once again with these stories time is involved. The characters see people from history through a distorting lens fastened to the window, trying to convince the rigidly scientific father of the miracle. As with earlier episodes I felt that it might have been more suitable for the story to take place earlier in the twentieth century. The music, which is uncredited and very imposing, adds to this displacement considerably, but I'm not sure how intentional that was. Also, as in previous episodes, we're visiting a rarefied eschelon of society but the dialogue actually feels too antiquated even for them.
The child actors are quite watchable even so, and extremely competent. The language can sometimes produce an unnatural and stilted effect – Gwyneth Strong seemed to struggle with this most; she was very familiar but I didn't twig that she'd played Cassandra in Only Fools and Horses. It's funny also to see Sophie Ward at this age.
I enjoyed the central theme of this episode and it resonated with me. I was pleased that the story was able to create some unease in a couple of places but I was alert to the possibility that there could have been more. Very much feels like a classic out of its normal time and place. I'm looking forward to series 2.