SnoopyStyle
It's 1942 Nazi-occupied Amsterdam. Otto Frank (Iain Glen) brings his wife Edith (Tamsin Greig), his daughters Margot (Felicity Jones), and Anne (Ellie Kendrick) to hide in a secret annex above his food and spice warehouse. They must keep quiet during the work day. Only the office staff Miep Gies (Kate Ashfield), Bep Voskuijl (Mariah Gale), Mr Kugler (Tim Dantay), and Mr Kleiman (Roger Frost) know the secret. The Franks are joined by Hermann Van Daan (Ron Cook), his brash wife Petronella (Lesley Sharp), and their son Peter (Geoff Breton). The final addition is dentist Albert Dussel (Nicholas Farrell) who becomes Anne's roommate. In the confined space, the personal conflicts mount. The Allies are closing in and freedom is almost at hand.This is like the Titanic. The sinking is inevitable but the story is still so compelling. Anne's modern humanity is undeniable. The performances are pitch perfect. Each character is well-defined and engaging. Ellie Kendrick is terrific in the lead. The mini-series ends with their capture. It makes no speculation about their informer. Their tragic ends are spelled out in text. I guess their horrific endings are subject for another time.
amour88
This is a short mini series only 5 30 minutes episodes. This was one of the best portrayals I have ever seen. The actress who played her was amazing and looked so much like her. I made me almost cry,made me laugh and made me angry. The last episode was very nervewrecking,you knew what was going to happen yet you wanted it to turn out differently. Despite it being during the war she was still your average teenager and you can still relate to her. I still like Anne Frank The Whole Story best but this was a wonderful version too.This portrayal of Anne can be egotistical and short-tempered. There are a few scenes where Anne talks about her changing body and her sexuality and one scene where she touches her breasts in a sexual way. The devotion of the "helpers" warms my heart at seeing people who put their lives on the line to help hide the people in the annex. When the nazi's finally do come is such a heartbreaking scene especially when you know how close the war was to ending.
Robston
There can't be many people who haven't heard of the story of Anne Frank. The 13 year old girl from a Jewish family who, to avoid evacuation from Holland by the Nazis, hid with her family in the rooms above her fathers business for 2 years before being caught. The diary she kept during this period was published after the war and has since been translated into a number of languages and has become the most widely read piece of non-fiction apart from the Bible.The rights to the story are rarely available and it's pleasing that this new production transmitted on the BBC over five half-hour episodes on consecutive nights is a great example of quality, thought provoking and moving television that should be enjoyed by all.Ellie Kendrick stars as Anne, the teenage daughter of Otto (Iain Glen) and Edith Frank (Tamsin Greig). In her diaries Anne comes across as a precocious teenager, sometimes impertinent and always with something to say regardless of other peoples feelings and Ellie Kendrick's performance captures this perfectly. She is a teenager after all and we get to know all her growing pains through her diary entries. Iain Glen is the solid and almost perfect father and is amiably assisted by Tamsin Grieg as a quiet and dependable mother. The supporting cast including Lesley Sharp, Ron Cook and Geoff Bretton as the Van Daans are all exceptional, particularly Lesley Sharp whose performance as the selfish and head strong Petronella was always entertaining. The production values were first rate and the recreation of the rooms where the families lived really made you appreciated how claustrophobic, stressful, and monotonous their daily lives must have been. As the series concludes and you get more and more attached to these characters the sudden discovery of the secret annex by the police is well handled and very emotional.A very strong series that is never preachy or over-dramatic and which I hope is transmitted in as many countries as possible. Highly enjoyable and recommended.
hotspur95
My wife read the Diary of Anne Frank last year for English class, and when we visited Amsterdam we went to see the house.The house in this TV series is exactly the same as the real house, almost to the extent that I wonder if they filmed it there.The story as told in this series is very close to the book and shows Anne as she shows herself in her diary. An intelligent, boisterous, moody, lively teenage girl.The fact that she was SO full of energy and ideas and yet was cooped up in those rooms for so long is the really moving thing about the book I think and they have captured it very well in the series.This BBC drama feels completely authentic, I can't think of anything to criticise it about at all!