Creator(s): Neil Jordan,
Starring: Jeremy Irons, Francois Arnaud, Holliday Grainger, David Oakes, Joanne Whalley, Sean Harris, Colm Feore, Peter Sullivan, Lotte Verbeek, Steven Berkoff,
Running Time: 500 minutes
Certificate: 15
Extras: The World Of The Borgias, The Art Of Fencing, Instruments Of Torture, The Borgia Poison,
If there’s one thing that historical shows such as THE TUDORS, ROME, and THE BORGIAS have taight us, it’s that no matter what period of time you go to, life is filled with shagging, swearing, and murder. This isn’t one of your quaint British tea-time/evening dramas. It’s an attempt to make history hip, cool and happening with intriguing plots and sinister characters. It’s certainly not boring, and if you came here for some cold hard facts, you may be better off watching a documentary. This is adult entertainment with an eye for detail.
THE BORGIAS, subtitled The Original Crime Family, because everyone wants to see THE SOPRANOS in medieval Italy, focuses on The Pope Alexander VI, AKA Rodrigo Borgias (Jeremy Irons), who obtained his position through bribes and murder in the previous season. This is also how he goes about conducting most of his affairs, especially when something might challenge his family’s stronghold on society. I think the subtitle seems a little forced on, maybe by a marketing department, because although they certainly commit a lot of crimes, they aren’t gangsters. They are the corrupt politicians of their day.
The second season begins as the Borgias are very happy with being the cream of the crop in all of Italy. However, not all things are going their way. The disgraced Cardinal Della Rovere (Colm Feore) is out for vengeance which involves a poisoning plot. Savonarola (Steven Berkoff) has started what can only be described as a cult and convinces people to burn their vanities. The two sons of the Borgias are coming into congflict, whilst the daughter decides to sleep around as she looks for suitors.
Being a shorter 10 episodes in the season, means that the pacing is sometimes too quick for its own good. There is a lot going on here, and sometimes I wish it had taken a breather. Luckily, it also means I was never bored as the show could easily jump from barbaric battle scenes, to steamy lve scenes, and even had time for some rather broad humour. The most obvious example being after the elder son of the Borgias returns home and brings cigars, which Pope Rodrigo Borgias mistakes for “turds”. With so much going on plots often cross over and the show sometimes finds it difficult for characters to interact as they pass between storylines.
The show has so many stand-out characters that it would be impossible to name them all. Sean Harris does his creepy violent thing, which doesn’t really stretch him as an actor but he does do it very well. Irons is of course the star, and although his sometimes scenery chewing dialogue doesn’t always sit well, when he has his quieter moments of grief and anger, he perfectly captures the emotions and thrusts them onscreen. But the real star just has to be the epic costume design and brilliant recreation of the period. Not once do you doubt this was filmed in the time it was set. The actors wear their costumes with pride, and never once seem uncomfortable. You are able to tell a lot about the characters from what they wear and this becomes important with so many names and faces to learn.
The show’s main themes obviously deal with religion and power and how religion is often used to gain power. Nobody is doing things for the right reason in this show, and we see how God’s allegiance can be bought for the right price. Some of the biggest conflicts we encounter really put the audience in a difficult position as we are forced to side with the lesser of two evils, or sometimes just the side we think will come out on top. It’s a rather new experience not having any concrete allegiances nor preferences while watching a show, and this is by no means a negative. But with lots of betrayal and murder, it does make it difficult to shock the viewer with certain twists.
THE BORGIAS Season 2 made me took me on a real ride of emotions, and would often thrust me back and forth between laughter and cringing; so how did they treat STDs back in the day…AAAHHH I don’t wanna know anymore! With excellent direction and writing, often at the hands of the ever reliable Neil Jordan, the film has a cinematic quality that even in today’s world of quality TV programming, it is still a grand achievement. With only 19 episodes between both seasons, you have plenty of time to catch up on this enthralling show before the start of Season 3 next year.
Extras: The World Of The Borgias gives us interesting history lessons that focus on different aspects of the time and place. The Art Of Fencing tells us the history of fencing, which tells us everything from the different swords to the differences between film fights and real fights. Instruments Of Torture gives us a look at different ways of getting information from people. Finally The Borgia Poison looks chemically at the poisons used at the time. So overall you can learn a lot from this lovely little set.
THE BORGIAS is released on DVD and Blu-ray 29th October. You can get your copy here.
