Drama (Harthouse)

HARD TIMES was a TV-movie made for BBC Schools. The films in this series are first shown on educational channels and are part of the national school curriculum.

REG plays Harthouse, some-time politician and full-time lounge lizard, whose actions expose the flimsy pretences which govern the daily lives of the Bounderby and Gradgrind households. A chain of events leads to tragedy, humiliation and retribution, and force Gradgrind to realise the folly of his approach to life and learning.

Here is Chris’ review:

Thank you Nicola for making me go out and rent Hard Times, and thank you to my local library for having it.

You wanted to know more about this BBC Dickens’ classic. Stats first – lasts about 102 minutes and REG appears in the middle 40 minutes and is on screen for approximately 21 of those.

He plays James Harthouse a languid dissipated cad or bounder a true Victorian playboy who cares for nothing and nobody except himself. I must admit that Hard Times is one of only four Dickens novels that I have not read, but I have already retrieved it from the bookcase in order to see how Dickens himself describes Harthouse. (Book 2 chapter 1 – book 3 chapter 3.)

I think that REG has given a great performance, but I only came to that conclusion on his exit. His character arrives at the Bounderby household with a letter of introduction from a Mr Gradgrind. Mr Bounderby is married to Mr Gradgrind’s daughter. Mr Gradgrind, a philanthropist of the type only found in Victorian England, is the local MP for a northern mill town and Harthouse is being groomed to be his successor, hence his visit. The daughter Louisa has reluctantly married Bounderby and of course falls for Harthouse, who we assume is reciprocating these feelings. However, watching REG play this part I felt that he wasn’t making the most of it, that he appeared bored with the whole thing, I almost felt embarrassed for him as his acting appeared so bad. Until his exit, when I realised that this was him playing to character PERFECTLY. In fact his final scene is 43 seconds of PURE BRILLIANCE. Only a great actor can make you believe that he is acting badly when in reality he is acting superbly. See it, every moment that he is on screen is a gem!!

Best REG line: I left my servant at the station with the rest of my luggage.