The sorrow around the eyes of Chief Inspector Morse should not be mistaken for the same sort of revulsion he displays when observing the dead. This character, refined and rough at the same time, is a mass of complex compromises, and one should not assume too much at first meeting.
A lover of classical music, he allows his sensitivity to sneak out through his eyes, even as they scan the world for clues. Gruff and full of barked orders and verbal cynicism (or world-weariness), he is also very likable.
”Beer is food,” he says. And who can`t love that attitude?
Fans of the ”Mystery!” series have met Morse before, so they will know a few things and personality quirks to expect. Others, though, might be initially tempted to take him for granted-a British Isles Columbo-because he is so unlike the other members of the ”Mystery!” gang.
Of course, he will solve whatever confounding crime confronts him, but the way in which he goes about that is a richly textured and rewardingly emotional ride. This is a sensitive man in a most insensitive clime.
”The Settling of the Sun,” the first of three, two-part Morse mysteries this seasons (airing at 9 p.m. Thursdays), is a beautifully written, stirringly complex tale of deceit, revenge and murder.
One is never quite sure of the relationship between Morse and the lovely Dr. Jane Dobson (Anna Calder-Marshall, looking like an older, more fetching Diane Keaton), who calls upon the detective to present a crossword-puzzle-contest prize during a dinner for a group of overseas students summering at Oxford. A young Japanese student bolts from the table, complaining of illness, and a few minutes later is discovered brutally murdered in his room upstairs. Brutal, indeed, for the young man was given a do-it-yourself crucifixion: his hands and feet and heart pierced with a knife and his tongue cut out.
The ghastly nature of the crime is hard enough on Morse; compounding matters is the fact that he was only feet away when it was committed. But he begins the process of crime-solving, interviewing the other students and finding, to his dismay, ”that all the people I talk to are terrified yet none are capable of murder.”
Pieces begin to come together, aided by dialogue full of snap and surprise.
”I never had any feeling for you,” Dobson says.
”I know,” Morse says. ”I did, but now it doesn`t matter.”
”(The Japanese student) was a drug dealer,” she says.
Yes, he is. But he isn`t. And such is the wicked web of this case that the most obvious suspects may not be who or what they pretend.
John Thaw is familiarly fabulous as Morse. Those familiar with the character will not be surprised by his affection for Dobson. He falls for every pretty woman he meets. But they will be surprised by the changes in his relationship with his aide, Sgt. Lewis (Kevin Whatley), who is less gofer than associate. Morse can still be brusque with Lewis, but the younger man is not as deferential as he once was, and that`s a nice new touch.
The reasons behind the crime, and the two deaths that follow, is unsettling. Without divulging too much, know that it has to do with revenge for crimes committed nearly 50 years in the past, has something else to do with drugs, and is, for almost every minute of its two parts, a compelling caper, elevated by the presence of a rare and sensitive man struggling to survive in a bloody business.
`THE SOUTH BANK SHOW` 7 P.M., THURSDAY, BRAVO
The idea of spending an hour with Gabriel Garcia Marquez is irresistible. Arguably the world`s greatest living writer, Marquez rarely gives interviews, and the opportunity to hear from the author of ”One Hundred Years of Solitude” is one not to be passed up.
He does not disappoint. In this American TV premiere of ”The South Bank Show: Gabriel Garcia Marquez” the author is full of surprises.
The program concentrates not on the novels and stories for which Marquez was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1982, but rather on his moviemaking. How fascinating to learn how long he has had a relationship with cinema-which, he says, ”has more possibilities than literature”-and how deep and complicated that relationship is.
One sees ample clips from films produced from his scripts or stories:
”There Are No Thieves in This Town,” ”The Old Man With Enormous Wings”
and ”Erendira,” which will be shown following this documentary.
One leaves this hour full of respect for Marquez, almost awed by his eloquence about words and images and his passion for his arts.
`MYSTERY!`
”The Settling of the Sun,” a Chief Inspector Morse case. Executive producer, Ted Childs; produced by Kenny McBain, directed by Peter Hammond, written by Charles Wood, story by Colin Dexter. With John Thaw, Kevin Whatley, Peter Woodthorpe, Anna Calder-Marshall, Robert Stephens, Avis Bunnage, Derek Fowlds and Robert Lang. Two parts airing at 9 p.m. Thursday and May 10 on WTTW-Ch. 11.
