MovieChat Forums > Hidden (2011) Discussion > Waste of time (i'd say spoilers but ther...

Waste of time (i'd say spoilers but there's nothing to spoil)

posted 13 years ago by sad_antoine
12 replies | jump to latest

High production values, great characters, good acting and some really sinister moments (the Helpdesk calls).

But a ridiculous story that just didn't stack up, no pay off, no explanation, just a bunch of stuff that happened, and Philip Glennister running around just as confused as the rest of us while a bunch of conspirators bungle a conspiracy that no-one really understands.

The Anna Chancellor character was pointless, the Christopher Fairbank character is a gaping loose end, we've still no idea why the original killings happened or what the conspirators motives were given they already seem to be billionnaires in control of everything. Not a patch on The Shadow Line, and a waste of Glennister and most of the other cast.

Did they mean to write a fifth episode and just forgot? Because if they are banking on a second series, I wouldn't hold my breath.

[–] padzok 13 years ago

Yeah, we never even got to find out what the PM did that was so horrifying. Or whether he was "innocent" (by a politician's standards) and Wentworth was given false info about him.

Was Worsley somehow tied up in the 1989 killings? Had Morpeth etc got him into power and now tired of him? Had Morpeth etc got him into power and now needed to stage a coup to keep him in power?

Did Mark's rebellion mean that the UK ended up staying under the rule of a murderous tyrant? Or did Mark's rebellion just bring to an end a period of artificially induced civil unrest, and allow a "decent man" (by a politician's standards) to get back to business?

Do the writers think they are being oh so clever by leaving all these things up to the viewer's own imagination? Or do they realise that they're just a bunch of dickheads, and no-one will ever bother with anything else they put out.

They were not inventive enough to come up with a semi-plausible story to explain how everything fitted together. So they didnt try, and no doubt will claim it was deliberate.

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] dragonsworn5 13 years ago

This was the best done piece of rubbish in a long time. Everything about it was great except the stupid story

[–] Errington_92 13 years ago

I agree with JockTampsonsBairn, by the end I felt there were more questions than answers. There were a lot of loose ends particulary the scandalous secrects that were to be revealed concerning the PM. It had been building up through out the episodes and it fell flat.

Also I did not see the need for the side story with Harry's ex - wife and son, there was enough drama within the episodes without them. I think the intention was to show a part of Harry's characterisation but I feel it was not needed.

"I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not".

[–] padzok 13 years ago

Who rescued Harry and Gina in Paris ? Mark ?

The only thing in the whole show that was ever resolved was that Mark was the one who gave the warnings about the bomb, and about Stiles closing in on them, and who was part of the team sent to do a hit on Gina, but refused to kill Harry.

Nothing else was resolved, including how Mark was still able to pull off getting into the prison when he presumably no longer had the Helpdesk to, err, help him.

[–] mackay254 13 years ago

I thought this was great drama.
I thought "Wow, how does all this fit together?"
I was at a loss. So, it would appear, were the writers.
I'm very disappointed.

[–] ullak 13 years ago

>Nothing else was resolved, including how Mark was still able to pull off getting into the prison when he presumably no longer had the Helpdesk to, err, help him.

And he did that a short time after killing three people - one of them in public, without any disguise.

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] padzok 13 years ago

Almost none of those questions were answered, but 2 were.

So was Mark supposed to kill Wentworth or not??? He then kills Morpeth? By whose order? His own whim? And why?

...

What was Mark accomplishing by killing Morpeth?

Yes, he was supposed to kill Wentworth. We never heard him say why he killed Morpeth instead, but it seems reasonable to accept Gina's guessplanation. ie he killed Morpeth because that was the only way of making sure that Morpeth didnt kill Harry.

So were the powers that be (the press, financiers, Suchet's character the lawyer) just trying to get Wentorth in there as their home grown patsy that they could then control?

If so, why were they trying to have him assassinated before he gets into power? Were they going to try to pin it on the PM, thereby destroying him in another way? And they were just using Wentworth as a target, then put it about that the PM ordered him killed? If so, then whom did they have in mind to take over the government? Who was the heir apparent, if they killed Wentworth?

Their plot only makes sense if they were trying to get rid of the PM. They wanted a new military govt. In itself, that would does not prove they wanted rid of the PM. BUT, the media mogul character wanted to make sure everyone believed that Wentworth had the dirt on the PM. So everyone was supposed to think (presumably) that the PM had ordered the assassination, which in turn justified his violent overthrow.

But like others have already said, it does not add up that a group of billionaires would want to disturb the status quo. If the Anna Chancellor character already controlled the media, what did she have to gain? If Morpeth already has a huge house and a private militia then what did he have to gain?

The history of revolutions tells us that the outcome can be very unpredictable. Once you lift the lid on the pressure cooker, there's no telling who is going to be on top once the smoke clears.

[–] ravmeltt 13 years ago

But like others have already said, it does not add up that a group of billionaires would want to disturb the status quo. If the Anna Chancellor character already controlled the media, what did she have to gain? If Morpeth already has a huge house and a private militia then what did he have to gain?

First of all, let me say, maybe I'm dumber than everybody else on this post, but I thoroughly enjoyed the show. Concerning the fact that Morpeth is a billionaire, it's not always about money for these guys. My impression was that they wanted to smear the PM's character, and to implicate Wentworth in some way. I also remember one of the media persons asking "Are you running as well?" At first I thought the question was directed at Morpeth, and I wondered if Morpeth himself wanted to run, and was keeping himself in the limelight and when Wentworth was killed, he'd step in and "save the day".

I assumed the show had 2 more eps,as I thought BBC gives 6 eps (I'm not from England), so I thought we'd get more closure. I still found the show very exciting and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

This is my signature and I'm sticking to it. lol

[–] Prismark10 13 years ago

I too thought that there would be more episodes but it seems the BBC realised that this was tosh and called it quits as the ending was blooming awful and made no sense.

Its that man again!!

[–] ravmeltt 13 years ago

I just finished reading a board about the show on The Guardian TV News and almost everyone complained about the show, and about the ending. I really thought there was going to be another episode, but I realised they don't have 5 eps in England, it's either 4 or 6, and I couldn't see it stretching for 6, unless they had another 4 with an increased storyline. I am disappointed as I did enjoy the show, even though as everyone said, a lot was left unexplained. But to me the ride was good while it lasted.

This is my signature and I'm sticking to it. lol