Reception
Reaction to the serial was mixed, generating mainly warm but unenthusiastic reviews. Most critics were impressed with the acting, especially of Gemma Arterton's portrayal of the titular character, but found the series period details to be anachronistic for the era.
Euan Ferguson of The Guardian praised the first and second episodes as "wonderful", and that while it lacked the "bubbling, sprited humour of Cranford" it was "less insipid than so much Austen". He also acclaimed Arterton as "terribly subtle" in the leading role.
Hermione Eyre of The Independent called it a "commendably faithful adaptation" and praised Arterton's performance in the titular role, asserting that the actress "brims with life and spirit". Eyre did acknowledge, however, that the version lacked the "power" of Roman Polanski's 1979 version.
Robert Hanks, also of The Independent, noted that the series "looks lovely" but perhaps "a bit too lovely". While noting Gemma Arterton as "gorgeous" he found the acting "mostly fair to middling" with the exception of Anna Massey, whom he called "quite brilliant" in the role of Mrs D'Urberville. Hanks also bemoaned the lack of realism, noting that too many costume dramas today "can’t afford to remind the viewer too explicitly just how grubby and laborious life was in the days before indoor hot running water, automatic washing machines and biological powder".
In the US Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times found Blair was able to make "full and gorgeous use of Hardy's depiction of Tess as Earth Goddess" and praised the "visceral visual beauty" elicited from the landscape. She also found Arterton "a marvelous Tess" which she saw as important "considering the film pretty much lives or dies with her performance".
Brian Lowry of Variety also acclaimed Arterton's performance; calling her "wide-eyed and lovely" he praised how she "conveys the pitiful plight of her simple character trapped in an unforgiving society". He was, however, critical of the pacing, saying that the series soon becomes an "arduous trek". Still he found that "the payoff is strong enough to justify all that hiking across lush countryside".
David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle was less than impressed. He found David Blair's direction "competent" but also criticised the show's regard for period authenticity, finding that "the impoverished Durbeyfields and other villagers look a bit too well scrubbed and freshly laundered and that Wessex itself is a bit too pretty". Nevertheless he remarked that Gemma Arterton was "excellent" and that the serial would "do as a reminder of Hardy's timeless appeal until something better comes along".
Several viewers, while enjoying the series overall, noted that the hymn 'How Great Thou Art' was anachronistic. Some were disturbed enough to complain to the BBC.
Read more about this topic: Tess Of The D'Urbervilles (TV Serial)
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