nevernlandia reblogged
“El amor me hacía dar a cada gesto una importancia infinita” - Jean Genet
nevernlandia reblogged
mynameisalexx
Alex’s hands are trembling
nevernlandia reblogged
London Spy: episode 2
nevernlandia reblogged
I want to tell you a story about a man. While he did everything to signal to the world that he wanted to be left alone, more than anything, he hoped that someone, passing, would understand that what he really wanted was the exact opposite. And that this someone would sit next to him and strike up a conversation. I was that man, you were that someone.
London Spy (2015) dir. Jakob Verbruggen
nevernlandia reblogged
'London Spy' Finale Postmortem: Edward Holcroft on Alex's Fate
Warning: This interview contains spoilers for the finale of BBC America’s London Spy.
The wait is over. After five weeks of wondering what happened to Alex (Edward Holcroft), the finale of London Spy gave us answers. And it was even more horrifying and heartbreaking than viewers of the BBC America love story-turned-mystery could have predicted.
MI6 had placed Alex in that trunk, and when he awoke to find himself there, Frances (Charlotte Rampling), the woman who’d raised him to be a spy, had to try to convince him to move to America and leave behind both Danny (Ben Whishaw) and, more importantly, his work. Though Alex reluctantly agreed, MI6 used his own lie-detection technique against him to determine that he wasn’t being truthful when he said he’d go, never see Danny again, and forget about his work — and when he returned Frances’s “I love you.” Though Frances begged for a chance to speak to him again, she was drugged and driven home while Alex was left to die.
Holcroft spoke to Yahoo TV about filming that brutal scene.
Take us through shooting Alex’s final scene. Were you actually in a box? I was. They put me in a trunk, and… yeah, it was hard. I’m not going to lie. I haven’t got a problem with small spaces or claustrophobia or anything like that, but I remember, when we did it, Charlotte Rampling was on the other side of the box to read the lines — it was really quite moving, actually. And when we cut, I got out and I was getting quite upset. I didn’t know why. I was naked, and it was a very comfortable set to work on and everyone was incredibly sensitive and professional. But I remember when I got out, I just wanted space, and I could feel it brewing up in me. Charlotte became my mom almost and was sort of like, “Everyone, get out of the way. Give him space. Leave him alone.” She was so sweet, which made me get even more upset.
Had you been filming the scene for hours? At least three quarters of a day, so a good five to six hours. I wasn’t in the box for six hours, but it was more the psychological aspect of it — the thought of, if that could happen to someone, if you could be stuck in the space that small… It was hard, but it looked good, so I’m happy.
And since we don’t actually see Alex take his last breath after he’s left there to die, you can imagine those final moments as a viewer and its haunts you. Did you film his last breath? No, that was pretty much it. I had friends, people who’ve watched the last episode, saying, “Are you sure you’re dead, or did you come out after?” People didn’t want to fully believe that he’s dead. They still think that there’s a twist. They still think Alex went to America.
Creator Tom Rob Smith has said he never intended for it to be ambiguous, whether Alex was really dead, even when his body was found at the end of the premiere. The whole story is so ambiguous by nature. When I read the scripts, that was what I loved about it. It was different: you couldn’t place anything anywhere, compared to so many scripts that one reads now, where you can sort of predict things very fast and it’s all kind of the same. I love the unpredictability. It makes it haunting. It makes it uncomfortable. It was sort of quite fitting that it just ended in the way it did.
Going back to the premiere, whenever Alex turned up the radio and told Danny that he couldn’t go anywhere without getting a new battery for his computer… did he know that something was about to happen to him? I think he knew. He’s a very intelligent man, and I think he knew that his world would be watching him very closely, because of his relationship with Danny and when he started his work on creating this theory of proving lying. I was playing it like he knew that it’s probably just a matter of time before they do something. Whether or not he knew that they were going to the extent of taking him away or killing him, I don’t know. But I think when you work for people like that and there are secrets that are that important, you know the full consequences.
It’s clear why he wouldn’t want to leave Danny, the only person he’s ever connected with. In your mind, why didn’t he want to let go of the research even when it meant death? Is it because he hated what spies had made him so much that he wanted to destroy their ability to lie? Scottie [Jim Broadbent] says it at some point during the story: Alex was ashamed of the lies that he had told Danny, and I think this was his proof of true love to Danny, that he could do this, because everything up until then had been a lie — what he told him he did, where he was going, what he was doing.
I think it was his way of telling Danny how much he loved him, because he wasn’t capable of showing it any other way. He was so socially reclusive. This was his way of trying to deal with the shame of the lies that he told him. His whole life had been a lie, and it was his sort of revenge, as it were.
jeanmi70
A very good interview with the right questions. However it is slightly odd to me that the actor was not told how he was supposed to play some of the scenes or what were some of his motivations.
nevernlandia reblogged
I want all of my friends to watch London Spy so they can suffer like I did
nevernlandia reblogged
that’s it. that’s the whole show. just edward holcroft staring fearfully/longingly at ben whishaw.
My ships (part 1)
Black Sails: James & Thomas
London Spy: Danny & Alex
Penny Dreadful: Victor & Henry
Maurice: Maurice & Alec
The Servant: Tony & Barret
London Spy: favourite quotes
London Spy: favourite quotes
London Spy script (6)
SCOTTIE I hope you told him that this is where we first met? (To Alex) You must be wondering how an old queer like me ended up friends with a handsome young man like Danny?
Danny seems alarmed at this topic of conversation. Scottie notices but advances with the subject.
SCOTTIE Nineteen years old, he walked through that door, as lost as a person can be. But this is an excellent place to come if you’re lost, someone will always find you, although not always with the best of intentions. I saw him in his tatty jeans, with his cropped hair and his puppy dog eyes. I could guess his sad story without hearing a word. I presumed, if I bought him a drink, that there wouldn’t be a single second when he wasn’t waiting for someone better to come along. What can I say? I’m a soft touch so I bought him that drink and to my surprise Danny talked to me the whole night. He didn’t leave even when others stalked him.
A small gesture, but it meant a great deal. We’ve been friends ever since. I’m the person he comes to when times are tough. And they often are. Poor Danny has a terrible track record of picking the wrong man. I’m sure he told you about --
DANNY I did.
SCOTTIE And yet Danny stayed with him, believing love meant sticking by your man even when they split your lip. And bruise your eye. He’s an insufferable romantic. One of the last. When I asked him, once, what he wanted to do with his life... (To Danny) Do you mind?
Danny does mind.
DANNY Go ahead. SCOTTIE He said: ‘I always dreamed of being a better dad than my dad’. DANNY That wouldn’t be hard. SCOTTIE So what are my duties tonight? Does it fall upon me to say - ‘Don’t break his heart’. ALEX I could never hurt Danny.
SCOTTIE May I ask, as someone who has witnessed the breaking of many a heart, how you can be so sure?
ALEX Because he’s the only friend I have.
An exceptionally open remark. The force of it takes Danny by surprise as it does Scottie, who is struck full of wonder at this statement.
The wind goes out of Scottie’s rhetorical sails. Scottie raises his glass. His tone changes. His toast is affectionate. Melancholy. And genuine. SCOTTIE I’m pleased for you. I’m pleased for both of you.
((bolded the deleted dialogue which implies Danny was in a prevoius abusive relationship with another man, another good reason for Scottie being so protective))
London Spy: the other spies.
We know they're there, watching, since the moment Danny gets in Alex's apartment. The cameras, the car, the shadows. We don't actually see them until the last episode but when we do, it's not so important. They are no one. Just people doing their job. People with no name, people with no soul that cruelly kill a man right in front of his mother because it's what they've been ordered to do.
London Spy: important things
London Spy script (5)
INT. DANNY’S APARTMENT. BATHROOM. NIGHT Alex still in the bath. Danny perched on the edge.
ALEX Had you guessed? DANNY I’d guessed you hadn’t slept with guys. I’d thought maybe you’d slept with a few women. Alex shakes his head.
DANNY Can I ask a question? I don’t want you to feel under pressure. I’m trying to understand. Can you trust me on that? Alex nods. DANNY What’s stopped you? Alex entering completely new territory. DANNY You don’t have to answer -- ALEX I want to. Alex considers. In the end, he settles for: ALEX When people tried to kiss me I said things like: “For a gift to truly be a gift”.
But Danny doesn’t smile. Or laugh. He waits, patiently, his fingers in the water. He wants to know. For real.
No more hiding. Alex goes deeper. ALEX At school I was old. At university I was young. I’ve always been out of step with the people around me. In the end, I left it so late, I gave up. (with sadness) I gave up.
DANNY Did you imagine you’d spend the rest of your life alone? ALEX I did. DANNY I can’t begin to understand what that must feel like. ALEX You were always sure you’d find someone? DANNY Always. Alex can’t imagine what that feels like. ALEX Being alone has a rhythm, like running. It’s when you stop that you realize how tired you are. Alex not just saying this for the first time, he understands this for the first time, in this moment.
ALEX How do you admit you’ve never had a relationship? Who wants to hear? When they do, who wants to stay? DANNY I do. A rare and precious flash of emotion from Alex.
London Spy script
EXT. COUNTRYSIDE CAR PARK. EVENING Sitting at the back of the car, taking off their muddy shoes. Danny has no spare set. Alex gives Danny a fresh of pair of lush, thick hiking socks, to replace his flimsy destroyed trainers. DANNY They’re better than my shoes. ALEX You can keep them. DANNY That’s the second gift you’ve given me and I’ve given you nothing. It’s clearly a line, Danny’s about to kiss him. Alex fathoms this. Wants it. And panics. He breaks the moment, standing up, his mind on the kiss that didn’t just happen, stuttering -- ALEX For a gift to truly be a gift there should be no expectation of it being reciprocated. Danny amused. Mostly. But he did really want to kiss him. DANNY Right.
London Spy: episode 1 script
INT/EXT. JOE’S CAR BOOT / COUNTRYSIDE. MORNING An antique boarding school trunk in the boot. Cracked leather trim. Rusted metal locks. Seventy years old.
Joe rummages through. A pair of hiking boots. There are numerous ordinance survey maps - at least fifty. Danny’s intrigued by this many maps. DANNY You’ve walked all these? Joe’s nervous it implies he’s weird. Danny reassures him. DANNY A lot of miles. Joe calculates the exact amount but catches himself. Instead, he takes out the relevant map for their walk. JOE This is us. They sit side by side, map open, each holding half.
EXT. COUNTRYSIDE. ESTUARY. DAY Danny and Joe walking. Not typical English countryside. Nothing quaint. Odd. Powerful. Though Danny might not be expertly dressed, he’s fit and enjoying the walk.
EXT. COUNTRYSIDE. ESTUARY. DAY Danny and Joe at the water’s edge. The mud flats. The water’s ebb. A kind of magic here. Danny turns, looking at Joe as he observes the view. Joe turns to Danny. Both looking at each other, not the view. Danny wants to thank Joe for taking him here but doesn’t quite have the words.
EXT. COUNTRYSIDE. ESTUARY. DAY Huddled behind the remains of an old fishing boat. Joe has a backpack. Takes out an elegant thermos. Danny watches him fuss with the picnic apparatus.
EXT. COUNTRYSIDE. ESTUARY. DAY They’re eating a handmade sandwich. Not thin processed bread. Wedges from a nice loaf. They sip tea.
DANNY (through a mouthful) You’re so grown up. You drink tea. Out of a thermos. You go on country walks. I must seem young? Compared to the people you work with? JOE You do. There’s an autistic yet ever gentle directness about Joe. Danny - far from being offended - seems to enjoy it. DANNY Why are you so grown up? JOE I skipped childhood. DANNY You’re not joking, are you?
JOE A joke? No. I started university when I was fifteen. DANNY You’ve never... messed around? JOE In what sense? DANNY Any sense. JOE I’ve been serious. For a long time. DANNY Why did you change your mind? JOE About? DANNY Me. JOE I wondered what it would be like to do one of these walks with someone. DANNY For a moment I was worried you were going to say it was because I made you laugh. Joe considers this seriously. And literally. JOE I don’t think you’ve ever made me laugh. Mathematically correct. Danny smiles. Joe worries. JOE I’m not saying you won’t -- DANNY I understand. JOE I’m sure you will -- DANNY (amused) I understand. Joe accepts that Danny isn’t upset. And that’s new.