Now, this is a different kettle of fish. The visuals in The Velvet Web are almost uniformly excellent - scenery, costumes, effects and direction - and although we have seen better examples of each aspect individually the combination makes this my favourite episode to look at so far. So much so, in fact, that I'm going to run through the story scene by scene in a kind of slomo liveblog. Along the way I'll also mention other aspects of the production, some of which are not so successful.
We start with the recap, as the Doctor, Ian and Susan discover Barbara's bloody travel dial. They are standing before some huge gates, the effect being similar to that of the impresario at a theatre announcing an act before the curtains go up. It's a simple, effective introduction. The characters are comfortably in their default roles: Ian is wound up and ready for action, the Doctor is calm and reasoning, Susan is standing around with nothing much to do. Still, Carole Ann Ford injects more life into her standing around than William Russell managed last time. They push open the doors and the camera moves slowly forward as they step into a different world, like viewers entering the garden of The Herbs (though that particular show is still four years in the future at this point). There is a blinding, pulsating light (presumably done by opening and closing the aperture to overexpose the film - sorry, tape) and a loud alarm, both of which are hard for the travellers to cope with; then they stop. Just as the trio are recovering there is a cut to a different angle, signalling the transition is complete. We are left wondering what the alarm was for but are carried along with the flow, waiting to see where they are now.
Gentle flute music starts up, combining with the scenery to indicate a calm, peaceful place. Ian's cry of disbelief is followed by another cut, to Barbara reclining on a couch - safe relaxed, and happy. She gets up to welcome the others, reassures Susan that she's alright, and -
Wait a minute! That's the resolution to the cliffhanger? "I scratched myself"? I'm sorry, but that is sooo laaaame. Tut tut, Mr. Nation, I know you're capable of better than that.
Anyway. There then follows some nice character play, with Iananbarbara bantering, Susan full of enjoyment and the Doctor looking around curiously before he gets lured by a pomegranate. This is, of course, a clue for those who know their Greek mythology, since Persephone had to spend part of the year in Hades because she ate of its fruit, thus causing Winter. It's a subtle reference, though; I missed it first time around, because it's slipped into a scene focusing on the decadence.
Let's say a little more about that decadence. The set is cleverly dressed and shot to look much bigger than it could have been in Lime Grove Studio D, including at least one painted backdrop as well as drapes in archways (and we tend to associate Graeco-Roman trappings with luxury anyway, so these serve double duty). The way the camera follows Susan across to the silks shows off the space to best advantage, and the serving girls in flowing robes bringing in lots of rich food to the sound of a gong adds to the effect further. They are briefly shot coming down the entranceway, which gives an impression of further space behind the camera.
The meal is well-presented, with interesting shots - closeups of the food, for instance, and the low camera angle looking up over Barbara's shoulder to echo her viewpoint. Notice also Altos' arrival, beginning with the closeup on his back and holding steady while he walks away from the camera, thereby gradually revealing more of the set.
Robin Phillips gives quite an eerie performance, which is hard to do when you are also being friendly and providing exposition. The serving girls have an easier time of it, simply having to look ethereal and not speak, but Altos brings a sense of uncertainty to the viewer, a reminder that something is off-kilter, even as he tries to reassure Ian. Immediately after this notice how the camera focuses on Susan and the Doctor as they think about their desires, and in between has a good variety of static midshots and active tracking of the characters, who also keep moving in a naturalistic (though carefully choreographed) fashion. It all works to make what could have been a very static, talky scene into something visually interesting.
And then, of course, Altos suggests sleep, and everyone realises how tired they are. Suddenly. Was there something in the food? The Doctor lies down, and we have a continuous stretch of 2 minutes 22 seconds with no cuts as Barbara puts Susan to bed and shares a tender moment with Ian, who tries to put his worries aside and lies down. The camera continues to pan around the sleeping figures until it gets to the face on the wall (holding while the eyes light up), then back to the door as Sabetha comes in and, trance-like, puts things on their foreheads. It's a complicated camera move with low shots and high shots, fast and slow movements, closeups and wide shots. The last half-minute or so is very slow and soporific, the breathing effect and Sabetha's quiet footsteps being all that we hear.
And then it cuts, just before she puts the final doohickey on Barbara's forehead. After so long on one camera move the effect is quite jarring, and when the lights start flashing and the alarm goes off we are thrown right back to the beginning of the story, our sense of unease replaced by a threat reaction. This is ambitious direction supported by skilled, well-practiced camera operators and actors who manage to hit their marks reliably. It's hard to believe that John Gorrie directed both this and the previous episode; the contrast is quite stark. Anyway, Barbara tries to fight the effects, tries to scream, but cannot - and falls unconscious as the alarm and the lights fade...
I'm over a thousand words in and less than nine minutes into the program. I could cut this and edit ruthlessly, but I'm having fun. I could also make this a mammoth entry and forget about my 500-1000 word target. However, we've actually hit quite a good break point, so I'm going to go for option C: split the episode across two posts. I'll stop going into so much detail, but hopefully by now you've got some idea of why I really like it.
Goodbye, Parsley. See you again soon.
Next Time:
More of the same...
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