Can the Doctor illuminate this mystery? (Doctor Who - Ghost Light (DVD))

Member Name: marlowe

Product:	Doctor Who - Ghost Light (DVD)
Date:	07/05/09 (77 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Strong performances,very chilling in places, excellent storyline

Disadvantages: A few midly weak acting parts.

First broadcast in 1989 and starring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and Sophie Aldred as his companion Dorothy "Ace", "Ghost Light" is one of the most powerful of the classic Doctor Who stories and one which sadly came too late to prevent the programme being axed for over a decade. Arriving at a large house in the late nineteenth century, the Doctor announces to Ace that he has a surprise for her. As they progress through the house it becomes increasingly evident that mysterious - and probably malignant forces - are at work and that the building houses a devastating secret. The previous owners of the house have disappeared, with the exception of their grown up daughter Gwendoline, and the residence is now in the control of the enigmatic Josiah Smith and his housekeeper Mrs Pritchard. With further discoveries it becomes evident to Ace that this house is her worst nightmare, since she went to the building when she was a young teenager and felt such evil there it affected her profoundly. The Doctor believes it is essential she confronts her terrors and, by bringing her back to the house, she will be able to make sense of what went on. However, far more dangerous matters are at hand, things that should remain still are rousing, the concepts of right and wrong, guilt and innocence are entwined in a bewildering fashion and the Doctor and Ace are about to be witness to a sinister chain of events. And in a place in which the forces of evil come out at night, letting in the light may turn out to be the worst thing they could do.

One of the constant themes within "Ghost Light" is that of confrontation or, to be more precise, the means in which various characters react and adapt to situations and concepts that can be personally traumatising. The manner in which Ace, for example, reacts to her fears is markedly different from how Gwendoline does. The former confronts them, sometimes physically attacking, sometimes verbally opposing. She is still visibly terrified, yet her nature determines she shall not capitulate. Gwendoline, on the other hand, falls into confusion, acceptance of what she is ordered to do and becomes unable to reason for herself. Her willpower is weakened not only by her difficulties in moving away from the new status quo of the house, but also because her inner character ensures she is happy to accept this adapted state of affairs. Control adapts to various changes and impositions placed upon them in the opposing way to Josiah, using a greater balance of mental and cognitive alterations to reach the point she wishes for herself. She has a strength of nature that is concealed strongly with her initial appearances. Faced with the sights he has witnessed, the explorer Redvers Fenn -Cooper retreats into a semi -illusory world, unable to distinguish between reality and fiction and submitting to his captivity. The Reverend Matthews can not see any other view point other than his own and is so rigid in his opinions that this has the potential to place him in danger. Light states it abhors change and wishes to prevent it, yet ironically makes changes itself in relation to other beings in the house. With the exception of the Doctor and Ace, perhaps the only other character within the building who is able to retain their sense of self strongly enough and yet to accept the need for change sometimes is the Neanderthal, Nimrod. His personality ensures that, even when he is placed somewhere which is completely different, both historically, geographically, culturally and linguistically to what he has known, he is able and willing to settle into his new role and life, whilst at the same time retaining enough of his Neanderthal beliefs to ensure he is still of the same nature.

Another aspect which occurs throughout "Ghostlight" is that of the concepts of reality and illusion. Perception - especially how it can be manipulated to guide us into coming to erroneous conclusions about things - is something which "Ghostlight" focuses on very strongly. What we - and the characters - consider to be facts are brought into question and, again, how the differing beings react to them ensures what their fate shall be. Those who are unable to question their own particular beliefs are trapped, both literally and metaphorically until - or indeed if - they are able to re-examine what they have held onto. The police officer, for example, is of the opinion that it is two years earlier. Fenn-Cooper assumes he is literally looking for himself and the viewers are steered towards coming to the wrong conclusions about several of the characters. It is not until the Doctor - with his overwhelming ability to see past the illusions and to poinpoint the reality of the situation - sets off the necessary catalyst of events that the true cases can be determined. This is not to say that the Time Lord is all powerful and able to realise immediately what is going on, yet his scepticism and his ability to think for himself rather than accepting what he sees, stands him in greater stead than the others.

When watching "Ghost Light" we are witness to an array of excellent acting from many of the cast. Sylvestor McCoy enters well into the role of the Doctor in his second series, his increasingly deeper and more cynical nature more evident in narratives such as this. Furthermore, he and Sophie Aldred work commendably well together, utilising both humour and confrontation in order to present a powerful partnership. The scenes in which the Reverend Matthews is horrified at Ace's clothes and demeanour are particularly amusing, with the contrast between his shocked reaction and the Doctor's mischevious responses. McCoy neither over exagerrates his role nor underplays it, acquiring the necessary balance and thus ensuring a credible performance. Aldred achieves the same effect, thankfully being able to steer away from the stereotypical image of the screaming female assistant to display a stronger character and yet revealing her character to be still vulnerable and therefore realistic on occasions. Her terror at discovering the Doctor has taken her back to the house she hated as a young teenager is one example in which Aldred's acting is done to strong effect.The actors portraying the malignant Smith and the sinister Mrs Pritchard may also be praised, since both veer away from depicting them in an over the top fashion and instead employ a subtle air of menace that serves to heighten the tension and the aura of evil that emanates from them. Pritchard's vicious arm twisting of Fenn -Cooper amply illustrates the unpleasantness of her character and the scene in which Smith laughs at Matthews as that man is eating a banana is chilling. Matthews himself is played admirably, the role of a late Victorian clergyman who refuses to consdoer any other views than his own being well set out and Fenn - Cooper is shown to be a man desperately struggling to keep on the right side of reality and often failing. Control does sometimes appear a bit too comical to be taken seriously, it is possible that her role was meant to be funny, but in the scenes in which pathos is suggested, this falls down in place of the possibly unintentional humour. Or it may be that because there are scenes in which humour is definitely intended then when other, more serious scenes involving Control occur, her overall nature means it is hard to separate the comedy from the more serious elements. Unfortunately, since the majority of his role is very powerful, there are also elements of Light which fail to come up to his overall standard. At times he appears too mawkish, too prone to whining to be seriously considered a threat. However, this only occurs now and again and the majority of the time Light is depicted exactly as he should be, as something which is struggling to make sense of things around him and who reacts to his environment in a pitiful and yet terrifying way.

The special effects and overall appearance of "Ghost Light" are very effective, resulting in a realistically haunting atmosphere. The subdued lightning of the house, ostensibly to indicate a late Victorian building, serves as well to symbolise the oppression and darkness prevalent within many of the characters who reside there. Furthermore, further scenes within the house make good use of the special effects in the way they provide a contrast between those areas and the majority of the house. Light's costume is a little bit too elaborate perhaps, the impression is sometimes given that he will start singing musical numbers, but on the whole the costumes and props used are very convincing. From the way in which Smith's physical appearance alters dramatically, to the subtle way in which Gwendoline's wearing of a man's suit suggests her change in personality (if we are to presume she was a conventional Victorian woman who would not have thought of dressing up in male attire before) the appearances of the characters all help with the narration set before us. Nimrod's features especially are very well done, looking almost convincing.

In conclusion "Ghost Light" is a remarkable work and one which came close to ending the classic run of Doctor Who (a few more stories succeeded it) in a very powerful way. Using tension, humour and some genuinely chilling moments it amalgamates history and science fiction to great effect. When considering how the Doctor Who stories should be categorised, this should surely stand amongst the best and is a credit to the actors and crew members who worked on it.

Summary: Worth watching.