SmugKitZine Tied for the best movie I have ever seen

Inclubabu Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

Adelante! I was really excited to watch The Paradise. I love period dramas. The first episode wasn't particularly striking, but hey it was BBC. And BBC can't go bad right? What I've realized about a few good episodes in is that the Paradise really lacks dramatic tension and blunders the art of pacing a story. I'm not joking when I say the creators of this show could have definitely made this show a hundred times better. Don't get me wrong, occasionally The Paradise has some really nice moments: good acting, good shots and a soundtrack to match (music is pretty catchy), but story progression really takes a hit. Especially when it comes to the meat of the story - romance. The first season sets up Denise's life in the Paradise, the inner workings of this mysterious modern commercial empire headed by John Moray - a fickle man who doesn't know which woman he really wants to be with. Throughout the series Moray is pursued by a rich woman, an employee and of course the main character Denise. What's interesting is that Moray pursues no one in return, choosing only to sleep or have an intimate affair with women who suit his convenience. So what am I getting at here? There's nothing really interesting about this guy. He's presented as the king of the street but has the emotional depth and character of a brick wall. His initial bold flamboyant nature is offset by his unsure demeanor, poor decision making and wavering loyalties between people. Even I was unsure what this character wanted. How can someone like this A) be the head of an enterprise and B) be the object of affection for any woman in this show? Verisimilitude. Make the character believable and make his actions match his character. This causes a problem in the romance sector of the Paradise. The audience doesn't have the right motivation to root for the characters pursuing Moray or even Moray himself as a character. Nearly every single other character was more interesting than Moray. So if the story is going to revolve around him, he better be interesting or complex. Just having an unfortunate accident happen to him does not make up for the emotional believability and complexity a main character should have. Uncle Jonas saves the day. Literally. No matter what bind the main characters are in (especially fickle Moray), Jonas steps up in the most crucial pivotal plot points of this story. Jonas is supposed to be a side character but in The Paradise he's a warp point for everything. Through Jonas, the story is deprived of things that make stories fun. He'll reveal everything he's doing (that killed the fun in trying to figure out if he was a bad guy). He fast forwards plot points (killed the fun of seeing a character struggling for a goal). And then Jonas "saves" people (giving characters an easy way out of everything – especially Moray who didn't even fight his own battles). Jonas' emotional depth is great but his character role underlines how poor the plot line actually is in The Paradise. There's an art of building up tension, making the audience unsure, making it seem as if everything is hopeless and then giving the cathartic release. You won't find it perfected in The Paradise. It's served straight cold with very few things left to muse about. A little note: there are some modern historical inaccuracies in this period drama. Sometimes it doesn't feel authentic to its time. There were no 'Drink Nights' or 'Girl's Night Out' sort of things. There weren't boyfriend/girlfriend couples with physical intimacy (Moray/Denise) otherwise it would've been frowned upon by society. Yet when it comes to Denise wanting to move up in the commercial world, the historical accuracy jumps sharply back into the storyline. Either stick to it and recreate a period drama with a historical backdrop or make your own world with your own rules (BBC's Merlin did the latter and turned out just fine). Not sure why but picking and choosing = too much bias. In closing, the Paradise was a good show for its short runtime. It had many great elements but a poor implementation of dramatic tension due to shortsighted storyline and plotting. Offers an average story experience with a frilly ending that isn't really moving at all.

grandsinclair728 Loved it. Well done. Stunning costumes. Perfect performances. I would watch it again. I grew very fond of almost all of the characters except of course the main protagonist who, thought beautiful, was impossible to like. She and her father, both rich and arrogant, believed as so many do, that wealth and power ensure security. The story itself is very well written with enough twists and turns to keep the viewer on the edge of his or her seat. Like a tug of war, the main character, Moray, who owns and operates the Paradise Department Store, pushes and pulls himself to and fro in an attempt to be what society expects of him without betraying his own heart. Will he win or lose in the great battle of life, the effort to be true to one's own soul. Even the smallest of characters reveals just such a struggle. This show is the story of everyman and woman. Well done.

gailene-613-123456 I might be slightly prejudiced due to my costuming background and love of period pieces by BBC... you are forewarned :-) This was a thoroughly delightful series to watch and I was hooked after the first 15 minutes of the first episode. Costuming is absolutely gorgeous and true to the period and class structure of the times (1875-188?). The setting, scenery and sets are near perfection. All works together to draw you into the place that is the Paradise, England's first department store, Tollgate Street and its many merchants and the surrounding countryside where the gentry reside.This TV series drops us into Victorian England and shows us a variety of class members through stories of their lives. We are invited into their homes, shops, places of work and places they play and relax. The Paradise department store is the fulcrum around which all these stories revolve. Businesses and business dealings, the under belly of English society, working class girls, shop owners and their worries, the complexities of love and the consequences of hate. The relationships and back stories of each character are drawn out a bit at a time and the story lines keep moving along episode after episode so the audience is never bored.The Paradise is full of love and hate, rivalries and partnerships, betrayals and reconciliations, intrigue and secrecy, a touch of sex and a little violence. Everything to make it a fun and interesting show to watch.In the second series the beginnings, the catalyst to, the rise of the women's movement is touched upon a little more with each episode. Through the main character, Denise, we get to see the reactions of the men around her, who claim to love her, to her entrepreneurial spirit and her desire to be more... to be a career minded business woman.Many other political and class-based issues are touched upon including the plight of soldiers who have returned from brutal wars and the scars, both physical and mental, they bear. The severe inequalities of the class structure are also showcased. I strongly recommend this series to all who love great Historic Fiction... and fabulous costuming and sets.

ohlabtechguy Watched the first series and was totally enchanted by this period costume drama. I knew they had given the ax to the show before I started watching the second series here in the USA. I think I've seen 7 episodes now and it's crazy. Mr. Westin is like some sociopath just ready to explode. With each episode, he gets crueler and crueler to his wife. Denise and Moray, the show's two sweethearts, are driving each other nuts with all their mixed emotions of jealousy and career ambition. At one point, Moray is so disheveled and obviously in a state of personal crisis, that it's a wonder he's still running the STORE. Oh...and then we get to see an unbelievable interracial affair begin to unfold - as in Downton Abbey. The whole thing has gone to hell in a hand basket. At first, I was disappointed they saved Mr. Selfridge but cancelled The Paradise. But now I see why.