by Mike Hilty, Contributing Writer
Welcome to Cross-Platform Partners! In honor of a new movie release, I have selected a TV show to watch to pair with the movie. Think of it as a way to get hyped for the new movie, a preview of things to come, a means to tide you over if the movie won’t be released where you live for a little while, or a change of pace if you’ve run out of related movies or sequels.
For November, I picked Normal People to pair with Gladiator II!
Paul Mescal is an actor on the rise. Everything I’ve seen him is brilliant. His ability to take a pretty mundane character and, at minimum, make you think about what he brings to the table puts him above some of his peers. From Aftersun to All of Us Strangers, he’s proved over and over that he can take on challenging roles and still make magic happen. Even in the leadup to Gladiator II, a sequel I’m tepidly excited about and which I acknowledge might be unnecessary, I know that Mescal can make the material better. Even with a TV show, he can make something so basic a really moving piece of art.
Normal People, based on the novel by Sally Rooney, follows the whirlwind relationship of high school jock Connell (Mescal) and bookworm Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones). Through their time in secondary school through their formative adult years in college, the two grow together, hurt together, but love together with all their heart. Set in the backdrop of Ireland, the complexity that arises in their relationship is shown in an authentic and raw way.
If you were looking for two performers on the rise to make a home run television series, Mescal and Edgar-Jones were the perfect choice. There is a realness in both of their performances that I really appreciate. It feels less like a television show and more like a gradual portrayal of actual relationships. The couple faces several bumps in the road, and not everything in their story gets a happy ending. At their core, Connell and Marianne are both perfect and toxic for one another.
Many heavy topics show the unexpected nature of life’s winding road. For instance, Connell has a tragedy involving one of his friends that sends him into a deep depression that Marianne guides him through. On the flip side, Marianne deals with a relationship so toxic and abusive that Connell does everything he can to ensure that she’s cared for and loved. These episodes covering heavier topics, though, showcase the realities of life that can’t be planned for. Connell and Marianne both grow up a lot throughout the show; without the its roots, this would feel a little like a Nicholas Sparks adaptation. The material is elevated because Connell and Marianne are complex both separately and together.
Connell is a character who struggles with a number of things. He has no accurate father figures, so he doesn’t know how to treat women. His mother Lorraine (Sarah Greene) is a fantastic influence on him, but his school makes him so concerned about his image at the expense of other people’s feelings. He also doesn’t think about the decisions he makes and the impact they have on other people. Lorraine chastises him for this frequently, because she knows the hurt he had put on Marianne early in their relationship. Yet through everything, Connell learns to be a deeply caring individual for those around him. Mescal conveys this well through the way he delivers his dialogue and body language. He knows how to control his emotions and is incredible with Edgar-Jones.
Marianne is a bit of a recluse and more intelligent than everyone in the room. Her mother, Denise (Aislín McGuckin), struggles with her relationship with men. Marianne’s father was abusive, and her brother Alan (Frank Blake) torments her in a similarly toxic way. When Connell comes into her life, Marianne is on cruise control towards college and not worried about being involved with anyone. Their connection is born through their shared interest in books, and their feelings of being outsiders in their respective environments. Marianne wants to please her partner, even if it’s by doing something she doesn’t want to do. That relationship becomes extremely toxic later in the series, and is hauntingly performed by Edgar-Jones.
I mentioned before that their relationship feels authentic in a way that we don’t get with many other shows. Everything from the dialogue, to the disagreements, to the love feels real in a way that I haven’t seen in a long time. The chemistry that Mescal and Edgar-Jones have is off the charts. Maybe it’s because, in the show, they start off as friends and build quickly into romance. When they’re in high school, they have high school level problems, like the way Connell’s friends view their relationship, or what the future holds for them when they make their decisions about college. While at their university, their problems compound as they grow up. It’s natural how these issues come up, and they both tackle it in ways that a real couple would. Their relationship isn’t your typical Hollywood tale, but a raw love story with all the twists and turns you’d expect.
It’s not hyperbole to say that Normal People might be my favorite thing I’ve watched for Cross Platform Partners. The deep connection that Connell and Marianne have at their core made me think of my relationships and the ways I communicate with others. That’s the mark of a fantastic show: It makes you think beyond what you watch and apply everything to your life.
Normal People is now one of my favorite shows, and I’ve even read the book since watching the series. It captured me early and didn’t let go until long after it finished.
You can read more from Mike Hilty, and follow him on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Serializd