The Thorn Birds (1983) - General Discussion

[UYI]

I asked recently if I could start a thread on The Thorn Birds, and since I was given the okay, here it is!

 

There was a great thread for the miniseries on TWOP back in the day, so I wanted to start a discussion on it here. 

 

 

[WendyCR72]

God, I loved that, and now own the DVD set. I was probably too young to really watch some of it when it aired. In 1983, I turned 11, so depending on when it aired, I was 10 or 11, but that scene on the beach never left me.

 

And I loved Henry Mancini's score.

 

If possible, in reading the book eons later, everything seemed even more dysfunctional. LOL!

[Athena]

I saw this miniseries a decade ago and have always wondered if I should read the book. The series was just so over the top melodramatic. I know some people like the book, but I kinda felt watching the series was enough for me. Ha!

[babyhouseman]

I got into this a few years ago by getting the movie and the book. I remember my mother watching it when I was a child. 

[jah1986]

And I loved Henry Mancini's score.

 

Oh my goodness, I think the score is what I love more than the actual show. It's so over the top dramatic in a beautiful way. I think it's safe to say Rachel Ward has never been better. And who could not love Barbara Stanwyck, she was just awesome. Once Meggie's kids grew up it was not as interesting to me but I do love this mini-series.

Edited January 28, 2015 by jah1986

[Ohwell]

Two words:  Father. Ralph.

[topanga]

God, I loved that, and now own the DVD set. I was probably too young to really watch some of it when it aired. In 1983, I turned 11, so depending on when it aired, I was 10 or 11, but that scene on the beach never left me.

I was 11 or 12 when I saw it for the first time. Now I wonder how my mother could have let me watch it. Nothing graphic, of course, but I think it was totally inappropriate material for a child.

 

I also liked the book, which gave important background information on the characters. But nothing could replace the red-hot chemistry between Richard Chamberlain and Rachel Ward.

[Thumper]

Yup. Richard Chamberlain. Mmmmhmmmmm!! Had a crush on him when I was about 6 and he was Dr. Kildare. The grown-up me loved the grown-up him in this movie even more!

Barbara Stanwyck was so good too.

[Dejana]

I don't remember the miniseries first airing, but was aware of the basics when I finally read the book as a teenager. As it usually happens when I read the book first, the onscreen version fell flat for me. In the book, Meggie is really struck by the resemblance between Ralph and Luke and though she later comes to believe they looked less alike than she'd initially thought, it's a big part of why she doesn't think the Drogheda crowd will suspect Dane's true paternity.

 

Another thing I missed from the book was that it went on about all the red hair in the family, especially with Justine. I guess I was expecting Australian Weasleys or something, and had an initial "Who are these people?" reaction to the onscreen Clearys. Which is so shallow and not the important thing, I realize, but hey... Also, I felt Meggie had more chemistry with Luke than the supposed love of her life, but it made sense after learning that Rachel Ward and Bryan Brown married the same year the miniseries came out.

Edited January 29, 2015 by Dejana

[UYI]

 

Another thing I missed from the book was that it went on about all the red hair in the family, especially with Justine. I guess I was expecting Australian Weasleys or something, and had an initial "Who are these people?" reaction to the onscreen Clearys. Which is so shallow and not the important thing, I realize, but hey... Also, I felt Meggie had more chemistry with Luke than the supposed love of her life, but it made sense after learning that Rachel Ward and Bryan Brown married the same year the miniseries came out.

 

Yeah, I wonder if Luke and Meggie would have had the amount of chemistry they had if BB and RW weren't falling in love in real life at the exact same time. I have the DVD set, and in the featurette about the making of the series, RW says that, by the time Luke and Meggie had their first kiss, BB had yet to kiss her in real life, so when the time came for them to kiss onscreen, it wound up going on a little longer than it should have. The director finally had to "cut" the scene, saying there was "too much tongue." LMAO! 

 

ETA: I wasn't born until 1989, so the first time I watched TB was when I was 16 10 years ago, but I remember reading that ABC originally aired it during Holy Week. Needless to say, the Catholic Church was not pleased.

Edited January 29, 2015 by UYI

[jah1986]

I can't believe as we're talking about this news has come that Colleen McCollough has died.

[WendyCR72]

I can't believe as we're talking about this news has come that Colleen McCollough has died.

 

Wow, that coincidence is sort of surreal. But the woman wrote some great stuff. (She also wrote a novel called Tim about a mentally-challenged young man who falls for an older woman. The first adaption in 1979 starred a pre-batshit crazy Mel Gibson and was, I think, his first big role (predating Mad Max/The Road Warrior, I think?) and Piper Laurie played Mary, the woman he fell for. It was remade again sometime in the 1990s with Candice Bergen as Mary; I forget the actor's name playing Tim.)

 

So Ms. McCullough wasn't afraid to explore some taboo subjects. May she RIP.

[Rick Kitchen]

Many Australians are outraged that "The Australian" led off their obituary with "Plain of feature, and certainly overweight"

 

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/the-thorn-birds-author-colleen-mccullough-dies-on-norfolk-island/story-e6frg8n6-1227201243185?nk=12fafe9e8f0e07fe604b62e1fef53d8b

[Avaleigh]

I read the book first so I have to say that I prefer it but that being said I loved the miniseries too, there were just some things about it that I didn't particularly care for. They aired it a year or two ago on one of the Encore channels so I DVR'd it but prior to that it had been at least ten years since I'd seen it.

 

I really, really loved Jean Simmons and Barbara Stanwyck in their roles. They were both so good and those were my favorite bits of casting. The scene after the deaths of Paddy and Stu and Fiona/Fee lets out that howl of misery in her "too late" speech to Father Ralph? Jeans acting was amazing there IMO. Barabara Stanwyck's best scene was when she went off on Ralph and had the line about how she's basically a young, sexual person trapped in the body of an old person.

 

Christopher Plummer was good too.  

 

I felt that Rachel Ward was miscast and reading that Jane Seymour was the the other option at the time, I just think that would have made so much more sense. Oh well. There were some things that she couldn't help like those ridiculously period inappropriate 80s hairstyles that they made her wear but overall I felt like her performance was uneven with some scenes working and some scenes or bits of dialogue feeling a bit like amateur night at the local theater.

 

Still, I preferred Rachel's Meggie to Mare Winninham's Justine. Nothing against Mare Winningham, I've liked her in many other things, but for me she wasn't right for Justine. The guy they cast as Dane though was somehow even worse lol. He came across as goofy, not particularly attractive, and wooden. 

 

One scene I really liked was when it started raining during the fire. The feeling of relief is so spectacular. Oh and the sadness when they see the old house burn down--very moving. I really liked Drogheda overall even though I imagined it to be more impressive. 

[Dr.OO7]

FYI, Colleen McCullough hated the miniseries, even calling it "instant vomit". Interviewers were even warned not to bring it up.

[greekmom]

One of my favourite all time mini series.  I thought all the performer's were spot on except for Dane. I wish they expanded on Frank's role later on instead of just killing him off. 

[JAYJAY1979]

Loved this mini-series.. and I think Jane Seymour would have been wrong as the lead.  She's too strong willed and confident, I could never buy her begging for the love of a priest.

[Dr.OO7]

On 9/15/2018 at 8:55 PM, JAYJAY1979 said:

Loved this mini-series.. and I think Jane Seymour would have been wrong as the lead.  She's too strong willed and confident, I could never buy her begging for the love of a priest.

The DVD extra says that's exactly why she didn't get the part, that she was too "strong", whereas Rachel Ward looked like a gust of wind would blow her over.