Review of An Adventure in Space and Time (2013) by Mikael K — 22 Feb 2014

Penned by "Doctor Who" scribe Mark Gatiss and directed by TV veteran Terry McDonough, "An Adventure in Space and Time" is a docudrama of the highest quality. The movie details the creation of the iconic BBC sci-fi production "Doctor Who," a TV-series that has lived on for half a century, maintaining quality, creative innovation and social commentary.

The movie follows the show's first producer Varity Lambert (Jessica Raine), who as a green young woman faced sexist opposition and struggled to bring BBC into the era of intelligent science fiction. Raine is competent in the role, but the show gets intentionally stolen David Bradley as William Hartnell, the very first actor to portray the character of the Doctor himself, an alien who lives through several centuries and faces.

The story of how the show survived despite heavy opposition is fascinating enough, but at its core this film is about Hartnell, a brilliant character actor whose mental faculties were failing during the firs four seasons of the show. Bradley conveys a stubborn, serious but deeply vulnerable Hartnell, a man forced to face his limitations and mortality while living through the pain of creativity.

I thought that "An Adventure in space and Time" would be a nice curiosity to see as a dedicated "Doctor Who" fan, but it's so much more than simple fan service to recreate a behind the scenes -featurette of sorts. It's a deeply moving, sad and contemplative film that conveys universal ideas about creativity, artistic integrity and the quiet tragedy of someone who is gradually slipping away, who no longer feels like someone who matters.