'The English' Trailer: Hugo Blick Returns in Revenge Western Starring Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer

By Alberto Cox Délano | TV | September 2, 2022 |

By Alberto Cox Délano | TV | September 2, 2022 |

Whenever we are having a conversation about whatever we mean with “Cinematic” TV or “auteur” TV series, before talking Game of Thrones, before we talk about Netflix or even before we discuss Breaking Bad, Hugo Blick’s works need to be part of that conversation. The writer and director behind The Shadow Line, The Honorable Woman and Black Earth Rising, he has made a proper art of the eight to six chapter, 55-minutes per installment narrative, purposefully using every minute of runtime in stories that are complex in terms of themes and characters instead of just the narrative. Stories that are framed in visuals that are arresting yet also maintain a degree of clinical restraint.

His newest limited series is The English, and probably his biggest project up to date. Set in Oklahoma in 1890, it tells a deceptively simple story, like all classic Westerns: An Englishwoman (Emily Blunt) recruits a Pawnee Nation cavalry scout (Chaske Spencer, who seems poised for a breakout role) to track the man she deems responsible for her son’s death. All in stunning CinemaScope ratio.

Blick’s series are, at its core, about institutional violence and the personhood of the oppressed. So don’t expect this story to be just about straight revenge. Set explicitly in the year of 1890, it is guaranteed that the specter of the Ghost Dance and Wounded Knee will play a role. But Blick’s series are also tender, full of broken characters somehow finding humanity and connection in the midst of brutality. Make sure you keep some tissues at hand when you watch this.

The English premieres November 10 in BBC’s iPlayer and on November 11 on Prime Video in the US.