Although I’m surprised it took me so long to watch Disclaimer after reading the book of the same name, I think it was probably for the best. I didn’t follow my usual order, which is to watch first, then read. Because a book will never let you down.
With that being said, I had faith that the material was in good hands with ten time Oscar winner Alfonso Cuaron at the helm. He not only directed, but wrote the scripts for the seven part miniseries. On top of that, he had an A-list cast ready to execute the work. And boy did they! I felt that the past and present casts had a really nice balance of screen time. I think it helped that the narrator was a completely different person so it didn’t seem like you were stuck in Catherine’s head forever. However, the narrator was my least favorite part of the series. Her voice just didn’t seem to fit the series. It came across too proper and quiet. I maybe would have preferred the narration to come from all of the characters in the show. It was a little inconsistent, as well. Stephen would sometimes narrate his thoughts, while other times it was a third person narration. I didn’t care for that either.
Though I complain about the narration, I also realize that it was necessary in order to capture all of the complex details from the novel. How else were you going to figure out that at his core, Catherine’s husband Robert sucked? Sure, his actions definitely portrayed it a bit, but his internal thoughts made it that much worse. Also, Catherine and Robert’s son, Nicholas, appears to be a loser on the outside when in reality, he is definitely struggling mentally. This makes the scenes where Stephen is catfishing Nicholas that much more brutal to watch. It’s revisiting those scenes again when I realized that Stephen maybe was no better than his own son, Jonathan. But to be fair, his son was vile.
Similar to the book, we are told the events of a trip in Europe, where Catherine was left alone with a five year old Nicholas, and how Jonathan came to know them, and then eventually end up dead because of them. At first, we are only given Stephen’s deceased wife’s version. In this version, Nancy describes Catherine as a bit of a whore, whose child came second to her own pleasure. Jonathan was young and easily manipulated, and then Catherine’s deficiencies as a mother are what led Nicholas out to sea, and then Jonathan to save him. In his “heroism,” Jonathan was no match for the waves of the ocean, having lost most of his energy rescuing Nicholas. I imagine those particular scenes were hard to film, so kudos to everyone involved there.
Then finally, after Stephen has all but obliterated Catherine’s life again, we finally get to hear the real story. Aside from the brutal nature of the actual events, what I like most about this revelation is that Stephen takes her words and knows them to be true. It’s interesting how in death, and with time, that people gloss over the bad parts of loved ones. Jonathan was pure evil and I think at some point both Stephen and Nancy knew that, but no one ever expects a child to die before them. I’m sure the shock of that really put their blinders up. It’s unfortunate that Catherine has to start her life over again, but this time around it feels like she really will come out on top. As with the novel, I would still love to know more about the future of Catherine and Nicholas’ lives. Who knows, maybe we’ll get it someday.
All in all, Cuaron did an excellent job adapting this novel to the screen. Personally, I think seven episodes was maybe to many, but I suppose with that number nothing felt rushed. It was also a surefire way to make sure all the details from the novel made it in. Those details do matter in a successful adaptation. If you’re looking for some high quality television, once again, Apple is here to provide. Check it out if reading’s not your jam.