La Couchette
"La Couchette" | |
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Inside No. 9 episode | |
Episode no. | Series 2 Episode 1 |
Directed by | Guillem Morales |
Written by | Steve Pemberton Reece Shearsmith |
Produced by | Adam Tandy (producer) Jon Plowman (executive producer) |
Original air date | 26 March 2015 |
Guest appearances | |
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"La Couchette" is the first episode of the second series of
The story was inspired by the intimacy of sleeper carriages, in which people aim to sleep in close proximity to strangers. "La Couchette" draws upon the literary tropes associated with stories, such as Murder on the Orient Express and Strangers on a Train, following characters unknown to one another while travelling. The various characters—played by actors somewhat typecast—correspond to British comedy archetypes, and much of the episode's story and humour derives from the characters' unlikability. Critics responded positively to "La Couchette", commending the cast and script, but noted that Inside No. 9 is something of an acquired taste. On its first showing, the episode was watched by 1.1 million viewers (6.1% of the audience).
Production and development
The second series of Inside No. 9 was written in 2014, and then filmed from the end of 2014 into early 2015.[1][2] As each episode features new characters, the writers were able to attract actors who might have been unwilling to commit to an entire series.[3] Jack Whitehall, who was a fan of the show, says that he "may or may not have nagged Reece and Steve to find a Jack Whitehall-shaped hole in the second series", and was "very thankful" when they did.[4] In addition to Pemberton, Shearsmith and Whitehall, "La Couchette" stars Julie Hesmondhalgh, Mark Benton, Jessica Gunning and George Glaves.[5] Hesmondhalgh commended the cast, saying that, for her, it was a "no brainer" to appear in the episode.[6] For Whitehall, working with Hesmondhalgh was "very exciting, but also quite weird", given the then-recent suicide of Hesmondhalgh's Coronation Street character, Hayley Cropper. Whitehall called Benton and Hesmondhalgh "an amazing little double act".[7] The pair had previously played a husband and wife on the radio.[6]
"La Couchette" follows six characters on a
Prior to filming, director
Plot
9A | 9D | |
9B | 9E | |
9C | 9F | |
A pictorial representation of the bunks in couchette #9, as seen from the door. |
Maxwell (Shearsmith), an
Hours later, Shona re-enters the room with the English
After dawn, Les accidentally wakes Maxwell, but sees that Kath is absent. The train brakes, waking everyone, and Hugo and the corpse fall to the floor. Maxwell guesses that Kath has stopped the train as Jorg stands, dropping his trousers. Maxwell next guesses that Kath has jumped in front of the train, and Les repeatedly hits him with a pillow as Jorg defecates into Kath's shoebox, which is held by Hugo. Shona sees that the train has hit a deer, and Kath re-enters.
Later, Maxwell is dressed, and Hugo enters, wearing one of Shona's T-shirts. He says that Jorg is cleaning himself. Kath and Les talk; the latter feels remorse, and Kath insists they attend the dead man's funeral, after the wedding. Shona and Hugo leave the carriage; they intend to go "exploring" together. Maxwell says his goodbyes to Kath and Les, then, alone, receives a call from his driver, who is waiting for him and Dr Meyer. Maxwell turns to the body and says he is "terribly sorry", but there can only be "one candidate". As he says Meyer's name, Jorg, now smartly dressed, answers. Jorg explains that he is Dr Meyer, and that he is traveling to the same interview. As Jorg leaves the carriage, Maxwell looks at the corpse in silence.
Analysis
"La Couchette", like "
The sleeper carriage setting gave Shearsmith and Pemberton a number of "traumatic" elements to exploit, such as claustrophobia, proximity to strangers, motion, and the various elements associated with settling down to sleep, such as flatulence and getting undressed.
Maxwell, as a character, "controls the action". He is the protagonist, and traps the viewer into the coach in the opening seconds of the episode by closing the curtains. This is a reversal of the way that, in the theatre, the opening of curtains brings the viewer into the story. As the translator, he acts as the only link between Jorg and the other characters; furthermore, as the episode does not have subtitles, he acts as the link between Jorg and Anglophone viewers. Revelations about the character are seeded in a different way to other characters. His profession and supply of medication bring to mind "upper-class gentleman serial killers" or "cut-glass accented British actors brought in to play cold killers in Hollywood cinema". The revelation that Maxwell is a murderer is "a satisfying payoff for those who've figured it out", but in the final twist—Jorg's identity—control is taken from Maxwell and, therefore, the audience.[18]
Euan Ferguson identified
Reception
External videos | |
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"Wrong bed" Les and Kath try encourage Jorg to switch beds, but encounter a language barrier. Maxwell, frustrated by the noise, translates. |
"La Couchette" was well received by television critics, and was awarded four out of five stars by Gabriel Tate (The Daily Telegraph) and Andrew Billen (The Times).[11][20] It was described as "beautifully, beautifully dark, and guiltily funny" by Euan Ferguson, writing in The Guardian,[19] as "a delight" by Billen[20] and as "a tightly worked farce" by Gerard Gilbert of The Independent.[12] For Paddy Shennan of the Liverpool Echo, the episode was "typically inventive and inspired".[17] Boyd felt that the episode was "a really clever opening to the series, and a solid start to another run of surprises from Inside No. 9".[18]
Jonathan Wright, writing in The Guardian, commended the script of "La Couchette", calling it "a delight, with one line delivered by Jack Whitehall quite possibly the most gloriously tasteless you'll hear on television all year".[21] Ferguson offered a similar view, saying that Whitehall delivered "seriously undeliverable lines with entirely believable gusto".[19] Tate said that though he found the revelation at the end of the episode fairly predictable, the "writing and performances were so engaging that it hardly mattered". The episode was, for him, "inventive" and "deliciously wicked".[11] Similarly, though Billen considered the setting fairly unoriginal and the characters stereotypical, he said that the writers "scored a laugh every few seconds and then a home run with a savage resolution".[20] Patrick Mulkern, writing for Radio Times, described "La Couchette" as "hilarious" and "sharply observed". He commended the cast, saying that Pemberton and Shearsmith "give a mini-masterclass" in their performances.[22] Jones called the episode "toilet humour with a twist", saying that "It was Jorg's grunting and squatting that produced the episode's impressively grotesque climax, but it was Whitehall as Hugo who followed up with the instantly quotable line: 'We're going to need a bigger box!'"[16] Billen commended the cast,[20] and Christine Brandel, writing for entertainment website PopMatters, described Gunning as one of the stand-out guest stars of the second series.[23]
Wollaston, who reviewed the episode for The Guardian, observed that humour generally is extremely personal, and said that he "never really got Shearsmith and Pemberton's stuff". He said he could appreciate the narrative and artistry of "La Couchette", and could understand why others found it funny, but that he does not love Inside No. 9, and that, when watching, he is "just not laughing".[15] A viewer unimpressed with the episode wrote to The Times. Disagreeing with Billen's review, the reader claimed that the episode's "puerile humour [was as] flatulent as its one-dimensional figures".[24]
"La Couchette" was watched by 1.1 million viewers, which was 6.1% of the audience. This was slightly higher than "Sardines", the first episode of the first series, which was watched by 1.05 million (5.7% of the audience).[25]
Notes
References
- ^ "Steve Pemberton on The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover". British Film Institute. 6 October 2014. Archived from the original on 18 January 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ "Five minutes with Steve Pemberton". Herts & Essex Observer. 12 January 2015. Archived from the original on 9 July 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ Dean, Will (5 February 2014). "Inside No 9, TV review: A top-drawer cast puts these twisted tales in a league of their own". The Independent. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d Dowell, Ben (10 March 2015). "Jack Whitehall: Filming Inside No 9 made me vomit". Radio Times. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Series 2, La Couchette; Credits". BBC. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ a b c Hesmondhalgh, Julie (4 May 2015). Behind the Scenes: "La Couchette". Inside No. 9 Series 2 DVD. BBC.
- ^ Whitehall, Jack (4 May 2015). Behind the Scenes: "La Couchette". Inside No. 9 Series 2 DVD. BBC.
- ^ a b c d e f "Interview with writers and cast of BBC Two's Inside No 9" (press release). BBC. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
- ^ a b c Pemberton, Steve; Shearsmith, Reece (4 May 2015). Behind the Scenes: "La Couchette". Inside No. 9 Series 2 DVD. BBC.
- ^ a b "'People are disappointed if we don't deliver something horrible'". Chortle.co.uk. 17 March 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
- ^ a b c d Tate, Gabriel (26 March 2015). "Inside No 9, series 2, episode 1, review: 'deliciously wicked'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
- ^ a b Gilbert, Gerard (26 March 2015). "Critic's choice". The Independent. p. 34.
- ^ Chater, David (26 March 2015). "Viewing guide". T2, The Times. pp. 12–3.
- ^ a b Dessau, Bruce (20 March 2015). "TV Preview: Inside No 9 – La Couchette, BBC2". Beyondthejoke.co.uk. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d Wollaston, Sam (27 March 2015). "Inside No 9 review – the couchette is crammed with comic characters, but I'm just not laughing". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f Jones, Ellen E. (27 March 2015). "Inside No 9, TV review: Toilet humour with a twist - Pemberton and Shearsmith are in a different league". The Independent. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ a b Shennan, Paddy (27 March 2015). "TV Review: Inside No 9 triumphs over the battle for No 10". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d Boyd, Phoebe-Jane (30 March 2015). "Inside No. 9 series 2 episode 1 review: La Couchette". Den of Geek. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
- ^ a b c Ferguson, Euan (29 March 2015). "The week in TV: Coalition; Outlander; Inside No 9; Teens; The Royals". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d Billen, Andrew (27 March 2015). "TV review: Outlander; Inside No 9". The Times. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
- ^ Mueller, Andrew; Seale, Jack; Robinson, John; Mumford, Gwilym; Wright, Jonathan; Davies Hannah J (26 March 2015). "Thursday's best TV". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
- ^ Mulkern, Patrick. "Inside No 9; Series 2 - 1. La Couchette". Radio Times. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
- ^ Brandel, Christine (27 May 2015). "The Beautiful Horror Continues". PopMatters. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
- ^ Billen, Andrew (2 April 2015). "TV review: Inside No 9". The Times. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
- ^ White, Peter (27 March 2015). "Battle for Number 10 peaks with 3m". Broadcast. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
Further reading
- Pemberton, Steve (20 March 2015). "Reopening the doors Inside No. 9". BBC. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
- "Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith on Inside No. 9". British Film Institute (via YouTube). 27 March 2015. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
External links
- "La Couchette" at BBC Online
- "La Couchette" on the British Comedy Guide
- "La Couchette" at IMDb