Released: 15th May 2022
Created By: Lenny Abrahamson and Leanne Welham
Number of Episodes: 12
Certificate: 15
Where To Watch: BBC iPlayer and HULU
Starring: Alison Oliver, Sasha Lane, Joe Alwyn and Jemima Kirke
In recent years, a more contemporary style of romantic drama has emerged, one that isn’t afraid to place modern perceptions of love and relationships in the spotlight. Following the stellar adaptation of Normal People in 2020, another novel from Sally Rooney has found its way to the small screen. Conversations With Friends boasts some similar strengths, but it ultimately falls short in both plot and character work.
Frances (Alison Oliver) and Bobby (Sasha Lane) are two close friends studying at college. While out socialising, Francis finds herself falling for the older and equally introverted Nick (Joe Alwyn). As their affair grows in passion and intimacy, many questions are asked about their decisions and connections to each other. From the moment it begins, Conversations With Friends is committed to telling a mature, sensitive story. It succeeds at capturing the tone of the author’s original book while also portraying insecurities in a respectful manner. Sexual fluidity, ethical relationships, monogamy; all of these discussed throughout. Yet along the way the series does muddle some of the details; the ending abruptly swerves in the opposite direction without much build-up. Are we focusing on Frances as a character or her relationships with others? For most of the twelve episodes the latter takes centre stage, but the protagonist changes quickly towards the end, leaving her bond with Nick on the backburner. The series needed to balance out these elements to create a more investing storyline. Other plot threads feel very under-baked, like Frances’s father Dennis (Tommy Tiernan). At one point later in the series he calls his daughter and seems in a bad way, but he isn’t seen again until the closing episodes. It’s as if the script forgot about him and the relationship he has with his daughter on the way through. All told, CWF does feel too long at twelve episodes; the slow reveals leading to outbursts could have been condensed into more compact moments.
Still, the main leads do a great job with the difficult topics. For her first major role, Alison Oliver delivers a confident performance. Frances is often timid, unable to communicate her feelings which gets her into trouble at many points. Bobby is the opposite; extroverted and forthright, a personality Sasha Lane embodies well. Their interactions with Nick and his wife Melissa (Jemima Kirke) feel natural and engaging and the same is true of the intimate content; it adopts the same careful approach as the last Rooney adaptation. When the tensions rise and tempers flair up, all four actors do a great job of conveying the frustration while maintaining the individual traits of the characters. Outside of the four main leads, the other cast members are rather thin and don’t contribute much to the wider narrative. This is arguably the biggest weakness CWF has when compared to Normal People. In that series, the character’s families and their differing upbringings played a key role in influencing their choices. In this series, they quickly enter and exit the story at many intervals. As a result, these connections feel rather insignificant.
Despite capable main performances and a mature tone, Conversations With Friends struggles to match the emotive heights of its predecessor. The story is presented poignantly but it doesn’t settle on a coherent thread and most of the side characters don't mean much to the bigger picture. Those who have read Sally Rooney’s fiction may enjoy it more, but I didn’t find myself embracing this production.
Rating: 3/5 Stars (Fair)
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