Fine Acting Keeps `The Buccaneers' Afloat
Newsday
October 8, 1995

By Terry Kelleher

"I'm tired of trying to be English," the main American heroine sighs
fairly late in the 5 1/2-hour PBS adaptation of Edith Wharton's "The
Buccaneers."

Well, dearie, some Yanks never tire of indulging their Anglophilia.
That's one reason why Wharton's novel, left unfinished at her death in
1937, is getting the full "Masterpiece Theatre" treatment (today,
tomorrow and Tuesday at 9 p.m.).

They're touting this co-production of the BBC and Boston's WGBH as
the most ambitious "Masterpiece" in the series' 25-year history. The
settings are gorgeous. The period costumes are top-drawer. The cast is
extra-large. Why, the households in "The Buccaneers" have so many
servants, you'll be thinking of hiring one to watch the mini-series for
you.

A confession: This viewer was a little slow to be engaged by this
1870s tale of poor little nouveau riche girls from New York who
"invade" England ("buccaneers," as it were) in search of the social
status denied them at home. Only after they've crashed the British
aristocracy by landing titled husbands - a process that consumes about
2 1/2 hours - does the drama really take off.

Annabel St. George (Carla Gugino), daughter of a Wall Street
operator with a fluctuating fortune, weds Julius, Duke of Trevenick
(James Frain), a prig more interested in clocks than conjugal relations.
Her sister, Virginia (Alison Elliott), winds up with the philandering
Lord Seadown (Mark Tandy), who makes no secret of marrying for her
father's money. Their friend Conchita Closson (Mira Sorvino), a
Brazilian-American free spirit, becomes the wife of Seadown's younger
brother, Lord Richard (Ronan Vibert), a caricature of effete indolence.
Another friend, Lizzy Elmsworth (Rya Kihlstedt), marries Hector Robinson
(Richard Huw), an untitled Tory politician attracted to wealth, old or
new.

Sorvino is a charming Conchita and Elliott's Virginia has her
moments, especially in confrontation with Seadown's longtime mistress
(Jenny Agutter). But "The Buccaneers" belongs to Annabel (nicknamed Nan)
and Laura Testvalley (Cherie Lunghi), her wise governess.

Romantics will hunger to learn whether Annabel will escape Julius'
stifling world and act on her true love for Guy Thwaite (Greg Wise), a
Liberal MP whose modern philosophy includes the determination to "make a
fortune, not marry one." Those with even softer hearts will hope that
Miss Testvalley can find security, position and a measure of affection
through an alliance with Guy's father, Sir Helmsley Thwaite (Michael
Kitchen).

The relationship that counts, however, is that between Annabel and
Miss Testvalley, who becomes her best friend and strongest influence.
For a woman, Miss Testvalley teaches, independence carries a high price.
And ultimately she has the courage to pay it, for Annabel as well as
herself.

Gugino gives Annabel radiance even in her moments of deepest
dejection, and Lunghi's knowing smile lights the screen every time. It's
partly a tribute to their performances that we begrudge the time spent
with secondary characters such as the largely superfluous Lizzy. A
narrower focus and a shorter running time would make "The Buccaneers"
less ambitious, perhaps, but more effective.