zhe BBC Series Broken opens with a snippet of a Roman Catholic Communion scene. The incredible actor in this series Sean Bean begins to pray:
“On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’,,,,”
Having heard this prayer thousands of Sundays before, I was drawn into the drama. I put away all of the other projects that normally distract me from what is the normally monotonous drone of the television in my room, and I remained engaged in this excellent 6-part series.
If I had not been distracted before that scene, I would have reacted similarly to the opening theme song I Think It’s Going to Rain Today sung by Nina Simone.
| LYRICS of I Think It’s Going to Rain Today by Randy Newman |
“Broken windows and empty hallways
A pale dead moon in the sky streaked with gray
Human kindness is overflowing
And I think it’s going to rain today…” Lyrics by Randy Newman
“On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it….”Broken windows and empty hallways….From the very beginning of the series Broken, the production is excellent. Although I did not realize it until later, the opening theme song and the opening scene of the BBC Series Broken both set the mood for the series Broken and they also foreshadow what would play out in the rest of the drama that would come. But something else happened during the first scene: From the very beginning, we realize that the priest in the series Broken [played by Sean Bean] is as broken as anyone else in his congregation might be. As Father Michaels tries to minister to the broken members of his congregation, he has flashbacks of the haunting abuses he had suffered as a child.
Each episode of the drama seems to be the story of how Father Michael attempts to help several of his congregation, one person at a time, but the various accounts are woven together flawlessly. Through the characters, the series deals with homosexuality, intolerance, childhood abuse [emotional and verbal abuse, as well as that of the Catholic priests], shame, gambling addiction, theft, lack of empathy. mental illness, loneliness, hypocrisy, suicide, failure, and desperation. [probably more]
In the first episode, we meet a young lady who is desperately poor, and we see how desperation causes her to do things she would not otherwise do. But her dilemma is not dealt with simplistically–with no easy formulas–without clichés. In both episode 1 and 2, the issue of expensive white dresses for first communion is part of the story. We are lead to believe that the impoverished would be spared that expense, but the writers make another point:
I often say that I like excellent movies and television more than reading. The videography and the music add an undeniable extra dimension that mere words in a book might only suggest. I love the way that recognizable songs are woven throughout the series. My favorite musical selection was In Paradisum played during the First Communion episode. That was my favorite part of the entire series:
The music performed by Nina Simone perfectly matches the Blues-like tone of the drama
- Opening Theme: “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” by Nina Simone.
- Closing Theme: “Broken” by Ray Davies (written and performed for the series).
- Other Featured Music:
- “The Ballad of Jimmy McCabe” by Paul Weller.
- “Americana” by Ray Davies.
- “Rock ‘N’ Roll Cowboys” by Ray Davies.
- “Long Long Road” by Paul Weller.
- “You Shouldn’t Look At Me That Way” by Elvis Costello
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