Terence Rattigan, as has been said quite a few times already, has very quickly become one of my favourite playwrights, his dialogue is so intelligent, witty and meaty, his characterisation so dynamic, complex and real, with a real understanding of the human condition and such and the storytelling so beautifully constructed and precise.
'Adventure Story' to me is not one of his best however. In fact, it is one of my least favourites of his, and nowhere near up to the level of 'The Winslow Boy', 'Separate Tables' and particularly 'The Browning Version' as one of the greatest plays of the 20th century. This may mean nothing, as lesser Rattigan is much better than most things, and there is enough of what makes Rattigan so good as a playwright, though his storytelling and characterisation is much richer elsewhere and while much of the dialogue is brilliant some of it is clunky.
One of the earliest performances featured in The Terence Rattigan Collection box-set, which is essential viewing for any Rattigan fans, this production of 'Adventure Story' is one of the weaker ones, so far actually my least favourite (the productions of 'The Winslow Boy', 'Separate Tables' and 'After the Dance' being the best). It is certainly not bad, far from it, but there are shortcomings. Of the productions featured, this is the one where the low budget most shows, the costumes are handsome but even for what looks like a filmed play it does look a little creaky and stage-bound and the photography while mostly crisp not as focused.
Like with the play, some of the dialogue is a bit clunky and not as involving as it could have been. This is one of very few productions on the box set where the acting is not that special, with a fair few of the supporting cast being stagy and overacted. Sean Connery, the most famous name and actually although not perfect is the best actor in the cast, is certainly very charismatic and commanding in the title role, then again he was one of the most charismatic actors of that time and also to exist. But his very distinctive Scottish accent does get in the way and doesn't feel right with everything else, otherwise his performance is fine.
However, as said, the costumes are handsome and lighting is atmospheric. Rattigan's precise, intelligent and nuanced writing style does shine through extremely well often, and a real attempt is made to give depth to the characters and keep the pace and drama alive. That it doesn't quite consistently is partly to do with the source material not quite being up to Rattigan's top-tier standard.
In conclusion, worthwhile but a lesser production in The Terence Rattigan Collection. 6.5/10 Bethany Cox
