A perfect cast gives life to a dark and sometimes gloomy story

reunification The fallThe creator of Allan Cubitt, along with star of the serial drama, Jamie Dornan, of BBC Two & # 39; s Death And Nightingales is a very different project indeed.

Finished the rainy streets of Belfast City and its rhythmic and rocky modern intrigue, replaced by Northern Irish countryside landscapes (seemingly particularly idyllic thanks to the 2018 summer heat wave during filming), and a dramatic plot of life. 39, Eugene McCabe's slow novel period.

This does not mean that they are all hilly and frilly fields.^th Centieth century, however – Cubitt lets us know from the beginning of the scene that life is not sunny or joyous in Clonoula, the estate of the owner of the Protestant career Billy Winters (Matthew Rhys) in County Fermanagh.

Related: The fallJamie Dornan claims to have "loved playing another" dark "character in Death and Nightingales

Beth (Ann Skelly), Billy's daughter-in-law, reads a book of deadly poisons, then picks one, pours the liquid into a glbad and orders Billy sobbing to drink it.

Like with The fall, where he immediately showed us that Paul Spector de Dornan was the killer, Cubitt reveals here Death And Nightingales"Central darkness – that Beth plans to murder Billy – at the very beginning. We are then abruptly fired in time from one day or two, until 23:00 in the morning.^rd birthday, in which she takes part in celebrations such as piercing the skin of a cow struck by the wind, remembering her dead mother and planning her secret departure from Clonoula.

The reason she wants to leave and eventually kill her father-in-law is obvious early thanks to more flashbacks – Billy is aware that Beth is not his biological child and has started to show his affections. 39, a rather non-paternal manner – but Beth's scene touching her belly may suggest another reason.

After all, everyone knows the two medical rules of a drama of the time: if a character coughs, he will die of consumption and if a woman caresses his belly, there is a good chance that a baby makes his appearance.

And, in 20 minutes, in a flashback in the flashback, the likely candidate for the role of "dad" appears in the form of Liam Ward of Jamie Dornan. Catholic like Beth, he is apparently a thug – although not quite bad, as he is seen shooting a cow in distress – and he is the third member of the twisted triangle that will ultimately lead to the pbading of Billy's drinking death.

On three episodes of one hour, it is clear from the first opus that Cubitt is timidly cheating moments of deception and betrayal that will lead us back to the opening scene of the series, while incorporating other elements such as religious tensions in Ireland, Billy's dubious business interests and Liam's secrets.

With smaller players, Cubitt could lose focus with some of his scene choices along the way. After all, have the five minutes spent watching Beth's discovery and the perforation of this cow really add to the story? – but fortunately, he put together the ideal cast to bring these complex characters to life and fascinate us in their dark story.

Skelly cleverly reveals the new facets of the intelligent Beth as the story progresses and manages to overcome the awkward moments when she has to speak out loud, while Dornan delivers a character again charming who has darkness for him. But it's Matthew Rhys that catches your attention most (and not just because of his facial hair) with his complex and tragic Billy.

That Billy meets his death before the end if the series remains to be seen, but thanks to the superb performances, it would be worth spending a few more hours in the company of these characters to discover it.

Death and Nightingales continues next Wednesday at 9 pm on BBC Two.

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