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Respectable Trade

	Respectable Trade
	by Starz / Anchor Bay Sales Rank: 18984 Price: $29.99

In 18th-century England, the slave trade was a popular get-rich-quick scheme, and it is the heart of darkness that pulses through the Mobil Masterpiece Theatre production of A Respectable Trade. Philippa Gregory wrote the screenplay based on her novel, in which a well-bred but penniless young woman named Frances (Emma Fielding) marries a Bristol shipping merchant (Warren Clarke). Josiah Cole is boorish and unsophisticated, but Frances sees a simple honesty in him that convinces her to leave her uncle's manor for a leaky warehouse on the wharf and wifely duties she did not anticipate. Her husband's "respectable trade" turns out to be human cargo, and he expects Frances to train the slaves for service in upper-class households. But Frances must learn hard lessons as she develops an affection for Mehuru (Ariyon Bakare), an educated, compassionate man who is one of the slaves in her care. Thankfully, the plot is far more complex than the historical romance this quick summary might suggest. A Respectable Trade is as much the story of a greedy man reaching too high as it is the tale of a forbidden passion. The dramatic tension between all of the major characters makes for compelling viewing--it's quite easy to watch all four hours in one sitting. Gregory's screenplay and the performances elicit sympathy for each character's plight as the video approaches its memorable conclusion. --Larisa Lomacky Moore

Viewer Reviews
After coming across this film quite accidentally on PBS, I found it thoroughly gripping, and agree completely with the other reviewers' high praise. I am adding my own words merely to encourage viewers not to overlook the extraordinary performance by Anna Massey as Sarah Cole. It is tempting to dismiss Sarah as a simple villain in this tale. However, I found Massey's stark performance deeply moving and expressive of Sarah's profound experience of displacement and loss. She is clearly the brains in her brother's business, for example, and depends on it for her own welfare, but is helpless to prevent its decline when Josiah begins to exclude her from his decisionmaking process. She is forced to abandon her lifelong home and lifestyle in pursuit of her brother's social pretensions. A proud and stoic worker, she is asked to curry favor with shallow and spoiled members aristocracy. I sympathized deeply with her scorn for unearned luxury.

Female in 18th century England, Sarah--like Frances, and like Mehuru--enjoys tragically little opportunity to guide her own fate.

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