logo
‘The Narrow Road to the Deep North' Is a Brutal but Poetic War Drama

‘The Narrow Road to the Deep North' Is a Brutal but Poetic War Drama

New York Times01-05-2025

Jacob Elordi stars in the brutalizing five-part Australian mini-series 'The Narrow Road to the Deep North,' available on Amazon Prime Video. The show is based on the novel by Richard Flanagan and combines a sweetly doomed romance, a layered domestic drama and a harrowing World War II tale.
Elordi is terrific as Dorrigo, a young aspiring doctor heading off to war. Before he is deployed, he has a doting girlfriend, Ella (Olivia DeJonge), but he falls hard for his uncle's young wife, Amy (Odessa Young), and it's their taboo love that he visits in his mind during the darkest experiences of his life. Dorrigo is one of thousands of Commonwealth soldiers taken prisoner in the jungles of Thailand, where Japanese soldiers starve and torture them, work them to death, behead some, beat others for hours on end.
We also see Dorrigo in the 1980s, now played by Ciaran Hinds; he's a successful surgeon and a comfortable philanderer. He is haunted and hollowed-out in some ways, of course, but he has a life, a practice, and now a book of a fellow prisoner's paintings is coming out, and he has been asked to speak about it.
Each episode bounces around in time, and for once, split timelines come as a huge relief. The jungle scenes are agonizing, even by prestige-misery standards, and you, too, long to retreat, with Dorrigo, into sunny memory.
Dorrigo is a poetry buff, and poems are woven into the whole show, as are painting and music, these expressions of humanity that surface during circumstances both mundane and depraved. A jolly woman plays tunes in bar; a skeletal soldier sings 'The Prisoner's Song' as he lies among his dysentery-stricken companions. The show depicts a dizzying variety of suffering, but it is also generous with its pity. There's a visceral quality to most scenes — the clammy humidity, the golden warmth of a sandy beach, the icy sterility of a gray office — as the show teases out the pains and pleasures of the body along with its grander ideas about the mind, the heart, the world, war.
'Narrow' is patient, but it isn't slow. It is also sometimes so illegibly dark that I resorted to turning on the audio descriptions.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

26 Extremely Rare And Fascinating Pictures From History That Will Completely And Totally Change Your Perspective On The Past
26 Extremely Rare And Fascinating Pictures From History That Will Completely And Totally Change Your Perspective On The Past

Buzz Feed

time25 minutes ago

  • Buzz Feed

26 Extremely Rare And Fascinating Pictures From History That Will Completely And Totally Change Your Perspective On The Past

Before airplanes were pressurized for commercial use, flyers had to wear oxygen masks at higher altitudes: This picture is from 1939 and taken while 20,000 feet in the air. During World War II, the USS Trigger got close enough to Japan on patrol to take a picture through its periscope of Mount Fuji: This is from 1943. Fascinating stuff! The Michelin Man not only used to be absolutely terrifying, but he used to run with a gang of several other musically inclined Michelin men: Chet Baker is shaking. Tourists in Egypt used to be able to climb on top of the Great Pyramid all willy-nilly: Let's be thankful there are some stricter rules about visiting the landmark. These gigantic contraptions are apparently one of the first life preservers ever made: They're made out of mattresses but something tells me they aren't comfortable. This picture, taken in 1942, shows a New York Times employee creating that day's layout of the Sports page: "Boy, this Mort Cooper guy can really slang it." This is selection of prosthetic face parts designed for World War I veterans: Here's what one of those prosthetics looked like in action: This is Australian javelin thrower Reg Spiers, best known for literally mailing himself in a big giant box from London to Australia in the 1960s: Spiers was broke and needed to figure out a way home to his family, so he did what any person would have done: he posted himself. This is the 5x3x2.5 foot box Spiers mailed himself in: The journey took over two days. Spiers stuffed himself in the box with some "tinned food, a torch, a blanket and a pillow, plus two plastic bottles - one for water, one for urine." You can read more about the whole ordeal here. This is frogman Courtney Brown towing a 55 scale model of the Titanic during the filming of the movie Raise The Titanic: The movie was, well, about raising the Titanic from the ocean floor. Interestingly enough, because the movie was made in 1980, the wreck of the ship had yet to be found. That's why "the wreck" is in one big piece here. Here's what the wreck of the model of the wreck of the Titanic looks like today: Slightly worse than the one in the Atlantic, I'd say. This is Robert Earl Hughes, the one-time world's heaviest man and his pet dog: At his heaviest, Robert weighed over 1,000 pounds. Eleven days in October had to be skipped after the Gregorian calendar was adopted in 1582: A wise person on Reddit hipped the internet to the fact that if you scroll back in your phone long enough, you can see it for yourself. Here's what gorilla's fingerprint looks like compared to a human's: Gorillas: they're just like us. This is what a whole bunch of wind turbines look like from way above: Like they're floating! This is a replica of what was apparently the world's largest polar bear, standing tall at 12 feet and weighing over 2,200 pounds: That, and I don't say this lightly, is one big bear. This is the crew of the USS Hunchback, taken in Virginia at the end of the Civil War. Unlike the army, the Union's navy was actually integrated: I think I would have also been the banjo player during the Civil War. This is what British World War I victory medal looks like: Too bad there would be another Great War for civilization less than two decades later. This is the first computer Apple ever developed: It looks nothing like an apple. Not even like an orange. This is a Corinthian helmet and the skull that wore it from the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC: Chilling stuff. This is what a pick-up truck from 1985 looks like compared to the behemoths that are modern pick-up trucks: Poor l'il guy. Owls have big ol' long legs: Check out the gams on Birdie. This is a list of the causes of death of everyone who died in London in 1632: Me, personally? I'm dying from "Planet." This was the scene aboard the ship The Queen Elizabeth as it brought soldiers back home to New York after World War II ended: I hate to say it... but imagine having to use the bathroom? Nightmare. And, finally, this is what Nicolas Cages' father, August Coppola, looked like: Incredible stuff.

Jason Day's Tuesday fit at 2025 U.S. Open has him ready for a Fourth of July cookout
Jason Day's Tuesday fit at 2025 U.S. Open has him ready for a Fourth of July cookout

Yahoo

time31 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Jason Day's Tuesday fit at 2025 U.S. Open has him ready for a Fourth of July cookout

Jason Day, you've done it again. The Australian has made headlines in the past year with his clothing choices at major championships, especially the 2024 Masters, and he's at it again at the 2025 U.S. Open. Advertisement Day, the 2015 PGA champion, showed up to Tuesday's practice round at Oakmont Country Club wearing shorts that look like he's about to crack open a cold one and shoot off fireworks to celebrate America's birthday. Jason Day's outfit at 2025 U.S. Open See for yourself in all its glory, Day's fit is big on the red, white and blue. What did Jason Day wear at 2024 Masters? Day's flashy Malbon Golf Championship sweater was a talking point among patrons (and everyone at the course). The Masters and Augusta National asked him to remove the sweater and wear a more traditional outfit. Here's a look at what he wore. Jason Day (wearing a Malbon sweater) and his caddie, Luke Reardon, wait on the 15th hole during the continuation of the first round of the 2024 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. What did Jason Day say about that sweater vest? What is Malbon Golf? Malbon was founded in 2017 by Stephen and Erica Malbon, who created stylish golf gear worn by Day and LPGA golfer Minjee Lee. Advertisement The company's mission says it "sought to honor the heritage of golf while opening it up to a broader community, blending time-honored values with a fresh, creative spirit." This article originally appeared on Golfweek: U.S. Open 2025: Jason Day rocks American flag shorts at Oakmont

Deborra-Lee Furness files to divorce Hugh Jackman 2 years after split
Deborra-Lee Furness files to divorce Hugh Jackman 2 years after split

American Military News

time31 minutes ago

  • American Military News

Deborra-Lee Furness files to divorce Hugh Jackman 2 years after split

Hugh Jackman's estranged wife, Deborra-Lee Furness, filed for divorce in New York, nearly two years after the pair announced they were ending their 27-year marriage. Furness, 69, filed for divorce on Friday in Suffolk County Supreme Court, according to court documents obtained by TMZ. The outlet reports the divorce will be finalized once the judge signs off on the complaint and other documents Furness submitted — filings regarding continuing health care coverage, a medical child support order, the New York State child support registry form, the exes' settlement deal, a proposed judgement of divorce and official certificate of dissolution. The 'Deadpool & Wolverine' star and award-winning 'Shame' actress met in 1995, working on the Australian miniseries 'Correlli,' and married the following year. They later adopted son Oscar and daughter Ava, now 25 and 19 respectively. In September 2023, the couple announced their separation in a joint statement to People. 'We have been blessed to share almost three decades together as husband and wife in a wonderful, loving marriage,' the actors said at the time. 'Our journey now is shifting and we have decided to separate to pursue our individual growth. … We undertake this next chapter with gratitude, love and kindness.' Jackman sparked romance rumors with his 'Music Man' co-star Sutton Foster as far back as 2022, though the Broadway stars only confirmed their relationship earlier this year. Furness' filing comes seven months after 50-year-old Foster filed to divorce screenwriter Ted Griffin in October, after a decade of marriage. The exes share daughter Emily, whom they also welcomed via adoption. Prior to Griffin, Foster was married to fellow Broadway veteran Christian Borle, who, like Jackman and the 'Thoroughly Modern Millie' actress, has won two Tony Awards. ___ © 2025 New York Daily News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store