Truelove confirms that growing older comes with flaws. After a funeral for one of their own, a group of friends decide not to end their lives this way. No unnecessary illness, but helping each other to a more merciful death. Unfortunately, there is no legal avenue for this in the UK. This means that the (work) experience gained by two of them must be used. It creates complex, emotional and ethical choices. When that difficult choice is finally made, there appears to be no way back.
This central theme produces a solid drama. This is made a bit lighter by a very unexpected twist. The friends' mutual relationships are under pressure for several reasons. There is an old love that seems to blossom again. This is at the expense of an existing relationship. It is nice that Truelove pays attention to this. It gives the characters more depth. Illness is becoming increasingly common among friends. The big question then is when you decide to end your life. That's quite a struggle. Especially when an overzealous police officer tracks down the group of friends.
No ostentatious use of botox and other means to avoid looking older.
The second part of the series therefore feels more like a detective. The central theme is exchanged for the investigation into whether a crime has been committed. Perhaps a strange choice, but it makes Truelove more accessible. It is therefore not only heavy expense. Not that the story is very light, but the heaviness of life and death largely disappears.
What remains is the question of why you are guilty if you decide to end your life and how you can avoid being brought to justice. This is where the lesser side of this series reveals itself. It is quite a coincidence that a number of friends have the right background to do what they do. Of course, you see that coincidence in more films and series. It remains a bit of a weakness without it becoming too much of a drawback.
The central theme is of course extremely sensitive. In the Netherlands, people have just been convicted of inciting suicide. What is striking is that the actors are all over seventy. The subject must have been very confrontational for them too. Dealing with death naturally becomes more and more central as you get older.
By bringing together so many experienced actors, the quality of acting is high. Actors such as Lindsay Duncan (A Discovery Of Witches), Clarke Peter (Eric), Peter Egan (Unforgotten), Phil Davis (Poldark) and Sue Johnston (The Royle Family) naturally know what is asked of them.
The second part of the series therefore feels more like a detective.
What I personally like is that the actors really look older. No ostentatious use of botox and other means to avoid looking older. There are wrinkles and the movement is no longer as flashy as before. It is a powerful counterbalance to all that makeable 'beauty' to keep looking young. In this series there are no jumping, heroic, almost super-strength seventies without wrinkles and with tightened skin. Here is a more realistic picture of what growing older does to you. For this reason alone, Truelove deserves a very nice score.
