The Way We Live Now

TV Mini Series
2001
PG
1h 15m

IMDb RATING

7.6/10

3.4K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

2,304

3,520

Shirley Henderson and Matthew Macfadyen in The Way We Live Now (2001)

Costume Drama Period Drama Drama Romance

Augustus Melmotte is a European-born city financier whose background is as mysterious as his business. Only weeks after his arrival in London, he announced a new venture and promises instant... Read allAugustus Melmotte is a European-born city financier whose background is as mysterious as his business. Only weeks after his arrival in London, he announced a new venture and promises instant fortune.Augustus Melmotte is a European-born city financier whose background is as mysterious as his business. Only weeks after his arrival in London, he announced a new venture and promises instant fortune.

Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.6/10

3.4K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

2,304

3,520

Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Won 3 BAFTA Awards
- 7 wins & 12 nominations total

Episodes4

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TopTop-rated Season 2001

Photos17

+ 10

Top cast52

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David Suchet

Augustus Melmotte

Matthew Macfadyen

Sir Felix Carbury

Cillian Murphy

Paul Montague

Paloma Baeza

Hetta Carbury

Cheryl Campbell

Lady Carbury

Richard Cant

Dolly Longestaffe

Shirley Henderson

Marie Melmotte

Tom Fahy

Butler - Grosvenor Square

Allan Corduner

Croll

Angus Wright

Miles Grendall

Miranda Otto

Mrs Hurtle

Stuart McQuarrie

Lord Nidderdale

Tony Britton

Lord Alfred Grendall

Oliver Ford Davies

Mr Longestaffe

Helen Schlesinger

Madame Melmotte

Douglas Hodge

Roger Carbury

Maxine Peake

Ruby Ruggles

Graham Crowden

Marquis of Auld Reekie

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Storyline

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Trivia
Mrs. Hurtle indicates that the year is 1870. Trollope did his homework creating the fictional railroad enterprise. In 1870 Salt Lake City had almost three times the population of either Los Angeles or Denver, benefiting from the post-Civil War expansion westward and the booming silver and copper mines in the Intermountain West. Also by 1870 Salt Lake City was connected by rail to the Union Pacific Railroad and other smaller regional lines connecting to the mines. Building a railroad to haul ore from the US Rockies to a Mexican seaport on the Gulf of Mexico and to return with goods, supplies, and homesteaders made commercial sense and could easily have been supported in principle by a US Congress governed by America's Manifest Destiny.

Quotes
Sir Felix Carbury: I may not be possessed of great wealth or property, but I am a baronet and a gentleman.
Augustus Melmotte: And I'm not, you imply.
Sir Felix Carbury: No! No, that's not what I meant at all!
Augustus Melmotte: I think we understand each other very well. You're to provide the rank and position and I am to provide the money. That's the bargain. I buy my daughter a place in society by paying you to marry her.

Connections
Featured in The Two Loves of Anthony Trollope (2004)

User reviews33

Featured review

8/10

The usual high quality BBC Victorian novel knock-off

"The Way We Live Now", like most Victorian period satire, looks into the lives of numerous characters sorting through the intrigues and foibles of romance, wickedness, power, and the pursuit of peerage and property. A lightly perfumed costume flick which tilts unabashedly between comedy and drama, this story centers on a crude but rich businessman (Suchet) whose powerful performance is the backbone of the film. Side plots include an issue fraught romance, an attempt to marry into a fortune, a scheme to build a railroad from Utah to Mexico, cheating at love and cards, politics, a woman scorned, and much more. A four hour TV miniseries from the BBC, "The Way We Live Now" has plenty of time to sort through its many characters while tidying up at the end making it a busy and enjoyable Victorian period film. A should-see for anyone into BBC TV fare, Victorian period stories, and 19th century pulp fiction. (B+)