Set between 1981and 1991, It’s A Sin follows a group of friends as they live, work and party in the vibrant gay scene of London. Olly Alexander (vocalist of synth-pop trio Years & Years and LGBTQ+ activist) stars as the boisterous but lovable Ritchie, who has fled from his stifling home on the Isle of Wight to experience the hedonistic queer lifestyle of the city. He and his group of friends form a tight family unit and navigate the highs and lows of bohemian life together, living in the shadows of the developing AIDS epidemic.
The series is quintessentially 80s; double denim, big hair and loud jumpers. The club and pub scenes are pleasingly authentic and there’s a good representation of the leather subculture movement in the costuming of fringe characters. It goes without saying that the soundtrack is phenomenal, featuring hits such as ‘The Only Way Is Up’ from YAZZ and ‘Call Me’ by Blondie, creating a cohesive 1980s time capsule of sensuous, urban life.
The cast is excitingly diverse, with much of the central actors being people of colour, along with the casting of several real-life queer actors. Padding out excellent star-studded cameos from Stephen Fry and Neil Patrick Harris are a relatively unknown central cast, meaning a suspense of belief is easy and we can invest ourselves entirely to our characters. We come to love the sweetly naive Colin (Callum Scott Howells),the vivacious Roscoe (Omari Douglas) and the gentle Ash (Nathaniel Curtis) as our own friends and desperately wish to see them succeed.
Lydia West co-stars as Jill, an aspiring young actress who, seemingly distanced from the illness, becomes a lifeline to the male characters around her and acts as a mother figure, researching rigorously, staging protests and caring for her friends. She is a powerhouse of a female character and never ceases to provide staunch support to her peers. We see her continuing love and support of the AIDS affected community as the mini-series draws to a close. BBC drama veteran, Keeley Hawes, is equally fantastic as Valerie, Ritchie’s mother, who remains in the background as a quietly oppressive force until the finale, where Hawes’ true acting talents are revealed, and she does an amazing job of making you simultaneously detest and sympathise with a mother unable to deal with her own denial.
Despite being filmed back in 2019, creator Russel T Davies unconsciously taps into the zeitgeist, with a mysterious viral threat present in ominous headlines and scenes of PPE clad hospital staff appearing almost too familiar to viewers in 2021. There is an uncomfortable irony in the flippant comments made, with the retroactive knowledge of what is to come, and perhaps recognising our own doubts about the seriousness of the Coronavirus back in early 2020.
If you are looking for something light and entertaining to binge watch, It’s A Sin is not for you. Though consistently charming and irreverently witty, the hard hitting consequences of the AIDS epidemic are incredibly difficult to watch. Davies never dwells overly long on the tragedy, however, and the characters remain enchanting and endearing throughout, swiftly making us laugh, cry, and then laugh again as they crack dark jokes in the face of devastation. It is definitely one to have a box of tissues on standby for, and will leave you thinking for days after finishing it. It is hilarious, beautiful, intensely touching and completely heartbreaking all at once.
4 Stars.
Image Credit: The MovieDB
