The Essex Serpent, Apple TV+

It's always interesting when a director releases multiple projects over the course of a year, and that is no less true of Clio Barnard. Earlier this year, she released the excellent Ali & Ava, a taboo story set in surroundings that are unfamiliar to most.

In that sense, this expensive Apple TV+ project is not all that dissimilar. Adapted from Sarah Perry's novel, it tells the tale of Cora (Claire Danes), a troubled widow who moves to Essex to investigate reports of a mythical serpent. There, she forges an unlikely bond with the local pastor (Tom Hiddleston), who also finds himself at a crossroads. You can probably guess what happens from there, so I won't divulge any further.

However, the odd couple chemistry that made Ali & Ava such a triumph is just not as prevalent in this more lavish affair. Danes certainly gives a committed performance (which includes a LOT of her patented crying face) but her romance with Hiddleston fails to convince. That is probably because the latter is badly miscast in a role that is so understated, you'd do well to remember anything about it once it is concluded.

That is a crying shame because there are certainly aspects of The Essex Serpent which do work well - there are some intriguing narrative threads concerning gender, class and mysticism, and a luscious score from Dustin O'Halloran and Herdís Stefánsdóttir. Barnard's direction is also consistently arresting, even when the events it is documenting fail to grab the attention.

Ultimately, this may just be a rare misstep from Apple. More often than not, their big budget/star productions work a treat but this one sadly never really manages to get going, which is a pity as there is some great talent involved.