Netflix’s newest drama, “The Dig”, premiered on Jan. 29. A true ensemble piece, it offers character-driven drama with few surprises. Ralph Fiennes does a superb job as John Brown, a working-class archaeologist who makes his living in a traditionally upper-class field. He’s hired by Mrs. Pretty, played by Carey Mulligan, to excavate the burial mounds on her property because she “has a feeling about them.” Her feeling turns out to be right and Brown and his team uncover the richest Anglo-Saxon treasure ever discovered in England.
Like the book it’s based on, the film’s slow pace may sometimes fail to hold the audience’s interest, but the fully formed characters based on real people involved with the discovery may draw them back in. There’s Robert Pretty, Mrs. Pretty’s inquisitive 9-year-old son, John’s long-suffering wife, May Brown, and a team of archaeologists who converge to work on the site before everyone is conscripted to help in the war effort.
What “The Dig” lacks in pacing, it makes up for expertly in character development. We care deeply about Mr. Brown, Mrs. Pretty, Mr. Lomax, and Mrs. Piggott, although Mr. Piggott isn’t given much to do on screen. Robert Pretty’s energy is contagious as he alternately imagines himself as a Viking captain and a space invader. Lily James gives a convincing performance as the neglected Mrs. Piggott, who proves herself a competent archaeologist despite only being invited to participate because of her small size. One of the film’s few humorous moments is when another archaeologist says to her, “Thank God Piggott didn’t marry a piglet.”
The film’s straightforward storytelling doesn’t so much offer new information about the well-known archaeological find as it deepens the understanding of what we already know. Mrs. Pretty’s determination to stand up for Mr. Brown’s professional integrity makes her a likable character and illuminates the fight for recognition that women and professionals of modest means faced in the early days of archaeology. The Sutton Hoo treasure has been displayed at the British Museum since the end of World War II, but Brown’s role in the discovery has only recently been uncovered and credited.
Is it worth watching? That depends on what you’re looking for. If you want to spend a couple of hours deeply invested in the lives of English archaeologists right before World War II, then yes. If you’re looking for drama or romance that ramps up quickly, then not so much.
MacKenzie Tasten
Reporter