A MATTER OF TRUST (I AM DANIELLE)

 

Dominic Savage and Letitia Wright's 'I Am Danielle' begins at such a gentle pace, it comes as a bit of a shock.

Those who have seen 2019's 'I Am Nicola' with Vicki McClure, 'I Am Kirsty' with Samantha Morton and this month's 'I Am Victoria' with Suranne Jones will have found them extremely stressful affairs, usually unfolding at a breakneck speed while they tackle the stresses women often encounter.

However the tone and tempo of Wright and Savage's collaboration is markedly different in much the same way as Gemma Chan's collaboration with the writer director on 2019's 'I Am Hannah'  was.

For those who like an instant hit from their TV drama to get the adrenaline going, this can be deceptive because the sucker punch in 'I Am Danielle' comes much, much later.

Wright, who audiences may best know as Shuri from Marvel's 'Black Panther,' plays Danielle, a London-based fashion photographer who gets involved with CJ Beckford's model Michael.

Having come from a family whose parents separated, she is extremely cautious as she embarks on the relationship - wishing to land the ideal man.

She is so cautious and demanding that Danielle's flatmate, Sophia Brown's Tara observes she is setting impossible dating standards.

"This guy's gonna need to be a superhero," her flatmate quips.

As Danielle tiptoes around the relationship with Michael, peppering him with questions, you do get the sense that Tara is right.

Danielle admits to Michael she struggles with reading people and understanding their true intentions.

However Michael is desperately keen to make the relationship succeed.

The sucker punch comes when Danielle is contacted by an old college friend, Simona Brown's Natalie and it raises an issue a lot of people will recognise.

While Savage and Wright's one-off drama shines a light on another predicament some women encounter, 'I Am Danielle' suffers in comparison to his previous, nerve shattering collaboration with Suranne Jones.

With Savage relying heavily on improvisation, there is always a risk where that may lead a drama and while Wright works hard to lay the foundations for what is to come, the finished product is sometimes far too laboured.

In establishing Danielle's gentle but cautious nature, two thirds of the drama is on a go slow and feels like it is on stabilisers.

Its problem is that it's not nearly as compelling as the final third and it also takes a lot of effort just to get there.

Nevertheless, when the big dramatic moment arrives, 'I Am Danielle' does pack one hell of a gut punch.

David Arch's solo piano soundtrack has been a constant but oddly it feels more distracting in this drama than it normally does.

It's as if the more gentle pace and tone of 'I Am Danielle' accentuates just how the music feels like it could have been used in a Yellow Pages ad.

Indeed, you half expect one of the characters to start looking for a copy of 'Fly Fishing by JR Hartley'.

Wright is a sweet natured presence throughout the collaboration - although you cannot help feeling her character is a little too enigmatic.

We know she is the daughter of a broken family but the viewer is left wondering if there is something else that makes Danielle so cautious - some other trauma and not necessarily a childhood one?

Why is that not explored?

Wright's fellow cast members - CJ Beckman, Simona Brown and particularly Sophia Brown - do a decent job and get their moments to impress.

Sophia Brown's Tara gently and not so gently probes her often secretive flatmate for much of the drama and she brings a lot of humour to the part.

A scene where they both dance to Chaka Khan's 'I'm Every Woman' is a rare and welcome euphoric moment for a Dominic Savage kitchen sink drama and all the memorable for it.

But while 'I Am Danielle' never quite hits the heights of Savage's other collaborations, it is valuable entry into the 'I Am' collection.

It shines an important light on another disturbing issue - even if the resolution doesn't feel as satisfying as his other 'I Am..' dramas.

('I Am Danielle' was broadcast on Channel 4 on August 12, 2021)

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