Amanda Redman makes capable women credible without making them invulnerable. We value her most when there is affection alongside the authority: her work in Sexy Beast gives a gangster thriller a marriage worth worrying about.
Fi1m perspective
In Sexy Beast (2001), Amanda Redman's Deedee and Ray Winstone's Gal have a marriage that seems worth leaving crime behind for. Redman helps us believe that the quiet life is something Gal enjoys, rather than a delay before the trouble starts. We were frightened for them because their affection makes the intimidation feel like an intrusion into a home. Jonathan Glazer's thriller needs that convincing domestic life, and Redman supplies it without making the marriage feel like an excuse for the plot.
That ability to make a relationship count sits alongside the authority of her television leads. At Home with the Braithwaites (2000–2003), in which she played Alison Braithwaite, brought wider recognition around the time of Sexy Beast. Then came ten series as Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman in New Tricks (2003–2013), working with Dennis Waterman, James Bolam and Alun Armstrong. The part required a credible head of a cold-case squad who could also belong to the ensemble. Dr Lydia Fonseca in The Good Karma Hospital (2017–2022) continued the run of capable women with demanding jobs.
Calling her no-nonsense catches the casting habit and misses much of the appeal. A superintendent has to be credible in charge, but Redman's ensemble rapport allows for more than a succession of instructions. The recurring interest is in women whose professional competence does not remove their personal vulnerability. The useful test is whether we can imagine these women away from work, with wants of their own, rather than waiting for the next case or patient. We would be wary of a role that asked her only to be formidable, because the affection in Sexy Beast is evidence of how much else she can contribute.
For all that works in Sexy Beast, its heist is less persuasive than the confrontation. The marriage gives us a reason to fear the danger, beyond admiring Ben Kingsley's ability to intimidate. We would happily have had more of Redman and Winstone together and less of the robbery; the marriage has already given the threats their force. Glazer gets valuable work from Redman by making room for ordinary affection within the gangster story. Start there, and give her contribution to the marriage as much attention as the threats against it.
Biography
Amanda Redman is an English actress. She was born on 12 August 1957 in Brighton, East Sussex.
Redman trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She is known for her role as Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman in the BBC series New Tricks (2003–2013) and as Dr Lydia Fonseca in The Good Karma Hospital (2017–2022). Her film credits include Sexy Beast (2000), in which she played Deedee, For Queen & Country (1988) and Mike Bassett: England Manager (2001).
She received BAFTA TV Award nominations for At Home with the Braithwaites (2000–2003) and Tommy Cooper: Not Like That, Like This (2014). Redman was appointed MBE in 2012 for services to drama and charity. She founded the Artists' Theatre School.
