the chimes

Based on: The Chimes by Charles Dickens

Genre/ Theme: A Period Drama set in Victorian London exploring the dangers of political and classist rhetoric and the importance of standing together against it and learning self-worth.

Logline: The destitution of the working class is ingrained in the heart of an aging porter. Can visions of his loved ones' lives change his views before their fates are set?

Summary:

Poor aging porter, Toby Veck, has lived his life as a member of the working class and has come to believe that his kind are born bad and will end up dying the same. He repeats everything the upper class tells him, to the point he won’t even bless his daughter, Meg’s, engagement to a man stuck in the workhouse and is unable to lift a finger to help Will Fern, an Irish immigrant set to be put down to make a political statement. His conscience becomes haunted by the sound of the Chimes, driving him to run into the night in the middle of winter.

The Chimes show him the past and present of the world as he sees it, an intersecting story of Will and Meg’s lives as they struggle against a society that won’t accept them, simply because they are poor. Will is imprisoned, while Meg sees her optimism beaten down time and time again as she sacrifices the little she has left to look after Will’s niece, Lillian. When Lillian dies from Scarlet Fever, leaving Meg with only her medical bills, Meg finds herself fully lost and alone in the world.

When Will is finally released from prison he seeks his revenge and burns down the Alderman’s mansion in the middle of his New Year’s Party. Meanwhile Meg has lost all hope in life and follows the sound of the chimes, planning to throw herself off the bell tower to her death. Toby pleads against the chimes' visions but can do nothing to stop them. He falls with his daughter watching the world fade to black around him.

In a Scrooge-like change, Toby wakes up in the church, finding himself back in his own time with a last chance to change. He takes in Will and Lillian until they can find their feet and readily accepts his daughter’s wedding as the now lovely sound of the chimes rings throughout London.

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