SHERLOCK -- DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 2/23/22

 

For over a century, authors and filmmakers have been unable to resist rethinking, revising, and generally screwing around with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic master detective Sherlock Holmes.  Even the silver screen's gold standard Holmes, Basil Rathbone, found himself transplanted from Victorian-era London into the middle of World War II in order to apply his peerless deductive skills toward fighting the Axis.  Over the years Holmes has met Sigmund Freud and Jack the Ripper, battled invading Martians, and exposed his private life for all to see.

While many of these updates are respectful of the original material, some are mere gimmicks designed to spoof or sensationalize.  But the three-part BBC-TV series SHERLOCK (2010), which places Holmes and the redoubtable Dr. John H. Watson squarely in the 21st century with the rest of us, is no gimmick.  Rather, it's an exhilarating opportunity for the celebrated sleuth and his loyal sidekick to engage a whole new world of mysteries.

Indeed, this Sherlock would fit comfortably into any time period.  He's not a fish out of water--his dynamic, self-contained character resists the need to be "updated" save for the modern detecting tools of which he readily avails himself.  Of course, he still has his violin, not to mention his problems with certain controlled substances.  The shag pipe has been replaced by nicotine patches, and instead of a journal, Watson records their adventures in his blog.
 

Holmes' rivalrous sibling Mycroft is here as well, now a member of the British government's inner circle and played very amusingly by Mark Gatiss.  Needless to say, the shadowy presence of a certain Moriarty hovers over it all.  Each episode is beautifully directed and shot, with inventive scene transitions and a fine musical score by David Arnold and Michael Price.  The scripts are replete with crackling dialogue and bits of business which convey the spirit of Doyle's original characters and stories in loving detail.  With all the familiar pieces falling into place in such a satisfying manner, SHERLOCK is a deep, delightful wallow in Holmesiana.

It took about half a minute for the wonderfully-named Benedict Cumberbatch to win me over as Holmes.  We first find him in the morgue, furiously laying into a corpse with a riding crop to assess the bruises.  Blithely unaware that a smitten attendant named Molly Hooper (Loo Brealey) is coming on to him, he responds to her timid invitation to coffee with a curt "Black, two sugars please, I'll be upstairs" before dashing off to the laboratory.  This leads directly to the fateful meeting between the two odd ducks, Holmes and Watson (Martin Freeman), both seeking a roommate as in the first chapter of the original Holmes novel, "A Study in Scarlet."  (This premiere episode is similarly titled "A Study in Pink.") 

Noticing Watson's crutch, the inquisitive Holmes asks, "Afganistan or Iraq?"  Watson, as in his initial incarnation, has been wounded both physically and mentally in the war and spends his days in therapy, but we get the feeling his unhappy life is about to get a lot more interesting.  "We don't know a single thing about each other," he says dubiously when Holmes takes it for granted that they'll be flatmates.
 

Fans know exactly what's coming next.  Our shared anticipation is rewarded when the droll, almost insanely perceptive Holmes casually reels off much of Watson's life story, based on simple observation, without missing a beat.  It's a marvelous scene, establishing his eccentric character beautifully with a few exquisite strokes.  Before long, both are ensconced in the familiar surroundings of 221B Baker Street, fussed over by their dear old landlady Mrs. Hudson (Una Stubbs).

"When the police are out of their depth, which is always, they consult me," he boasts when Detective Lastrade (Rupert Graves) of Scotland Yard summons him to the scene of a mysterious suicide.  Holmes invites Watson along as a medical consultant, thus beginning their grand collaboration.  A series of apparent self-poisonings has Scotland Yard baffled, and it's up to Holmes to figure out why unrelated Londoners are killing themselves with identical poison pills for no apparent reason.  This adventure will eventually lead him into a riveting battle of wits with the most unlikely of opponents.  

With a frustrated Lestrade constantly calling upon Holmes for help, the two bear a resemblance to Batman and Commissioner Gordon.  Which is fitting since, after all, Batman was partly based on Holmes in the first place.  (Maybe that's why the otherwise useless Robin was invented, to serve the Watson role of sounding board and appreciative audience to "the world's greatest detective.")

A clever convention that appears frequently is the use of floating text to show us not only what's popping up on various cell phones (Holmes prefers texting to talking) and other sources, but also lets us in on what's running through Holmes' mind as he riffles through various visual clues.  This way, he doesn't have to constantly explain everything to Watson for our benefit, and we get to see his thought processes in real time as he gathers and assesses information at lightning speed.

In the second episode, "The Blind Banker", Holmes sniffs out a racket involving stolen historical artifacts smuggled in from China and sold at auction.  When two of the smugglers are found dead in classic "locked room" scenarios, the killer's trail leads to a scary Chinese criminal cult that eventually gets their hands on our heroes.  While this episode gets slightly bogged down in procedure at times, there's plenty of exotic atmosphere, great character byplay, and a keenly suspenseful finale.

The third and last story of the season, "The Great Game", is an utter joy from start to finish.  It begins with Watson returning to the flat to find Holmes shooting bullets into the wall out of boredom, followed by that famous exchange in which Holmes reveals he doesn't know that the Earth goes round the sun.  Such information, he explains, isn't necessary in his work, and, in contemporary terms, he likens his brain to a hard drive from which all extraneous data must be deleted. 

The plot involves a mad bomber who communicates with Holmes through hostages who are wired with explosives and forced to read their captor's text messages aloud over the phone.  With only hours to solve each of the killer's mysterious puzzles and rescue the hostages one by one, the pace is frantic and the action non-stop, culminating in a final revelatory scene that should have Holmes fans in paroxysms of geek bliss. 

Do we ever get to see the big "M"?  Yes.  I won't go into detail, but the eventual face-to-face encounter between the world's greatest consulting detective and the world's greatest criminal mastermind is a sensational pay-off to all the build-up, and scintillating as hell.  (The words "You complete me" came to mind during their verbal sparring.)  It ends in a cliffhanger which, in a way, reminded me of a certain story called "The Final Problem."

The 2-disc DVD from Warner Home Video and BBC contains all three feature-length episodes (270 minutes total) in a 16:9 aspect ratio and Dolby Digital 5.1 stereo.  Subtitles are in English.  Episodes 1 and 3 contain cast and crew commentaries.  Other bonuses include a making-of featurette, "Unlocking Sherlock", and the original hour-long pilot which was later expanded and reshot to become "A Study in Pink."
 
Do I recommend SHERLOCK?  It's all I can do to keep from coming over to your house and forcing you to watch it with me.  This is intoxicating stuff for Holmes addicts, and I can't wait to see what's next.  In the words of the modern-day Sherlock: "The game is on!"

SHERLOCK -- DVD Review by Porfle

DAPHNE -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted in 2008

Sizing herself up in the mirror before attending a stuffy party, Daphne du Maurier frowns at her fancy evening gown and mutters, "Why can't I just wear velvet trousers and a boyish belt?"

Based in part on her own letters and memoirs, the BBC TV-movie DAPHNE (2007) is all about the famous author wishing, like Pinocchio, that she were a boy. A bisexual boy, that is. The main emphasis is on Daphne's all-consuming infatuation for her American publisher's beautiful, outgoing wife, Ellen Doubleday, whom she meets while in the states to contest a plagiarism charge. Daphne finds Ellen an irresistible ray of sunshine in contrast to the increasingly distant relationship she endures with her troubled WWII veteran husband, Tommy (Andrew Havill).

After restraining her fierce romantic impulses as long as she can, Daphne finally professes her love to Ellen and is painfully rebuffed. "Love is love," she frets. "How can there be different ways?" She then finds rebound solace in the willing arms of the flamboyant stage diva Gertrude Lawrence, although their torrid affair leaves Daphne frustrated and unfulfilled. Interestingly, Daphne doesn't consider herself a "lesbian" at all--she despises the word, in fact. In her mind, if not her body, she has always been a boy.

I was expecting to see a serious, comprehensive look at the life of Daphne du Maurier here, so I didn't start getting into this movie until I realized that it's actually the sort of gaudy, hand-wringing upperclass soap opera--complete with furiously overwrought musical score--that people like Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman used to star in. Except in this case, the Rock Hudson role is played by the lead actress. Once I got what it was about, this handsomely mounted, well-played melodrama about unrequited love and gender identity, and how these feelings and experiences served as an inspiration in Daphne's writing, became fairly involving.

Geraldine Somerville ("Lily Potter" of the Harry Potter series) plays the troubled author of "Rebecca", "My Cousin Rachel", and "The Birds" with a long-suffering wistfulness which will appeal to either your empathy or your apathy. Elizabeth McGovern, aging nicely these days, is likable as the winsome social butterfly over which Daphne goes sweetly ga-ga. Best of all is Janet McTeer as brassy broad Gertrude Lawrence, who is the kind of woman Daphne finds exciting but wouldn't want to marry. The only other role I've seen McTeer play was Nelly in the 1992 WUTHERING HEIGHTS, so this is quite an interesting change which she handles beautifully.

The DVD image is 1.77:1, with Dolby Digital sound. The sole bonus feature is a du Maurier-penned documentary entitled "Vanishing Cornwall", which runs about half an hour and was directed by her son, Christian Browning. The author herself appears briefly at the beginning of this dry, rather dull look at the history of her beloved homeplace.

DAPHNE is the kind of smart, stately, yet tastefully decadent soap opera that you can indulge in like an unhealthy confection. That is, if you have the taste for such things. Otherwise, it may just leave you with a queasy stomach.

DAPHNE -- DVD Review by Porfle

AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 1/ AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 2 -- DVD Reviews by Porfle

Originally posted on 1/26/12

Having been introduced to the British ITV series "Agatha Christie Poirot" through some of the later feature-length episodes, I was surprised to find the earlier seasons (circa 1989-90) of this long-running show to be faster-paced, funnier, and much lighter in tone--in general, more fun.  Not to disparage the more darkly dramatic ambience of the post-2000 ones, which are superb entertainment in their own right, but I like this lighthearted and mischievously sly side of Poirot much better.

The first ten one-hour episodes are collected in AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 1, beginning with "The Adventure of the Clapham Cook" (which features a brief appearance by a young Danny Webb of ALIEN 3 fame).  Here, we're first introduced to Poirot's associate Captain Hastings (Hugh Fraser), a hale fellow with a boyish enthusiasm for things like automobiles and cricket.  Hastings isn't too quick on the uptake, at least not alongside a genius like Poirot, but he's good at following people, tackling escaping suspects, and serving as an appreciative audience for the vain Poirot's feats of deduction. 

Also on hand is Poirot's prim and efficient secretary Miss Lemon.  As played by Pauline Moran, she's made up to look just plain enough to render her strangely sexy, despite the fact that her character is as properly straitlaced as can be.  In Poirot's office-apartment in a magnificent old hotel complex, the three frequently engage in breezy banter that's often more fun than the mystery plots themselves.  This early incarnation of Poirot, unlike his later self, delights in playfully teasing his associates and exercising his exquisitely dry wit at their expense.

David Suchet's portrayal of the title character is, as always, absolutely impeccable.  His Poirot is an unwavering obsessive-compulsive who's fastidious, fussy, finicky, and mortified at anything that's out of place in his well-ordered world.  This, along with the sheer joy he derives from solving puzzles using his beloved "little gray cells", is what compels him to make right the wrongs that he encounters through his often desperate clients.  Another impetus is his friendly rivalry with Chief Inspector James Japp (Philip Jackson, also seen only in the early seasons of the show), a doggedly by-the-book cop who is continually baffled by Poirot's unconventional deductive skills.

"Murder in the Mews" begins with Poirot's infuriating battle with a Chinese laundry over the amount of starch in his collars and progresses to include a puzzling locked room murder made to look like a suicide.  In "The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly", the parents of a small boy are warned in advance that their son is going to be kidnapped at a particular time and place, which happens despite the presence of several police and Poirot himself.  "Four and Twenty Blackbirds" concerns the suspicious deaths of two estranged brothers within a short time of each other.

"The Third Floor Flat" finds Poirot's little gray cells atrophying during a long stretch between cases, until a murder in his own hotel has him sizing up all the various suspects as only he can.  "Triangle at Rhodes" benefits from gorgeous location photography with a vacationing Poirot getting drawn into the murder by poisoning of a woman whose husband is infuriated by her infidelity with another guest.  Another vacation, this time on board a cruise ship, is marred by a "Problem at Sea" when a wealthy but thoroughly unlikable woman is found stabbed in her cabin with the door locked.  Everyone including the woman's henpecked husband seems to have a strong alibi, giving Poirot a particularly challenging mental workout. 

"The Incredible Theft" is steeped in pre-WWII intrigue as a woman suspected of being a Nazi sympathiser is accused of stealing the plans for a new fighter plane in order to pass them along to German agents.  Old movie fans should get a kick out of "The King of Clubs", as a tyrannical studio boss is murdered in his mansion and the main suspect is a popular actress with whom he's been known to be at odds.  One of the perks of this episode is the use of an old-style glass shot during a soundstage scene, while another is the appearance of a young Sean Pertwee as the brother of the accused actress (Niamh Cusack). 

Finally, "The Dream" has something of an "Avengers" vibe as a crotchety old meat-pie tycoon complains to Poirot that he keeps having a recurring dream of committing suicide in his office at a particular time.  When he actually does just that, and at the precise time of his dream, Poirot finds himself with a real puzzler.  Joely Richardson guests as the man's daughter, while Alan Howard delivers a marvelously theatrical performance as the abrasive old coot.

Each story is bathed in the nostalgic glow of an old magazine illustration, with finely-rendered production design (art deco fans will be in hog heaven) and ideal locations lending an exquisite period atmosphere to every scene.  Direction is first-rate as are the uniformly excellent guest performances.  Unlike the denser and sometimes meandering plots of the later "Poirot", these episodes are briskly uncomplicated and easy to follow in addition to featuring much delightful character interplay that will be missing (and missed) when Poirot becomes a more solitary and stern character later on.  Captain Hastings and Chief Inspector Japp in particular are the perfect uncomprehending foils for Suchet's brilliant Poirot.

The three-disc DVD set from Acorn Media is in 4:3 full screen with Dolby Digital sound and English subtitles, with the titles newly remastered and in the original UK broadcast order.  There are no extras.  (Also available in a two-disc Blu-Ray version.)

Continuing right where season one left off is AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 2, with nine more mysteries on three discs.  "Peril at End House" guest stars Polly Walker (PATRIOT GAMES, CLASH OF THE TITANS) as a beautiful heiress whom Poirot meets while staying at a Cornish resort.  The young woman's stories of a rash of recent life-threatening mishaps leads Poirot to believe that someone is trying to kill her, especially when a stray bullet zips through her bonnet as they're chatting by the seaside.  This story boasts some really nice twists and turns along with an appearance by Paul Geoffrey (EXCALIBUR, WUTHERING HEIGHTS). 

"The Veiled Lady" finds the portly detective helping another enchanting young lady, this time a blackmail victim imploring him to recover an incriminating letter.  A highlight of this adventure is Poirot and Hastings becoming cat burglars as they break into the blackmailer's house to conduct a search which results in their being arrested by none other than Chief Inspector Japp.  An imposing Terence Harvey of FROM HELL and PRIME SUSPECT 3 plays the formidable cad here, which seems to be his specialty. 

A foray into Chinatown to solve the murder of a Chinese businessman and the theft of his map to "The Lost Mine" leads Poirot into a winding maze of mystery.  In "The Cornish Mystery", the Belgian detective has a rude awakening when he's too late to save a woman who suspects her husband of trying to poison her.  Her tragic death fires him up big time, and woe to the killer when a fired-up Poirot aims his razor-sharp intellect at him (or her).  Freda Stanton, who played the hapless Princess Elspeth in DRAGONSLAYER, guest stars. 

Kenneth Colley, a familiar face to fans of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, plays a banker who steps out of his house into the fog one day and is never seen again in "The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim."  Sharp-eyed viewers will guess the secret behind this one pretty quick but it's still fun watching it play out.  "Double Sin" is a real twister with the delivery of some priceless antiques to a potential buyer ending in theft during a bus trip.  Here, Chief Inspector Japp bets the boastful Poirot that he can't solve the mystery without leaving his house, giving Hastings a rare opportunity for some solo detective work. 

"The Adventure of the Cheap Flat" finds a lucky young couple getting a lovely apartment for a steal, unaware that they're being set up for murder.  (The wife is played by Samantha Bond, who was Moneypenny to Pierce Brosnan's 007.)  Poirot and Hastings do a little more cat burglary in this one with similarly unfortunate results, while the search for some stolen submarine plans brings in William Hootkins (Porkins in STAR WARS, Eckhardt in BATMAN) as a visiting FBI agent played in stereotypical blustery "American" style.

A crackerjack mystery ensues surrounding "The Kidnapped Prime Minister" as Poirot infuriates police with his methodical and seemingly nonsensical approach to solving the crime as the seconds tick away before a crucial international arms summit.  Finally, "The Adventure of the Western Star" is the intriguing tale of a pair of priceless diamonds owned by two women who receive letters informing them that the gems are to be stolen in order to return them to the mystical idol from which they were taken.  Sure enough, this occurs--seemingly--but Poirot suspects that there's more to the case than meets the eye, and, as usual, he's right.

The three-disc DVD set from Acorn Media is in 4:3 full screen with Dolby Digital sound and English subtitles, with the titles newly remastered and in the original UK broadcast order.  There are no extras.  (Also available in a two-disc Blu-Ray version.)

As with the first set, AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 2 is the kind of cozy entertainment you can snuggle up with as you would a volume of engrossing short stories on a rainy evening.  With their endlessly appealing blend of sumptuous production design, intriguing stories, and fascinating characters--not the least of which being David Suchet's masterful portrayal of the dazzling and strangely endearing Belgian detective himself--the adventures of Hercule Poirot are a feast for mystery fans. 

AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 1/ AGATHA CHRISTIE POIROT: SERIES 2 -- DVD Reviews by Porfle

SNUFF BOX: THE COMPLETE SERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 10/5/11

 

Here's the bottom line--if you have the same sense of humor that I do, you'll love SNUFF BOX: THE COMPLETE SERIES, the six-episode sketch comedy series starring British comedian Matt Berry and American comedian Rich Fulcher.  However, if you don't have the same sense of humor that I do, then this review is probably the closest you'll ever want to ever get to it, ever ever ever.

Another condition--it will help if you're a fan of things like "Monty Python's Flying Circus", "Mr. Show", "Kids in the Hall", and various other showcases for surrealistic silliness and illogical irreverence.  But since this show isn't taped in front of a live audience and uses cinema-style photography and editing, Berry and Fulcher are able to let their imaginations drift through the same kind of demented mental landscape from which things like "Alice in Wonderland" emerge.

As a framing device, the boys live in a posh gentlemen's club started by Matt's great-uncle Sir Charles Berry and carry on his family business of hanging people at the local prison.  Most episodes, in fact, begin with a humorous hanging (Condition #3: must enjoy humorous hangings, Russian roulette, and other lighthearted but graphic violence) after which we join Matt and Rich in the club's lounge, establishing the storyline from which the various comedy sketches are, if you'll pardon the expression, hung.

Matt's character is a pompous, conceited womanizer who always steals Rich's girlfriends away from him and cheats him out of his royalty checks from the estate of his late mother, Mama Cass Elliott.  Rich is a naive, Stimpy-like fall guy for the most part, although he can revert into a sadistic tormenter who shares Matt's personal diary confessions with the world and ruins all of his attempts at public speaking by blurting out all his punchlines.  Because of this, Matt often vows to kill Rich, even purchasing several books on the subject such as "How to Kill Rich Fulcher With Poison Darts." 

In the tradition of such shows, the two stars play most of the other characters themselves thanks to clever use of editing and green-screen.  These include a nerd (Fulcher) with an intense sexual fixation toward various objects such as lollipops, teddy bears, and his own arm, and Sir Charles (Berry), whom Rich visits in 1888 via a magic doorway next to the club's restroom.  One of the best episodes features a visit from Matt and Rich's brothers--naturally, Rich's obnoxious redneck brother wants to kill him, while Rich's "specially challenged" brother James makes a screamingly funny appearance on a British pop music show.

Other noteworthy stand-alone bits: Rich takes center stage in the delightful "Rapper With a Baby" music video; Matt is a video guitar teacher with a grotesquely long ring finger; Rich plays a stern art museum guide in "Full Metal Jacket" drill-sergeant mode; and Matt's solemn musical tribute to a deceased brother suddenly turns into a cheesy Edgar Winter spoof complete with strap-on keyboard.

My favorite running gags, however, are those which involve Matt and Rich as themselves and are part of the overall storyline that (sort of) links the six episodes together.  Matt's attempts to purchase a pair of silver cowboy boots from a chic store results in him being savagely beaten by a succession of surprisingly violent salespersons.  He also displays dashingly chivalrous behavior towards a number of attractive women until their mention of the word "boyfriend" brings out his violent streak.  Rich's problems getting girls to like him also result in several funny bits, culminating in his engagement to an ape woman with whom Rich is caught having public intercourse during the wedding reception.

While watching the show I kept detecting a nagging similarity to something else besides other sketch comedy shows I'd seen before.  When Rich steps through a doorway and plummets into a swimming pool, it finally hit me--in addition to being like "Monty Python", "Mr. Show", et al, SNUFF BOX's surrealistic style is strongly akin to the mindblowing 1968 Monkees' film, HEAD.  Adding to this is Matt Berry's cool score, which revolves around a single reoccuring song and ties the series together musically while frequently erupting into full-blown production numbers.  This surprisingly lush score, along with the show's mid-budget feature film look, gives it the feel of an extended movie that should be watched in one sitting to be fully appreciated. 

The DVD from Severin Films is in 1.78:1 widescreen with Dolby Digital sound.  No subtitles.  Extras include featurettes "Taking Control of Your Body" with testimonials from the likes of Simon Pegg and "Weird Al" Yankovic, "Locations Walking Tour", "The Score", "Inside the Snuff Box", more testimonials, outtakes, and commentaries by Matt and Rich for episodes 1, 2, and 6.  Best of all is a bonus CD containing 36 minutes of music and songs from the soundtrack.

With its weird blend of sex, violence, profanity, and just plain strangeness, SNUFF BOX: THE COMPLETE SERIES is the kind of entertainment that will appeal to a small but devoted audience, as evidenced by its initial failure on BBC 3 (it was only shown once in 2006) and subsequent cult popularity.  If this sounds good to you, then you owe it to yourself to have a go at this obscure comedy gem.

SNUFF BOX: THE COMPLETE SERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

AGATHA CHRISTIE'S PARTNERS IN CRIME: THE TOMMY & TUPPENCE MYSTERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 1/26/13

While I was aware of Agatha Christie's keen sense of humor from watching the delightful "Poirot" and "Marple" television adaptations of recent years, it wasn't until I met Tommy and Tuppence Beresford that I encountered Dame Agatha's downright silly side.  Their one-season, 11-episode TV series from 1983 can now be found in Acorn Media's 3-disc DVD set AGATHA CHRISTIE'S PARTNERS IN CRIME: THE TOMMY & TUPPENCE MYSTERIES, but how much you appreciate them depends on your tolerance for screwball detective shenanigans of a distinctly lightweight nature.

James Warwick, almost a dead ringer for a young Michael Palin of "Monty Python", plays wounded World War I vet Thomas Beresford. In the feature-length pilot "The Secret Adversary", Tommy returns to London after his military discharge and is reunited with Prudence "Tuppence" Crowley (Francesca Annis, "Lillie", "Cranford"), the beautiful, vivacious army nurse who helped him recover from his injuries.  Naturally, they fall in love, but are both desperate to find work. 

After a few improbable contrivances, the soon-to-be-married couple find themselves working undercover for the British government in an adventure that feels more like a low-rent espionage yarn than a mystery story.  While there's a McGuffin of some sort that I can barely recall, this is simply an excuse to put our hero and heroine in and out of mildly dangerous situations for an hour and a half while dealing with guest stars George Baker ("I, Claudius"), Honor Blackman (of "The Avengers" and GOLDFINGER fame), and Gavan O'Herlihy (Richie Cunningham's phantom older brother on "Happy Days") as Julius P. Hersheimmer, an American millionaire who may or may not be in cahoots with the bad guys.

"The Secret Adversary" has that dreary, overcast look typical of filmed British teleplays of the era, which I actually regard with much nostalgia.  The story is more serious than the later series, with more gravitas and character depth.  Period trappings do a good enough job evoking the atmosphere of the post-WWI "flapper" era, especially in the rather lavish costuming.  All in all, it comes off as something Agatha Christie might've written to give her brain a rest from its usual rigorous literary workouts.

The first episode of the series proper, "The Affair of the Pink Pearl", comes as something of a shock since it features that odd-looking tendency of early British television to mix gloomy filmed exteriors with brightly-lit videotaped interiors, which never fails to look jarring and artificial.  Tommy and Tuppence have taken over a detective agency despite their having no experience in the field whatsoever--they rely mainly on sheer luck and pluck to get by--with their movie-obsessed young butler Albert (Reece Dinsdale) serving as receptionist and general comedy relief buffoon. 

The series has the look of a sitcom with everyone playing their roles in a broad, theatrical manner.  The mysteries Tommy and Tuppence are called upon to solve are quickly and easily dealt with for the most part--anything more complicated, in fact, would be beyond their limited capabilities--leaving plenty of time for frivilously romantic banter between the charming but sometimes sickly-sweet lovebirds. 

"Pink Pearl" is a simple, even paper-thin drawing room mystery involving the theft of the title item amidst an upperclass household of eccentrics.  Francesca Annis' Tuppence is flightier and sillier than ever, yet she's more naturally clever at solving puzzles than Tommy, a sturdy, reliable chap who enjoys letting his playful side show through in her presence.  Guests include William Hootkins of STAR WARS, BATMAN, and HARDWARE, and Graham Crowden of BRITANNIA HOSPITAL.

"The House of Lurking Death" is more like it, living up to its lurid title quite nicely with a better balance of seriousness and humor.  Half the characters we're introduced to in the first scene are killed off by poison, putting Tommy and Tuppence into a situation that's much grimmer and more genuinely involving than usual.  (Joan Sanderson, the crabby old deaf lady from "Fawlty Towers", guests.)  After this, "The Sunningdale Mystery" is positively inert, with our leads wandering around a golf course discussing a murder mystery and poking around for clues until they figure things out and go home.  

"The Clergyman's Daughter" is a fun one about a supposed mansion haunting with the usual "Scooby-Doo" plot enhanced by Tuppence's masquerade as a spiritualist.  "Finessing the King" gives Tommy and Tuppence a chance to dress up as Holmes and Watson for a costume ball and revisit some old romantic haunts from their past, one of which becomes the setting for the inevitable murder.  After that, "The Ambassador's Boots" is about as bland as the title suggests.

There's some nice foggy atmosphere in "The Man in the Mist" but it gives way to tedium as Tommy's longwinded re-enactment of yet another murder goes on too long.  The episode is saved by a chuckle-inducing ending.  "The Unbreakable Alibi" is an interesting tale of a woman who claims to have been in two places at once, with a solid alibi in each instance.  Fairly intriguing, until the most obvious solution to the mystery turns out to be the right one.

In "The Case of the Missing Lady", Tommy and Tuppence infiltrate a country asylum where an Arctic explorer's missing fiance' is thought to be held captive.  This is one of the most comedy-heavy episodes, with Tuppence, disguised as a famous Russian ballerina, keeping staff and inmates occupied with a prolonged shaggy-dog version of "Swan Lake" while Tommy searches the place disguised as a scraggly old gardener.  A last-minute revelation makes the story even more lightweight than previously thought, but with amusing results.  "The Crackler" sends the series off with a pretty interesting tale of counterfeit bank notes floating around an illicit gambling club.

The 3-disc DVD set from Acorn Media is in 4:3 full screen with Dolby Digital sound and English subtitles.  There are no extras.

If you're up for this sort of frothy, lightweight entertainment, then there's no reason why you shouldn't enjoy AGATHA CHRISTIE'S PARTNERS IN CRIME: THE TOMMY & TUPPENCE MYSTERIES to some extent.  Just as long as you're not expecting something with the same rich atmosphere and emotional resonance as Christie's more substantial filmed works.

AGATHA CHRISTIE'S PARTNERS IN CRIME: THE TOMMY & TUPPENCE MYSTERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

LILLIE -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 2/20/13

When we first got cable TV back in the late 70s, one of my newfound delights was getting to watch British telly on PBS.  In addition to "Monty Python", "Fawlty Towers", and all the other usual stuff, this included a 13-episode "Masterpiece Theatre" serial about Lillie Langtry which, for some reason, had me glued to the screen for its entire run. 

Why was I hooked on what amounted to a lavishly-mounted, delightfully decadent soap opera that consisted of little more than the interpersonal relationships and illicit affairs of a bunch of idle upperclass twits?   I'm not quite sure, but watching Acorn Media's 4-disc DVD set LILLIE (1978) has given me a chance to relive the whole thing and get addicted to this nineteenth-century version of "The Rich and the Restless" all over again.

Lillie Langtry, as we all know (or not), started life as poor Jersey island girl Emilie Le Breton, a tomboy with six brothers who escaped her rural life by marrying the leisure-class yachtsman and trout fisherman Edward Langtry.  After moving to London, Lillie discovered that her new husband was near destitute and dependant on a small allowance from his family.  Fortunately, her great beauty and social confidence quickly earned her a place as the most sought-after woman in British society.

Francesca Annis (AGATHA CHRISTIE'S PARTNERS IN CRIME: THE TOMMY & TUPPENCE MYSTERIES, DUNE) is not only radiantly beautiful in the title role, but gives a bravura performance that captures every nuance of Lillie's personality from her most brazen and rebellious to her most insecure.  She inhabits the role just as convincingly as a naive fifteen-year-old first attracting the attention of the opposite sex (her first suitor is shocked to learn her true age while requesting her hand in marriage) as she will be in Lillie's wistful twilight years (despite some rather iffy old-age makeup). 

Lillie's loveless relationship with the dullard Edward gives the series its most gripping moments, with Anton Rodgers superb as the increasingly pathetic and irrelevant husband who detests Lillie's way of life but must dutifully play along or risk both his family's displeasure and withdrawal of financial support.  It's to the credit of both Rodgers and main scriptwriter David Butler that the character isn't entirely vilified but shown in an almost sympathetic light as he spirals ever downward into alcoholism and finally madness.

Despite the fact that Edward will continually deny Lillie the divorce she badly wants, this will do nothing to deter her from engaging in numerous torrid affairs with everyone from the Prince of Wales (Denis Lill as a robust "Bertie") to rich American tycoons, with even Wild West frontiersman Judge Roy Bean seeking her attention.  There's a certain vicarious thrill to watching her scramble up the social ladder while challenging the stiff conformity of her new peers at every turn, even though her life amounts to little more than one meaningless party or empty love affair after another. 

When financial ruin forces her to seek employment as an actress, this only leads to greater success and fame that will extend to America as well.  The series follows her exploits on both continents as her various theatrical tours cut a swath of notoriety wherever she goes, each scandal seemingly making her more popular than before. 

All the while, her entourage of fervent admirers grows to include famous artists such as James Whistler (Don Fellows) and her lifelong friend and confidant Oscar Wilde (the excellent Peter Egan), whose sharp-witted presence gives LILLIE a scintillating sparkle.  Jennie Linden is likable as Lillie's relatively down-to-earth high society pal Patsy Cornwallis-West.  Joanna David plays her illegitimate daughter Jeanne Marie, who, in some of the series most heartfelt moments, ultimately rejects her mother after discovering the true identity of her father.  (Look quick for 007's Desmond "Q" Llewelyn as Lord Dudley.)

Following the usual practice of the era, the show's exteriors are filmed while the interiors are shot on videotape.  Thanks mainly to some skillful lighting, however, the effect is less jarring than in many British TV shows of the time.  Overall, the production is solid on both sides of the camera--the sort of compelling period drama, done with taste and subtlety, that only British television seems capable of rendering to such a fine turn. 

The 4-disc DVD set from Acorn Media is in 4:3 full screen with Dolby Digital sound.  No subtitles, but closed-captioning is available.  Extras consist of cast filmographies and an insert featuring an essay on Lillie Langtry's lasting impact on pop culture.

While many will undoubtedly regard it as rather pointless and boring, I find LILLIE both nostalgic and compelling, and, for those who enjoy this sort of thing, first-class stuff all the way.  It's soap opera of the most sophisticated and decadently delicious kind--like a box of extremely rich chocolates, it almost feels fattening to watch.

LILLIE -- DVD Review by Porfle

THE FALL: SERIES 1 -- DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 9/17/13

 

Bleak, melancholy--borderline depressing, in fact--the Brit cop series THE FALL: SERIES 1 (2013)  has enough going for  it to supply hardy viewers with plenty of hard-edged adult drama and suspense.  Yet those holding out for some kind of closure at the end of series one's five episode run may find it ultimately unfulfilling.

Gillian Anderson ("The X-Files", BLEAK HOUSE) plays DS Stella Gibson,  who's been summoned by the Belfast police to head a departmental review into a stalled murder investigation.  When other, similar murders point to the work of  a serial killer, Gibson urges her superior and former lover Jim Burns (John Lynch) to put her in charge of the case.

Meanwhile, we follow the everyday life of Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan, "Once Upon a Time"), a devoted  husband and father who works as a grief counsellor.  He also happens to be the killer DS Gibson and her new task force are searching for.  When not helping care for his ultra-cute kids Olivia and Liam or guiding a young couple through the heartbreak of losing their son, he's stalking young professional  women as a prelude to murdering them in extremely ritualistic fashion.

While Dornan plays the character with a quiet, smoldering intensity,  Anderson's DS Gibson seems mostly sullen and cold.  This is partially accounted for by the fact that she has no life whatsoever outside of law enforcement, and treats the one sexual encounter that we see--after an abrupt come-on to handsome  young cop James Olson (Ben Peel) to whom she's just been introduced--with less warmth and intimacy than a handshake. 

When Olson is gunned down in connection with a related case, Burns' objection to Gibson's casual encounter with him becomes fodder for series creator and writer Allan Cubitt's desire to inject gender politics into the mix whenever possible.   The scripts often feed Gibson weak male characters to get the best of and sympathetic female colleagues to  bond with, although none of this is as effective or relevant as Helen Mirren's struggles against sexual discrimination in the classic series "Prime Suspect." 

It does, however, give Anderson the chance to play an imperfect heroine who isn't particularly likable and, in fact, comes off as rigid, humorless, and emotionally-repressed.  We learn practically nothing about her past and thus haven't a clue as to how she became this way.   One might even call her character underwritten,  giving Anderson the task of filling in the blanks with her own substantial presence, which she manages to do quite well.

As for Paul Spector, so much is made of his family and professional lives that we sometimes almost forget that he's the killer, except for the times in which his public and private personas threaten to collide.  Strangely, he's just about the only male character who seems to demonstrate consistently positive traits--faithful husband, devoted father, caring grief counsellor--and he's so matter-of-fact while going about his misdeeds that we get little sense of how truly evil and deranged he would have to be underneath his bland exterior.

A not-altogether-successful attempt is made, through crosscutting, to draw parallels between Spector and Gibson as we see them going about their lives.  Both are predators of a sort--she conquers her male prey through impersonal sex while he dominates and kills his victim.  He runs, she swims; she pores over her case notebook while he studies his trophy scrapbook; and so on.  In one curious scene,  a shot of a dead victim sprawled across a bed is juxtaposed with a similar view of Gibson in a matching reclining pose after sex.

The murder sequences,  of course, are repellent but not played to chill or thrill except when things go wrong and chaos ensues,  as in episode four's botched attack.  This bit of excitement comes none too soon, as it's around this point that the series starts to drag a bit despite some mildly shocking moments which, even so, might have been directed a bit more sharply.  Other subplots which don't seem all that relevant distract from the main drive of the story.

As Spector fights to keep himself together,  a punchy phone conversation with DS Gibson provides the series with some of its most scintillating moments.  However,  this is the closest we'll get to a climax in series one, as the final episode ends with a cliffhanger that promises to stretch things out even more next season.  I would've preferred a resolution,  but if the writers go in a different,  unexpected direction next time it should keep things interesting.

The 2-disc set from Acorn Media is in 16:9 widescreen with Dolby Digital sound and English subtitles.  The sole extra is a 12-minute behind-the-scenes featurette.

THE FALL: SERIES 1 is substantial, involving drama that's worth watching,  although somewhat of a disappointment compared to some of the better Brit cop shows I've watched.  In some ways it even comes off as a bit half-baked at times.  And while I'm keen to find out what happens next season,  I'm not exactly on pins and needles.

THE FALL: SERIES 1 -- DVD Review by Porfle

EDGE OF DARKNESS: THE COMPLETE SERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 1/28/10

 

 

A resounding critical and popular success upon its BBC debut in 1985, the six-part serial EDGE OF DARKNESS is an intelligent thriller that will bore those looking for superficial sensation while offering more patient viewers a richly rewarding experience.

Yorkshire detective and widower Ronald Craven (Ben Peck) has just arrived home one rainy night with his political activist daughter Emma (Joanne Whalley, WILLOW) when a gunman steps out of the shadows with a shotgun and opens fire. Emma leaps in front of her father and is killed before the gunman escapes. Heartbroken, Craven journeys to London on a quest to track down what he and his boss believe to be one of his old enemies. But the deeper he digs, the more he begins to believe that his daughter was the prime target due to the efforts of her group, GAIA, to expose a nearby nuclear waste facility called Northmoor which has been illegally storing plutonium.

I honestly thought this was going to be one of those violent "father's revenge" stories and was pleasantly surprised to find how wrong I was at every turn. Rather than turning into an inhuman killing machine wiping out easy targets left and right (not that there's anything wrong with that), Craven's humanity comes increasingly to the fore as his daughter's cause begins to resonate with him and his main goal becomes a desire to finish what she started. This involves duplicating an ill-fated raid by her anti-nuclear group GAIA on Northmoor's subterranean storage facility and successfully recovering the plutonium, at the risk of his own life.

To this end, Craven begins to receive help from a couple of government insiders with similar interests, Pendleton (Charles Kay) and Harcourt (Ian McNeice, ACE VENTURE: WHEN NATURE CALLS), whose prissy characters supply some of the story's droll comic touches. His main ally, however, is CIA agent Darius Jedburgh (Joe Don Baker), a brash Texan who loves the cloak-and-dagger stuff almost as much as a good game of golf. Representing Washington's interests in the matter, Jedburgh accompanies Craven on the daring underground search for Northmoor's plutonium "hot cell" (still littered with the corpses of irradiated workers and GAIA members murdered by the plant's security) which takes up most of episode five and gives the series some of its most riveting moments.

Bob Peck, who played the steely-eyed game warden in JURASSIC PARK, is fascinating to watch because his performance as Ronald Craven is so subtle and intense. Rarely demonstrative in demeanor, there's always a lot going on in his deceptively placid face and wary eyes, making even the slightest emotional outburst all the more effective. His character is allowed much screen time after his daughter's death to actually deal with his grief in a believable way, and it's through that perspective that we view all subsequent events.

As a lead character, Craven's an intriguingly odd duck. While going through Emma's things after her death, he comes across her "personal vibrator" and wistfully kisses it. For him, questioning a suspect is a slow process which includes holding his hand in a loving manner and forming an almost affectionate bond that helps to facilitate a willing candor. His mental state is in question as well, particularly when he begins to see and converse with Emma on a regular basis. His growing fanaticism as the story unfolds--or "greening", one might say--makes him more and more unpredictable in his quest to bring down the rich, power-hungry despoilers of the earth responsible for Emma's death.

Troy Kennedy Martin's screenplay is filled with interesting characters, witty dialogue, and political intrigue, with occasional bursts of suspenseful action. Future "Bond" director Martin Campbell's direction is good--a bit claustrophobic at times, though likely intentionally so--and early signs of his later style are evident here. It's easy to see why, ten years later, Campbell would cast Joe Don Baker as CIA agent Jake Wade in GOLDENEYE. Baker gives perhaps the finest performance of his career as Darius Jedburgh--as often as I've seen him in various things over the years, I still had no idea he was capable of being this good.

Most impressive is a later scene in which he addresses a gathering of business and military bigwigs during a conference on nuclear energy, working himself into a blustering, bellowing frenzy with a block of plutonium in each hand and turning the event into a panic-stricken stampede. Baker also relishes delivering some of the film's headiest dialogue such as the following:

"You ever been to Dallas, Craven?"

"No, sir."

"It's where we shoot our presidents. The Jews got their Calvary, but we got Dealey Plaza!"

The rest of the cast is dotted with familiar faces and fine performances. I recognized Jack Watson and Allan Cuthbertson from British shows such as "The Avengers" and "Fawlty Towers", and Zoe Wanamaker, who plays Jedburgh's associate and Craven's fleeting love interest Clementine, has recently appeared in the "Harry Potter" films. Fans of AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON will instantly recognize white-haired actor John Woodvine as Craven's boss. I was especially pleased to see Kenneth Nelson, so effective as the star of William Friedkin's classic BOYS IN THE BAND, as the evil corporate executive Grogan.

The two-disc DVD set from BBC Warner in in 4.3 full-screen with an English mono soundtrack and English subtitles. Extras include: a slightly-different alternate ending; a music-only track to highlight the fine score by Eric Clapton and Michael Kamen; a photo gallery; a lengthy featurette with cast and crew interviews; and some dry but informative British TV segments featuring interviews, reviews, and scenes from the BAFTA and Broadcasting Press Guild award shows where EDGE OF DARKNESS was a big winner.

Slow doesn't always mean boring, especially when a story has the substance this one has, and the deliberate pace with which EDGE OF DARKNESS unfolds is highly satisfying. I'll admit, I had trouble following some of the intricacies of the plot, but as Steward Lane of the Broadcasting Press Guild puts it in one of the DVD extras, "It was so marvelous 'cause you didn't really know what was going on most of the time...which made it most compulsive viewing." And although it didn't leave me with as strong a fadeout as I'd hoped, I was still thinking about those black flowers for quite awhile afterward.

EDGE OF DARKNESS: THE COMPLETE SERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

ALICE IN WONDERLAND (BBC-TV, 1966) -- DVD Review by Porfle

   
 

 

Originally posted on 3/14/10

 

 

A reimagining--or rather, unimagining--of Lewis Carroll's fantasy masterpiece, the 1966 TV production of ALICE IN WONDERLAND seems to be one of the most strangely ill-conceived artifacts ever to emerge from the BBC. While Carroll's story is designed to appeal to both children and adults, this version is about as kid-friendly as an Ingmar Bergman movie.

It starts out very nicely with Alice and her sister being properly dressed by their nurse for a lovely walk in the countryside. Sitting amidst the swaying grass to soak up some sun, the sister quietly reads as Alice succumbs to sleep. When she awakens, she's alone--until she spots a smartly-dressed figure checking his watch and hurrying along as though late. The White Rabbit, you ask? Nope, it's Wilfrid Brambell, who played Paul McCartney's very clean grandfather in A HARD DAY'S NIGHT. He's called "The White Rabbit", but we're given no indication as to why. It's here we discover that one of the conceits of this production is that none of the actors portraying non-human characters are costumed to resemble them. Why? I don't know...go ask Alice, I guess.

Anyway, Alice follows him into a drainage pipe that leads her into a large, airy building with white drapes billowing over tall windows. As she creeps down its spacious corridors we enjoy the only truly atmospheric part of her adventure. The familiar routine with Alice changing her size in order to fit through the doorway into Wonderland is also well-handled. It's here, though, that Alice begins to encounter the largely uninteresting weirdos that inhabit this joyless world. An uninspired jab at organized religion has them flocking like chickens after a spaced-out priest while spastically crossing themselves. Like much of the film, it reduces Carroll's droll satire to bug-eyed burlesque.

Familiar vignettes from the book are stocked with name actors either having a lark or showing up for the paycheck. The celebrated tea party features Peter Cook hamming it up as the Mad Hatter and Michael Gough portraying the March Hare as some middle-aged British guy, which is rather depressing. Peter Sellers makes scant impression as the King of Hearts, while Sir John Gielgud's Mock Turtle and Malcolm Muggeridge's Gryphon mutter and mince along the seashore as though they'd missed their meds. (Only Leo McKern as the Duchess manages to create a truly amusing character.) I can understand director Jonathan Miller's intent to emphasize the nightmarish qualities of the story, but whatever delight is inherent in the original text itself is largely overcome by the utter joylessness and willfully obtuse direction of these scenes.

Pretty young Anne-Marie Mallik may have been a good actress but you wouldn't know it from this, since she's been directed to respond to everything going on around her by reciting her lines in a petulant monotone while staring off expressionless into space. Her Alice is just as inscrutably peculiar as any of the creatures she meets on her listless sojourn through pastoral settings and dreary interiors that could hardly be described as a "wonderland" of any sort. She seems, in fact, to have wandered onto the grounds of an insane asylum, or perhaps to have just been committed to it herself.

The pop sensibilities of the mid-60s era seem to have had an unfortunate influence here--it's as though someone noticed what a "trip" Carroll's story was and thought it would be interesting to play it up as a mystical mind-trip (complete with a droning sitar score by Ravi Shankar), which dates this adaptation badly. Seeing groups of oddly-dressed people prancing about the English countryside like aimlessly frivolous fools reminded me of similar scenes in the Beatles' misguided MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR. It wouldn't surprise me if this served as one of the inspirations for that failed effort in mindless psychedelia.

The DVD from BBC Warner is in 4.3 fullscreen and original mono, with English subtitles. Besides a brief photo gallery, a look at Ravi Shankar scoring the film, and a director's commentary, the extras menu features two very good reasons for seeking out this DVD. One is the original 1903 silent version of ALICE IN WONDERLAND, a fascinating eight-minute peek back at an ancient film whose entrancing images cling desperately to the ravaged nitrate print which seems to deteriorate as we're watching it. The second is Dennis Potter's excellent feature-length biopic of Lewis Carroll, ALICE (1965), which explores the stammering, painfully odd young writer's obsession with the young Alice Liddell and boasts a brilliant performance by George Baker.

Just as it's drained of color by the moody, almost noirish black-and-white 35mm film photography (which I liked very much), this ALICE IN WONDERLAND adaptation is almost entirely drained of magic as well. In its place is a dreary art-film opaqueness that ill serves Lewis Carroll's enchanting prose by resembling an uneasy cross between Monty Python and Carl Dreyer.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND (BBC-TV, 1966) -- DVD Review by Porfle

MURPHY'S LAW: COMPLETE COLLECTION -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 7/27/11

 

What starts out as a not-particularly-great little cop show suddenly evolves into one of the most hard-hitting, hypnotically watchable police dramas ever as you make your way through the 23 episodes of MURPHY'S LAW: COMPLETE COLLECTION, a nine-disc DVD set from Acorn Media. 

James Nesbitt stars as Thomas Murphy, an Irishman working as an undercover cop for the London police force.  Plagued by guilt over the death of his daughter and languishing on leave after a negative psyche evaluation, he's pulled back into service to help stop a gang of diamond smugglers operating out of a funeral home.  Murphy solves the case, meets a cute babe named Annie Guthrie (Claudia Harrison) who's also working undercover, and they team up to fight crime together.

This pilot episode is okay but nothing special, as are subsequent Series One episodes "Electric Bill", "Manic Munday", "Reunion", and "Kiss and Tell."  Murphy goes undercover in various locations (prison, health club, nightclub, snooker tournament), uses his sharp wits and irreverent attitude to get the goods on the bad guys, and has one of those coy budding-romance relationships with his female partner.



Series Two changes all of that in the first five minutes of episode one, "Jack's Back", with a shocking event which heralds a dark new direction for the show.  Murphy takes on the persona of a homeless man to track down a killer who's emulating Jack the Ripper in a violent, downbeat story, beginning a transformation of his quirky, wisecracking character into an intense, no-nonsense badass with nerves of steel.  Still, Murphy never loses his humanity and is often deeply affected by what he experiences. 

The writing and technical aspects of the show keep getting better as well, with the rest of Series Two serving up some outstanding stories such as "Convent" (Murphy as priest) and "Go Ask Alice" (Murphy as janitor in a biotech laboratory).  Things aren't always wrapped up nicely at the fadeout--one episode ends with a horrific freeze-frame of an innocent victim's death scream. 

But the best is yet to come as the show finally hits its stride in Series 3.  Here, the episodic nature of the previous seasons is jettisoned in favor of long-form stories which continue over several episodes and allow Murphy to immerse himself in prolonged and highly dangerous undercover assignments.  Over the next six episodes, he'll manage to gain the trust of a ruthless crime boss named Callard (Mark Womack) who hires him as a hitman.  As he sinks deeper into a maelstrom of murder, heroin smuggling, counterfeiting--among other things--Murphy must deal with the death of his partner while trying to stay alive on a day-to-day basis. 

This series of episodes is non-stop excitement and suspense, filled with brutal action and unpredictable plot twists that had me on the edge of my seat the whole time.  One of the best things about it is a delightfully sinister performance by Michael Fassbender (INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, EDEN LAKE) as Callard's smirkingly sadistic henchman, Caz.  The entire supporting cast is excellent as well, but it's Nesbitt who continues to impress more and more. 

His "Murphy" character is the ultimate adrenaline-stoked hardass, plunging into dangerous situations and either fighting or thinking his way out, yet always on the edge of burning out or breaking down (not to mention losing an appendage or two) from the non-stop pressure of his job.  Going for broke in virtually every scene, Nesbitt is fascinating to watch.



Series 4 and 5 keep the momentum going with two more three-episode stories.  The first finds Murphy infiltrating an Irish gang run by the infamous Johnstone brothers.  Drew (Liam Cunningham) appears to have been converted to the Muslim faith and is about to wed a Pakistani bride, while his volatile brother Billy (Brian McCardie) rebels against Drew's newfound pacifism by becoming even more violent and unstable. 

McCardie's incredibly intense performance is absolutely thrilling and his scenes with Nesbitt give the series some of its most riveting moments yet.  Murphy eventually discovers Drew's true intentions and manages to set the brothers against each other, leading to an explosively exciting finale.  Adding weight to Murphy's character here is his ongoing emotional anguish over having to place his aging mother in an institution after his father can no longer cope with her deteriorating mental state. 

Series 5 wraps things up with a gritty tale of illegal immigrants being marketed not only as manual laborers but also as sex slaves in a sadistic pornography ring.  Two of Murphy's fellow undercover officers, Mitch and Kim (a superb Andrea Lowe), disappear while on the job, forcing him to delve into this wretched den of scum and villainy by gaining the trust of the top man and going to work for him.  More than ever, Murphy's efforts are complicated by feckless police superiors interested only in covering their own asses--some of the confrontational scenes between them here are positively cathartic in their dramatic intensity.  The story builds to a shattering conclusion, leaving Murphy at his most desperate point yet and the viewer dazed and disoriented.

The boxed set from Acorn Media contains nine discs in four keepcases (approx. 23 1/2 hours).  All are in 16:9 widescreen with Dolby Digital stereo and English subtitles.  Text-based extras consist of a James Nesbitt biography and production notes.

If you decide to give this show a whirl, don't be put off by the lightweight nature of the first few episodes.  Not only does "Murphy's Law" eventually become one of the best series about undercover police work that I've ever seen, but Murphy himself goes from quirky, seriocomic oddball to a complex and supercool character who keeps us constantly fascinated by what he's going to do next.  For fast-paced, adult, wildly dynamic entertainment, MURPHY'S LAW: COMPLETE COLLECTION is almost too good to be legal.   

MURPHY'S LAW: COMPLETE COLLECTION -- DVD Review by Porfle

SMILEY'S PEOPLE -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 2/9/12

 

If someone were to walk in on you watching the last ten minutes of SMILEY'S PEOPLE (1982), they'd have no idea that it was the exciting conclusion to a six-part BBC spy thriller and that you were on the edge of your seat in suspense.  John le Carre's story is one of the most low-key and relatively static of spy thrillers that you'll ever come across, yet in its own modest way it is as powerfully engaging and full of intrigue as one of the early Bond films.

That exciting conclusion, which consists solely of some people waiting patiently for a man to walk across a bridge at night, comes at the end of a long and arduous investigation by former British intelligence agent George Smiley.  Alec Guinness, once again playing the role to perfection as he did in the previous series TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (1979), shows remarkable restraint throughout his portrayal of the withdrawn, meticulous, and emotionally distant protagonist.

This time, the murder of an elderly Russian double agent who once worked for the British (Curd Jergens as "The General") threatens to open up a can of worms that the British government wants to stay closed.  Their supercilious liason, Lacon (Anthony Bate), enlists the retired Smiley to wrap the matter up discreetly, but when it's revealed to be merely one element in a conspiracy involving Smiley's old nemesis Karla, the Russian intelligence mastermind whom he once dedicated his life to apprehending, then all bets are off. 

Smiley's rogue investigation takes him through a maze of mystery involving current and former agents and peripheral characters who each hold some clue that he must discern in his doggedly persistent manner.  One of them is a Russian woman (Eileen Atkins) who defected to France years ago but is being lured back by the promise of a reunion with the daughter she abandoned, the offer coming from a vile little man named Oleg Kirov (Dudley Sutton) with sinister ulterior motives.  Another is The General's lieutenant, Otto Liepzig (Vladek Sheybal, best known as SPECTRE agent Kronsteen in FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE), who holds damning evidence against Kirov that could turn the tide in Smiley's favor.

Since it isn't dependent on action to maintain our interest, the aptly-named SMILEY'S PEOPLE gets its strength from Smiley's often riveting dialogues.  Beryl Reid is once again the crotchety old Connie Sachs, whose photographic memory Smiley mines for information during a melancholy afternoon in her retirement hovel, while Bernard Hepton returns in a marvelous performance as old inner-circle colleague Toby Esterhaus, a key ally itching to get back into the game.  Michael Gough and Ingrid Pitt make small but welcome appearances as The General's devoted staff. 

As current head of intelligence Saul Enderby, Barry Foster's delightfully impish performance turns a top-secret bull session between Smiley and his former associates into an amusing sequence filled with subtle wit.  Best of all, perhaps, is Michael Lonsdale (MOONRAKER) as the henpecked Grigoriev, an unwitting pawn in Karla's mysterious scheme.  His capture and subsequent interrogation by Smiley and Esterhaus provides some of the most scintillating dialogue in the entire series, with Lonsdale's twitchy performance a joy to watch.  There's a nice bit of symbolism when Grigoriev is slowly surrounded by Esterhaus' team just as the pieces in the chess game he's watching surround their oppenent's king.

The key attraction of the series, of course, is Guinness.  Where a faster-paced film might cut briskly from one dialogue scene to the next, this story is as much about Smiley himself as anything--how he gets from one place to another, what he does when he gets there, and what thoughts and feelings we can read on his face during moments of contemplation.  We're interested in how he deals with people in a seemingly impersonal manner even as they try to make a personal connection to him, and wonder how much emotion he's suppressing or if he's even feeling anything at all.  This is especially true when he meets with his estranged wife Ann (Sian Phillips, DUNE), who once had an affair with a fellow agent, and treats her in a calculated way that gives little hint of what lies beneath the surface.

While less complicated and dense as its predecessor, and lacking its sheer number of characters and plot points to juggle, SMILEY'S PEOPLE is nevertheless the kind of mentally involving story that demands careful attention lest the viewer be lost.  This, of course, is one of the things that makes it such a satisfying watch as we weave our way along the investigative trail with the main character.  John Hopkins' screen adaptation of the novel is delectable, and Simon Langton directs in an unobtrusive but keenly capable style.  The stately score by Patrick Gowers is a perfect compliment to the somber, "Cold War Europe" mood of the series. 

The three-disc set from Acorn Media is in 4:3 fullscreen with Dolby Digital sound and English subtitles.  Extras include an interview with John le Carre, a biography of the author, filmographies, and production notes.

The fascinating George Smiley, so aloof and efficient throughout SMILEY'S PEOPLE, allows his fascade to slip ever so slightly at the prospect of ensnaring the elusive Karla (once again strongly portrayed by Patrick Stewart without a single word of dialogue) after so many years.  The prospect is so overwhelming, it even seems painful for him to bear.  Unlike Ahab, however, Smiley is less apt to self-destruct when denied his prey as much as he'd simply fade slowly out of existence.  But this sharp old former spy is too cunning, and much too solid, to let that happen.

SMILEY'S PEOPLE -- DVD Review by Porfle

TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (1979) -- DVD Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 10/31/11

 

I've always been a big fan of over-the-top depictions of the international spy as a glamorized action hero, as best typified by Ian Fleming's James Bond.  But author John le Carré's realistic world of workaday intelligence agents toiling at a thankless and often soul-deadening job filled with real danger and paranoia has its own dark fascination.  

 Capturing this like an absorbing Cold War novel come to life is the first-rate BBC mini-series adaptation, TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (1979), starring Alec "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Guinness as the indefatigable George Smiley. 

The aging Smiley is "retired" from the agency known as The Circus due to being one of the fall guys after a botched mission in Czechoslovakia ends in chaos and the near-fatal shooting of agent Jim Prideaux (Ian Bannen).  Smiley's former boss, known only as "Control", has been replaced by the ambitious Percy Alleline (Michael Aldridge) and his close-knit circle of associates--Haydon (Ian Richardson), Bland (Terence Rigby), and Esterhase (Bernard Hepton). 

When one of these men is suspected of being a mole supplying vital information to a sinister Russian contact named "Karla", Smiley is pressed back into service at the behest of a top government official in order to head a secret investigation.  But his efforts only seem to uncover deeper mysteries involving internal corruption, deception, and betrayal on a grand scale, with the evil spectre of Karla lurking behind it all.
 


Alec Guinness is pitch perfect as the enigmatic George Smiley, a keenly intelligent, emotionally distant man constantly haunted by reminders of his wife's infidelity.  Guinness' dry performance is an ideal match for this restrained, slow-burn production whose story slowly and methodically pieces itself together like a jigsaw puzzle. 

There's very little of the standard action-movie stuff save for Prideaux's ill-fated affair in Czechoslovakia early on, and even the suspense scenes--such as Smiley's young assistant Guillam (Michael Jayston) burgling files from their own agency--are staged in a realistic, matter-of-fact way without the usual cinematic frills.

The very literate script by Arthur Hopcraft is so subtle and low-key, in fact, that a lot of viewers may have trouble following it.  Crucial names and references necessary to understanding the increasingly complex plot are hard to keep up with for those without photographic memories.  So, when I finished the fourth episode out of six and realized that I pretty much had no idea what the hell was going on, I actually went back and started over. 

This time, fortunately, everything fell into place and became extremely absorbing, and I found the last couple of episodes riveting.  It may take some patience getting there, but the final revelations in episode six, which come after a highly suspenseful build-up, prove extremely satisfying. 



Among the supporting cast are Hywel Bennett as "scalphunter" Ricki Tarr, who sets events into motion after his chance encounter with a Russian woman seeking help in defecting in exchange for sensitive information.   Ian Richardson of FROM HELL plays Circus inner-circle member Bill Haydon, and Ian Bannen is outstanding as the unfortunate Prideaux, who takes up teaching at a boys' school until he's sufficiently recovered from his wounds to seek revenge. 

Joss Ackland (LETHAL WEAPON 2, HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER) appears briefly as an old friend of Smiley.  As "Karla", a young, dark-haired (but already bald as a cueball) Patrick Stewart displays considerable bad-ass presence during an interrogation scene in which he doesn't speak a single word.

The film has the usual early-BBC filmed look, which is perfect for the dark and rather dreary world in which these agents operate.  Direction by John Irvin is lean and efficient.  Geoffrey Burgon's cello-heavy original score helps push the suspense along very nicely.

The three-disc DVD set (approx. 324 min.) from Acorn Media is in 4:3 full-screen with Dolby Digital sound, with closed-captioning but no subtitles.  Extras include a 28-minute interview with John le Carré along with text-based production notes, cast filmographies, a glossary of main characters and terms, and a le Carré biography and booklist.

Whereas the 007 films serve as flamboyant, thrill-packed eye candy, TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY takes us on a gripping and mentally stimulating journey through the cigarette-smoke and stale-coffee netherworld of spydom.  Once I got my head around all the myriad characters and subplots I found it to be one of the most richly rewarding films of its kind that I've ever seen. 

TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (1979) -- DVD Review by Porfle

TCHAIKOVSKY: THE TRAGIC LIFE OF A MUSICAL GENIUS -- DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 6/28/08

 

You can pretty much tell from the title TCHAIKOVSKY: THE TRAGIC LIFE OF A MUSICAL GENIUS (2007) whether or not you're going to be interested in this. If you don't like classical music, you'll doubtless want to steer clear. Me, I love it, and found this BBC production to be fairly interesting, especially the concert segments.

Originally broadcast in 2007, it examines the life and music of 19th century Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in two parts, each hosted by conductor Charles Hazlewood. First, "The Creation of Greatness" tells of the fragile boy genius troubled by all the music swirling incessantly through his mind. The loss of his mother at a young age is something from which he never recovers. Later, we see him as a tortured homosexual living in fear that public exposure of his scandalous secret will ruin his career, while at the same time he struggles to gain acceptance for his daring musical ideas in the face of stodgy skepticism.

Part two, "Fortune and Tragedy", tells of his disastrous marriage of convenience to young female admirer Antonina Milyukova, despite the warnings of his younger brother Modest and the knowing ridicule of his friends. We also learn of a mysterious benefactor, a wealthy widow named Nadezhda von Meck, who finances Tchaikovsky for years although their only communication is through the written word. Tchaikovsky's fame and the Russian people's reverence for him grow to stellar proportions, but shortly after the unsuccessful premiere of his magnificent Sixth Symphony, "The Pathetique", he dies of cholera at the age of 53.

While well-mounted and interesting, the dramatic reenactments of certain events in Tchaikovsky's life don't build much momentum as they are intercut with actual concert footage, interviews with concert musicians in whom the distinctively Russian spirit of Tchaikovsky still resides, and narrative interludes with Hazlewood. In fact, the emphasis here is on the music itself as much as the composer.

Watching his First Piano Concerto being performed by the Maryinsky Young Philharmonic with an amazing solo performance by Natasha Peremski is a particular thrill, and it's deftly integrated into the scene in which Tchaikovsky first auditions the piece before his scoffing mentor, Anton Rubinstein, who is shocked to hear such "vulgar" passion expressed in music. Interesting that something we take for granted for its familiarity was once considered, in Hazlewood's words, to be "radical, raw, and shocking."

"Romeo and Juliet", an erotically-charged work composed during an early love affair with a music academy student named Edward Zak, has become somewhat of a cliche these days after having been used for so many movies and spoofs as diverse as TARZAN THE APE MAN and A CHRISTMAS STORY, but its performance here is stirring. This is also true of excerpts from some of Tchaikovsky's ballets, such as SWAN LAKE and THE SLEEPING BEAUTY. Best of all, however, is the climactic performance of the tragic "Pathetique", which is one of the most moving works ever written.

If not for these dynamic musical passages, which the filmmakers obviously staged and photographed with great feeling, the production would be unremittingly dry and somber. The biographical scenes serve mainly to illustrate how the passion and turmoil of Tchaikovsky's personal life was the rich inspiration for his music, and more than anything, the dramatic segments are supportive of and serve as backdrops for the musical passages.

Included as a bonus is an episode of the BBC series "Omnibus" entitled "Who Killed Tchaikovsky?", which effectively challenges the cholera explanation for the composer's death with theories of suicide or even murder, and hints at a mysterious and potentially scandalous cover-up. Biographer Anthony Holden travels to New York and St. Petersburg to do some detective work, uncovering tantalizing bits of evidence amidst a general unwillingness of the Russian people to risk casting aspersions on their revered national composer. The mystery is left unsolved, but raises some intriguing and rather chilling implications.

TCHAIKOVSKY: THE TRAGIC LIFE OF A MUSICAL GENIUS is informative regarding the volatile emotions behind Tchaikovsky's work, and competently acted by THE PIANIST's Ed Stoppard and a good cast. But it's the concert segments that really make it worth watching.

 

TCHAIKOVSKY: THE TRAGIC LIFE OF A MUSICAL GENIUS -- DVD Review by Porfle

POIROT: THE MOVIE COLLECTION SET 6 -- DVD review by porfle

Originally posted on 7/31/11

 

When not treading the boards spouting Shakespeare or playing Middle Eastern terrorists as he did in 1996's EXECUTIVE DECISION, David Suchet spends much of his time portraying Agatha Christie's immortal Belgian detective Hercule Poirot on British television.  Since 1989 he has appeared in dozens of such adaptations, and we get to see three of the latest ones in the DVD collection POIROT: THE MOVIE COLLECTION SET 6.

Suchet's portly Poirot is a fussy, fastidious, and very proper little Belgian gentleman with a meticulously waxed moustache and impeccable taste.  He patiently suffers the crudeness of those around him with a pained look or a clipped remark, but as soon as his deductive skills have pinpointed a killer in their midst his manner becomes sharp and accusatory. 

Murder, to this obsessive-compulsive perfectionist, disrupts the proper order of things, which he must set right just as he is compelled to rearrange random objects around him in a more orderly fashion.  Suchet is a delight in the role and it's a treat to watch him inhabit Agatha Christie's classic character with such understated finesse.
 


"Hallowe'en Party" begins at a costume party during which a little girl boasts that she once witnessed a murder.  When she ends up drowned in the apple-bobbing tub, Hercule Poirot is summoned to discern which of the party guests is a killer covering up a past crime.  Delving into the village's recent unsolved murders, he finds there are three to choose from.  This one is spooky fun with some pitch-black humor--a shot of the bee-costumed victim dunked in the tub includes a closeup of her dripping antennae dangling over the side--and a wealth of suspects, motives, and eccentric characters.  Zoë Wanamaker guest-stars as Poirot's friend, pulp mystery writer Ariadne Oliver, in a screenplay by Mark Gatiss ("Sherlock").

In "The Clocks", Jaime Winstone plays Sheila Webb, a temp secretary who arrives at the address to which she's been summoned only to stumble over a dead body and become a murder suspect.  Although this occurs at three o'clock, there are four clocks in the room which all read 4:13 for some unknown reason.  When Poirot is asked to look into the matter by young MI6 agent Lt. Colin Race (Tom Burke), who has taken an interest in Miss Webb, he finds that the murder is linked to the theft of secret government documents that may aid Hitler in his upcoming invasion of England.  But settling that case leaves yet another equally perplexing one still unsolved.



As usual, Poirot's interrogation of various witnesses and suspects uncovers even more questions.  Yet he calmly collects and processes the information until it's time for him to sit down and think it all through.  The more convoluted the plot, the more fun it is to watch Poirot methodically sort it all out, often chiding himself for not seeing the solution sooner.  His odd methods are often rebuffed at first by the local constabulary, who end up humbly seeking his help after their feeble efforts reach a dead end.

Each case reaches its climax with the formal revelation scene, with all suspects present and Poirot theatrically explaining his cogitations of the facts in the case which point him to the guilty party.  This, of course, is one of the hoariest murder-mystery cliches ever, but when done right it can be exquisite fun.  And the more tangled the mystery, the more pleasure we get from Poirot neatly sorting it all out in the end.

"Three Act Tragedy" ends, literally, on a theater stage with Poirot presiding over the indictment of a murderer who has poisoned three people at three different social gatherings, all with the same cast of characters.  Martin Shaw ("George Gently") is Poirot's actor friend Sir Charles Cartwright, who plays a detective onstage and fancies himself one in real life as he joins Poirot in his investigation.  Art Malik and Jane Asher also guest in this intriguing mystery.



There's a deliberately old-fashioned air to these pre-WWII tales that gives them a feeling of authenticity.  A bit dry at times, each of the three feature-length stories is finely-rendered and atmospheric, with rich period detail and the look of faded old color photographs or picture postcards.  Clever directorial touches help keep the exposition-heavy scenes interesting as the plots slowly unfold.
 
The three-disc boxed set from Acorn Media is in 16:9 widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 sound and English subtitles.  Each disc comes in its own slimline case.  There are no extras.

Viewers unaccustomed to such slow-paced fare may find themselves growing restless during Poirot's painstaking investigations.  But if you're willing to settle in and immerse yourself in these lush, absorbing murder mysteries, you should find POIROT: THE MOVIE COLLECTION SET 6 to be quite rewarding.
 
 

Other "Poirot" DVD reviews from HK and Cult Film News:
POIROT AND MARPLE FAN FAVORITES
POIROT: SET 1 and SET 2
POIROT: THE MOVIE COLLECTION SET 6
POIROT: SERIES 5
POIROT: SERIES 6 
POIROT: SERIES 7 & 8

POIROT: THE MOVIE COLLECTION SET 6 -- DVD review by porfle