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Far From The Madding Crowd [1998]

starring: Nathanial Parker, Nigel Terry, Jonathan Firth, Paloma Baeza
directed by: Nicholas Renton

February 19, 2007
One of Thomas Hardy's best-loved novels is sensitively and accurately dramatised in this 1998 classic.

Upon inheriting her uncle's farm, the beautiful and assertive Bathsheba Everdene (Paloma Baeza) is the most sought after maiden in the whole of Weatherbury. She's forced to choose between the affections of three very different men; local shepherd Gabriel Oak, gentleman farmer Mr. Boldwood and the womanising Sargeant Frank Troy. Here, Hardy's classic tale of love, betrayal and tragedy is faithfully dramatised. The 1967 Julie Christie version is good, but this is even better!

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Bleak House - BBC (3 Disc Special Edition) [2005]

starring: Gillian Anderson, Patrick Kennedy, Denis Lawson, Natalie Press, Liza Tarbuck
directed by: Justin Chadwick, Susanna White

November 13, 2006
It's difficult to imagine any dramatisation of 'Bleak House' being better done. The cast is uniformly excellent and the adaptation successfully captures the 'page-turner' quality of the book. Not to be missed.

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Vanity Fair

starring: Natasha Little, Frances Gray, Tom Ward, Nathanial Parker, Jeremy Swift
directed by: Marc Munden

July 04, 2005
I thought this was a great mini-series. There were a few points where I literally laughed out loud at the antics of the characters. Having not read the book yet, I found one or two little things that I didn't really understand but it didn't spoil the overall enjoyment.

I have nothing bad to say about this. I loved the costumes and settings and intend to watch this many more times in the future. It is also the reason I have bought the book, which otherwise, I probably wouldn't have bothered with.

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Inspector Lynley Mysteries - Series 1 And Pilot [2001]

starring: Nathanial Parker, Sharon Small, Bill Nighy, Cherie Lunghi, Martin Jarvis

July 08, 2006
This is absolutely awful. Stereotype after stereotype although not quite as bad as in the (American) books. Merry old England clichees, a pseudo-Morse (without the great John Thaw's charisma) and a pseudo-Lewis (without Whately's charme). Boring, slow moving, unconvincing. A bloody waste of time.

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Bleak House [2005]

starring: Gillian Anderson, Matthew Kelly, Patrick Kennedy, Denis Lawson, John Lynch
directed by: Justin Chadwick, Susanna White

February 20, 2006
I am surprised that only one reviewer briefly mentioned the backing soundtrack. It is over-bearing and jars the viewing of the excellent acting. It never ceases to amaze me how superb acting is drowned in a morass of noise in this production. Why do they do it? It might just be me but I could not watch this for more than 20 minutes at a time as I got so annoyed by the less than subtle background noises and had to go to do something else. It seemed so incongruous to have a soundtrack blasting out and more suitable to a cheap adventure show than to this Victorian classic. Does every show have to have these ridiculous noises that presumably are to show you where the dramatic bits are? Just some advice to the sound effects people - I do not need your assistance, ... Read More:

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The Haunted Mansion [Blu-ray] [2003]

starring: Eddie Murphy, Terence Stamp, Nathanial Parker, Wallace Shawn, Marsha Thomason
directed by: Rob Minkoff

September 29, 2008
I am surprised that only one reviewer briefly mentioned the backing soundtrack. It is over-bearing and jars the viewing of the excellent acting. It never ceases to amaze me how superb acting is drowned in a morass of noise in this production. Why do they do it? It might just be me but I could not watch this for more than 20 minutes at a time as I got so annoyed by the less than subtle background noises and had to go to do something else. It seemed so incongruous to have a soundtrack blasting out and more suitable to a cheap adventure show than to this Victorian classic. Does every show have to have these ridiculous noises that presumably are to show you where the dramatic bits are? Just some advice to the sound effects people - I do not need your assistance, ... Read More:

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Bleak House (BBC) [Blu-ray] [2005]

starring: Gillian Anderson, Patrick Kennedy, Denis Lawson, Natalie Press, Liza Tarbuck
directed by: Justin Chadwick, Susanna White

February 11, 2008
After wondering if the difference between a decently upscaled dvd and the blu-ray would be significant enough to double-dip, I took the plunge. Having just watched Bleak House on blu-ray and after doing a comparison with the standard dvd I can tell you now that the difference is staggering. Details on things such as food and clothing are clearly defined, whereas on the dvd they appear to be a bit of a blurry mess.
Some dvd's I have are so well produced that the image quality on the blu-ray version is, honestly, only a minor upgrade. In the case of Bleak House, however, I will repeat that the increase in definition is incredible. All that love this series should immediately sell their dvd's and purchase the blu-ray. I guarantee you will be amazed at the ... Read More:

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The INSPECTOR LYNLEY MYSTERIES - SERIES 3

starring: Nathanial Parker


After wondering if the difference between a decently upscaled dvd and the blu-ray would be significant enough to double-dip, I took the plunge. Having just watched Bleak House on blu-ray and after doing a comparison with the standard dvd I can tell you now that the difference is staggering. Details on things such as food and clothing are clearly defined, whereas on the dvd they appear to be a bit of a blurry mess.
Some dvd's I have are so well produced that the image quality on the blu-ray version is, honestly, only a minor upgrade. In the case of Bleak House, however, I will repeat that the increase in definition is incredible. All that love this series should immediately sell their dvd's and purchase the blu-ray. I guarantee you will be amazed at the ... Read More:

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The Bible - David [1997]

starring: Nathanial Parker, Leonard Nimoy, Jonathan Pryce, Franco Nero
directed by: Robert Markowitz

September 20, 2004
After wondering if the difference between a decently upscaled dvd and the blu-ray would be significant enough to double-dip, I took the plunge. Having just watched Bleak House on blu-ray and after doing a comparison with the standard dvd I can tell you now that the difference is staggering. Details on things such as food and clothing are clearly defined, whereas on the dvd they appear to be a bit of a blurry mess.
Some dvd's I have are so well produced that the image quality on the blu-ray version is, honestly, only a minor upgrade. In the case of Bleak House, however, I will repeat that the increase in definition is incredible. All that love this series should immediately sell their dvd's and purchase the blu-ray. I guarantee you will be amazed at the ... Read More:

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Bleak House [HD DVD] [2005]

starring: Gillian Anderson, Patrick Kennedy, Denis Lawson, Natalie Press, Liza Tarbuck
directed by: Justin Chadwick, Susanna White

February 11, 2008
This adaption I watched on television and remained avidly attentive to my silver screen. Dickens has a knack of reeling you in, getting to know and understand each character, and even feeling for them, including the bad guys, after all, it's nothing personal.
This adaption allows us to see the lives of different people from different backgrounds interacting and crossing over with each other, needing strengths from some and strengthening others.
The leading lady is strong, independent, determined and above all kind, yet is the perfect lady in her time. She is loved and respected by many, yet underneath it all, there is a meekness and insecurity about her which is within us all. Yet her conviction outweighs such.
I will not spoil the plot ... Read More: