She Stoops To Conquer (2008/British TV Mini-Series/Acorn Media DVD)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C+ Episodes: B-
This is
the 8th time Oliver Goldsmith’s novel She Stoops To Conquer has been adapted for television, which is
pretty good for a novel written in the 1773.
More than just a comedy of manners, it is a tale of The Hardcastles, how
they have promised their daughter Kate (Susannah Fielding) in marriage when she
has ideas of her own, her brother is a jokester in his own right and when you
throw in the suitors who are interested, you get a story that holds up
incredibly well.
I have
been complaining that much of this kind of British TV today has lacked the
energy, casts, chemistry and richness of British TV adaptations past, but this
is one of the exceptions, continuing that tradition of great British TV we
don’t see enough these days as too much of the programming has become formulaic
or boring. Helping in this is Director
Tony Britten, who also co-produced and did the music score!
The fine
cast also includes Roy Marsden (The
Sandbaggers), Mark Dexter (Doctor
Who, From Hell) and Ian Redford
among others and it is just such a welcome return to form that fans of British
TV will want to see it just for how well it plays. You get all five episodes on two DVDs and I
have a feeling some of the lesser-known actors here are going to get recognized
by finding more roles thanks to this production.
The anamorphically
enhanced 1.78 X 1 image was shot on in High Definition and except for some motion
blur, it looks good down to its color and the money is in this production. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo has some
fullness to it and plays back well, but there are no surrounds. The only extra is a 50-minutes look at
Goldsmith’s life that includes clips from this program called A Gooseberry Fool: Oliver Goldsmith Stoops
To Conquer that should be seen only after watching the mini-series.
- Nicholas Sheffo
