She Fell Among Thieves (1978/Acorn Media)
Picture:
C Sound: C Extras: C- Telefilm: C+
Originally
an episode of the series BBC2 Play Of
The Week, Clive Donner’s She Fell
Among Thieves (1978) pits Richard Chandos (Malcolm McDowell) against Vanity
Fair (Eileen Atkins) in the Pyrenees circa 1922. She will get millions if she can marry off
her stepdaughter into an ugly, arranged marriage, unless he can stop her. Based on the Dornford Yates novel, it is
partly a mystery and partly a comedy, meaning Tom Sharpe’s adaptation is trying
to be witty and involving.
At only
78 minutes, it gets to the point and has to, but I was only so impressed by the
overall result despite some fine performances by the cast that also includes
Michael Jayston, Karen Dotrice, Philip Locke and Bernard Hill. I liked some parts very much, but just wish
there was more in the way of highlights and maybe a longer running time would
have freed up the makers to make this all the better. Still, it is here on DVD and you can judge
for yourself.
The 1.33
X 1 image seems to have been shot on 16mm film by Director of Photography Brian
Tufano (Quadrophenia, Trainspotting) and he delivers a
good-looking result. Too bad these
materials need some restoration and upgrades.
The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono also shows its age and both are
second-generation materials.
The only
extra is text cast filmographies, but an episode guide on the series would have
been nice.
- Nicholas Sheffo
