Review: Upstairs, Downstairs - Series 2 (1972)

You may have seen a while ago that I started to watch Upstairs Downstairs. Continuing on that, I am reviewing Series 2. You may have remember that I was fairly lukewarm to Series 1, but what did I think of Series 2? Well, read and find out!

Note: This review of Upstairs, Downstairs will contain spoilers from Series 1. If you have not seen Series 1 and do not want to run into spoilers, you may want to wait before you read this review. I suggest that you read my Series 1 review first before watching.

Box Art of Series 2

Synopsis
The series Upstairs, Downstairs continues after the marriage of Elizabeth Bellamy and Lawrence Kirbridge, whose marriage has started rocky. Sarah and Captain James Bellamy see each other more seriously. And downstairs, new servants have arrived: Edward the new footman, and Ruby the new kitchen maid.

Characters
The cast from the previous series returns for another series of Upstairs, Downstairs. What I found interesting was that the actor that plays chauffeur Thomas Watkins (John Alderton) was also in Little Dorrit (2008) as Mr. Casby and that he is also married to the actress who plays occasional maid Sarah (Pauline Collins).

Elizabeth Kirbridge (nee Bellamy) is still fairly irritating. She isn't a very sympathetic character even though she does have troubles. She comes off as being too much of a baby at times: she'll sometimes yell at upperhouse parlor maid Rose even though Rose hasn't done anything. She also develops some more scandalous behavior as the series goes on. I felt sorry for Richard Bellamy and Lady Marjorie: they tried to control their daughter, but she just wouldn't be controlled.

Sarah, the under house parlor maid, returns in this series. I really didn't like her for the first series and for a good deal of the second series I didn't care for her much. She was very scandalous and wanted to start a fight whenever someone told her not to do something. She was still scandalous in this series and got herself involved with Captain James Bellamy, Richard and Lady Marjorie's son. She gets a little better as the series goes on, but I still wasn't very fond of her.

Mrs. Bridges cooking. Thomas and Rose look on.

Since the start of Series 1, there had been some changes to the staff of 165 Eaton Place. Emily, the kitchen maid, had been replaced by new kitchen maid, Ruby. Alfred, the creepy footman, had been replaced by Edward, a bit of a girl-crazy footman. Even though Edward is a little girl-crazy, he isn't a bad character. He likes to joke a lot, but overall he is likable. Ruby takes a little bit of getting used to, though. Mid-Series, we see the addition of Thomas Watkins, the new chauffeur who once worked for the Kirbridges. He was mostly likable for the first part of the series, but once he came to 165 Eaton Place and got involved with Sarah he got fairly dislikable.

Scenery

Mr. and Mrs. Kirbridge at a party.

Most of the scenes were still at 165 Eaton Place, the home of Richard and Lady Marjorie Bellamy. We do get a glimpse of the Kirbridge's new home after they are married, but it is not as nice as 165 Eaton Place. Scenes from the Kirbridge's new home do not last long, however. But we do see scenes from the Bellamy's garage where Thomas works.

Costuming
The costuming still had Edwardian fashions and hadn't changed very much since Series 1. The costumes were still nice, though.

Overall: 3/5
Well, Series 2 picks up a little quicker than Series 1 and is better than Series 1, but it still can't compare to Downton Abbey. The plot of Upstairs, Downstairs is still a little slow, but it's not entirely bad. There is some content in this series: again, nothing is horribly graphic, but there are still some mature scenes. The content almost borders on TV-14... almost. Like Series 1, you may want to view this series of Upstairs Downstairs first before showing it to a young audience (like preteen or young teenagers).

Upstairs Downstairs: Series 2 is available on DVD on its own or as apart of the Complete Collection. It has 13 hour long episodes.

Review: McLintock! (1963)

Okay, I know. You wouldn't have expected me to review Westerns, but they are technically period dramas. My dad has been a fan of John Wayne for years and he would occasionally show me scenes from different John Wayne movies. I finally watched a John Wayne movie all the way through, and that was McLintock!

Box Art

Synopsis
George Washington McLintock (also known as G.W.) is the richest man in the town of McLintock. After being away for two years, his estranged wife, Katherine/Kate, returns after living in the capital.


Characters
There are some famous actors/actresses in this movie. Most notably is John Wayne, who plays G.W. Maureen O'hara, who has been in a couple of John Wayne's movies, plays his wife Katherine. Hired hand Devlin Warren is played by John Wayne's real life son, Patrick Wayne. G.W.'s newly hired cook, Mrs. Warren, is played by Yvonne De Carlo, who was also in The Ten Commandments and the TV show The Munsters. There also may have been a number of the cast that were character actors from other Westerns, but I can't say for sure.

One of the slapstick scenes ended in a mud fight in which
Katherine gets involved.

There are two levels to this movie. There is a comedic side to it and there's the serious side to it. A good deal of the comedy is slapstick, but there are some funny quotes too. The acting was hilarious where it was supposed to be. Maureen O'hara was hilarious as the feisty Katherine who tried to control everything and would not let anyone outdo her. There were also a variety of town characters that were in the movie for comic relief.

The more serious scenes were about moving the Comanche to a reservation: G.W. translated the Comanche chief's wishes in a moving speech. G.W. also had a good deal of quotes that were moving and "life lesson" quotes (but he also had some funny quotes).


Scenery

G.W. at his ranch.

The scenery looked nice, but the whole movie was probably a set in a movie studio as a lot of movies at the time were (but I can't say for sure); even if it was filmed on a set, the scenery did look nice. The entire movie took place in the town of McLintock, which in the movie was a working town filled with people who worked with cattle or farmland (picture a Western movie set).

Becky McLintock

Costuming
I would estimate the year based on the costuming to be sometime in either the late 1890s or the early 1900s. This guess would be based off of Kate's wardrobe since she lived in the capital for a while and would have more access to the current fashions. I probably shouldn't take the costume accuracy too literally since westerns don't necessarily have accurate costuming, but you all know me! The costuming was still very nice. Kate's clothes, since she has been in the city, are more current and fashionable than the rest of the cast members. Becky, her daughter, in contrast to Kate who wore bolder colors for her clothes, had lighter colors, probably since she was young. Most of the men in the movie had work clothes on, though a couple of male characters had fashionable menswear.


Overall: 4/5
I really enjoyed this movie! There's some slapstick and there are some memorable quotes. I honestly don't know why sites have rated this movie TV-14: comparing it to what is rated TV-14 today, there really isn't anything so objectionable that it earns that rating. Honestly, I would rate it TV-PG. There are a couple of fights, but nothing is graphic. Some one in one scene is in public wearing Victorian/Edwardian undergarments (which to today's standards isn't that horrible), and there is some light swearing. Overall, McLintock is an enjoyable film and I would watch it again.

McLintock is available on DVD. It runs for 127 minutes.

Review: Upstairs, Downstairs - Series 1 (1971)

As many of you may know, I'm a fan of Downton Abbey. I have often heard it compared to Upstairs, Downstairs, and though I had never seen Upstairs, Downstairs before, I knew a little about what it was about and went with the analogy. I finally got to watch the original Upstairs, Downstairs recently (after finishing Downton Abbey: Series 2). Here is what I thought.

Synopsis

Complete Series Box

165 Eaton Place is home to not only the rich Bellamys who are involved in politics, but also to the servants who serve them. Upstairs, Richard Bellamy, a M.P., lives at 165 Eaton Place with his wife, Lady Marjorie, and when they are home, his son James and his daughter Elizabeth. Below stairs, there are many servants who keep the Bellamys' home running: the butler, Mr. Hudson, makes sure that the servants behave themselves, Mrs. Bridges cooks all the meals that are enjoyed both by the Bellamys and the servants, and Rose the head parlor maid that is also friend's with Elizabeth Bellamy.

Characters

There are a couple of the cast members that you may have seen in other period dramas. The maid Rose is played by Jean Marsh, who not only created this series and The House of Eliott with Eileen Atkins (who was also in Cranford), was also in the 2008 miniseries of Sense and Sensibility as Mrs. Ferrars. John Rapley, who played a tradesman in one episode, was in The Duchess of Duke Street as Mr. Leyton. Other than those two, I didn't recognize anyone else.

There are a mixed bag of characters in Upstairs, Downstairs. There is probably an even number of characters you like and characters you don't like: this applies to both the upstairs characters and the downstairs characters.

Lady Marjorie

Upstairs, there are characters that I personally liked. Richard Bellamy is a respectable, honorable character who I don't have much to say against. For the most part, I liked Lady Marjorie, though there was one episode she made a very bad mistake. As for James and Elizabeth Bellamy, I don't particularly care for either one of them. James is a scandalous character -- a scoundrel if you will. I find it hard to like scoundrels. Elizabeth is extremely political and radical to the point where it gets irritating. She wasn't nearly as bad towards the beginning of the series -- at that point in the beginning, she was young and didn't seem as extremely political--, but when she met some new friends, she changed for the worst. I don't foresee either James Bellamy or Elizabeth Bellamy going away or changing for the better for a long while.

Dowstairs, as it was for upstairs, there are characters that I liked and didn't like. The difference between upstairs and downstairs is that the staff downstairs changes a little throughout the series. The two characters that I found dislikable leave at some point in the series, though one comes back. Honestly, I was a little disappointed in the staff of 165 Eaton Place. Warning: I'm going to make a Downton Abbey comparison now. It seemed to me that a number of the things that went on with the staff would not have even been attempted at Downton Abbey, which seemed more orderly. In one episode, Mr. Hudson and the Bellamys leaves and the staff is running amok in the house and trying on their employers' clothes and indulging in their employers' wine! Could anyone even imagine that going on at Downton Abbey even if Mr. Carson (Downton Abbey butler) or Mrs. Hughes (Downton Abbey Housekeeper) were away? In short, it seems to me that Mr. Hudson, though he is a likable character and does maintain some control over the staff, could be maintaining more control over his staff.

Scenery

An example of the Black and White episodes

For most 70s shows, the scenery isn't much to really speak of since most series at the time were done on sets. I will say that the setting of Upstairs, Downstairs was still very nice, though it was most likely filmed on a set. However, a number of the episodes in the first series were in black and white due to labor strikes. I think by the 7th episode in the series, the episodes are all in color, but before then there were only two episodes that were filmed in color (the pilot was filmed in color and another episode was also filmed in color, but then it went back to black and white for one episode).

Uggh! I hate that hat!

Costuming
The costuming was also nice! Since the story takes place between 1903-1909, the ladies dresses were from the Edwardian era. A lot of the dresses and hats were very nice. The maids wear their usual uniforms with the exception of the scullery maids, who wore different uniforms than the other maids. I did take issue with Elizabeth's "new" wardrobe towards the end of the first series. There was one particular hat that I took a quick dislike to (it's pictured here). It was too masculine to be a lady's hat. I question if she just took one of her father's or brother's hats and decided to wear it for who knows why. But other than that, the costumes are very nice to look at.

Overall: 3/5

Upstairs, Downstairs is okay... I guess. Honestly, if you had to pick between seeing Downton Abbey and Upstairs, Downstairs, definitely go for Downton Abbey. All of the characters in Downton Abbey seemed more dignified than the characters in Upstairs, Downstairs. Don't get me wrong, there are some likable characters in Upstairs, Downstairs, but there were times where there were some behaviors going on that no one would have gotten away at Downton (Really, could anyone see Anna trying on Lady Mary clothes?). I did like Upstairs, Downstairs enough to continue watching it. Who knows, I might grow to like it a little more.

Content-wise, there aren't any graphic scenes in Upstairs, Downstairs, but there are some scenes that contain some mature themes. There are also some implications and scandals that may be a little mature. Also, especially in later episodes, there are some discussions talked about that wouldn't have been mentioned in polite conversation. But again, there's nothing overtly graphic. I also saw that on Netflix, it has been rated TV-PG, which considering today's current TV shows, wouldn't be inaccurate. I would recommend watching it ahead of time if you plan on showing this to, let's say, a preteen audience, for the themes presented and decide for yourself if you want to show it.

Upstairs, Downstairs: Series 1 is available on DVD either by itself or apart of the complete collection. You can also watch it on Netflix Instant Streaming. There are 13 episodes in the first series which are about 50 minutes long.

Review: Downton Abbey - Series 2 (2011)

YES! AT LONG LAST! Finally, Downton Abbey - Series 2! I had been waiting for this for months! All the cliffhangers you left, Series 1, finally will be resolved, right?! Right?! My mom and I started to watch Series 2 on Masterpiece Theater, but we missed the beginning half of the first episode. We got the DVD last Monday (which came out before the series ended on Masterpiece, hence why I can review the entire series). We just finished Series 2 with the Christmas special a couple of days ago. Here is what I thought!

Note: This review will contain spoilers from Series 1. If you do not want to read about Series 1 spoilers, I suggest watching Series 1 before reading this review. Here is my review for Series 1 if you are interested.

DVD Box Art

Synopsis
At the end of Series 1, Lord Grantham announces that England is now at war with Germany -- the start of World War I. Matthew Crawley has joined in the war effort and has joined the army, having decided at the end of Series 1 that he needs to get away from Downton, leaving things unresolved with Lady Mary Crawley. The year at the start of Series 2 is 1916. The Crawleys receive word that Matthew is engaged to a Miss Lavinia Swire and is coming to Downton Abbey. Meanwhile, Mary is still in love with Matthew. There are many plots in Downton Abbey: Series 2, both with the Crawleys upstairs and the staff downstairs.

Characters
Most of the regular cast has returned for Series 2 that were in Series 1. Many of the cast members you may recognize from other period dramas. At the end of this review, I have a list of the actors/actresses that you may recognize from other period dramas. One member of the main cast has not returned for Series 2: Gwen, the maid who wanted to become a secretary, has secured a job as a secretary and has been replaced by new housemaid Ethel (I personally preferred Gwen to Ethel). There is a new addition to the cast for a couple of episodes: Andrew Lang, a man who fought in WWI, has become Lord Grantham's new valet after Bates leaves for a couple of episodes. Spoiler Later in the series when Ethel is fired, another housemaid named Jane Moorsum is hired, but her employment is also short-lived. End of Spoiler We also see the addition of Sir Richard Carlisle, a rich newspaper owner who becomes a suitor for Mary.

There is a lot of character development in Series 2. WWI has changed everything in the lives of the residents of Downton Abbey. Upstairs, Sybil becomes a nurse in order to help with the war effort at home. When Downton Abbey becomes a convalescing house, Edith begins to help out with many of the wounded officers. Mary doesn't do as much until half-way through the series Spoiler when Matthew is wounded. End of Spoiler. Downstairs, William, who has recently joined the army, and Daisy become engaged: though Daisy does not love him, she is coaxed into marrying him by the cook, Mrs. Patmore. Anna and Bates face difficulties when Mrs. Bates shows up and threatens to expose Mary's scandal. And Ethel wants to better her life and doesn't want to be a housemaid forever.

Branson teaching Edith to drive a car.

In Series 1, I really didn't like Edith: she was very spiteful against Mary. In Series 2 however, she becomes much more likable. I think that it has something to do with Edith having something to do. Think about it: in Series 1, Edith didn't really have anything to set her mind to. Sybil was helping Gwen get a job as a secretary; Mary was getting to know Matthew more. What did Edith do? Not much except spread word about Mary's scandal around. Now in Series 2, she finds that she has a talent for caring for the wounded soldiers who are staying at Downton Abbey plus she learned how to drive. Once she was given a "purpose", she focused on that and became nicer. The hostilities between her and Mary break down much more, though they probably aren't going to become best friends in any future series.

Isobel Crawley trying to run Downton Abbey

Isobel Crawley, Matthew's mother, became a little dislikable during this series for a couple of episodes. She became very pushy at Downton. She was a little pushy in Series 1, but it wasn't as annoying as she was in a couple of episodes in Series 2. When Downton Abbey was turned into a convalescing house, Isobel started to take over and "push" Cora out of her position as lady of the house. I understand why Cora was upset: it was her home! Isobel was also throwing in Cora's face that she had nursing experience and Cora didn't, so she should be in charge of Downton. Good thing Cora stood her ground. By the end of the series, when Downton was no longer a convalescing house, Isobel was toned down again.

So, Lavinia... I'm not quite sure what to make of her. I don't hate her, but I don't like her a lot either. Maybe it's because I want Mary and Matthew to get married, but I'm still not sure about Lavinia as a character... She wasn't a bad character, but I'm not really fond of her either. Looking at Masterpiece's Character voting page, most people don't really know what to make of Lavinia either. She was on the "Love" side of the scale for one episode, but right next to the middle line, but for the most part, she is right on the middle line: not on the "loathe" side or the "love" side.

Scenery
Still lovely! Though there were some scenes that took place in the trenches during the battles of WWI (which were gritty), the scenes that took place at Downton were still lovely! The camera filter they used while filming this season of Downton Abbey seems to make everything look more washed out than the previous season. It works because of the serious time that everyone was going through with the war. Colorful scenes are not tossed out all together, however, and you do see some colorful scenes.

Mary and Matthew sing at a concert.

Music

Still awesome! There are some new pieces that are used in Series 2 that weren't in Series 1, which are very good. Also, in one episode, we hear Mary and Matthew sing (though I think Matthew had the better voice). A couple of months ago, the Downton Abbey soundtrack was released that has songs from both Series 1 and 2, plus a couple of vocal songs. I've just gotten the soundtrack, but even just from watching the series, the music is great.

Costumes

Sybil in her nurse's uniform. Branson is speaking to her
at work.

The costumers of Downton Abbey have done it again! On the DVD, there is one of the special features that talks about costuming. One of the things that it said was that jewelry was much more simpler than it was before the war, which would make sense since most of the money people had would go to the war effort. But I digress. There were a number of very nice costumes, though I think the costumes from Series 1 were better (though the costuming for Series 2 is very, very good). Costumes range from 1916 to really 1919 (The Christmas episode ends on New Years Day of 1920). The skirts for the dresses become a little shorter, but not like the skirts of the 1920s (we'll probably see those next season). A lot of the dresses are very ornate (though not as ornate as Series 1), but they become simpler towards the end of the series. Many of the men are also in uniforms. The special feature on the DVD talks about how the costumers paid very close attention to the medals that were on the men's uniforms, making sure they are period accurate and in the right order. Also making an addition to the costuming are nurses uniforms, mainly worn by Sybil. Nurses uniforms are worn by other nurses, but Sybil is the only member of the main cast that wears a nurse's uniform.

Cliffhangers

Matthew with Lavinia when they are newly engaged.

I created this section because, as you may know, Series 1 ended with so many cliffhangers. At the end of Series 1, almost nothing is resolved upon: Matthew and Mary's future is in jeopardy, Branson (the chauffer) and Sybil might have a future, but it's not certain that Sybil likes him enough, O'brien, Cora's lady's maid, has massive guilt (which is rightly deserved), and who knows what will happen with Anna and Mr. Bates! By the end of Series 2, most of those cliffhangers from Series 1 are for the most part resolved... Mostly... Series 2 did a better job at resolving those cliffhangers: though there are some cliffhangers that exist, the still existing cliffhangers are not as horribly open as they were from Series 1, but they're open enough that you still want to watch Series 3. I won't say exactly how each of the cliffhangers are resolved, but just know that there is some resolution at the end of the Christmas episode.

Overall: 4/5

Downton Abbey External

Why must I wait a year for Series 3? Why? Probably between Series 1 and Series 2, Series 1 was probably better (but then the first series in period dramas are usually the best). But I still really liked Series 2. Unlike a couple of other series that I have watched, I don't detect a downfall of Downton Abbey in the second series. I have a good feeling that there will be at least a couple more series (unless Series 3 is a disappointment *hoping that it's not*). Series 2 did not end with nearly so many cliffhangers as Series 1 (all the cliffhangers at the end of Series 1 were just cruel!), but it's open enough that you want to watch Series 3.

Content-wise, Downton Abbey: Series 2 has a couple of scenes that you may wish to skip, but nothing is extremely bad. There are some WWI battle scenes and some hospital scenes, one of which includes a biological conversation. There is a very brief scene in Episode 4, but if you pay attention, you can see it coming and it doesn't last long. There are a couple of implications throughout and in Episode 8, a scene happens that could have been bad, but nothing happened (plus to me, the scene was a bit implausible). Also in Episode 8, there is a scene Spoiler after Anna and Mr. Bates get married End Spoiler that you may wish to skip, but it's not very long. There is also a scene in the Christmas episode, but looking at the clues, you can figure out when it's coming (and you don't see anything). Again, there's nothing too severe content-wise, but just some things to keep in mind.

Overall, I would recommend Downton Abbey: Series 2.

Downton Abbey: Series 2 is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray. Series 2 is made up of 8 episodes, plus a Christmas episode. The first and last episodes are 67 minutes long, and the rest are 53 minutes. The Christmas episode seemed longer than most of the episodes, but I don't know for sure how long it is.

Recognizable Actors/Actresses

Actor -- Role in Downton Abbey -- Other Period Dramas

Hugh Bonneville -- Robert Crawley -- Mr. Grandcourt from Daniel Deronda

Michelle Dockery -- Lady Mary -- Ermina Whyte from Return to Cranford

Maggie Smith -- Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham -- Lady Gresham from Becoming Jane and Betsey Trotwood from David Copperfield (1999)*
Jim Carter -- Mr. Carson -- Captain Brown from Cranford

Brendan Coyle -- John Bates -- Robert Timmins from Lark Rise to Candleford and Nicholas Higgins from North and South*
Dan Stevens -- Matthew Crawley -- Edward Ferrars from Sense and Sensibility (2008)* 

Penelope Wilton -- Isobel Crawley -- Mrs. Hamley from Wives and Daughters

Samantha Bond -- Lady Rosamund Painswick -- Mrs. Weston in Emma (1996)

Iain Glen -- Sir Richard Carlisle -- Adam Bede in Adam Bede, Mr. Preston in Wives and Daughters

Maria Doyle Kennedy -- Mrs. Vera Bates -- Titanic (2012)

Robert Bathurst -- Sir Antony Strallan -- Mr. Weston in Emma (2009)*

*Only in the Christmas Episode

Review: The Duchess of Duke Street - Series 2

Not long ago, you may have seen that I reviewed Series 1 of this series. My mom and I finally finished the series and we were both a little sad that it ended. We just got the know all of the characters: they've almost become family. But alas! it is finished! Here is my review of it.

Note: This review contains spoilers from Series 1. If you do not want to encounter Series 1 Spoilers, I suggest waiting to read this review until after you've seen Series 1. In the meantime, here is my review for Series 1!

 

Synopsis
The story of Louisa Trotter continues where Series 1 left off. The Bentinck hotel has gain considerable prominence, hosting many distinguished guests. When WWI begins, Louisa does what she can to help with the war effort by turning the Bentinck into a convalescing home for soldiers.


Characters/Episode Plotlines
Couple of more actors/actresses that you might recognize, even more from Series 1. Of course, apart of the main cast is Gemma Jones (Louisa Trotter), who was also in Sense and Sensibility (1995) and Jane Eyre (1997). This series also sees the return of Joanna David as Lady Haselmere, Charlie's wife; Joanna David is well known in the period drama world for being in Pride and Prejudice (1995), Sense and Sensibility (1971), The Way We Live Now, and He Knew He Was Right. For some minor characters: Julian Fellowes (the creator of Downton Abbey) was in an episode as a student playing a joke on his professor) and Liz Smith (Lark Rise to Candleford) was in two episodes as "Nanny".

Much of the series has to do with World War I and how it affects the Bentinck. The Bentinck goes through some changes, Spoiler even enduring a bombing. End of Spoiler After a while, one can get a little tired of the war stories, as there are six episodes out of the sixteen that are about the war, but once those episodes are done, you don't hear a great deal about the war. The 20s are briefly gotten into, but the series ends in 1926. There is a wider range of eras than in Series 1, which only dealt with the Edwardian era.

Louisa is still a very likable character, though she can be strict at times. Spoiler When her daughter, Lottie, arrives at the Bentinck, she tries to make sure that Lottie is brought up as a lady, though Lottie has other plans. End of Spoiler

Charlie talking to the Major after WWI.

Charlie in in the series until about half-way through it. We see a little glimpse into his married life with Margaret, which ends in tragedy. He works through the grief and he eventually joins the army to fight in World War I, Spoiler but he returns, Charlie has suffered wounds from the battlefield and eventually succumbs to them. End of Spoiler With the exit of Charlie comes the entrance of Lottie. Between the two, Charlie was much more likable! Lottie was too rebellious and she was very rude to Louisa. I couldn't really identify with her very much.


Scenery
The scenery hasn't changed much from Series 1. Most of the scenes still take place inside the Bentinck, though there is an episode where you see a little garden area for the guests to sit in. There are some more outdoor scenes than in the first series. The show, as in Series 1, still looks like it was filmed in the 70s, which is to be expected since it was filmed in the 70s. But overall, the scenery isn't bad.


Costumes

Mr. Leyton, Louisa's father, visits her at the Bentinck.

This series, since it takes place over 16 years compared to the first season's 9, sees a wider range of costumes. The series starts off with Edwardian fashions, but ends with 20s fashions. Once WWI started, Louisa's usually fancy outfits became plainer and after the war ended, her clothes didn't look as nice as they once did. Her clothes made her look older (though she probably was older, but her face really didn't how it). Lottie did have some nice 20s clothes, but I don't particularly like that she bobbed her hair (but then again it was popular at that time). Personally, I preferred the costumes from the first series.



Overall: 4/5
Still a very good show, but between the two series, I preferred Series 1 (though both series got the same rating here). This series features some topics that were not spoken of as openly in series 1, but the show still maintains a PG rating (at least PG to me). There is a scene in the fifth episode that you may wish to skip, so be careful about that. I was sad that the show ended, but it was probably best that it ended when it did. 

The Duchess of Duke Street: Series 2 is available on DVD on it's own or in the complete collection. Is has sixteen, 1 hour long episodes.

Review: The Duchess of Duke Street - Series 1 (1976)

A while ago, my mom and I began to watch The Duchess of Duke Street. The show was made up of two seasons and was from the 70s. Normally, I don't particularly watch period dramas from the 70s since they aren't up to the standards of period dramas of today are (costuming and scenery wise), but I gave this show a try. I was not familiar with the Edwardian era and had never seen a period drama from the early Edwardian era (Downton Abbey was a little bit past the Edwardian era, and though it is referred to as an Edwardian period drama, it technically isn't.). This weekend, my mom and I just finished Series 1 of The Duchess of Duke Street.

Series 1 Box Art

Synopsis
Louisa Leyton (later Louisa Trotter) wants to become the best chef in England. She first gets a job in a fine house and eventually goes on to buy the Bentinck Hotel. The story is loosely based on the life of Rosa Lewis, a real life cook that was the best cook in London during her time.


Characters/Episode Plotlines
Most recognizably, Louisa is played by the well known Gemma Jones, who is also known for her roles in Sense and Sensibility and Jane Eyre. Robert Hardy (Sense and Sensibility, Middlemarch) makes an appearance in one episode, and so does Joanna David (Pride and Prejudice, He Knew He Was Right). Other than those members of the cast, I didn't recognize anyone else.

Louisa is a very interesting character. She is feisty, sassy, and determined to become the best chef in England. She sometimes gets involved in bad situations, but she keeps going. Small Spoiler Early in the series, she catches the attention of the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII): in order to keep the prince looking respectable, Louisa is pressured to marry the butler of the house she is working at, Augustus "Gus" Trotter; she relents and marries Gus (on a side note, Gus became a slimy character after they got married; luckily, he was only in the first couple of episodes). I felt that Louisa giving into the pressure was out of character for her: she didn't seem like a person that would give into peer pressure like that and then she does. But after that incident, Louisa doesn't give into peer pressure like she did during that incident. A slip of her character, perhaps? End of Small Spoiler There were ups and downs to Louisa's character. There were some times where I really liked her as a character: she was determined to protect her hotel and her staff and friends. But other times, it was hard to like her: she would become really bossy in some episodes, or really jealous in others. Well, I suppose all characters have their good points and their bad points.

The staff of the Bentinck Hotel

The staff of the hotel is also involved in the main plot too. As the viewer, you get a good glimpse into the lives of Mary, the hotel's maid and Louisa's friend that she met at her first cooking job, Merriman, the hotel's butler, Mr. Starr, the head porter, and his dog Fred, and the other recurring staff members. In a way, the story has some similarities to Upstairs, Downstairs since both the staff and the higher class people are involved in the plot. What is interesting is that in some episodes, you get to hear what the staff thinks of the situation the hotel is in in a particular episode.

Most of the episodes revolve around Louisa, Charles "Charlie" Haselmere (her friend), and the hotel staff, but there are a couple of episodes that focus more on the guests of the hotel. The episodes that were mostly about the hotel guests seemed as if they could have taken place at any point in the series, while with the episodes about Louisa, Charlie, and the hotel staff, they seem to play in chronological order for the most part. Since this story is based off of the life of a real life cook, there are some references during some of the episodes to events in history. Series 1 takes place between 1900 and 1910. There are references made to the death of Queen Victoria and the rise of the Prince of Wales to power and his death.


Scenery

Louisa at her first job

Unlike most shows from the 70s and 80s, this one didn't seem like it was on a sound stage all the time. Now, the video cameras that they used look like they came out of the 70s (I've noticed that with any 70s show, if a candle is lit there's this red streak that follows the flame around -- that streak is present in here), but the set doesn't appear to be a sound stage. There are some outdoor scenes, but most of the time, scenes take place within the Bentinck Hotel.


Costumes
I've never really seen a period drama with fashions from the early Edwardian era (at least before 1910) and I was quite unfamiliar with Edwardian fashions, so the costuming was all new to me. The costuming is very well done. Many of Louisa's outfits are very fancy and pretty, as are some of the guests' outfits. The staff usually has their usual uniforms on (which is to be expected), but sometimes the female staff members go out in nice dresses.


Music/Sound
Love the theme song! The theme song has the style of music that music at the turn of the century would have. Other than that, there really weren't any other songs (save for the alternative credits song, which had a similar style as the theme, but was slower). The sound was mostly clear (though I found Louisa hard to understand at times, but that was probably due to her accent).


Overall: 4/5
I would recommend this show. It's very enjoyable and not dull like some of the other period dramas from the 70s and 80s. There are some implications said about some of the characters, but nothing is shown (there was one scene that could have lead to a bad scene, but nothing happened at all). Louisa does sometimes use some bad language, but it's not that frequent. If I were to give The Duchess of Duke Street a TV rating, I would probably rate it TV-PG. If you're not familiar with the Edwardian era, this would be a good place to start with period dramas.

The Duchess of Duke Street: Series 1 is available on DVD either in the complete collection with both of the shows seasons or on it's own. There are 15 episodes in Series 1 that are about 50 minutes long each.

Review: The Adventures of Tintin (2011)

Sorry that my hiatus for reviews went on longer than expected. I plan on going back to reviews starting with this one. They will still be posted either on Monday or Tuesday of each week (though most likely Monday). Thank you for your understanding.


I didn't really consider this a period drama at first, but upon further thought, it kind of is. A period drama is, after all, a miniseries, movie, etc. that takes place during a time in history. Since Tintin was published in the 1940s (therefore I'm assuming that it takes place in the 40s), I would consider it a period drama (for reviews, I review movies that take place pre-1950s). We saw this movie on New Years Eve in 3D: I had only seen one other movie in 3D (Up), so this was my second time watching a 3D movie in theaters.

Synopsis

The Adventures of Tintin is based off of the popular comic series by Hergé. When Tintin, a reporter, buys a model ship of The Unicorn, he finds that there are two men who want to buy the ship from him: one warns him that it is cursed, the other wants the ship for his personal interests. Tintin and his dog, Snowy, research the ship and are taken on an adventure. Secrets are to be revealed.

Characters
There are some actors that you may recognize from other period dramas in "Tintin". Jamie Bell (Tintin) was also in Nicholas Nickleby. Andy Serkis (Captain Haddock) was in both The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Little Dorrit. Toby Jones (Silk) was in Amazing Grace and The Way We Live Now.

I was not at all familiar with Tintin before seeing this movie. I liked the character of Tintin, though I did think that he looked pretty young to be a reporter and living away from his parents. Tintin is always accompanied by his dog Snowy, a white Wire-Fox Terrier. I must say, Snowy stole part of the show from Tintin: that dog is just so cute! Snowy is very easily one of the main characters, though he has no speaking parts (though Tintin does talk to him a lot). Tintin is a very likable character: he is a young reporter who likes to dig deeper and ask questions. It was very easy to like him (though Snowy might have helped!).

Tintin (front) piloting a plane. Behind him is Captain Haddock.

I have only seen Andy Serkis in movies where he is a villain. In Tintin, his character, Captain Haddock, is actually a good guy, though with some vices. His vice is that he indulges too much in drink, which proves to be a part of his character and when he is taken away from his drink, it can be disastrous (though it can be nearly disastrous when he has his drink). Andy Serkis wasn't creepy in this role: his villains (at least the ones I have seen him in) were creepy, but here he was not: flawed, but not creepy. His character holds the secret of The Unicorn. His ancestor is connected with The Unicorn, and only a Haddock could solve the puzzle that The Unicorn has left. 

There is an additional subplot which doesn't have too much of an impact on the main plot. It concerns the pick-pocketer, Silk, and the officers, Thompson and Thomson, who try to catch him. Silk impacts the main plot in such a small way that it might not have been necessary to include it in the film, but it was still entertaining and didn't take away from the main plot.

Animation
I saw this movie in 3D. If you can, I would say see it in 3D. My mom at the start of the movie asked me if it was a cartoon or real people. The animation was very well done, and the animation did look real. There are a lot of very nice scenes throughout the movie, and a variety of them. Scenes take place from England, to a ship, to an airplane, to a desert, and more!

Snowy, Tintin's faithful dog.

Music
The music is very good (and the soundtrack is available at Amazon if you're interested). The theme song sounds like it keeps with the time and place, like something out of 1940s Europe. The music varies from tone to tone: some songs sound as if they came out of a mystery movie, others an action movie, and one opera song (which is involved in the plot). Overall, good music.

Overall: 4/5
I very much enjoyed this movie. I was not at all familiar with Tintin before seeing the movie, but I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. Towards the end, it is much more action packed than the beginning and middle of the movie (I did get a little weary of it towards the end); there is some action during the beginning and the middle, but there was also enough of the plot in there to even it out, but action is much more concentrated towards the end of the movie. There is some violence, but the violence isn't very bad: there are a lot of gunshots during the movie, and one man dies and a little bit of blood is left on a newspaper, but nothing is graphic. I think I recall one use of a swear word.

The Adventures of Tintin is now out in theaters in both regular and 3D showings. It is rated PG.

A clue!

Reviews for the Next Two Weeks

 The next two weeks are going to be a little hectic for me. This week is the last week before finals, so I have to finish up things for my classes, and then next week is finals. Because of this, for the next two weeks there won't be any reviews. I'm still going to keep up on the tournament and I'll try to participate in the Happy Birthday, Jane Austen event at Yet Another Period Drama Blog, but I don't think I have the time in the next two weeks to watch period dramas and write reviews for them. I'll try to post something every once in a while during the next two weeks.

In the meantime, I have 46 other reviews in my review index: have a look at them!


But don't worry! There will be a review on December 19th!


God Bless,
 

Review: The Grand - Complete Collection

I had never heard of The Grand until my mom bought it one day on Amazon. Both of us did not know anything about the series other than it was about a hotel. As we watched the series, the basis of the story was pretty much Upstairs, Downstairs in that half the show is about the upper class and the other half is about the lower class.

Note: I would usually do separate reviews for the different seasons, but for this, I'm combining them into one review.

Complete Collection Box Art

Synopsis

After World War I, the Grand Hotel in Manchester is reopened by the Bannerman family who has owned the hotel for many years before. The plot lines of the episodes would be similar to Upstairs Downstairs in that part of the plotlines involve the patrons of the hotel and the Bannerman family and the other part involves the waitstaff of the hotel.

Characters

There was only one member of the regular cast that I recognized, and it was Susan Hampshire as Miss Harkness, a guest at the Grand.

Out of all the characters, I would say that there are only three that were likable. The three were John Bannerman, the owner of the hotel, Kate Morris, the servant girl, and Mr. Collins, the head porter. John Bannerman was the owner trying to make the hotel successful after being closed for so long; he loves his family, but sometimes can't express it as well as he should. Kate Morris, the servant girl, tries to do her job and follow the rules; she cares for her friend, Monica, and tries to keep her out of trouble (which didn't work out). Mr. Collins lives with the grief that his son was executed for abandoning his post in the military, but he copes with it and runs the hotel well.

Kate Morris and Stephen Bannerman, John and Sarah Bannerman's
son.

The rest of the characters were horribly, horribly flawed. Miss Harkness has a very disreputable past and for the first half of the first series is proud of it and talks about it openly (Susan Hampshire, you could have done a lot better). She does seem to regret her choices, but ultimately goes back to her previous lifestyle. Marcus Bannerman, John Bannerman's brother, is just creepy and slimy. Sarah Bannerman, John's wife, begins to move away from her husband towards the creepy Marcus. Marcus's girlfriend (later fiancee and then wife) Ruth is mistreated by Marcus the whole first series, though he is slightly better to her face during the second series, but still neglects her. Need I go much further? And that was only part of the upstairs plotlines. And a bit more goes on with the servants that work downstairs. If you're looking for role models, don't look for them in The Grand.

There were also a lot of topics that wouldn't have been discussed so openly in company at the time. Realistically, during that time, there were certain subjects that would have been much more discreetly discussed if discussed at all. In The Grand, those subjects were talked about as if it was a modern day soap opera! It was quite unnecessary and inaccurate.

Scenery

Miss Harkness and Kate Morris

The Grand Hotel itself is something to look at! It's has many lovely views and always looks clean. There aren't many scenes that take place outside, so a great deal of the scenes are inside the hotel.

Costumes

Some of the costumes were well done. A good deal of the guests/owners costumes were very nice and looked pretty. The servants' outfits were the same uniform that they wore. However, it seemed like during the second season, however, that the costumer for The Grand was going out of their way to make Miss Harkness's dresses extremely immodest; it was extremely ridiculous and unnecessary.

Music

The theme music was very nice. It's very flowing and can get stuck in your head easily. Other than that, there aren't many songs that stood out to me very much.

Overall: 0.5/5

I WOULD NOT recommend this, especially to families. There are a lot of scenes that are very mature and a lot of the topics discussed during the show were inappropriate and wouldn't have been talked about so openly during the time period. Honestly, The Grand was more like a modern day soap opera with everyone's dirty laundry out for everyone to see in period fashions. I can't even say that you can easily skip past the inappropriate scenes: some can take you by surprise. I usually don't like to quote other reviewers on my reviews since my reviews are mine, but one reviewer at IMDB put it accurately when they said, "The Grand is just too sordid for more than one viewing." So I won't be watching this again. Be warned about this series. Though the costuming is nice and the hotel itself is lovely to look at, there is some very mature content present throughout the entire series that ruins the entire experience. And, honestly, the plotlines weren't that great to begin with.

The Grand is available on DVD. It is made up of two seasons and 18 episodes that are about 55 minutes long.

Review: Miss Potter (2006)

I think I remember seeing advertisements for Miss Potter... No, I'm nearly certain! But since it was before I got into period dramas, I hadn't taken much notice and quite forgot about it (for shame!). Recently (and by recently I mean less than a year), I've seen other blogs post about Miss Potter. And about a week or so ago, watched the trailer, showed it to my mom, and then next thing I knew, we had it on DVD.


DVD Box Art

 Synopsis

30 and unmarried, Beatrix Potter has always enjoyed drawing pictures of animals and creating children's stories. She tries to get her book The Tale of Peter Rabbit published: the publishers, thinking her book will not sell well, pass off her book on their brother, Norman Warne. Beatrix and Norman become very good friends and Beatrix's book is published, and love grows between Beatrix and Norman.

Characters

There were a couple of actors and actresses you may recognize from other period dramas. Bill Paterson (Rupert Potter) was in Little Dorrit, Wives and Daughters, and Amazing Grace. David Bamber (Fruing Warne) was in Pride and Prejudice and was briefly in The King's Speech. Barbara Flynn (Helen Potter) was in The Barchester Chronicles, Wives and Daughters, He Knew He Was Right, and Cranford. Ewan McGregor (Norman Warne) was in the 1996 movie of Emma. Lucy Boynton (Young Beatrix Potter) was in the 2008 miniseries of Sense and Sensibility. And Phyllidia Law (Mrs. Warne) is known for being the mother of Emma and Sophie Thompson and was Mrs. Bates in the 1996 movie of Emma.



Renee Zellweger as Beatrix Potter



Renee Zellweger was wonderful as Beatrix Potter. In Miss Potter, Beatrix is portrayed as a spunky, creative woman of 30 who is passionate about her artwork and stories. Beatrix doesn't care for life in the city and prefers the country home that her family stays at during the summer. Her mother tried to create matches for her to men that were high in society but were oafish. Because of her refusing her mother's matches, Beatrix is constantly at odds with her mother, who doesn't recognize Beatrix's talent as an author and illustrator; her father, however, encourages Beatrix's talents. Unmarried, Beatrix tries to make a living selling children's stories. It was kind of cute how she would imagine her drawings coming to life. I was worried that the filmmakers would overdo it, but I am very glad to say that they didn't! Lucy Boynton also did a good job as a young Beatrix. The story does go a little bit back and forth between the "present" and the past when Beatrix was a child, but it did not get confusing like some movies can be with time changes.



Beatrix Potter with Norman Warne (Ewan McGregor), who is
reviewing The Tale of Peter Rabbit.



Ewan McGregor was great as Norman Warne. I was rooting for him and Beatrix for nearly the whole movie. Spoiler I was so sad when he died! It was difficult to hold back tears! Though I happened to read that in real life he died before marrying Beatrix, there was still that part of me that wanted them to get married. End of Spoiler On a side note, Ewan McGregor looked better in here than he did as Frank Churchill in Emma (finally! He got rid of the long hair!). But did anyone notice how he doesn't have a mustache on the DVD box? I hadn't noticed until I read about it online.

Barbara Flynn does another great job as Mrs. Potter. Sure, she wasn't a great character since she was always putting Beatrix down about her writing, but I still think that Barbara Flynn did a good job. There was something of humor in some of her lines ("I wish you wouldn't bring tradespeople into the house. They carry dust."). Spoiler I was a bit mad at her for disapproving of Norman! End of Spoiler Bill Paterson played a quiet Mr. Potter, but he was likable Spoiler (Though he didn't approve of Norman either...) End of Spoiler.



The Potter family (minus Bertram Potter).
Pictured is Mrs. Potter, Mr. Potter,
and a young Beatrix.



Scenery

You get a wide range of nice scenery. Scenes sometimes move back and forth between the city and the country, but both are very nice. The second half of the movie focuses more on the countryside Spoiler since Beatrix moves to the country after the death of Norman. With her fortune made from selling children's books, she begins to buy farmland to preserve the countryside. She spends much of her time on this farmland drawing and taking care of her property. End of Spoiler

Costuming

I enjoyed the costuming. I've only started to watch period dramas with Edwardian fashions, so I was really interested in the costuming. Beatrix had some nice outfits (though one got dirty with ink!). Mrs. Potter had some intersting costumes also: hers were fancier than Beatrix's due to her social climbing nature, but they still looked nice.

Music

There is some nice music in Miss Potter. Some of the songs were based on a music box that Beatrix showed Norman, which was a nice song. If you are interested, Amazon does have the CD for Miss Potter.

Overall: 4.5/5

I highly recommend this movie for all ages! It is rated PG, but aside from a couple of swear words, there wasn't anything bad in it: if it wasn't for one swear word (at least there was only one I could remember), it could have been G. It was rather cute and sweet! There are some sad parts in there (I did have a difficult time holding back tears), but it all turns out okay in the end! There are a number of good lines from this movie, so it's definitely quotable!

Miss Potter is available on DVD. It is rated PG for brief mild language. It runs for 92 minutes.

Review: The Young Victoria

I've heard quite a bit about The Young Victoria around the blogging world. I kind of wanted to see it, but never bought the DVD or seen it on TV. When I came home one day, I saw that it was on one of the movie channels. I missed the first couple of minutes of it, but I got to see the rest of it.

DVD Box Art

Synopsis

The Young Victoria follows the life of Princess Victoria, who eventually becomes Queen Victoria, and how she met Prince Albert and fell in love with him. She became queen at age 18 and was seen by many as inexperienced and not ready for the job.


Characters
There are a couple of actors/actresses that you may recognize in The Young Victoria. Emily Blunt has recently come into the limelight, but also there is Rupert Friend (Pride and Prejudice 2005) as Prince Albert, Mark Strong (Emma 1997) was Sir John Conroy, Harriet Walter (Sense and Sensibility 1995, Little Dorrit 2008) was Queen Adelaide, and Morven Christie (Lost in Austen) was the servant Watson. The screenplay was written by Julian Fellowes, who also created Downton Abbey.

Overall, I thought the cast did a very good job. Emily Blunt I thought was a good Queen Victoria. I don't know very much about Victoria's life, but I found her likable in this movie. A little rebellious, but likable. I found that Emily Blunt acted well in her role, though there were a couple of spots where I thought she acted a little silly as a queen and for the time period, but overall she did a good job. I also enjoyed Rupert Friend's Price Albert, though I was a little skeptical of his German accent (something about it didn't seem perfectly right, but not bad).

I did have a hard time with remembering all the members of the royal family, but that could be due to my missing the first couple of minutes of the movie. When I rewatch this movie, I may have to pay closer attention to the characters with titles.


Scenery
A feast for the eyes! Between the gorgeous houses and the outdoor scenery, there cannot be want of pretty scenes. The colors are very lively and bright.


Costuming

Wow... This must be some of the best costuming I've seen. The dresses are very lively and bright (except for the mourning dresses, of course). There were a number of lovely dresses that Victoria wore. And the bonnets! A number of them had sheer fabric on them, which made them interesting. The dresses were from the 1830s and a little into the 1840s.


Overall: 4/5
Overall, I liked it. There were a couple of scenes that you may want to skip after Victoria and Albert get married (two or three scenes, but they are very close together), but other than that, I don't believe there was anything bad in there. There were two assassination attempts made on Queen Victoria, one which no one was hurt (though many were shocked) and the second where someone was injured, but nothing is shown. I think I would watch this again to pick up on some of the smaller details, though I've read that there are some historical inaccuracies, but that's not unusual for biopics.

The Young Victoria is available on DVD and Blu-Ray. It is rated PG and runs for 105 minutes.

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

Review: Little Women (1994)

Little Women was one of those movies that I kind of wanted to watch, but didn't really want to buy the DVD. Luckily, it was on TV one day, solving my problem. I really didn't know much about the story of Little Women and had never read the book. So I was watching Little Women with very little knowledge of the story.

Box Art

Synopsis
Little Women revolves around the lives of four sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March, and their mother, Mrs. March. Mr. March, Mrs. March's husband and Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy's father, is off fighting in the Civil War. Jo March, the main protagonist, becomes quick friends with Theodore "Laurie" Laurence who falls in love with her.


Characters
There are some members of the cast that are famous, though I really don't know many of them from period dramas. These actors/actresses include Winona Ryder (Jo March), Susan Sarandon (Mrs. March), Kirsten Dunst (young Amy March), and Christian Bale (Laurie).

Left to Right: Amy March, Jo March, Beth March, and Meg March

The March sisters were okay. Jo I had to get used to a little bit, but I grew to like her. Beth was sympathetic especially after she caught scarlet fever. Meg seemed alright, but I wanted to see more of her on the screen: I feel like I didn't get her whole character very much. But honestly, I did not like Amy March. I think it was because I only really saw her during the first half of the movie where she was young and selfish. She was there on screen a little bit as an adult, but I don't think that she was there enough for my opinion of her to improve.

There was something unsatisfactory about the ending. I didn't think that Laurie should have ended up with Amy. I also thought that Professor Bhear looked too old for Jo. I've heard that people wish that Laurie and Jo had gotten married, and I think I have to agree with them. I didn't hate Professor Bhear, but I still thought that he was too old for Jo. Plus, Laurie seemed to change after he went to France: suddenly, I couldn't trust his character very much. Oh well...


Scenery
There were some very nice colors used for the scenery. The part that sticks out in my mind was when Jo was in the forest picking flowers: everything looked so green and fresh! But in short, the scenery was very colorful and pleasant to look at.


Costuming

Jo and Professor Bhear

The story takes place in the 1860's (and maybe very early 1870's?). There is a wide range of costumes. The Marches, due to their poverty, have poor clothes and, for the most part, go without the crinoline most of the time. Jo does wear a crinoline and fashionable clothing for a coming-out party, but hated it, so that was the end of that. I say maybe 1870s because when Amy was in France, she was wearing a bustle, which didn't come into fashion until about 1869 and stayed in fashion until 1875. You also get to see what mourning fashion was like during the 1860s. Whatever the fashion used, everything looked very nice.


Overall: 3/5
I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. I liked it... kind of... I guess it was okay. I probably wouldn't watch it again on my own, but if someone wanted to see it, I wouldn't object to watching it again. There is a bit of nice scenery and the costumes are nice to look at. The plot and characters were just okay, though: not really in my top favorite plots and characters, but not in my bottom either.

Little Women is available on DVD. It is rated PG for two uses of mild language and runs for 115 minutes.

Review: Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

"A fiddler on the roof. Sounds crazy, no?" This must be one of my favorite musicals. I happened to see it on PBS one evening, and since I haven't seen it in a long time, I watched it.



I also want to apologize for the long wait for this review. It should have been posted yesterday, but I didn't get around to posting it until today.

Box Art

Synopsis
Fiddler on the Roof focuses on the life of Tevye (Topol), a poor Jewish milkman with five daughters living in Anatevka, a village in Russia, during the early 1900s. In Anatevka, everyone has traditions that they keep, but as the story goes on, those traditions eventually are broken.


Characters
There really isn't anyone in here that I recognize from other period dramas (or other movies in general).

The cast did a very good job of acting. Topol is Tevye. Period. He seemed to fit the character perfectly (though, I must confess, that this is the only version of Fiddler on the Roof that I've seen, but he just seemed to fit with the character). I couldn't think of anyone else as Tevye. He also has a very nice singing voice and is a good actor. Another honorable mention is Norma Crane: she did a wonderful job as Tevye's wife, Golde. 

There are a great deal of quotable lines. I'm going to take the opportunity of listing a couple of them now:

The Sabbath Prayer

Lebisch: Is there a proper blessing - for the tsar?
Rabbi: A Blessing for the tsar? 'Course! May God bless and keep the tsar... *whispered* far away from us!

"Traditions, traditions. Without our traditions, our lives would be as shaky as... as... as a fiddler on the roof!" ~Tevye

My favorite part of the story has to be the first half of it. During the first half, the tone is much happier: you get a glimpse into the everyday lives of the people of Anatevka. However, the second half gets much more serious and the music gets sadder. Spoiler This movie does have a bit of a sad ending since everyone in Anatevka is evicted and has to scatter to different parts of the world, so if you don't like sad endings, watch out. I personally don't like sad endings, but I still liked this movie. End of Spoiler

Scenery
For a movie made in the 70s, the scenery is very nice. There are very nice colors in the first half of the movie, but in the second half, the colors are not as colorful (since the story gets more serious and takes place in winter).


Costuming

Tevye's eldest daughter, Tzeitel, at her wedding

There's really not too much to say about the costuming. All (if not all, then most) of the characters are poor, so you don't get to see many pretty dresses (except a wedding dress, but it's fairly plain one). The costuming is fitting to the characters, though, so I don't really have much to complain about the costuming.


Music
How could one review a musical and not comment on the music? The music is marvelous! There are many catchy songs (my favorite has to be the opening song "Tradition"). The first half of the movie has more upbeat songs while the second half of the movie has slower, sadder songs due to the change in tone of the story. There are also a couple of dance numbers that are memorable.


Overall: 4.5/5
Definitely a good movie to watch. The songs are very good and there are some memorable dancing sequences. It also give you a look into traditional Jewish life. There may be one frightening sequence, but it was only a dream (and not a real dream) and doesn't get graphic. For the most part, this would be appropriate for anyone of all ages.

Fiddler on the Roof is available on DVD. It is rated G and runs for 181 minutes