Downton Abbey - Part 2

A year later, we are finally able to watch Part 2 of the "Downton Abbey" series on PBS. My family thought the first episode last night was better than last year's conclusion! Lots of World War I action and reaction. It's free online to watch (for a limited time).

Another Masterpiece

My husband and I have become hooked on Masterpiece Theater.  Would you believe that I saw “Captain Wentworth” last week?  Jane Austen fans will be drooling as he plays Hannay in “The 39 Steps.”  This spy-themed movie-ette is currently showing free for a limited time online, and you can watch instantly here.  Because it is only 1 hour and 23 minutes long, it’s a perfect evening break from your routine.  Some educational value concerning WWI, but much better than “Any Human Heart,” which was last month’s free installment.  This would be fine for all ages.  Of course, we also are eager to watch “Upstairs Downstairs,” which starts today.  I didn’t realize the Masterpiece schedule was changing so regularly, and I wanted to make sure my blog friends were also having the benefit of watching these free classics!  Plus there's a sweepstakes at PBS to win a trip to the UK, which I have entered again and again...

The new BBC Emma

My four daughters and I enjoyed hours of watching the new BBC Emma these past few days. It is excellent! Faithful to Jane Austen's work, filmed in gorgeous photography, settings and costumes. The acting is impeccable and we just loved the actress who plays the main part--as well as her excellent Mr. Knightly, likeable, a man of integrity, generosity and nobility of soul.

Don't miss it! I have compared the two other versions available in this post.

Don Matteo, priest-detective TV series on DVD

Don Matteo, Italian production for television, 1999-2000. Read about it on Ignatius Press page and the positive customer reviews on Amazon.

Does anyone remember the Trinity movies? My family loved those when I was a teenager... I remember Mother laughing so much. Terence Hill was the main actor of those Western films, and he is back as a good Catholic priest in Don Matteo. Our whole family has been watching one episode at a time and we love it!

The priest has a funny housekeeper, and two policemen-sidekicks who make my kids laugh out loud! Together, and with Don Matteo's loving heart, good Catholic morals and excellent detective skills, they solve various interesting murder mysteries. Last night we watched Murder in the Library, where Don Matteo is called to Rome to solve a murder of a scripture scholar, all filmed in the Vatican!

This is an Italian production and it is not dubbed, but the subtitles are well-done and my kids can handle them well. We were all saying Italian expressions by the end of the show! Enjoy! Available from Ignatius Press, Amazon or Netflix.

Cranford

Sorry to post mid-way through, but PBS is airing a new sequel to "Cranford" last Sunday and this Sunday (Jan. 10 & 17, 2010).



The original "Cranford" DVD is a compilation of stories from three books by Elizabeth Gaskell, a Victorian novelist: Cranford, Mr Harrison's Confessions, and My Lady Ludlow. Everyone will enjoy the humorous vignettes from an 1840s British town near Manchester, and its widows who fear such things as the modern progress of the railway as much they fear offending any one's gentility or accidentally exposing their poverty. Of course, we love Dame Judi Dench and her character Miss Matty, whose gentleness brings out the best in her neighbors. You might say she inspires everyone to avoid the near occasions of sin.

"In this House of Brede"

Here's a convent movie with a happy ending! "In this House of Brede" by Rumer Godden is a fictional tale of a late-in-life vocation that was shown on the Hallmark Hall of Fame. I thought it was sensitive in every way and compelling in its realistic portrayal of convent life. A worldly London business-woman hopes to "escape" by becoming a Benedictine nun. But she finds jealousy, past hurts, affection, and pride are part of everyone's life. She gently conforms to the rule first out of obedience, then out of genuine love. There are important lessons about friendships, because community life challenges them to love all sisters equally.

The scenery is beautiful, and the movie was filmed on location at genuine convents in London and Ireland (with some limitations of television technology in 1975). Film is good for all ages. I recommend the book, of course, because the movie doesn't exactly follow the book nor have its depth (for older students).

"The Maldonado Miracle" Review

From our NetFlix queue came "The Maldonado Miracle" for our family movie night this week. We liked it much more than we expected! GREAT movie about a fictitious Catholic church whose crucifix starts dripping blood. The little immigrant boy is adorable and you will start praying for him to get his dog back. Peter Fonda is the parish priest whose hope is dying in the nearly-ghost town. Mare Winningham is the perky cafe owner who befriends little Jose and his dog. Several miracles woven together effortlessly into one, short (99 min.) movie. The script and director both won a Daytime Emmy in 2004.

Wuthering Heights

I found an interesting opinion on the newest PBS version at Tea at Trianon...

Another Christmas movie

My daughter and I searched all the local libraries until we located a copy. We love Hallmark movies, and this one (from 1999) is even better than most: romance, kids with puppy dog eyes, Santa, and a Guardian Angel that saves the day THREE times! Don't miss "A Season for Miracles."

The Young Riders

Another NetFlix recommendation...
My family cannot get enough of "The Young Riders" whose 67 episodes ran on TV during 1989-1992. The movie is an exciting series of western adventures based on the boys who actually worked for the Pony Express. Our family LOVES this historical connection because we live in St. Joseph, MO -- the location of the Pony Express National Museum http://www.ponyexpress.org/ and original Stables. My daughter even works there giving tours to school children.

The riders include the future "Buffalo Bill" Cody; James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok; Ike, an orphan who is a mute; Buck, a half-White/half-Kiowa scout; and the Kid, a quiet Southerner similar to "Billy the Kid." They also ride with Lou, a young woman who keeps secretly disguised as a boy.

Although highly fictionalized, there are many facts woven into the tales of this group of Express riders based at a waystation in Sweetwater, Kansas. The station is run by an ex-Texas Ranger and all-around eccentric named "Teaspoon" Hunter, and Emma, who is their cook, housekeeper, and mother hen and tries to keep them out of trouble.

"Persuasion" on PBS

I was persuaded to like the new PBS version of "Persuasion" upon my second viewing tonight with the local Jane Austen Book Club. The hero and heroine are sublime, and the first three-quarters of the movie are excellent! (Could have been a better casting of Lady Russell and Mrs. Smith, but sister Mary is QUITE hilarious.) There's an excess of running -- without bonnets, my dears -- in the final three scenes! Overall, Anne is a dutiful girl, who keeps her sense of humor and perspective through many trials. Another fine message that modern daughters would do well to imitate! Available at many libraries (the book is even better) or online.

Emma and Emma, a comparison

With all of the Jane Austen film renditions hype, and with a very poor quality reception on our own TV set, I am enjoying picking up film versions of her literary oeuvre from the library.

This past week it was Emma: the film version with Gwyneth Paltrow, and the BBC made-for-TV version. As I watched and compared, I remember that about 4 years ago I did the same comparison--and arrived at the same conclusion. The BBC version is better! Even the production-- photography, lighting, colors, costumes. Granted, the film version is also well done--but disappointedly so, as viewers should expect more in production quality from a big screen version.

There are many similarities: both scripts fall short of bringing Jane Austen to life as the masterfully done Pride and Prejudice does. Both fail to spend enough time developing Emma's and Knightley's characters for us to get to know and care enough for them. Both have carefully done period costumes and settings, although I'd say Gwyneth's Emma is at the same time too rude for the period's manners and more likable to the viewer who hasn't read the novel.

What I enjoyed most in the BBC version, however, and what makes it definitely the superior of the two in my eyes, is the moral depth with which the viewer is left: that mingling on others' personal affairs is wrong. Also, Knightley comes forth as a just, kind man, just as Darcy revealed himself to the reader when Lizzie visited Pemberley, through the words of his old nurse.

Mostly I applaud the BBC version for including the last scene, when reformed Emma happily hosts a party for the genteel and farming families alike, dancing and rejoicing together. Very well done: Jane Austen would be proud, because in her portrayal of her own world, the kind and just shine and are rewarded with true happiness.

For the readers who are further interested in reading on this comparison, I found here a rather negative, but still interesting, comparison of the two. Worth reading as well are some of the reviews on Amazon.

Jane Austen Movies on PBS

A friend just e-mailed this to me. What fun!

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/schedule/index.html