Middlemarch (DVD)

Although this BBC miniseries is not the top one we've seen, it still has its moments. Also, it's quite a bargain for 7 hours of viewing. To be sure, rich character development, beautiful scenery, and fine acting, are all there. But the story is very much a 19th century soap opera with many of the key characters acting in a self-destructive, petulant way. Middlemarch is a pseudonym for one of the midland cities in England, most likely, Coventry. The town has its country charm, but many of the inhabitants are small-minded and petty. Few characters are really worth worrying about, with the exception of the Garth family who will be noted further below.The central character, Dorothea Brooke, is born to an aristocratic life, along with her sister Cecilia. Their parents died while the sisters were young and both girls are taken in by their uncle, Arthur Brooke, played by Robert Hardy. He dotes on the girls as if they were his own and tries to make them happy. Despite all this, Dorothea feels guilty for her privileged life and longs to do something profound in the world. Instead of marrying the next door neighbor, the dashing, young Sir James Chettam, she is attracted to an old fossil and religious scholar, Rev. Edward Casaubon, who is at least 20 years older than her. (Sir James marries Cecilia in one of the few bright spots of the story). Dorothea's life with Casaubon turns into a nightmare, as their marriage is never physically consummated. One reason for this may be that every day for him is a "bad hair day." Mr. Casaubon spends his time on vainglorious sophistry and religious wanderings and eventually dies of a heart attack. While this is going on, the young idealist, Mr. Ladislaw, Casaubon's nephew, meets and falls for Dorothea. We learn that one of the stipulations in Casaubon's will is that Dorothea will lose her position and fortune if she marries Ladislaw. Of course, this is what happens in the end and viewers are left wondering she didn't give away her estate first and then run off with Ladislaw. At the conclusion of the story, the narrator tells us that Ladislaw is elected to Parliament but doesn't say much more. We're left to hope that he and Dorothea had a happy life together after much disappointment and despair. Nevertheless, we're told that when Dorothea dies she is left in an "unvisited tomb." Who needs that?Other threads of the story are equally soapy, as we are introduced to the young doctor, Lydgate, and his eventual bride, Rosamund Vincy. Rosamund is daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Vincy. He is a merchant and the town mayor. Son Fred is a disappointment to his family throughout most of the story and has trouble making his way in the world. (Fred is played by Colin Firth's younger brother Jonathan and thus is the only connection we could find to the 1995 production of "Pride and Prejudice." After getting depressed watching "Middlemarch," we just had to re-view segments of P & P.) Fred is befriended by Mr. Caleb Garth, father of Mary Garth, Fred's love interest. Mary won't accept marrying Fred until he learns how to make a respectable living which he eventually does as apprentice to her father. They manage some of the local farms and estates and do well. Fred and Mary eventually end up together which is about the only trace of a happy ending this long story provides.Back to Dr. Lydgate, he is also an idealist and donates his time in building up a big, new hospital in Middlemarch. He hopes to make the hospital a major center for the study and cure of fevers of all types. In his private practice, Lydgate does much to upset the existing social structure and becomes unpopular with most of the local power brokers. An example of this is where Lydate suggests a glass of wine for one of the locals rather than a concoction from an older doctor. (At this stage, viewers may be tempted to reach for a bottle of wine or something stronger, too.) Lydgate does gain support from Mr. Nicholas Bulstrode who becomes his friend and patron. Sadly, Bulstrode, the banker, makes important enemies and brings Lydgate down with him. At the end of the story, we're told that Lydgate dies at age 50, and Rosamund re-marries an elder physician. So much for idealism.We've never had much interest in George Eliot and doubt we will pursue any of her other works. If they're like "Middlemarch," about the only conclusion one might have is that it sure is better living today, with all our problems, than having lived 200 years ago in a sad place like Middlemarch. If you want to immerse yourself in British period drama from the 1800's that has real punch and a happy ending, try "North and South."

I purchased Middlemarch because I had heard it was a good period piece. I was not disappointed; in fact, the mini-series exceeded my expectations by a good measure.I'll confess right off that I've never read the book. However, I assume it follows pretty closely because the screenplay was written by the ever-reliable Andrew Davies (who also penned the superb 1995 definitive version of Pride and Prejudice, as well as many other films of Austen's novels). The film deftly blends multiple story lines and never loses track of any of them.The main story line is that of the very bright Dorothea Brooke, played in an understated way by the lovely Juliet Aubrey. Dorothea is a young niece of the aristocratic Arthur Brooke (the always excellent Robert Hardy), who is painfully, but cheerfully trying to make the transition from the late-feudal Britain to a country marked by the rise of popular democracy.Dorothea is attracted to men of intelligence and ideas. She is drawn to the much older scholar Rev. Edward Casaubon, who is engaged in an exhaustive study of mythology. He has spent copious amounts of time researching his subject, but little actual writing. Dorothea (or Dodo, as her sister Celia has dubbed her) yearns for a 'soulful life', though her sister doesn't see the attraction, nor for that matter does the rest of the family, including her father. Sir James Chettam, a family friend, who is wealthy and much interested in Dorothea's attractiveness as well as her intelligence, seems a much better choice, as he is closer to her age. But Dorothea is undaunted. She is excited by the idea of helping Dr. Casaubon in his study, and, at first, so is he. So, they marry.All is not plum perfection in the new relationship, though, primarily once Rev. Casaubon's moody, restless cousin Will Ladislaw shows up. There is an instant attraction between Dorothea and Will, that is evident to everyone including Casaubon.Meanwhile, Dr. Tertius Lydgate has arrived in Middlemarch (a fictitious town set in the Midlands of England in the mid-19th century, placing it between Jane Austen and Charles Dickens). He has ambition, and seeks to improve the medical profession and health care in the England that is removed from the big cities such as London. He has decided to remain a bachelor for the time being, though there is pressure on him to settle down in short order. One of the young ladies he is acquainted with is the pretty, but vacuous Rosamond Vincy, who is the niece of the pompous, dictatorial, but very rich Mr. Bulstrode, who is in charge of a group of city elders who control much of what goes on in Middlemarch. Rosamond is smitten by Dr. Lydgate, who is handsome, intelligent, but poor. Rosie, and Dr. Lydgate calls her, has misunderstood Dr. Lydgate's attentions to mean that he means to marry her. When he explains to her that he has had no such intention, she becomes hysterical and cries unceasingly. To calm her, Dr. Lydgate promises to marry her, a promise that will lead to much regret on his part.It's a film with a multitude of plot lines, as the above description hints at, but the George Eliot (and Davies) pulls it off well, and the whole remains cohesive and neatly wrapped up in the end.This really is a must-see for those who love Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, or the Bronte sisters. It's one of the best period pieces set in the 18th and 19th century England.Not to be missed; I loved it. Very highly recommended!

I received this disc & found that it failed to track in several places. I returned the disc & before the returned disc was received by the vendor they had sent me a replacement copy. So I have to say they went above & beyond to satisfy this customer. The new disc played just fine although as I mentioned the picture quality could be better. However, it is not so bad as to take away from the enjoyment of watching the movie. The story of course is a classic & well portrayed by a stellar cast. The story written by "Mary Anne Evans" under the male Nom-de-plume of "George Elliot" was written at a time when women had to adopt a male pen name to get acceptance as legitimate writers. This story "Middlemarch" is said to be her best & one of the best of English literature. It covers both the bad & good things of that time period, that she herself lived in. The story is more than worthy of five stars, the disc picture quality is the reason for only four stars & maybe that should have been at least four & a half stars.

El DVD venía sellado, pero noté que el disco venía suelto dentro del estuche, y cuando lo saqué, ¡traía huellas digitales en ambas caras!Es la primera vez que me pasa que un DVD nuevo venga con huellas digitales.

Really wonderful to watch English Period Drama Movies. Such a Joy. :o

DVD box set arrived in good time and condition, exactly as described.

It is February 2021 and we are in the middle of the third, and I hope last, lockdown. It has been a time to revive old boxsets not seen for years. Among the oldest has been the BBC’s adaptation of “Middlemarch”, made in 1994.Middlemarch really stands up to the test of time. It’s a wonderful production with an outstanding cast, with even minor characters beautifully portrayed. Juliet Aubrey won a richly-deserved BAFTA for her performance, which was outstanding. It is of a suitable length for these times: the first episode if of 90 and the remaining five 60 minutes apiece, giving 6½ hours in all. It is hugely enjoyable.The only drawback is the picture quality, which is not good. The DVD has the compromise aspect of 14:9 (see Wikipedia for those technically inclined https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14:9_aspect_ratio), although I suspect it was shot in 16:9. I also think it was entirely shot on videotape, unlike the earlier productions using film for outdoor scenes and video for indoor. If only it had been shot on Super 16 film like the following year’s Pride and Prejudice, on which the definition was so good that it was succeassfully transferred to Blu-Ray (if you love P&P the Blu-Ray version is well worth having).Additionally, this set consists of only two DVDs, which means that over 3 hours of material is compressed onto each disc. Hence the picture quality is definitely lo-def. It is probably too late now but it is to be hoped that any re-issues on DVD will consist of at least three discs and possibly 16:9 aspect ratio.

Edited with update at the end:If I am buying something in the UK with a UK address on the UK version of Amazon ordering in English and with a history of buying UK Blurays, why would I want a BluRay that is in Spanish? Not just Spanish subtitles but dubbed into Spanish too.OK - I should have guessed, given that it said it was the Spanish version, but it does also say on the product description that it comes in both Spanish and English languages and subtitles in both languages. It doesn't.Also, as another review pointed out, the picture quality falls well short of BluRay quality.I returned the BluRay package, with Amazon's returns process working pretty well, and ordered the DVD version instead. That was the English version and everything it should be. To my eye, the quality was better than the BluRay version.In terms of the content - at last - I really enjoyed the series. Good cast and well cast, fairly faithful to the book. Like the book, it is a slow burning story, which is nice in this day and age. It has high production values - costumes and sets all excellent. 5 out of 5 from this point of view.