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Fortunes Of War (Three Discs) (DVD)


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Fortunes of War - TV drama at its very best
Review date: 2008-07-12 Rating: 10 out of 10

I was delighted to find 'Fortunes of War' on disc after years of wondering if I ever would. Now I have it and it is even better than I remembered it being. The setting is Romania 1939 onwards, when Hitler is just beginning to wreak havoc in other parts of Europe. Guy and Harriet Pringle are newly married and she accompanies her husband back to Bucharest where he lectures at the university under the auspices of the British Council.The British are well thought of by the Romanians initially because Britain has promised to protect Romania in the event of a war. As it becomes increasingly obvious that Britain can hardly look after itself as the Nazi onslaught begins to crush one country after another, the Romanian leadership decides it had better curry favour with the Axis powers. Besides, there is already a strong German presence in Bucharest. Meanwhile, there is the growing menace of the Romanian fascist party to contend with as it begins to flex its muscles. Inevitably, the British residents come to be regarded as an embarrassment. Finally, the Pringles and others in their milieu are forced to flee. The action moves to Greece and then Egypt as the war gets steadily more threatening. Throughout the drama we follow the fortunes of a wide and intriguing cast of characters. Don't expect much in the way of battle scenes, though there are a few. This is about people away from the theatre of war, but whose lives are caught up in the growing menace of the Axis powers.

Everything about this production is first rate. This includes not only the excellent script (based on Olivia Manning's stunning THE BALKAN TRILOGY and its sequel THE LEVANT TRILOGY) and the cast list, but the photography, the settings, and the music. As with the best film and television drama, the casting has to be right, and here the casting director and his team have got it spot on. Now that I have bought and am reading 'The Balkan Trilogy' (from Amazon of course), I can see what a clever job Alan Plater has made of the adaptation of what is simply a wonderful sequence of novels. So what is the enduring impression I am left with? It is that feeling you get when you have enjoyed a work of art which is really well crafted, where nothing is skimped, and which never insults your intelligence, ever. The 'Fortunes of War' is so good, as are the books on which it is based, that you can return to it again and again. Marvellous value. Watching 'The Fortunes of War', with its splendid production values so plain to see, you realize just what poor stuff we are served up with today by way of film and television. Bring back the old days, I say, when less definitely was more!

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Reviews


Sorry, it's the Balkans, not the BALTICS!
Review date: 2008-07-01 Rating: 6 out of 10

You might think that the BBC would check the wording they put on the covers of their DVDs. But no, sadly not. The opening line says "The Baltics, followed by the date". The text then goes onto talk about Romania, Bucharest and so on. A long way from the Baltic Sea, which is in Northern Europe, north and east of Germany, and south of Norway, Sweden and Finland. Thankfully the film is better than the words on the box, and in Amazon's synopsis.

The Consequences of Inconsequence
Review date: 2007-09-13 Rating: 6 out of 10

Kenneth Branagh gives a good performance as a professor of English in Bucharest in 1939. He is the sort of well meaning bien pensant who, at that time, would have belonged, probably, to the Left Book Club, supported the (Communist/Socialist/Anarchist) Republican anti-Franco "government" in Civil War Spain and been naively pro-Soviet. His wife, played well by Emma Thompson, is of like mind though less committed. The acting is good throughout, as are the locations in Romania, Athens and then in Egypt. The plot goes slowly, though and ends on a note of tragic inconsequence, with the professor's wife lost at sea, having fled Alexandria as the Afrika Korps advances. My wife and I thought we had lost the last DVD only to find that we had just watched it...

"What Larks!" - The Brits Abroad in WW2
Review date: 2007-09-06 Rating: 6 out of 10

This is an excellent production with wonderful scenic views and the expected high BBC standards, however, I am afraid I found the characters so universally irritating I had to knock off a few stars!

Guy Pringle and wife Harriet live in Budapest where he works as an English teacher. When the war comes they flea to Athens and then to Cairo, always managing to somehow stay ahead of any real danger - in fact, Guy (Kenneth Brannagh) is so supremely immune to everything around him - including new wife Harriet (Emma Thompson) - that he could be living on a desert island. Even when Guy starts assisting resistance work in his own way, you feel that the lure of a new book of Byron's works would quickly make him hang up his ideals and settle in a comfy armchair. The group sit in cafes listening to bombs falling and getting nearer and nearer.....Their friends - a mix of Bohemians and diplomats - interact with each other through work and leisure - yet when one of their number is shot dead in front of the others, the response is more "Gosh - bad show" than any heart felt display of grief....

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. No doubt there were groups of "Brits Abroad" for whom WW2 was little more that an irritation which stopped them giving lectures - but this side of the conflict is not one we are used to seeing. Harriet utters the Famous Five line "What larks!" whilst fleeing Cairo in an army truck - adding to the already surreal script.

Nonetheless, this is an enjoyable drama and does portray the lives of people caught up in the war but with no real idea of the danger they are in. There are plenty of familiar faces in the cast and the 7 episodes tell the story at a decent pace. There are many witty lines exchanged between the friends and the period detail is faultless.

Give this a go, you will enjoy it - but afterwards you might feel you need to watch Tenko, Schindlers List or Band of Brothers for a more gritty portrayal of the effects of WW2 on Europe.

Quality drama
Review date: 2007-07-24 Rating: 10 out of 10

Another drama of quality from the BBC. So many good actors, and so many entertaining characters. There are a lot of witty lines in this as well as scenes of sadness. I was really moved by some of the scenes, especially at the end.
Guy Pringle thinks everyone is extraordinary. Unfortunately because he wishes to help and befriend everyone, he neglects his wife, who he does actually love. He loathes and despises facism, and refuses to let the war stop his teaching or putting on a play.
I would disagree with another review that states that the Pringles and their friends are not aware of the realities of the war. They do experience the ill fortunes of war in various ways, as follows:
The disappearnce of Sacha Druker and the arrest of his father.
The death of Prince Yakimov.
A boy killed by an unexploded bomb.
The crippling of a young officer.
Aiden Pratt, 'haunted' by the deaths of children he shared a lifeboat with.
The 'separation' of Harriet and Guy.
This is something you can watch more than once. I have, several times.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Kenneth Branagh
Emma Thompson

Creators:
Kenneth Branagh (Primary Contributor)
Emma Thompson (Primary Contributor)

Recording label: 2 Entertain Video
Manufacturer: 2 Entertain Video
EAN: 5014138302849
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 3
Format: Box set, PAL,
Release date: 2006-10-23
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2

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