Customer Reviews

Brother Cadfael, Set 1 (One Corpse Too Many / The Sanctuary Sparrow / The Leper of St. Giles / Monk's Hood)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

These early episodes aren't as well produced as the later ones: the same actors keep reappearing in minor roles, the dialogue is sometimes jarringly anachronistic, and -- even in the 12th century -- a well-off young man like Hugh would own more than one tunic! But, as a deep-dyed Ellis Peters fan, I think in some ways these are the best of the whole series. The writers adhered more closely to Peters' plots, while in later episodes they tended to emphasize the sensationalistic aspects of the stories and downplay Cadfael's analytic skills and grasp of human nature. The actor who plays Hugh, Sean Pertwee, is in my opinion far better in the role. In the books, Hugh is intelligent, guarded, and has a well-developed sense of irony; Pertwee conveys these qualities well, while his successor kept reminding me of Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties! Also, his rapport with Cadfael is more convincing: compare, for example, the scene in which the two examine the body in "The Sanctuary Sparrow," with (say) their scenes together in "St. Peter's Fair."
My favorite is "One Corpse Too Many," which is well cast throughout (with a delectable Aline -- I wish they'd brought her back in later episodes! -- a suitably slimy Giles, and the sexiest villain you'll see in a month of Sundays) and well written: the complicated "who did what to whom" in the stable episode was easy to follow, and I think the final scene was even better than Peters' original. "The Sanctuary Sparrow" was also well done, although I wish they'd used a less robust actress for the maidservant: in the book, she's frail enough to be physically intimidated, while this lady looked perfectly capable of rescuing herself! "Monk's Hood" was generally a good translation of the book to the screen, although the writers (especially in the Welsh scenes) occasionally succumbed to the impulse to overstate a point. While "The Leper of St. Giles" is also competently done, they lost me early on when the young lovers, alone at last, start playing tonsil hockey: there's a LITTLE more to their relationship than teenage lust!
The producers assembled -- and kept together throughout the series -- a thoroughly capable cast in the secondary roles. The two abbots are well done, especially the CEO-type Radulfus; Prior Robert and his loyal sidekick Brother Jerome are perfect (the latter is more brisk than in the books, but he's got the character's sneering self-righteousness down to a "T"); Brother Oswin is brilliantly done; and Hugh's Sergeant is suitably loutish, even if his chain mail bears a haunting similarity to Spandex. As for Derek Jacobi's Cadfael, I couldn't ask for a better. Although he remarked in Amazon.com's interview that he felt he was too large for the role, he PLAYS it as a man who handles situations with his wits and skill rather than physical dominance. And he well depicts the character's complexity: a man of the world who's dedicated himself to an austere monastic life but sometimes heeds the pull of his old one, and whose values are so deeply ingrained that he'll break the monastic rules rather than see injustice done. I found the entire TV series good fun, but these episodes spoiled me for later ones.

I has seen all the movies up to the fourth series, and have read all the books from Ellis Peters (the Cadfael author) that my library has. This series is as true to those mystery books as possible with their budget, and the result is stunning. They combine action, romance, sublety, and a medieval setting as true as the health department will allow. The movies maintain a true feel for the era, the mental mindset, and the suspicions/beliefs of the times. Derek Jacobi's skill as an actor are what brings Cadfael to life, and he hold nothing back in excellent after excellent episode. In only one episode have I been able to figure out the ending before all the clues are pieced together. My only criticism (and it is very minor) is that the actors who portray Hugh Berringer have changed several times. All have been very good in the role, but the first should have stayed. All in all, this series is well worth the expense, and is a real treat for the mystery movie lover (and historical period buff, the recreationists, the, well everybody I know anyway)

Great series of DVDs! I love detective series and this one is excellent. Along with the wonderful detective stories it takes place in medieval times several years after the Crusades. Brother Cadfael, pronounced Cadfile, is played by a superb actor, Sir Derek Jacobi. Some may know him from the series "I, Claudius", or the movie "Dead Again" or any number of other roles.

Cadfael is a monk in an order in the village of Shrewsbury. The mysteries he encounters involve murder or mayhem over inheritance, love, jealousy, and property. Often there are interesting characters that seem involved with the case that are but not in the way we suspect. The sheriff Hugh Beringar, played by Sean Pertwee in this set does an exceptional job as well and is often helpful to Cadfael in pursueing the cases.

The stories in this set involves a variety of mysteries that Cadfael unravels with the assistance from a gamut of people of the times. Cadfael has led and interesting life which we get a peek at with each episode. Even if he was just a monk that cares for the ill using herbs from his garden it would be enough, but there is much more to him. It was hard not to sit through a marathon of watching the set because they are so engrossing. I had not seen any of this series until I bought this set on a whim. After seeing it I immediately ordered the next three sets.

The set is excellent and includes Bios, Background on stories, and much more. The picture and sound quality are first class. I highly recommend buying this set. Fans of movies like "The Name of the Rose" or BBC series like "Sherlock Holmes" with Jeremy Brett, or even TV series like "CSI" will probably enjoy it.

When the decision was made to produce for TV several episodes from her mystery series about Brother Cadfael, that 12th century crusader turned monk turned detective who has been, ever since his creation, one of the most compassionate and unusual sleuths of literary history, novelist Ellis Peters (Edith Pargeter) was not entirely happy. In fact, as the series' star, Sir Derek Jacobi, explains in the extra footage provided on the now-released DVDs, Ms. Peters had very mixed feelings about giving up her brain child and entrusting it to other people who went about cutting and adjusting everything, from the storylines themselves to the way the protagonists speak and even the Chronicles' sequence, to the necessities and limitations set by the new medium. But she eventually acquiesced and at one point promised that "the next one I write, I'll make sure it's easier for you all to film."

While the thirteen episodes that were eventually produced are, thus, not entirely true to the individual Chronicles they are based on, they are closer than many other movie or TV versions of famous works of literature. Most importantly, they maintain not only the core story lines but also the historical authenticity, atmosphere and spirit set by Ms. Peters's books in a marvelous fashion. And Sir Derek Jacobi brings both the wealth of his experience and skill and all of his own shrewdness, intelligence, sense of humor and empathy to the role of the medieval Benedictine sleuth and thus truly becomes Cadfael -- for the thousands of new fans who are discovering the series through its enactment for TV just as much as for us who loved the books before they were ever transposed to a visual medium. A tremendous cast of supporting actors rounds out an overall excellent production; to mention just a few, Julian Firth as the ambitious and narrow-minded Brother Jerome, Terrence Hardiman as Abbot Radolfus and Sean Pertwee (and later Eoin McCarthy) as Under-Sheriff Hugh Beringar, who joins Cadfael in his investigations whenever, as is so often the case, these transcend the world of monastic life and require the administration of secular justice as well as clerical insight. Several episodes also feature noted guest stars.

The episodes are not entirely in the same order as the books; however, as most of the cross-references between the books have been eliminated in the screen versions, this is no great harm (although the lacking cross-references are probably one of the things avid readers of the books will find missing). The DVDs also provide background information on Ellis Peters, Sir Derek Jacobi and a number of the individual episodes' other actors.

Summary of the episodes contained in this set:

"One Corpse Too Many" (the second Chronicle): King Stephen lays siege to Shrewsbury Castle and, finally victorious, orders the surviving defenders to be executed. But then there's an extra corpse, who clearly wasn't executed. Whodunnit -- and why?

"Monk's Hood" (the third Chronicle): Cadfael's and Shrewsbury Abbey's honor is at stake when a guest is found poisoned by Cadfael's own potions ... and the sheriff's sergeant over-eagerly jumps to the wrong conclusions.

"The Leper of St. Giles" (the fifth Chronicle): A leper's grim fate is unexpectedly intertwined with the story of an orphaned heiress, due to be wedded for money's sake to a despicable old baron, and her lover; who is everybody's favorite suspect when the groom turns up dead.

"The Sanctuary Sparrow" (the seventh Chronicle): A young singer is accused of robbery and murder and, hunted by a mob, seeks shelter in the Abbey.

Second Set:
"St. Peter's Fair" (the fourth Chronicle);
"The Virgin in the Ice" (the sixth Chronicle);
"The Devil's Novice" (the eighth Chronicle).

Third Set:
"A Morbid Taste for Bones" (the first Chronicle);
"The Raven in the Foregate" (the twelfth Chronicle);
"The Rose Rent" (the thirteenth Chronicle).

Fourth Set:
"The Pilgrim of Hate" (the tenth Chronicle);
"The Potter's Field" (the seventeenth Chronicle);
"The Holy Thief" (the nineteenth Chronicle).

Also recommended:
A Rare Benedictine
A Morbid Taste for Bones: The First Chronicle of Brother Cadfael
One Corpse Too Many: The Second Chronicle of Brother Cadfael
Monk's Hood: The Third Chronicle of Brother Cadfael
Leper of Saint Giles (Brother Cadfael Mysteries)
The Virgin in the Ice (Brother Cadfael Mysteries)
Brother Cadfael's Penance (Brother Cadfael Mysteries)
The Cadfael Collection
A Bloody Field by Shrewsbury

I has seen all the movies up to the fourth series, and have read all the books from Ellis Peters (the Cadfael author) that my library has. This series is as true to those mystery books as possible with their budget, and the result is stunning. They combine action, romance, sublety, and a medieval setting as true as the health department will allow. The movies maintain a true feel for the era, the mental mindset, and the suspicions/beliefs of the times. Derek Jacobi's skill as an actor are what brings Cadfael to life, and he hold nothing back in excellent after excellent episode. In only one episode have I been able to figure out the ending before all the clues are pieced together. My only criticism (and it is very minor) is that the actors who portray Hugh Berringer have changed several times. All have been very good in the role, but the first should have stayed. All in all, this series is well worth the expense, and is a real treat for the mystery movie lover (and historical period buff, the recreationists, the, well everybody I know anyway)

I liked the videos as much if not more than I liked and enjoyed the Ellis Peters books. Truly well done and enjoyable to watch. I have a hard time picturing the actor who portrays Cadfael as a crusader, but he's very good anyway! Derek Jacobi plays it well.

Brother Cadfael is not the sort of person you would immediately peg as a brilliant detective -- a crusader-turned-monk who specializes in herbology and medicine.

But he is a brilliant detective. And "Brother Cadfael, Set 1 (One Corpse Too Many / The Sanctuary Sparrow / The Leper of St. Giles / Monk's Hood)" brings the first four adaptation of Ellis Peters' classic mysteries, which intertwine murder mysteries and medieval history. These stories are well-written, clever and full of unexpected twists -- and they're filmed with a gritty, grimy realistic flavor.

Cadfael finds "A Corpse Too Many" after a mass execution by King Stephen -- there's a strangled corpse slipped in among the executed, but the authorities don't seem to care much. As he works with the new sheriff Hugh Beringer, the canny monk cares for a wounded man, uncovers a young monk's secret and a love triangle turned deadly.

Then Shrewsbury Abbey ends up with a "Sanctuary Sparrow" when a traveling acrobat is kicked out of the Aurifaber wedding reception, unpaid for his work. But when the master of the house is found clubbed and robbed, a mob chases the young man into the nearest church, where he claims sanctuary. Now Cadfael must unravel the complex troubles of the Aurifaber household, and figure out who there has a motive to kill...

And in "The Leper of St. Giles," a young heiress is brought to the abbey to marry the cruel Baron Huon de Domville... only, of course, he ends up dead as a doornail. The main suspect is a young squire desperately in love with the girl, but of course Cadfael doesn't think he did it -- and he needs to figure out whayt's going on with the treacherous Picard family before the wrong man is executed.

Finally, Cadfael is shocked when his ex-fiancee Richildis appears at the abbey... along with her nasty husband Gervase, who has spited his step-son by deciding to will all his considerable property to the abbey. Then Gervase is poisoned with monk's hood (aka aconite or wolfsbane) from Cadfael's own store. Obviously the stepson is accused of the murder, but Cadfael doesn't believe he did it -- and he has to prove it, for Richildis' sake.

"Cadfael: The Complete Collection" is the sort of authentic historical series that the BBC has sadly stopped making -- it has all the blood, grime and sweat of the 12th century, and accurately depicts the strong presence of religion and politicial strife in medieval life.

For the most part, the writers accurately adapt Peters' novels -- every mystery has lots of suspects, moral dilemmas, religious strife, civil war, a murder that only Cadfael can solve, and a bit of cute romance as well. And since the series is set long before forensic science was created, it's fun to see Cadfael scout for tiny clues and patch them together into a case.

But Derek Jacobi is absolutely pitch-perfect as Cadfael -- his solid performance is kindly, wise, paternal, and a little humorous at times, especially as a monk who's seen more of the real world than most of his brothers (he was even a ladies' man!). Jacobi does an especially good job in "Monk's Hood," where we see Cadfael's lingering affection for his ex, as well as his feelings of obligation to her.

There are also great performances by Terrence Hardiman as the kind but stern Abbot Radulfus, Julian Firth as the fussy Brother Jerome, and Michael Culver as the haughty snob Prior Robert. And Sean Pertwee is the best of the three Hugh Beringer actors -- he's a strong decisive man who trusts in the "rare Benedictine's" wisdom.

"Brother Cadfael, Set 1" brings together an entertaining first season of mysteries, set against a medieval backdrop of war, love and murder.

Medieval mysteries become medieval masterpieces powered by the deft acting of Derek Jacobi. This series will satisfy anyone seeking a delightful journey into medieval England. Shropshire and its culture emerge vividly from the talented cast and crew. Highly recommended.

The Brother Cadfael series are really great. It's too bad they don't show them on TV like they did in the past.

If you love murder mysteries, this is for you! I have always been fascinated by the Medieval period, and this film combines the best of both. Derek Jacobi is superb in his role as monk/investigator. The series was filmed in an area of Hungary that had no telephone lines in order to keep the sets as realistic as possible. Great stories about the travails of human nature.