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Brother Cadfael: A Morbid Taste for Bones [VHS]

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I love the Brother Cadfael mysteries - I watched them on TV quite a few times and when the DVDs became available I ordered them immediately. Brother Cadfael is a Benedictine monk living during the war-torn years of the middle ages. Stationed in England but of Welsh descent, he was a crusader during his middle years and therefore has knowledge of both the outer world as well as the church life.

This particular episode, coming in the 3rd year of production, is one of the more intriguing stories. The sets and costumes are all well broken in, the actors are very deep into their roles. We now have Cadfael sent against his will to bring back the bones of a young Welsh martyr. He feels for the community, he understands the monks needs, and he tries to find a balance between them. He does not what is expected but what he truly feels is right.

It's interesting because this was actually the first book written in the series, but since it was filmed late on in the TV cycle, the characters are quite familiar with each other and to the audience.

Derek Jacobi is excellent, and you get an interview with him on the DVD. If you're a fan of the actor or the series, definitely a great DVD to get!

"Have a care with visionaries, they are not always bidable," Brother Cadfael in the beginning of A MORBID TASTE FOR BONES. In this installement, the Abbot instructs former soldier turned Monk, Cadfael to journey to Wales and bring back thr bones of St Winifred, so that she may rest in the care of Shrewsberry's Abbey.

Reluctantly Cadfael does as he is told and leads some of his brethren to rescue Winifred. By difficulties arise when Lord Rhysart and the good people of Gwytherin do not wish to give up the saint. Rhysart vows to protect her and her burial place to the death. Prophetic, since he is found murdered the next morning.

Cadfael must solve the mystery else he and his Benedictine brothers die themselves. After separating facts from lies, Cadfael sees to it that St. Winifred and Columbarnus both rest peacefully. Those fascinated by Medieval pagan rituals and customs will enjoy this mystery.

If you've never read any of the Brother Cadfael books by Ellis Peters you are in for a treat.  This series originaly broadcast on the BBC are faithful adaptions about a master sleuth in Monk's clothing. Brother Cadfael is a monk with a difference and never what he seems. Given a choice, he would rather work in his garden or practice his herbal remedies. But too often, events force him to use his detective skills in response to mysterious crimes happening in his community, often finding himself at odds with the medievil times in which he lives.

This DVD release includes an audio commentary by Derek Jacobi and a Ellis Peters Biography, complemented by full frame, 2.0 stereo sound. A nice little package for Cadfael fans.

I enjoy a good murder mystery of the classical type, and the Brother Cadfael series is particularly good. The author Ellis Peters (Edith Pargiter, 1913-1995), like Agatha Christie, Nagio Marsh and Dorothy Sayers, was popular during the mid-20th Century and wrote prolifically during that time. There are some 20 Cadfael books. The film A Morbid Taste for Bones, based upon the book of the same name is incredibly authentic and colorful. The different orders of society: nobleman, servant, military man, tradesman, artisan, abbott, monk, and priest are carefully wrought to produce a period piece with more detail and clearer dialogue than a Shakespearean play. It would be a wonderful way of introducing young people to history.

The setting of the story is 12th Century England, a period of particular turmoil. Henry I had died without a legitimate male heir, and he had designated his daughter Matilda as his successor, binding his nobles by oath to support her. Although many of them did, including her very able half brother, an illegitimate son of Henry made an Earl by his father, many of them threw their support behind her cousin, Steven. Matilda, or Maud as she is referred to, was a granddaughter of William the Conqueror and no push over herself. She fought her cousin from a base in coastal France, where the family held land in fief of the King of France and where marriage alliances had placed her as wife of Geoffery, the Duke of Anjou. With her Norman support in France and her loyal factions in England, she made enough of a threat to Steven's rule to ultimately obtain a guarantee of succession to the English throne for her son Henry, ultimately Henry II. Until that time, warfare turned most of England into a battle ground and life for everyone a matter of ceaseless uncertainty. Added to this was the rancour still apparent in the social divisions between the largely Saxon population and their Norman rulers. The fall of the Saxon monarchy was only a hundred years previous and hostility still existed.

Cadfael, the central character of the series, is a Dominican monk and herbalist, and Dereck Jacobi is the perfect personification of him. He has a presence which suggests strength, wisdom, and compassion. Unlike most of the other brothers, Cadfael had spent most of his life in the secular world where he participated in the crusades, had adventures, fell in and out of love, and took his order after finding the ways of the world wanting. He comes from a different culture, that of Wales, and sees that of England through an outsiders more objective eyes. His experience with life and the motives of men and his keen awareness of detail makes him the perfect sleuth, and when murder is committed, the civil authorities, often personified by Hugh Beringer (Eorin McCarthy), are more than willing to have him clear things up for them.

In A Morbid Taste for Bones, a young priest begins having ecstatic seizures in which he believes he is being directed by a Welsh saint, the martyred St. Winifred, to go to Wales to obtain her bones for the Abbey of Shrewsbury. The people of the town are loath to give up their saint, and in the process of convincing them of the divine direction of their mission, the monks end up suspected of the murder of a townsman. Cadfael, a Welshman himself, begins the process of sleuthing out the culprit before they and their mission become victims themselves.

A thoroughly real and well researched visit to the Middle Ages.

Fans of Ellis Peters know she was born in Wales and her protagonist Brother Cadfael was also of Welsh birth. They also know that Peters wrote history under her real name, Edith Pargeter. One of her books describes a battle near Shrewsbury where the Welsh attempted with Sir Percy (Harry Hotspurs) to defeat Henry IV in the early 1400s. Fans of Shakespeare's Henry VI Part II know that Sir Percy died on Shrewsbury battlefield, and that the Welsh were defeated and Henry V became the Prince of Wales and a "national" hero. Pargeter, writing in the 20th Century had not forgotten the humiliating defeat, and in her own way she contributed to the Welsh independence movement underway in the U.K. at this time.

I mention all this, even though these events occured after Cadfael's exploits take place in the mid-1100s, because it is important to understand the long history of tension between the people of Wales who are primarily descended from the Celts and the people of Norman descent who served as priests in the monasteries of Cadfael's era and beyond (the brothers were normally Anglo-Saxon). And, of course the aristocracy including Henry IV and V was Norman.

In "A Morbid Taste for Bones" (the first of Peter's 20 volumes on the life of Brother Cadfael the Benedictine monk), Cadfael is fairly new at his vocation, although he is in his fifties. At one point in the series a rather nasty priest says to Cadfael, "You came late to the church" to which he replies, "I came when God called."

Brother Cadfael is constantly challenged by the Norman monks who are "fathers" (can hear confessions and grant absolution) partly because of his age and his past career as a soldier who killed other men, but mostly because of his Welsh background. It is because of his Welsh background that Cadfael is called upon by the Abbot of Shrewsbury to lead an expedition of monks into Wales to seek the bones of a young saint named Winifred. Of course, it barely occurs to the Norman monks at Shrewsbury in England that the local folk in Wales may not be eager to give up their native saint.

Almost as soon as the monks arrive in the village where Saint Winifred is buried trouble arises. Of course the monks are challnged and threatened physically by the local Welsh. Next day, the leader of the Welshmen is found dead. Could it be one of the monks killed him? Quite possibly, but there are others who had a grudge with this overbearing man including a young Anglo-Saxon man who had sought shelter from political enemies in England.

All of Ellis Peters stories about Brother Cadfael have many layers of complexity and this one is no exception. I read all the books before I saw the video series on PBS and I found them rich and complicated. I think it must be difficult to follow the storyline without having read the books, and I recommend that you buy the books and read them, and buy this DVD with the proviso that you may find it difficult to understand all the political angles.

The DVD productions are quite well done, although the filming is somewhat lacking in verismilitude (it is now known, for example, that the English of the 1100s were not nearly so dirty as those of the 1400s and beyond, so overlook some of the dirt). If you love the Middle Ages, you can't go too far wrong.

I have one reservation, I think the series declined after Ellis Peters died. They had not finished filming all the tales at the time of her death, but this one must have been completed beforehand, or she came back and haunted the set, because it sticks pretty close to the story.

"Have a care with visionaries, they are not always bidable," Brother Cadfael warns when young Columbarnus casts a spell as he continues to be seized with sightings of St. Winifred. She lies neglected in her native Gwytherin, Wales. Placing her in a splendid reliquary would certainly bring honor to the virgin martyr, to say nothing of the renown which would come to the Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul in Shrewsbury were Winifred housed there for all to worship.

Cadfael reluctantly does as he is told by Abbot Radulfus and leads some of his brethren to rescue Winifred. The crusader turned herbalist monk/part-time detective, after all, is Welsh and knows the land and people. He needs every bit of that knowledge when the saint's bones are fought for by Lord Rhysart and the good people of Gwytherin. "St. Winifred is a country girl, she lies in country soil -- Welsh soil," Rhysart declares. He vows to protect the saint and her burial place to the death. The next morning he is found murdered.

Cadfael must solve the mystery else he and his Benedictine brothers die themselves. Their deaths, under the circumstances, would not be martyrdom. After separating facts from lies, Cadfael sees to it that St. Winifred and Columbarnus both rest peacefully.

In this episode Sir Derek Jacobi as the down-to-earth Cadfael is both subtle and powerful. Terrence Hardiman (Radulfus) manages to maintain his serene command despite the alarmists around him. Michael Culver (Prior Robert) and Julian Firth (Brother Jerome) continue their fervid roles. Mark Charnock (Brother Oswin) is enthusastically naïve.

Nick Patrick (Columbarnus) makes the most of his monastic part. John Halliam (Rhysart), Ellis Jones (Father Ianto), and Philip Rowlands (Bened) are outstanding, turning in passionate performances. The talent of Anna Friel (Sinoed) matches her beauty. Stephen Moyer (Godwin) turns in a fine supporting presentation, as does Steffan Trefor (Peredur).

Those fascinated by Medieval ceremonies and pagan customs will enjoy "A Morbid Taste for Bones." The cinematography of lush pastorale scenes and quaint village life is superb. Casting of townsfolk is masterful; each face is a portrait of Welsh peasantry. Colin Towns, who composed the music for the Cadfael series, has done an extraordinary job in this episode. Without the mellifluous music and colorful chanting, it would have been less enthralling.

Director Rick Stroud captured the essence of 12th Century Medieval life and mysteriousness. Christopher Russell turned Ellis Peters' novel into a fascinating screenplay. Stephen Smallwood produced a classic Cadfael.

AS AN ADVID CADFAEL WATCHER I HAD SEEN ALL 12 OF HIS MYSTERIES. I EVEN BOUGHT THE COMPLETE SET FOR MY SISTER. HOW UNHAPPY I WAS TO FIND THAT THE 13TH EPISODE WAS NOWHERE TO BE FOUND. BUMMER. BUT AMAZON HAD IT NO ONE ELSE DID. SO NOT ONLY DID I ENJOY BUT MY SISTER AS WELL. GREAT CHARACTER, GREAT ANCIENT CSI INVESTIGATION BY A CRUSADER TURNED MONK.

Holy relics were a hot commodity in the Middle Ages -- people were always seeking saints' bones and possessions, and even bits of Christ's cross. So of course, it's a big deal when the monks of Shrewsbury Abbey try to make a claim on the bones of a Welsh saint, and "A Morbid Taste for Bones" inevitably leads to a murder.

A young epileptic monk named Columbanus (Nick Patrick) has a seizure, and claims to have had a vision of the Welsh virgin Saint Winifred. So despite Cadfael's (Derek Jacobi) protests, the abbot sends a group of monks to the town where her bones lie, but the natives aren't exactly friendly -- and Lord Rhysart (John Hallam) is especially determined to keep the saint in her home soil. Especially since, y'know, Prior Robert (Michael Culver) tries to bribe him.

Then Rhysart is found dead, stabbed by a knife like the ones the monks carry, and with an arrow showed into his heart postmortem.

Now Cadfael has only three days to solve this mystery, in which he and the other monks are the only real suspects. He teams up with Rhysart's feisty daughter Sioned (Anna Friel), whose hot outlander boyfriend has been framed for the crime, and starts investigating who murdered the local lord. The problem is, finding the murderer might make matters worse.

As adaptations of Ellis Peters' novels go, this is a fairly decent one -- it's set later chronologically than the book was, which throws some of the characterization off (for some reason, Prior Robert is more obnoxious than usual). And it shakes up the usual formula of Cadfael solving Shrewsbury mysteries, since this takes him to the grim, mud-smeared down of Gwytherin in his old homeland.

The biggest downside is that the culprit is easy to figure out, though not necessarily HOW he did it. But the atmosphere and glimpses of medieval Wales easily compensate, and there's a wild mystical flavor to much of what goes on, from Sioned's blood-judgement tradition to the uncovering of the saint's bones. And the climactic scene is all mist, moonlight and flower petals, which is a stark contrast to the revelation of who killed Rhysart.

As usual, Jacobi gives a flawless performance as Cadfael, mingling a down-to-earth knowledge of how the world works with a deep-rooted, slightly humorous religous faith. Julian Firth gives a good supporting role as the guilt-ridden Brother Jerome, whose desperation to get Saint Winifred might have led him astray, and Friel is excellent as the firebrand Sioned. Oh, and Patrick is also quite good as the serene fanatic Columbanus.

"A Morbid Taste For Bones" takes the detective monk back to Wales, and presents him with a messy mystery that can't possibly turn out well. And this isn't the end of the trouble the saint's bones cause...

We've enjoyed most of the Cadfael episodes, but were not expecting the "atmosphere" that the director created in this episode. The Welsh characters were grubbier, which was great, but the use of color was amazing. In particular the lead actress was very engaging, and colors were used to highlight her presence. Very impressive staging!

There is an earlier review of the film contents as I also have the video. After playing the video about 50 times I acquired a distracting squeak. So I bought the DVD. I am so impressed that I do not plan to wait for the other Cadfaels to squeak.

The first thing that struck me was how clear the picture is. Maybe some of it is the tape was worn yet I never noticed that that Brother Jerome had freckles. Unexpectedly they (whoever they are) put all the DVD goodies on this except a running commentary. Of course there are interactive menus, which make navigation easy. Then there is a scene index of which I seldom use. An Exclusive audio comments by Derek Jacob, has pictures of him with Ellis Peters as he explains that a one and a half hour program just can not pack the elaborate plots and number of characters in to do justice to the book readers. The Ellis Peters biography and book list is written on the screen (Sorry you have to read some of this.) The production scrapbook has about 10 stills showing the film being made. I have not tried the captions for the hearing impaired. What is not mentioned is a list of the productions that Derek Jacobi has done.

Want to see something eerie, look at the picture of Derek next to Ellis. They could be related.


Brother Cadfael - The Raven in the Foregate

I, Claudius

I'll readily admit, my expectations were rediculously high. As a fan of both the Brother Cadfael chronicles and actor Derek Jacobi, I assumed that like the actor, this DVD would be a perfect combination of style and substance. I wonder if this might be one of the TV series' weaker episodes.

Jacobi is perfectly cast as Cadfael and carries the role very well. While there are other good performances, some are a bit overdone, and some are a bit wooden. Author Ellis Peters did a wonderful job of interweaving multi-leveled storylines together in her books, but that sense was impossible to capture in this episode's condensed 85 minutes. Though the show moves swiftly and conveys all the key points, it ended up feeling a little flat.

On a technical note, the DVD picture is remarkably clear. The "extras", however, left me wanting. There are only 10 - 15 production stills, and not much background on either the making of the episode, characters, or actors. There is one very nice touch: an audio track of Derek Jacobi speaking candidly about his portrayal of Brother Cadfael.