Product Details

• Actors: Derek Jacobi, Michael Culver, Julian Firth, Terrence Hardiman, Mark Charnock
• Directors: Sebastian Graham Jones
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Acorn Media
• VHS Release Date: September 11, 1999
• Run Time: 75 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6303316018
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #372,249 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

When the town's goldsmith is robbed and left for dead, the local people launch a witch-hunt. The finger of suspicion is pointed at a young juggler who was performing at the wedding feast of the goldsmith's son. Pursued by the mob, the young entertainer stumbles through the town to the abbey where he seeks the sanctuary of the altar. Cadfael is given the job of keeping an eye on the youngster while the authorities investigate. But his discreet inquiries are cut short when the goldsmith's neighbor is found dead floating in the river... Twelfth century Shrewsbury comes dramatically to life in Ellis Peters' story of Brother Cadfael - a good man in an evil world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Under the certainty of Heaven nothing is certain.", August 10, 2001

By 

bernie "xyzzy" (Arlington, Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Cadfael - The Sanctuary Sparrow (DVD)

When the town's goldsmith is robbed and left for dead, falls on a young juggler who was performing at the wedding feast of the goldsmith's son.

Pursued by the mob, the young entertainer stumbles through the town to the Abby where he seeks the sanctuary of the Alter. Cadfael is given the job of keeping an eye on the youngster while the authorities investigate. But his discrete inquiries are cut short when the goldsmith's neighbor is found dead floating in the river.

There is complexity or the beauty in the film as father Cadfael along with my favorite Hugh Beringar (Sean Pertwee) search for truth and justice using forensics, intuition and logic.


Cadfael - The Holy Thief

5.0 out of 5 stars Halo mysteries, April 13, 2010

By 

gejome "quality music lover" (Oakland CA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Cadfael - The Sanctuary Sparrow (DVD)

If your a Cadfael fan, then there's not a bad flick in a carload. Plenty of mystery and no shortage of Monks.Derek Jacobi was made for this roll. He never disappoints

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very good Cadfael movie, April 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Brother Cadfael: The Sanctuary Sparrow [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This is a very good movie. The story is true to the book, and I really liked the book. The reason I gave it four stars instead of five is because a few of the memorable lines from the book that were spoken by characters other than Cadfael were split up in the movie so that he completed some of them. For example, when the crowd comes chasing after the minstrel Lilliwin, it really was more appropriate for the ABBOT to say, "Put up your weapons or court your soul's damnation." I think it would have been presumptious for a lay brother to say such a thing unless he was an ordained priest, who had the power to excommunicate. But other than that, the movie was as good as the book in every respect, and it's worth seeing.