Customer Reviews

Catherine Cookson's Fifteen Streets [VHS]

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

 

 

I feel I can't praise enough this wonderful film based on a novel by Catherine Cookson (which I have not read). The setting in the poor, bleak working-class neighbourhood of Fifteen Streets, in turn-of-the-century Newcastle, is wonderfully good, but especially, the acting is superb (do they all really speak that way?). The conflicts that these characters live through in the story change them forever, and you actually can see this in the expression on their faces, from hopeful to hopeless, and in the inflection of their voices. This is really ACTING at its best. After watching the film we are left with a feeling of respect for these hard workers and their families, who get over misery and bad times thanks to their sense of dignity and (in the case of the main character -who is NOT Sean Bean-) love. Not to miss, even if you are not a romance buff (which I am not).

The version I saw of this story was on stage in the late 1980's in London at the Playhouse Theatre (I think) with Owen Teale in the lead role. It is a powerful story well written and acted just as well by the superb cast. I have remembered this show since I saw it on stage 15+ years ago and the mesmerizing performance Owen Teale gave. It highlights what the class system meant in England in the days gone by. I hope this show comes out on DVD as it would become a welcome addition to my collection of good drama. I strongly recommend this story to fans of good drama, stage or film.

Although the VHS tape I received is slightly poor in picture quality, the story of The Fifteen Streets shines through beautifully. This heart-wrenching love story is a rare gem. The performances are powerful to the point of mesmerizing. I laughed and cried and hoped throughout this movie...and I'm a guy! I can't wait for this Catherine Cookson masterpiece to find its way onto DVD.

I have recently seen "The Fifteen Streets" on the WE channel. I was absalutely enthralled by the movie. The performances of Owen Teale and Annie Tobin are particularly outstanding. Owen Teale became John O'Brien for me, and I could not imagine him as anyone else. (Until I saw him as Will Scarlet in "Robin Hood". Then, of course, he was the best WS I have seen.) The scope of the emotional and psysical presence he conveys in this movie is truly breathtaking! This movie is one that takes you with it. You laugh with them, cry with them and love and despair with them. Not only has this movie brought me a new treasure for my collection, it has brought me a new "favorite actor" to add to my list, which icludes Gregory Peck, Dustin Hoffman, and now, Owen Teale. The man is incredible! The movie is excellent!!

Fifteen Streets is about a poor family, and the love of one brother, John for an upper-class school teacher. As usual in Cookson's stories there is a hard gritty edge. People live, people die, and no punches are pulled (sometimes literally) to spare the reader from the sordid realities of hard life during the times. (Presumably 19th century England).

In general, while I enjoyed this film, I didn't much care for John and his family. John's father was an a drunk, his brother a criminal, and the rest of his family not remarkable, except for the youngest daughter. The brothers are beating eachother up and arguing a lot, and it made me wonder if I was missing something, especially at the beginning where the cause of the strife isn't very evident.

The chemistry between the two romantic leads was rather lacking. They were okay, but I had difficulty believing in the relationship, especially when the courtship was so brief. And the ending felt a bit tacked on, as though the editors realized they had to end it and just... Er... Left it without resolving the romantic plotline.

Overall, I was entertained, but it didn't excite me like others by Cookson.