Customer Reviews

Foyle's War: Set 1 (The German Woman / The White Feather / A Lesson In Murder / Eagle Day)

5 star:		(97)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Perhaps it's my affection for England - a love that makes my wife roll her eyes - that causes me to have a higher regard for BBC and ITV small screen productions than those of America, which seem so crass in comparison. So many of the former seem uncommonly funny, intelligent, or both. FOYLE'S WAR is an uncommonly intelligent detective drama, a period piece set on England's south coast in 1940. And, to keep the record straight, my wife's dedication to this series is at least as pronounced as mine, if not more so.

Michael Kitchen is Detective Inspector Christopher Foyle, who's ordered to remain at his post as homicide investigator for Hastings and its environs; he'd much rather be doing his bit for King and Empire fighting the Nazis across the Channel. Indeed, his son is a flying officer with the RAF. The two other series regulars are Samantha "Sam" Stewart (Honeysuckle Weeks), the Women's Royal Army Corps enlistee assigned as his driver, and Paul Milner (Anthony Howell), Foyle's assistant inspector recently returned to home front duty after being wounded with the Army during the disastrous British invasion of Norway.

In Series One,the murders occur in contexts that include sexual harassment, anti-semitism, police brutality, local jingoism, sabotage, and conscientious objection - all set against a backdrop of Luftwaffe bombing raids and the fear of imminent amphibious invasion by the German Wehrmacht.

The character of Foyle - intelligent, perceptive, reserved, compassionate, wounded by his wife's recent death, worried for his son's safety - epitomizes the phrase "still waters run deep." The viewer embarks into each episode wondering what new layer of Foyle's persona will be revealed. (Not to give too much away, but I've just seen the first episode of Series Two, which gives evidence of an old and tragic love affair involving Foyle and a now-married gentlewoman.) And the evolution of the relationship between Foyle and the occasionally cheeky Sam is one of the major delights of the miniseries as the latter proves she's smart, intuitive, and potentially more useful than just a lowly chauffeur.

The various murders investigated by the trio are never straightforward, but involve clever plot twists and hidden motives, the solutions to which silently gestate in the Inspector's mind before being revealed at the end of the story, much like the Sherlock Holmes mysteries of old.

There are, of course, uneven moments to Series One which allow for only four stars. I trust, as the show matures, that it will only get better. The areas that need no improvement are the period costuming, props and sets, all of which are superbly done and a delight to an Anglophile.

This is a worthy new addition to the best British mystery series -- heavy praise from me. As a red-eyed fan of Morse, Dalgliesh, Poirot, Holmes (Brett), Smiley, Wimsey, etc., I am picky, having hosed off Oscar(R) winners and sequel spawners with a couple of stars and a flood of sarcasm. However, my only misgivings about the five-star award to this (thank heaven only the first) "Foyle's War" set is that Amazon.com would not allow me to give it all the stars it merits.

I especially like its Britain -- no London / manorial ambience: Hitler lurks 30 miles across the Channel washing at our feet, the Battle of Britain has yet to be won, the Yanks not yet "overpaid, oversexed, and over here." At any time, a storm of Nazi bombs, naval gunfire, and assault troops could smash into the deceptively tranquil seaside setting, making the visit from William the Conqueror 874 years earlier seem like a romp in the meadow.

Foyle is recently widowed, and must also solve cases not only amid the chaos of the Dunkirk rescue and attempts to set up coastal defenses, but also knowing that his son is one of the outnumbered pilots keeping the Nazi storm offshore, even falsely accused by a dishonest superior in one episode. Foyle is human, doesn't drive(!) and is not delighted that his driver Sam turns out to be a Samantha -- until she conks a felon escaping him. Kitchen and Weeks are perfect, with Weeks's heroic status multiplied by learning from the DVD extras that she DID OVER ONE HUNDRED TAKES of eating the same sandwich and still made it look like her first bite. Too bad we so seldom find actors as uniformly marvelous as in British productions.

I will expand no more on the excellent reviews by others who appreciated this series, except to agree most enthusiastically. This is not only a superb mystery series, but an excellent reminder, in a setting not well-known in the US, of the courage and determination that the ordinary Brits found among their sometimes lovable quirks at a time when they stood alone as others caved in to Hitler.

The technological quality of the DVD's is superb. These great British TV series are reason enough to stay with the 4:3 format and leave wide screens to those whose taste has sunk to (or never rose above) Hollywood.

Fans of Inspector Morse who are still mourning the death of John Thaw will find this series a satisfying replacement, which was the intent of the British television moguls who first televised it. Like Morse, Kitchen's Foyle is a man of many layers, silent when others would be losing it. Both of his 'sidekicks' are engaging, with problems of their own (though neither replaces 'Robby', who was Morse's Greek chorus). What makes this series unique is how it brings World War II to life. The second episode, 'The White Feather', is striking in its topicality - the pacifists vs. those who see war as inevitable. In the light of what we know now about Hitler, the outcome of our own 'war' may be seen by future generations just as differently. Foyle joins the ranks of other great British detectives and I hope he will be around a long time.

For the main reviewer, Foyle is not a London detective. He lives on the coast (mainly because it would have been too expensive to try to get a 40's look in London). For those who think Foyle is 'righteous', I think we could substitute 'principled'. I was around for that generation and many of them lived by what they thought was right, not by what lie they could 'spin'.

Give this series a chance and I think you'll be hooked.

Series 3 of the excellent series Foyle's war was first telecast in the U.S. on PBS on 11, 18, 25 Sep. and 3 Oct. 2005 and was released on DVD on 1 Nov. 2005. However, watching the DVDs of all series is preferable if one wants to see the unexpurgated episodes. Here are the first telecast dates for series 1-4 of Foyle's war:
series 1: telecast UK Oct.-Nov. 2002, US in Feb. 2003 (on Masterpiece theater, with Russell Baker introducing)
series 2: telecast UK Nov.-Dec. 2003, US in July-Aug. 2004 (on Mystery)
series 3: telecast UK Oct.-Nov. 2004, US in Sep.-Oct. 2005 (on Mystery)
series 4: was filmed in spring 2005 and will be telecast in 2006
The PBS broadcasts in the US are edited for a 90-minute period, which includes the Mystery (or Masterpiece theater) opening-closing sequences, between-program promos, etc. This means that each episode is really only 85 minutes long at best. Region 1 DVDs (U.S., Canada), in contrast, are about 100 minutes per episode, as are the region 2 DVDs (Europe--see www.amazon.co.uk): specific values for the 4 episodes on series 2 are (for region 1) 98.5, 97.9, 98.3, 98.3 minutes. Thus in the U.S. for the proper, more nuanced episode watching Foyle's war on DVD is essential and preferable to viewing it on PBS.

Note: In a 28 Sep. 2004 interview with creator-writer Anthony Horowitz, he was asked: "Do you realise that the show is edited to pieces when it's shown on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the states?" Horowitz replied: "Yes we're very sorry about that. It's not something I'd choose to do. It's American networking. I'd advise all American fans to get their hands on the English DVDs to see them in full." I note here that American fans need only get the *American* DVDs to see the episodes in full. Also, if you first watch the shortened PBS telecast, you may later wonder about some lengthier scenes when you watch the DVDs.

Well, here's an idea that works remarkably well - set a more or less traditional mystery series in Britain during World War II, layer it with plenty of at-war ambient and wait, you won't have to wait long, for the corpses to start falling.

I'm not a great fan of mystery series. If I figure the mystery out too soon I feel cheated, if I don't figure it out I suspect they were cheating. Various recommendation engines don't recognize such subtle objections, though, and they've been throwing FOYLES' WAR at me for months. So I bit. Glad they did. Although other crimes are investigated by DCS (Detective Chief Sergeant) Christopher Foyle (Michael Kitchen,) for the most part this series deals with murder most foul. Anyway, as writer and creator Anthony Horowitz explains in a couple of short interviews on the dvds, the context in which the crimes take place - war-time Britain - is as important as the crimes themselves. I'm not an expert on it, but I found FOYLE'S WAR'S depiction of war-torn Britain accurate and often surprising.

The series occurs in a chronological order and each episode is pegged to a war event. For instance, the first episode, `The German Woman,' occurs shortly after the outbreak of the war, sometime soon after the fall of Norway. The next three episodes occur during and deal with the Dunkirk evacuation, the entry of Italy into the war, and the Luftwaffe assault on Britain. Context may not be everything, but it counts for a lot here, and the threat of an imminent invasion - even though we know that never happened - adds a nice layer of tension to the proceedings. As someone weaned on Winston Churchill's history of the war I found some of the other layers unusual and welcome. Conscientious objectors, xenophobes, quislings and their ilk all figure prominently in these stories. Although the mysteries were plausible, the clues sufficient, etc, etc, I have to admit I found the background stuff more fascinating than the central crimes.

Michael Kitchen plays Foyle in quiet competence mode, and his understated approach wears well. Honeysuckle Weeks plays Samatha Stewart, a service-woman who is employed as Foyle's driver. Kitchen and Weeks have a good bit of (unromantic) chemistry going, and watching the two settle into their roles was enjoyable. The third major player is Anthony Howell, who plays a wounded soldier who Foyle enlists to help him solve the seemingly endless number of baffling murders he's confronted with. All three do good justice to Horowitz's above-average scripts.

I happened to catch the end of "The White Feather" on Masterpiece Theater recently, and eagerly came back for the following two episodes. This extremely impressive series is set in 1940 England, and the atmosphere is immaculate to the last detail.

Michael Kitchen is simply suberb as Detective Chief Superintendant Christopher Foyle, who longs to do his part for the war but is "too valuable" to the police force - and so he is stuck at home, fighting his own personal war against crime. And yet WWII plays a major role in each episode, and is a fantastic backdrop for this mystery/drama.

The plots are complex, some better than others, and the characters extremely well developed. While Foyle is curiously quiet, he is a deeply engrossing character whose silent strength inspires great loyalty in those around him. Though he often says little, the power of Michael Kitchen's sublime performance is in the expressiveness of his eyes - which speak much louder than words.

Ironically, the episode that drew me in (The White Feather) has ended up being my least favorite. Although the mystery is well plotted and the characters very intriguing, the subject matter (fascism) is very ugly. It was, however, a painful reality of life at the time.

The best mystery among the lot is episode three, A Lesson in Murder, and perhaps my favorite episode is the fourth, Eagle Day. I love the relationship between Foyle and his son Andrew, which is portrayed with perfect restraint. They love each other deeply, but maintain that distant, British politeness that we Americans often mistake for coldness. This is superbly done, and Andrew (Julian Ovenden) is very charming. Eagle Day sees this relationship at its ironic best. Honeysuckle Weeks is spot-on perfect as Sam Stewart, and is the character the viewer (at least the female viewer) most easily identifies with - and therefore is crucially important. Well done, to all!

I was very pleased with the widescreen presentation on the DVD, as well as the two-part interview with writer/creator Anthony Horowitz, which is well worth watching. The only real disappointment is that the production notes are identical for all four DVDs, but this is a small complaint in light of the overall suberb quality of this series.

Eagerly looking forward to Season Two...

Great writing, great acting, and great photography--all combine to make this a fantastic bit of storytelling. The main characters are all ones that are sympathetic, multi-leveled, and interesting, so tat you care about what happens to them. The ensemble cast works well together, with each actor playing off the other and each character having their unfolding quirks and nuances that fit well together. The stories themselves are quality English mysteries, in that they are well written and not obvious.

A word about the setting. This is Great Britain during the so-called "phony war" in the spring of 1940, just before the Blitz began. There is a tension that surrounds everything-the war is brewing, and everyone is gearing up for the fight, but no one really has any idea what "Mr. Hitler" is up to. Certainly the dramatic irony from the viewers' perspective allows us to catch that this is the lull before the great storm.

I enjoy these mysteries immensely. They fit into the classic BBC high quality television that is so lacking on American stations.

A beautifully turned bit of television. The research that contributed to the production of this series of four episodes centers on touching human details. The vets of World War I are the mature characters in this set of period pieces, and their recollections of what they did and saw in that prior war provides an overlay of feeling that subtly yet tellingly colors their dread of the conflict that was coming in the later months of 1940. Michael Kitchen's portrayal of the recently widowed Chief Detective Inspector Foyle has an added layer of subdued sadness and world-weariness that is punctured first by the taut energy and keenness of his driver, Samantha (adorably portrayed by Honeysuckle Weeks), then by the sad grief and disorientation of a young policeman returning from the war in Norway who has lost a leg in combat, and finally by the exhuberant naivite of his son. His wry humor and frank approach to those he interrogates and whose guilt he confronts is so low-key it takes one's breath away and provides a vehicle for his gradual emergence from a grief that is barely mentioned, yet permeates Kitchen's beautifully modulated characterization.

The entire cast received careful direction to portray the coiled fear and concern of ordinary humans caught in a situation where an invasion can happen any time.

Echoes of the current unlawful detention of "combatants" crop up as a subplot in the first episode, where a pair of worthy German immigrants are abused by busy xenophobes driven by misguided patriotism and fear. Indeed, the plot of every one of these four episodes has deep relevance in our own time of conflict and political uncertainty. Interestingly complex and puzzling.

I checked these episodes out from the public library, and still ended up buying them for their layered complexity and engaging characterizations. Highly recommended.

I took a leap of faith while buying this series because all I really knew about it was that it had Michael Kitchen and Anthony Howell in them, both of whom I think are excellent actors. But I liked the premise and thought the reviews on amazon were promising. I've been pleasantly suprised with exactly how much I actually like all four episodes in fact, since mysteries tend to not be my favorite genre. All four stories are engaging on a number of levels, the acting is first rate, and I like how each episode touches on some of the darker implications that being at war can have on the social or national or community psyche of a people. The series is very timely in that respect in our present day circumstances. Michael Kitchen shows his mucho acting chops as the very contained -yet-hiding -underneath -is-some-major passion/anger- Christopher Foyle. Anthony Howell's wounded-in-more-ways-than-one ex-solidier Paul Milner is at turns brillliant and vulnerable(oy, watch out for that wife of his!), and Honeysuckle Weeks is very endearing as the plucky and young hearted Sam. Great characters, good storytelling, and some "things" to think about regarding war and identity on a national and community level.....

This is a near-perfect television mystery series. Every element is outstanding: the ensemble acting, the plot and character development, the dialog, the set design -- EVERYTHING.

How often do you watch a tv show, a mystery at that, and shed tears over the death of a character, or at the sheer poignancy of a situation?

Each episode contains a mystery that is solved by the end, but I cared less about the "who dunnit" aspect that by the entire story surrounding the mystery. We see what it was like to live in Britain at the start of the war; what it was like to sail off to Dunkirk to help bring the boys back; what people went through to buy food and petrol. It's a history lesson that deals with topics far more fascinating (...). It's the story of people trying to live their lives and do their jobs despite the most horrendous events.

Best of all, the show has people you grow to really like and respect: Foyle, Sam and Milner.

I can't wait for Series 3 to be aired (...).