Customer Reviews

Inspector Morse - The Dead of Jericho / The Mystery of Morse

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THE DEAD OF JERICO was the first Inspector Morse tale broadcast in the U.S. on 'Mystery Theatre', the series developed by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (PBS). For those with an intellectual bent, this series was "heady" stuff. Morse is the hard drinking, Wagnerian loving, Jaguar driving, crossword-puzzle working, police officer created by the Oxford writer and acrostics maestro Sir Colin Dexter. Played by the wonderful actor John Thaw, Morse is known only by his last name. His first--Endeavor, for the famous Nelson ship--remains a secret to most. Morse code buried in the theme music by Phelong Barrington spells out M-O-R-S-E.

In THE DEAD OF JERICO, Morse acquires his trusty sidekick, the loveable Lewis played by Kevin Whately, whom, by way of introduction he informs, "I'm a different kettle of fish." An intellectual loner, Morse has a less than sucessful way with women, and in THE DEAD OF JERICO his bad luck is evident. His love interest a woman named Anne, played by Gemma Jones (the mother in SENSE AND SENSIBILITY and THE WINSLOW BOY, which she also co-produced). Anne is a piano teacher and member of the the Oxford Community Choir along with Morse.

Anne lives in a newly refurbished town house in Jerico, a gentrified neighborhood in the city of Oxford. After choir practice, Morse walks her home, and occasionally they have a drink in the local pub or she makes him a cup of tea at her place. One day, Anne fails to appear for a scheduled choir performance. When Morse goes to check on her after the concert, he discovers the police have found her dead. Who killed her and why? Or, did she die by her own hand? At the beginning, Morse is viewed as an intruder by the officer assigned to the case due to his involvement with the deceased, but soon Morse is placed in charge of the investigation.

This is not a run-of-the-mill mystery. THE DEAD OF JERICO is a wonderful adaptation of one of Colin Dexter's fine books. Anthony Minghella directed this tale, and then went on to direct THE ENGLISH PATIENT, for which he won an Oscar. Kevin Whately (Sergeant Lewis) also had a role in THE ENGLISH PATIENT--as one of the two sappers who defused bombs left by the Nazis.

The DVD version of THE DEAD OF JERICO is outstanding. The cinematograpy is excellent, the color is clear and bright. The film is filled with footage showing the City of Oxford and the University, and if you're an Anglophile you will love this film for these shots alone. Inspector Morse's red Jaguar never looked better--in between repair jobs. I love the Morse series and recommend this DVD for your collection. You will watch it more than once.

If you've ever watched an Inspector Morse story this, the first one, is as good as any of them. For those who haven't seen Morse on PBS or A&E this is a good start because the story has all that a police story needs and does it well. It is English which will turn just a few people off but do try it, so much better than most of the stuff on television.

I appreciated seeing the first episode of this long-running series adapting Colin Dexter's fine novels. Seeing how the characters and their relationships were introduced and begun to be developed is helpful to me as I now catch-up with the rest of my Morse education.

The accompanying documentary, "The Mystery of Morse," is very well done--informative, funny, and poignant in places. John Thaw speaks eloquently on how he got into acting in the first place, the character of Morse that comes through him, and the price of fame (always feeling he is being watched). He makes it clear that there was always an emphasis on keeping the character of Morse (slightly morose and wonderfully eccentric) at the center of each Morse episode.

It's that emphasis on character that deepens this effort at sleuthing the secrets of death--and life.

--Janet Grace Riehl, author Sightlines: A Poet's Diary

The highly acclaimed British police mystery series involving Inspector Morse appeared on British, American, and other countries' TV for years. It began in 1991 and starred the now deceased award-winning actor John Thaw. This DVD is the first episode.

Morse is an iconoclastic heterodox cop. He follows his own ideas tenaciously and is generally, but not always successful. He uses no first name. He is a heavy drinker, morning, afternoon, and night, especially good beer. He enjoys classical music and singing immensely. He drives a beautiful red car that is involved in two crashes in this film. He is never successful in romance, as shown in this first as well as some later films. His superior officers recognize his usual successes, but he is passed over for promotions because of his investigative methods. Sergeant Lewis begins to work for him during this adventure and remains his frequently overworked sidekick throughout the series.

Morse meets a beautiful woman who sings with him in a chorus. He is attracted to her and tells her. He dates her a couple of times, when she tells him that she is involved with another man in a strange relationship. Morse mumbles that it was too good to be true. She is found hanging. The police think, but are unsure, that this was a suicide, but no suicide note is found. Although it is not his case, Morse investigates the matter. He develops an unusual theory of suicide involving the Greek classic play by Sophocles Oedipus the King. Viewers will enjoy watching him move from idea to idea, from suspect to suspect, as he resolves what really happened.

As an Inspector Morse fan, I have started to make a collection of Morse DVDs. I have started with this one. It is typical Morse and If you are not an Inspector Morse fan, Watch this one. It is typical. I think most people will like it if they like English Murder mysteries.