Customer Reviews

Lord Peter Wimsey: The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club [VHS]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As many of us that were eternally grateful to Acorn Media for reissuing after too many decades the Lord Peter Wismey "Clouds of Witness," just so many and perhaps more can welcome back <The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club> with the incomparable Ian Carmichael whose idea it was to film the series in the first place and who almost did not get the part!

Like the other four in this series, this is a low budget, shot mostly in the studio, affair; but it is impeccably "period" in décor, dress, and even idiom. The plot involves at first not a "who done it?" but a "when was it done?" Since the vast inheritance depends on the timing of the deaths of an elderly brother and sister, the hour if not the very minute of the former's demise is the Big Question. Surprisingly, that mystery is revealed half way through the story; but by then we have a murderer to find and...well, I will not spoil things for you and urge you to see for yourself.

Carmichael's Wimsey is ever the aristocrat, here ready to quote W.S. Gilbert and W. Shakespeare (though not nearly as frequently as Rumpole will quote his favorite poets), even though he must apologize now and then for being over the heads of some of his less well-educated acquaintances. In this story the grinding poverty of one of the interested parties is shown in striking contrast to Wimsey's luxurious accommodations and ability to be very generous with his money (which after all was never earned by any workaday sweat of his brow exept when he posed as an employee of an advertizing agency).

As with all of this series, the minor characters are extremely well drawn, right down to a patron of a tea shop who becomes all flustered in meeting "a lord." While the two opposing lawyers might border on the Dickensian, they are both shown to be intelligent and honestly working for the good of their clients. And even the villain is basically a very Good Person in all other respects! But such is the universe created by Dorothy Sayers and it is treated with respect and intelligence in this fine series.

Now we can only hope that Acorn Media will accelerate the releases of "Murder Must Advertise," "Five Red Herrings," and "The Nine Tailors."

Oh by the way, they are releasing at the same time some of the Poirots that have been butchered by A&E to make room for their insultingly frequent and overlong piggyback commercials. See the webpages for those. And by the way again, a comparison of Poirot and Wimsey would make a fascinating study.

Okay these are tapes, and I prefer DVDs and usually I will not give a VHS recording five stars but THE UNPLEASANTNESS AT THE BALLONA CLUB is excellent. I read the book and enjoyed it enormously and was pleased to see this dramatization.

Dorothy Sayer's plot is clever and the characters well developed and the actors and staging are surpurb. This BBC film version was made in the "olden days" (early 1970s) when live tv was more the norm than not and shown on PBS Mystery series. I have an idea the original enactment was recorded before a live audience.

Ian Carmichael plays Lord Peter Wimsey, Sayers upper crust sleuth, graduate of Oxford and friend of copper "Parkerbird" who works for Scotland Yard. But Wimsey is no lightweight Bertie Wooster (not that I don't love Bertie too!!). He's a returned veteran from WWI, as are several of the other characters in this story. Bunter, Wimsey's man-servent was his sergeant during the war, and many of the members of the Bellona club are ex-military, some of whom experienced years in the trenches and madness. General Fentiman, found dead in his favorite easy chair by the fire place, is also a war veteran, though his war was the Boer War.

When George Fentimen, the hapless grandson of the deceased goes "bonkers" after the General is found dead, Wimsey understands. He too had a nervous breakdown and Bunter nursed him back to health. Wimsey knows George spent many nights and days living in the trenches and saw his best friend hung up on barbwire and mowed down by the enemy. George is not unlike the sad veteran in another tale about life in England after WWI--MRS DALLOWAY.

A major clue to the events surrounding the General's death (was it murder?) is tied to the day the General's body is discovered, Armistice Day 1922. Many old timers will "get" this clue, but some younger folks may not "have a clue" about its significance. Never mind, this is a great way to learn more about "war to end all wars." The film is a wonderful period piece and if you love faithfully recreated history like BRAMWELL (with a tad more sophisticated humor) you will enjoy this film.

Emma Thompson fans will get a special treat. Emma's mother Phillida Law plays Wimsey's special female friend (he had not yet met Harriet Vane in this book). You may recall that an older Phillida played Emma's mother in THE WINTER GUEST.

This has got to be the best transfer to DVD yet for the Carmichael Wimsey series. It is very crisp and clean. All you Wimsey will be thrilled! Buy it now, you will be pleased!

An excellent entry in the Peter Whimsey series with all of the clever dialogue, twists and turns on expects from a Sayers yarn. I only knock off a star because the sound is a bit dodgy in places and I had to keep the remote at hand to continually adjust the volume up and down. It's also a bit pricey for the lenght; it could just as easily have been fit on to two videos instead of four and sold for half the price.

Lord Peter Wimsey's hobby is solving mysteries and here he is called into service to help ascertain the death of a "member of the Bellona Club." Initially, foul play is not suspected, but Lord Peter's eye for detail immediately helps him discover inconsistencies about the death of old General Fentiman that can't be explained. From this point on Wimsey and his servant Bunter begin an investigation which leads to the solution of the mystery of the "Unpleasantness of the Bellona Club." Few TV films can match the Lord Peter Wimsey mystery series for quality and care in the production of these programs which are genuinely entertaining for a literate adult audience. Let's hope that all the Wimsey mysteries are released soon. Some, like "The Nine Tailors," are true classics.

I've read this series. I held off watching this because, frankly, Ian Carmichal doesn't fit my mental picture of Peter Wimsey. Now I'm glad I got it! It's four episodes on two DVD's. Ian Carmichal is terrific! He may not have the face or the figure I pictured (for some reason I think Peter is blondish, misplacing his hair in front, and much-much leaner) but he has the character down perfect. He's an extremely skilled actor and it's a delight to watch him. These are quite funny, the characters are all very individual, and I'mm looking at getting all the others in the series.

two outstanding BBC productions starring Ian Carmichael as the aristocratic amateur detective Lord Peter Whimsey on home video. The Unpleasantness At The Bellona Club (1-56938-352-9, $59.95, 180 minutes, four cassettes) finds Lord Whimsey being called upon by fellow club members when one of their number is found dead in a chair of the men's lounge on Armistice Day, 1922. A caste of memorable characters, fascinating clues, unexpected plot twists are the hallmark of this Lord Peter Whimsey mystery.

Well, this isn't something I'd watch multi-times if I had it at home. Like all BBC productions from 70s, it is cheaply made, though probably exact on the details, but stagebound, in that it's all set in rooms, the set decor really nice, but somewhat claustrophic. Cheap/regular video rather than film. Makes it look sketchy on screen instead of precise. I don't find the lead character to be that interesting. Though it is still a cozy mystery (takes place betw the two World Wars) it is excessively talky, the actors physically plain, sometimes irritating, and lacking in charm. Makes it more REAL that way, but less FUN. It's nice to see something NEW, but at the same time, if given a choice between seeing again my least favorite Midsomer ep or any Miss Marple or Poirot or one of the lesser-known sleuths, or watching one of these Wimsey's, I wouldn't be grabbing for Lord Peter.

This series really holds up, thanks to the solid source material and Carmichael's sensational star turn. His Peter Wimsey is all "g" droppin' mannerism and he crisply rattles off reams of dialogue with an effortless charm that brings to mind Johnny Carson who he resembles a bit. Yet, he's also a thoroughly believable character played with deft naturalism. It's a performance that should be held in the same regard as Guinness' Smiley and Leo McKern's Rumpole.

The mystery here is involving, but kind of quaint, that is until we get to the final scene, which is a knockout.

The late Ian Carmichael's (1920-2010) portrayal of Dorothy Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey, is a hallmark in the period of British TV series focused on quality of characterization by first rate performers rather than innovations in the style of film-making or gritty, brutal, reality-oriented portrayals of crime. That is, perhaps, one of the reasons why each such series is better than any individual representation and why the character emerges as far superior to any of the particular episodes in his or her adventures. So it is that Lord Peter is memorable while no particular title equals him, Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, as well as the creations of Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh, P.D. James and Colin Dexter, among others, continue to entertain us in reruns that remind us of the qualities of their protagonists.
In The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, the creative staff and Ian Carmichael, did not take advantage of the possibilities already well established, when Sayers wrote the book, by P. G. Wodehouse, for the humor in the archetypal British Men's Club, beyond allowing the surface absurdities to show a contrast to some grim realities, the unpleasantness at the Club. Wimesy is rather more sombre than is some other outings but still a master at gentlemanly sleuthing, his brother-in-law, Bunter-his man servant, and the Lady who may have done it, are particularly well done in necessarily subdued roles, while the portrayal of the shell-shocked suspect, who must indulge in some hysterical sequences, still manages to contain these within the bounds of his characterization.
All in all, a fine digital reproduction of the original 1973 four episode TV series, with sharp colors and colorful actors. A most enjoyable time will be had by all who prize this style of performance.