Customer Reviews

Michael Palin - New Europe

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

 

 

Once again ex-Python turned globetrotter and British national icon Michael Palin goes out into the world to "discover" new and wonderful places. This time around Palin gives up the far away exotic places of travels before and stays a bit closer to home, namely Eastern Europe.

Eastern Europe was, as Palin points out, off limits in all senses of the word for the better part of half a century, which has greatly influenced the way in which Western Europe sees these "new" neighbours. We do indeed know very little about them. Michael Palin frequently asks the people he meets to compare their countries and societies during and post communistic rule, which actually makes for some quite interesting answers.

Palin also meets up with some of the people he has encountered on his previous travels around the world, for example the Yugoslav captain of a ship he travelled with in "Around the World in 80 Days", which adds a nice sense of familiarity (and quriousity for the viewers with prior knowledge of Palins earlier travels).

Palin is, of course, in usual good form and delivers a witty yet informative narrative and proves yet again why he is one of the best television presenters. His high spirits and pleasant smile really inspires the viewer, and makes you understand why there is such a thing as 'the palin effect', where people go to places en masse because they saw it in one of his series.

The programmes are visually stunning and very well produced. The extra material in this version is plentiful with loads of scenes that didn't make the final cut. It is probably not the best series that Palin has made to date, but it still stands head and shoulders above the competition. Worth every penny and more still.

Highly recommended.

Michael Palin's New Europe is just brilliant. You will find yourself
into a brand new World even if you know some of the countries already.
My only comment is that I would have liked to see more of the cities i.e.
the interresting places like the Fisher Castle in Budapest.
Otherwise the DVD's are really good, and I liked the trainrides as well.

I was pleased to be informed of the cultures, histories and lifestyles of the previous communist countries, which were for so long locked in a cloak of secrecy.
Michael Palin's warmth in his interaction with those he encountered and his acceptance of the various cultures was especially appealing.
I consider this set of DVDs to be a real treasure.

The BBC and Michael Palin's travel programs never disappoint me. I teach HS Geography and use many of the videos in class. Money well spent.

I found this new series by Michael Palin to be remarkable.
As has been mentioned, he investigates and travels through parts of Europe not necessarily familiar to all people as they have not always been accesible for one reason or another (generally speaking, communism).
The fact of the matter is that many of these countries paid a remarkably high price to be the "free" Europe they are today.
Many of these countries are very small and offered both Nazi Germany and then Stalinist Russia a great deal of resistance and suffered accordingly. Michael Palin does not shy away from these facts and this approach makes this quite different from his other travelogues.
This particular series is imbued with a definite sense of melancholy and bittersweet feelings.
Rather than the lack of energy some reviewers seem to sense, I feel that Michael Palin has shown a remarkable degree of maturity and intelligence in his approach to this series.
This is a very good series and, I feel, a really good documentation of where these countries are today. The whole thing is approached with wit, wisdom, grace and respect.
I've been to Estonia, Finland and Hungary and you cannot leave these countries without an enormous amount of respect for these people for what they have accomplished in so little time as well as the resistance they offered their oppressors.
I am pretty certain I will be watching this series more than once and I do highly recommend it.

A fresh perspective on Eastern Europe. Michael explains the evolution and results of the release from behind the Iron Curtain. Very worth while - music, food, trains, people, agriculture and history. The overbuilt government building in Romania shows the cost and kinds of problems people and countries face. This is Palin well done.

I have been a big fan of Mr. Palin's travel documentaries for many years. This one did not dissappoint me. These documentaries take an interesting look at New Europe including Estonia, Hungary etc.. They always seem to interview interesting people and visit interesting sites. The choices are eccentric but almost always enlighting.

Do not expect a Monty Pythonesque humor here, this is a sincere look at his subject. Overall a fun and great learning experience.

Michael Palin is an excellent in this short tv series. I highly recommend it, although perhaps not as strong as some of his other shows, it is still a worthy buy.

THIS WAS QUITE BEAUTIFUL AND EDUCATIONAL ! I WOULD HAVE TRULY ENJOYED A MORE EN DEPTH AND TIME TRAVEL BY HIM TO THESE PLACES- BEING POOR AND CANNOT TRAVEL MYSELF---THIS WAS MUCH APPRECIATED AND THOROUGHLY ENJOYED ! VERY GRATEFULLY, MJA ---CALIFORNIA, USA -2008

Funny, informative, entertaining. Whenever Michael Palin takes us along to explore the world it's always an excellent adventure. Highly recommended.