Customer Reviews

Our Mutual Friend [VHS]

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Having begun to watch the start of this production (as a 4 part series on Australian public TV), I was almost inclined to give up after the first episode as it all got too confusing. But after seeing the preview for the next episode, I was captivated. I have never looked forward to a weekly series more. The video was released a few weeks later, by public demand, and I bought it straight away. I did,however, resist the temptation to watch it all at once as I wanted to saviour the anticipation of each new episode(as Dickens readers waited for each weekly installment of his books). I have always enjoyed BBC dramas e.g. Martin Chuzzlewit, Middlemarch, Pride and Prejudice, but this one surpassed every previous one. I could not fault it. Every character was superb and wonderfully captured the essence of 19th Century Dickens London. My favourite actor was David Morrissey as the obsessed school teacher, Bradley Headstone. His descent into near madness was played to perfection. I also particularly enjoyed the performances of the other two actors in this particular love triangle - Keely Hawes and Paul McGann. Having since read the book, I think that the BBC wisely excluded some of the more boring characters. As a huge fan of Dickens from childhood, I cannot recommend this screen adaption enough. I could not fault one of the performances. If you like QUALITY drama, see this. You will not be disappointed.

Sumptuously cast and sumptuously shot, this series, along with Martin Chuzzlewit, provides aninsight into what the BBC can do when it's given a chance.

All the performances are masterful and the emotional journeys of the characters are beautifully presented.

Excisions are inevitable - Fascination Fledgeby is no more - and a tiny bit of the subtext relating to him is missing but the background of the river, the muck and the money, all tumbled together, make a wonderful setting for the florid behaviour of these Victorian arrivistes.

I watched this production on Masterpiece Theater and the only bad thing about it was that it was divided into three parts, with the result that I was on the edge of my seat for three weeks. At that time I had not read the novel, but did read it after watching this production. This film was beautifully produced, well-written, well-acted and just purely exciting. It is the best movie I have seen in a long time, on TV or in the theater. These characters are some of the most marvelous Dickens ever created, ranging from eccentric (Silas Wegg) to just plain odd (Mr. Venus) and from very good (Lizzie) to terrifying (Bradley Headstone). This movie has it all: greed, lust, madness, evil, innate goodness, love, romance, and mystery.

This production is beautifully filmed, filled with gorgeous actors and actresses and intricately detailed. While being true to Dickens' complexities, it wraps up all the loose ends and (I'm giving it away) has a happy ending. It vividly paints the good guys good and the bad guys despicable, yet everyone is a little more than meets the eye. The love story is sweet and sincere, but Dickens, as always, shows us the dark underside of the human soul. This film deftly winds us in its web and keeps us on the edge of our seats, leaving us satisfied yet a little haunted.

Will "Our Mutual Friend" scare the Dickens out of you? Perhaps. This story however, has a distinct difference from many of Dickens works. It's uplifting! Of course it contains eccentrics, misfits and malcontents as in other Dicken's classics. What would a Dicken's tale be without the requisite rogues? But there is also a genuine sweetness in this story. The video production deftly allows the sweetness to shine through without a saccharin aftertaste. No cheap melodrama here. Just Oscar-caliber acting, supeberb cinematography, and a great musical score. I'm confident that you will find "Our Mutual Friend" to be a friend indeed.

This production of Charles Dickens' 1864 novel reminds the viewer why classics are classics; its themes are surprisingly modern. Characters deal with stalkers and blackmailers, they worry about the moral repercussions of wealth and poverty, they find themselves attracted to relationships with the wrong people. Beautifully acted by a British cast, with a muted yet powerful central performance by Steven Mackintosh as the Mutual Friend, John Harmon, this version keeps the scary parts scary, and the funny parts funny. The love-sick stalker, Bradley Headstone, is as frightening as any modern psycho conjured up on the X-Files. The screenwriter wisely excises some of Dicken's gooier sentimentality regarding women and children, and focuses on the moral and intellectual growth of the female characters, as well as the central themes of the interrelation of identity and money. The only reason I deny this production a five star rating is that it leaves out the unforgettable Mr. Podsnap, one of Dicken's greatest and most hilarious character portraits of hypocritical society at its worst. Otherwise, the six-hour long mini-series is utterly engrossing and well worth your time.

I have been a fan of the book since high school and was astounded by the quality of this production. Everything from the sets to the costumes to the locations and most importantly the superb acting had me completely enthralled. I cannot recommend this production enough. Paul McGann, David Morrissey, and Keely Hawes are fabulous in one of the most heart wrenching love triangles you'll see anywhere. And Timothy Spall had me laughing out loud as Mr Venus. The first Dickens production I've seen that gives David Lean a real run for his money. Buy this video!

This production of "Our Mutual Friend" is one of the best BBC productions I've ever seen. It is sophisticated in its direction and cinematography as well as, of course, the superb acting and writing. It really matches step by step the magnificence of Dickens' novel: a complex intertwining of many different lives brought together by a common interest. Moreover, the plot is amazingly succinct and compelling. Focused on two sets of lovers, it is a beautiful combination of social commentary and a great story. The ending is one of the best crafted and satisfying I've ever seen; not the usual five minute tie up that Dickens is fond of. I highly recommend it.

I like Dicken's stories for his memorable characters. The good are so kind and innocent and the villains so dispicable and evil. This movie succeeds because it takes the time to develop the personalities and lives of these fascinating people. I taped it from PBS over three nights. Its six hours long and you won't want to miss a minute.

Dickens' rats and angels come from all manner of social strata in turn of the century England. No one is free from Dickens scathing critique. The plots are set amidst the backdrop of an aristocracy which is collapsing under its own weight. The middle class grows and the born-rich are forced to socialize with "new" money. How distasteful! Even the poor are not immune to the social structure of the time; a river boatman, who dredges the river for bodies, will not let his son go to school. He must carry on the family trade, like his father did!

The casting and the acting is just right. Oh, the faces of these actors and actresses say so much. You will fall in love with the hero and heroine as they try to figure out what they should do.

I must admit, I like the evil guys! They are simply awful to the core. My favorite scene is when Riderhood unexpectedly shows up in the school teachers classroom sitting among the young pupils sharing his wisdom. After his little speech, he ruffles a boys hair. I wanted to douse the poor lad's head in lice shampoo. But, there are a lot of neer-do-wells in this story who need their comeuppance and Dickens doesn't fail to deliver!

The movie is filmed in a rainy London. The scenery and locations are wonderful. The costumes perfect. I love period peices and this one ranks up there with the best of them.

In this BBC miniseries "Our Mutual Friend", every bit of bittersweet of life is conveyed most incisively. It is a quite lengthy (three-tape of totally 339 min) production, and yet, with all the drama - life and death, love and hatred, passion and thriller - to tighten the grip, you won't feel the time once you start watching. It is a quite complicated plot with many characters, and yet, it is unfolded methodically such that you will actually enjoy the dimensions and dynamics.
Strongly sensed, while watching this 1860s story, is its close relevance to the realities of true life, even modern life. The drama of John Harmon and his inheritance, around which the whole story is extended, exemplifies the struggle between love and money, which is a constant battle ever going on. The ending of young Harmon winning his true love without his money and Bella Wilfer, John's designated bride, finding her true self, fathoms the root of noble humanities. In character Lizzie Hexam there is writer's idealism, which made this boatman's daughter bearing unique grace and beauty although without any education. Luckily the truthfulness of the love between Lizzie and Eugene Wrayburn can be found in real life and so is its result - a magic of love - that's revealed in the story.
There is no writer who could better dig into human natures and create edgy characters than Charles Dickens. In this final work of him, the broadly and deeply depicted characters, ranging from the upper crust to the lowest rung, prove for another time that he is truly the master. The actors and actresses, who have brought life to the characters, even the smallest ones, have played the roles to the bones. Needless to say this masterwork deserves such fine craft. Only if such fine work can be released on DVD, it'd be perfect.