Customer Reviews

Shell Seekers [VHS]

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I have read Rosamunde Plicher's novel THE SHELL SEEKERS seven times, and the movie brought the characters alive for me. Anglela Lansbury played the aging though vibrantant and sensitive Penelope Keeling perfectly. The other characters were also cast quite well. I felt the movie was a terrific representation of a very well written novel. As always it is difficult to fit every tid bit into a movie to make it exactly like a book, but this movie comes close to being as moving as the novel.

This should have been a wonderful movie--Angela Lansbury and most of the rest of the cast are terrific. But someone decided that the book was too sad as originally written. I don't want to give away the book's story for those who haven't read it yet, but two major deaths have been written out and family reconciliations abound. The novel was much tougher--and truer--as written by Ms. Pilcher. Totally unnecessary.

No realistic viewer expects a filmed version of a book to be identical. But it SHOULD be true to the spirit of the novel (or why bother filming it?), and this TV movie is definitely not. Most of the main characters are too different, especially Penelope Keeling (Angela Lansbury is quite the wrong actress) - the Penelope in this film is unrecognisable. But the worst betrayal is the portrayal of Penelope's love affair with Richard, especially the change to its ending and to the ending of the book. If you want to watch a banal movie, and have neither read the book nor wish to read one of the finest novels in English, buy the movie. Much better, buy, read and re-read the book, and give yourself a real treat.

This is one of my favorite books and after re-reading it for the umpteenth time I decided to purchase the Hallmark Hall of Fame version. The first part is very good for a TV movie - beautiful locations, fine acting (how can one fault Angela Lansbury?), and relatively faithful to the story (one must take into consideration that time is of the essence on TV and often plots become condensed). However, to TOTALLY change the ending (a medical mis-diagnosis unexplained and bringing characters back from the dead to name only two!) was unconscionable. The power of the story was lost and it turned into just another tear-jerker. It would be as if Scarlett and Rhett rode off into the sunset together and lived happily ever after! BUT, if you've never read the book it would be an enjoyable couple of hours entertainment. I will never watch The Shell Seekers again, and am putting mine up for sale (cheap!).

A beautiful, warm, and compelling film, THE SHELL SEEKERS is one of television's few genuine film masterpieces. Originally produced as a Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, this absorbing and all too human drama deserves much more widespread attention.



Though it may not follow the book in every respect, it nonetheless stands on it's own. (And --please!--readers
of the book should ALLOW it to stand on it's own, as any film is meant to do, judging it on IT'S OWN merits and not against their memory of the book!)



Well written and beautifully filmed, it features outstanding performances by a well rounded cast of uniformly excellent actors, not the least of whom is star Angela Lansbury.



In a day in which grown children find it all too easy to blame their parents for every childhood shortcoming, the warmth, compassion, and uplifting message of this filmic gem can help bring healing and insight to many of today's
searching "thirtysomethings". This isn't just a movie, it's a healing and enlightening experience. It can also
bring encouragement and support to today's "sixty-somethings" who have felt the brunt of false guilt and
undeserved criticism from ungrateful offspring.



Unavailable on television or video for many years, truly this is a film not to be missed. It's a beautiful, poignant video that belongs in every family's video library.

Angela Lansbury does a wonderful job at protraying this character. Set in great locations that make the story more believable. No movie ever lives up to what a book can deliver in feeling and detail but this comes pretty close. I enjoyed the complex relationships between mother and children. They ring so true, using my family and other families I know as a guide. Forget those that say this is nothing like the book or give it only one or two stars. This movie does stand on it's own and the acting is great.

I saw about 20 minutes of the Hallmark TV version and went shrieking from the room! And this is possibly my favorite novel of all time. Angela Lansbury is terribly miscast. Penelope with stiffly coiffed hair, a corsage and a pink afternoon dress?!? What happened to the boat cloak? It should have been Judy Dench! This is nearly as bad as the carnage wreaked on "Clan of the Cave Bear" by casting Darryl Hannah. Trying to stuff a big novel into 98 minutes is a travesty. I see why writers like Steven King and J.K. Rowling take such tough control of their works when someone wants to film them. Couldn't we wait a few years and try again, this time in a 13 week series or something like "Ballykissangel"?

I was originally looking to buy, "The Shell Seekers with Vanessa Redgrave;" however Amazon did not have that one. They did have, "The Shell Seekers with Angela Lansbury," which I did purchase.
I had seen, "The Shell Seekers with Vanessa Redgrave," and wanted that movie, but when I bought the one with Miss. Lansbury I was most pleasantly surprised and most happy.
Later I found the original that I wanted somewhere else, and I now have both copies and both of them are great!!! Thank you Amazon so much, for letting me enjoy Angela Lansbury in a most favorite movie I originally saw with Vanessa Redgrave.
It is nice to see both Actress's in the same role, but a bit different script. If you had had the one I first wanted, I'd never have seen Angela Lansbury. So, thanks to Amazon.com, not having the specific one I wanted I now have both and can't thank them enough.
Dr. Stanley J. Schaeffer

This movie is no day at the beach. It is really nostalgic and sweet. If you are easily drawn to tears while you watch a movie, keep some kleenex handy. I watched it at a friend's house and now I am buying it for my mom. Good performances throughout by the cast.

People, you know that movies are never as good as the book! This is no exception. However, in terms of the movie itself, I liked it. It was fun and interesting to compare my own personal images of Penelope, Nancy, Olivia, Noel, Antonia, and Danus to those in the movie. Sure, there were a lot of differences, but if you LOVE Rosamunde Pilcher's novels as much as I do then you can appreciate this movie and how it tried to grasp the feeling of the story, if not the exact plot. I highly recommend the book Coming Home if you enjoyed The Shell Seekers, and the movie Coming Home is excellent, too!