Customer Reviews

The Street (The Complete First Season)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With anthology series, we typically get the fantastical or the horrific--so "The Street" is that rare treat. It is a dramatic anthology, telling six separate stories all set on one English street. Some of the characters overlap from time to time, but essentially each segment is a self contained entity. I'm not sure why anthologies have been relegated mostly to sci-fi or horror because "The Street" aptly demonstrates that you can generate rewarding and powerful drama in individual episodes.

The quality of writing and acting in each of the segments is uniformly excellent. With seasoned veterans like Timothy Spall, Jim Broadbent, and Jane Horrocks (among many others) participating--you know you've got something special. Broadcast stateside on BBC America, "The Street" is one of the most emotionally satisfying programs I've seen in quite a while.

While everyone has a favorite episode when it comes to an anthology series, there were three in particular that stood out for me. The first starred Jane Horrocks as a housewife engaged in an affair with a neighbor. When her lover inadvertently strikes her daughter with his car, their world starts to unravel. This is an acting tour-de-force from everyone involved and one of the best hours of TV I've seen this year--it's emotionally riveting. I also enjoyed a segment where an ordinary teacher accidentally exposes himself to a young girl. As a witchhunt evolves, it is painfully realistic and frighteningly plausible. And then there is an episode on domestic abuse that is also extremely powerful. All of these episodes would easily rank at 5 stars for me.

Two segments were at 4 stars. One involves a good kid who gets caught up in a world of drugs--it's a sad and frustrating look at the effects of peer pressure. And the other involves Timothy Spall as a cab driver who ends up with a homeless immigrant that he can't abandon. There is a lot of warmth and humanity within this tale. Interestingly enough, the only episode at 3 stars is also the series' most lighthearted. Still, it explores old age and retirement in a relevant way with a nice performance by Jim Broadbent. While not my favorite, the ending is surprisingly moving.

Again, "The Street" is distinguished by film quality acting. It is emotionally charged drama with lots of humor, as well. Those looking for serious, adult entertainment will be well satisfied with "The Street." KGHarris, 11/06.

The Street shows us that the lives going on behind the front doors of houses are quite different from what we see. Sometimes the story is big, as in the first story of a child injured by a car. Sometimes, the story is smaller and private. But all of them are fascinating.

There are many pleasures in here, but wwhat I really admired and enjoyed in these stories was the source of the problems. The traditional Marxist Hollywood thinking, which all too often reduces all troubles to economic ones, would tell us that all the disasters these folks experience is the result of too little cash in their porckets. But the pain comes from the human heart, and there too are found the solutions. People can be wrong, and foolish, and mean spirited, and venal, and downright evil. They can act selfishly, pigheadedly or foully. (The rehearsal for Lady MacBeth in episode 3 is a clever touch.) But they can forgive, move on, and grow. Even without a raise or a promotion.

At times it is hard to believe that so much drama can go on in such apparently simple lives, but these are wonderful shows with wonderful acting, skillfully and touchingly presented. The choices don't always seem smart, but they do seem plausible and understandable. Flawed people doing what they hope is best. Sometimes regretting, as we all do.

An astounding thing about this series that caught me immediately was how they managed to make each character a complete and interesting person. Hollywood cannot seem to manage this, almost no matter how much time they take, and instead gives us characters with little tell-tale traits or possessions that are shorthand. For instance, how often does the main character in a major film drive some exotic or antique car? Yet how often do you see those cars in the real world? This is their way of telling us something about him or her without having to actually do any story telling. But in The Street there are no fakes, no short cuts, no gestures, yet they make every character a reasonably rounded person in a little less than an hour. Even when there is a huge cast. Even the kids who play such a large part of life on this street. Just a pleasure to watch.

Koch Vision presents "THE STREET" (2006) (654 mins/Color) (Dolby Digital) --- Under Terry McDonough (Director), David Blair (Director), Ken Horn (Series Producer), Jimmy McGovern (Screenwriter), Matthew Leys (Screenwriter) ------ the cast includes Jim Broadbent (Stan McDermott), Timothy Spall (Eddie McEvoy), Lee Ingleby (Sean O'Neill), Jane Horrocks (Angela Quinn), Christine Bottomley (Yvonne O'Neil), Michael Dixon (Mako), Mia Khan (Hayley O'Neil) - - - - the story line is set in the North of England, each episode concentrates on a different house in the street; each story is unique and individual but linked by community, shared experience and an indomitable sense of humor ... .Jimmy McGovern, one of British television's most prolific and influential writing talents returns with a major new drama series starring Jim Broadbent, Sue Johnston, David Schofield, Timothy Spall, Lee Ingelby and Jane Horrocks ... Go behind the closed doors of British row houses and find: a wife and her lover; a couple reigniting their 40-year marriage; a taxi driver whose life is turned upside-down by an unexpected friendship; two estranged sisters reunited by the breakdown of a marriage; a dedicated teacher victimized by a cruel misunderstanding; a father and son whose bond is tested; and a bitterly disillusioned pensioner who plots revenge ... meet the neighbors and marvel at the friendship, love, betrayal and redemption happening up and down "The Street" ... surprisingly dramatic and touching.

Great job by Koch Vision for releasing "The Street" (2006) - Jimmy McGovern, the digital transfere with a clean, clear and crisp print...looking forward to more high quality releases from the BBC film market...order your copy now from Amazon or Koch Vision where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch drama mixed with an outstanding cast and director --- just the way we like 'em

Total Time: 654 mins on DVD ~ Koch Vision KOCV6429 ~ (1/16/2007)

This is a terrific, nuanced tableau of six families. The cast is pitch perfect and after it's all over you just want more of "The Street." British television just does not get any better.

Season one of the BBC series "Street" is superb. In the episodes, we the viewing audience get to peek "behind the doors" of ordinary "working class" people that live on one fictitious (I assume) street in Northern England. The audience meets ordinary people that are living their lives "day to day"; however, into their lives come some very interesting (what I call) "life events" that can be ordinary every day happenings or can be heartbreaking, life changing, wonderful, not so wonderful, horrendous, devastating "life events". How these people cope with these "life events", makes for some gripping television viewing that kept me highly entertained.

Throughout the years, I have viewed many superb British Television programs that I adored. Many times their stories have been about some extraordinary people in England. As I said before, "Street" is about ordinary people going about their lives. It's a wonderful series that is so very well written, directed and, most of all, acted. I particularly loved seeing Sue Johnson that I have loved in the series "Waking the Dead". I really look forward to Season two (2).

Be advised that none of the episodes in this series has "the obvious resolution" to it; be prepared to be surprised to how the episode is resolved.

This series is written by Jimmy McGovern, the same person who wrote the fabulous series Cracker, starring Robby Coltrane. The man is a genius - each episode is a complete story in itself, yet there are character cross-overs, which isn't surprising as all of the characters live in the same Street.

Each story involves its audience to a gut-wrenching degree - we laugh, we cry, we are fearful - we are indignant - and we just want everything to work out okay because we love the characters - they have become our intimate acquaintances.

Rarely does a TV drama affect its audience to such a degree. The series is compelling watching, and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

Oh yes this is what I miss about not being in the UK at the moment, acting that knocks the socks off anything others try to attempt to do. The stories are written with real events and people in mind, no fairy story book here, this is life as it is,I know I lead it each week,FROM THE BAR TO THE BED,FROM HATE TO LOVE,may there be many more of these outstanding works of art.
Director David Blair brings to the screen images that would seem to be impossible to capture from Jimmy McGoven's pen.A masterpiece sums up the First Season, with a haunting theme music that captures the mood to perfection. 5 Stars Plus.

Six hours, six different households on the same street, a half-dozen different problems, a variety of outcomes, many overlapping characters, with the fine writing and acting one expects from British television. Not too many laughs in the package, but many moving moments. It is nice to see Timothy Spall of the "Harry Potter" films and "Sweeney Todd" in the role of the local cabbie, who gets to hear and see fragments of his neighbor's lives. I thought the three episodes on Disc One were the strongest. The first, about the unintended consequences of adultery, was the darkest in tone and result. The next, about the crisis created by forced retirement, features a wonderful performance by Jim Broadbent. His character is 65. I am 64. Naturally, I identified. The scariest hour tells how a high school teacher could have his career and personal life totally ruined by a series of missteps and misunderstandings when he was caught in public with his trousers down. Because I watched this in a one-day marathon, I may have been too tired to appreciate the stories on Disc Two quite as much. If you buy this, watching in small doses might be wiser. And as one prior reviewer noted, the accents and the slang can be hard to catch for the American ear.

My wife was born and raised in northern England (Manchester) where the stories take place. I was with the USAF there for 3 years. We were unable to understand much of the dialogue. The stories are great but they desperately need close captioning (subtitles)for the American audience.

As with most of the British dramas I've seen, the actors are superb.

I borrowed this disc set from the library, and there's no way I'll make it through all 6 shows. One of the episodes was truly compelling--it was the story of a 65-year-old man who has difficulties when he's forced into retirement. As far as I can tell (having seen 4 episodes), that there is a requirement that someone be brutally beaten up in every show, and if at all possible, the show must include a large,ugly outraged father who is doing the beating. And if there is even a hint that someone has done something wrong, the remaining residents of the street must immediately turn against the suspected person AND his family--children included. And the wife must turn against her suspected spouse as well. Police never interfere with the beatings, school officials never interfere with children being beat up by other children, and even long-standing friendships are immediately discarded without even considering that someone might be innocent.

I realize television doesn't always have to have a happy ending, but I can think of much better ways to spend an hour of my life than to watch anymore of this show.