Product Details

• Actors: Sean Bean, Daragh O'Malley, Abigail Cruttenden, Alexis Denisof, Cécile Paoli
• Directors: Tom Clegg
• Writers: Bernard Cornwell, Charles Wood
• Producers: Malcolm Craddock, Muir Sutherland
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Bfs Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: May 1, 2001
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005BGRV
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #26,000 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Sharpe's Waterloo" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Life seems to have settled down for British Officer Richard Sharpe as he enjoys a much-deserved rest at a French chateau with his new love, Lucille. However, the news of Napoleon's return from exile drives Sharpe back to the army. He is placed on the staff of the incompetent British ally, the Prince of Orange. Reunited with his Chosen Men, Sharpe abandons his inept commander and organizes the defense at the farm of La Haie Sainte. It is here he plays a key role in one of Britain's most famous victories, the Battle of Waterloo.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Buy the DVD, grit your teeth, then read the book, October 13, 2001

By	M. Price (Palo Alto, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I became enchanted by the Sharpe series by watching the series on TV. The chemistry between Sharpe (Sean Bean) and Harper(Daragh O'Malley), the struggle of the compentent Sharpe to get recognition and authority within the rigid class structure of the British Army (makes you wonder how the British army could have been so successful in the 19th century), the wary relationship between the Spanish and the British, the fantastic luck that keeps Sharpe and Harper alive, and the characterization of even temporary characters all presented against the background of the peninsular campaign during the Napoleonic wars, I found fascinating and moving. Sean Bean plays a much more compelling character here than in any of his villianous movie roles (e.g. Bond).

Of course, I looked forward eagerly to the release of the series on DVD.

In the meantime, I read all of the books. Since the completion of the television series, Bernard Cornwell has extended the story of
Sharpe both before the peninsula campaign and after Waterloo. The books are far richer than the TV series, but this doesn't detract from the series at all. The series generally stands on its own but the books add considerable depth, background, and context.

The last episode in the series, Sharpe's Waterloo, suffers more in comparison with the book, because the underlying events are familiar. 100 minutes is hardly engough time to explain the manner in which the battle of Waterloo unfolded and to develop the several other story threads involving Sharpe. Still, it is fine culmination to the series.

As in all of the DVDs in this series, the video quality is poor. This has been mentioned by other reviewers but needs some explanation. The color is good, the video has little noise, and there are no surprizing artifacts. The problem is image resolution. The DVD is encoded at 4.35Mbites/sec with almost no variation responding to changes in scene or motion. This is low: the Abyss, a high-quality DVD transfer, is encoded at 5.79Mbites/sec with occasional bursts at over 7Mbits/sec. The difference is dramtic. All of the Sharpe DVDs are fuzzy and lack detail; they appear to be out of focus. There are not enough pixels in the image to provide a good image on even a small TV screen. And forget about watching these on a large screen.

Still I recommend this series. Buy the DVDs, put your chair across the room, and enjoy. At the end you'll want more. That's the time to buy the books.

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sharpe's End, May 11, 2001

By	Terence Chua (Athens, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Here we are, after thirteen hundred glorious minutes, at the last hundred minutes of the TV adventures of Richard Sharpe. After the events of "Sharpe's Justice", Sharpe has returned to Normandy to Lucille, as he promised, never to fight another battle. Except: it is now the summer of 1815 - Napoleon Bonaparte has left his exile on the island of Elba, marching across France and calling his loyal troops back to him. The Hundred Days have started, the final gasp of the Napoleonic Wars. Sharpe's greatest regret has been that he has never faced Boney in battle, so off he goes to war, his Chosen Men back at his side.

But Wellington places him on the staff of the Prince of Orange, young, arrogant and incompetent - his adulterous wife, Jane wants her lover, Rossendale, to kill him - and Napoleon has humbugged them all, quickly and efficiently splitting the Anglo-Dutch and Prussian armies apart, to destroy each individually. Will Sharpe survive this? Boney's attacking, the Prussians have still not arrived to give aid, and the fate of Europe will be decided in this little valley near a town called Waterloo...

Bernard Cornwell's original novel, "Waterloo: Sharpe's Final Adventure", was masterful - it managed to weave an exciting personal story for Sharpe and at the same time give an understanding of how this most famous of battles unfolded. Unfortunately, "Sharpe's Waterloo" doesn't really do that. I could follow it because I already knew how the battle progressed, but I would think the viewer who knows little about what happened that day wouldn't be able to follow the grand scheme of battle. As a result, we see Sharpe take part in various bits of the battle but never quite get why each is important.

On the other hand, one could argue that this shows the fog of war from the soldier's perspective - that the individual didn't really know how the big picture was forming up. This isn't particularly convincing to me, because I've seen it done magnificently in Ted Turner's production of "Gettysburg", and with a good script I don't see why it can't be done here.

Also, the same budgetary limitations that have plagued the series also show up here. One doesn't get the impression in the slightest that this was a battle than involved more than 300,000 men, all in all, on all sides. We never get much more than one regiment at a time on screen and the final advance of the Imperial Guard as a result winds up looking pretty wimpy. Given this was the grand finale, I had hoped they would splurge a bit, but sadly this was not the case.

On the positive side, the acting is cracking as usual and loose ends are (more or less) tied up. The battle at La Haye Sainte is particularly well done, even given the budgetary problems. Sharpe does a lot of swordplay and firing and realizes his dream of commanding a battalion. We see the deaths of beloved and hated characters, and Harper and Sharpe finally get their wish - to see Boney. The rest, as they say, is history, and you're going to have to watch it to find out what happens to our heroes. The transfer, like the latter few episodes, is surprisingly good compared to the earlier DVDs - one wishes heartily that they could have put some extras in, though.

About time for them to adapt "Sharpe's Devil" one of these days, I think...

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yes I do like the series, December 20, 2002

By	M. La Vean "LaVean" (Michigan) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I like the series so I am not objective in viewing this a stand alone.

I am very plesed that the budgets have become much bigger as the series progressed. Far more extra's, more horses (some of them actually moving together as cavalry should) more variety of uniforms and nice settings.

I look at period/costume pieces for more than just a plot...I am looking for an escape in time...the Sharpe Series does this for me (as does the Hornblower's)

I am looking for a "feel"...for 90 minutes I want to believe I am in another world...I want the flavor of what it was like to live in another time, doing historic things.

Sharpe's Waterloo does a good job at making me feel I am actually there at the defence of La Haye Sainte...there is no examination of the whole battle...just the worm's eye view of the men who had to hold the gate...

So if you want the glamor and the big picture...maybe this isn't for you...however,if you want to pick up a rifle and help hold a key spot on the battlefield in a fighting that was desperate...then this is definitely for you.