Customer Reviews: Read 15 more reviews...
 A must, obviously August 27, 2008
Enrique Ovidio Carro Rey
This set is a must. It's amazing that the BBC could accomplish this task with such success. The vast majority of the actors involved here give outstanding performances. I'd like to praise especially Derek Jacobi (wonderful Hamlet, astonishing Richard II, a play I didn't know before this), Michael Hordern (superb King Lear, really great Prospero in The Tempest), John Cleese (Surprising in The taming of the shrew), Ron Cook (malignant and subtle Richard III), David Gwillim (Prince Hal and Henry V), etc, etc. I was a little bit dissapointed with Nicol Williamson in Macbeth, but anyway, it's only my opinion and surely many people will find his performance not only accurate, but very good. The sets and costumes really suit the plays, with occasional strokes of genius (the sets for All's well that ends well reproduce from time to time famous paintings by Vermeer or Rembrandt). I recommend this to any theatre lover, especially those that, like me, like the classical way of set designing.
To DVD or not to DVD......That Is The Question May 17, 2008
Eric Pregosin (New Carrollton, Maryland United States)
I grew up on these here in the US courtesy of PBS. I vividly remember Charles Gray and Keith Michell in Caesar, Derek Jacobi in Hamlet, Nicol Williamson in Macbeth. There is a company here (not BBC) offering these on DVD, but in limited 5 packs for like $150 a pop. To get the whole series from the manufacturer would be $1,000s. Fortunately, I have a player that can player all regions, so ordering this for less than $200 US is a steal. Especially since I found a marketplace client on OUR Amazon who wants twice that for this very same copy (apparently there is no Region 1 issue on the BBC Video label). I am looking forward to finally getting these for keeps.
Uneven, but one of those must-have's. March 27, 2008
Vincent Poirier (Tokyo, Japan)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
The quality of the BBC production varies from play to play, and many plays are disappointing, or to put it bluntly, long and boring.
While I prefer conservative interpretations, the BBC renditions tend to be too conservative, too bland. There are some notable exceptions. Leonard Rossiter saves King John, Derek Jacobi makes an dandy Richard II, Roger Daltrey (from the Who) stumbles comically through "The Comedy of Errors", and John Cleese tames the shrew into an ex-shrew.
I'm sure it's no accident that the best plays are by the biggest stars. Having more stature, they have the authority to get their own way, and they're doing this for fun.
Also on the whole the Richard II, Henry IV parts 1 & 2, and Henry V series is pretty good. I haven't made it through all the plays yet, but I find the others I have seen (Pericles, Coriolanus, Titus Andronicus, Love's Labour Lost) lack "oomph". The lines are too often recited without wit. I expect even the tragedies should have more laughs or action-drama in them than these productions show us. But I suppose the actors are afraid of being accused of hamming it up. Too bad. Colourful interpretations should be "de rigueur".
My two favourite performances are Derek Jacobi's Richard II and Leonard Rossiter's King John. Jacobi gives us a dandy and a fop too full of himself and too careless of the consequences of his acts. Rossiter's King John is wonderful because he spices up his performance with innuendoes and sly looks that match his kittish tones.
Even though it falls far short of perfection, the breadth of the BBC project makes this a must have collection for any family's DVD shelf and will prove a good benchmark against which future renditions can be judged.
Vincent Poirier, Dublin
 Shakespeare DVD February 25, 2008
John F. Doherty (Melbourne Australia)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The special virtue of this collection is in allowing viewers to see plays which are rarely if ever prduced such as Henry VI, 1,2, and 3, and Pericles. There are some outstanding performances. Helen Mirren as Titania and Rosalind, Michael Horden as Lear and Prospero, Warren Mitchell as Shylock, and Roger Daltry as the Dromios, are a few of a large number. There are disappointments. Ron Cook as Richard III is an outstanding example of bad casting. Ron plays Simple in the Merry Wives of Windsor and that should be the height of his ambition, or anyone else's ambition for him. Further, I would say play Shakespeare on a bare stage or play him on a realistic location, but don't play him in a junk yard as was done for Henry VI.
A Magnificent Collection February 13, 2008
Blackadder (Birmingham, England)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This Collection comes in a beautiful box, that now is covered in plastic to prevent in being damaged, as had happened with earlier reviewers. It has English subtitles which is vital as one is reading the test as well as seeing the play in action.
Each play is it's own little plastic case, and are alphabetically placed in the larger box.
I had no idea there was a little booklet that is hidden in the case along with the collection. There was no mention of it except by another reviewer. This was the icing on the cake, as it lists the players and their parts, plus a lot of details about the plays. It might have been a good idea to list the settings of all of the scenes in the cases, as if it were a theatre programme.
I shall be enjoying the plays, together with the Complete Works, when that arrives later this month.
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