Product: Chiefs [Region 2] (1983)
Rating: 5.0
Excellent adaptation.
I still place Stuart Woods's "Chiefs" among the best police dramas ever written. Since I learned that a TV adaptation of the book was made, I've always wanted to see it - and, about a year ago, I finally found and bought the DVD release of the series (which seems to be unavailable outside R2). I actually did not expect much, but what I received surprised me - and it was a positive surprise. The series is an excellent adaptation of the novel and manages to do it justice, which is a rarity... as is the fact that very little of the book's plot is omitted. Certainly, some of the details - such as Will Henry's growing obsession with the mysterious murders, and the technical sides of his investigation - have to be treated superficially, but every important subplot and aspect of the book is present in the film; consequently, the series manages to be just as thrilling and involving as the novel. Amusingly enough, the credits on the box of the DVD misled me slightly - I assumed Charlton Heston, Keith Carradine and Billy Dee Williams would be playing the three chiefs, chronologically; of course, this is not the case. Of course, a Collector's Edition, with some extras and a commentary (perhaps even by Stuart Woods?) would be even better, since the DVD I have is bare-bones, with only a spartan menu and chapter selection, but that's unlikely to happen with a TV series. Then again, it's been done with, for instance, "IT!", so... you never know. If a Special Edition DVD is ever released, I'll certainly buy it in addition to the standard one I have.