Product: Brideshead Revisited [VHS] (1982)
Rating: 5.0
LAVISH, FAITHFUL RENDERING OF WAUGH'S MASTERPIECE
I recently watched the whole six vhs cassettes at two sittings and was suitably impressed by the close adherence to the book - having just recently re-read it for the umpteenth time.Castle Howard is the ideal setting for such a sumptuous drama and the costumes, make-up, hairstyles, crystal, china, furniture, linens, etc., etc. are all authentically reproduced and add to the verisimilitude of the production.I especially liked the interaction between Jeremy Irons and his father - as played by Sir John Gielgud. I howl with laughter everytime I see that absent-minded scholar potting about his townhouse and Gielgud's humour has always been of the most subtle and insidious kind. Many present-day actors and actresses could learn from Sir John's mordant sense of humour and how to convey it without resorting to Hollywood-style gesturing and crass "acting".John Gielgud is one of the many treasures of this set and it is good that his consummate acting abilities have been immortalised on video and dvd. He is also brilliant in Peter Greenaway's "Prospero's Books" and has there ever been such a resounding and unforgettable voice?I highly recommend this set and doubt is it will ever be remade as actors and sets such as these are now prohibitively expensive.