Rating: 
Summary: The most tedious mess ever to be called 'classic'.
Review: I don't know whose job it is to label works classics, but he must have been dozing in the early 1980s to even sit through 16 hours of this painful stuff, never mind endorse it. Is there actually one thing right with this programme? It's not television at all, but the visual equivalent of an audio book, with reams and reams of dialogue from the novel spouted to accompanying slides. There is never any attempt to tell the story visually, just the dull thud of dull prose, pounding away. Even the symbolic language is lifted straight from the book, which, untransformed, draws attention to its silliness. The lifeless pacing seems to replicate the time-span of years we are watching; the photography is quite ugly; the music timidly provides local colour, and little else. There is no sense of irony, or dramatic tension - any time a revelation, or major event occurs, its progress is stifled by unnecessary dialogue and exposition. Television is not the same as a novel: faithfulness just cheapens both. The revered acting is stiff, unreal, theatrical, terrible (Charles Dance and Art Malik are the honorable exceptions), or amusingly daft (Tim Piggot-Smith - could anyone like Merrick possibly have existed?). The first and last episodes are generally excellent, because they break with the rules of the series by concentrating on action, rather than character, which in this series is a joke, because every figure is a ludicrous stereotype. As is usual in colonial dramas from the colonisers' point of view, the politics, however well-meaning, are compromised - non-white characters are marginalised unless they went to public school. The only reason this is acclaimed is because it is 'quality' drama - respectable, comforting, sexless, without loose ends. Compare this to the similarly faithful Brideshead Revisited, which through acting and music oozes tragedy, or David Lean's A Passage To India, teeming with anger at imperial stupidity.
Rating: 
Summary: The tawdriness of the British Raj
Review: I find it ironic that the beginning of each episode of "The Jewel in the Crown" begins with footage from the 1911 Durbar near Delhi. The 1911 Durbar symbolizes Britain at its imperial apogee, just begin things began to come apart at the seams. More importantly, the durbars portrayed the British Empire as the British wanted to see it: a benevolent empire, mighty & indestructable, bringing order and civilization with it wherever it went. The reality, of course was much different. As the British withdrew from the various imperial possessions, they left behind a mixed legacy, and nowhere was this more evident than in India, where the religious antagonism between Hindu & Muslim continues to be felt today, almost 56 years after independence. "The Jewel in the Crown" follows the final years of the Raj, 1942 to 1947. The story unfolds at wonderfully relaxed pace, as principal characters enter & depart, to be replaced with other characters. Some of the important characters, such as Guy Perron, are ones the viewer will not even meet until the 10th episode. The two characters that are the driving force behind the story are Hari Kumar, an Indian given an upper-class public school education in England, and Ronald Merrick, a lower class police officer. Both are men who simply do not fit in, and are abundantly aware of it. Kumar is an Indian with English sensibilites; he knows nothing of Indian culture and initially can only speak english, but is regard by the British as simply another damned Indian. He struggles to find his place in an environment where the British expect that all Indians should know their place. Merrick, on the other hand, is a "grammar-school boy" (as he constantly reminds people) who has great talent, ability, and ambition. He moves up through the ranks due to his talents, but knows that he is regarded as not the "right sort of people" by the upper-class officers with whom he serves. It is difficult to know if Merrick has more contempt for the Indians or for the upper class British. As the story moves along, it becomes apparent that the Raj has brought neither the order nor the high morals that the British would have the world believe they represent. The private lives of the ruling British prove to be just as messy and compromised as the political legacy of the Raj. This is a beautifully acted, spectacularly staged production. It helps to have some knowledge of Indian history, but even if you don't know much about the Raj, the stories of the various characters are enough to keep you hooked for the whole 750 minutes.
Rating:
Summary: I must be missing something!
Review: I have to agree with reviewers who complained about the visual quality of the dvd version. In any event, I attempt to focus on the story. Unfortunately, I found myself unable to enjoy this series. The subject matter is fascinating---India at the dawn of independence from Great Britain. The newsreels, which were presented at intervals in the series, enhanced the story and provided historical perspective (from the British viewpoint, of course). However, I found myself annoyed by most of the main characters. Certain story elements were absolutely unfathomable---why would Susan marry Ronald Merrick, for example? He was from a lower social class, and she and her family would have considered him an inappropriate (at best) love interest. Yes, we are aware Susan experienced mental illness, but her family would surely have intervened to prevent the match. Her family was inexplicably accepting of this marriage. Also, why did Sarah allow herself to be seduced by the British officer who treated her so abominably? What on earth would motivate her to accept such abusive treatment? Although I wanted to feel sympathetic for Barbie Batchelor's character, I simply found her annoying. I don't like it when I can't sympathize with a downtrodden character! Too little was included about Hari Kumar's experiences, and Daphne's aunt and child flitted through the series so quickly one never knew why they were even included. I really wanted more information about them. One of the most moving events in the series occurs in the last episode, which concerns Hindu violence against Moslems. I found that particular episode very moving. For the overall experience, however, I ended feeling rather dissatisfied. I wanted to like this series a lot more!
Rating:
Summary: You'll love the books!
Review: I love to curl up with this set and travel to Pangkot and Rawalpindi where I can cry for Hari Kumar and shiver whenever Ronald Merrick looks toward the camera. If Colonel Merrick and Hari/Harry and the Gardens of the Bibighar intrigue you, please read the Raj Quartet- all 5 volumes-or get them on tape to take to the beach. That plummy-voiced guy who reads for B.O.T crams so much portent and foreboding into the first book "The Jewel in the Crown" that you will race to the library for "The Day of the Scorpion", "The Towers of Silence", "A Division of the Spoils" and the elegant, perfectly tragic "Staying On" (not officially part of the Quartet but the indispensable coda.) Paul Scott's interweaving of different people's experiences over time creates a chilling pattern that brings history alive. Hari and Ronald and Lady Manners are threads that run through all five volumes, Miss Crane and Daphne haunt the volumes like ghosts, Sarah Layton and Barbie Batchelor become the vortex around which the whole panorama whirls. No sooner do you feel you've got good and evil sorted out, then all the cards get re-shuffled and Scott deals a new hand. The sheer scale of India dwarfs individuality and in the (final,final)end you are left with the heartbreaking question-how could such good intentions go so terribly wrong, but what on earth were the British thinking?. The ideal for me? Listen to all five books then, when all the characters are vividly and complexedly alive in my brain, watch the film and step into the screen.
Rating: 
Summary: fabulous series, poor quality reproduction
Review: I recall being rivited to the screen when this series was first broadcast. I bought the books and enjoyed them as much as the series, not only for the tragic love story played out against the backdrop of World War II and Indian independence, but also just for the author's writing ability. Recently I re-read the books and ordered the videos. The series is just as wonderful as I remember, everything about it is engrossing. However, the quality of the videos is poor, the sounds of music and background noise often drowning out the speakers, and sometimes the outdoors scenes seem too bright, overdeveloped. I ordered the videos because I read a review that said the DVDs were poorly produced. I don't know what to suggest to anyone who wants to order this series, I guess the choice is between poor-quality videos and poor-quality DVDs. It's still worth it to me, because I am really enjoying the story, however if I hadn't recently read the books, I often wouldn't be able to understand the dialogue due to the poor quality sound reproduction. Read the books first and then watch the series.
Rating:
Summary: Masterpiece Desecrated by DVD
Review: I replaced my VHS version of "The Jewel in the Crown" with the new A&E DVD version and now wish I'd left well enough alone. Unlike most DVD transfers, this one was a gigantic step down in technical quality. The sound mixing was off in most of the episodes, obscuring dialogue and necessitating constant fiddling with the sound level. This series is a sterling example of television at its best, but for now watch the VHS version. For those wanting a refresher on the political events and people alluded to by characters in "Jewel in the Crown," I'd recommend first watching "Ghandi," which portrays the politcal situation played out during that time.
Rating:
Summary: A superbly acted series that will grip you from the start
Review: I rewatch this marvelous series every couple years and am amazed how caught up I get in it each time. Such deep, three-dimensional performances! Well written, well performed -- a sure bet!
Rating:
Summary: Best of the best
Review: I watched this series when it first aired on PBS at least 20 years ago or more. I later purchased the set and have viewed it many times. My daughter and I have an entire vocabulary based on various lines and situations in the production. It ranks with Brideshead Revisited as one of the two best productions PBS has ever aired. It is a background particularly relevant to the present situation in India and Pakistan (and elsewhere) - a division of people by religious persuasion - which was fostered by the British and their philosophy of divide and conquer. The same situation prevailed in other colonies; Cyprus in particular comes to mind, and its now divided country with Muslims in the north, Christians in the south. Not only does the theme of "racial" interaction and non-interaction prevail, but the expression of utter frustration "that after 300 years in India, there was nothing I could do." The liberal British who desired to find a way out of the dilemma of Raj versus a liberated India in a manner honorable for all involved found they could do nothing - they were as trapped in the web of history and injustice as the India they desired to assist to independence. And not only politically - but morally, equitably, reasonably. In today's morass of international chess, perhaps it is a lesson we should attend to and learn from. The violence done to Daphne Manners is to point up in reverse the violence done to Indians of all walks of life, and the pointlessness of attempting to repair any of it. The ruling British upper crust in the film is as indifferent to a "lesser" soul of their own country in the figure of the missionary Barbie (Peggy Ashcroft) as to the "lowly" Indian - whether that Indian be maharajah or untouchable. And yet, at the same time, naivete is just as dangerous and as malicious, a theme also hearkened to in the film The English Patient, another milestone in film making history, and which records British insensitivity in Egypt at approximately the same time. The film is important. The book is more so as it goes into great depth regarding the subtleties and Byzantine labyrinths by which such attitudes are arrived at and rationalized. British "responsibility" in the end becomes British ineptness. Americans have now assumed, for better or worse, the mantle of world "nanny" - this film is a bell wether that rings of pitfalls of "empire" that have already befallen us and that await in the wings.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant production. Don't be put off by technical quality
Review: Much has been said about how great a production this is, and almost as much has been said about the poor DVD quality. I prefer to view it as a glass half (and more than half) full. It is wonderful that this 12-and-a-half hour epic is available to us. I won't cry that the picture and sound quality isn't better than when I watched it on my local PBS station on my 19 " TV so many years ago. And it would have benefitted from closed captioning. Still, it's thrilling to watch it again, and if it doesn't approach DVD/HDTV big screen standards, enjoy it for what it is: a dramatic triumph made for, and intended for ... the small screen.
Rating:
Summary: The Jewel in the Crown
Review: Own it -it is great a wonderful rainy weekend adventure.
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