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Summary: Sharpe's Rifles
Review: This is an awesome film based on the historical fiction novels by Bernard Cornwell. This is the first video in this series following the life and trials of Richard Sharpe, played by Sean Bean of "Patriot Games and James Bond-Goldeneye films" This starts out as Richard Sharpe a sargeant in the 95th rifles saves Lord Arthur Wellesley's (soon to be Lord Wellington) life which earns him a field commission and being promoted from the ranks to become a Lt. which begins his adventures in the service of the British Army during the Napoleonic wars. Definately A++++
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Summary: Like Horatio Hornblower? You'll Like Sharpe Too!
Review: Sharpe's Rifles, (and the rest of the Sharpe series), is a more gritty "version" of Horatio Hornblower (series from A&E). No, Sharpe is in no way related to Horatio, just for your information, this takes place in the Army while Horatio's was at sea.) Actually made BEFORE the Hornblower series, this one will engage you and make you want to see them all! (I've seen 4 in the series now.)Although some reviews have commented badly about the video quality, I would rate it as very good. It is about a B+ in my book, above VCD or VHS quality. Set during the early 1800's, Sharpe is an enlisted man that becomes an officer after saving the life of a lord from England. This series details his adventures as an officer, following him through many battles, promotions and romances. It focuses on his inability to fit into the "officer corp," as most officer's from that period were wealthy men who bought their commissions. The ONLY problem I have had is figuring out the ORDER of the DVD's. They are technically "mini movies," so you can watch them in any order, but watching them in their true order is most enjoyable. Here's what I have so far just so you know, (in order:) Sharpe's Rifle, Sharpe's Eagle, Sharpe's Company, and I THINK the next one is Sharp's Enemy. Hint: look on the side binder of the DVD, their are little codes, these should go in numerical hierarchy, for example, "98579-D,98580-D,98598-D". These won't necessarly be in sequence, (i.e. 1,2,3,4,5) but more like 2,7,11,14 for example. So you should be able to figure it out when you get them. Bottom line: if you like mini-series like the early 80's "Shogun," and "Horatio Hornblower," you'll like this one too.
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Summary: Napoleonic Wars
Review: terric....one of 14 DVDs made for televion in England.
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Summary: If you liked Hornblower, you'll love Sharpe...
Review: First the similarities - both fight for the Brits in WW zero (the Napoleonic wars), both are heroic, both have their own books and TV series - but there the similarities end. The differences are interesting, and illuminate the British class system of the time.We meet Sharpe in this first episode. This is the Peninsular War, fought in Spain and Portugal against the French and, sometimes, the Spanish who have allied with Napoleon. In the eyes of the officers who have quite properly bought their commissions, Sharp is the commonest of common soldiers, a guttersnipe in spite of his new commission earned in the field. Worse, the men he commands refuse to accept him as a "proper" officer. He's an intuitive and well trained fighting man, a nearly ideal non-com, but this is a new kind of fight for him. Hornblower only had to prove his courage and military abilities to be accepted - he was already an officer and a gentleman; Sharpe has to prove everything from the ground up, particularly in this first episode. The series is based on Bernard Cornwell's superb books, and does Cornwell proud. It's hard to overpraise this series, particularly now that it's starting to be available on DVD. Excellent acting, directing, and casting, but most of all, excellent writing - the proverbial rattling good yarns. Even if you don't like Hornblower (who is, after all, a tad stuffy) you may still love Sharpe, who really should have emigrated to America or Australia, rather than take the King's shilling. He'd have been in good company with Andy Jackson or Ned Kelly. See the films, read the books, and venture with Sharpe to Waterloo and beyond.
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Summary: Good drama - lousy picture quality
Review: I have read and enjoyed all of the Bernard Cornwell books on Sharpe, and in general this series of videos is very good dramatically (3 and often 4 stars). Unfortunately, the focus and picture are often pretty bad - 1-2 stars most of the time. And the sound is often difficult as well. I bought the first four DVDs in the series and am now watching the third one. Wish someone had mentioned before I bought them how bad the recording was. I have well over a hundred DVDs, and the picture on these is the worst by a wide margin. These may well turn out to become a donation to the public library for all to "enjoy". Oh, by the way, while the Cornwell books are usually very good, nothing, absolutely nothing, compares to C. S. Forester's Hornblower books for literacy and sheer enjoyment. And I've tried most of the contenders (Kent, Woodman, Connery, O'Brian, etc.). In fact, I recently bought new copies of all the Hornblower books because my previous set wore out from too much reading (plus they weren't printed on acid-free paper so they were deteriorating). Hope this review helps. Maybe the later DVDs will be better quality. If so, I'll do a new post to let people know.
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Summary: a favourite anti-hero
Review: I had not read any of Sharpe's books before watching the series. However, I love British TV drama and novel adaptations, and I love the period in which Sharpe's adventures are set, so after reading the reviews in Amazon.co.uk, I decided to give it a try. And now I'm hopelessly hooked! All the actors' performances are wonderful, but Sean Bean's is simply stunning. The story is very respectful to the people who lived in Spain in those times, both those who were for and against the French (I'm Spanish. I know), and it is even respectful to the French enemy. The plot is a mixture of adventure and spy story, with quite a bit of criticism of the British class system thrown in.This is as good as a historical novel can be (and I've read quite a few)especially because of the feeling you get that the characters belong to the period in the way they think and the way they act. In fact, it would answer the question What were all those handsome officers from Jane Austen's novels doing when they were not dancing with her heroines?. This is the other side of the same story, without contradicting it. The hero,Sharpe, belongs to the "dregs" of society, he is "scum", although he is more human and braver than the petty officers who have purchased their comissions and who are, otherwise, so elegant and so good at dancing with Austen's heorines. I am also beginning to read all the Sharpe's novels and I love them. Bravo Sharpe! Stand and Fight!
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Summary: Great series of swashbuckling Napoleonic war hero
Review: The Sharpe series is an adaptation from Bernard Cornwell's epic series follwing a neer-do-well British rifleman who, in the first episode, has the misfortune of saving the Duke of Wellington from the snatches of French curraseurs at the begining of the Penninsular Campaign. This is not common fare on American screens (we tend to only remember Andrew Jackson knocking down rows of readcoats at the Battle of New Orleans.) Sharpe is made an officer, which is an immediate two strikes against him in an army which expected its upper ranks to be "gentlemen" and not orphans left by prostitutes. Along the way, he confounds French spies, British deserters, and incredibly stupid senior officers. Sean Bean is an ideal Sharpe and carries the series with his slit-faced scowl (he was the Irish bad-guy in "Patriot Games.") His Irish Sergeant ("ya ignorant paddy"), who tries to kill him in the first hour, becomes best of friends, and the pair are terrific. The series is episodic, and is somewhat a throwback to the old 1960s "Combat" series with Vic Morrow. (I swear, these guys even carry their Baker rifles like WW2 Thompsons). It suffers from a necessarily small scale and a dearth of the now obligatory special effects. Nonethless, you won't for now find a better treatment of this period. Bernard Cornwell's "Sharpe" novels are an obligatory (and easy) read for grognards interested in a break from the Hornblower or Maturin-Aubrey books.
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Summary: Had the VHS for years
Review: A friend of mine loaned me the whole 14 tape series back in 97 and I have loved it ever since. I am a military reenactor and loved the detail that they kept to with the uniforms and food and all the other stuff. For action and adventure as well as seeing the whole class warfare of the time period this is one of the best.
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Summary: Money Talks, Action Walks
Review: Being a big fan of the books, I eagerly awaited receiving the Sharpe DVD's for Christmas. However, in parts, the films didn't quite live up to my expectations. Looking through the Extras, there was a selection of production notes. Reading these notes, it revealed that none of the shots in the entire series used more than 250 extras, and this is quite apparant when watching the films. The action and battle sequences are too short by far, and of a poor quality. Here I must level a criticism at Sean Bean, as the Sharpe I see when reading action bits in the book is fierce and relentless. When Bean fights, he does so a little tentatively, and not very brutally as I picture Sharpe doing. The director, knowing he was on a tight budget, has concentrated on the non-combat sequences, which is a wise move. These parts are far better, and credit must go to the actor that plays Hogan, as the wily engineer is, for me, the best character on the first two films. Sharpe's Rifles was a bit disappointing, especially the tussle between Sharpe and Harper. This wasn't nearly physical enough or fast enough. Again the final fight was poor as well. 3 stars is my rating for Sharpe's Rifles. Sharpe's Eagle was drastically better. Hogan for me was the star of this film. His mannerisms are just as I imagined them to be when reading. What makes Sharpe's Eagle better than Sharpe's Rifles is that there are less combat scenes, the emphasis being on Sharpe's vendetta with Henry Simmerson and his two lackeys. The only disappointing bits were Sharpe's fight with Berry and the criminally short final fight. Overall, these films have stood the test of time well. The battle scenes show the lack of budget, but the films are an entertaining diversion - recommended to anyone who has read the books.
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Summary: Finally a Nice Action Movie
Review: I bought this movie on a whim, after reading one of the books. The movie was very nicely paced giving you a chance to catch your breath between action shots. While actually providing you with a since of travel and time passing, by having them camp at night. Too many movies seem to forget the minor details, like that help show the passage of time. I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes good action of the Napoleonic Era.
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