Rating: 
Summary: 2nd Try on DVD Much Better
Review: The packaging is superb. However, the first disc would not even play. In fact, my DVD player wouldn't even recognize it as a legitimate DVD and told me that in just so many words on my TV screen. I received (in just 3 days, thank you, Amazon) a replacement copy, and the result was magnificent! I have loved this series ever since it first aired years ago on PBS. This edition (if you get a decent DVD pressing) is indeed a brilliant restoration.
Rating: 
Summary: gorgeous
Review: Michael Lindsay-Hogg and Charles Sturridge's superb dramatisation of Evelyn Waugh's greatest novel has not been transferred at all well to DVD.
For such a beautifully-photographed and designed piece of work such as this, one would really have thought that the production company - in this case Acorn Media in Silver Spring, MD - would have pulled out all the stops in mastering this on disc, but sadly they have not.
An inordinate amount of very distracting edge pixellization is apparent on this transfer, right from the opening black and white titles all the way through the following 11 hours of the film. The image is at times very jumpy - distractingly so - and film grain is horribly apparent at times, as well as a fair degree of blurring which I certainly do not remember from the British television broadcasts.
In addition, the entirety of disc 3 - five hours, no less - is out of sync, sometimes terribly so. Outrageous!
Aside from these complaints, menu design is arbitrary and unimaginative, and lends a cheap feel to the entire experience of watching the three-disc set.
For [the price], devotees of this outstanding series should have got a great deal more.
Don't buy this disc...
Rating: 
Summary: Well, it's about time!
Review: Well, it's about time. One of the best (in my opinion, the best) of the British mini-series has finally made it to DVD. Although not perfect, the transfer is very good indeed, and a vast improvement over my ancient tapes. My only (minor) complaints involve the sound, which is occasionally a little muddy; and now and again the dialogue seems ever so slightly out of sync with the actors. Also, there is no close captioning or English subtitles. But forget that and think of what we're getting: an excellent adaptation of Waugh's fine novel; first-rate performances (keep a special eye out for John Gielgud, who gives what must be one of the funniest performances ever put on screen); glorious location sets and period costumes which can be appreciated fully now that their colors can be seen. There are a few extras on the disc, and a small booklet with some interesting information. But it's the show that's the thing here, and it gets the treatment it deserves. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Worth revisiting!
Review: At long last on DVD! And nicely done, too! Finally I can discard my taped-from-PBS-with-tons-of-fundraising-blather VHS tapes. DVD extras include biographies and filmographies of the series' many stars (including one for Sebastian's teddy bear Alyosius), a production history (text, not a making-of featurette), a nicely prepared companion booklet, a photo gallery of the Castle Howard where much of the filming took place, and a tongue-in-cheek interview with the director about how success went to Alyosius's head. [One minor gripe is that the on-screen text is very difficult to read, which is too bad because there is quite a bit of good information presented in this manner.] But, make no mistake, the real reason to buy this DVD is that it is probably the best television program ever. The book, the filming, the acting, the ability of the story to make us question the way we choose to live and treat our fellow human beings is truly exceptional. It holds up perfectly. Brideshead is great art and does Waugh proud.
Rating:
Summary: The new DVD release is nearly perfect
Review: "Brideshead Revisited" was never released on laserdisc, so all we have to compare the new DVD release to are our memories of the 1982 PBS broadcast and the 6-tape VHS release. I have both, and here are my notes. This DVD release was mastered from the original print and then digitally cleaned up - and it shows. Doing an A/B comparison (switching back and forth between the videotape and the DVD running at the same time), we see that the DVD image is much brighter and more detailed. In fact, so much so that at first it doesn't look "right." We're used to a faded, fuzzier image. But after about 10 minutes, you're completely absorbed and loving it. In the first episode alone, gone are the white specks on the otherwise black background of the opening credits, Charles' sofa now has a pattern that jumps out at you, and Hardcastle's car is a gleaming white. I am positive that THIS is the way things were meant to be seen, not the other way around. There will not be Brideshead "purists" who insist that the fuzziness and faded colors were the director's intent. Indeed, the notes accompanying the DVD say that it now looks better than when it was first broadcast 20 years ago. It does. So... is it reference-quality video? No. Is it better than an over-the air broadcast? Yes! Is it better than the videotapes? Yes!! There are still a few digital artifacts here and there (usually where shadows merge), but if you love the series, grab the DVDs. No one will be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: I've never seen a better copy of Brideshead... even on tv.
Review: I've never seen a better copy of Brideshead Revisited... even on tv. The picture is clear, but best of all, the colour/color is no longer muddy or washed out as I've seen in recent years on several stations in both the U.S. and Canada. After more than 20 years I finally have a perfect un-interrupted (by PBS pledge breaks) copy of Brideshead Revisited.
Rating:
Summary: The Brideshead DVD Box Set is Excellent...
Review: Through my own connections, I was able to obtain this item a month before its street date so you all get to know what you're getting. The Brideshead DVD Box Set, while not perfect, is indeed excellent and I'll explain why. As is increasingly the case, the actual disc carriages are part of a three leaved slide-out assemblage which folds up and then is stored in a case, just like with the Godfather DVD Box Set. These case formats are an excellent way to fight piracy and look great but are not the best in in terms of long term box preservation as cardboard and photo-printed cardboard will degrade. This release of Brideshead is the 660 minute version of the mini-series and I believe this is the longest and most complete version ever released! The episode menus and scene selection are pretty, functional and fairly rudimentary, nothing exceptional here. A little booklet with some director's commentary and info on Evelyn Waugh and the episodes is included. There are no real DVD Special Edition type extras save for a brief but comprehensive written film/DVD production summary, info on Castle Howard, a cast/production team bio (Aloysius has his own entry and a hysterically funny news interview with the director about him), and some photography taken while shooting. There are regrettably no interviews with the cast or production team, no director's commentary, and no deleted/extended scenes, though since we've all been forced to endure the butchered Home Video verson this as full as full can be version is in a sense full of them. There are no theatrical trailers or television spots. Image quality is good and one thing that's mentioned in the production report is just how painstaking the video/audio restoration really was and how VERY lucky they -- and we -- were to be able to find the original film master in England and then clean it up. Once again, and this is becoming a great joke in the film community, a US company picks up the distribution/restoration rights to a foreign country's film treasures and then releases the best version ever made outside the market it originated in. We did it to the Japanese with Macross and we did it to England with Brideshead Revisited. This version of Brideshead looks better then the original did when it first came out for reasons explained on the DVD. The video and audio restoration was very good given the age and condition of the original film master. It's a little grainy here and there but that would have been tough to avoid. They should have spread this out over more discs for the most optimal compression ratios and resulting images but you'll not be disappointed with the results. If this title sells as well as it should, perhaps the American company that obtained and restored it can do a Special Edition version. For now, after all these years, Brideshead is where it belongs, on DVD and in my collection.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Work Of Art; Easily The Best Miniseries Ever Made
Review: Brilliantly adapted by John Mortimer from Evelyn Waugh's celebrated novel of England between the first and second World Wars, BRIDESHEAD REVISITED is easily the best miniseries ever made. Smoothly and subtly directed by Charles Sturridge and Michael Lindsay-Hogg, the twelve hour program is beautiful to look at, the cast is remarkable, and the story has amazing impact. The miniseries follows the novel closely, beginning near the end of World War II as Charles Ryder (Jeremy Irons) grows disdainful of military life, which he finds a study in futility--and then flashes back twenty years as Ryder recalls his relationship with the aristocratic Marchmain family, a relationship that begins when he becomes friendly with Marchmain son Sebastian Flyte (Anthony Andrews) while the two are students at Oxford. The miniseries captures perfectly a golden moment of youth--and then the gradual disillusionment brought by the passage of time. Like all great works, BRIDESHEAD REVISITED--both book and film--touches on a great many themes, most specifically an innocent type of homoeroticism, loss of innocence, alcoholism, adultry, and changing society; ultimately, however, the story is about spiritual values and how they survive in even the most unlikely of circumstances--and how God works through individuals in the most unexpected ways. The performances here are truly fine beyond description. Jeremy Irons has seldom surpassed his work here, and neither Anthony Andrews nor Dianna Quick (as Julia, Sebastian's sister) have ever bested their performances in this film. In addition to the three leads, the miniseries offers an incredible array of superior performances by John Gielgud, Claire Bloom, and Laurence Olivier; the cinematography and art design is flawless; and the score by Geoffrey Burgon is exquiste. Mortimer's script is remarkable in that it not only manages to recreate the novel, it also manages to capture the intangible, spiritual elements upon which the book plays but seldom directly references. A must-own work for any one who appreciates the best of the best; strongly, strongly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Spiritual Journey
Review: This is a film you don't realize how much you like until its over. Sounds strange-but in many ways this is a strange film. Not strange bad, but unlike anything you may have seen. I didn't realize what the film was REALLY about until the end. Its about one man's spiritual journey and his quest to find his place in life,to find love, but mostly about his quest to find meaning in religion. But the religious theme is quite subtle. At first it just seems like a drawn-out story about a lonely homosexual boy and frankly I was bored with it for a while. But I can highly recommend it, I don't beleive I have seen many films that deal with a person's quest for a meaningful religious belief quite like this one. It is not an upbeat story. But the acting is top-notch. Jeremy Irons is perfect in his role. Don't think his character is just a doe doe with nothing to say. He is quiet and introspective and seeking truth.
Rating:
Summary: The best adaptation ever on television
Review: I have owned this set of tapes since it first came out on video in the 1980's and I've watched it more times than anything else I own. I think it is the best film adaptation of a book that's ever been produced -- if you loved Evelyn Waugh's book, this will not disappoint you. It is very true to the book. The writing, acting, music and costumes are all first-rate -- the series turned me into an instant Anthony Andrews and Jeremy Irons fan. It's not a happy story, but one that resonates on many, many levels. If you're looking for something more than a formulaic Hollywood treatment, check this out. It's an incredible piece of work.
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