Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic Depiction
Review: Granted, if you are an audio geek, you might have problems with the sound transfer, but as far as the stories and the depiction of Chandler's characters, the work on these productions is generally spot on. There are a few liberties taken with the stories, but for the most part, the writers stay pretty close to the source material. Powers Boothe is indeed the definitie Marlowe, projecting the right balance of tough-guy attitude and intellect. The attention to the decore and period atmosphere is top notch as well. Certainly, each episode carries some of the limitations of the TV medium, whether it be in some of the writing, directing or acting, but for every one of these, there are always a few more scenes that are dead perfect. Four stars all the way.
Rating: 
Summary: A couple episodes have really bad sound.
Review: I agree that Powers Boothe is perhaps the best Philip Marlowe ever, and HBO obviously paid attention to detail in ensuring period-accurate sets, costumes, and props, but Goldhil (the manufacturer of the DVDs) has no business selling a product (that cost over $50, mind you) they did not even bother to pass through a quality assurance step.
In stereo mode (I can't vouch for the multichannel mix, because I haven't listened to it, although I imagine most people will listen to it in stereo), a couple of the episodes have objectionable sound. In one episode, the audio is panned more to one side than the other, which can be remedied by listening in mono. On another episode, there are serious audio phasing and delay problems (perhaps due to incorrect use of the software used to create the DVD data stream), which makes the episode completely unwatchable (again, the multichannel mix might not exhibit this). Unfortunately, both these episodes are from the earlier set of HBO productions, which are my favorites.
Apparently Goldhil needs a quality assurance department. Shame on them.
Rating: 
Summary: Powers Boothe is the BEST Marlowe ever...
Review: I never thought I'd see this series get a release of any sort, least of all as a great DVD set. Well, silly me, Goldhil Video has proven me a sucker and I'm damn grateful to them!
Without question, this HBO series from the mid-80s is the best adaptation of Raymond Chandler's famous gumshoe ever attempted. Bogart (THE BIG SLEEP) was good, but he wasn't the Marlowe from the books. Dick Powell (MURDER, MY SWEET) was better but he still didn't quite capture it. Robert Mitchum was awesome in FAREWELL, MY LOVELY but he was way too old to be totally credible. Don't even get me started on Elliot Gould in THE LONG GOODBYE (ugh...). Then along came Powers Boothe. Simply put, he IS Philip Marlowe. No one else comes close.
The "series" (such as it was) was only 11 episodes long and they're all here. If you're a fan of Raymond Chandler, a film noir nut, or are just looking for a really fine hard-boiled mystery program, you owe it to yourself to check these DVDs out. You won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Cheezy and cheap detective filming
Review: Okay, so we've only watched two of the 11 included episodes. A little painful it is, and we'll tell you why.
Powers Booth does a fine job of being the honest, tough-but-sweet, always-broke, and usually-looking-for-work, one-man-show detective. He really is fun. However, the other acting is just so forced. The filming is really gawdy--a lot of just plain in-your-face close-ups of not so attractively made-up people. The two stories we've seen are just not believeable. I mean, this guy is just plain stupid thinking he can get involved in a Mafia case and then successfully get out of the same Mafia's way with a simple little arrest. Paleeze. Who wrote that one?
But it is kinda kitschy, and we're hoping it will grow on us a bit more. It's just too pricey for the quality of the shows. So it's worth owning at a lower price because of Powers Booth/his acting and it's kind of nice now and again to watch a quickish film noir.
Although not quite the same but a similar genre, you might want to try instead (or in addition to) the "Maigret" collection with Michael Gambon playing a very kindly and go-getter chief investigator in 1950s Paris. The theme song, costumes and setting are wonderful. His character is very likeable and he does a wonderful job of acting. And, his three assistant detectives are three very different but also very likeable and well-acted characters that help round out the stories and action.
Rating:
Summary: Marlowe lives
Review: Powers Boothe is perhaps the best Marlowe ever, and that's saying a lot. He's smart, world-weary, and sardonic, tossing off Chandler's scintillating lines with aplomb. Talking about an upwardly mobile lowlife, Marlowe remarks, "The guy had a mansion in Bel Air and all the old-world charm of a cop beating up a drunk."
This DVD set includes all 11 episodes of the HBO series: the five from 1983 and the six from 1986. The 1986 episodes have cheesy opening titles and closing credits, but possess a much stronger noir sensibility than the earlier eps (fine as those are). Classic noir chiaroscuro is much in evidence in the later installments, while the first five eps are slightly marred by conventional studio lighting. Throughout the series, attention to detail is excellent. The darker shades of 1938 Los Angeles are vividly brought to life.
One oddity: the sound is weirdly unbalanced in a few episodes. However, two versions of the soundtrack are provided (Dolby 5.1 and 2.0), and at least one of the two is always fine.
Enthusiastically recommended in any case.
Rating:
Summary: Marlowe lives
Review: Powers Boothe is perhaps the best Marlowe ever, and that's saying a lot. He's smart, world-weary, and sardonic, tossing off Chandler's scintillating lines with aplomb. Talking about an upwardly mobile lowlife, Marlowe remarks, "The guy had a mansion in Bel Air and all the old-world charm of a cop beating up a drunk."This DVD set includes all 11 episodes of the HBO series: the five from 1983 and the six from 1986. The 1986 episodes have cheesy opening titles and closing credits, but possess a much stronger noir sensibility than the earlier eps (fine as those are). Classic noir chiaroscuro is much in evidence in the later installments, while the first five eps are slightly marred by conventional studio lighting. Throughout the series, attention to detail is excellent. The darker shades of 1938 Los Angeles are vividly brought to life. Note that this item is *not* "Vol 3" as listed; it's a "3 Vol Set" containing three DVDs. Also, the sound is weirdly unbalanced in a few episodes, but since two versions of the soundtrack are provided (Dolby 5.1 and 2.0), one or the other is usually fine. Enthusiastically recommended in any case.
Rating: 
Summary: Not closed captioned
Review: Since this was an HBO production I assumed, incorrectly, that they would be closed captioned but no, they are not.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, but incomplete
Review: There's no denying that this is beautiful collection of episodes from a well done series. They are "neo-noir" at it's best. Powers Boothe is among the best Marlowes. Regrettably this collection is incomplete. There were 11 episodes in the series and this collection only contains six. I don't know if this was preventable by Goldhil. I do know that three or four of those other 5 have been released on video at one time but have since been discontinued.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, but incomplete
Review: There's no denying that this is beautiful collection of episodes from a well done series. They are "neo-noir" at it's best. Powers Boothe is among the best Marlowes. Regrettably this collection is incomplete. There were 11 episodes in the series and this collection only contains six. I don't know if this was preventable by Goldhil. I do know that three or four of those other 5 have been released on video at one time but have since been discontinued.
Rating:
Summary: SIMPLY THE MOST FAITHFUL ADAPTATION EVER!
Review: This series, originally produced for Showtime, is far and away the best and most faithful adaptation of Raymond Chandler's writing. Powers Boothe shines as the cynical, world-weary Philip Marlowe, with excellent support from the rest of the cast. If you are a fan of Chandler or hard-boiled detective stories, you owe it to yourself to see these shows. My only complaint is that they aren't also offered on DVD!
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