Rating: 
Summary: Splendid Saga Still Supreme!
Review: It's all here, just as we remember it--and just as rich and satisfying as ever! The performances are nearly flawless from the leading players down to the smallest bit. Kenneth More and the two Porters (Nyree Dawn and Eric) play with the utmost conviction, giving the story its solid center. I must also mention my favorite, the delectable June Barry in the role of June Forsyte. She is a delight, progressing from dewy-eyed teen to bird-like old woman with seeming ease. She is perfect from beginning to end. There are other marvelous performances by the fabulous Margaret Tyzack, and by many old pros of the British stage and screen the likes of Fay Compton, Joseph O'Conor and the two Noras (Swinburne and Nicholson). What truly sets this series apart is the incredible ensemble. As many of today's acclaimed modern series depend upon the "team," so Forsyte Saga does, and the interaction is brilliant. Story and characters are never sacrificed to "star turns." This series is still the definitive one and the DVD set has been too long in coming. Don't miss it!
Rating:
Summary: The Forsytes...The Way Galsworthy Wrote Them!
Review: Like several of the other reviewers I saw this series when it first came out on PBS. I was 11 and it set me on a love of British Literature that has never quit. Maybe it was a combination of that time, my age, and the series itself...but it left an indelible mark in my mind and heart. I can't begin to express how excited I am to see this again after so many years. I have purchased the new version, but have yet to watch it. I will keep it on the back burner until I can savor the original...again. I can't recommend this series strongly enough. And...don't forget the book(s)...they're quite marvelous as well.
Rating:
Summary: The Man of Property.
Review: Many reviewers have amply praised this landmark series and noted quite rightly that it is far superior to the new version recently shown on PBS. What I found most memorable about The Forsyte Saga was Soames Forysyte, The Man of Property. We begin with Soames, wonderfully played by Eric Porter, as a young man in search of a wife and the series ends with him being cared for by his daughter Fleur, the excellent Susan Hampshire. Soames is villified and reproached by everyone because he is a tight fisted, hard, unyielding man who judges everything by its monetary value. He wants a wife in order to get for himself an heir to his considerable property. Love is not part of the equation for Soames. An obedient, thrifty, proper woman will serve him well. Unfortunatley for him, he falls in love with the beautiful Irene Herron, well played, for the most part, by Nyree Dawn Porter. Irene is a young pianist who needs to find a home for herself. She does not love Soames and tells him so, but this does not matter to Soames. He will acquire her as he does a beautiful painting and hope that in time she will at least develop some affection for him. At first Irene tolerates Soames, but soon she comes to despise him because his soul is a mercantile product housed in a cash box for a body. Soames finds it unbelievable that his new wife does not value security and wealth. This is bad, but worse comes when she falls in love with the architect Soames commissions to build a house for her. The architect dies in a tragic accident and Irene leaves Soames to live on her own, if not in poverty, in seriously straightened circumstances. This conflict of Soames and Irene is at the heart of the entire series. All of the Forsyte clan, and there are many members of this Victorian family, are touched in some way or another by the marriage and later divorce of Soames and Irene. The greatness of this series is that we are able to follow the ongoing dispute as both Soames and Irene grow old. Irene remains true to her artistic vision of herself, but Soames mellows somewhat because of his genuine love for his daughter. In the end we come to have some modest respect and understanding for the old man. He is as much a 21st Century American Man of Property as a Victorian gentleman. For those viewers who fall in love with this series, I can recommend even more highly the books on which they are based by John Galsworthy. The Man of Property starts the series of well written, wonderfully entertaining novels. The books and DVDs of the Forsyte Saga are an excellent addition to any home library.
Rating:
Summary: The Man of Property.
Review: Many reviewers have amply praised this landmark series and noted quite rightly that it is far superior to the new version recently shown on PBS. What I found most memorable about The Forsyte Saga was Soames Forysyte, The Man of Property. We begin with Soames, wonderfully played by Eric Porter, as a young man in search of a wife and the series ends with him being cared for by his daughter Fleur, the excellent Susan Hampshire. Soames is villified and reproached by everyone because he is a tight fisted, hard, unyielding man who judges everything by its monetary value. He wants a wife in order to get for himself an heir to his considerable property. Love is not part of the equation for Soames. An obedient, thrifty, proper woman will serve him well. Unfortunatley for him, he falls in love with the beautiful Irene Herron, well played, for the most part, by Nyree Dawn Porter. Irene is a young pianist who needs to find a home for herself. She does not love Soames and tells him so, but this does not matter to Soames. He will acquire her as he does a beautiful painting and hope that in time she will at least develop some affection for him. At first Irene tolerates Soames, but soon she comes to despise him because his soul is a mercantile product housed in a cash box for a body. Soames finds it unbelievable that his new wife does not value security and wealth. This is bad, but worse comes when she falls in love with the architect Soames commissions to build a house for her. The architect dies in a tragic accident and Irene leaves Soames to live on her own, if not in poverty, in seriously straightened circumstances. This conflict of Soames and Irene is at the heart of the entire series. All of the Forsyte clan, and there are many members of this Victorian family, are touched in some way or another by the marriage and later divorce of Soames and Irene. The greatness of this series is that we are able to follow the ongoing dispute as both Soames and Irene grow old. Irene remains true to her artistic vision of herself, but Soames mellows somewhat because of his genuine love for his daughter. In the end we come to have some modest respect and understanding for the old man. He is as much a 21st Century American Man of Property as a Victorian gentleman. For those viewers who fall in love with this series, I can recommend even more highly the books on which they are based by John Galsworthy. The Man of Property starts the series of well written, wonderfully entertaining novels. The books and DVDs of the Forsyte Saga are an excellent addition to any home library.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, at long last
Review: Okay, I admit. I haven't seen the DVD yet. Perhaps because it hasn't been released. Which means I haven't seen the series since its release in 1969. Fortunately, I have a very good memory. And what I remember most is Eric Porter's exquisite portrayal of Soames Forsyte, the "man of property" desperately in love with a woman who can never love him and whom he can never hope to understand. Porter's is the definitive Soames. Beneath the crust of propriety you can see hints of a passion even Soames himself can neither master nor suppress. It's this battle with his own internal conflicts that elevates Soames above the level of common soap opera. He is a true tragic hero. And speaking of definitive performances, the late Nyree Dawn Porter is similarly exquisite as Irene, a woman struggling with her own devil's bargain -- her loveless marriage to Soames. So why is this version so much better than the 2002 remake? Well, first of all, it features grown-ups. In the current version, you have the feeling that the actors have just stepped out of some career-making television show like ER or Chicago Hope. There's no hint of the passionate inner turmoil that drove the original. Perhaps the producers thought the present-day viewers were just too stupid to appreciate the pace and irony of the original. In any case, it's their loss. My advice: skip the new, pretty, color version and settle down with this black-and-white version in which all the moral shadings are internal. And then, perhaps, move on to some nice Oscar Wilde (for instance, "An Ideal Husband") or maybe some G. B. Shaw (we're particularly fond of "Major Barbara" and "The Devil's Disciple", to name just a couple). Or take a sharp turn and indulge yourself in the Jeeves and Wooster series with Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. In any case, do watch this version of the Forsyte Saga. You won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: The definitive screen adaptation
Review: Possibly the greatest TV miniseries of all time, it is wonderful that it has been released with great care and pride in this marvelous DVD set. What sets this particular adaptation apart from others, especially the recent (2002) version, is the outstanding ensemble acting and rich characterizations. For example, as Soames, compare Eric Porter's crisp, impeccable diction in this version with Damian Lewis's mushy delivery in the 2002 version. Compare the delightful, comic realization of James (Soames's father), played by John Welsh in 1969, with the indistinguishable-from-all-the-other-Forsytes character in 2002. Most compelling, compare Nyree Dawn Porter as Irene in 1969, with... well, there really is no comparison here. Of course, visually, this version suffers compared to last year's. It's shot in black and white, mostly on stage sets. Clearly, they used very few takes (another tribute to the actors), as minor defects like coats falling off racks, cameras getting bumped, slightly muffed lines are retained. But, really, who cares when you're watching the finest combination of acting and screenwriting ever put on TV? This DVD not only contains the entire set of 26 fifty-minute episodes, but also additional material: cast interviews, behind-the-scenes, even deleted scenes and outtakes. Altogether, a beautiful job.
Rating:
Summary: It doesn't get better than this!
Review: The new color version was good, but this original, black and white version is so much better. The characters are real people, with complex emotions, not the cardboard characters in the new version. It isn't as simple as "evil" Soames and "good" Jo, which is how the newer version runs. You really need to see this version. It is more faithful to the Galsworthy books as well, and doesn't try to condense things down as much. It does move slower; if you want a faster paced version, get the new one. If you want the best, though, you can't go wrong with this one.
Rating:
Summary: A Caution about The Caution
Review: There is a major factual error in the review written by A Viewer in Arlington VA which may result in confusion to persons wishing to purchase this DVD. This DVD series includes all 26 episodes of the original version of The Forsyte Saga, and runs approximately 21.75 hours. I believe the technical information concerning a runtime of approximately 660 minutes listed by Amazon.com is incorrect, leading to the confusion by A Viewer in Arlington VA. With the help of a friend I checked numerous other sites offering the same DVD for sale, including the BBC which produced the series, and all sites stated this was the complete 26-episode version, with a running time as I stated above. I write this only to clear up any confusion that might occur as a result of both the improper run time listed by Amazon.com, and the incorrect review that resulted from that incorrect information.
Rating:
Summary: A truly human performance
Review: This original adaptation towers over the latest interpretation which seems to have been tailor-made for a disposable and fast-paced audience who are probably more result driven than interested in detail. Having been a great fan of the book for many years, it was a pleasure to discover this BBC adaptation which has more to do with a visit to the theatre than it does an attendance at the movie cinema. In every respect the adpatation is pure BBC who are the undisputed masters of classic and contemporary television adaptation. Being a much longer series, the BBC had greater opportunity to develop the characters which is essentially what Galsworthy's motivation for writing the book was right from the start - a character study of a self-made Victorian England upper-middle class family whose trials and tribulations are an analogue for the struggles of the (then) mature British Empire. The struggle between the old Forsytes and the divergent paths followed by their offspring mirror those of England as it attempts to deal with the demands and aspirations of its dominions within the commonwealth. In these respects this adaptation is faithful to the book and adds a dimension to the viewing completely lacking from that of the most recent adaptation. The cast is a veritable "A-list" of British stage and screen, a pedigree which I feel is truly lacking from the latest adaptation. The acting is masterful for the fact that it is very human to watch and the way that each actor deals with the few hiccups experienced with props and sets only adds to that "human-ness." This is the sort of production that has made the BBC world-famous and is worth every penny and minute of your time and effort.
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