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Summary: QUEER AS FOLK SHOULD BE 6 FEET UNDER
Review: The ever popular Showtime Series "Queer as Folk" pales next to this gem. Now HBO's "Six Feet Under" is better than going to the dentist but so is watching "Pluto Nash". In this 3 part mini series Everyone one of these charectors feel real. Nothing feels screams streo type. All the charectors grow and learn. Mr. Armistead Maupin is a fictional place but I wish it wasn't! I do not want to give too much away here but most people will not be disapointed. @ follow-up mini series followed. "More Tales of the City" and "Further Tales of the City". Armistead Maupin is one person I would love to talk to just see how he came up with such a CLASSIC
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Summary: Take me back in time . . .
Review: . . . to a better place and time.Tales of the City is classic 70's SanFrancisco at its very best. The beautiful charachters brought to life by author Armistead Maupin are so lovable and well drawn that this series made me long for the 70's, which is QUITE a feat in itself!
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Summary: Yes, Finally it's here!
Review: Amen! I too have been waiting long for this DVD's release. Anyone (gay or straight) who hasn't taken this journey is in for a treat. Buy or rent it today!
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Summary: A San Francisco Treat!
Review: At last, the original mini-series based on the Armistad Maupin novel is available on DVD. It's hard to imagine that not so long ago, this mini-series caused a huge stir in the United States, where Congressmen condemned it for being filth 'produced with taxpayer dollars' (it wasn't: it was produced by England's Channel 4 and acquired by PBS for USA broadcast after the fact). With time has come perspective, and this merry six-part adaptation is a faithful and funny rendering of the intersecting lives of the residents at 28 Barbary Lane -- and certain other denizens of San Francisco. Loads of fun, this series boasts turns by then-unknowns who later became stars (William Campbell, Jeanine Garofalo, Ian McKellan), not to mention Olympia Dukakis, who plays Mrs. Madrigal to perfection.
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Summary: Impressionism on film
Review: Comparing the 'Tales of the City' production to almost any other film production is like comparing a Monet or a Pissarro to Andy Warhol's soup cans. It's not that Warhol's work isn't good, it's that it shrieks at you whereas Monet seduces your senses. The pacing and cinematography of 'Tales' is sublime. As someone who spent a good deal of time in 'The City' during the sixties and seventies (I worked there during those years), I can say that this production allowed me to virtually 'smell' the air there. If you've never been to San Francisco and want to get a 'sense' of 'The City', watch 'Tales'. If you live in San Francisco you know what I mean.
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Summary: great set except for video quality
Review: Don't get me wrong: it's great to finally have this series available on DVD with some great extras thrown. But as a previous reviewer mentioned, the video quality is subpar -- very contrasy and the whites are too bright. Wish they could have done a better transfer than this. As for the content: if you've seen this series on PBS or Showtime or read the book, you know what a great story and set of characters we have here. I used to live in San Francisco, and Armistead Maupin really captured the City and character types so well. It actually makes me kind of homesick when I watch this series -- it's that good. The cast is outstanding all around, but Laura Linney really anchors this series. It's no suprise that she went on to do bigger projects.
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Summary: I was there..this is closest expression of the way it was
Review: Having been born and raised in the City in the 60's and experienced the sexual revolution of the 70's full blast, working in many of the clubs, mentioned or eluded to, this series was as close as one can expect from the media to expect from the mainstream. Daily everyone in downtown amongst the secretaries talked about Tales in the Chronicle. It was a time when we all judged each other a lot less...and adventure awaited you each nite...for better or worse...it all seemed so innocent...and it was. Some lived hard during these times...and others like me are healthier and happier that I was there in the 70's full blast in SF and I learned from it without it wearing on me. I loved every day then as I do now. There was an air of mystery every night just as Armistead expressed...and nothing I have ever seen has seen even tried to communicate the MOOD of SF in the 70's...I always called even unto today with friends there..the "processing center" where burdened souls like Mary Ann come to blossom...a well done portrayl...if your soul cries to relive this era for the joyous freedom...without the bother of good and bad...but learning...or to see what all the fuss is about the magical SF 70's...again without judgment...this is as close as you are going to get unless you can rent Stargate and reprogram it to send you to the 70's. Only those whose heart lived in SF 70's know that if you were a nightbird in those days that this for mainstream productions came close to expressing the way it was.
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Summary: A wonderful tale well told
Review: Having watched Tales of the City since it's original airing in 1994 on tape, the DVD is a welcome replacement. The package from Accorn Media is extremely well done and offers lots of extras. The video quality is very good and exceeds the quality of my off air copies by a long shot. One can see the different film speeds on the DVD, where as on video, you don't due to the so, so resolution of VHS. I like how they kept the three episodes seperate, like the original series, sans the American Playhouse intros. I liked the special features, especially the behind the scenes footage and the shots of the set being built for the first time. It's interesting to see how the set was constructed, much like a real place along with commentaries by Armistead, Laura Linney and Barbera Garrick etc. But most of all, I enjoy the story tremendously and have the entire 6 book series in paperback to read at my leasure. Armistead's writing is supurb and I like how the first book was adapted, almost verbatim to the small screen - a rare feat in any case. I love the shots of San Francisco, how the story tells of the 4 main residents (a straight female orig. from Cleveland, a lesbian/dyke/former hippie/fag-hag, a gay male and a womanizing straight guy) of the fictional 28 Barbary Lane apartment and their Landlord, Anna Madrigal (a transexual male to female) and how they all struggle to make a family unit out of their shared experiences living there. I also like how the other characters, especially the Halcyons, who own an ad agency in San Franciso intertwine within the story and the trials and tribulations of Dee Dee Halcyon Day and her arrogant husband Beauchump. While the characters are both gay and straight, Armistead, who's gay himself didn't write just for a gay audience, but for ALL audiences. I won't go into all the details but suffice it to say, it's a great addition to one's DVD library and is all contained on 3 DVD's in a fold out case. Very well done in all respects.
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Summary: BRAVO
Review: How can you not love the gang gathered at 28 Barbary Lane? Each one of them is a delight and has surprises hidden int thier personalities. You will love then as much as I did, I promise you that...
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Summary: This is what TV was made for!
Review: I can't believe its taken me so long to get around to seeing this classic TV miniseries! Based on Armistead Maupin's novel of the same name, the show intertwines the lives of a diverse group of 1970s San Fransiscans, who all gravitate one way or another to Mrs Madrigal's magical house at 28 Barbary Lane. The early episodes are fantastic as the characters are introduced and you want to know how they will develop. In later episodes the plot thickens and it becomes imperative to know whether the goodies will attain their heart's desire, and whether the baddies will get their come-uppance. The final episode contains some great denuements, which are unpredictable but entirely credible. The script, the acting, the filming and the theme music all combine to create a sense of romantic melancholy which remains just the right side of sentimental. This might well be labelled melodrama, but if so its a shining example of the genre. My favourite details are the fleeting glimpse of the real Armistead Maupin, typing away at a window overlooking Mrs Madrigal's, and the cameo appearance of Country Joe McDonald, starring as an aging hippy (!). He plays his famous Vietnam song completely oblivious to being ignored. Priceless... For the information of those reading the other reviews here, I suspect that one reason the show is so good is that it's a co-production with Britain's Channel 4. No-one else has mentioned this, so I thought I should. Its not just a question of 'commercial' TV versus 'publicly subsidised TV'. Channel 4 is a commercial company, funded in Britain by advertising. I guess it comes down to what the public in our respective countries is prepared to accept on TV. In the States it seems that 'good', 'moral' rubbish will get aired with no problems, while creative programming that says something about the truth of a diverse world runs the risk of censorship. In the UK Tales of the City was certainly less risque than much TV drama. A recent example would be 'Queer as Folk'. Any chance you've seen that in the US? I think not. Must finish this review now, in order to read all six of Armistead Maupin's Tales...
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