What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details
|
Reviews
Special Features
English
Region 2
Region 2
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I don't really know why I watched this series when it was on TV. There was nothing about it that immediately attracted me, having not bothered with the first series, but it must have been a quiet night so I ended up watching the first episode. What I saw impressed me so much that as soon as I saw it in the new releases I ordered the DVD.
Being the second series, the writers had got well in to their stride putting clever words in to their actors' mouths. A large and varied cast gave a lot of scope for the dry humour in a serious tale of business in Thatcher's Britain.
Clive Owen brings an almost child-like enthusiasm and charm to the title character, con-man Derek Love. Determined to gather the riches his family never had, his heart leads him in to helping others with his scams. Haunted by Jo, the girl he loved, and lost by agreeing to toss a coin to decide if he would be the one to stay with her, he becomes involved in helping her former boyfriend to pursue custody of the child they assume can't be Derek's. All the time a letter telling him the truth is hidden where his lover left it before she died in an accident.
Much of the dry wit is delivered by Leslie Phillips. This was a real revelation to me having never seen him in a serious role. As Jimmy Blake, a snobbish millionaire businessman terrified of everything especially his billionaire business partner, he steals the show. Pursuing his widowed first love and protecting a secret leaves him reluctantly going along with Derek's scams and working against his parners.
Complicating the lives of both these characters is Louise Lombard's Anna. Perhaps the most unrealistic aspect of this character is that she doesn't recognise how attractive she is, her confidence having been shaken by an abusive former lover. Later in her career she became fashionably thin, but in this series she is still one of the most attractive actresses on TV and almost reason in herself to buy the DVD.
Without giving too much of the plot away for those who don't remember it; Anna, while running away from Jimmy Blake with a bag full of his share certificates, manages to be on hand at Jo's death after pulling a con trick of her own. Drawn to Derek she becomes his accomplice in some scams to save a stately home from having to be sold to developers. Kept apart initially by the secret of her relationship to Jimmy Blake, they finally recognise their love for each other just as events force Derek to leave and her past catches up with her.
Although Thatcher's Britain has supposedly gone, this story hasn't really dated. Its Fat Cat corrupt businessmen are still familiar enough to raise a cheer when they get their comeuppance at the hands of a boy from Binley Park Comprehensive. Showing that even in the worst situations some people will strive to see the humour, this series is still just as entertaining as when it was originally shown on TV.
4 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Although not as captivating as the 1st series, Derek Love a.k.a. Stephen Crane or vice versa is back. More creative than ever he strives to save himself, friends, "family" and Britain from the cruel capitalism he once exploited for his personal gain.
If BBC is reading this, please send out the 1st series...and explain to us why anyone would be interested in buying just the 2nd part of "Chancer".
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Series 1 of Chancer is an entertaining even if has a somewhat implausible story line but it is good to watch. However, series 2 becomes ever more incredible, slushier and neurotic. The background music becomes even louder and more frequent (a sure sign of a failing story line). Nevertheless, if you watched the first series you have to watch this as it is somewhat addictive but the constant piano pounding in the background is annoying.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Was this review helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
