Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Television at its best, 15 Jan 2008
There are television series and then there's "Foyle's War." If one had to choose a production that depicts what the Brits are best at, it's this show.
So what are they best at? In my opinion, it's a natural leaning towards understatement combined with a steady growth in suspense. Several plot lines are developed until the conclusion which always leaves you thinking about ethics and politics. Alfred Hitchcock was a master of it and so is Anthony Horowitz, Foyle's creator.
The action takes place during World War 11, mostly around the town of Hastings. Foyle is Detective Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle who wants to contribute to the war effort. His duty is to solve crimes on the domestic front and he always introduces himself as "a police officer."
Sometimes the crimes are political and other times they appear petty but actually, they are always very crucial because society has to function ethically during the war or there's no point in fighting for values that are not respected. A chaotic and lawless society would mean that the enemy has won.
That is Christopher Foyle's credo. Profiteers, traitors and looters will not be tolerated. It's almost like the zero tolerance policy that the city of New York adopted a few years ago when crime statistics were out of control.
In Foyle's War one is always conscious of the common good. There is a recurring theme of the need for all Brits to be treated as equals and Foyle uses this approach when it comes to crimes committed by the aristocracy. He is not impressed by status.
That does not mean that important people don't get away with misdemeanours and even murder, but as Foyle says he will come after them when the war is over. And we believe him, so strong is his moral code.
I absolutely love the way Horowitz shows two sides of a story. Nothing is simple or inevitable and the viewer is not insulted by too much explanation.
Basically, "Foyle's War" is a thinking person's detective story in which historical events play a crucial part. For example, in one episode there is a reference to Dunkirk with a description of what really went on there and how ordinary people went over to Dunkirk in the flimsiest of vessels to rescue their soldiers. It will make you cry because of the powerful emotions that are repressed by the fishermen. It's a million times more effective than that tedious Dunkirk episode in the film "Atonement."
As for the cast, there is Michael Kitchen in the role of Foyle. His portrayal is amazing. One slight twitch of his lips is all that's required to convey the deepest of emotions. A shrug, a raising of the eyebrows, even a moment of silence, says it all.
And it's his acting style that leaves an imprint on the other actors. His driver, Samantha Stewart, who is a little more emotional than her boss, is still the epitome of British stoicism and dedication with a touch of charming femininity. She is perfect in the role. Honeysuckle Weeks is spunky yet vulnerable in the portrayal of Samantha.
Paul Milner (played by Anthony Howell) is also perfect casting. He is Foyle's assistant who has been wounded in action in Norway and so has to return to home duties. His private life is a disaster because of his injury and this makes for interesting personal situations.
This is the trio of principal characters who will lead the audience from August 1940 to the end of the war in 1945. The final series is yet to be shown and I am certainly looking forward to it. As a matter of fact, I couldn't wait for it to be shown on Australian TV so I have pre-ordered it and hope it arrives soon.
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39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent mysteries set in Britain at the start of WWII, with Michael Kitchen, 15 Aug 2007
Detective Chief Inspector Christopher Foyle (Michael Kitchen) is a British cop based in the southern part of England. It's Spring, 1940. Britain, woefully unprepared, is at war with Germany. Foyle is a taciturn man, even sad. He has lost his wife and his only child has signed up with the Royal Air Force and is a fighter pilot. Foyle knows his son is going to be at high risk every time he takes off. Foyle desperately wants to join up, too, but is told by his superiors that his talents are far better utilized where he is. Foyle is a dedicated, no-nonsense cop. He's respectful to authority and the rich, but he isn't intimidated. If a person has committed a crime, especially one which could damage Britain's war effort, Foyle will never let up until the crime is solved and justice -- by the book -- is done.
This series is effective for several reasons. The production values are high. A great deal of effort has been placed in evoking the look and style of England at the start of WWII. The cast which backs up Kitchen is first rate. These include the ongoing characters of Samantha Stewart played by Honeysuckle Weeks (a great name) as Foyle's driver. Stewart is an energetic, curious young woman, brave when she needs to be, who gradually earns Foyle's respect. Paul Milner is played by Anthony Howell. Milner, who lost a leg in the Norway campaign, is assigned to Foyle as his detective sergeant. Milner has to build back his confidence and Foyle can't give him much time to do so. Showing up in one-time roles are such accomplished actors as Robert Hardy, Charles Dance, Edward Fox, Cheryl Campbell, John Shrapnel and Rosamund Pike.
Most of all, the series works so well because of Michael Kitchen and the mysteries themselves, all of which are drawn from issues of the early war period. Kitchen is an excellent, subtle, versatile actor whose long career includes the amusing and reprehensibly egoistic doctor in Reckless, the well-intentioned but naive king utterly outmaneuvered by Francis Urquhart in To Play the King and the unprincipled charlatan who finds himself facing Inspector Morse. Inspector Foyle is a serious, thoughtful man of high principles, who keeps most of his deepest feelings to himself but who is not without a sense of wry humor. Kitchen captures the man perfectly. As for the stories in season one, they range from the treatment of conscientious objectors and anti-German prejudice, theft in high places and a threat to his son, interned German prisoners-of-war and high-placed Nazi sympathizers. The series was conceived and is researched and written by Anthony Horowitz, who consistently turns out literate and complex scripts.
Each story is approximately 1' 40" long. The four DVDs in the set have excellent pictures and audio.
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21 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Beware there are no subtitles, 15 Sep 2007
I bought this series and series 2 for my father and mother to watch away on holiday, but while the series content itself is excellent and stories varied and interesting, the dvd box set is limited because there are no subtitles which is especially tough on my mother who is hard of hearing. I think this is a huge oversight on the bbc's part hence my award of a mere 3 stars for what is a series deserving of 5 stars.
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