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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lt. Richard Sharpe goes on his first mission for Major Hogan, 6 Aug 2004
By A Customer
I suppose the idea that Richard Sharpe is sort of Horatio Hornblower on land is apt enough, mainly because both characters have the advantage of stellar British television productions whereas Lucky Jack Aubrey has only the one cinematic adventure to date. But clearly the Napoleonic Wars are the British Empire's answer to the American Civil War without the problematic element of fighting against brother against brother. Napoleon is a secular anti-Christ trying to force the ideals of the French Revolution down the throats of Europe, so no shades of blue and gray here, this is all black and white.The set up is fairly simple and compelling. One day Sir Arthur Wellesley (David Troughton), early in the career that would see him become the Duke of Wellington, is out for a ride on his horse when French dragoons come after him. Wellesley escapes death through the heroic efforts of Sergeant Richard Sharpe (Sean Bean), who is promoted to lieutenant on the spot by the grateful commander of British forces in Spain. Of course, promoting from the ranks makes Sharpe neither fish nor fowl, with the gentlemen in the officer's office refusing to consider him an equal and the enlisted personal dismissing the idea that he is a "real" officer. Just to make things interesting Major Hogan (Brian Cox), Wellesley's master spy, sends the new lieutenant off on a secret mission. The story is that the men have not been paid in two weeks, going on three, so the mission is to find a missing banker who has funds (although why the men in the field need money strikes me as odd: after all, we are talking pounds and shillings not Euros). But Sharpe is off to a bad start as he buts heads with sharpshooter Patrick Harper (Daragh O'Malley), the leader of the men, who challenges the new lieutenant's control of his men. Then a wounded Major Blas Vivar (Simon Andreau) has to confide in Sharpe the real nature of the mission. Based on Bernard Cromwell's first novel in the Sharpe series, "Sharpe's Rifles" has the virtue of strong multiple conflicts. Sharpe has to accomplish his mission and try to earn the respect of his men while that mission becomes more and more complicated. As you would expect, this is a first rate historical drama that has an above average sense of authenticity. Bean's Sharpe is too busy trying to command respect Then we have Teresa (Assumpta Serna), a Spanish lady who has good reason to seek revenge upon the French and another reason for recommending this movie is that the relationship between Teresa and Sharpe is actually an adult one. The same thing can be said for the relationship between Sharpe and Harper, which is developed properly without any of the cheap shortcuts that can be taken to move things along. The primary quality that Bean brings to the character of Sharpe is the sense of being a real man in real situations, without being overtly heroic. This is a man with a mission and there are other missions to come, not to mention all those books.
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