Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
Alan Bennett & Thora Hird - the closest thing to perfection, 29 Nov 2005
With the full collection of Alan Bennett's Talking Heads available on this DVD set you really get to appreciate what a talented wordsmith he truly his. His stories captivate and ensnare you, then leave you begging for more. However, for me personally, the real gem and the closest thing to perfection is the final story with Thora Hird (Waiting for the telegram). Thora's beautifully acted piece and her story of her young man who went to war "he was so beautiful stood there in the firelight" reduced me to tears. Wonderful from start to finish.
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30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
Delicate, moving, amazing drama..., 2 Oct 2005
Alan Bennett's twelve monologues have inspired me ever since I saw the first one...they are simply fantastic and I can't recommend them highly enough. It's the subtle way that each of the intricate, moving and delicate stories unfold around each of the characters, the way that scenes are played out in the viewer's head, means that there is no need for the vulgarity of images to describe the emotions coming from the screen. Because of this 'one-to-one' performance technique, watching an episode is rather like reading a wonderful book, each reader/viewer's 'minds-eye view' is completely different from the next, because so much of the action that is being described to us takes place in each of our own unique imaginations, and won't 'look' the same to the person sitting next to you hearing the same words. And what stories...for there is every nuance of emotional history portrayed beatifully on screen, twisting and turning, amusing and shocking, all the intricately woven layers told so beautifully by such an accomplished cast. Waiting the ten years or so between series one and two was difficult, and now having to wait so long for a DVD of both series feels like it's taken forever, but I know it will be worth it! I don't understand the reason Maureen Lipman is mentioned in the cast, as she wasn't part of the original line up of the ten most wonderful performers (Julie Walters and Thora Hird got to 'do' two completely different characters each in each series, magnificently - as always). So, is there a series three out there somewhere in Alan Bennett's head, it would certainly be worth the wait...even if it is for another ten years!
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42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
Delicate, moving, amazing drama..., 2 Oct 2005
Alan Bennett's twelve monologues have inspired me ever since I saw the first one...they are simply fantastic and I can't recommend them highly enough. It's the subtle way that each of the intricate, moving and delicate stories unfold around each of the characters, the way that scenes are played out in the viewer's head, means that there is no need for the vulgarity of images to describe the emotions coming from the screen. Because of this 'one-to-one' performance technique, watching an episode is rather like reading a wonderful book, each reader/viewer's 'minds-eye view' is completely different from the next, because so much of the action that is being described to us takes place in each of our own unique imaginations, and won't 'look' the same to the person sitting next to you hearing the same words. And what stories...for there is every nuance of emotional history portrayed beatifully on screen, twisting and turning, amusing and shocking, all the intricately woven layers told so beautifully by such an accomplished cast. Waiting the ten years or so between series one and two was difficult, and now having to wait so long for a DVD of both series feels like it's taken forever, but I know it will be worth it! I don't understand the reason Maureen Lipman is mentioned in the cast, as she wasn't part of the original line up of the ten most wonderful performers (Julie Walters and Thora Hird got to 'do' two completely different characters each in each series, magnificently - as always). So, is there a series three out there somewhere in Alan Bennett's head, it would certainly be worth the wait...even if it is for another ten years!
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