AMAZON is selling this 3-DVD st for $38.75. Imagine my astonishment when I found The Black Tower/Unnatural Causes, two of P. D. James’ better mysteries, at BJ’s Warehouse for $16.99! These films showed up on PBS years ago. If you missed them, here they are in a nice package: 390 minutes of mystery and suspense for a pittance. GRADE: A
Loved these in their day. I bet my library has them. A good summer revisit.
The early movies in this series were very faithful to the books, Patti. The later films, reduced to a mere two hours, only captured the spirit of the P.D. James novels.
The early adaptations in the series, made as fairly slow serials on video rather than film, are very much the better one. The later ones, with Marsden kitted out with a more dynamic but faintly absurd style toupee, strike me as overly condensed and much less successful. The first in the series, DEATH OF AN EXPERT WITNESS, and A TASTE FOR DEATH, always struck me as being especially good, though I know there are those out there who hate them.
Like you, Sergio, I prefer the early adaptations. Yes, they’re a tad slow, but then so were those P.D. James novels. The later adaptations occurred after the BBC took over. The 2-hour format just doesn’t do the novels justice.
I remember Black Tower and liking it, but not Unnatural Causes, which I must have seen but remember not at all.
Other P.D. James’ box sets are being released, Rick. All of the adaptations showed up on PBS at one time or another. A big box set was available on AMAZON for $89, but I passed on that. Now, these more wallet-friendly mini-sets showed up and I bought three of them.
I wish Marsden’s series THE SANDBAGGERS was as easily available.
I’m hoping THE SANDBAGGERS shows up someday soon, Jeff. But, until then, these P. D. James mini-sets will do.