A different side of World War II is examined in Foyle’s War, a precise, engrossing look at life on the home front that’s no ordinary war drama. There are a lot of things to admire about the series, from its impressive historical accuracy to its strong sense of period and place to its examination of moral and philosophical issues that cause it to transcend its mystery genre.
The British series ran for six seasons from 2001 to 2008. Canceled in the middle of its run, the sixth season was to be its last until popular demand secured a seventh season, which is currently filming. Seasons one through six have been previously available on DVD in five separate DVD sets (with season four and five combined into one set), but now Acorn Media has released Foyle’s War: Series 1-5 - From Dunkirk to VE Day, combining all 19 episodes from all existing sets into one slimmed-down and price-reduced package.
The show is set in the town of Hastings, England, where Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle (Michael Kitchen, most familiar to American audiences as Bill Tanner in several of the Bond films) investigates crimes, which often deal with opportunists looking to get away with murder, theft or war profiteering. The chaos caused by the overseas war leads to an increase in these kinds of crimes, and Foyle feels he is doing his part in the war effort by not letting these criminals get away with it. A WWI veteran, Foyle initially persists in attempting to be transferred to the War Department, but he eventually discovers this is his own war to fight at home.
Accompanying Foyle through most of his cases is Paul Milner (Anthony Howell), a policeman-turned-soldier who lost a leg in battle, and Samantha Stewart (the delightful Honeysuckle Weeks), a police force driver assigned to Foyle who often is a great source of help for Foyle. Foyle, a widower, also spends a good deal of time with his only son, Andrew (Julian Ovenden), a member of the Royal Air Force.
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