I am a complete sucker for classic English novels and for British film and television. The A&E Romance Classics Collections 1 and 2 are a hearty feast indeed for such as me—a veritable treasure trove of (mostly) English fiction put on screen, beautifully shot, well acted (familiar and well-respected names headline each adaptation), and completely addictive. I have always enjoyed classic fiction adapted for the screen (large or small), and generally, when I haven’t read the novel upon which the film is based, seeing it come to life on the screen sends me running for my local library (or bookstore) to pick it up and devour.
As a romance movie fan, you may fancy Hanks and Ryan in Sleepless in Seattle or You’ve Got Mail, or even Knocked Up, but for really timeless romance, where the beautiful language, story, acting, and photography conspire to make you sigh and cry, you can’t do better than this collection of genuine classics.
The 28-disc mega-box set has it all: unrequited love; tormented heroes, flawed and only in need of someone’s unconditional love; lovers and would-be lovers with deep secrets that keep them apart, only to be brought together by the final scenes; 18th century “superheroes” who disguise their true face with vacuous foppery—this is the meat of true and enduring classic romance. The collection is an essential library of English (and American) literature and history, including sumptuous adaptations of some of the greatest works of romantic fiction. With months of viewing pleasure in one collection, I would probably watch them in (more or less) chronological order:
Ivanhoe – Co-produced by A&E and the BBC, this adaptation of Sir Walter Scott’s novel is set during the time of Richard the Lionheart and Robin Hood. It’s Normans against the Saxons as the hero of this tale fights the Norman tyranny of King John in this five-hour adaptation starring Ciaran Hinds and Steven Waddington.
Henry Fielding’s Tom Jones is a fun and bawdy romp through 17th century provincial English life. The story of foundling Jones careens from adventure to adventure in this miniseries narrated by British comic actor John Sessions.
Lorna Doone – Lovers kept apart by family hatred is a literary theme that predates even Romeo and Juliet. Richard Blackmore’s Lorna Doone is set in 17th century England. Politics, murder, revenge, and deception frame this timeless story of two families: one, a family of proud and provincial farmers and the other, once powerful but now stripped of its prestige and lands and headed by a bitter nobleman and his vicious grandson. This A&E adaptation is lavishly filmed and true to the novel.
Catherine The Great – Catherine Zeta-Jones plays Catharine, the great Russian empress during the 18th century. Zeta-Jones is powerful and holds the screen well against such acting aristocracy as Jeanne Moreau, Mel Ferrer, Ian Richardson, and Omar Sharif.
Article comments
1 - hl_lover
I see on the A&E site that you can get two 14-disc sets of the same DVDs for a lower price than the one mega-set, $170 vs $400.
I suppose you could argue endlessly which adaptation of a certain novel is the best, but it would be hard to beat this collection.
Thanks for your excellent review, Barbara!