The Anthony Trollope Collection (The Barchester Chronicles / He Knew He Was Right / The Way We Live Now)

I thought I ordered a new or unused Trollope Collection of DVDs. It appears used which surprised me.

Anthony Trollope has become one of my favorite authors in British Literature. I recently discovered his masterpiece The Way We Live Now in a used bookstore and once I had read the novel I could not believe that I had never heard of him before. I do not think he gets enough recognition for his work. His books are all masterpieces, his use of humor, wit, sarcasm and satire is present in all of the books I have read by him. I also love him for his creations of strong female characters. He is one of the only male writers I have read that makes women honest and portrays them truthfully. I love BBC Drama's period productions and I was excited when I found this boxed set on Amazon, even though I have not read He Knew He Was Right and The Barrister Chronicles, I have seen previews of this films and I knew I had to own this.The Way We Live Now is an epic masterpiece of writing and I was really interested to see how it was close it would be to the book. I think it does an excellent job of measuring up. Matthew Macfayden is excellent as Sir Felix Carbury, even though I would have preferred him to be a hero, he really is a versatility as an actor and he plays his part so accurately. I also enjoyed the performances of Paloma Baeza as Hetta and Cillian Murphy as Mr. Paul Montague. Douglas Hodge was as an excellent choice for the loyal, kind and truly wonderful Roger Carbury. Even though the film strayed a bit from the book especially where the relationship of Mr. Montague and Mrs. Hurtle are concerned, I thought that it was still excellent and kept well with the spirit of the book. I think the audience can pick up the excellent satire of the production well from the performance David Suchet's as Mr. Melmotte.He Knew He Was Right was probably my favorite of all three of the films. I thought this was excellent and might just be one of my favorite British period productions of all time. I have not read the book yet so I can not comment about how close it was to the book, but besides that the film itself is wonderful. The acting is fantastic, I love Oliver Dimsdale as Louis Trevelyan, I thought he did an excellent job connecting with the audience and we can not help but feel sorry for the way he chooses to destroy his life even though we might want to hate him for the way he accuses his wife. Laura Fraser played an excellent part of Mrs. Trevelyan, she captured the fierce independence and head-strong attitude of the character. All of the other actors are phenomenal. The story itself is excellent and original and filled with loads of rare human emotions and many memorable moments. I was hooked from start to finish and it will be one that I will watch over and over. I also enjoyed the way it was filmed where every major character sort of as a moments of monologues with the audience. I know it sounds really stupid but it is pulled off so well it enhances the story and creates a real connection between us and the characters.The Barrister Cronicles is also another excellent production. I have not read this novel as well yet so I can not say how close it is to the book. Alan Rickman does an excellent job as Mr. Slope as are all of the other main characters in the series. It is really a delightful look at the time and I really enjoyed the story line. It is filled with humor and insight into the time period and is another great treasure that is part of this collection.

This collection is amazing in terms of the story lines in the various works and the ability of the actors to become real people in our minds! Alan Rickman, now deceased, is very much alive in the Barchester Chronicles as we see the role that, perhaps, propelled him into stardom, even as we grow to loathe his character. Mathew McFadyen's role as a ne'er-do-well titled young man, Cillian Murphy as Paul Montague, along with the superb acting of David Suchet in The Way We Live Now will not disappoint. Again, Trollope has plenty of surprises in store in this mini-series.And in the mini-series of He Knew He Was Right, the story and the acting were very good! -- but it was very depressing on some levels. Some of the subplots were superb, however, and Trollope never disappoints in keeping one interested! I believe it to be a "must see" to appreciate the subtleties of Trollope's craft. One other work of Trollope I would recommend is "Doctor Thorne". It is superb!

I wish I could tell everyone I've watched all three of the movies, but I want to savor them after seeing the first in the set, the Barchester Chronicles.What I can say is that even the single series of the Barchester Chronicles is sufficient to justify the entire set.Barchester is a wonderful product and Trollope was superb at dealing with the "many-sided moral question". There are many of those in here. Not only does Trollope deal with the question, he exposes the impact on a simple innocent.In contemporary terms, it is like watching two intellectuals argue the merit of capital punishment while watching the reactions of someone awaiting the death sentence he may or may not be subject to; and finding out that the prisoner is himself more and more ambiguous about his own personal guilt.I really don't want to give away anything to those not already familiar with Trollope's work. Watching this unfold in its sometimes leisurely pace is a true delight. If you watch this with another, you are almost certain to start arguing about different issues even while the movie is on. The acting is brilliant, too.Enjoy.

Some say that The Barchester Chronicles is Trollope's best work. Ok. I disagree, although I haven't read the book so perhaps the movie didn't do it justice. Yes, Alan Rickman was good as Mr. Slope but the rest of the cast was tedious and very difficult to like. Donald Pleasance' annoying affectation, constantly touching his face while talking and putting his hands to his mouth were disconcerting and I was tempted to fast forward every scene he was in.The Way We Live Now was my favorite of the trio. David Suchet's portrayal of Melmotte was downright hilarious and his giggle put me into fits of giggling, too. His daughter Marie was just as hilarious as played by the helium voiced actress Shirley Henderson. The story itself is quite predictable but nonetheless enjoyable.He Knew He Was Right was downright depressing for me. It's visually stunning but that's all I can say that is good about it. No one stood out as good, bad or anything in between. All the characters were milquetoast and I didn't care a whit about any of them. Still, it was better than the Barchester Chronicles.

Nice collection

George Eliot wrote 7 novels. Five of these were made into silent and sound films and also made their way into tv adaptations for tv movies and tv mini-series. Four of the works present exist in multiple tv versions. The collection makes use of the very latest adaptations in all instances, superbly produced, acted, directed, and presented here in a five disc set that can't be beat. Highly recommended for all lovers of Eliot and the English novel.

Watching these episodes was a real treat, and also, I have to admit a wallow in nostalgia. The theme of 'The Warden' is one we are familiar with these days. Trollope manages to bring it to life through a whole cast of memorable characters. Top of the list is Mrs Prouie the bishop's wife played with tremendous gusto by Geraldine McEwen. Alan Plater adapted the books for television, which is a guarantee of excellence. This is a superb production.

I love Trollope’s novels. This box set is based on several novels. “the Way We Live Now” is about a banker who arrives in London from Vienna with a bit of mystery about him. He quickly sucks the great and the good into his get rich quick schemes which inevitably do not end well. If only David Cameron had had John Major’s love of Trollope, he would have seen Greensill coming. “He knew he was right” is about a man whose insane jealousy towards his wife drove him mad. “The Barchester Chronicles” are a gentle satire on Church of England Clerics in a fictional cathedral city. Vintage stuff.

This is almost too good to review. You will be so entertained by the richness of characters and aptness of historical social scene that you will forget that it's fiction. Buy it. Trollope's work is a worthy rival to anything that Dickens gave us, yet he remains largely undiscovered and a treat awaiting all who love drama set within the second half of England's 19th century. An absolutely splendid collection from the BBC that offers us the opportunity to appreciate several famous actors and actresses nearer the beginning of their greatness.

Film-makers aint necessarily onto a winner just because they choose to adapt a literary classic for the small screen: They need script-writers who are almost as gifted as the author, whole cast-loads of character actors who are individually great and collectively excellent and finally the creative gift to direct all that talent into one small-screen production. The whole Anthony Trollope Collection has all of these necessities and more, with every single scene in every single story being proof positive that, when the BBC puts its mind to giving us something good, it just can't help but be brilliant: Even if you're in the majority who've never read Trollope, please watch this Collection - you'll loveevery minute of it!

One of my favourite authors put to television series long ago. The first series Barchester Chronicles is superb. Recommend for classical movie buffs.