Semi-O.T...1840 and 1970

[michael c]

i friend loaned me a dvd of a re-release of an old 'bbc' production of honore' de balzac's 1846 novel "cousin bette" starring a very young and fetching dame helen mirren.

it was produced sometime in the early seventies so it totally has the same 1970 does 1840 look that the 1840 time period has on d.s..the fashions,hair and make-up styles are very similar.

it was also filmed in a similar way.almost like a filmed version of a live play.

i'm imagining clarice blackburn as the spinsterish bette and lara parker as the coquettish valerie.

anyways if anyone catches a copy of this it's quite an entertaining little mini-series in the 'masterpiece theater' tradition.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Not only was that in the Masterpiece Theatre tradition - it was indeed on Masterpiece Theatre. I ashamed to say I have no recollection that Helen Mirren was in it (but now that I know I'll definitely have to check it out again because, well, in MHO Mirren is God - and proof of that is in everything she does but especially her Prime Suspect performances), but I watched it for the wonderful Margaret Tyzack's title performance. I'd been incredibly impressed by her performance as Queen Anne in MT's The First Churchills and was eager to see her in other roles. Her Emmy nominated performance in CB definitely did not disappoint.

Thanks for bringing this DVD release to my attention, mscbryk! 

[michael c]

mysterious,

glad to give the heads up.however my friend's partner is an entertainment writer and gets advanced copies of all sorts of films for review so i'm not sure when and where this dvd collection will be available.

i had not heard of margaret tyzack but you're right...she is indeed a revelation as bette.helen mirren is still a bit "green" in this production but she has the enormous presence of someone destined for great things.

i hope you find it!

[Gothick]

Wow, how exciting.  Like MB I also saw some of this when it was originally on Masterpiece Theatre, and was also wowed by Tyzack.  I think she'd been in The Six Wives of Henry VIII and Elizabeth R, as well. 

Now, when will the BBC release Notorious Woman, a six part serial about the life of novelist George Sand, with similar 1840s vibes and costumes?  I've never forgotten Rosemary Harris' luminous thesping in the title role.

G.

[David]

Tyzack plays the conspiritor who interviews Alex (Malcolm Mc Dowell) upon his return to the writer's house in
A Clockwork Orange (1971)

David

[Gothick]

It says on Amazombie that Cousin Bette with Margaret Tyzack was released in Jan. of 2007 in this country.  I hadn't heard this exciting news ... thanks again to MSC for letting us know.

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

my friend's partner is an entertainment writer and gets advanced copies of all sorts of films for review so i'm not sure when and where this dvd collection will be available.

I just checked Amazon and it was released January 30, 2007. I've already ordered my copy from DeepDiscount (where it's almost $9 cheaper).

i had not heard of margaret tyzack but you're right...she is indeed a revelation as bette.

The time when she was frequently popping up on American TV on PBS shows such as Masterpiece Theatre was before your time, so it's not surprising that you're not as aware of her as some of us original DS fans are.    Though she is most definitely still working. I was pleasantly surprised when I caught her in the film Match Point a few years back.


Speaking of Masterpiece Theatre, and I could be wrong, but somehow I doubt many 13-to-15-year-olds watch the show regularly these days like many of us did back in the '70s. And that's actually too bad. I know I watched because even then I had a bent for English Literature (I went on to minor in it in college) and French Literature (I took four years of French in high school). But I wasn't actually alone in watching because a lot of the kids I went to high school with also watched. Maybe it was because the installments often dramatized the books and history or similar types of books and histories that we were studying in class (and having seen the period storylines on DS probably didn't hurt either  ), but I know we had a real interest in it. But even though the kids today are still studying those same things, I strongly suspect that the ones I know in that age range today would rather endure weekly root canals without anesthesia than sit through even on MT episode. 

[Lydia]

I remember watching Cousin Bette when it first aired, but gosh, am I the only one here who first saw Margaret Tyzack when she played Winifred Forsyte Dartie on The Forsyte Saga?  Not the short version that was done within the past decade, but the 26-episode version in the 60s with Kenneth More, Eric Porter, and Nyree Dawn Porter.  It changed TV.  We wouldn't have Masterpiece Theater if it hadn't been for The Forsyte Saga.  I'm sitting here wondering if it was even half so wonderful as I remember - because if it was, it was still great.  Surely it hasn't been forgotten?

[michael c]

i believe that in an attempt to update 'masterpiece theater' and perhaps bring in a younger audience they have dispenced with some old gentleman narrator sitting in some book filled study and brought in gillian anderson of 'x-files' fame to host the program.

i think they might have even changed the name somewhat.

b.t.w. to this day my mother swears that 'upstairs,downstairs' was the best television show she ever watched.

[Gothick]

Hi Lydia,

I certainly remember The Forsyte Saga, although I don't remember actually seeing any episodes.  A friend of mine sent me the entire series on VHS a couple of years ago, and I had time to watch the first two parts, then put it away for a long winter night that has yet to materialize.  Stellar work all round, though.  And the cast was incredible.

G.

[Lydia]

I was sure you'd know of it, Gothick!  Do watch the rest of it; it's well worth your time!