About
Reviews (2)
09 Sep, 2007
Kessler
4 of 4 found this helpful This series operates at a number of levels. At its simplest, it purports to resolve a loose end from the brilliant "Secret Army" series; in this it succeeds to an extent, but the appearance of the "Secret Army" characters (except Kessler himself) is limited to the 1st episode: a disappointment which the BBC could remedy by releasing the final "Secret Army" episode held on ice since 1979. At another level, it is a ripping yarn which will engage any fan of "hunt"-types stories: Alan Dobie is`excellent in this regard. The series is significant, though, for the way in which the main protagonists (Clifford Rose and Nitza Saul) avoid creating stereotypical characters. Saul's vengeance-seeker is always sympathetic and ultimately gains our respect as well as our understanding. Clifford Rose's brilliant portrayal of Kessler (reprised and developed from "Secret Army") serves an important purpose beyond mere entertainment: it reminds us that Nazis were/are not cardboard cut-out monsters but were/are real people in respect of whom we still need to be on our guard. Finally, Rose is a model for aspiring actors, showing how, with limited use of prosthetics, a character can be convincingly aged 30 or so years. Enjoyable, and challenging - thoroughly recommended.
09 Sep, 2007
The Dogs of War
The third of Frederick Forsyth's brilliant novels from his early years. However, whereas "The Day of the Jackal" and "The Odessa File" follow closely (and therefore do not disappoint) fans of those books, the screenplay for "Dogs of War" seems to have dropped/under-stated key areas of the book. Even so, it is an excellent "shoot 'em up" film, which retains the key moral theme of the book and features early cameos from now-established actors like Hugh Quarshie ("Holby", "The Death of Stephen Lawrence" etc) and Jim Broadbent ("Iris", "Only Fools and Horses" etc).