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200 of 203 found the following review helpful:
 CALLING ALL PERIOD PIECE LOVERS... Feb 10, 2002
By Lawyeraau
This is a superb adaptation of George Elliot's novel of the same name. Set in nineteenth century England in the rural town of Middlemarch, it follows the lives of several of its inhabitants, as the threads of their lives intertwine with those of others. Filled with memorable characters with whom the viewer becomes engrossed over the six hours that the series runs, it is a well acted, beautifully filmed period piece.
When an idealistic, ambitious, handsome gentleman, Dr. Tertius Lydgate (Douglas Hodge), moves to Middlemarch with the expectation of running a charity hospital that will allow him the opportunity for medical research, he is teeming with anticipation at his prospects in this provincial backwater. He is quickly thrust into a situation not of his own making, however, as the town seems to be a family divided over who is to be chaplain of the hospital. Aligning himself with his benefactor, Mr. Bulstrode (Peter Jeffrey), the town's unpopular banker, he sets the path upon which he must travel. Moreover, when he freely states his opinions without regard for the existing medical establishment, he makes enemies without even realizing it, so pure of heart is he. Upon meeting the lusciously lovely and thoroughly spoiled social climber, Rosalind Vincy (Trevyn McDowell), daughter of the town's upstart mayor, he is lost to her charms and loses sight of the prize. He sets upon yet another path that will bring him ignominy.
The lovely and intelligent Dorothea Brooke (Juliet Aubrey) is a scion of one of the wealthy first families of Middlemarch. She, too, is idealistic and wants to leave her mark on the world. Her head filled with socialist ideas, she, being pure of heart, longs to set right wrongs perpetrated upon the poor by the wealthy landowners, a class of which she is a member. Moreover, having been denied the education available to men, she deeply admires learning in others. Unfortunately, she is taken in by the scholarly pretensions of a wealthy, middle aged cleric, the Rev. Casaubon (Patrick Malahide), and chooses to marry him over her other suitor. Thinking that she can assist her husband with his scholarly work, she discovers too late that he may have other ideas on this matter. When she meets his cousin, the romantically handsome Will Ladislaw (Ruffin Sewell), this sets into motion a future event that is to have a lasting impact on Dorothea.
One would think that Dorothea and Tertius would be a perfect love match. Alas, that is not to be, as the heart of each is captured by another. Scandals, romance, intrigues, politics, and the wind of social change permeate this epic period piece. With numerous memorable characters and subplots that move the story along, the viewer remains enthralled, as the entire six hours melt away. With beautiful, lush cinematography, wonderful costumes, and ensemble acting that makes this epic period piece flow, this three tape video is a welcome addition to one's collection. Bravo!
118 of 124 found the following review helpful:
Compelling, romantic.....an absolute stunner! Nov 03, 1999
By Marcy Gomez
This is the perfect film for Anglophiles or fans of well-made classic novel adaptations. Based on George Eliot's Victorian novel, this film introduces us to such memorable characters as sweet and sensitive Dorothea Brooke (J. Aubrey), passionate Will Ladislaw (Rufus Sewell), formidable Mr. Casaubon, handsome Dr. Lydgate, materialistic & pretty Rosamund Vincy, and her flighty brother Fred (Jonathan Firth), to name a few - as well as to their hopes, dreams, trials and triumphs. There are 3 love stories featured in this film (2 of them love triangles!), splendid characterizations, high production values and an overall wonderful miniseries! This is very highly recommended!
59 of 61 found the following review helpful:
lovely period romance Aug 14, 2001
If you love period piece romance movies you will love this movie. My favorite movie is the BBC's Pride and Prejudice with Jennifer Ehle and if you love that miniseries you will love Middlemarch. It looks beautiful and has some wonderful tension filled scenes. One of the romantic heroes is played by Rufas Sewell and he is gorgeous. He pines away for his love and he does it so well. Juliet Aubrey is also wonderful as Dorethea the woman he is in love with. I recommend this movie to anyone who loves 19th century romance.Michelle
41 of 43 found the following review helpful:
Fantastic A+ Production, poorly transferred to DVD Aug 29, 2005
By J. Kara Russell
"Actress/Artist/Musician/Writer"
This is one of my all-time favorite BBC productions. I have given it my highest recommendation to friends and family, most importantly because every frame looks like a Vermeer or Rembrant. Add that to the brilliant performances, and engaging story, I have watched it over 30 times. The reason it is only 4 stars is that this breathtaking, artistically literate cinematography was marred in the transferring to DVD... the aspect ratio was changed, making everything slightly longer and narrower than in the video. It is frustrating. Sigh. To those who have not seen it before, you will probably not notice it, unless you focus on when people turn their heads in close up. My other quibble is that these DVDs do not include the really wonderful commentary done before each section in the Masterpiece Theatre presentations. Let's hope they'll add those in as a special feature in following editions. Get it in video if available. I'm still glad I have it, and it will be watched time and again.
Authors note 11/9/06: When I wrote this review a year ago, I had a 17" screen. Now I have a 27" screen and am delighted to find that on a larger screen there are no distortion problems. For large screen owners, don't wait, just get it!
29 of 30 found the following review helpful:
Eliot's epic turned into stunning BBC series drama Mar 26, 2006
By Adam A. Fine
"Caretaker of the Arts"
George Eliot has always been among my favorite authors, and "Middlemarch" is without a doubt her masterpiece. Given the multitude of characters, plot complexity and psychological depth of the book, I feared that "Middlemarch" would never be made into a successful film. That entire plots would be dropped in the interest of time, or the whole of it so neatly packaged as to render it a mere shadow.
Yet in this six-episode, seven-hour series, BBC has created a vivid, authentic distillation of one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. Casting is superb-- particularly the luminous Juliet Aubrey as the quietly passionate, idealistic Dorothea Brooke, and the marvelous Rachel Power as pragmatic Mary Garth.
All the residents of Middlemarch come to full-blooded life in this remarkable adaptation of what is indeed a milestone of fiction-- a social drama with an edge of Austen parody, but with little of her sentimentality. Eliot was far too much of an intellectual, and in Middlemarch, she establishes herself as the godmother of the modern 20th century novel.
Middlemarch is foremost a human drama of hypocrisy and foible, of ambition, success and failure. The spoils go to the victors, who aren't always worthy; and those meant to inherit the earth usually end little more than 6 feet of it. And yet, all too rarely, there are those who do find love and fulfillment in the guise of a soul mate.
Eliot wrote Middlemarch with her usual detachment, painting characters in broad and intimate strokes, but ultimately leaving the reader to pass judgment-- just as her characters do among each other. This perfectly crafted series takes a similar path, never insisting that we love or hate a character, but simply see them as products of their environments, bound intrinsically to their fates, and only with great courage breaking free of convention.
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