Humanity's dramas
Annie Van Auken | Planet Earth | 01/12/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"CONTENTS of GREAT LITERATURE ON FILM 4 Movie Pack:
CYRANO DE BERGERAC-- Based on an 1897 stageplay about a real person. Cyrano was a 17th Century dramatist and swordsman. He had a prominent nose, but not as large as the one in this Rostand story. Cyrano loves Roxanne but fears rejection because of his gigantic nose. He secretly gets close to his lady fair by writing love letters to her meant to be from one of Roxanne's young and inarticulate suitors.
JANE EYRE-- Emmy-winning adaptation of the Charlotte Brontë novel. An orphan takes a job as governess to a wealthy man's daughter. She falls in love with her employer but problems ensue when a dark secret is exposed.
LAST OF THE BELLES-- Fictionalized account of how F. Scott Fitzgerald met his wife is based on his short story of the same name. Well-done TV movie features a very young Susan Sarandon.
OF HUMAN BONDAGE-- Medical student's love for an illiterate waitress time and again leads to heartache and disappoinment for him.
GREAT NOVELS ON FILM 4 Movie Pack (also from BCI / Eclipse) is the perfect companion to this collection.
BRENTWOOD's 4-fers are nicely priced movie bundles. Video and sound quality of these digitally unrestored public domain films is generally fine. Discs are dual-side recorded.
.
Parenthetical numbers preceding titles are 1 to 10 viewer poll ratings found at a film resource website.
(7.5) Cyrano de Bergerac (1950) - José Ferrer/Mala Powers/William Prince/Elena Verdugo
(6.8) Jane Eyre (TV-UK/USA-1970) - George C. Scott/Susannah York/Jack Hawkins
(6.0) The Last of the Belles (TV-1974) - Richard Chamberlain/Blythe Danner/Susan Sarandon
(7.3) Of Human Bondage (1934) - Leslie Howard/Bette Davis/Reginald Denny/Alan Hale"