P.D. James - The Essential Collection

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

P.D. James DVDs, 2008-05-29
I am still enjoying this set of P.D. James' Adam Dalgliesh mysteries on dvds. They are well done and follow her books very closely. I highly recommend this set.

6 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

No subtitles, 2007-07-12
The stories are good, and I have all the books, BUT! br / br /The heavy British accents are difficult for an American to understand. I missed at least half the words. Beyond that, the British talk very fast. If the actor speaks in cockney, forget it. br / br /Why no subtitles? Many British films have them, and they make it much easier for Americans to understand. I have watched British films where subtitles were not used because the actors either spoke slower or there was less of a British accent. Let's face it, the words may be the same, but the spoken word is very different. br / br /The heavy accents spoiled this collection for me, and I doubt most Americans will understand the actors much better than I did.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

P.D. James - The Essentiial Collection, 2007-06-19
If you like P.D. James mysteries featuring Adam Dalgleish, this excellent DVD collection is more than satisfying. The DVD quality is very good and the performances are first rate.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

"P.D. James - Essential Collection ... Roy Marsden as Cmdr Adam Dalgliesh ... Koch Vision", 2006-12-21
Koch Vision present - "P.D. James - The Essential Collection" - Roy Marsden as Cmdr Adam Dalgliesh - (1765 mins/Color) (Dolby Digital) --- Phyllis Dorothy James, Baroness James of Holland Park OBE ), an English writer of crime fiction and member of the House of Lords, who writes as P. D. James ... It has been noted by many critics that James has upgraded and expanded the entire genre of mystery writing; and that many of her books, especially the police procedurals starring Dalgliesh, the poetry writing detective, fit the mainstream novel criteria as much as they do the detective genre ... James' strengths are characterization and her ability to construct atmosphere and stories rich in detail ... James did not begin writing until she reached her thirties ... "Her first novel, Cover Her Face", featuring the investigator/poet Adam Dalgliesh of New Scotland Yard, was published in 1962 ... James retired in 1979 to devote herself to her writing ... She has said that her influences include Jane Austen, Dorothy L. Sayers, herself a well-known British author of mysteries, Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh. br / br /Adam Dalgliesh is a fictional character who has been the protagonist of thirteen mystery novels by P. D. James. Dalgliesh first appeared in James' 1962 novel Cover Her Face, and has appeared in most of James' subsequent novels... Dalgliesh, who holds the high position of Commander in the Metropolitan Police Service at New Scotland Yard in London, is an intensely cerebral and private person ... He writes poetry, a fact which his colleagues are fond of reminding him. Several volumes of his poetry have been published ... Dalgliesh lives in a flat above the Thames at Queenhithe in the City of London and drives a Jaguar. br / br /Entire collection is a must have inclusive over 29 Hours Of Heart Stopping Suspense and up to the last reel of who done its. br / br /1. Death of an Expert Witness br /2. Shroud for a Nightingale br /3. Cover Her Face br /4. The Black Tower br /5. A Taste for Death br /6. Unnatural Causes, br /7. A Mind To Murder br /8. Original Sin br / br /Not your usual suspects from the diabolical to the macabre, this "essential collection" presents eight critically acclaimed P.D. James film adaptations ... each starring Roy Marsden in a compelling Adam Dalgliesh Mystery. br / br /BIOS: br /1. Roy Marsden br /Date of birth: 25 June 1941 - Stepney, London, England, UK br /Date of death: Still Living br /2. P.D. James (aka: Phyllis Dorothy James) br /Date of birth: 3 August 1920 - Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK br /Date of death: Still Living br / br /Great job by Koch Vision for releasing "P.D. James - The Essential Collection" - Roy Marsden, the digital transfere with a clean, clear and crisp print...looking forward to more high quality releases from the foreign film market --- order your copy now from Amazon or Koch Vision where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch drama mixed with an outstanding cast and director --- Mystery Classics, all my heroes have been film detectives! br / br /Total Time: 1765 mins on DVD ~ Koch Vision KOCV #6612 ~ (6/07/2005)

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

Problem Discs Finally Corrected, 2006-04-13
I attempted to purchase this item back in August and was very disappointed when I received it. The problem was located in the third segment of Death of An Expert Witness which was supposed to be included on a separate disc than the first two episodes in this story. When I loaded this disc, it was another P.D. James episode, A Taste of Death Part Three, that was an exact duplicate of another disc in this compilation. I returned the item and requested another copy, presuming that the problem I had encountered was very rare. However, the second copy of this collection that Amazon sent me was also flawed in this same manner; I returned it and requested that my money be refunded. I finally decided, after several months, that I would try and order this collection again and ascertain if the problem had been remedied. Luckily, the collection that I received today did include the third segment of Death of An Expert Witness. Also, one reviewer mentioned that Original Sin was not included in this compilation as it was supposed to be. However, it was included in my copy so I presume that this problem has also been fixed. I was unable to discover any other flaws in the discs. Everything appeared to be correctly labeled and every episode that was supposed to be included was on the discs. Hopefully, this signifies that the problems inherent in this series have finally been addressed and remedied. br / br /- Ravenova