Inspector Morse: Last Bus to Woodstock

Starring:Inspector Morse
Studio: Bfs Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

Selling the Silver: Morse Would Understand
The final Morse
BFS Cropped this WIDESCREEN episode.
A REMORSEFUL ADAPTATION
Morse's End Predates John Thaw's by Only a Few Years

Inspector Morse - The Remorseful Day
Starring: Inspector Morse
Manufacturer: Bfs Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000056T50
Release Date: 2001-02-03

Amazon.com

An unsolved murder case is reopened after a suspect is released from jail, but when he and two of his associates are found dead, detectives Inspector Morse and Sergeant Lewis face one of their most difficult investigations, and Morse's involvement may be more personal than he is willing to admit.

The final case for British television's best-loved detective is suffused with melancholy. Years of stress and far too much beer have taken their toll, and Morse is a sick man. Popping pills, wincing with pain, and drinking in spite of doctor's orders, Morse keeps going because he is obsessed with bringing criminals to justice. It's impossible to imagine him in retirement, but his vocation has ruined his health and now threatens his life.

The complex relationship between Morse and his partner has always been at the heart of the show's success, and at the beginning of "The Remorseful Day," that relationship is even more strained than usual. Lewis is furious when Morse takes over his investigation into the multiple murders, and the ailing Morse is more irritable than ever. But in spite of all their differences the two men complement one another and they are soon working together again. When this final episode moves into its final act Kevin Whately's performance as the faithful, underappreciated Lewis is deeply moving, providing a fitting coda to their enduring partnership.

The accompanying documentary includes behind-the-scenes footage, interviews with many of the distinguished actors who have appeared in the show over the years, and comments from Morse's creator, Colin Dexter. --Simon Leake

Customer Reviews:

Selling the Silver: Morse Would Understand.......2006-08-14

The opening shot shows the family silver, lovingly and lusciously photographed. . . the camera pans out to see the rest of the Great House and its more tawdry doings.

The sandwich of the story is intricate, multi-layered, and shows the shifting powers of Morse and Lewis as Morse declines physically but continues to mentor Lewis up to the last possible moment. The series has always focused on the character of Morse and the relationship between the two detectives, but this episode brings both these strands home beautifully.

Then, at the end, Lewis speaks to the daughter who had to sell the family silver we saw in the opening shot (to pay off a blackmailer). It's an upper class shame that she doesn't feel Lewis fully appreciates. "Morse would understand," she says. And he would have.

Morse understood everything with such subtlty. That is what great books and literature and a lifetime of melacholy can train you for. . . being open to the clues of the world. May we all take heart from the life of this fictional character.

--Janet Grace Riehl, author "Sightlines: A Poet's Diary"

The final Morse.......2005-09-18

A very good conclusion to the Morse TV series.

As always, John Thaw is excellent as the Chief Inspector. And Oxford is delightful.... The background music adds to the touch of the mystery.

The book written by Colin Dexter has been adapted. Fans of this, could also get the book or book on tape, to read the extended story.

BFS Cropped this WIDESCREEN episode........2004-08-21

This great closing episode of the great series by the great John Thaw has one flaw, the picture has been cropped to fit a full-frame 1:33-1 screen.

By the time this episode was produced, England had switched over to the 1:85-1 wide-screen telecast. Currently PBS is showing this in its original wide-screen format so I was able to compare the pictures. This razor sharp DVD is indeed cropped on the sides.

Fortunately the producers realized that it would be shown cropped in some markets. So nothing important is framed at the sides of the picture, the action all takes place in the center of the picture. You will not know any picture is missing unless you see the wide-screen version. It is just a shame that BFS decided not to release an anamorphic wide-screen edition!

Everything else is excellent about the disc. A sharp clean picture with solid colors, clear sound, and bonus material!

A REMORSEFUL ADAPTATION.......2002-07-19

There's been a murder here, but it's not the one you think. The adaptation of Colin Dexter's "The Remorseful Day" has left a stinking corpse of what was a masterful story, an exquisite exposition of the "Parsifal" like heart of Endeavour Morse. The culprits? Rebecca Eaton and her doltish cadre of American PBS writers who have distinguished themselves in missing the entire point of the book.
Mind you, if you have not read the book, you'll enjoy this video. All the great elements are there: John Thaw essays Morse brilliantly, Kevin Whately turns in a terrific performance as Lewis, although he is compelled to deliver a totally ridiculous and melodramatic "Morse is dead!" proclamation. He acquits himself and moves on. All the supporting players, the family intrigues, the score, the filmwork - all executed brilliantly. So, you'd have little reason to suspect something is awry.

But there is and it is as great a disservice to a book as I can ever remember. Now, that argument can be made about a lot of transfers from book to film, but in this case, and with this series, which has been so faithful to Dexter's works, it is just incomprehensible. I can only conclude that it is due to the American fascination with smoothing out any sense of nuance in order to champion the easily digestible. I should tell you where the crime lies, but that's not fair to anyone who really would enjoy what actually happened in the story. Suffice it to say that much of the story turns on the Parsifal legend, and how in fact the pure of heart are vindicated with vision of the grail, whatever form that grail may take. So, Endeavour Morse is vindicated in a coda that lingers with you long, long after you put the book down. Throughout the film, there are efforts made to quote not only Wagner's theme for "Parsifal", but Han Knappertsbusch's direction of it in the 1962 score. Why? Well, Morse makes reference to it in discussion with Lewis, and it fits with the T.S Elliott quote that includes the title of the story, plus Knappertsbusch was himself the most Morse like of conductors in every way imaginable, and in 1962 was well aware that he was dying. So with all of the main clues in tact, why on earth Eaton and her merry band of nitwits elected to miss the point is not only unimaginable but unforgiveable.

Certainly, enjoy this DVD for what it is. I assure you that if you read the book, you will want, as I want, to grab the murderous crutch and shove it where PBS don't broadcast. The most heinous murder in Oxford was committed in Boston. Shame on Eaton. Perhaps one day Dexter will insist on a reshoot, although Thaw is not well, and Whately may have no interest in any further casting as Lewis. Somehow, the record, as it is in the book, needs to be set straight.

Morse's End Predates John Thaw's by Only a Few Years.......2002-02-23

Sad to see that the great actor, John Thaw has passed away from esophageal cancer.

This episode is on par with all of the other great episodes of this outstanding series. Thaw's portrayal of an intellectual, world-weary British detective who confronts often complex and involved cases of murder and other crimes.

Now episode to this point really brought home to me how much I loved Inspector Morse. I was actually quite angry to see the great Inspector face such health problems (an understatement), but in light of John Thaw's actual illness, I guess it is to be expected.

Customer Reviews:

Love and Lust.......2007-06-20

This episode revolves around three women. The first owns a home and is the land lady of the other two. Number one is an office manager, having an affair with one of the married executives with whom she works. Number two is a nurse who is having an affair with a professor at one of Oxford's colleges. The third is a student at Oxford and is being "chatted up" by one of the English Literature instructors. These are three separate stories and at no time intertwine; a fourth girl is picked up, hitchhiking in the rain, on the Woodstock Road, by one of the previous mentioned men. Shortly thereafter she is dead. Given these facts, this is one difficult investigation for Morse. There is none of the frequent surprises or twists to further complicate the investigation; Morse has enough on his hands. Max the pathologist plays his largest part in any of his appearances. A solid four star effort.

At last -- Inspector Morse's first novel comes to video!.......2000-03-17

Inspector Morse is cerebral, almost an armchair decetcive in the Sherlock Holmes tradition. This video is based on the first Morse novel, but came about halfway through the series' run on ITV. John Thaw is notable in his performance because he almost underplays the role of Morse, and Kevin Whatley as Sergeant Lewis makes a good Watson, trying to understand Morse's thought process, and providing a lens through which us viewers of merely average intellect can comprehend how Morse's mind works. This will never appeal to a general audience, but it's very enjoyable to those at whom it's targeted.

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