Posted by: haro1d

The good news is, Foyle’s War is back. Anyone who has followed this popular UK series on PBS knows that it’s among the best-written and executed scripted programs done for television in recent years. When it ended its initial run and Detective Chief Superintendent Foyle (Michael Kitchen) resigned his post, there was something dissatisfying about the ending. World War II still had years to go before its end, and it seemed like a coda was all but inevitable. The politics of British television were to blame, it seems, but changing circumstances meant that Foyle’s War could return to production at last.

Now it’s here, and not a moment too soon, in my opinion. Only the opener on these three new episodes did leave me just a bit wanting. Much of the appeal of the series rests on its successful development of numerous plotlines, some of which intersect and others that don’t. We had a good handle on the murder and the mystery itself this time out, but where was the exploration of the personal lives of the characters we’ve come to know? What’s going on with Foyle’s son, Andrew? How’s Milner’s home life coming along? And most of all, where has Sam’s endless snack obsession gone? (Not even ONE joke about her wanting more food? Really? Even if the war was going their way by ‘44, I can’t think that she had had her fill of abundance or anything near it, then.)

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Tags: Foyle's War, PBS by haro1d
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Posted by johnnysweeptheleg

“Give me the child until he is seven and I will give you the man.” It’s impossible to talk about the Up series without beginning with this Jesuit maxim.

It was 1964, Cassius Clay was the heavyweight champion of boxing, Nikita Khrushchev was ousted from Soviet power, and a still wet-behind-the-ears Michael Apted (later, director of Coal Miner’s Daughter and Gorillas in the Mist, among others) interviewed fourteen 7-year-olds from England for a Granada Television documentary.

The premise was simple. The results were anything, but. Take fourteen children from all social backgrounds, visit them at the age of seven, and document their day-to-day lives, their current views, and the goals they and their families have for them.

Then, every seven years, Michael Apted and the documentary crew check in to see whether or not the children are still on the path that was outlined for them seven years prior, and whether or not their social background has any bearing on this journey.

Those seven-year-olds are now 49 years old and a number not only have children of their own, but grandchildren who are nearly the same age they were when the Up series began over forty years ago.

Via DVD, I was able to watch these children age nearly forty years in a span of two weeks. I felt like the Time Traveler in H.G. Wells’ Time Machine. These children grew up right before my eyes. And on Tuesday, October 9th, the PBS series POV will air the latest reunion, with 49-Up. [Read more →]

Tags: PBS by johnnysweeptheleg
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Posted by RabbitEars

Tonight’s episode of The War begins with an incredibly eerie account from Ray Leopold, who explains a conversation he had with a German soldier who had just been captured by his outfit. The German, in perfect, accent-free English, persists in asking Leopold the exact location from which he comes. When Leopold tells him he is from Waterbury, Connecticut, the German turns out to be very familiar with the minute details of the area. Puzzled, Leopold asks how he knows so much. [Read more →]

Tags: Documentary, PBS, The War by RabbitEars
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Posted by RabbitEars

Ken Burns’ The War picks up again this Sunday with the first of its final three episodes. When we last saw the series, hopes of a quick end to the war in Europe were running high following the D-Day invasion, and the Allies’ rapid advance toward the German border.

But as we see in this episode, nothing can be assumed, certainly not victory against a desperate opponent in wartime. Overconfidence can lead to things becoming “FUBAR” — F***ed Up Beyond All Recognition — very quickly. [Read more →]

Tags: Documentary, PBS, Preview, The War by RabbitEars
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Posted by RabbitEars

In “Pride of Our Nation,” the last episode of The War for this week (three more are to come next week), we see Americans’ hope begin to increase as the long-awaited invasion of France — D-Day — finally occurs. [Read more →]

Tags: Documentary, PBS, The War by RabbitEars
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Posted by RabbitEars

Tonight’s episode of The War, airing on PBS at 8pm ET/PT, covers the months from November 1943 up until June 1944, and is titled “A Deadly Calling.” It’s an apt title, coming from one veteran’s recollection of how he (and most others) came to accept their duty to kill in this now total war, where once they had subscribed to “Thou shalt not kill.”

It also describes how the American public came to realize just how deadly this calling was. [Read more →]

Tags: Documentary, PBS, The War by RabbitEars
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Posted By RabbitEars

In the first episode of The War, Ken Burns’ incredible new miniseries premiering this Sunday on PBS, a veteran of World War II describes that conflict as “a necessary war.” History has proven that to be correct.

And history should also determine that Burns’ documentary is a very necessary and worthwhile endeavor, as it manages to put on film valuable recollections of that monumental moment in world, and particularly American, history. [Read more →]

Tags: Documentary, PBS, The War by RabbitEars
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