Inspector Morse: Series 1-12 [DVD]

Excellent series of dvd s loved them all.

Nothing produced on television has ever emotionally moved me like "Inspector Morse." As an American I can think of only one TV production that is a peer to "Morse" and that is Peter Falk's "Columbo." I won't compare "Homicide" and "The Wire" to "Morse" because "Morse" is not a cop drama. "Morse" is a true detective drama that is combination morality play and romantic drama (no, I don't mean kissy-kissy--I mean epic good and evil). Like the Colin Dexter novels on which they are based, each film is constructed with archetypal characters confronting Jacobean and/or Shakespearean themes of love, death and revenge, all the while leaving it to the audience to decide for themselves the value of the choices made by the characters including, and most importantly, Morse and Lewis. Additionally, this series launched the careers of some of my generation's greatest British filmmakers (i.e., John Madden, Danny Boyle, Antonia Bird and Adrian Shergold, to name a few). I can think of only "Cracker" as another British series to have such a great impact on modern television and cinema. As an American fan I am both awed and embarrassed that my country, which gave birth to the medium, could never have a single series to spawn such greatness. That's why I guess I have to admit that it's my inner Brit that emerges whenever I see "Morse" or more precisely John Thaw as "Morse." There's nothing about being American that connects with Thaw's "Morse," because he is the quintessential British protagonist: brilliant, charismatic, erudite and flawed as hell. And Morse does nothing to hide any of these qualities to anyone including his enemies. This is how he can be vulnerable while seemingly invulnerable against the craziest madman. None of these complexities appear in any American T.V. hero, because American T.V. is too obsessed with reality or banal escapism. "Inspector Morse" has the power to transport us out of our own world while presenting us with questions that make us reflect on the human condition. It's both fun and awakening.

I have been buying DVDs for about 25 years now and have accumulated a fair number of them. So much so that Management is forbidding the purchase of any more DVDs because there is no space left to store them. Many older boxsets are unnecessarily bulky. A case in point is the complete collection of “Inspector Morse”, originally issued in 2-disc regular packaging at about £8 a pop. My collection of these occupied 25 cms (say 10 inches) of shelving. The repackaged box set under review is under 5cms (2 inches) of shelf space. This has mainly been achieved by putting two episodes per disc. That has been accomplished by compressing the data more, allowing two episodes in the 4.7 gigabytes of a single DVD. This does mean a loss of picture detail in this new packaging. Is this noticeable? A previous reviewer saw no discernible difference on his standard (32 inch?) TV, but thought that a large-screen TV would demonstrate a difference. I can confirm that this is true. I watch quite a lot of television and have invested accordingly: I have a 2014 model LG 55 inch OLED set. I played episode 2 (“The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn” ) in both formats, with my wife and I agreeing that there is a bit more detail perceivable on the older single-episode DVD. This, however, did not spoil our enjoyment one jot – the wonderful production values and acting still shone through. So, if you are hesitating about buying this repackaged set at its really appealing price I would say “Go ahead.” These programmes were originally shot on film, on 16mm Ariflex cameras. I don’t know if these cameras shot in what was called “Super 16” format. I know that the great BBC production of “Pride and Prejudice” (with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth) was shot in Super 16 and has been transferred to Blu-Ray to wonderful effect. If only that could be done with “Inspector Morse” for ultimate quality.

Amongst the diverse genre of detective fiction, Morse has to be one of the best ever made, it exudes class from every nuance. The irascible Morse inspires a deep affection because he has a good heart beneath the grumpiness. He has an endearing vulnerability and sensitivity, borne out in his love of beautiful music and his naivety with women. For all his brilliance as a detective, he gets things wrong sometimes and cases are solved by Lewis's instinct. Lewis is neither fool nor foil and his down to earth attitude counterbalances Morse's lofty intellectualism. The relationship between Morse and Lewis drives the whole series, with their sometimes comic banter and some touching conversations. Each episode is entirely enthralling, and looks deep into human nature and motivation. With its glorious settings, music, gripping stories and that fabulous red jaguar, overlaid with the interplay between Morse and Lewis, its a thing of real joy.

Todo perfecto

I was just moving to Oxford when Morse first began to air, so the scenes are familiar to me. I am still at a loss as to how that man can get from, say, The Radcliffe Infirmary to the Meadows in seconds. It used to take us at least 20 minutes. They also closed our Local for 24 hours. That was evil. Anyway, Morse is the anti-hero of all time. Colin Dexter, who created the character, was not dissimilar, hanging around the pubs of Jericho. John Thaw (who sadly died many years back) played the character well, from start to the sad demise. We have yet to get through this set (It is the used region 2 from the UK, Cheaper, uncut & easily playable on a region free machine, oddly, from Amazon), as we only manage two episodes per week. They are the length of feature films. You can imagine how long 33 episodes and two specials will take, but we are trying. Looking through reviews, prior to buying this set I was amazed at some comments, for example, Morse is unprofessional by being fond of a woman? Well, just look at who directed that episode & consider everything else that person has done. It becomes clear then. Less easy to comprehend is the complaint he drinks too much. No, in most of the world you do go to a pub after work or even during it, to collect your thoughts. Certainly in the UK you would. So too much Classical Music & alcohol? Well, only one country ever had the Volstead Act although, for those pining for the days, many countries live under Sharia Law. As to music, each to their own & it is the Opera etc which makes Morse the character he is. I do not think that is a secret. For full reviews, there is a great one on these pages which covers all the episodes, which I reckon anyone ought to read if considering this purchase. The guy clearly spent some time on it & I am grateful to him. For our part, the item arrived in a week & is great. We are pleased with the series though after all these years, I think I am missing Oxford a little. Such is life.

I knew when I purchased this product that I would be unable to play the discs on my regular Sony system, but having purchased a Samsung Multi Regional Player from Amazon (incidentally a first rate product) I am now able to enjoy Inspector Morse, as I knew I would. The DVDs are excellent with great visual and sound quality. I know I shall be able to enjoy "Morse" for many years. A great addition to my collection of Box Set DVDs - all purchased from Amazon, and all at a great price!

Wer britische Krimiserien liebt, ist hier bestens aufgehoben (okay, wirklich gute Englischkenntnisse sind nötig). Die Musik von Barrington Pheloung ist ebenfalls hervorragend. Beides gilt auch für "Der junge Inspector Morse" sowie "Lewis". Wenn man diese drei Serien gesehen hat, möchte man sofort den nächsten Urlaub in Oxford verbringen. "Inspector George Gently" sowie "Inspector Banks" sind ebenfalls sehr zu empfehlen. Sowohl die spannenden Fälle als auch die schauspielerischen Leistungen sind hervorzuheben, dazu kommen wunderschöne Landschaftsaufnahmen. Und wem das dann noch nicht genug ist, dem sei auch noch die "Inspektor Lynley Mysteries" ans Herz gelegt, alles britische Krimikost vom Feinsten. Wohl bekomm's !

In the Crime and Detection section, full of iconic characters, the original "Inspector Morse" hold its place well. It has not dated badly in either the production or the quality of the stories. In addition the working relationship between Morse and Sergeant Lewis is delightful to observe, with the charm of Lewis offsetting the often irascible Morse, who nevertheless can feel things very deeply . Warmly recommended.