Product Description

Includes: 1) The Merchant of Venice ('72 Play of the Month) The Venice of Titian and the Belmont of Botticelli are the visual inspiration behind this lavish production of the Shakespeare play. Maggie Smith as Portia. Also Frank Finlay as Shylock Charles Gray Christopher Gable Nerys Hughes and Edward Petherbridge. 2) The Millionairess ('72 Play of the Month) Bernard Shaw's glittering farce The Millionairess reveals the true relations between class capital power and labor. Starring Maggie Smith as Epifania Tom Baker and Charles Gray this original BBC production brings the hilarity and searing commentary of Shaws work to vivid life. 3) A Bed Among the Lentils ('88 Talking Heads) Maggie SMITH stars in Alan Bennett's monologue about a vicar's wife who finds a vision of God at the local off-licence. 4) Suddenly Last Summer ('93 Performance) Tennessee Williams's play stars Maggie Smith as Mrs Veneble whose grief at the loss of her beloved poet son turns to rage against her niece Catharine (Natasha Richardson) his last companion and witness to his gruesome death. Determined to erase the memory of Sebastian's loss she tries to persuade her pet doctor (Rob Lowe) to perform a lobotomy on Catharine.Running Time: 362 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS UPC: 883929016754 Manufacturer No: 1000038280

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5149 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2008-05-20
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 362 minutes

Amazon.com
This three-disc set celebrates four of Dame Maggie Smith's leading roles for the BBC. The collection begins with two 1972 Plays of the Month, The Merchant of Venice and The Millionairess. In Shakespeare's morality tale, Smith's sharp-tongued socialite Portia disguises herself as a doctor to negotiate with money lender Shylock (Frank Finlay), in the process uttering the immortal line, "The quality of mercy is not strained." In the Bernard Shaw comedy, she plays self-centered heiress Epifania who tries to live like a pauper to please a selfless Egyptian physician (Dr. Who's Tom Baker). The latter production, presented in a more cinematic style, offers a fine showcase for Smith's flavorful line readings. In Alan Bennett's quietly devastating Bed Among the Lentils, one of his Talking Heads monologues, Smith portrays Susan, a deeply disillusioned vicar's wife, and in Sir Richard Eyre's intimate 1993 adaptation of Tennessee Williams's Suddenly, Last Summer, she takes on Mrs. Venable, a grief-stricken mother (a role assumed by Katharine Hepburn in the 1959 film). Rob Lowe, Richard E. Grant, and especially Natasha Richardson, as Venable's niece Catherine, contribute strong work to this Great Performances production.

For some fans, the supplements may surpass the features. They include a breezy 1973 chat with Norman Parkinson and Acting in the '60s, a candid 1967 conversation with Richard Goodwin and narration by Kenneth Tynan, who refers to the actress as "the most versatile girl on the English stage." Actor Kenneth Williams participates in both. Smith also appears in a radio version of The Country Wife, while A Portrait: Maggie Smith, an exclusive profile, offers commentary from Bennett, Eyre, and A Room with a View co-star Simon Callow. The viewing notes include an essay on her career and details about each production. This BBC set presents a worthy tribute to a tremendous talent. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Customer Reviews

Smith is Smith - a legend.
To many people, Maggie Smith is a legend as a consummate actress. I am one of these people. Accordingly, I admit to possible bias. Nevertheless.....
Her work in these separate stories, is first rate. Importantly, it shows her at her best in many disparate roles. Because of this, it is possible that one - or other - of the roles might be found less to the viewer's taste than another. In my opinion, this doesn't make Smith's acting any the less brilliant and convincing.
A very good buy for, both, acting aficionados and Maggie Smith devotees.

maggie smith at the BBC
IT IS A PITY I WON,T BE ABLE TO ENJOY
THIS DVD WITH MY FAVOURITE ACTRESS
BUT WITH NO SUBTITLE IT IS NOT
POSSIBLE FOR ME TO UNDERSTAND
ALL THE DIALOGUES

I WONDER WHY SO MANY INTE3RESTING
DVDS ARE FEATURES WITHOUT SUBTITUES,
NOT EVEN IN ENGLISH WHICH WILL BE
VERY HELPFUL INDEED

Finally- a BBC collection of rare Smith performances
I have seen all of these performances except for The Merchant of Venice. The Talking Heads (Bed Among the Lentils) monologues performance is both subtle and illuminating- a real landmark performance. The Millionairess is a thrilling bit of acting. And the remake of Suddenly Last Summer is quite an interesting counterpart to the famous Hepburn/Taylor film of the late 1950s. What I'd love to see is another set including TV films "Memento Mori" and others from her work on UK television. But this is a good start. Thank you BCC for releasing this in the USA! More please!