Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #107801 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-10-30
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 75 minutes

Amazon.com
Political passions ran high in 12th-century England, and the Church was often caught in the middle of the feud between King Stephen and Empress Maud. This feud takes its toll in Shrewsbury upon the appointment of a new priest whose political sympathies outweigh his human compassion. With unrequited love and farmland dispossession adding to the local turmoil, the long list of people who wanted to see Father Ailnoth dead keeps both the sheriff and Brother Cadfael (Derek Jacobi) busy for days. As with all episodes in this medieval mystery series, the writing, acting, and production values are of the highest quality, re-creating the 12th century's grand and small passions in rich detail while viewers try to puzzle out who done it.

DVD extras include an audio interview with Derek Jacobi in which he shares his thoughts on Cadfael's faith and sense of guilt, an Ellis Peters biography and book list, and a production scrapbook of behind-the-scenes stills. --Larisa Lomacky Moore

From the Back Cover
Twelfth century Shrewsbury comes dramatically to life in Ellis Peters' bestselling story of Brother Cadfael - a good man in an evil world. Seen on the PBS Mystery! series, this riveting tale stars Sir Derek Jacobi as Brother Cadfael, the intuitive crime-solving monk of medieval Shrewsbury. Father Ailnoth, the new parish priest, earns the scorn of all his parishioners. After refusing to baptize the illegitimate baby of a local woman, the priest is found dead in the river. With plenty of suspects but a shortage of clues, Cadfael confounds even his good friend Beringar, the Under Sheriff, in revealing just how the priest lost his life. DVD SPECIAL FEATURES AND EXTRAS INCLUDE exclusive audio comments by Derek Jacobi, Ellis Peters biography and booklist, production scrapbook, closed captions, filmographies and scene index.

Customer Reviews

A fine production
As is usually the case with Cadfael stories, it is useful to read the novel in addition to seeing the DVD. The reason is simple enough: it is impossible to reduce a 228-page book to a 75-minute drama without sacrificing details. In particular, the novel gives a great deal of political background information which explains the motivations behind the behavior of the principal characters.

First the background: "The Raven in the Foregate" is the 12th Cadfael novel, by Ellis Peters, published in 1986. It is set in England in December of 1141, in the middle of a fratricidal civil war between King Stephen and his cousin, the Empress Maud. During the previous summer it seemed that she had won the war: Stephen was in prison, Maud and her followers were in London, and Stephen's brother, Henry of Blois, Bishop of Winchester, had sworn his allegiance to her.

But Maud proved to be impossible to deal with, the Londoners revolted, and through a hostage exchange King Stephen won his freedom anew and retook London.

As the novel begins, Stephen's brother has no choice but to switch his allegiance once again, calling a legatine council to make sure that the clergy are all on the same page, and excommunicating the followers of Maud.

Among the attendees is Abbot Radulfus of Shrewsbury. When he returns to his monastery, he has with him a cleric named Father Ailnoth, who is to become the new parish priest for the people of the Foregate. Shortly thereafter, the King calls all of the sheriffs to him for the Christmas feast. There Hugh Beringar is appointed the new sheriff of Shropshire, to replace Gilbert Prestcote, who died in the spring.

Father Ailnoth proves to be a disastrous choice for a parish priest. His predecessor, Father Adam, was a kindly man, much loved, ready to forgive the penitent. Not so Ailnoth. He is a harsh and rigid man, strictly by the book, and quickly begins to make enemies. Before long he is dead, and Brother Cadfael, a Crusader turned monk, locally renowned for his ability to solve mysteries, has to figure out how and why. As usual, Hugh Beringar, his friend, serves as a partner in the investigation.

One immediately obvious difference between the book and the DVD is the season: the DVD takes place in the summer of 1141, not the winter, while Hugh is still under-sheriff. This change of season subtly alters the mood of the story, but does no harm to the drama.

The producers take other liberties with the plot and the characters. In the DVD, there is actually a second key mystery, intertwined with the first. This involves a young woman named Elenor, pregnant out of wedlock, who apparently commits suicide because of Ailnoth's harshness. Cadfael agonizes over how he could have saved her from despair and death, and his obvious sense of guilt causes others to question his judgment as he strives to link the two deaths. Who is the father of the unborn child? This plays a key role as well. In the book, on the other hand, the girl's name is Eluned; her suicide is purely incidental, yet one more reason for the townsfolk to loathe their new priest.

A common theme in Cadfael novels is budding romances between young people, and "Raven" is no different. Here again, extra wrinkles are added in the DVD, introducing a blind girl, Catherine, Elenor's sister, who is completely absent from the book.

Another added DVD character is Lord Cassale, the southern nobleman who is in search of an agent of the Empress Maud, believed to be hiding in Shropshire as he quietly contacts former Maud supporters. Cassale quickly butts heads with both the abbot and Hugh Beringar, whom he contemptuously calls "Under-Sheriff" every chance he can. In the book, Cassale is absent and Hugh himself is tasked with finding the agent. Naturally, this mysterious young man plays a central role in the story's plot.

The acting is excellent. As always, Sir Derek Jacobi plays Cadfael very convincingly. And then there is Peter Guinness, who plays Father Ailnoth, a dark, malevolent man with a skull-like head, billowing black robes and a heavy, ebony staff which he is all too ready to swing at those hapless enough to get in his way. He gives his hellfire-and-damnation sermons with obvious relish, as if longing to witness the flames of eternal torment for himself, from a bird's-eye view. When evicting some poor peasants whom Father Adam had allowed to till Church land, they protest that their children will starve, and he suggests that they should not have had so many. He very much resembles a raven, the traditional harbinger of doom. He represents everything that history records was wrong about the Medieval Church, with its endless meddling in politics and its heartless disregard for the welfare of the common folk.

In summary, "The Raven in the Foregate" should prove a worthy addition to any DVD library. It can stand on its own, even without the book.

"Truth and justice are often at odds."
It is said, "All that evil needs to flourish is for good men to nothing." And this film has a few good men that do nothing. So once again it is up to Brother Cadfael to sort out the mystery and if separate mysteries are related. I will not go thought the story blow by blow, as that is part of the intrigue in watching these films.

Shrewsbury needs a new priest. Due to the civil war between Empress Maud and King Stephen 12th-century England the priest is picked for his political leanings.

A local girl is having an illegitimate child and asks Cadfael for confession. Cadfael explains only a priest can do that.

Father Ailnoth, the new parish priest to Shrewsbury, earns the scorn of his parishioners. After refusing to absolver a parishioner for carrying an illegitimate child; later the priest is found dead in the river. There are plenty of suspects but a shortage of clues.


Cadfael - The Holy Thief

Kind of dark, even for a medieval mystery
As always, production quality was excellent, and the characters believable. This was one of the more intricate of the mysteries I have seen, and it was hard to choose a likely suspect because it was easy to sympathize with the many people wanting the new priest Ailnoth dead.

There are two deaths to puzzle out: the disliked priest, and the parishoner whom he refuses absolution to, for her unwed pregnancy.

Cadfael struggles with personal feelings alot in this tale, both for the girls he has known since childhood (one gets drowned) and over the animosity the new priest infects nearly everyone with. In fact, it is with difficulty that the village mob is commanded to release the priest, whom they accuse of killing the drowned girl.

There is also a lot of political play going on to complicate the investigations. There are enforcers bent on killing any and all dissenters who oppose the current king - who is not really the "rightful" ruler, but holds the power, and his spies looking for the traitors, who are loyal to Queen Maud. One of these is the manservant of Ailnoth, hence a prime suspect. Being handsome, he is aided to hide by a village woman, and eludes even Cadfael for a time.

The actual series of events leading to the priest's death seems a bit contrived, and I was not comfortable with it, but there you go - editor's discretion. Maybe it is more likely in that setting as written.

The resolution is sad, as the killer has lost both his lover and her unborn baby, and has the burden of religious guilt to crush him further. The priest, unlamented, is buried on hallowed ground, while the girl is ruled a suicide, and Cadfael has to sorrow at her grave in unhallowed ground ... which he had been trying so hard to avoid.

There is a gleam of light, because there is a final love interest kindled at the end between 2 people touched by the death of the woman. I'll let you see the end yourself, though.