Marketic It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Contentar Best movie of this year hands down!

Sexyloutak Absolutely the worst movie.

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

clotblaster Derek Jacobi, recently knighted, is on the short list of great Brit actors, if the Brits are doing the ranking. Virtually unknown over here because of his lack of movie roles and t.v. appearances, he takes firmly hold of his role as Cadfael, the medievel, detective/herbalist monk. The 75 minute shows, set in the middle ages (late middle ages probably because of crusades backstory for Cadfael and the show itself) are just long enough to develop character of the main roles, tell the story, explore a theme or two, focus on CAdfael's bumbling, at times,attempt to stay true to his orders as a monk, and remind the audience that good and evil are sustaining characteristics of so many people throughout all times. Although somewhat subtle, this show owes much to the Medieval morality plays (short plays illustrating different human and divine virtues and vices) there is no hemming and hawing about the presence of evil that infects Cadfael's monastery and surrounding area--mostly woods and in the background the great (fictional I believe)Shrewsbury Castle looming over the landscape of the shows. There is a civil war going on between Empress Maud and King Stephen for control of much of England (fictional characters). Many of the plots involve characters' allegiances, at least as jumping off points. The monastery and its surrounding lands (supposedly quite vast) are up for grabs for the monarchs, though Cadfael's monastery is part of the land of one of the monarchs (or at least claimed by one of the monarchs) at the time of the show--Empress Maud is the putative ruler of the abby, BUT CAdfael's monastery and lands are technically neutral and this neutrality is another premise that motivates the characters and their actions. A show about a detective/monk in the middle ages is not immediately appealing to most people. Many people give Jacobi all the credit for making the show work, or at least marketable. However, the recurring characters (three or four monks) are fleshed out nicely and permit the show an easy way to illustrate the the contrasts of good and evil--two of the monks (second and third in command) are lubricious, sneaky, rather creepy, but also ambiguous, characters who belie their Christian vows ubiquitously. They look for bad in people and do nothing to nurture the good in their brother monks and other people in the show. I am very sensitive to 20/21st secular animosity towards devout Christians (Southern born agains are the devil for most Hollywood filmmakers). This show comes close to being too strenuous in its depiction of the evil, in the monks and thus in Christianity, but the handling of religious wickedness works because most of the very human evil in a couple of the monks is manifested more in their thoughts and beliefs, not their actions. In any event, Jacobi is magnificent in this underplayed role. The role could easily be consumed by his bumbling, but Jacobi keeps the role "real" and not a caricature. This is a great show of 12 or 13 compelling episodes, whose excellence is proved by the fact that multiple viewings of individual episodes yield rich rewards and the show maintains its thematic, character and plot potency from viewing to viewing.

Maddyclassicfilms Brother Cadfael (Derek Jacobi)is a former soldier who fought in the crusades. Cadfael becomes a monk and devotes his life to healing,growing herbs and helping the people. Cadfael is based on the series of novels by Ellis Peters set during the reign of King Stephen. Derek is superb as Brother Cadfael a mixture of kindness,patience and enquiring nature. The stories are very interesting and there is also a great deal of attention paid to little details and visually the episodes look gorgeous.Sean Pertwee is very good as Sheriff Hugh Beringar and the scenes between him and Derek are some of my favourites in the entire series. It's such a shame that Sean was in so few episodes, the other actors who played Hugh were not as good and the friendship between Cadfael and Hugh never felt as believable as it was when Sean had the role.Julian Firth is hysterical as Brother Jerome who is always fighting and bickering with Cadfael. Jerome is always trying to make others in his order look bad and is pompous and meddling.

guanche A literate and highbrow series about a medieval herbalist monk who uses his knowledge to solve crimes. More interesting and much less voyeuristic than CSI and kindred shows.Most of the previous reviewers did a good job of describing the nature of the series and how truly well acted and off beat it is. Rather than reiterate their commentary, I would like to focus on the show's realistic portrayal of the times. The vast majority of medieval films and/or shows go to inaccurate extremes. In the 50s and 60s, all the women wore brassieres and had Lady Clairol hairdos. The guys were all clean shaven Brylcream men with slicked back pompadours. And everyone's clothes looked freshly pressed and drycleaned. In the 70s, the trend went to the other extreme. All, even the well off, were dressed in filthy, tattered clothes and looked as if they did indeed bathe daily---in a vat of manure. Lots of teeth were missing from every mouth and every face covered with running sores. There was no middle ground between the squeaky clean people and places of the 50s "Robin Hood" series (a good adventure show nonetheless) and the comically exaggerated filth and squalor of "Jabberwocky".The Cadfael series provided that balance. The set designs and costumes were very accurate renderings of what actually existed at the time, and the series credibly demonstrated how people of that era went about their daily business and social lives. Many, especially the poor, were certainly ragged and unkempt, but few, rich or poor, were oblivious to the appearance of their homes or themselves. Another aspect of this show missing from most similar efforts was it's attempt to show how the tradespeople and middle class of the time worked and lived. Most "medieval" films perpetuate the myth that society was strictly divided into "have everythings" and "have nothings". Everyone is either an aristocrat or a starving, oppressed serf dressed in rags. This show actually gives the viewer an idea of how much more varied and complex medieval society really was.A first rate show, even more so for the historically literate. Although some of the later episodes hobbled their plots with ponderous soap opera "blasts from the past" from Cadfael's former life as a crusader, I was sad to see the series end. I never read any of the books, but understand that there are still a few that have not been filmed. I would love to see the series revived, although this winning combination of casting and production would be hard to repeat and harder still to beat.

azcowboysingr We have the entire Brother Cadfael series on VHS (DVDs are still too expensive for us), as well as all of Ellis Peter's novels. We never tire of watching/reading them. The production values are exquisite, the acting (even the bit players) is above excellence, & the scenery, sets, photography, is among the best I have ever seen. If there is one flaw to this series, it is that they quit before they made all of the novels into teleplays. This is one series that could have gone on for another 5 years or so & not lost our rapt attention. Sir Jacobi did his part with both professionalism & a human quality that made the character totally believable. Our only actual gripe is that Sean Pertwee did not continue his role as Hugh Beringer throughout the entire 13 episodes. He was the best "Sheriff" in our opinion, although the other two actors did very creditable jobs with their portrayals. This is one series that any mystery/history buff needs to add to their collection pronto!