Helen Mirren at the BBC – DVD Review

The English can be so much more classy than us when it comes to TV. Imagine a show called Play of the Month running on Fox? That’d be as much of a ratings smash as Secret Talents of the Stars. The plays featured on Helen Mirren at the BBC are not live stage performances captured on videotape. They are more like an American movie of the week. They use a variety of sets and locations. Like a MOW, there’s more of a focus on the characters talking than non-verbal visual information. The British MOW don’t deal with the hot new disease or having Tori Spelling ask, Mother, May I Sleep with Danger?. There’s a higher art in the work from across the pond. These BBC plays allow Helen Mirren to stimulate the mind and tempt the flesh in diverse roles.

The Changeling (1974 – 105 minutes) reminds us that twisted romances are not a new creation from NBC’s Dateline. Helen is a woman betrothed to a Lord, but hot for a different nobleman. In order to straighten out this matter of the heart without it getting messy, she hires a hitman to take out the Lord. But his kill fee is for more than cash. The Apple Cart (1975-115 minutes) is a science fiction play from George Bernard Shaw. This 1929 play is set in 1969 with the King of England fighting an impending constitutional monarchy movement. Helen is the king’s mistress. It looks like a really classy version of Dr. Who. Caesar and Claretta (1975 – 49 minutes) contemplates the last night of Mussolini and his mistress (Helen). Their captors give them one last night in bed. Il Dulce can’t make one final assault. It’s a sensitive portrait without making us feel too mushy for the Italian dictator.

The Philanthropist (1975 -89 minutes) is another futuristic play. A group of intellectual folks meet up for an apartment party. As they jabber away, there’s violence in the streets and Parliament. They don’t seem to care until word gets out of a terrorist organization killing writers. A few at the party are upset that they’re not on the hit list. Helen plays the host’s fiance. She gets upset when she discovers one of their friends is a slut. It’s crazy weirdness from a V for Vendetta version of England. The Little Minister (1975 – 101 minutes) is a twisted play from J. M. Barrie, the writer of Peter Pan. A gypsy (Helen) falls in love with a minister (Ian Ogilvy). There’s a lot forbidden love hurdles between the two. The Restoration play The Country Wife (1977 – 110 minutes) deals with a complete rake (Anthony Andrews) screwing his way through the finest married wives of London society. He’s a stud, but his plan gets foiled when he puts the moves on a newlywed wife from the country (Mirren). Helen is stunning in the role.

Normally, Dennis Potter’s TV plays (The Singing Detective and Lipstick on Your Collar) are amazing in their textures and delivery, but Blue Remembered Hills (1979 – 72 minutes) irritated me since they had adults playing kids in WWII England. These scenes always look like painful moments from ‘70s variety shows when the elderly hosts would impersonate kids. Why wouldn’t they have just done it with kids? Mrs. Reinhardt (1981 – 75 minutes) lets Helen go wild. She bolts on her adulterous husband and decides to get her a little strange. She hooks up with an American (Midnight Express‘s Brad Davis) for vacation nookie. But this isn’t merely sin and sun in the South of France.

Soft Targets (1982 – 95 minutes) is a Cold War tale of a Soviet journalist (Ian Holm) lurking in London. Stephen Poliakoff’s play has all the paranoid goodness as none of the English believe that Holm is merely a writer. While dropping off a package at the airport, an English agent (Nigel Havers) politely interrogates Holm. The agent is so polite, he gives Holm a lift into the city. Instead of taking him home, the destination is the ruins of a wild party. Cecila Gregory and Helen Mirren are mysterious hostesses. They take a shine to their Russian guest and invite him to a wedding in the country. Is Holm being adopted by these party girls or is this a new surveillance technique from British Intelligence? There’s two great minor appearances for fans of certain Brit boys. Rupert Everett pops up at a Banarama enhanced breakfast. Julian Sands has a key role at the wedding. The really big “hey!” cameo moment goes to Desmond Llewelyn, beloved as Q in the James Bond movies. Soft Targets is a throughly intriguing espionage thriller with emphasis on the mindgames instead of bullets. This could have easily had a fine run in art house theaters.

Helen Mirren at the BBC is an amazing treasure chest of her work. Here’s nine performances that remind us that she didn’t just appear out of the blue to star in Prime Suspect and win an Oscar for The Queen. She has always been a leading English actress for her generation. For those who enjoy Helen from Caligula and The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, you’ll be pleased when she unleashes her uptight English ways and goes wild. Be warned that there is brief nudity from Mirren. This is a must buy for culture vultures.

The video is 1.33:1 full frame. The plays are transfered from video so the image is soft, but not nearly as bad as those episodes of Soap. The audio is mono. The levels are fine. The plays are Closed Captioned.

Helen Mirren Remembers (27:31) lets her discuss the nine plays featured on the set. The recent interview has Helen swear that if she was a young girl now, she’d be a Goth.

Parkinson Interview (14:55) features Helen on a BBC chat show back in 1975. She wears high heeled green boots and a shiny choker while twirling feathers in her hands. She’s dressed for a fetish party. Michael Parkinson does his best to maintain a professional demeanor, but he’s unglued by her sexuality. Helen dares to ask, “Can a serious actress have big bosoms?” She shows off her tattoo.

For those who complain about the stupidity of network programming, Helen Mirren at the BBC proves that TV can be smart. Treat yourself to a little civilization. This rates up there with The Beatles at the BBC.

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BBC Video presents Helen Mirren at the BBC. Starring: Helen Mirren, Brian Cox, Ralph Bates, Charles Gray & Ian Holms. Box set Contents: 9 plays on 5 discs. Rating: Not Rated. Released on DVD: Feb. 19, 2008. Available at Amazon.com