The English countryside is perceived as a calm place. A land where the simple ways of life are embraced between tea times. It’s a pastoral scene of country manors, fox hunts and sheep. Or is it? Midsomer Murders dares to show that the police in a sleepy part of the world are kept busy. There’s no such things as a humdrum homicide for DCI John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) and DS Ben Jones (John Hughes). Midsomer Murders: Set 23 features three movie length mysteries that are as complicated as big city crimes.
“The Dark Rider” is the English version of the Headless Horseman. Two families with neighboring castles have been feuding for quite a few centuries. This is more than an argument over a “borrowed” lawnmower. In the middle of the night, a headless horseman arrives at the DeQuettevilles’ estate causing an elderly family member to take a nasty tumble. The Fleetwoods aren’t too concerned. They mainly want to bet property on an altered outcome for a historical reenactment battle. Barnaby and Jones are kept busy since the Horseman keeps riding around to claim more family members. Whose family is behind this severed spirit? One of the suspects has a familiar face. James Callis gets to play two DeQuetteville brothers. He’s best known in America as Gaius Baltar on the remake of Battlestar Galactica. He gives two different performance and makes us think both guys might be guilty.
“Murder of Innocence” releases a murderer from prison who swears he was railroaded. Grady Felton supposedly killed a landowner’s son when he was caught poaching. He wants revenge on those that screwed him. When both his lawyer and the prosecutor turn up dead, he’s a major suspect. But he does have alibis. Barnaby has his hands full as he investigates the recent homicides while reviewing Felton’s original conviction. Is this all a plot against the guy to get him back in to prison? Or is there something more sinister lurking in Midsomer?
“Death and the Divas” lets Barnaby enjoy himself at a film festival dedicated to an actress who made Hammer Horror films (although not called them in the episode). This isn’t a getaway weekend. Nearby a writer working on a book about the actress and her more famous sister is offed. Barnaby must solve a mystery that more complicated as the murderer uses scenes from the sisters’ movies to inspire his homicides.
Midsomer Murders is addictive viewing. A viewer is lured in by the quaint countryside. But very quickly the intrigue of a killer on the loose makes the time pass quickly. The episodes are feature films so that the action doesn’t have to be rushed. There is time to soak in the sights of Midsomer that exist beyond the police tape and chalk outlines. The episodes are also set up so a new viewer won’t feel lost.
The video is 1.78:1. The transfers bring out the details in the rural shoots. The audio is Dolby Digital stereo. You’ll hear all the joys of a murder in the countryside. The movies are subtitled.
Audio Commentary on “The Dark Rider” with Neil Dudgeon and director Alex Pillai. They speak a lot about working with an actor playing brothers.
Behind the Scenes (15:44) takes us into “Death And the Divas.” They deal with recreating the Hammer Horror. They used a lot of smoke machines.
Midsomer Murders: Set 23 brings another trio of mysteries from the sleepy English countryside. Rarely have crime scenes been so well mannered.
Acorn Media presents Midsomer Murders: Set 23. Starring: Neil Dudgeon, Jason Hughes and Fiona Dolman. Boxset Contents: 3 Episodes on 3 DVDs. Released: February 4, 2014.
