Dandelion Dead
by Mike Hodges
Our Price: $36.50
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $9.89 (click here)
Category: DVD
See more DVD details
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
DVD details
Actor: David Thewlis, Lesley Sharp, Michael Kitchen, Peter Vaughan, Sarah MilesDirector: Mike Hodges
Brand: Warner Brothers
Cinematographer: Gerry Fisher
Editor: Malcolm Cooke
Producer: Patrick Harbinson
Producer: Sarah Wilson
Writer: Michael Chaplin
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 203 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-08-27
Audience Rating: Unrated
Model: 91844
Studio: Hbo Home Video
Product features:
- England, 1921. The serenity of a small country town is about to be shattered by a shockiing revelation about one of its leading citizens. A family will be ruined. A private matter will become a case of great public interest. Life seems good for Major Herbert Armstrong. he is a respected solicitor with a country estate, the love of his three children and a dvout pride in both his life and his garde
DVD Reviews of Dandelion Dead
DVD Review: Riveting True Crime Drama
Summary: 4 Stars
Spoiler alert:
This is a two part movie. We watched the first part yesterday and the second part this evening. It was riveting from start to finish. The first part really reels the viewer in with the gorgeous scenery, charming atmosphere, lovely costumes, and English gents saying "Jolly good" and "Cheerio". What fun! However, the plot is quite a bit darker which is why the film is so good. Set against this beautiful backdrop, the charming Herbert Armstrong decides to murder his wife. And, even though I am always one to side with the victims rather than the perpetrator, this is one time I would say the wife had it coming.
Oh, she was horrible! And, he was just wonderful. She was rude, unloving, and seemed to only have her self-interest at heart. When he'd make overtures to her to talk about their issues she'd rebuff him in the nastiest way possible. He wasn't milquetoast, though-- he seemed to have quite a bit of depth under that placid demeanor. She actually had the nerve to interrupt him at a tennis tournament to tell him to get home for dinner and that it was his bath night!
(This movie is based on true events and, from what I've read on other sites (look up Major Herbert Armstrong), the depictions of these characters were very true to life.)
Consequently, we empathize with Armstrong and don't mind when she drinks her arsenic-laced tea and cocoa. It's exciting to see Armstrong come out of his shell and be actually happy (while she's ill) because we've grown to care about HIM and understand how horrible the wife made his life and the children's lives.
In the second part, though, we change our minds completely about Herbert. He's no longer just a charming happy guy freed from living with an evil shrew-- he's now selfish and unscrupulous. Realizing what an easy time he had killing his wife, he now considers murder as an option for dealing with his business rival.
Had he not attempted this other crime, he would have gotten away with his wife's murder.
I don't usually like true crime films. This falls into the genre, I guess, but it's really a wonderful drama. Michael Kitchen (Foyle's War, To Play the King) is very versatile-- much more than I realized. Everyone in this was just excellent, as was the script and direction.
By the end, the viewer really does want Armstrong to get his comeuppance, but the entire chain of events is so very sad. There are no happy endings for anyone.
The disc has few extras-- bios of the main cast and a little silly quiz.
ADDENDUM: I recently read The Hay Poisoner by Martin Beales. Beales believes Armstrong is innocent and presents evidence to attempt to prove his case. If you really liked this movie and are interested in this case, you might want to read that book, as well. It was also published under the title Dead Not Buried. But, both titles are the exact same book.
Description of Dandelion Dead
England 1921. The serenity of a small country town is about to be shattered by a shockiing revelation about one of its leading citizens. A family will be ruined. A private matter will become a case of great public interest. Life seems good for Major Herbert Armstrong. he is a respected solicitor with a country estate the love of his three children and a dvout pride in both his life and his garden. But every landscape has its challenges - and so does every life. In Herbert's otherwise pristine garden it's a bad case of dandelions. In his life the problems are twofold. Firstly thre's his wife. Katharine has become bad-termpered and domineering not in the least afraid to shame Herbert in public. Then there's the business. A series of unfortuante financial arrangements and the arrival in town of Oswald Martin a young ambitious rival has turned Henry's good fortune upside down. The solution to the dandelion problem is straightforward: small delicately placed servings of Arsenic will see an end to them. But what is Herbert to do about his nagging wife and the upstart Oswald.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA UPC: 026359184420Bestsellers in DVD
![The Story of Jeremiah [VHS] Image](/images/noimg.gif)
The Story of Jeremiah [VHS]Vision Video; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Wresting With God [VHS]by Vision Video
Vision Video; Published: 1990-10-01; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
Study Bible Video with Workbook [VHS]Spring Arbor Distributors; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $7.95
Price in other shops:
Tempo:Childrens TV Favourites Video [VHS]HarperCollins Audio; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $9.17
Price in other shops:
Tempo.Herbs:Parseley'Sb/ Party Video [VHS]HarperCollins Audio; VHS Tape; VHS Video
![Strike the Original Match [VHS] Image](/images/Strike-the-Original-Match-VHS-0001374079-X.jpg)
Strike the Original Match [VHS]New Liberty Films; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
![Medjugorje The Miracles and the Message [VHS] Image](/images/Medjugorje-The-Miracles-and-the-Message-VHS-0001373293-X.jpg)
Medjugorje The Miracles and the Message [VHS]JPN Film Production; Release date: 1995-12-15; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $29.99
Mayo Clinic Echocardiography Review Course for Boards and Recertification DVD 2008by Mayo
DVD
Price in other shops:
Pediatric Diagnostic Imaging DVD: Single Userby Oakstone
DVD
Price in other shops:
Cost Accounting [VHS]by Charles T. Horngren, George Foster, Srikant M. Datar, Howard Teall
Pearson Canada, Toronto; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Similar DVDs, VHS Video, Audio CDs
Garrow's Law: Series OneAcorn; Release date: 2011-02-01; DVD
Best price: $23.83
Price in other shops:
House of Cards Trilogy (House of Cards / To Play the King / The Final Cut)Warner Brothers; Release date: 2003-08-26; DVD
Best price: $19.99
Price in other shops:
Foyle's War: Series 1-5 - From Dunkirk to VE-DayAcorn; Release date: 2009-09-29; DVD
Best price: $72.99
Price in other shops:
Foyle's War: Set SixAcorn; Release date: 2010-06-01; DVD
Best price: $31.97
Price in other shops:
Mrs. DallowayFirst Look Pictures; Release date: 2004-05-25; DVD
Best price: $4.96
Price in other shops:
FallingBFS ENT and Multimedia Limi; Release date: 2006-02-28; DVD
Best price: $14.84
Price in other shops:
The Hanging GaleAcorn; Release date: 2006-02-21; DVD
Best price: $25.74
Price in other shops:
RecklessPBS; Release date: 2004-06-01; DVD
Best price: $17.91
Price in other shops:
The GuiltyAcorn; Release date: 2011-01-04; DVD
Best price: $23.96
Price in other shops:
MobileAcorn; Release date: 2008-10-07; DVD
Best price: $8.46
Price in other shops: