Reilly - Ace of Spies
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DVD details
Actor: Hugh Fraser, Michael Bryant, Norman Rodway, Sam Neill, Tom BellDirector: |
Brand: A&E
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Box set, Color, Dolby, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 630 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-02-22
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: A&E Home Video
Product features:
- At the turn of the 20th century, one remarkable man single-handedly tried to alter the course of history. Cold, ruthless, enigmatic, this Russian-born British agent radically transformed modern espionage techniques and set the mold for a new kind of secret agent-the super spy. Reilly: Ace Of Spies is the thrilling, suspenseful dramatization of the real-life adventures of Agent ST-1, aka Sidney Rei
DVD Reviews of Reilly - Ace of Spies
DVD Review: The best spy series I have ever seen.
Summary: 5 Stars
Reilly - Ace of Spies is the best extended series of spy films ever made, in my opinion, for many reasons.
First, the cast of this twelve episode story is uniformly excellent beginning with Sam Neil as Sidney Reilly, a Russian born jew named Sigismund Rosenblum, who goes to work for the British Secret Service and takes the name Reilly because he thinks the Irish are well accepted all over the world. And Reilly travels over much of the world doing the dirty work of the British government. Neil brings complexity to his role as an agent who believes the end justifies the means. Machiavelli would be pleased with Neil's performance.
Leo McKern as Basil Zaharov, an arms dealer with morals similar to Reilly's and ability almost the equal of Reilly, is the best of an outstanding supporting cast. McKern is superb throughout the series. Zaharov goes head to head with Reilly and their conflicts result in many dramatic and surprising encounters.
Next is Tom Bell as Felix Dzerzhinsky, head of the Russian secret police at the beginning of the Russian Revolution of 1917. Bell is totally convincing as he deals first with Lenin, in a fine performance by Kenneth Cranham, and then Stalin, played by David Burke. Dzerzhinsky loves Lenin, hates Stalin, and respects Reilly, his nemesis and more than his equal. Reilly wants to overthrow Lenin and put himself in Lenin's place. He almost succeeds.
Norman Rodway and Peter Egan are both convincing as Reilly's control officers in the British Secret Service. Spying is a nasty business and we are never sure who will betray whom.
Women, particulary Reilly's wives, played by Jeananne Crowley, wife #1, Celia Gregory, #2, and Laura Davenport, #3, play a supporting role to the ace of spies, but each wife figures prominently in the ongoing story. All give effective performances.
2. A short biography of Sidney Reilly is presented as the final presentation on Disc #4. It is apparent that the producers have stayed fairly close to historical fact. Even without the history lesson the story stands on its own merits and is totally engrossing and genuinely entertaining. I planned to watch two episodes at a time, but often found myself playing a third episode to find out what would happen next, and then watching the scenes from the next installment to wet my appetite for the next show. The only films I have seen that compare favorably with The Ace of Spies are Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Smiley's People. I must admit that Alec Guiness, as George Smiley, is a better actor than Sam Neil, but I think the Ace of Spies series is at least as good as the Smiley stories, with the added benefit of much more history delivered in the Ace series. Reilly - Ace of Spies is a great story from beginning to end.
3. The production values of this series are excellent. It feels like we have been transported in time to the first 25 years of the 20th Century. From the offices of the Secret Service in London, to Port Arthur on the Russian Pacific Coast, to St. Petersburg, Moscow, Paris, etc., attention has been paid to the smallest detail. These films look and feel like a big budget production.
4. The only negative reviews of Ace of Spies on Amazon relate to the DVD transfer, which was just good enough not to spoil the show for me. Unless the viewer is especially particular about the quality of DVD transfer, I recommend Reilly - Ace of Spies heartily. This is high quality entertainment from beginning to end.
Description of Reilly - Ace of Spies
Studio: A&e Home Video Release Date: 02/22/2005 Run time: 630 minutesBestsellers in DVD
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