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Yes, Minister: The Complete Collection
Genre | Classics, Comedy |
Format | Multiple Formats, Box set, NTSC, Color, Closed-captioned |
Contributor | Derek Fowlds, Paul Eddington, Nigel Hawthorne |
Language | English |
Number Of Discs | 4 |
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Product Description
Product Description
Yes Minister: The Complete Collection (DVD) In an unlikely chain of events, Jim Hacker emerges as the most viable candidate for his party's next Prime Minister. Now that he gets his own car and driver, a nice house in London, a place in the country, endless publicity and a pension for life, what more does he want? Bernard: I think he wants to govern Britain. Sir Humphrey: Well, stop him, Bernard! Named o of the Top Ten TV programs of all time by the British Film Institute, this brilliantly observed comedy of manners pits the well-meaning Prime Minister Jim Hacker against the machinations of the Cabinet Secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby, in the ultimate political marriage of inconvenience. Paul Eddington (Good Neighbors) stars as Jim Hacker and Academy Award nominee Nigel Hawthorne (The Madness of King George) first drew wide notice in the role of Sir Humphrey Appleby.
Amazon.com
The elegant sitcom-cum-farce-cum-sophisticated political satire Yes, Minister sets off Paul Eddington's Jim Hacker, Minister for Administrative Affairs, against Nigel Hawthorne's discreetly obstructive civil servant Sir Humphrey. The pilot episode, "Open Government," is curious in that it contains opening and closing credits different from and distinctly inferior to the rest of the series. You also sense that Mrs. Hacker was originally intended to have a larger role, with comedy focusing on the clash between political and domestic commitments, until the writers wisely decided to focus on the stand-off between Jim and Sir Humphrey, with Derek Fowlds's mousy private secretary Bernard making occasional interjections.
While Sir Humphrey is at times a little too sinister for sitcom consumption, all the series' classic features quickly show up: Hacker's occasional Churchillian bombast, followed by panicky double takes when flummoxed, and Sir Humphrey's unflappable verbosity as he brings the dead weight of civil service bureaucracy to bear against Hacker's naively optimistic schemes for open government and slashing red tape in episodes like "The Economy Drive." It's ironic that when Yes, Minister was first screened in the '80s, it was during the rampages of early Thatcherism in which government had never been less like the ineffectual politicking satirized here. --David Stubbs
Product details
- Aspect Ratio : 1.33:1
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Product Dimensions : 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 4.16 ounces
- Item model number : 3Videos
- Media Format : Multiple Formats, Box set, NTSC, Color, Closed-captioned
- Run time : 10 hours and 13 minutes
- Release date : September 27, 2005
- Actors : Paul Eddington, Nigel Hawthorne, Derek Fowlds
- Language : English (Dolby Digital 2.0), Unqualified
- Studio : BBC Home Entertainment
- ASIN : B00008DP4B
- Number of discs : 4
- Best Sellers Rank: #54,886 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #6,385 in Comedy (Movies & TV)
- Customer Reviews:
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"Yes, Minister" mines the English language's large and curious vocabulary to great comedic effect. The characters' sparring and obfuscation are all verbal. I can't imagine how many takes it took to make some of Sir Humphrey's tongue-twisting dialogue intelligible. "Yes, Minister" produced more memorable one-liners than I could count.
Writers Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn have assured their place in comedic history. "Yes, Minister" was the favorite television program of Margaret Thatcher while she was Prime Minister of Great Britain. In her words, "Its closely observed portrayal of what goes on in the corridors of power has given me hours of poor joy." She's not the only one. "Yes, Minister" is laugh-out-loud funny and a sure cure for the blahs brought on by a depressing political climate. If you can't beat'em, laugh at them.
The DVDs: "Yes, Minister" originally ran in three series, one per year with 7 episodes in each. They are not arranged on the DVDs in this way, however. Disc 1 includes episodes 1-6. Disc 2 is episodes 7-12. Disc 3 contains episodes 13-18, Disc 4 includes episodes 19-21 and a handful of bonus features: "Sir Nigel Hawthorne Remembered" is a 42-minute documentary about the late actor's life and career, produced in 1999. There are interviews with colleagues, and Sir Nigel talks about his childhood in South Africa and his personal as well as professional life. In "A Short History of Yes, Minister" (5 minutes) writers Jonathan Lynn and Anthony Jay comment on the basis of the show. There is a 1981 BBC "Jonathan Lynn Interview" (3 1/2 minutes). "The Inner Circle" provides text bios for the principle cast and writers. "Lobbyists and Bureaucrats" are text bios of actors who played supporting roles.
The U.S. video tapes for this series only included the first seven episodes of this series, so many of us will be seeing 14 "new" episodes! If you have those video tapes or have seen this show on public television, what are you waiting for? The video is of high quality and there are no gotchas; it's a wonderful set I'll keep mine for the rest of my life. If you are an anglophile who enjoys the likes of "To the Manor Born" or the Ian Richardson "House of Cards" trilogy (soon to be released on DVD as well), you will more than likely enjoy this set too. For the rest of you who have never seen this show, just know that it is an incredibly witty (though never silly) look into a well-meaning minister's (Paul Eddington) attempts to reform the civil service and an incredibly clever director of the civil service's (Sir Nigel Hawthorne) attempts to prevent any reforms. Don't let the subject matter fool you, it is never dull and will have you laughing throughout.
While there is a lengthy segment on Sir Nigel Hawthorne including an interview conducted shortly before his fatal condition was diagnosed, I wish there had been commentary on at least one of the episodes from the writers or producers (or even Derek Fowlds, who sadly is the only major surviving member of the cast) just to get a insider feel for the show. No matter; the quality of the video a great and the content is, of course, first rate.
I've checked with the BBC and the "missing" one hour "Party Games" episode, which came as a Christmas special the year after the final Yes Minister was aired, will be included on "Yes Prime Minister - The Complete Collection" scheduled for late August 2003. As this is the episode where Hacker ascends to Prime Minister and as it has never been released in the U.S., this is great news.
There are complaints by some reviewers about the "canned" laughter being annoying.....and yes, it is.
Some people have said it isn't canned laughter .....that it was taped before a live audience....but I'll bet them
50p that if it WAS, the laughter by the studio audience was prompted, and then sweetened electronically.
Personally, I prefer to supply my OWN laughter.
I must say, I missed the subtitles that are included on so many of the oldie Britcoms these days, but I can understand that the appeal of such a show
is somewhat limited and therefore not economically feasible to accommodate the hearing impaired.
Bottom line......I enjoyed it ONCE, but won't be watching it over & over as I do with so many of my British favorites.
To the Manor Born, is one that comes to mind.
Top reviews from other countries
Well: it's marvellous really. Paul Eddington may not be as endearing here as he was in 'The Good Life' (with his randy chuckle every time he pictured Briers bonking Kendall), but he's wonderful. He always was. Same goes for Nigel Hawthorne. But I really, really enjoy Derek Fowlds as the often hapless Bernard - underrated, understated.
And just to think, I used to watch him as a youngster doing his stuff with Basil Brush.
It's up there with the greats: 'Dad's Army', 'Steptoe And Son', 'Porridge', 'Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads?', 'Fawlty Towers'.
ありがとうございました。
"Yes, Minister" is a bit faded by modern standards, but still absolutely worthwhile!
This is an intelligent, extremely well-written series--a satire of the inner workings of government. Sources within the government provided the writers with all the fodder they needed, and it is highly accurate in its depiction of the corruption, politics, red tape, and manipulation that forms an integral part of the administration of government (ANY government, mind you--which is what gives this series such universal appeal). Indeed, Margaret Thatcher, herself a fan of the series, referred to it as being a "closely observed portrayal of what goes on in the corridors of power."
The series opens with Jim Hacker (played by the late Paul Eddington (Good Neighbours), who sadly died of skin cancer in 1995 at age 68), who has just won the parliamentary seat for his riding (his party has won the election), being appointed as the new Minister of Administrative Affairs. Now that he's in a position of power (or so he thinks!), Hacker has high hopes for making some positive changes--things like instituting an open government policy, linking honours to economies for civil servants, and so on. But he's thwarted at every corner by he who wields the real power--the cunning, quick-witted, hilariously verbose and extremely manipulative civil servant, Sir Humphrey Appleby--the DAA's Permanent Secretary (the late Nigel Hawthorne (The Madness of King George, Mapp & Lucia)). Lastly is Hacker's Private Secretary, Bernard Woolley (Derek Fowlds (Heartbeat)). Bernard is a likeable, pun-loving, unassuming character with conflicting loyalties. He is himself a civil servant, and though there are times when he'd like to assist Hacker in achieving his goals, he must exercise extreme caution in doing so lest Sir Humphrey find out!
DVD EXTRAS include a splendid 42-minute profile of the late Nigel Hawthorne who, having battled cancer of the pancreas for eighteen months, sadly died on Boxing Day 2001. He was 72. The profile was filmed over four months in 1999, during the period when Hawthorne was preparing to play King Lear for the RSC. The series provides a brief bio with photos and snippets of other productions in which he's been involved. Derek Fowlds, Helen Mirren (his co-star in The Madness of King George), Jimmy Perry & David Croft (writers of Dad's Army), and Trevor Bentham (Hawthorne's partner of 22 years) all provide contributions, but the vast majority are from Hawthorne himself. He touches on many of the themes which are elaborated on in his splendid autobiography entitled "Straight Face"--things like his uneasy relationship with his father and his homosexuality. The final features are "A Short History of Yes Minister" (1999) which features Fowlds, Hawthorne, and series' co-writer Jonathan Lynn (it's only 5 minutes but very informative); and a brief 3 1/2 minute interview with Jonathan Lynn from 1981. Lastly are text-based bios of the main and many supporting actors.
This lovely collection set is truly a must-have for fans of the series. It is a unique, extraordinary britcom (a personal favourite of mine!)--one that is sure to appeal to anyone who enjoys the best in British comedy. I would also, however, recommend it unhesitatingly to anyone simply looking for an intelligent, brilliantly written, and impeccably acted series--British or otherwise. Highly, HIGHLY recommended!