Rebecca

I remember seeing this on the TV when it first came out as a teenager and have never forgotten it. However as I have got older I remember it as a film and not a series, either way it was brilliant and Joanna David was the perfect casting as the young Mrs De Winter and Anna Massey is perfect as the housekeeper - Mrs Danvers - I remember her being very scary! The house it was filmed at was amazing and really set the scene for this fantastic programme. I only wish it was available on video or DVD as I would love to see it again. Throughly recommend it to anyone.

This film contains three superb performances, and it really is a shame that it is not available on video.

Anna Massey, Jeremy Brett, and Joanna David are a wonderful team of actors who bring a great deal of depth to their roles. David has the most difficult job; her character is so self effacing we never even know her name. She is meek without seeming stupid, and perfectly captures the body language of a very young girl.

Anna Massey is a terrifying Mrs. Danvers and is never more sinister than when she is smiling. She did 'everything' for her late mistress, and we get the impression that she was in fact in love with the title character. Massey's original take on this character has influenced all subsequent portrayals. She also resembles an Edward Gorey drawing in her bleak black costume.

Jeremy Brett is all burning eyes and barely-suppressed rage as Max. The character gradually progresses from a vaguely sinister, sardonic figure to a hunted man who finally appreciates his second wife's devotion. This is a fine portrayal by a wonderful actor and it is an excellent complement to his similarly superb portrayal of Sherlock Holmes.

This film has the usual high production values of a British adaptation, and has the sense to use the music of Claude Debussy on the soundtrack instead of some dated 'horror music' that often mars Seventies films.

All supporting cast members are excellent. My criticism is that the show is a trifle long; the Manderley ball and the visit to Max's grandmother do not really need to be portrayed at this length. The ending is, if anything, even more ambiguous than the ending of the novel It would be a wonderful thing to have this title back in print.

I wish this show was available on video. It perfectly catches the spirit--and leisurely pace--of the novel, which might not to be to the taste of the MTV-cut-watching public, but I think it still has great acting and excellent direction to recommend it.

All the principals are excellent. They have to be, since nothing happens for so long the interaction between the characters is the main 'action' in the film, and it's all rather compactly staged despite some spectacular locations. The production does not date--thankfully, no one tried to 'update' the women's fashions and the music, a major pitfall in shows from this time, is all based on Debussy.

Anna Massey is a terrifying and sadistic Mrs. Danvers, Joanna David is perfectly cast as the clueless heroine (she's pitiful without seeming stupid, no mean feat), and Jeremy Brett is brilliant in showing the past hurts of an essentially selfish and cruel hero, entirely with his facial expressions.

This Rebecca unfolds the same way Du Maurier wrote her novel. In fact when Gene Shalit hosted this showing on Mystery he told how Ms. Du Maurier had commented it was the truest telling of her book. Yet that isn't what compels the viewer; it's Jeremy Brett as Maxim, Joanna David as the second Mrs. DeWinter, poor dear who has no first name, and Anna Massey as Mrs. Danvers. Julian Holloway is wonderful as Favell. The entire cast is flawless. The sets are as you would picture Manderly. Truly you go back to Manderly again...

Really, I'd love to see this once more, then over and over again. Please whomever has the power to bring this to DVD, do it. New fans will flock to this best version of Rebecca.

I remember watching this in serial form on public television with my wife and then 10 year old son. We were mesmerized by it. While the Hitchcock version is terrific, we all wish we could obtain a video of this TV version. Diana Riggs' version was a disappointment...perhaps because we kept comparing it with the Hitchcock version and with our memory of this version.