Father Brown

Kenneth More plays father Brown in this series based on G. K. Chesterton's books. I cannot tell you how close this comes to the books themselves as I have not read them yet.

Each episode is a complete story in itself where we meet the characters, build up the mystery, try to second-guess father Brown, and wrap up in the end. The ending of his stories is not that neatly wrapped as he usually leaves it to the culprit to do the right thing.

Dennis Burgess plays Hercule Flambeau (Father Brown's friend); he is advertised throughout the DVD but does not show up for several episodes.

I have to admit that several times on my first viewing I had them stop and think about where I have seen the actor(s) before.

As with many series, there are guest actors. Some of the guest actors show once and others are peppered throughout the series.

The quality of each story varies widely so there will be some favorites and some duds depending on what you want to see. The production itself looks quite inexpensive and locations and production sets. The quality of the recording leaves something to be desired; I am not sure if it is the original recording or the media. In any case, you will be so wrapped up in the story that you will care about the production quality.

If, like my wife and myself, you have run through the BBC's various Christie series, these are a good find. They are a bit dated, but I prefer a good story to a click production. More is an excellent Father Brown, soft-spoken, witty, but sharp and persistent.

These stories are from a bit earlier in the mystery genre than most adaptations, and this dates the series as much as the productions. Chesterfield's stories tend to be more "howdunit" than "whodunit", with the focus less on the characters than on the murder itself. This can be a problem, at times, but it can be very good, especially when combined with good characters.

These TV series are poorly made. I do not mean the technical side, with respect to age of the series and TV format it could be considered satisfiable.

I mean, actors' playing is bad almost for all of them. Sometimes the plot lines are vague and characters are unbelievable.

May be, one of the strong sides is that acting doesn't always look like theatrical performance. We get some interesting views and interiors.

I am not a good reader, so I've considered to watch this version. And I've got nothing. I couldn't assemble the plot, I can't understand the clerical point of view, I do not believe in acting. Just a few personal features and authors statements are well pronounced.

I wouldn't keep this historical TV production in my archive.

The 1974 version of G. K. Chesterson's Father Brown is chef's kiss aesthetically and intellectually. I have seen a few episodes of the 2000s remake, which is brightly lit and has a certain middle class sensibility compared to the mysterious darkness of this series, and that 21st century revamp is flat, bland and twee - like it was literally dumbed down for Americans. The 1970s original is magnificent BBC drama, replete with claustrophobic smoking parlours, be-wigged barristers in stuffy court rooms and delightful ornate antique light fixtures.

The Father Dowling Mysteries were an Americanized and modernized attempt at the original 1920s Chesterson books, and are for all intents and purposes absolute moronic trash in comparison (unless you were eight years old in 1989).

But this THIS is art and I am delighted that numerous episodes are available on streaming. Highly recommended to serious mystery fans.

It was quite difficult for ATV to adapt the short stories of Father Brown by G.K Chesterton in the manner in which they were written. This is due to the fact that some of the original stories don't contain enough plot to make a 50 minute episode. The writers of the series are to be congratulated and the leading performance from Kenneth More effectively demonstrates that he was a more versatile actor than one realizes. He is truly cast against type and rises to the challenge tremendously. It is true that the production values aren't exactly state of the art but for sheer storytelling, this 1974 version of "Father Brown" is worthy of repeated viewing.