Rating:  -
This one is definitely for sitting in a comfy chair with a tumbler of sipping whiskey and some casew nuts and just get engrossed!
This BBC TV drama is based on British author Robert Graves's two books about the fourth Roman Emperor, Claudius I. The historical Claudius's main claim to fame was the conquest of Britain and the construction of the port of Ostia.
The British have always felt an affinity for Claudius, since it was his effort that joined Britania to the Roman Empire, so it was obvious why Graves would chose Claudius as the main character in his book.
What makes this TV series so impressive is that Jack Pullman had basically to write a whole new story, since the books have little to no dialogue.
We shall not forget that Graves's book is fiction; Livia was not such a massmurderess in real life, and neither was Claudius always such a benevolent ruler. Then, he based his books on Tacitus and other historirians, who were aligned witht the Senatorial party and therefore had a wested interest in portraying the imperial family as negatively as possible. Neither Tiberius, nor Caligula were as insane or bad as Graves describes them.
So, how is the actual series? Just wonderful! The first few episodes take place when Augustus is Emperor, and the Empire enjoys a period of stability. However, Livia, his wife, is dead set on having her son Tiberius succeed Augustus. No one must stand in his way. Slowly but surely she removes all "obstacles". Claudius survives, barely, partly because he is considered harmless, and partly since there is a prophesy that he will one day save Rome.
The series gathers speed when Tiberius ascends to the throne. Old, unwilling, bitter, and corrupted he hands over the reigns to the ambitious Sejanus (played by a young Patrick Stewart, no less!). Where Livia was patient and discreet, the new powers are clumsy and brusque. The situation cannot hold and everything slowly but surely descend into bloodbath. From here on the series is possibly the bloodiest and most depraved that has ever been shown on TV, quality TV that is.
The acting is generally superb: Patrick Stewart as the scheming Sejnaus, John Hurt as the perverted and insane Caligula (at the same time funny and scary!), and Derek Jacoby as the infirm and bookish Claudius. We must remember that this is television theatre, so that the sets, while lavish, are somewhat stylistic, and the acting a bit stiff and formal. There are no outside or crowd sequences.
Production standards have probably advanced, but storytelling and acting have definitely not! For sheer powerful storytelling this series could easily run cirlces around anything that is produced today. It can be seen several times without loosing its impact.
Rating:  -
I have mixed feelings about this series. I didn't purchase a boxed set but recently collected the series in 13 separate episodes as an extra from a leading Greek daily newspaper. With the initial episode disc the paper had a special glossy four-page supplement describing the historical setting and the main dramatis personae as well as a very useful imperial family chart. This made up for the lack of supplementary disc material. The quality was excellent with no signs of ghosting, it could have been shot in 2000,the colour definition was so good. Sound quality was also good. Unfortunately I couldn't get rid of the Greek subtitles ,which happily were in relatively small type but still annoying.
I read the two-volume Robert Graves novel in the paperback Penguin classic series about twenty years ago. The book had its dull moment as well as the series. I agree the acting was superb with some of Britain's finest, especially the villainess Livia, wife of Caesar Augustus and grandmother of Claudius. even the numerous child actors and actresses performed very well indeed. I suppose my only snide comment on the other wise brilliant acting is that ancient Romans are portrayed as middle-class Brits where even Caesar Augustus has a home counties accent.
While the studio sets are lavish and convincing it is seemingly a low budget production. In the TV series not once do you see a Roman mounted on a horse or even an ass. Even crowds at the arena are only hinted at by their noise. This is a pity because some epic action is described in the book such as the massacre of Varo's legions in the forests of barbaric Germany. I hope that somebody, maybe Peter Jackson or a director with similar skills, decides to produce an updated theatre version bringing in some of the action described in the book but missing from the series. Nevertheless, anyone with an interest in Roman history at a critical point in time will enjoy this aging series and eve the great unwashed who relished the TV series , "The Sopranos", may understand what is going on, although they may be confused about who is who and who is related to whom.
Rating: -
A classic TV production from the BBC, "I, Claudius" based on Robert Graves novels first appeared in 1976. Derek Jacobi appears as Claudius who ascends to power in Rome through the treachery of Livia (Sian Phillips)the scheming wife of Augustus (Brian Blessed). The top notch cast, script by writer Jack Pulman and direction by Herbert Wise make this one of the finest and most memorable productions aired during the 70's.
The transfer looks fine but the source videotape is nearly 30 years old. The videotape has faded significantly with age and Image and Fox used the best available source tape that they had the rights to for this production. The mono sound is muffled and probably should have been cleaned up and the signal boosted but, overall, the quality of the DVDs are actually pretty good (by comparsion take a look at the 80's version of "The Twilight Zone" which had an even worse original source tape). I actually don't feel as if the image quality deserves 1 star although it could have been improved along with sound. Each DVD has three episodes of the series. I can't compare it to the UK re-release for image quality but keep in mind that there's only so much restoration that can be done to videotape this old. Unfortunately, the BBC didn't have the budget to shoot the series on film.
The last disc includes a 71 minute documentary produced in 1965 about the ill fated production of "I Claudius" that producer Alexander Korda started (with Josef Von Sternberg at the helm as director)in 1937. The beautiful production design for the unfinished film isevident in every frame. There's a significant amount of footage that survived (and that Von Sternberg cut as he was shooting the film)and that's presented. Charles Laughton's performance has its moments but it's clear he didn't quite have a handle on the role. Reportedly, he had a number of tandrums during production and Korda used the car accident of Merle Oberon as an excuse to cancel the film despite the large sum of money already spent on the film. What's really fun about the footage is that it's not as fragmentary as one would suspect. Hosted and narrated by the late Dirk Bogarde and featuring interviews surviving cast & crew, it's a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes of what could have been a classic film if not for the misfortunes of the production.
Despite the minor drawbacks of the source videotape, this production is worthwhile to view. It's a pity that we don't have more extras with this set but what we do get is magnificent.
Rating: -
Think history is boring? Think again! I Claudius is proof that an educational film can also be one of the most popular and entertaining series ever produced. A 1976 mini-series, starring many of the best known theatrical performers of its day, I Claudius is one of, if not the, greatest productions chronicling the history of the Roman Empire. Covering the period from the later years of Augustus's rule as the first emperor of Rome to the death of Emperor Claudius, I Claudius takes a look at the social and political underpinnings and developments of the Roman Empire through the eyes of Claudius, an often overlooked member of the emperor's family. An epic in the true sense of the word, I Claudius should be on every film buff's viewing list...
A young male connected to the family line of Emperor Augustus, Claudius suffers from a strange limp and an odd stutter which make him appear to be a simple-minded youth. But Claudius maintains a keen intellect, and he observes the events around him with meticulous precision. As the end of Augustus's long reign as emperor nears its end, the ruler is in desperate search of an heir. But what he doesn't know is that his wife Livia is determined to see her son from a previous marriage, Tiberius, ascend to the throne. As such, Livia will stop at nothing to murder and ruin those who stand in the way - such as far more noble and deserving heir Germanicus. Through drowning, poisoning, and less subtle means, she insures Tiberius becomes the next in the line of succession...
Meanwhile, Claudius observes from the shadows as the ambitious Sejanus (Patrick Stewart) conspires to obtain the throne and the infamous Caligula rises to power. When his relative is murdered because of his terrible reign of insanity, Claudius is thrust upon the throne, and he attempts to rule with a firm hand of justice and restore the republic to its rightful place of power...
Wrought with suspense, I Claudius will make its viewers question how any human survived the era known as the ancient Roman Empire. The murders, double-crossings, and various affairs seem to be drawn from a fictional paperback found on drugstore shelves - not in the pages of a history book. But I Claudius stays true to the written account of Roman Emperor Claudius who wrote his memoirs during the few years of his reign as the supreme leader of the greatest empire ever to exist on Earth. The result is a story more intriguing than any book or film since produced...
With superb theatrical performances by the entire cast (including Patrick Stewart as Sejanus), I Claudius is an engrossing storyline about the true-to-life people and events that shaped the history of ancient Rome. Like the popular prime-time soap opera Dallas, viewers are drawn to the intrigue surrounding the various characters without even realizing they're learning history in the process! Given its historical accuracy, brilliant dialogue, and ingenious performances, I Claudius ranks as a definite must-see series of films. In fact, one of the top five best of all time...
The DVD Report
Rating: -
I am sorry that I am repeating a title for this review that someone else used, but I like it so much. This is one of the very finest series ever made for television. Some people feel that the lack of music detracts from it, but I feel it makes the acting seem more intense, since no one except the actor is manipulating your feelings as you watch it. It also creates a more somber mood than I find in other programs that do have a musical track. Some people feel the sets are too limited, but I feel they are beautiful and sumptuous, and they again add to the intensity of what we are seeing. The costumes, like in all the 1970's BBC historical dramas are beautiful as well.
As for the actors, frankly my two favorites are Brian Blessed as Augustus and (no surprise) John Hurt as Caligula (Derek Jacobi is great also, but I am attracted to the others more). Blessed plays Augustus as a basically well-meaning, genial man, almost making us forget that he was the most powerful man in the Western World and he rubbed out a lot of people on the way to the top. John Hurt is effeminate, rapacious and cruel all at the same time.
Although Robert Graves wrote the books in the 1920's, his political message is quite relevant today. He points out how a generation of seemingly idealistic, family-oriented, heroic figures such as Drusus, Germanicus, Livia's first husband, and even Augustus give way to corrupt, degenerate rulers, with the acceptance of the people. The Romans, who at one time had a republic and an abhorrence of hereditary monarchy, voluntarily give up their freedom and become indifferent to the debaucheries of their rulers. Sounds something like the bureaucratic dictatorship of the European Union which is taking away more and more freedoms from the people, and like a couple of Presidents of the US in fairly recent history who turned the White House in to a brothel.
My favorite scene is the one where Claudius and his mother Antonio give gladiatorial games in memory of Drusus. Here we see the bloody, barbaric side of so-called Roman "civilization" as Claudius' sister Livilla, dressed as a genteel Roman matron, is screaming to one of the gladiators "kill him!, kill him!". There is the unforgettable scene just before the games where Livia is addressing the gladiators "You're all scum and you know it!" and she tells them something to the effect "these games are being degraded by the use deceptive techniques in order to stay alive!" Priceless.
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