Henrik Ibsen Collection (6pc) (Dig Gift) [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Very happy with item

I am unable to play this DVD on my system as it is only valid in the USA

OK....a formidable collection of top-notch productions of plays by the undisputed master of mid-19th century drama. The 'latest' production here is a 1992 'Doll's House' with Trevor Eve and Juliet Stevenson...the earliest is a fifties 'Master Builder' with Donald Wolfit. Inbetween we get Eileen Atkins in 'Lady From The Sea', Hopkins and Rigg superb in a great production of 'Little Eyolf', an 'interesting' (ie, not totally satisfactory) updating o 'Enemy Of The People' to 1970s Scotland and Judi Dench in 'Ghosts'. Also included are a good cross-section of radio plays, the earliest being Ralph Richardson in a war-time 'Peer Gynt' broadcast and included are the rarely seen 'Pretenders' and never-seen 'Emperor And Galilean'.What more could we want, you might think? Well, 'Hedda Gabler', one of Ibsen's supreme works is represented only by a black and white version featuring a somewhat too old and miscast (but by no means bad) Ingrid Bergman. The BBC possesses stronger versions of this play, particularly the 1972 version with Janet Suzman (though I imagine that Ian McKellen's presence in that probably made it too expensive to licence), but even the 1993 'Oirish' version with Fiona Shaw might have made a more intersting choice (or - better yet - supplement).Most of these productions are studio-bound and younger viewers may find some of the archive performances a bit 'stagey' - this is not something that bothers me, though. But why hasn't this set has a Region 2 release? The R1 forces you to sit through an interminable ad for 'BBC America', which you can't bypass.Those caveats aside, though, this is a bargain and one which no fan of Ibsen should pass up!

This too expensive for most pockets. Shame it looks a good and interesting collection. I would buy it if it was less than half the advertised price.

Henrik Ibsen Collection (Hedda Gabler / Ghosts / Little Eyolf / The Wild Duck / The Master Builder)A wonderful collection of definitive performances of great plays, unobtainable in the U.K. 8 radio plays included. These performances by casts including Michael Redgrave,Judi Dench, Anthony Hopkins, Diana Rigg will never be bettered. Beautifully spoken and understood. The producers really know their Ibsen and bring out all Ibsen's subtle ironies and nuances. Alas, the BBC do not produce such great plays any more: very wise for any true theatre-lover to grab this collection while it is available. I have been studying Ibsen for 40 years; these productions are the culmination of my `Ibsen experience'. I know all the plays intimately; very few moments in these productions jar. Faithful period detail and costume: characters and background look convincingly `Victorian': contemporary productions (which are rare anyway) invariably make Hedda, Nora, Gina etc. look as if they've just walked in off the streets of New York or London, let alone Oslo. Seeing them actually prompted me book a Eurostar train to Oslo to visit the Ibsen Museum. Michael Meyer translations are relatively faithful: again, contemporary versions make the language much too chatty and contemporary.Richard Camp, Brecon, UK.

Some of these discs I've played once. Now none will load. I was able to replace the Judy Dench Ghosts elsewhere but the other plays are not available outside of this collection. Do not purchase this set unless you like going to the horse races or at least can watch all the plays within the time period specified for returns. My disappointment knows no bounds.

Excellent portrayals! It would be nice to have a more modern series, and a more complete series. Radio plays are not representative of Ibsen's time, and the 8 audio plays should be interpreted on film. It is very difficult to obtain a complete body of work. Plays do not seem to have a great following on DVD. But, what this collection does provide is a wonderful introduction to a truly great playwright.

I bought two used sets of this series, one sold as "good" and another "like new" and about half of the discs in each set had defects.It's not completely the fault of the resellers, they don't have time to test all their movies. This series obviously had manufacturing defects and bad discs have found their way into the used market.It is easy to do returns, so it's just the matter of the wasted time if you want to take a chance.edit: another reviewer said she had problems on the three discs with Ghosts, Enemy of the People, and The Master Builder. Both of my sets had problems with these three discs. So test these three discs first, that's where the manufacturing problem is popping up.

If you are looking for a lot of action, this is NOT it.If you want something you will probably remember in that it makes you think, if you love plays, and if you don't mind slow-going, thoughtful plots, you may enjoy this collection.My own conclusion is that watching them, I didn't think I liked them very much, until the end of each one. The next day, the plot was in my mind, which rarely happens with other things I watch. That tells me these were masterfully done and did what they were intended to do. They made me think. The ending is never what I thought it might be. The characters are played by actors' actors.I can see that back before we all spent so much time in front of our televisions, the slow pace would have been appropriate, even necessary. Today it's just a little more difficult to slow my own pace down so I can enjoy a collection like this. These are not really my cup of tea, but they may be exactly what you are looking for.