It has always been recognized as one of Charles Dickens's literary masterworks, but this Bleak House is now fast moving, daring, gripping television. Here is the murder mystery, the love story, the comic genius and the tantalizing scandal of the novel but, stripped of its sentimentality, we find ourselves swept along by a pulsating and edgy drama.
Out of an interminable court case spin three young people, each seaching for their place in the world. The story moves fast - swirling through a incredible array of characters from passionate young lovers, from an ice-cold aristocratic beauty to a shrewd, relentless detective - until the final thrilling climax. With a screenplay by Andrew Davies (Pride and Prejudice), Bleak House features a galaxy of major stars from feature film, television and comedy.
The BBC's 2005 production of
Bleak House, which quickly got a bare-bones North American DVD release in February 2006, is getting a new Special Edition release on
May 5th. Starring Gillian Anderson (
The X-Files), Denis Lawson (best known as "Wedge" in the original
Star Wars trilogy) and Charles Dance (
Alien³, Gosford Park), it will be available this time on both DVD ($39.98 SRP) and high defintion Blu-ray Disc ($79.98 SRP).
The new Special Edition will contain Audio Commentary, Interviews and a Photo Gallery; details on these extras are still to come. The DVD release will feature an anamorphic widescreen video picture with English - Stereo audio and English subtitles. The early info this morning shows the exact same specs for the Blu-ray version, but we're wondering if that info's accurate (or if the DVD info just got accidentally duplicated there). We'll let you know. Running time is 461 minutes for 15 episodes, on 3 discs each for both DVD and BD versions. Stay tuned for cover art!
