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Sons & Lovers [DVD]

Sarah Lancashire (Actor), Hugo Speer (Actor), Stephen Whittaker (Director) Rated:
NR
Format: DVD
IMDb6.5/10.0
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April 10, 2007 		—
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Genre Drama, Romance
Format NTSC, Color, Dolby, DVD
Contributor Matthew Beard, Stephen Whittaker, Brittany Ashworth, D.H. Lawrence, Simon Burke, Stephen Boxer, Heather Bleasdale, Rupert Evans, Esther Hall, Sarah Lancashire, Hugo Speer, James Murray, Victoria Carling, Lyndsey Marshal, Robert Angell See more
Language English
Runtime 3 hours and 13 minutes

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Product Description

Product Description

A powerful, passionate adaptation of the classic DH Lawrence novel about love, sex and family starring Sarah Lancashire as Gertrude Morel, Sons and Lovers is a drama about the fragility of human relationships. Gertrude pours all of her love into her relationship with her youngest son who tries to put her wishes before his own as he struggles to find his own way in the world.

Amazon.com

At what point does mother love cross over from the nurturing, blessed emotion celebrated by timeless poetry into the territory of stifling, overwhelming, and stultifying? D.H. Lawrence's masterpiece Sons & Lovers shines a light on this uncomfortable subject with the grace and sorrow it deserves, and this British TV adaptation gives the classic a fresh eye. Sarah Lancashire stars as Gertrude Morel, an Englishwoman married to an abusive, neglectful husband. Played by Lancashire, Gertrude is a struggling victim of her fin-de-siècle times, unable to express herself in any way other than as wife and mother. When her wife role is stunted, she throws herself into being mother of her two sons, especially Paul, the younger. Quicker than you can say "Oedipus complex," Paul grows up to be a very conflicted young man, torn between love for his needy, judgmental mum and any potential mate. The 2003 teleplay adaptation is true to Lawrence's prose and leisurely unfolding of emotions; nothing can hurry love--or its poisonous, overzealous mutation. Rupert Evans is quietly heartbreaking as Paul, whose loyalties are so torn and whose ability to forge his own path, irreparably damaged. --A.T. Hurley

Product details

  • Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.33:1
  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
  • Package Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.1 x 5.42 x 0.58 inches; 5.6 ounces
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Stephen Whittaker
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, Color, Dolby, DVD
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 3 hours and 13 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ April 10, 2007
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ Sarah Lancashire, Hugo Speer, James Murray, Rupert Evans, Esther Hall
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ Koch Vision
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000MR9C4G
  • Writers ‏ : ‎ D.H. Lawrence, Simon Burke
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
  • Customer Reviews:

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
40 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Leslie J.
5.0 out of 5 stars A slow burn emotion wise that eventually catches up with you.
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2021
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Another outstanding performance by Sarah Lancashire!
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Shana J. Carr
4.0 out of 5 stars Sons and Lovers
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2011
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I liked it, but I'm sure the book would have given more insight into this story than I could glean from the movie. I found the characters to be a little 'hard to work out' at times. And the character of the father was left sort of hanging for the most part. He barely had a line at all in the last half of it. It left me wondering what his role was in the family. Overall, I liked it, I like the era. It was well worth the watch.
2 people found this helpful
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Yolanda Quintero
5.0 out of 5 stars Great cast lead by Sarah Lancashire
Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2018
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Sarah Lancashire as always is a brilliant actress... loved the production.. very good all around great cast
One person found this helpful
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TLC
5.0 out of 5 stars Any performance by Sarah Lancashire is a must see!!
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2018
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Very gripping story! Great performance by Sarah Lancashire! Yet again!!
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J. Whitney
5.0 out of 5 stars Dramatic and Brilliant
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2009
As another reviewer wrote good quality programming in the US is virtually non-existent these days so when I picked this little gem up at the library I was blissfully happy for three and half hours. The fine acting by the entire cast made the drama real and intense. A mother in a bad marriage pours all of her love and attention onto her two sons eventually preventing both from making sound choices in relationships with other women. A tragedy shifts the focus onto the middle son Paul and he must endure his mother's jealousy and overprotective behaviour as he fluctuates between two very different types of women. The young actor who portrays Paul (Rupert Evans) is someone who I was unfamiliar with but will definitely look for in future movies. He resembles a very early Brad Pitt in some scenes. I think the British cornered the market when it comes to talent. Overall a great film that I can highly recommend.
6 people found this helpful
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Promise
4.0 out of 5 stars another brilliant BBC production of a classic novel
Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2007
Two disks in this set give you a long, leisurely look at the Morel family, from the first meeting of the parents, through the births of their four children, and then focusing on the young adulthood of the middle son, Paul. It has been said that the character of Paul, a painter, is closely modelled after that of Lawrence.

From our standpoint, a hundred years later, we have the psychological sophistication to see Paul's dilemma clearly. We know about children of alcholics, mothers who love too much, Oedipal complexes, etc. So it can be a little frustrating to see poor Paul caught in the morass of his family's dysfunction, and we might want to yell at the screen a bit, or to stage an intervention with Dr. Phil. But, to him, or to Lawrence, trying to muddle through before such information was common knowledge, life was certainly a struggle.

It is a temptation, maybe to see the characters as psychological types: the alcoholic dad, the frustrated, religious mom who turns away from her husband and overwhelms her sons with her affection. The two sons who pledge un-ending love to their mother and whose inability to make the break cripples them and forces them into unwise choices in their lovers.
All of that is true but it's to the credit of the film, and no doubt to the novel, that we clothe these types with human faces and forms.

It's too the credit of the film, too, not to label any of them as good or evil. In the beginning, the father is cleary the bad guy; we see him, drunk, striking the good mom. But as time goes by, we begin to see him as a victim, too and have some sympathy for him. At least I did. He went into the coal mines at 12, worked long hard hours in darkness. Who can blame him for wanting the comfort of a pint in the pub at the end of the day? When his wife wants to make conversation about the theory of transubstantiation--whether or not the wine really turns into the blood of Christ or if it's just symbolic, and he just want to feed his face...well who can blame him?

Blame him, she does, though, and who can blame her for that? He becomes the family bad guy, shrinks in the corner like a forgotten dog for much of the scenes, but he's always present. When the oldest son wins the bike race, he's there standing silently in the background while the son gives the silver trophy to his beloved mom, with a kiss. Likewise, when the middle son, Paul, wins the award at the art show, it's Mom who gets the praise and thanksgiving, and the kiss, while Dad stands in the back.

There's a daughter born into the family, too, but she is ignored as a character. She is a cheerful helper and eventually marries a decent but unremarkable fellow, but no special attention is given to her, to be bright and develop her talents as the sons are encouraged to do.

So Gertrude, the beautiful blond woman who danced so joyfully with her suitor at the Christmas party and again at their wedding, and who joins with him happilly in their marriage bed, gradually changes before our eyes, as the years pass. Life has changed her and she becomes the overwhelming emotional tyrant whose refusal to let her sons go. I could barely stand to look at her towards the end of the film and was really glad when she made her departure, and hoped that somehow Paul would find the means to outgrow the wounds she inflicted on him. I guess that was the grist for Lawrence's personal mill, which propelled him to write this story with such energy.

In the end, none of the characters is all good or all bad. We see the limitations of their circumstances and understand their actions. Gertrude really believed she was doing the best for her sons and they believed they were responding in the most loving ways to her. Dad was probably just trying to ease his pain a little and get through the day.

The casting of the two older sons is maybe a little off. They certainly add spark and glamour to what could be a very bleak story and I appreciated having these beautiful young men to watch during the 3 and 1/2 hours I sat through it. But it's hard to believe that men who were that emotionally crippled would have the energy and elan that these two exceptionally handsome and charming actors had. That's show business, though.

As usual the BBC gives a polished production. There are beautiful outdoor shots and a few dance parties to brighten up the gloom. There is plenty of sex, and again, it's good to have such trim young fellows cast as we see a lot of their backsides. There is some full frontal nudity of the ladies and yes, we do get a peek at Rupert, too. Usually the men get to hide their privates away while the ladies are obliged to show all. The overall dreariness of the sex is striking, but maybe that's a British thing, sort of like their food. What it lacks in joy, it makes up for in frequency. Apparently sex is one way that Lawrence tried to break away and find his own freedom so we are treated to a painstaking representation of his efforts.

What did disappoint me, though, was the lack of any positive development in the characters. We see how Mom and Dad declined, the negative effects of the family on the sons, and we see Paul's struggles to move on, but we don't really see any victory or transformation. There's plenty of drama but no real resolution, no catharsis. I guess that's why it left me a little cold and I subtract a star for that reason. That's the flaw of the book, though, not of the film. I recommend the Amazon site for the novel for a rich discussion.
22 people found this helpful
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John A. Atkins
3.0 out of 5 stars Short Message to Earlier Reviewers
Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2010
This version of Sons And Lovers was NOT produced by the BBC. They did an adaptation in 1981 but this isn't it. This one was by ITV. The UK does have more than one TV company.
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disgruntled
1.0 out of 5 stars i have not received to date
Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2012
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would not deal with this company ever and postage cost are much higher than Ebay and I have not received and will be making a claim
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Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 1, 2017
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A friend asked me to purchase it for her, I don't know if she has watched it yet.
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Keith F.
4.0 out of 5 stars Typical D H Lawrence
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 20, 2022
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There is one irritating problem with the production of this DVD. If, like me, you didn't know this was a 2 part drama there is no immediate indication in the menu that this is so. The options are Play, Scene select & Extras. Only if you choose Scene select does it then show you scenes from episode one & by selecting next it takes you to scenes from episode two. Why they did this who knows but it is misleading. As I had not tried scene select before watching this when it got to the end credits of episode one I was just about to press stop when the programme started again. At first I thought it had taken me back to the start but luckily I let it run & it was episode two, neither episode by the way mentioned which episode it was in the opening credits just to add to the confusion.

I'm guessing that Frederick Bird's review of this DVD back in 2006, which said that it had been heavily cut, may well be the result of the same problem I've just mentioned &, at the time of him writing this, he was also unaware of episode two as this most definitely has not been cut, apologies to Mr Bird if that was not the case. Episode two is packed with nudity, namely the delicious Esther Hall (who spends most of the time she's on screen fully naked & that's quite a while) & the equally delicious Lyndsey Marshal also naked but only in a couple of scenes. Both episodes run for 1 hour 35 mins each. If the nudity had been cut the 2nd episode would barely get past an hour, excuse the pun. If you are offended by nudity then avoid TV or film adaptations of D H Lawrence's work, the other 3 most well known novels, Women in Love, The Rainbow & best known, Lady Chatterley's Lover are riddled with it. Of the 4 Sons & Lovers is as much about the trials & tribulations of a working class family in a mining community from the end of the 1800's to the outbreak of WWI as it is about their sexual activities.

Made by ITV in 2002 it is well acted by all & the settings are spot on. I knocked a star off for the story being a tad depressing at times but that's just me.
2 people found this helpful
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Larry
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 30, 2017
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The film was fantastic Sarah is a great actress.
One person found this helpful
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R. A. Lloyd-Jones
4.0 out of 5 stars Trouble down t'telly
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 10, 2011
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A pretty successful TV adaptation of Lawrence's novel, nicely filmed in more-or-less the original Nottinghamshire locations. Be prepared for a lot of sex scenes involving shockingly hairy women - in the interests of historical accuracy the actresses haven't even shaved their armpits, let alone the bikini line! Main serious criticism would be that the Morel parents were not how they came across in the novel, nor indeed much like Lawrence's real parents. They played the parts well enough, but seemed a little young. Even when the mother died she looked about the same age as Miriam. It is certainly not as surreal and artistically charming as a Ken Russell Lawrence adaptation, but a decent adaptation and rather more than just another costume drama.
3 people found this helpful
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bookworm
2.0 out of 5 stars Wouldn't recomend
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 5, 2010
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Bought this for my daughter's A level English course as was recommended by her teacher for class to obtain a copy. Anyway my daughter told me the ending makes no sense at all and further to that her teacher brought in VhS that she recorded off TV back a few years ago and everyone in class commented to teacher that alot on dvd had been left out and ending of dvd made no sense but having watched uncut tv version that teacher brought in the story at last made sense to class.
5 people found this helpful
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