KnotStronger
This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
Stephan Hammond
It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,
Quiet Muffin
This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.
Bob
This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.
Thom Hall
I am very happy to say that this version of Kidnapped is available on DVD. I got mine in the mail this weekend. I wrote a review on this in 2005. I would be hard pressed to say if I liked Braveheart or this version of Kidnapped better. It took a long time, but it was worth it. It is just a good as I remember it, and I am able to share it with my son. There is a little bit of poor picture quality in some of the nighttime scenes. It should be in the movie library of any good Scot. It is in Region 2 format, but I found website that tells you how to unlock the Region code of your DVD player. Here it is. Order the DVD, setup your player,and enjoy. I just wish I could get the soundtrack.http://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks
Robert Pearson
I remember being glued to this miniseries when it was shown on TBS (Turner) in '78. It was wonderfully done, following the novel very faithfully and not trying to guild the lily the way so many other productions have done. More than that, it covered not only "Kidnapped" itself, but also that novel's sequel, "Catriona: (released as "David Balfour" in the United States) which I until then did not know even existed. It was an excellent idea, since it resolved all the hanging threads of the plot as Stevenson had intended.What I recall most were all the on-location shots (I assumed they were such, anyway) and the beauty of the Scottish countryside as well as that of the Netherlands. David McCallum gave an excellent portrayal of the brash Alan Breck. I know some have accused the actor who portrayed David Balfour's performance wooden, but frankly, Stevenson writes the character that way—he saves all the panache for Alan, and so it is in this film, as well. I particularly remember the haunting opening credits theme—I wish I could find a recording of it, as it, too, was excellent.It's a great shame this is not shown more often. I understand it's been released on DVD, but so far I've not been able to find it, so I'm guess this was not done in the U.S., which is a shame. Perhaps someday
tim-smith
It seems like ever such a long time ago that this series was shown in the UK - the fact that I remember it so well after such a long time speaks for itself! Very well acted, and filmed, and with a very evocative soundtrack - this production brings the story to life, and includes a lot of scene/parts of the story that are often left out of other productions.Definitely a very definitive production of the story, and definitely the very best. Along with a lot of people, I would love to own a copy - is this possible.. ?? Whoever owns the copyright - PLEASE - release it for sale - PLEASE!! It's SO good! I'm sure it would sell well and be very much worth your while....
lauraclennam
I saw this when it was originally screened in 1978 or 1979 - I was just a little kid at the time. I was living in Argyll, Scotland - real Gaelic country/landscape, so the programme really resonated with me. It was repeated in 1980 or 1981 but after that i never heard anything about it until circa 1991 the first two or three episodes, edited together, were released on video briefly, by a company called VideoGem. I was surprised by its quality - I thought my childhood memories may have exaggerated its appeal. Some of the acting - particularly David Balfour - is slightly wooden; on the other hand , a lot of it is very good - notably David McCallum as Alan Breck Stewart. The episodes I saw on video included original material that doesn't feature in the book; but unlike typical Hollywood 'adaptations' some of this material is quite worthy - including a scene that suggests the relationship between the Scots tenants and the Stewarts-in-exile was more about extortion than loyalty. As for the video release, I don't think it sold very well, as I never saw any further releases of the remaining episodes, which was a great disappointment.I agree that it was easily the best adaptation I've ever seen, and it would be great to see the whole series released on video. If I remember rightly, the series also adapted at least some of the sequel 'Catriona'.