Sharpe's Challenge
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Movie Reviews of Sharpe's Challenge
Movie Review: Another first-rate, rousing adventure for Richard Sharpe. If he loses in this one, he'll have a nail pounded into his head
Summary: 4 Stars
The war's been over for two years. Up-from-the-ranks retired colonel Richard Sharpe (Sean Bean) is, more or less happily, making a living as a farmer. And then he's summoned to the Duke of Wellington's home in London. There, the Duke explains, a crisis is arising in India on the frontier between the British and the Mahratta princes. British agents have disappeared. Reports of armed rebellion have surfaced. The Duke wants Sharpe to find out what is happening and, if possible, put a stop to it. Sharpe responds as any experienced ex-soldier would when called back to the colors...he declines. Then he learns the last agent to go missing was his old comrade, Patrick Harper (Daragh O'Malley). When we next see Sharpe he's making his way through dusty Indian villages towards the encampment of a small British army not far from the fortress of the Rajah of Ferraghur. Happily, he encounters Harper, who had gone undercover in an attempt to gain information. From what we know and have seen, Sharpe's task will be extremely dangerous and fraught with risk. He will meet an enemy worthy of him, an English traitor named William Dodd (Toby Stephens), arrogant, vicious and supremely capable. A deserted lieutenant from the British-led Indian Army, Dodd is now styled a general who is leading the forces of the young Rajah. When Sharpe and Harper pretend to be deserters themselves in order to join the Rajah's army, Sharpe will also encounter the beautiful and deadly Madhuvanthi (Padma Lakshmi), regent and elder sister of the Rajah. The Rajah, the regent and Dodd all approve of the old ways when dealing with traitors, captured soldiers, thieves and other malefactors. They have nails hammered into the skulls of the unfortunate captives.
Don't hit the fast-forward button or you'll regret it. This turns out to be one of Sharpe's best adventures. This also may be Sharpe's most challenging assignment, with the fate of the Empire, as well as the honor and life of a general's daughter, hanging in the balance. At 138 minutes it has plenty of time and a plentiful budget to set up the background and create many scenes with lots of action. There's a big cast of extras. And there's a great battle where hundreds of soldiers scramble to gain entrance to the rajah's fortress through a towering wall.
Sharpe's adventures, based on the novels by Bernard Cornwell, began on television in 1993 with Sharpe's Rifles. The last was Sharpe's Waterloo in 1997. Sean Bean has aged well in the interim. If anything, he looks even tougher. Daragh O'Malley may be a bit heavier but he still looks capable of clearing out a bar on Friday night. From the casts of those old programs we have a brief moment with Hugh Frazier, again playing Wellington. Sharpe also encounters again that pompous, cowardly aristocrat, General Sir Henry Simmerson, still played with lip-smacking relish by Michael Cochrane. Simmerson thinks Sharpe is a jumped-up peasant who needs to be put in his place, and tries hard to do so. I still miss the late Sergeant Obadiah Hakeswell, leering and repellant, who liked to talk into his hat when not trying to shoot Sharpe in the back. He was played with verve by Pete Postlethwaite. His replacement in Sharpe's Challenge, played by Peter-Hugo Daly, is Sergeant Shadrach Bickerstaff. Bickerstaff is a mouth breather, a leering bully, a resentful opportunist, a man who probably last saw a bar of soap when he last brushed his rotting teeth.
The prize for villainy, however, goes to Toby Stephens as Dodd. He's not so much unhinged as he is utterly logical when it comes to protecting his self-interest and justifying his resentments. Plus, of course, killing makes him feel good. He's a man to avoid, especially if he says he likes you. Stephens is a first-rate actor. He can do villains so well I hope he doesn't do too many more of them. He'll find himself typecast. For a much more subtle and complex take on villainy, watch him as Kim Philby in Cambridge Spies.
Sharpe's Challenge is a first-rate rouser. It's a welcome addition to the Sharpe set. The DVD transfer looks just fine. There are two or three light-weight extras.
"Though kings and tyrants come and go
A soldier's life is all I know
I'll live to fight another day
Over the hills and far away."
Movie Review: Plenty of Action, Brutality, Heroics- Sharpe Style
Summary: 4 Stars
This made for TV movie is full of adventure, daring escapes, mass murder/ruthless killings, exotic locals, a touch of sexiness, and the man to get us through it all- the noble, but unbreakable Colonel Sharpe aka Sean Bean.
I was ignorant of Sharpe until I ran across a copy at the library- the one that follows, Shapre's Peril- both taking place in India. They're full of British, early 19th century, imperialistic warring and manners. Add double cross and evil machinations with Sharpe reluctantly thrown into the mix. Here under the auspices of Wellington, he's off to India, and ends up trying to rescue a general's daughter(Lucy Brown) from 'heathen' natives.
The real evil force he encounters is a turncoat played with great relish by Toby Stephens. The Indians display lots of horrific means of savagery like spiking enemies heads, but there's a certain sympathy given them due the English occupation.
Filmed partly in India, the setting is appropriately exotic; moreover, it's a fairly big budget allowing for good battle scenes, explosions galore, and I think overall well chosen actors. Bean's terrifically handsome, rugged, worn(I'm interested to see him in "Black Death" , set during the bubonic plague, when released here in the US). Daragh O'Malley returns too as his faithful cohert.
It's more of a man's movie(forgive the generality). There is a touch of romance, but not really- more like kiss'em, say bye and let them cry. And I think it is a bit gratuitous in violence and nudity. The nudity's short, but dramatic. They rip the general's daughter's top off just before spiking her companion's head. They also show her reclining in a tub, sans bath bubbles, while threatened and gawked at by above villain. I guess it builds effect.
I liked the extras including an extended "making of" Sharpe's Challenge. I find these fascinating, sometimes as much as the movie. Bernard Cornwell, the terrific novelist, also talks about his character.
Overall, the Brits tend to make great period pieces, and I'm heading, in reverse, now to Sharpe's Waterloo(2001). He's a cool, stalwart, w/o the stiff upper lip dude.
Movie Review: Another Good Drama
Summary: 4 Stars
The Sharpe miniseries was exceptionally well done and takes place during the peninsular campaign of the Napoleonic War. It also stayed fairly close to the book except in one major way. In the books, Sharpe is given his commission by a gratefull Wellington in India, before the bulk of the series. The miniseries moved that event to Iberia for very good production reasons. In doing so, however, they seemingly left out some very good Sharpe stories. This program goes a long way in remedying that.
It takes place after Waterloo. Sharpe is called back by Wellington to go to India and solve a problem with a renegade India Company officer. Sharpe is not interested until he learns that his friend, SGM Harper is missing in India.
Upon arriving there, he finds some of the independent princedoms in revolt against the British. One in particular, it being directed by a courtesan of the previous Rajah acting as regent for the young prince. Her trusted advisor is the renegade officer. Sharpe will have to get into the enemy capital, win the trust of the powers that be, rescue his friend and keep the Brits from being slaughtered. It's all in a day's work.
The story line here combines three from the books. SHARPE's TIGER, SHARPE'S FORTRESS and SHARPE's are conflated into a single story line. The production takes a sympathetic view towards Indian independence and but comes across well in spite of the overtones. The rebellious Indians in this production are portrayed as Hindus as opposed to Muslims as in the books and the historical record but that should do nothing to detract from the fun of seeing Sharpe in action again.
Movie Review: The usual Sharpe Fare
Summary: 4 Stars
What we have here is a greatly condensed version of the original India novels in the Sharpe series. Several factors must have contributed to making this production this way. For one, Sean Bean for all his hardy good looks can't be made into a teen-age Sharpe. This would be required in order to portray the earlier novels in true form. Second, a larger production qaulity would be required to portray the battle of Assaye (1803)in anything like the manner it requires. So the production opted for a hybrid version with some vague references to his earlier career.
All in all they tie in all the loose ends pretty well, and manage to combine three complex novels into one storyline. They also add a lot along the way! Does it work? Well, yes and no. The exotic locale for India certainly enhances the production value. Also, setting the story post 1815 works in a way as the British were involved in several minor conflicts then. In particular the campaign against Nepal comes to mind in 1818 which would bring about the incorporation of Gurkha mercinaries into the British army. After that we come down to your standard Sharpe action bit.
I have come to the conclusion with watching the TV versions of these novels to just enjoy them for their entertainment value. To try and compare them with the novels seems fruitless and frustrating. Sean Bean continues to carry a good Sharpe character, the production value is not bad, there are some good action sequences. So if you enjoy this kind of fare then this rates as a good production. The Sharpe novels and history this is not! But its fun to see the period portrayed anyway.
Movie Review: Mixed Bag - Enjoyable But Not Quite the Real Thing
Summary: 4 Stars
I'm a huge fan of Bernard Cornwell, especially the Sharpe series. Sharpe's Fortress about the Siege of Gawilghur is perhaps my favorite Sharpe book. I like the Sean Bean TV movies, but as usual the books are better.
Sharpe's Challenge, two 90-minute movies being shown on BBC America, is loosely based on Sharpe's Fortress. William Dodd is the evil traitor now serving the Maharaja, there is a Hakeswill-like character (Sgt Shadrach Bickerstaff), a fortress is besieged, and beautiful women abound. Sharpe actually turns down the rather unsubtle advances of the scheming and beautiful Madhuvanthi (Padma Lakshmi) and I don't recall Sharpe doing that too often! The events take place some 14 years after Sharpe was last in India in the books and Sharpe is a colonel now.
So, it's a Sharpe story with reasonable verisimiltude for historical details of the era and the setting, but Sharpe's Challenge is not based on an actual specific battle (like the Siege of Gawilghur). It's an entertaining story and quite enjoyable way to pass three hours if you can set aside your quibbles.