Sharpe's Rifles (1993) (TV)

Director:

Tom Clegg

Writers:

Eoghan Harris (written by)
Bernard Cornwell (based on the novel by)

Release Date:

5 May 1993 (UK)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | History | War

Plot:

In the Penisular War, a British seargent is field promoted to a lieutenant in charge of a disrespectful rifle company.

Plot Keywords:

Portugal | 1800s | Napoleonic Wars | Fictional Biography | Military

Cast

Sean Bean	...	Sharpe
Brian Cox	...	Hogan
Daragh O'Malley	...	Harper
Assumpta Serna	...	Teresa
David Troughton	...	Wellesley
Simón Andreu	...	Vivar
Michael Mears	...	Cooper
John Tams	...	Hagman
Jason Salkey	...	Harris
Paul Trussell	...	Tongue
Lyndon Davies	...	Perkins
Julian Fellowes	...	Major Dunnett
Tim Bentinck	...	Captain Murray
Richard Ireson	...	Sgt. Williams
Martin Jacobs	...	Lawford
Malcolm Jamieson	...	Colonel de L'Eclin
Anthony Hyde	...	Man in Black
Jack McKenzie	...	Mr. Parker
Kerry Shale	...	James Rothschild
Karen Tungay	...	Louisa
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Slava Burlachko	...	French Dragoon (uncredited)

Directed by
Tom Clegg

Writing credits
Eoghan Harris		(written by)
Bernard Cornwell		(based on the novel by)

Produced by
Ted Childs	....	executive producer
Malcolm Craddock	....	producer
Muir Sutherland	....	executive producer
Neville C. Thompson	....	associate producer (as Neville Thompson)

Original Music by
Dominic Muldowney
John Tams

Cinematography by
Ivan Strasburg		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Robin Sales

Casting by
John Hubbard
Ros Hubbard

Production Design by
Andrew Mollo

Art Direction by
Philip Elton
Vladimir Litvinov

Costume Design by
John Mollo

Makeup Department
Sano De Perpessac	....	chief hairdresser
Margarida Miranda	....	chief makeup

Production Management
Christian Abomnes	....	unit manager
Chris Thompson	....	production manager: Portugal

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sam Craddock	....	second assistant director
Marc Jenny	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Irina Sapozhnikova	....	set dresser
Alison Stewart-Richardson	....	set dresser
Colin Thurston	....	props

Sound Department
Colin Chapman	....	dubbing editor
David Lis	....	boom operator
Colin Martin	....	sound mixer
Christian Wangler	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Viktor Voronoy	....	special effects supervisor (as Victor Voronoy)

Stunts
Oleg Korytin	....	horse stunt coordinator (as Oleg Keratin)
Sasha Philatov	....	stunt coordinator
Greg Powell	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Dennis Lloyd	....	grip
Yuri Nugis	....	gaffer (as Georgy Nugis)
Richard Philpott	....	camera operator
Mark Strasburg	....	focus

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Elena Khramova	....	wardrobe supervisor (as Helen Kharmova)
Barbara Rutter	....	assistant costume designer

Editorial Department
Adam Boome	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Lesley Broderick	....	production accountant
Slava Burlachko	....	horse master
José Correia	....	associate: Animedia Audiovisual
Gina Cronk	....	script editor
Pavel Douvidzon	....	associate: East-West Creative Association (as Pavel Duvidson)
Caroline McManus	....	associate: East-West Creative Association
Irene Meldris	....	assistant to director
Igor Nosov	....	associate: East-West Creative Association
Stepan Pojenian	....	associate: East-West Creative Association (as Stefan Pojenian)
Pat Rambaut	....	script supervisor
John Raymond	....	associate: East-West Creative Association
Richard Rutherford-Moore	....	technical advisor (as Richard Moore)
Tatyana Shakhgeldyan	....	associate: East-West Creative Association
Patricia Vieira	....	associate: Animedia Audiovisual
Cindy Winter	....	assistant to producer
Winnie Wishart	....	production coordinator
Zinaida Kravchenko	....	production accountant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Celtic Films Entertainment
• Central
• Picture Palace

Distributors

• BFS Entertainment & Multimedia Limited (USA) (DVD)
• Future Film (2007) (Finland) (DVD)
• ITV DVD (1998) (UK) (DVD)
• ITV DVD (2002) (UK) (DVD)
• Independent Television (ITV) (1993) (UK) (TV)
• Masterpiece Theatre
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)

Other Companies

• East-West Creative Association  production services: Crimea
• Ecou Films  

Runtime:

USA:102 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English | Spanish | French | Yiddish | Portuguese

Colour:

Colour

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Singapore:NC-16 | Finland:K-11 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Crimea, Ukraine

Company:

Celtic Films Entertainment

Trivia:

Sean Bean replaced Paul McGann in the role of Richard Sharpe after McGann was injured.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When on the roof of the chapel at Torrecastro, Cooper indicates a Frenchmen (who had shot at him) with the words "Left - three o'clock". This is a phrase which would only be used by someone familiar with a clock face (which Cooper may not be) and three o'clock indicates 90 degrees to the right (not left). He then actually aims slightly towards the right of the square (more like one o'clock).

Quotes:

Patrick Harper: Sweet is the silent mouth, Cooper.
Cooper: Didn't say a word, did I?

Movie Connections:

Followed by Sharpe's Enemy (1994) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Oranges and Lemons

Great Movie Even If You're Not Historically Inclined

The Napoleonic Wars are not typically my historical period of interest. A friend of mine had seen some of the Sharpe's movies on Public Television, bought the first set of videos and basically browbeat me into watching them. We watched Sharpe's Rifles, the first of the series, one night when I was over for dinner, and he gladly let me borrow the rest of that first set when I left. I was greatly, and pleasantly impressed. Sean Bean is, of course, a spectacular actor, and he brings a realistic personality to a character of the period. Richard Sharpe is a hero that's not always behaving quite like a hero, but when one realises that he was a commoner from a world where if he didn't join the army, he would've ended up a criminal, one can at least appreciate his behaviour, even if one doesn't always agree with it. The supporting cast also does a wonderful job. The series puts Sharpe in the forefront of actual historical events, specifically battles, and one is tempted to believe that he was a real person. If you're a fan of Sean Bean, if you're a fan of period movies, or Hell! if you're a fan of movies...period, you should check out at least the first set of Sharpe's movies, starting with this one.