"Monsignor Renard" (2000) TV series

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Creator:

Russell Lewis

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

27 March 2000 (UK)

Genre:

War | Drama

Plot Keywords:

Occupation | WWII | France | Priest

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

John Thaw	...	Monsignor Augustine Renard (4 episodes, 2000)
Joachim Paul Assböck	...	Unteroffizier Dieter Franz (4 episodes, 2000)
John Axon	...	Sergeant Roger Duclos (4 episodes, 2000)
Teresa Banham	...	Clara Baquet (4 episodes, 2000)
Cheryl Campbell	...	Madeleine Claveau (4 episodes, 2000)
Juliette Caton	...	Helene Claveau (4 episodes, 2000)
Stephen Hoyle	...	Jacques Rambure (4 episodes, 2000)
Geoffrey Hutchings	...	Louis Cavailles (4 episodes, 2000)
Björn Jung	...	Willi (4 episodes, 2000)
Adam Kotz	...	Henri Baquet (4 episodes, 2000)
Jamie Lee	...	Jean Marie Vercors (4 episodes, 2000)
Torben Liebrecht	...	Alois (4 episodes, 2000)
Des McAleer	...	Yves Renard (4 episodes, 2000)
Andrew McCulloch	...	Abert Claveau / ... (4 episodes, 2000)
Colin McLaughlan	...	Jean Lefranc (4 episodes, 2000)
Rebecca Raybone	...	Catherine Sarraut (4 episodes, 2000)
Bernd-Uwe Reppenhagen	...	Major Karl-Heinz Drexler (4 episodes, 2000)
Carl Rice	...	Rene Montandon (4 episodes, 2000)
Anatole Taubman	...	Lieutenant Heinrich Beckmann (4 episodes, 2000)
Sam Townend	...	Gaston Sarraut (4 episodes, 2000)
Timothy Walker	...	Antoine Cabache (4 episodes, 2000)
Gregor Weber	...	Otto (4 episodes, 2000)
Jimmy Yuill	...	Malo Gagnepain (4 episodes, 2000)
Michael Attwell	...	M. Dufosse (3 episodes, 2000)
Richard Cubison	...	Rambure (3 episodes, 2000)
Louis Hammond	...	Denez (3 episodes, 2000)
Barbara Kellerman	...	Mme. Dufosse (3 episodes, 2000)
Judi Lamb	...	Annette Lefranc (3 episodes, 2000)
Jamie O'Brien	...	Felix Dufosse (3 episodes, 2000)
Sarah Rice	...	Gabrielle Rouveute (3 episodes, 2000)
William Travis	...	Francois Michaux (3 episodes, 2000)
Jay Villiers	...	Doniel Flandin (3 episodes, 2000)
Gregory Chisholm	...	Didier Montandon (2 episodes, 2000)
Dominic Monaghan	...	Etienne Pierre Rollinger (2 episodes, 2000)
Patrick Nielsen	...	David Lavalle (2 episodes, 2000)

Runtime:

295 min (4 parts)

Country:

UK

Language:

English | German

Colour:

Colour

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

UK:12

Great miniseries!

When I strolled into the beautiful French village of St. Valerie-sur-Somme as a tourist and saw a group of Nazis chatting on a street corner, I unfortunately did not know that this wonderful miniseries was being filmed. After seeing it on TV a year or so later I was so disappointed that I didn't wait and maybe get a chance to see John Thaw act, or some of the others of the fine cast (I did have a little chat with a "Nazi" extra, who was very friendly, very English and very hot in his woollen uniform in the French summer heat).

Great story about ordinary people in an ordinary little town during extraordinary times. It paints a realistic picture of that period, one in which not all French people were active in the Resistance and not all Germans -or even German soldiers- were bad people. There are shades of good and bad in every character in the series, as is the case in real life. That's what I liked most about this series, as well as the convincing period feel of it. And how nice to hear Germans actually speak German to each other! The English actors trying to pronounce french words and names sounded a bit awkward at times, but the solid acting made up for that. John Thaws performance as Monsignor Renard was great (sadly, the world lost a great actor when he passed away), but the less well-known actors that made up most of the rest of the cast were good too. Sadly only 4 episodes were made, I would have liked to see more of the village and it's people and the way they would have coped with the continuing war (since it was only the very beginning of 1941 when the story ended).

5 out of 5!