Through the Shadowlands

I have heard so much about the comparisons between this movie and the Hollywood version, as far as the acting and production values. But few people mention how much more true this version (the BBC version) is to the actual life and faith of C. S. Lewis.I have read Lewis' auto-biographical work (Surprised By Joy), as well as his brother's biography, his wife's biography, his step-son's biography, and the biography of the Inklings (the Christian writers group that Lewis was in, along with Tolkien), as well as reading almost every other book Lewis has written. I also directed the Atlanta premiere of the stage version of this movie. And I can tell you that the Hollywood/Hopkins version gives a very poor presentation of the true passion and enduring faith of C.S. Lewis.The BBC version (the version I am reviewing here), is not only acted well by Joss Acklund and Claire Bloom, but presents a man who would never deny the underlying Christian meaning of his books and life (as opposed to the Hollywood version). And it presents a man who, yes, went through some deep valleys of despair, but ultimately came out with his faith in Jesus Christ very much intact. (Unlike the Hollywood movie, which regularly plays down his Christian faith and ends with a broken Lewis looking to an agnostic student for answers.)So...if you want to actually watch a well-acted movie about the actual man C.S. Lewis, then I suggest you purchase this beautiful video.

After years of reading Lewis' literature, I was pleased to watch this movie about his relationship with Joy Gresham. (How thrilling she had the same name as I do!) I have always felt that because I read Lewis throughout my growing up years, his ideology and viewpoint have shaped the very way I think. I felt that this depiction of Lewis was true to the person he was, the way he thought, and the way he lived. For much of the movie he continually denies his love for Joy, not so much to others as to himself. Not being one to let emotions rule him, he had trouble recognizing the depth of his feeling for Joy. However, when he finally let himself see it, his love for her added depth and dimension to life that he hadn't known was missing, like suddenly seeing a picture in 3-D. Although that depth brings pain as well as pleasure, he comes to realize that not to have opened himself up to the pain of love is in some way not to have lived. The depiction of Lewis' loss made me weep, not just for him as for all of us who lose the ones we have let ourselves love. This movie was both an enjoyable experience and a challenge to accept the fullness that life offers. After all, God himself gave us life, not just to exist but to live fully.

I love the film with Anthony Hopkins, but this version seems more real to me.Anthony Hopkins still seems rather good-looking even as an older man. C.S. Lewis was not good looking, brown teeth through years of smoking. Joss Ackland looks more nearer the man he's playing, like a pair of well worn slippers. Claire Bloom, looked like a mature woman whose bloom of youth had faded. Debra Winger was far too sexy looking. This version also included both of her boys, Douglas and David. The boys seemed like normal boys too - not so meek and mild as the boy in the Hollywood film.I liked the format also. It had that rainy-day Sunday feel about it. Two old batchelors would have that kind of feel. Joy Davidman may have swept Lewis off his feet, but he'd still be Lewis and Warnie would still be Warnie - two old batchelors - one just in love. Anthony Hopkins quacking like Donald Duck to Douglas in one scene of the film, doesn't seem quite right. I don't think Lewis really knew how to relate to a real child. Reading Douglas Greshams book, I don't think Lewis or Joy really had much time for the kids - they were just swept up with themselves.This version won't be for everyone. I liked both for different reasons.

I enjoyed the wisdom portrayed in the characters.

A little slow from what I’m use to. I’ve read some of Lewis’s books a long time ago wanted to know about the man that wrote them. Frankly didn’t get what he wrote. Watching learned some about him and his brother. They were British, he was a professor, writer. Never married until he met the American woman with two young boys. Before that he and his brother apparently batched together. He was an atheist until later in life. I wondered what caused him to change his view about religions and God but either missed it in the movie or it wasn’t covered. I’m not sorry I watched the movie learn a bit about the man and his demeanor. He seemed stuffed shirt to me but very caring. Thanks

C. S. Lewis was a renowned Oxford medieval scholar and Christian author, of "The Chronicles of Narnia" and other faith-based books and articles. He was also a confirmed bachelor, but struck up a friendship w/American poet, Joy Davidman Gresham; and later agreed to a marriage of convenience after she was divorced to enable her and her two sons to stay in England. But what began as an act of charity became a deep and abiding love and they married again "before God". Then Gresham becomes gravely ill, causing Lewis to question his faith. This is a superb BBC TV production of the true story that was later adapted into a Hollywood theatrical production. Joss Ackland as Lewis and Claire Bloom as Joy, each deliver outstanding performances; Bloom won a BAFTA for her performance. The 1993 theatrical film directed by Richard Attenborough and starring Anthony Hopkins and Deborah Winger is also outstanding. Both are superb works of the cinematic art and provide a detailed glimpse of the intellectual, theological and moral considerations that motivated C. S. Lewis... the both carry my highest recommendation.

I had been looking for this movie for a long time. Very happy to finally find it!

Bestellung und Lieferung waren einfach top. Völlig Problemloser Service. Das einzige was dann halt doch daneben ging war die Sprache. Wir haben Beim bestellen irgendwie nicht mitbekommen, nicht gelesen, dass die DVD nicht in Deutsch synchronisiert ist. Ich hatte mich schon gewundert, dass der Anbieter in den USA ist, aber mir leider nichts dabei gedacht. Schade, aber so haben die KInder evtl. einen Film zum Englisch lernen und vertiefen.

a testament to Christian marriage and dealing with death. He's right. "It simply won't do". Platitudes are not helpful. Read a grief observed following my own darling's death last Christmas Eve. Amazing book. Very helpful. Looking through the eye of eternity, these shadowlands are short compared with what's to come. The film gives us an insight into this great theologian's heart. He was an amazing man who married an amazing woman. He was truly blessed even though it was for a short time.

Norman Stone fought to get this TV movie made, and it feels like a labour of love. The disk has two versions: the award-winning original 92-minute BBC Wales production, and an edited 72-minute version. The longer version effectively anchors Lewis in his academic environment, showing Lewis fully alive as a teacher and participant in academic pursuits. Joss Ackland portrays Lewis with warmth and enthusiasm. He is not a remote paragon of knowledge, but a man fully engaged with his peers and students.The script does a great job showing how the writings of Lewis grow out of and reveal his life. An early metaphor shows the bachelor Lewis defending his right to have opinions about marriage; the spectator sees more of the game than the participant. But is life simply a spectator sport?Enter Joy Davidman, played by Claire Bloom. At first, Lewis finds her an intellectually stimulating companion, but eventually she wins his heart. His love for her takes him out of the spectator's stands and puts him in action on the pitch. And it tests just how much he believes the things he'd been confidently saying all those years.Bloom's performance is subtle and nuanced, worth rewatching to catch the glimpses and expressions missed the first time. This is a disk I'll watch many times.Included on this disk is a 73-minute edit of the show, which cuts out a lot of the Oxbridge setting of the story to focus on the relationship between Lewis and Davidman. I'm not sure why this cut was made; it's much less engaging than the full show -- kind of like the condensed books version of the story.Time has not been kind to the presentation of this film. The picture is quite soft, especially when played on a large 4K screen. This is definitely not a high-res blu-ray. The only supplement is text bios of Ackland, Bloom, and Stone; it's a shame because a very interesting body of literature has grown up discussing the story and its relationship to the books and articles by Lewis. The disk doesn't even have subtitles, which would have helped with understanding the mono soundtrack. It's a three-star presentation of a five-star film.But those are quibbles; the warmth and power of the story make it well worth watching anyway. It was hard to find the disk, but it was well worth the search. It's a quiet little gem, and, yes rather more hopeful and enjoyable than the polished film remake with Anthony Hopkins. Definitely a worthy purchase for a reasonable price.

A touching tear-jerker that nevertheless resists sentimentality. Beautifully understated performances from Joss Ackland and Claire Bloom. Just as effective as the later Anthony Hopkins/Debra Winger version directed by Richard Attenborough, but writer William Nicholson (of the play as well as both TV and film productions) fine-tunes the emphases in different ways that complement one another in equally satisfying ways. This 1986 TV version, however, feels lower budget and seems (?) to be shot on videotape rather than film, unlike the 1993 Hopkins production.