What is it? The Durrells in Corfu, six episodes on two discs from PBS
How much? $39.99
When? Now
Who are the Durrells? An English family in the 1930s.
Widow Louisa Durrell (Keeley Hawes) has had enough. Money is tight, England is dreary and her children are unhappy.
Pretentious oldest child Larry (Josh O'Connor) has little time for his real passion: writing. Gun-obsessed son Leslie (Callum Woodhouse) and empty-headed daughter Margo (Daisy Waterstone) are aimless and youngest child Gerry (Milo Parker) is an utter failure at school because his only interest is in animals and bugs.
They're all in danger of running completely off the rails.
A change of scenery seems to be in order, so she packs up the lot of them and moves the family to the Greek island of Corfu. There, they can live in a nice, fresh setting with warm air and lots of sunshine -- and with less strain on the purse-strings.
Corfu is beautiful. But it's not quite a paradise. Their house (literally) crumbles around them and adapting to local customs in a place where they don't speak more than a couple of words of the language has its challenges.
But they also make new friends, like the very friendly and helpful Spiros (Alexis Georgoulis), moody maid Lugaretzia (Anna Savva) and animal expert Theo (Yorgos Karamihos). There might even be romance for some of them.
Loosely based on the Corfu trilogy of books written by the real-life Gerry Durrell, the series follows the family from one misadventure to another as they struggle to adjust.
How is it? A lot of fun. Funny, warm, but still sharp, the series does an excellent job of capturing a family teetering on the edge. They're loving without being saccharine and eccentric without being too wacky. They pick at each other in a realistic, family-like way and can come together when the occasion calls for it.
The acting is top-notch and the scenery and period details add greatly to the whole series.
Are there extras? A few brief bits on the characters, filming and adapting the stories from page to screen.
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Style on 11/27/2016