Blu-ray Review – The Crimson Field

Produced by the BBC, "The Crimson Field" is a hospital drama set during World War I. It's a time period popular to costume dramas right now (both "Downton Abbey" and "Mr. Selfridge" have set seasons during these volatile years), giving the show a boost of confidence as it strives to create a riveting depiction of wartime strife, romance, and uneasy camaraderie. It's a surefire formula that somehow eludes the production, which spends six episodes with uninspired characters caught in the middle of tedious conflicts, barely using the potential of the premise. Instead of WWI intensity and passion, "The Crimson Field" sticks closely to melodrama to best comfort its audience, yet the writing doesn't dream up heated adversity, instead paging through familiar beats of longing and secretive behavior that never quite adds up to anything compelling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com