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List Price: $49.95 | | Label: WGBH BOSTON
Salesrank: 64945
Released: November 23, 2004 |
| Our Price: $109.85 |
| Used Price: $99.89 |
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MPAA Rating: Unrated
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
This taut psychological thriller from Paula Milne (The Politician's Wife) introduces Ross Tanner (Clive Owen, Closer; Bent), a hotshot police detective who lives for the thrill of the chase—while desperate to conceal a terrifying secret: he's losing his vision. Claire Skinner (Inspector Morse; The Wingless Bird; Sleepy Hollow) co-stars as D.I. Catherine Tully, drafted into Tanner's crime unit to aid in the investigation of the apparently motiveless, brutal murder of a 19-year-old college student. As Tanner's relationship with the world becomes increasingly fragile, he learns that there is more to murder than meets the eye. Insight prevails over eyesight as he discovers that success and survival both will depend on the alchemy of all his senses. Then, Clive Owen returns as Detective Chief Inspector Ross Tanner in three new cases of Second Sight. Still afflicted with a rare and incurable eye disease, Tanner's vision is slowly dimming, yet his crime-solving senses are as sharp as ever. He's just been chosen to head the Special Murder Unit, an elite group assigned only the toughest cases. Tanner has to hone his observation skills while staying several steps ahead of his colleagues—who are unaware of his debilitating secret.
Special DVD features include: article by series creator Paula Milne about developing Second Sight; bonus arficle "Disabled Detectives Develop New Ways to Fight Crime;" selected cast filmographies; selected cast list; link to the Mystery! Web site; scene selections; closed captions; and described video for the visually impaired.
On four DVD9 discs. Region coding: All regions. Audio: Dolby stereo. Screen format: Letterboxed.
Description of Second Sight, Vol. 1 & 2:
Taut, styish, and smart, Second Sight is the rare detective thriller with a brutal poetry in its premise. Detective Chief Inspector Ross Tanner (Clive Owen) is a maverick cop and workaholic who solves crimes by putting his faith in facts he can see for himself. What more cruel irony could beset him than a slow and irreversible loss of vision? While a rare disorder attacks his cornea, causing intermittent blindness and hallucinations, Tanner conceals his problem in the pursuit of a murderer who brutally beat a 19-year-old man to death. The suspects are largely people the victim knew well, including his mother (Phoebe Nicholls) and stepfather (Stuart Wilson), the nanny (Louise Atkins) of his young sister, a gardener (Eddie Marsan) who supplied him drugs, and an uncle (Stuart Wilson again, playing twins) who has allegedly been out of the country for years but in fact has been keeping a low profile in London. Tanner faces an added strain, initially, when he is partnered with a female detective, Catherine Tully (Claire Skinner), whose reliance on intuition is the antithesis of his own methods. Nevertheless, the two make a bargain after Skinner deduces Tanner's medical troubles: she'll be his eyes if he promises to give her equal credit for apprehending the killer. Utterly engrossing, Second Sight is part of that tradition of somber crime thriller done so well on British television, from Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy to Prime Suspect. Stars Claire Skinner (Sleepy Hollow) and Clive Owen carry the load exceptionally well. Owen (Closer, Bent), who looks like a slightly more rugged version of Kevin Costner and is instantly likable onscreen, conveys Tanner's necessary conversion to a more intuitive approach to police work with great care. Owen has looked like a candidate for international stardom for a while, and Second Sight certainly reinforces that perception.
Second Sight 2 follows the critically acclaimed, highly popular miniseries Second Sight with three bracing, two-part thrillers challenging ordinary notions of perception and deduction. Clive Owen returns as Chief Inspector Ross Tanner, whose eyesight is failing (his doctor sounds less certain this time that Tanner will absolutely go blind), subjecting him to blurry, distorting vision and even occasional hallucinations. Unwilling to give up his job, Tanner continues to rely upon confidantes working under him in his Special Murder Unit (now called the "Special Money Unit," investigating cold crimes and unusual cases), particularly Catherine Tully (Claire Skinner), who became Tanner's "eyes" in Second Sight and is his lover in the first story here, "Hide and Seek." Created and written by Paula Milne, Second Sight was most interesting as a study of a man who can no longer use his eyes to solve crimes and must turn to a kind of sixth sense, heightened intuition, instead. Second Sight 2 extends that idea into chilling storylines in which only Tanner can "see" what his colleagues merely look upon. "Hide and Seek" is a strong and tragic tale in which Tanner re-opens an investigation into the apparent murder of a world-class violinist. While the SMU team pokes through three possible murder scenarios, Tanner takes the extraordinary measure of building a mock-up of the victim's home within police headquarters. (Meanwhile, Catherine endures the humiliation of being found out as Tanner's secret girlfriend.) "Parasomnia" is an absolutely spooky story about a sleepwalker (who fascinates Tanner on several levels) who has no memory of crossing town in her nightdress and bashing in her fianci's head. Finally, "The Kingdom of the Blind" finds Tanner's young son missing during an investigation into the racially charged killing of an activist. Through all of these, Owen's laser-focused, powerful performance is something special to behold. --Tom Keogh
Second Sight, Vol. 1 & 2 Reviews:
The Artist as a Young Man 
2009-10-29 - I just rewatched this series again after several years and am dismayed to find it unavailable except through private sellers. Since this is the 10th anniversary of the first airing of Set 1, perhaps they are planning a rerelease edition. Any way you can get your hands on a copy of this BBC series first aired in America on PBS Mystery! you won't regret it. At the time, Owen was well-known in his native Britain from other TV projects, but it would be a few more years before he hit the consciousness of American film viewers with roles in "The Bourne Identity" and "King Arthur". Owen looks like a young pup here, his frame lankier and his face not yet filled out to its current proportions. His DCI Ross Tanner is impulsive, rough around the edges and a bit of a prick, both to the underlings on his squad and to his ex-wife. He's an erratic father to his 9-year-old son Sam, who idolizes him. In fact, when we first meet Tanner, he's cancelling a scheduled visit with his boy so he can stay at the pub and hit on the barmaid. He's got the infuriating habit of hanging up on people and refusing to explain where he's going and what he's thinking. He smokes and drinks and cats around way too much, all in the best noir detective tradition. While his interpersonal skills may be lacking, Tanner is a brilliant copper who gets results, so his egotistical management style is tolerated in more or less good humor by his subordinates and his bosses. Tanner is a high-flyer . . . until one morning when he wakes up and discovers that he's losing his eyesight. In the midst of trying to run an investigation into the murder of a high-profile businessman's son, and manage a new colleague (Claire Skinner), who's as ambitious for career advancement as she is attracted to her new boss, Tanner has to slip away to see doctors without drawing attention to his 'problem'. How long he will be able to cover his increasing disability and still do his job becomes the focus of the rest of the series. The first set, a two-part episode featuring a tour-de-force performance by one of the guest actors in a dual role, is compelling and sets a high bar for the rest of the series. Set 2 is comprised of three two-part episodes, none of which are as strong as the first case, particularly after Skinner departs the series halfway into the first episode. But the pleasure here is in watching Owen and the rest of the squad ply their craft. Even when you know the outcome of all these cases, the acting and production design remain top-drawer and a pleasure to watch. All of the actors in the ensemble cast deserve kudos for their creation of a realistic working murder squad.
Owen's trademark self-containment as an actor is is evidence here, and one muses that he would have been a smashing Bond, albeit one with completely different physicality than Daniel Craig. Sometimes Owen's facial resemblance to a young Sean Connery is unmistakable. What Owen and Craig share as actors is a cool detachment and complete self-possession that make them the masters of their cinematic universe. Owen has made some interesting choices since this project, some artistically successful (Closer; Children of Men; Duplicity), some not (Derailed; The International). Seems that he's trying to find a way to navigate being "Hollywood" without completely selling out and finding the path not so smooth. But he seems completely at home as DCI Ross Tanner, and makes us sorry that the series was so short-lived. For Owen fans, this is a don't miss, and points to the kind of quality work he is capable of, when he has a project to match his talents.
After two years, still mezmerizing: I tried, but failed to find something wrong... 
2009-08-27 - I reviewed this series two years ago, under a different nickname. However, after completing a Second Sight "marathon" last weekend, I felt compelled to share my thoughts once again with fellow Second Sight enthusiasts. The series has aged SO WELL, viewing it remains a joy. It proves just how much the American cinema has underutilized the great acting talent of Mr Owen's... Here is my original review, as true today, as it was two years ago (though Bean's latest Sharpe episode was not so good, I'm affraid):
"Why is it that British TV can be sooo grand at times? I rushed out to buy Second Sight after catching a glimps of the series on a public TV chanel. What is right about it? Everything: original plot, charismatic lead (I am not a fan of Clive Owen's, EXCEPT in this performance), well chosen supporting cast, quality production. You yearn for another installment of the series, though with Clive Owen gaining popularity in the US, that does not seem likely (can he take a lesson from Sean Bean, who did not forget his roots, and recently returned, for a brief moment, to the TV series "Sharpe" that had "made him"?). There is nothing on American TV that compares well to the sofistication of this product. Buy it, watch it, share it!"
PS: The set contains all four episodes, each one slightly over two hours long.
Worth every penny!
2008-03-07 - I would highly recommend this DVD set! It's wonderfully written, acted and directed. I originally bought this set because of Clive Owen. It's a set of Mystery! episodes that is delicious in it's intricacy and multi-layered plot. The main character is endearingly human many faults and illness, coupled with his on-going family problems. Clive Owen is fantastic in this series and his acting is impeccable! The supporting actors are terrific, as well.
This DVD set is well worth the price.
Despite the angst and anguish, Clive Owen and some good mysteries make Second Sight work
2008-02-24 - Detective Chief Inspector Ross Tanner of the Special Murder Unit has a problem. He's not just an intense, competitive copper who focuses intently on solving whatever crime he and his team are assigned; his ex not only divorced him because of this intensity; he not only has difficulty finding time for his young son because of his intensity...now he finds out he's probably going blind.
Tanner (Clive Owen) is diagnosed with a rare virus that goes after the cornea. His doctor tells him that's why he's been having trouble at times seeing clearly, having flashes of disorienting light and sometimes having hallucinations. His doctor also tells him it's quite likely to get worse. There's a good chance he'll wind up without sight and there's some chance his condition will improve. For this ultra-committed cop, the idea of going blind and not being able to do his job is a horrible prospect. So he refuses to say anything about it to his superiors or his team. He occasionally bumps into things and gets dizzy, but Tanner is determined to crack his latest case and stay on the job. Fortunately, perhaps, one member of his team discovers what's going on. Detective Inspector Catherine Tully makes a deal with Tanner. She'll be his eyes when he needs her and will help cover his situation. She wants a past screw-up on her record cleared and his support in dealing with the male chauvinists on the team. Tanner, with no other real option, agrees.
So now Tanner, with Tully close by, takes on the case of a 19-year-old young man who has been brutally beaten to death. There are plenty of suspects and suspicious characters, and they all are members of or close to the dead man's family. Let's see...what was going on with the dead man's former nanny, a relatively young woman who may have seduced the lad; or his mother, now remarried with a two-year-old daughter, who seems remarkably self-contained; or his step-father, a cool and busy businessman who had little time for him; or, most interestingly, his step-fathers identical twin brother. The two may look alike but that's the only similarity...that, and a fondness for the same woman. There are fair clues, inferences, psychological back-stories, jealousy, envy and hate. In other words, the mystery's not bad. And Tanner, with Catherine's help and a lot of legwork from his team, finally cracks the case. He has had to deal with debilitating light shows in his eyes, but those hallucinations sometimes helped out. You see, as his eyes deteriorate, it may be that his other senses, even that sixth one, are becoming more fine-tuned. Is this a television mystery or what?
Second Sight runs almost three hours. It was followed the next year by three new cases, each one running about 1 hour and 40 minutes. Hide and Seek takes us to the death of a famous violinist. The murderer turns out to be someone we least suspect, but the story plays fair with us. Parasomnia deals with anguish and sleepwalking. Kingdom of the Blind places Tanner in the middle of a war between neo-Nazis and black young men...and then his son disappears. While by now Catherine has left the unit (and Tanner's bed), another member of the team is helping.
To my mind all the mysteries in Second Sight are over-written and at times overly dramatic. There's the dreaded CSI syndrome at work: Anguished heroes, overly dramatic close-ups of suspects being interrogated; so much back-story trailing behind that a shovel and pail are needed. The writers appear to think they are exploring the human condition, or some such, instead of writing tight-paced, clever mysteries for television. Tanner's situation is set up for us in the first program. Even if we haven't seen this program, his situation doesn't need the seemingly endless camera pyrotechnics to let us know Tanner is having an attack. We sure don't need the repeated narrative of Tanner's angst and anguishes. The writers don't trust the audience because they don't think we'll get it the second, third and fourth time around.
More than balancing this, I think, are two things. First, discard all the anguish and neo-CSI nonsense and there remains good, interesting mysteries with solid, professional acting. I particularly liked the first. It was clever, unexpected and psychologically sick. Stuart Wilson who played the twins was a sight to see.
The second and most important factor is Clive Owen. The man is a compelling actor. He underplays effortlessly and he has the skill and presence to dominate the program. He's a pleasure to watch. For those who also like Owen, I recommend two films he made with Mike Hodges, Croupier and I'll Sleep When I'm Dead. If Owen doesn't go Hollywood, and so far there's no sign that he is, he'll not only be a star but also remain an unusually fine actor.
The DVD transfers are just fine and there are several extras.
Forensic Buff
2008-01-24 - Enjoyed it but I could have done without it. But I can't pass up British mysteries,no matter who is in it.
