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Having thoroughly enjoyed Chaucer's
Canterbury Tales (in the original Middle English, mind you) during my halcyon academic days, I was a little nervous as to how faithful this two-part, HBO-aired animated series would be to the 14th century classic of storytelling wayfarers embarked on a holy pilgrimage to Canterbury. However, the nicely pitched tenor fart that ripped through my speakers three minutes in, followed by a prodigious belch (which lifted my subwoofer six inches off the carpet) barely two minutes later, convinced me that my fears were groundless. Combining rich model animation together with traditional sketch work, this
Emmy award-winning modern adaptation presents six of the twenty-four tales (three on each video), ranging from the Nun Priest's Tale of Chauntecleer the rooster and his misadventures with a sly fox, to the Merchant's Tale of the elder cuckold January's vain attempts to corral his young wife (including, I believe, literature's first recorded instance of sex in a pear tree). Spanning a wide range of themes--including avarice, betrayal, lust, love, and pride--
Canterbury Tales I & II serves as a solid introduction to England's most celebrated medieval poet, retaining Chaucer's bawdiness (though omitting lusty gems such as "The Miller's Tale") within the larger scope of his acute, and often amusing, insights into the human condition. Highly recommended. [Due to the mature nature of the material, though tastefully and artfully presented, we recommend this for high school and up.] Also available from the same producers:
Beowulf,
Don Quixote and
Moby Dick.
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