This is one of my favorite movies of all time. I came across the film because I had been so impressed with the work Jesse Spencer did for his character in House, I sought out to see more of his work. This movie does not disappoint since he plays quite an important character quite beautifully. But what really blew me away was the wonderful acting throughout the entire film. Every actor was perfect for his/her respective role and the direction was superb as well. Martin Shaw was perfect as Commander Dalgliesh and turned practically every interaction into an interesting character study. Also deliciously into their roles were Hugh Fraser as the cynical George Gregory and and Alan Howard as Father Sebastian. There is also Janie Dee as the sympathetic Emma and Robert Hardy as Father Martin. His poignant portrayal especially at the end of the first part (the movie has 2 parts) had me panicking because I thought it was the end, and I didn't want it to be over. Which brings me to the music: lovely, lovely musical score. I have so many favorite scenes that I don't mind re-watching this movie with those I recommend it to. I guess, I should have expected the high quality since it's a BBC production but still, in my mind it was just a TV movie and I thought, how good could it be. The answer: extremely so. Personally, I enjoy movies that are invested in the characters, not just in the plot, action or mystery. Death in Holy Orders delivers all the way.
