The Film
Picking up the story where Sharpe's Challenge ended, Sharpe's Peril finds Colonel Richard Sharpe (Sean Bean) and good friend Sergeant Harper (Daragh O'Malley) being called upon to do one more mission, escorting "important cargo" to a remote East India Company outpost. Of course nothing goes as planned, and soon Sharpe and a ragtag band of soldiers, as well as a princess, a minister and a pregnant woman are on the run from a renegade officer and his troops. Sharpe's Peril suffers from lower than normal production values, and some predictable plot twists. Let's hope that there is at least one more Sharpe's story left in Bean and O'Malley because Sharpe and Harper deserve a better last hurrah.
The Picture
The colors of colonial India come through strongly throughout this chapter in the series, and the red coats of the British Army and East India Company soldiers also look great. The Blu-ray also shows off that Sharpe's own green Rifleman jacket has seen a lot of wear (how does this thing hold up for so many years?). Unfortunately the black levels in this one are terrible. This is an improvement over the nighttime scenes in the previous made-for-TV film, but Sharpe's Peril has substantial grain in a few scenes. The 1.77:1 1080i presentation is a slight improvement over the broadcast version however.
The Sound
The audio of this one is also superior to the past outings on Blu-ray and of course the earlier releases on DVD. The irony is that this one has less action, but the 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack is very good, and you can hear some nice clanging of swords as Sharpe shows his skills with a blade in several sequences (how does he fight with so many wounds?), and you even hear the tearing to the jackets as the swords make contact.
The Extras
This one provides two versions for the price of one, and includes both the two-part version of the story (138 minutes), as well as a movie-like 100 minute version. There is also a making-of-featurette and a photo gallery. But like the story, it is a shame there isn't more to this latest chapter in Sharpe's escapades.
Final Thoughts
Given that Sharpe's Peril along with the preceding Sharpe's Challenge pretty much use all the story elements from Sharpe's adventures in India (albeit with a revised timeline), we have to assume this was the final tale for former ranker Richard Sharpe, and that's a shame because while this one looks and sounds as good as any of the TV-movies, the character still deserves a better story that concludes his adventures.
Product Details
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