The Prisoner 2009/2010

LOO7K OUT · April 2010

Anyone else hooked / was hooked on this mini series? I understand that ratings wise it bombed in the US and is doing the same in the UK. Shame, really thought provoking stuff, and brilliantly made. Wish there was more than 6 episodes.

Big fan of the McGoohan original and still love this.

Be seeing you.

John Drake · April 2010

I'm enjoying it. It's not as bonkers as the original, but they've made the right decision to rework it into something new. The only problem I have is the flashbacks. It would be far more interesting if there was no sense of Number 6 having been anywhere else other than the village. Loving Ian McKellen as Number 2.

trs007 · April 2010

Saw it when it debuted in the US. Although I agree that McKellen was great, I differ from the above posts in that I didn't like it. Perhaps expectations were too high, as I totally enjoyed the original series. Gave it a 2nd chance when the DVDS were released last month---nope.

John Drake · May 2010

OK the last two episodes were awful. Weirdness for weirdness's sake. I am no longer enjoying this show. Whatever happened to Jim Caviezel? So promising in The Thin Red Line. Now he seems to have lost interest in his own career.

Loeffelholz · May 2010

Embarrassed to say I've not yet had the pleasure of seeing the original McGoohan classic series (but then, I've never seen a single episode of any Doctor Who either ;% )...but I've always gravitated toward the notion that classics simply should not be remade----hello Gus Van Sant and Psycho

Caviezel was in it? Don't know how he thinks about his career, but I found him quite good as Jesus.

RogueAgent · May 2010

The new series is AWFUL. This is the risk you run trying to take a concept as out there as the original was and cultivate it for today's audiences. I honestly tried to give it a chance...honest I did.

But I'm as protective for the McGoohan series as I am the Shatner ST so my bias rears its ugly head often with things of this ilk. Some works should never be tampered with.

Mark Hazard · May 2010

Still awaiting time to view the later episodes of this new version - saw the first one and decided to stay with it and record them, probably to my regret, didn't much care for the first episode.

Pity the poor sods that enjoy this version (who probably haven't seen the original) and buy the new edition of The Prisoner by Thomas M Disch expecting it to mirror the new version.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Prisoner-Thomas-M-Disch/dp/0141049405/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273958467&sr=1-1

Happy reading - probably a must for fans of the original series.

Thunderbird 2 · May 2010

One of my best mates is from Namibia, and after learning this series was shot there, I had intrigued hopes for the re-imagined Village, and the cinematography. - I was glad I didn't for anything else!

Rouge Agent & John Drake, I am firmly with both of you. Setting aside Sir Ian acting his socks off as the singular No 2, - this is utter Crap!! It reminds me of The Avengers movie that had Uma Turman and Ralf Finnes in back in 98. - It tries to be too weird and lacks the genuine subtle surreal quality of the original show. The acting feels laboured, No 6 unlike Patrick McGoohan's angry and defiant character searching for answers, Caviezel's version is as charismatic as a block of wood. - The original often doesn't make any sense, and Mr McGoohan was openly delighted with that, esp the final two episodes. But this is just a shambles! I also agree the disjointed flashbacks, a'la Lost or perhaps 24, do not help. - I hope producers and writers get fed up with that somewhat tired plot / structure device. I did years ago.

At least they didn't mess about with Rover!

TonyDP · May 2010

Loeffelholz wrote:

Embarrassed to say I've not yet had the pleasure of seeing the original McGoohan classic series (but then, I've never seen a single episode of any Doctor Who either ;% )...

Egad! This is almost as bad as Dan Same once confessing to never having seen an episode of Star Trek.

You MUST try a few episodes at least. Arrival, the debut episode, is a TV classic in my book.

RogueAgent wrote:

The new series is AWFUL. This is the risk you run trying to take a concept as out there as the original was and cultivate it for today's audiences. I honestly tried to give it a chance...honest I did.

Yeah but did you like it?

) I give the new series props for trying something different with the genesis and makeup of the Village but other than Sir Ian McKellan's memorable scenery chewing turn as No. 2 (he would have been a perfect No. 2 on the original show) there was little here to like. Much of the original's charm was due to its quirkiness and unique setting, not to mention Patrick McGoohan's edgy, always on the verge of flying off the handle protagonist. Sadly this new version played like a pedestrian drama; the location used was pretty dull and Jim Caviziel was pretty forgettable as the lead.

One interesting nugget of info for you Rogue: the fetching Hayley Atwell, who played No. 6's ill fated lover (the blind girl in the Village) will be playing Steve Roger's love interest Peggy Carter in Captain America.

The Prisoner 2009/2010

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