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This is not to say that I havent been realizing the shows problems from the word go, as the first five hours of the show were highly problematic, but when Ian McKellens 2 utters the above line I realized that this is where the intentions of the miniseries went awry. The series premiered on November 15, 2009[5] as a miniseries on North American cable channel AMC in cooperation with British broadcaster ITV. For this week's Episodic Medium newsletter, I chatted with @, I mean no disrespect to Mare Winningham, but the idea she was nominated for Supporting Actress in, The fun thing about reviewing a mystery show like. A lot of this does have to do with the fact that the miniseries format seems to have been horribly misused in this instance, especially around the middle of the series. I quickly re-read your column. I quote Tom above: soul-crushingly disappointing. Who is #1. well,it sure isnt the creators of this convoluted, trite ripoff of The Prisoner. He finds himself locked in a battle of wills against 2, the Village's leader, who goes to great lengths to make 6 assimilate. The Prisoner, a reinterpretation of the 1967 British cult classic, follows Michael, who after resigning from his job finds himself inexplicably trapped in The Village, a town where people have numbers instead of names. The man arrives in an enigmatic community, whose residents inform him that it's called simply The Village. Network: Or you could show the bomb under the table, then continue the exact same scene, boring conversation and all, except now its fraught with tension as you wait for the bomb to go off. The original was the greatest television series of all time. And if, in the end, the central and most interesting character in the remake of The Prisoner is the jailer, not the prisoner, then the entire project itself has been turned on its head by people who should not have been entrusted with the project to begin with. It makes me think of Hitchcocks example of the bomb under the table idea, that you can show ten minutes of two men having the most boring lunchtime conversation ever and BOOM, their table blows up. The story of a husband whose wife has become trapped inside her own mind, unable to enjoy the child she created in that mind that she could never have in real life, would have been just as compelling if we werent forced into the position of 1112, unaware of the whole story. A big logical hole in the ending was the nightmarish world 313 would have created if The Village reflects elements of her life/personality. Thats a cheap thrill at the end of ten boring minutes. She concludes "The 21st century adaptation pays only lip service to the human condition, and instead explores a power struggle between two human beings. "[16], New York Times reviewer Alessandra Stanley struck a contrary note: "This version of The Prisoner is not a remake, it's a clever and engaging reinterpretation by Bill Gallagher, who shaped the script to contemporary tastes and sensibilities notably, a postmodern fatigue with ideology and big thoughts." obviously missed the whole point the original series. Tagged as 1112, 2, 313, 415, 6, AMC, Curtis, Ian McKellen, Jim Caviezel, Miniseries, Review, Summakor, Surveillance, The Prisoner, The Prisoner (2009). as usuall a mark j zappa make stupid comment like he does in real life what a useless peron get a job mark instead of sitting on your 2 inch dick. In a nutshell, if the big reveal for your series is among the first theories fans were offering for The Island on Lost, you might want to rethink it. !.from the bottom of my burning heart. General which caused its demise. (LogOut/ The only thing that almost did was the casting of Jim Caviezel. Nor the tenacity of its perversions, either. The whole thing was a dream? Part of the blame lies on Jim Caviezel, who gives a lifeless performance when hes asked to speak softly and an outright awkward one when hes forced to raise his voice. It slowly parcels out any information that could possibly make his character interesting by turning it into a mystery of its own, the scenes with Lucy in New York designed to pique our interest in the plot rather than actually create interest in this character. List of The Prisoner episodes The Anniversary You Cant Refuse: 40 Things You Didnt Know About. The series begins with an unidentified man waking up in a desert and finding himself in the middle of a pursuit as mysterious guards chase an elderly man through a canyon. Trevor Hopkins[2] I think theres a really intriguing miniseries to be told about that environment, one which could deal with the same themes that writer Bill Gallagher wants to deal with here, but this just wasnt it in any way. That being said, I did think that the cast was solid other than Caviezel, especially Lennie James and young Jamie Campbell Bower (who is playing Weymar Royce in the Game of Thrones pilot for HBO). You can contact me (Myles) with opinions, suggestions, or inquiries; I can be reached at cultural.learnings @ gmail.com. Summakor went from some sort of faceless corporation to a clear part of our narrative, and 313 went from an undefined female love interest to a legitimately tragic character whose pain is now comprehensible (and present at all, really). Nick Hurran[1] Honestly, I thought the opener, Arrival, was by far the best, because it could afford to be obtuse and mysterious as set-up for what was to come, plus there was the cameo by Number 93 at the beginning and the visit to his home, which was obviously another nod to the original. "[17] Furthermore, it was positively reviewed in the Radio Times and also by Sam Wallaston who writing for The Guardian, described it as "a triumph with something of The Truman Show about it" with "a tension and a claustrophobia that gnaw away at you, making you look at your own psyche."[18]. I never got my hopes up with this farce of a re-make. The miniseries is the story of Summakor, a company led by a man named Curtis who uses his wifes biochemistry research on the unconscious to develop a simulated utopia of the mind wherein individuals could travel to an ideal society and become fixed for their present lives. ( Frankly, were I not a fan of the original, 1968 Mc Goohan masterpiece, Id not have ploughed through this stuff . As you indicate, knowing what was happening made the story much better. Part of the reason I think the original worked so well was because the first audience had a context for McGoohanthat of secret agent John Drakeand whether or not his Number Six was the same person, the show traded off that familiarity. I can envision the poor loser who got the job of having to try to properly edit it. they could have actually made a worthwhile production with the underlying plot idea. "Beautiful Prison: The World of the Prisoner" a second behind-the-scenes documentary. "[14] Chicago Sun-Times reviewer Paige Wiser declares "There's also a reason why I am not conking myself on the head with a croquet mallet, but The Prisoner somehow has the same effect," and with reference to viewing all six hours of the miniseries, concludes "I urge you to heed my advice: Opt out while you can. I ask AMC the same question that #6 asked The However, the problem with this strategy is that the cloudiness of the first four and a half hours of the miniseries not only made us hunger for thrills but also destroyed any sense of thematic consistency and, as a result, destroyed audience interest. The closer it came to the airdate, the quieter the promotions have seemed, unless you were actually watching AMC. Really solid and smart piece of criticism, the best Ive read so far, about this soul-crushingly disappointing re-imagining of one of my favorite TV shows of all time. I could picture the original no. Too bad. Or how 11-12 can possibly believe hes successfully carrying on a clandestine homosexual affair with his own bodyguard. "ComicCon Panel" special feature, included on the 2010 DVD release of the series by Warner Home Video. Director: The PalmPre girl. But a satisfying ending doesnt make the rest of the miniseries any more interesting, except from the perspective of analyzing the ending more carefully in the context of the rest of the story. I had a very bad feeling as the series progressed. However the torture in watching all of this farce was still bad enough, especially for a true Prisoner fan like myself. 6, meanwhile, tries to contact "dreamers"Village residents who, like himself, have been experiencing flashes of memory of their life outside the Village. war FU#k YOU! Special features included deleted scenes for all episodes (including scenes from "Arrival" that explicitly indicate that 2 orders the bombing of the diner), and commentaries on "Arrival" and "Checkmate". Starring: Considering that the actress who played 313 looked a bit like January Jones, there were a few times where I imagined the cast of Man Men (Jon Hamm, Jones, Elisabeth Moss, etc.) one that dreaded the probable conclusion (that was verified, unfortunately.) It's unlikely to prove as lasting, but the new series still manages to be thrilling. But if youre designing a subconscious virtual idyll, what do you gain from building in the sinister device, whose chief message is to make everyone feel as if theyre living in a totalitarian prison? Once I realized the series had already aired, I found online reviews, including this page, that persuaded me that the show was going to keep being as bad as it seemed, and as oblivious to the themes and style of the original. I dont normally have cable so I caught it at a friends house by accident. Series: OK, no, the revelation that The Village was a state of mind, or level of consciousness, was not exactly The Matrix, but that essentially gnostic, hermetic setupits all in their mindsis something weve seen often since. "A 6 Hour Film Shot in 92 Days: The Diary of the Prisoner" behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of the series, featuring footage previously available online. As well as every other TRUE fan of the original masterpiece. But what was given Caviezel, did not make that nearly as possible for him to do. It was poorly written, poorly directed, poorly edited, poorly cast ( particularly the awful, Shakespearian-acting-style kid what was 2 doing raising a kid in the village ? And really, thats what this finally comes down to. Cliffhanger. It was only when things started to come together in the end that the miniseries started to be more successful, as the New York and the Village began to connect with one another in a legitimately intriguing way. What was so fascinating about this miniseries is that it actually at points started to do this, and yet refused to slow down in order to make it a successful strategy. I understand that mystery was a key element of the original series, but this theme didnt feel as if it really needed mystery to work, and I probably would have found the episodes they delivered far more compelling if I understood what was going on. There were some interesting elements to be salvaged here. He had already done it," she said in an interview shortly after McGoohan's death. He was given too many dumb lines. A further promotional event for the miniseries was held at the 2009 ComicCon, including a spoiler-heavy, 9-minute trailer and a cast and crew discussion panel.[4]. In the end, he chooses the latter because of what he sees Sarah turning into, and when he sees that 147s real life counterpart is closer to getting to see his daughter as a result of the process being undertaken, and he chooses to believe that helping people (even when they dont ask for it, as is implied) is worthwhile. I understand that 6 isnt able to know everything about Michaels life, or it would defeat the purpose of the entire exercise, but if we had been shown more of his past and given a better sense of his character we might have been able to better understand his characters motives even if he isnt quite sure whats going on. If these kinds of ideas are so interesting, then why werent they present throughout the miniseries in a way that went beyond a scattered collection of disconnected and weird story beats? That is why Patrick McGoohans series Some of the cult prisoner fans have long made that interpretation of the original show. It may be a prison, but like any prison system its one that people believe can reform people, and that some believe can be changed to truly be a utopia of sorts. A total waste of 6 hours that we will never get back. [8] AMC's original airing of the series combined the episodes, with episodes 1 and 2 airing on day 1, etc., with only one set of opening and closing credits for both. And standing in front of the Green Dome screaming his head off that he was going to destroy no. This made sense in the original, in which the Village was essentially a totalitarian prison. At least to my ears, even before the critics started weighing in, the advance buzz had gotten very quiet. Lol! But the ideas are worthy and could perhaps be better explored in a wholly original project. A remake had been in the works since 2005. "Inside The Prisoner" for all six episodes. Some broad stories like this suffer from a weak ending, but I thought this one was compelling: Michael, who is responsible for this program starting as a result of his Big Brother-like observations within Summakor, is forced to choose between destroying the Utopia or attempting to take over and fix what Curtis was unable to sustain before him. Episodes: If this had been executed, it could have been another notch in AMCs belt as it turned out, its an intriguing oddity thats more failure than success and more idea than execution. The miniseries eventually has him perform a number of odd jobs, each more mundane than the next, and because the character has no nuances or subtleties its as if they were unable to get the real actor and instead used a stand-in so that they could film what was happening around them. However, if this is the case, we need to want to watch the shows protagonist operate in this environment, and the miniseries fails to make the character the least bit compelling. Joan. Michael (now called "Six") struggles to hold on to his identity as he engages in a battle of wits with The Village leader, Two. The bottom line was the whole thing was a dreadful waste of time. The Geico gecko. I am appalled that so much brainpower and thought would go into analyzing and disecting this series. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. This can lead to a slower pace, certainly, but it can also really delve into the world the writers have created. I watched this in one sitting (sleepless night), fell asleep in the middle, saw the ending, and went back to catch up. I had guessed it from the beginning they had dug themselves into far too many plot-holes, so make it a dream. The episodes are clearly distinct from each other, which meant that they could have easily spread it out over six nights (Sunday-Friday) or over six weeks like a traditional series. And so Michael sacrifices himself as Curtis once did, and 313 gives up her life in the village to serve as the new host, drugged into a state of unknowing. I also believe that it failed to create the atmosphere. This farce of a re-make was also way too condensed, but thank God for that, with it being so moronic. I would have loved more exposition on the details how the prisoners interacted with their real world selves, how The Village was constructed and its relationship to the mind of The Dreamer (like the wraps). In early 2010, Warner Home Video released The Prisoner in DVD format in Region 1/North America in a 3-disc collection. 45 minutes (per episode)360 minutes (Full running time). I dont know what that other stuff was all about. Ill make a couple points of my own, just to move the conversation along. The Prisoner Miniseries to Premiere Sun., Nov. 15, Digital Spy: Q & A with Sky One head Richard Woolfe, "Rethinking of a Number Between 1 and 10", Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television: Ian McKellen (. I watched only 15 or 20 minutes. And Im not even convinced that the plot should have remained a secret. AMC streamed all 17 episodes of the original Prisoner series in advance of showing the remake. [12] Los Angeles Times television critic Robert Lloyd wrote "why anyone, on either side of the screen, should be particularly interested in his fate, is never made clear nor compelling," and further states "the payoff is weak, and more than a bit daffy." Running Time: They include: It was announced in late 2005 that Granada would revive the series for Sky1 in 2007. But now look, whomever says that Caviezel did a bad job portraying no. Any attempt at a deep meaningful philosophy is lost on this crap series. Apropos of your question whether AMC always intended to air the miniseries over three nights , I think not, as the episodic nature of the episodes would imply, but, when they got to see the dailies, or rushes, they panicked, as they knew a lot of people would not sit through 6 nights, let alone 6 weeks, of this. There are problems with the thematic content of this miniseries, but the real problem is how the writer chose to structure this story in order to create a sense of mystery that was ultimately more vague than it was exciting. While I would agree that Ian McKellen was the best thing about this rancid remake, I would also argue that elevating 2 to the equal of 6 in the story is a critical error, one that is only amplified by the actors performances, where McKellen simply blows Caviezel off the tube. (LogOut/ Give him a deserved break huh! I always felt that was such a lazy interpretation, side-stepping the need to make real choices, accept real responsibility and the importance for the individual to resist conformity whilst finding a way to still remain sane in this crazy real world of ours, and have the real will to live a real life of ones own. And Ive never been especially good at seeing plot twists like this coming, so if it became obvious to me early on, once we started seeing the dream-like parallels to Michaels New York life and learning about what Summakor was up toI cant imagine it floored that many other viewers. Now, I understand the reluctance to reveal details of the plot up front: the show is trying to sell itself on mystery, so having 6 arrive confused and disoriented and to make the Village particularly amorphous and challenging makes perfect sense.