DVD Reviews

The Prisoner (Miniseries) – DVD Review

By Jeff Swindoll Mar 24, 2010, 15:46 GMT

The Prisoner miniseries is a reinterpretation of the British 1960s cult hit series that starred and was co-created by Patrick McGoohan. The Premise : A man, known as Six, finds himself inexplicably trapped in The Village with no memory of how he arrived. As he explores his environment, he discovers that his fellow inhabitants are identified by number instead of name, have no memory of any prior existence, and are ...more

Those remaking beloved or cult television shows must be a brave lot.

The fans will have a critical eye for every crack and the comparison to an earlier, classic series will always be hovering in the background like a banshee in the form of Patrick McGoohan.

A man (Jim Caviezel) working for an unknown corporation spray-paints “I Resign” on his office window as his “take this job and shove it.” He awakens in the desert with only sketchy memories of his previous life and not having any idea how he got to this arid location. He stumbles around the wasteland until he sees an old man being chased and shot at.

He saves the elderly gentleman who mutters some cryptic information to him before the old man dies. The man continues to wander until he finds himself in a seemingly idyllic setting called the Village. The Village is governed by No. 2 (Ian McKellen) and everyone is known as a number not a name. The man is told that his number is 6. 6’s attempts to escape 2 and the Village will only lead to more mysteries.

If you’re not aware, in the 1960’s Patrick McGoohan starred in a mind-bending series called The Prisoner. Ever since it went off the airwaves (with a humdinger of an ending) its been rumored for a remake. This television miniseries may be dubbed more of a reimagining. Whatever the case, fans of the original series will find much to dislike in this redo.

I had my doubts in the beginning, but when it was announced that Sir Ian would be on board as 2 I got my hopes up. In the original series, 2 was played by a rotating number of actors (the most famous and remembered being the grand Leo McKern). Without spoiling the new series, the ending and purpose of the Village this time around seems very convoluted. The ending is lacking and appears to go against the themes of McGoohan’s version.

I can’t say that I blame the current crop of filmmakers for trying to do things differently, but sometimes in trying to make yourself stand out you also take some things away from what made the original so well loved and remembered.

The new Prisoner is imprisoned by the reputation of the 60s series and comes up lacking, even with the presence of Sir Ian. I like Caviezel, but nothing can overcome the intensity of McGoohan (I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered).

This new version also seems to go more along the science fiction route than the first one. As a fan of the first one I found this a poor, middling attempt. If you’re new to the show, it may work for you (but you’re a brainwashed Villager no doubt).

The Prisoner is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Special features include commentary by producer Trevor Hopkins and editor Yan Miles on Arrival and Checkmate. Each episode, located on discs one and two, features unaired scenes (Arrival – 7 minutes, Harmony – 3 minutes, Anvil – 7 minutes, Darling – 10 minutes, Schizoid – 6 minutes, and Checkmate – 9 minutes).

Disc three houses the remaining special features that include the 15 minute “A Six Hour Film Shot in 92 Days” that is a production diary, the 16 minute “Beautiful Prison” about creating the look and set of the film, the 11 minute “Prisoner Comic-Con Panel” and a 5 minute “Man Behind 2” interview with Sir Ian McKellen.

Fans of the original will only find this redo pushed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, numbered, and filed under “blah.” Sir Ian tries, but even himself cannot overcome the dearly departed McGoohan and the specter of the original show. It seemed like it might be a good try, but I’d have to say be seeing you to this re-imagining. Check out the original.