The first thing I noticed about AMC's reboot of the classic Patrick McGoohan series The Prisoner was its style. The original is a very stylized piece of work, but as someone who didn't see it back in 1967-1968 when it first aired -- I'm not that old! -- I'm not sure if its visual presentation was wholly unique in itself, or more a reflection of the '60s style in general. Certainly the '60s have become infamous for some weird fashion and design choices.Some of that '60s nostalgia creeped into the architecture and dress of the Villagers this time around without overwhelming the tone, and I think it's a wonderful homage to the original. But I'm more impressed that this re-imagining manages to capture the same sense of paranoia and confusion that the first did, without simply retelling the same story in the same way. And it's those differences that are truly modernizing the story in a great way.
It's nothing short of an amazing "get" for AMC and the producers of this version of The Prisoner that they managed to get Ian McKellan for the role of Number 2. The man is an acting tour de force, dominating every scene he's in, and he does so here again. While in the original series, Number 2 was often overshadowed by McGoohan's Number 6, and even replaced a couple of times (to say the least), it's nice to see a Number 2 that's so commanding and powerful.
As the series begins, you can tell that this Number 2 is completely within his dominion as the lord of all within the Village. The Village itself is updated to a much more modern almost-metropolis, while still keeping some of those elements that made the original's sleepy seaside setting so charming. It feels less like a prison than the first one, which makes the psychological game much more complex.
The cast in the supporting roles are just astounding in keeping us distant enough as viewers that we can't really tell whose side they're on or what they're really about. Lennie James (Jericho) is back with another spot-on American accent as a cab driver we kind of want to trust, while Ruth Wilson's character just oozes with double-cross. Everyone is so spot-on, that you don't see extras and supporting cast members walking about, you see citizens of the Village.
What's exciting is that AMC has made a very bizarre and trippy series from 40 years ago (which is brilliant in its own right) into something fresh, exciting and completely accessible to modern audiences. It's still trippy and bizarre, but it's a lot of fun to get lost in the mystery of this world filled with numbered people and nary a name to be found.
Jim Caviezel is doing a very admirable job of stepping into the very large shoes of Patrick McGoohan as Number 6, and though he comes at the role differently, it's every bit as believable. I think the modifications to the story, the Village and even the methods of imprisonment are perfectly in keeping with our modern times.
And this mini-series is perfectly in keeping with AMC's strong run of quality drama with top-notch writing, acting, directing and set design. The Village is real and beautiful and peaceful and terrifying all at the same time, and that is a sign of a masterful production.
I'd sit here and say that I'm disappointed we're only getting six hours of The Prisoner, but I'm really not. A great story knows when it's been told, and it's far more satisfying to get more with less than to watch something drag on and on until you just don't get that excited about it anymore. I'm very excited about The Prisoner and I'll be excited about it later when I watch it again and again.
AMC's new six-hour take on The Prisoner launches with a two-hour premiere on Sunday November 15, 2009 at 8 PM ET/7 PM CT. The mini-series then continues Monday and Tuesday in those same time slots.
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. on 'Faces of America' and the Beer Summit
Six Reasons Why '24' Has Jumped the You-Know-What
The Super Bowl Commercials: The Best
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-14-2009 @ 7:51PM
Alex said...
Presumably, you mean November 15, not October 15...
I am really looking forward to it, though; I love Sir Ian.
Reply
11-14-2009 @ 8:00PM
Dave said...
"While in the original series, Number 2 was often overshadowed by McGoohan's Number 6, and even replaced a couple of times, it's nice to see a Number 2 that's so commanding and powerful."
I'd like to know your definition of "a couple of times"!
"More than 17 different actors appeared as holders of the office during the 17-episode series (some episodes featured more than one "Number Two", most notably "It's Your Funeral" which featured two Number Twos in major roles and images of two others)."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_Two_(The_Prisoner)
The original had a couple of themes that ran through it. One of the biggest was who was Number One. Taken in that context, the role of Two was completely opposite of what this version looks like it's going to be headed.
As for the "very bizarre and trippy" aspect of the original... that's the part that IMHO is outdated. As in it's a relic of the style of the late 60s cinematography.
Looking forward to this!
Reply
11-14-2009 @ 8:38PM
Jim Sparks said...
Well, I am old enough to remember the first run of the Prisoner. The look of the series in the sixties was kind of new for television, not new for the real world. Maybe it was less "trippy" for England, but it decidedly odd for the USA.
I am waiting for the AMC version with an open mind.
Reply
11-14-2009 @ 9:24PM
010111 said...
you keep saying Number 2 and Number 6 .... you know they dropped the prefix "Number" in the new one right? yes. they made that small change for no real reason at all. they are known as "2" and "6" in the new mini-series for no good reason.
Reply
11-15-2009 @ 10:12AM
Jeremy said...
Their still numbers, but your right, we should all abandon hope now, this series will suck because "Number 6" is just "6" now.
11-15-2009 @ 1:09PM
zippy_zip74467 said...
I saw the original series. I don't know about the great acting, I just didn't like the story. I might sample the new one, since I like J. C.
Reply
11-15-2009 @ 3:31PM
medstud said...
I had a chance watch the old series. It was ok not great; I felt that it never lived up to its potential. But 60's shows of that time never quite handled drama well in my opinion. Now with this new cast i'd be expecting good things but this will only be as good as its script, and I wasn't impress with the extended preview clip.
p.s. Jeremy - it's maybe not a big deal, but i too enjoyed the whole "number 2" thing.
Reply
11-16-2009 @ 9:14AM
Phil said...
I watched the original series actually twice when I first saw it in the early 70's. What made it brilliant was that it compared to nothing else on TV at the time. Watching it for the third time this past summer I still held it in high esteem and thought it quite good. It was a very harrowing psychological drama and the politeness that abounded in the narrative made it that much more so. I watched the new version and I am not in the least bit disappointed. It maintains the original in terms of a harrowing psychological dimension with a polite front. But it adds other dimensions. Not once in McGoohan's versions do you doubt 6. By the time the first installment was half over I was starting to doubt the sanity of Caveizels 6. Meanwhile McKellan's 2 is absolutely terrifying. Well done. I'm getting paranoid.
Reply
11-16-2009 @ 2:53PM
Deborah Mac said...
I see nothing original in this. They borrowed the bone trappings of the original series and grafted the whole thing on "Dark City", merely sans Sci-Fi elements--right down to the little boy remembering the beach and trying to get back to it. Rufus Sewell - if he is watching - must be suffering flashbacks!
In an effort to give you "more" the make the story wholly unbelievable. That was the believability of the first series--it was controlled environment of confused adults in a tiny village. This is not a village, it's a massive metropolis, completely with scads of children (What? Did they kid nap them and brainwash them, too?)
They have equated Number 2 to domineering father figure with the dysfunction family. Poor Number 2. The paranoia of the cold war, does not shift to the vague "commercial" venue, and the wee homage to McGoohan, at the start with the only man in the old Number 6's clothing still trying to escape, was weak at best.
Guess what, AMC - nice try...but I won't "be seeing you." The first two episodes was boring enough.
Reply