“Remake” and “original” are loaded words.

The Prisoner, AMC’s remake of the 1967 British series of the same name, is nothing like its predecessor.  Or at least that’s what I’m told—not having seen the first version, I watched the new miniseries with a mind wiped as clean of preconceptions as one of the brainwashed members of The Village.  And along with most of them, I liked what I saw—The Prisoner (2009) was a strong, character-driven, self-contained story: an original in its own right.

Brilliant, enigmatic, and utterly horrifying in the way all good dystopian science fiction is—the final scene alone was enough to bring up a wave of déjà vu from reading George Orwell’s Nineteen Eight-Four for the first time and naively imagining torture and death were the worst O’Brien could do to Winston (or in this case, Two to Six).

I was wrong.

Throughout the miniseries, Six’s single-minded dedication to escape—“I am not a number!” he cries on multiple occasions, “I’m a free man!”— is almost heartbreaking.  Mental conviction, Six (James Caviezel) insists during early episodes, is stronger than anything the manipulative leader of The Village, Two (Ian McKellan, in a terrifying departure from the grandfatherly Gandalf), can throw at him.

But the theme of The Prisoner seems to be that the mind is not as secure a vault as we might imagine.  Six, after all, can’t even remember the name he supposedly had in his supposed other life and its supposed other world.  Any evidence he or any other number in the village has is as fragile as the wisp of a dream left after waking up—literally.  “Dreamers,” who draw fragments of their other lives on scraps of paper (the Statue of Liberty, a stick figure with a bag over its head), are disruptive elements in a society that sees them as crazy.

Add self-doubt to the mix and getting out starts to look impossible for the increasingly irresolute Six.

From my own experience, I’d say viewers can relate—as Six attempts to piece together memory fragments of a creepy corporate life at a mysterious surveillance company called Summakor (and his own quitting, even though “Nobody resigns from Summakor”), we’re trying to straighten out the plot from a thoroughly disjointed, non-linear story structure.  Episode one, “Arrival,” I’ll warn you, is nearly incomprehensible.

It’s not easy for anyone to straighten out the mysteries of The Village—neither us nor its own denizens—but the nonlinear narrative is as masterfully done an example of television text painting as I’ve ever seen.  The series, after all, is all about manipulating the human mind.

And no one’s better at that than Two, whose “death-cold eyes” (as described by one terrified villager) and gelid calm are absolutely convincing—I’m pretty sure smiling benignly while playing catch with a grenade is something only an elder statesman of drama like Sir Ian McKellan could pull off.

The rest of the cast, as well, is stellar, successfully portraying incredible depths of characterization (careful! some spoilers below) —

Two’s son, 11-12 (Jamie Campbell-Bower) shifts chillingly between the frigid self-possession of his father and the tortured confusion he picked up from Six;

Ruth Wilson’s self-composure as 313 is flawless, until the total disassociation of her “real” self from the “real” world is revealed, and makes a jarring contrast;

And Caviezel’s disorientation and resolution to escape are through the early episodes are utterly believable—only makes his ultimate end even more horrifying (here’s a hint: remember Winston Smith?).

But The Prisoner recalls Aldous Huxley as much as George Orwell: Two’s seemingly sincere belief that he can “help” people, perfect humans against their will, makes The Village as brave a new world as Huxley imagined for London of the 26^th century.

“The great war is psychological.  It’s in here,” Two insists, tapping his head.  And he’s right—not just in terms of the control he exerts over the minds of Six, 313, and his son 11-12 (for a while, at least).

“Postmodern” nonlinear editing doesn’t mean that the themes aren’t relevant, or predictive rather than contemporary—The Prisoner’s emphasis on the difference (or lack thereof?) between what’s real and what’s a construct is a very modern moral dilemma in an age when scientific and technological advances blur the line between the “real” the synthetic.

(Is 313’s love natural, or manufactured?  And even if it is a product of Two’s nefarious gene therapy, does that make it less real now that she does feel it?  Does The Village exist in any physical space, or just the mind?  Does it make a difference?)

In any case—with a disjointed structure, an just-barely-comprehensible storyline, a nightmarish conclusion, and a concept disconcertingly contemporary, watching AMC’s The Prisoner was something like having a bad dream, only to wake up and shudder that it could be possible.

But if Nineteen Eighty-Four or Brave New World are any sort of examples (or Shakespeare’s tragedies, or Euripides’, or Sophocles’…), dystopia and tragedy have a long shelf life.

I’m definitely buying the DVD.

The Prisoner ist eine Mini-Serie, die sechs Episoden umfasst und die Thematik der gleichnamigen Originalserie aus dem Jahre 1967 aufgreift und in die moderne Welt einführt: Ein Mann wacht im Nirgendwo auf, ihn umgibt Sand, man weiß nicht was geschehen ist, was gerade passiert und was passieren wird. Er findet eine Stadt, ein Dorf. Nach kurzer Zeit wird ihm klar, dass es nur dieses Dorf zu finden gibt, denn der Taxifahrer, den er ordert, nach New York zu fahren, kennt diese ominöse Stadt nicht. Grund dafür ist: There is only “The Village”. The Village also, der einzige Ort auf Erden – wenn es sich denn um die Erde handelt. Noch mysteriöser wird es, als sich die Leute nicht bei Namen nennen sondern mit Zahlen ansprechen. Jeder in dem Dorf hat eine Zahl, gerade diese repräsentiert ihren Namen. Der Mann, um den es in The Prisoner geht, wird “6″ genannt. 6 (James Caviezel) ist verloren in einer Welt, die er nicht kennt. Einziger Anhaltspunkt zu “seiner” Welt ist Number 2 (Ian McKellen), der wichtigste Mensch in The Village, der, der was zu sagen hat und der, auf den alle Bewohner heraufschauen. 2 scheint was zu verheimlichen und 6 will wissen was. 6 will raus. Er kann aber nicht, er weiß nicht wie. Er ist gefangen.

Es sind sechs Episoden, die anfangs verwirrender nicht sein könnten und im Zuge der Handlung an Klarheit gewinnen. Doch auch am Ende wird man sich vielleicht noch an den Kopf packen und sich fragen, was man denn hier sechs Stunden lang geschaut hat. Es ist eine Geschichte über die Kraft der menschlichen Imagination, die Ausweglosigkeit der Gedankenwelt und die Verbindung zur realen Welt. Gefangen im eigenen Körper, ein Gefangener seiner selbst.

In moderner Aufmachung und schnellen Schnitten, mit Flashbacks und der Macht des Mysteriums á la Lost begibt sich The Prisoner auf  Terrain, welches sich nicht in seiner Komplexität verliert, sondern den Zuschauer zum Nachdenken anregen wird. Über die chaotisch reale Welt, den Lärm, den es beinhaltet und den Stress; Über die Flucht in eine neue Welt, in der es geregelteres Leben gibt, einfacheres, aber auch sinnloseres. Gerade die Zahlen in The Village sind identitätsberaubend und lassen die Bewohner als kleine Spielfiguren oder Puppen darin leben. Mit 6 ändert sich jedoch die Gefühlslage und die Atmosphäre in der mit Sand umgebenen, perfekten Welt. Rebellion der Spielfiguren? 2 gefällt das gar nicht.

Es sind nur sechs Episoden, die man sich ohne Bedenken anschauen kann. Bedauerlicherweise ist mir das Original nicht bekannt, welches nach einigen Meinungen düsterer und besser sei als das Remake. Nichtsdestotrotz kann ich die aktuelle Version dieses interessanten Gedankengefängnisses empfehlen, und sei es wegen der ansprechend gespielten Rollen. Allen voran Ian McKellen, seine Interpretation des 2 ist wunderschön kaltblütig und grausam, die Art, die voneinem Lächeln begleitet wird.

_____[ * * * . . ]_____

So, AMC recently remade the classic 1960s TV series The Prisoner.  I’ve held back on ranting about this for a couple of reasons.  One being that I wanted to calm down a bit before doing so.  The second being that I wanted to coherently express how disappointing the remake was.

Originally, The Prisoner was a TV series starring Patrick McGoohan.  He also cocreated the series, writing and/or directing many of the episodes.  The series begins with McGoohan’s character, known as “No. 6″, arriving in a mysterious village after resigning suddenly from some type of unexplained clandestine work.  He’s not allowed to leave until he reveals why he resigned, sparring with the “No. 2″.  Enjoying a seventeen episode run, the Prisoner goes through this surreal trip that strangely comments on society and our way of life while including some of the finest viewing you can get out of the 1960s.

The remake has “6″ (played by James Caviezel) wandering through the desert, randomly stumbling on an old man who apparently escaped from this strange village where he finds himself at odds with “2″ (portrayed by Ian McKellen), the ruler of this mysterious place.

My big problem was the remake can be summed up pretty neatly: it wasn’t a real place.  The basic premise was to turn it into the Matrix and it failed miserably.  They didn’t even focus on plot points from the good one.  It basically turned the Matrix into a therapy tool.  Apparently one that is extremely ineffective.

James Caviezel was horrid as “6″–barely watchable.  My main problem with his character was that I just simply could not buy into him.  With McGoohan’s character you just wanted to know everything about him and figure out who was pulling the strings.  You knew nothing about him, but you loved No. 6.  With Caviezel… not so much.  You didn’t get the steadfast element to the chacter.  You just couldn’t care who any of these people were.  With the original, No. 6 was constantly undermining and toying with his superiors, poking and prodding them.  With Caviezel, you got this brute character who could barely outplay 2.

Just a horrid remake that should never have happened.  Even if you don’t consider it a remake, it was still fairly blah, and horribly incoherent to watch.  Before he died, McGoohan was approached about being involved in this.  He refused.  I don’t know how much of the project he was familiar with, but I’m sure his ashes are churning in their urn at this point.

“You only think you are free.”

The AMC mini-series The Prisoner is an update to the cult favorite series from the 1960s about a government agent (James Caviezel) who is kidnapped and sent to a remote island known as “the Village”. When he wakes up in the middle of the desert, not remembering what happened, but having dreams and visions about his early life in New York, he tries to find out where and who he is. The government agent is called 6 by everybody and soon he has to deal with an old man named 2 (Ian McKellen), who he thinks of keeping him as prisoner, though 2 states that 6 is a free man. 6 finds allies in a doctor named 313 (Ruth Wilson), in a cab driver named 147 (Lennie James) and in 2’s own son 11-12 (Jamie Campbell Bower). 6 is looking for a way out of the Village.

Episode 01: Arrival
Ehm, yeah… Fascinating. Really. Maybe I should see the original, after AMC finished this remake, I only heard of it. Most interesting – even for me – is, that I almost knew nothing about the series before. I just knew the title, saw two promo posters for it, knew that Ian McKellen and Jim Caviezel are in the main cast and that this one is a remake of an old original. Nothing from the story, and I read nothing about the series at all. And so, I am quite surprised after what I saw here. Really fascinating stuff; mysterious, deep, reminds me of a mixture of Meadowlands (which I could rewatch btw), Shyamalan’s The Village and a bit of Dark City. And maybe The Prisoner is a bit of all of them.
So, 6 wakes up in the middle of the desert, witnessing 96 being chased and killed. 6 has some kind of visions, he has memories about New York, his home, he knows names, he knows history, but he doesn’t know who he is or where he is. He has to learn that the Village is “the” Village – there is nothing out there. Maybe another village in the universe. The mystery part is definitely a great setting for the series, and the village itself really looks like the loneliest place on Earth. It already looks like that the village is some sort of a prison with persons, which original memories are wiped and replaced with new ones, which excludes everything outside of the Village. But where is the Village located and is it really that simple to understand? I think there is more behind all of this than just a prison with prisoners in it.
The episode itself was good. Jim Caviezel overacted a bit (especially in the scene where he meets 2 for the first time, when he smashes his hand on the table), but other than that he is a good “6″ (damn, now I am thinking of Battlestar Galactica…). Ian McKellen could have more screentime for the fact his name is billed first in the credits, I know nothing about his role, except he is the “2″ – now I am interested to know who (and where) is “1″. The rest is pretty much unknown for that. Here a possible love interest for 6, there the dying hope of a way out of the Village; here a cab driver, who possibly knows more than he says, there a kid, who starts to learn that there is more than this life. The first episode (as a part of a mini series I don’t really see it as a pilot) basically set up everything we have to know for the next minutes of the show. Lots of questions, a few answer, lots of possibilities how the story could evolve during the next parts. Only the cliffhanger seemed a little awkward and pushed the story more into a science fiction genre. Which, I think, could be a mistake story-wise. But I don’t know the original and I don’t know hoe the writers handled that at their time. I let myself surprise what’s to come and will not spoil myself. This is, after a long while, the first real series from which I don’t know anything. 8/10

Episode 02: Harmony
Between the first two episodes I read an article about the old series, and now all the surprises are gone, because I know what is going on in the series. Nevertheless the remake is still fascinating and definitely not clear which story it will take for the next parts. For a resistance story it could be already too late; after two episodes 6 is already almost crazy and short before not believing in his dreams anymore. The end of the episode made it clear.
The story is told a bit too slow. Instead of giving us a few answers about what is going on, the writers gave us the episode story of the brother and the therapy thing, which feels like a one-episode thing. The relationship between 6 and 313 is not really building, and 2’s son 11-12 is not thinking too often about 6’s words about something outside of the village. It still looks mysterious and complex, but it just feels like the writers wanted to not reveal secrets before the finale. Okay, I liked the story with 6 and his alleged brother, just the fact that the revelation of 16 (Jeffrey R. Smith) not being 6’s brother and instead telling about them looking at everybody all the time came too short (still: The tables in the pool looked great, I want to sit in there, too). And I still don’t like the big white ball; this is kind of too much. The story seemed just like a “filler” to prevent letting the viewers know about the mystery in the story. I already know that the writers cut the spy story and going in a complete different way than in the original, but it still feels that the writers don’t want to expose any information for their big finale. It is like Lost.
It was still a good episode, but it was a bit weaker than the first one, and I think the rest of the series, probably with the exception of the finale, will be the same. I like the story, I like how the writers try to keep it complex, and I like that nothing is certain for sure (especially the ending with 6 in the crazy house made it clear that anything can happen), but I don’t like that any new mystery series has to be the new Lost, keeping all the secrets in the back, revealing them only in the finale. I already get bored with this, but as long as The Prisoner is a mini series I will have fun with it. 7,5/10

Episode 03: Anvil
Pretty much another typical stand-alone episode. Even the man story arc didn’t have minutes to discuss. There really was nothing about it, except the “psycho games” between 2 and 6 and 6’s efforts to get 313 out of the tunnels, together with another appearance of the white ball of death. But the rest… uninteresting procedural to keep the viewers interested in what is happening next with 6. The undercover story was bullshit, though, because it brought nothing. Either 313 thinks 6 spied on her and wants him out of her live, or 6 explains everything to get a bit of a love story into the story. But doing nothing is a waste of time. And this was pretty much the biggest problem in this episode.
Which was, surprisingly, still good. I still like the mystery part of the story and I still like the “duel” between 2 and 6. Especially when 6 mentioned to work against everything, what 2 does and says. Other than that the episode had some interesting points: Not to mention the question about number 1 (I don’t believe there is no number 1), but the deal with the tunnel and the execution-style eradication of unwanted village inhabitants. And the fact that more and more people seem to dream (or have visions about their old life) – which marks one big question: Why is 6 the only one, who wants to find out if there is a possibility to escape? Even 11-12 starts to believe, there is more to everything, but he is doing nothing.
At least the flashback story got an interesting turnout. Though I have absolutely no interest in the bits and pieces from 6’s early life (if it is his early life), but the acting was good in here. But I don’t think that the flashback story has any meaning into the story at all, which lets me ask myself why the writers did bring that story into the show. It must have some significance…
The Prisoner is already a miniseries, and when the writers waste their precious time with stand-alone and filler stories, then they didn’t really have good ideas to keep all the six parts interesting, which is a shame, because the plot is awesome. 6,5/10

Episode 04: Darling
Well, now I am really confused. An episode between stand-alone stories (the matchmaker thing) and a secret about the main story arc (Lucy’s [Hayley Atwell] involvement, who was recruited by 2 to play mind games with 6). And everything gets more confusing with the story about the hole and the disappearance, probably death of 832. It is nice to bring the recurring characters into an important story arc, but why is it so confusing now? Psych games are now replaced with mind games now.
Finally the flashback story is connected with a story in the village, and it was quite surprising that Lucy a.k.a. 4-15 was 6’s girl for the future – even though it was all part of one of 2’s plans. But the flashback story lost all meaning, when Lucy came into the village and played a blind girl and the result of 6’s matchmaker. The flashback story was just interesting enough in the last episode, which obviously was intended to prepare the story of this episode, but now the flashbacks are not interesting anymore. I don’t even care about the explosion of 6’s house in New York. And I surely don’t care if Lucy survived the explosion (well, she did, as long as the flashbacks are REALLY flashbacks… I am thinking of Lost right now, which confuses me again), because she could have easily planted the bomb to fake her death or let 6 believe that she is dead or something else, whatever.
It seems unbelievable, that 6 wants to marry 4-15, after one day and night of meeting (though he knew her as Lucy before); this story was a bit stupid. And the relationship story between 6 and 313 (together with the kiss at the wedding), well, I don’t want to talk about it, because it seems like a filler to the finale and a story for the shipper.
Only 11-12’s story seems interesting, and finally he steps forward with his intuitions, but his story could be told a bit faster, because there are only two episodes left…
By the way, I noticed something, which confuses me even more: The episode’s cliffhangers are totally not concluded in the next episode. In “Harmony”, we had 6 in the psych hospital, in the next minute of the next episode he was out; in “Harmony”, he was in the tunnels, in the next minute of the next episode, he was happy somewhere else – what is with the open and unresolved cliffhangers? Do they have a meaning in the bigger story or is it just very bad writing? I hope there is something explainable coming… 6,5/10

Episode 05: Schizoid
Waah, now I am totally lost. Either the 6 in New York is crazy, ill, sick, and like the episode title schizoid, then the series has a really boring conclusion, but if not, then I want to know how everything fits together. This episode was even more confusing than the last one, and it kills the fun I had with the series during episode 1 and 2. Still complex, but I am losing interest, when I see scenes, which are completely
out of logic and probably even out of synchronicity of the story.
Now the writers bring us doubles, a two-times 6 and another 2 and nobody knows who is who, are they really doubles, or just imaginations in each other’s heads and minds. And with each other’s minds I mean that the confusing is happening in the illusion’s minds… Yeah, I really am lost.
At least I am getting into 11-12’s story, even though I am about not to see through this story. Not only do I not understand why 2 gave 11-12 the key, but I couldn’t get the sense of the actual story and of 11-12’s mother – is she now dreaming about the real world or about the village? Does she know about everything or is that just an illusion in somebody’s mind? Or am I getting crazy and I secretly watch the series finale of Lost without knowing the two previous seasons?
The idea with the doubles is good, and sometimes I thought about clones, astral illusions or something like that, but with every new scene the writers have something new to offer: The towers are in real the Summakor offices? Which 6 is now in the “office” and beating the crap out of the windows and which 6 is in the Village? Are there mind exchanges happening? How did 313 get to the Summakor office without being chased by the white ball of death? Did she really manage to get to the towers? Damn, with all these questions, no answers and confusing stories it is no fun to watch the episodes. Because there is no clue of what might be the bigger game in this episode, when it is not all a dream of 6 or something like that.
By the way: What was up with 147 and his wife? Did they already forgot the “disappearance” of their daughter? There is absolutely no aftermath of this story. And 4-15 is not going to be missed as well.
Seriously, I like all the complexity, but the series goes on my nerves in this form. 4,5/10

Episode 06: Checkmate
Hm, okay, I am trying to put it together: Everything was a mind game, the consciousness not really playing tricks, but manipulating it. Consciousness can be transformed into another place, while “normal” life goes on – basically: the consciousness of the people can be separated from the people. The consciousness notice its missing “host” (the people) and has dreams (that’s probably why 6 had the dreams from his early life at the beginning of the miniseries) – the dreams might be the connection between the separated consciousness and the people, so that a lost consciousness can return to its “host” – , wants to return, but cannot and gets crazy (like 6 did – kind of). It creates an enemy (the big white ball of death) and so it tries to put itself together. Basically: The consciousness of the people can “think” on their own without being connected to their “hosts” (the people). And now the biggie: Even though I didn’t understand the last three episodes and all the things about the consciousness (especially with Helen [Rachael Blake] in the center of everything – kind of), this is my own resume of the series and it might not be right, because I saw barely clues to what I just wrote. But I think this is the easiest way to describe the whole mini series. I just don’t understand why there were two 6s and two 2s in the last episode. I could explain it with 6, but with 2?
Seriously, even after the finale the plot is still confusing. I could write more stuff about the whole consciousness thing, but I don’t know if I even interpret it right, I already lost my thoughts writing together my own thesis. I can’t put all the things together I saw, especially the flashback scenes with 6/Michael and Lucy during the first four episodes (what has this to do with everything?) – whose consciousness is really controlling the village – 2/Curtis or Helen (after her death in the village, all the holes came up, which lets me believe that Helen kind of lost control over her consciousness, because she was the one who most dreamt stuff – in the village and in real)? Or is 11-12 behind everything (he died, too, and all the holes came up – by the way: It is interesting that 2 is holding a funeral for his son, but not for his wife; this one lets me think about that Helen’s consciousness wasn’t really a part of the Village, but a connection for 2 between the Village and the real world, which means, again, that Helen was the bridge between the world of conscious and the world of being awake). Oh my god, I am so confused right now.
A few words to the episode: It was… a good one, at least a few of my million questions were answered, and I think the viewers have to think for themselves now, how to interpret the series. Interesting is that the episode picked up some of the cliffhangers from the last episodes. 6 getting into the crazy house in “Harmony”, in here his conscious is in the crazy house, fighting his demons (the big white ball of death); 313’s fate totally confuses me (especially the ending scene – is she taking Helen’s position now? Is she he bridge between consciousness and the real world now?), and why the writers brought 147 into the real world as a driver, I don’t know – this scene was confusing as well. And why 2 killed his head with a grenade I don’t know. And the biggest thing: Even though it was clear that there is no number 1, I secretly think 6 was 1. When everybody already screams “6 is the one”, I translate it to “6 is 1″ – and in theory he could be 1 now, after he “takes over” the village.
I have to think about that now, maybe rewatching the mini series, maybe putting my thoughts together again. Maybe I understand then. But for now the writers managed to get to the point: Don’t conclude the mystery story, so the viewers have to think on their own. I thought hard, and I am not happy about my results. 7/10

Season average is 6,67. I definitely will rewatch this, just for the sake to understand the whole thing. And I will post another entry with more thoughts about the ending, the conclusion and everything in it, around Christmas time or so. When I was thinking about this show over the night, I still was fascinated and flashed with everything I saw. And I want to know, if the writers wrote together some unexplainable shit, not caring about the meaning of the conclusion, or if everything has a deeper meaning in religion, myths and so on.
By the way: I was already looking for the original series. I will watch this some time, but first I have to find the episodes…

Sadly, AMC’s version of THE PRISONER lived down (way down) to my very low expectations. I can honestly say this was not your grandfather’s PRISONER — and that’s not a good thing. The series was as dry as the desert that surrounded the new Village on all sides.

Caviezel and McKellen

The original was all about alienation and rebellion in the face of conformity. The Village itself represented the rigid social system of Britain, and 6’s struggle to resist mirrored the counter-culture movement of the late ’60s. This PRISONER, however, clearly has been filtered through the refracting lens of LOST, and the result is a distorted version of the modern touchstone, rather than a reflection of the social dreads of the early 21st century. The initial two hours of P2009 were obsessed with piling up “mysteries” instead of story elements, and the middle chapters served purely as bald-faced filler to mask a few sequences that would “justify” the addle-minded finale. The elements that were retained only serve to heighten the differences. 6 still meets a taxi driver first, and then goes to a shop to buy a map, but in the modern version, the encounter with the shopkeeper is an excuse for a sight gag about the map unfolding to unwieldy size.

But it was not all bad. I thoroughly enjoyed the photography and high production values. But while everything looked fantastic, the actual storytelling was crap. Director Nick Hurran was less interested in telling a story than making sure there were lots of pretty pictures onscreen. The biggest story mistake turned out to be shifting the emphasis away from the eponymous prisoner and onto his jailer. In the original series, 2 was constantly replaced without warning, essentially making him (and sometimes her) a dehumanized, faceless bureaucrat; in 2009, McKellen played No. 2 for the entire run, and great pains were taken to put a human face on him. He was given a troubled family life, and the entire Village revolved around his clan. This inversion of the central conceit failed utterly. Ironically, that disastrous shift led to the miniseries’ greatest triumph: casting Sir Ian McKellen as the sinister No. 2. The majestic actor inhabited his white suits with predatory menace, and 2 clearly delighted in playing cat-and-mouse with 6. James Caviezel, meanwhile, apparently took playing a mystery man as license to avoid giving him a personality. 6 may have claimed he was not a number, but Caviezel avoided giving him a face. Compare 2009’s bloodless 6 with Patrick McGoohan’s snarling, caged animal version. And while Caviezel says, “I am not a number,” repeatedly, where was McGoohan’s defiant motto: “I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered!”

And then there was the ending. There was no way to top the original’s mind-bender, so apparently the-powers-that-be decided not to even try. As a result, the finale veered so wildly into nonsense that it almost seemed to have been tacked on from a different series. The gritty first hour bore no resemblance to the trippy last installment. The entire enterprise ended up feeling more like a reimagining of LOST rather than PRISONER. A reimagining made by people who don’t “get” LOST, I might add. It is possible to be mysterious like LOST and intriguing like the ’60s PRISONER without being incoherent. The first five installments were so deathly dull, confounding and alienating that it was not surprising that the denouement would be a total cop-out; I simply wasn’t prepared for how much it would be a cop-out.

“The Village is in all of us,” mused No. 2, who went on to “explain” that the Village was some kind of experiment in mind control operated by the Summakor corporation. No. 2’s wife, Helen, was a biochemist who theorized that there are different layers to the mind and that it was possible to transport other people into that dreamscape and “fix” their mental traumas by making them live in the Village. Against their will, no less. This wild detour into vaguely-worded mumbo-jumbo left me confused as to whether they were chalking up the Village to pseudo-science or just plain magic. No. 2 kept his wife sedated because her dreams maintained the stability of the Village — which implied the Village was in her mind. But then she was murdered by her son, 11-12, who only existed in the Village. Huh? The big reveal did not make sense, and it did not work, at all.

The motive for placing 6 in the Village turned out to be simple revenge, because, as Lucy intoned, “No one resigns from Summakor.” So, unlike the original, there was nothing special locked in 6’s mind from his days as Michael; Summakor was just a disgruntled former employer. Was this miniseries an ode to medical experiments on unwilling human subjects? My best guess is that it was a rant against evil corporations that think they know what’s best for individuals. But who can say what it was really about, since the vague scripting was apparently intended to confuse viewers rather than entertain.

How ironic that AMC’s motto is, “Story Matters Here,” because story -– a tale with a beginning, middle and end — did not matter to this remake of THE PRISONER.

Título: Outlander
Título original: Outlander
País: USA
Estreno en USA: 18/11/2008
Estreno en España: 28/11/2008
Productora: The Weinstein Company
Director: Howard McCain
Guión: Howard McCain y Dirk Blackman
Reparto: James Caviezel, Sophia Myles, Jack Huston, Ron Perlman, John Hurt, Owen Pattison, Ted Ludzik, Aidan Devine, Michael Fox, Katie Bergin, Amy Kerr, Todd Schroeder, Cliff Saunders, Simon Northwood, Colette Stevenson

Sinopsis:

Año 509. La historia comienza cuando una nave espacial se estrella en la antigua Noruega, en la época de los vikingos. Del interior emergen dos enemigos: un soldado de otro mundo, un guerrero humanoide llamado Kainan, y una sanguinaria criatura conocida como El Moorwen, una bestia salvaje dispuesta a vengar la muerte de su raza a manos del ejército del guerrero. Hombre y monstruo buscan venganza por una serie de actos cometidos contra ellos. Mientras El Moorwen va devastando el mundo vikingo, asesinando a quien se le pone por delante, Kainan, combinando su avanzada tecnología con armas antiguas, se dedica a formar a un grupo de primitivos pero feroces guerreros. El objetivo es claro: acabar con la brutal criatura

Opinión:

Que batiburrillo, madre. ¿Pero que se fumaron los guionistas? Naves espaciales, monstruos monstruosos, marines del espacio, la edad de hierro en el planeta tierra, vikingos barbudos con espadas, hachas y martillos gigantescos, sangre y gore para aburrir y a Jesucristo como protagonista. Ole sus cojones. Y para mas narices, la cosa funciona bastante bien, resultando una película dinámica y entretenida, tope palomitera y que se te pasa en un suspiro, que no es poco.

¡Valor y al toro!

Y si, vale, no es una obra maestra, el guion es simplote, esta mil veces visto y se mea en la historia directamente, y las actuaciones no pasaran a la historia del cine, pero ¿a quien cojones le importa? Es divertimento puro y duro, hecho con cuatro duros (americanos, eso si) y con una fotografía y unos efectos especiales de aupa.

Er'bisho

Por eso quedaros con la parte buena, y disfrutadla, leñe. Os aseguro que si os dejáis de tonterías y entráis de cabeza a la historia, os lo vais a pasar de puta madre. Y si encima ves a Jesus con un espadón en mano, ya es para correrse, vamos.

Puntuación:

6 / 10

So after a long spell without the pacifier, Joker and I had had enough, it was either get the TV installed or there were going be nightly bonfires on the front lawn and burning tires until someone fixed the problem.  But of course there was no one else and so I called up and got them to hook up our direct TV ourselves, and like magic, our conduit of media was once again connected to the universe we crave.   And just in time too.  Sunday night A&E aired the first of it’s episodes updating the classic British TV show ‘The Prisoner”.  I got into the original some years ago when Sci-Fi was just getting it’s wings and wasn’t afraid of airing stuff late at night that didn’t include bad 80’s horror shows or Girl’s Going Wild.

The original series was  the brain child of actor/ writer/ director Patrick McGoohan, the star of the hit British spy show ‘Secret Agent’ and George Markstein, a story editor on the series.  Not content with just continuing his career as a an actor shoveling out run of the mill action shows, McGoohan used his pull and fame to craft a deep and dark piece of work.  Falling somewhere in the vast expanse between Ayn Rand’s ‘Anthem’ and the James Bond series of movies/books, the show explored themes like paranoia, individuality, and defiance,  a poster child for trippy 1960’s unrest.  I came upon it at that perfect time in my life when I was exploring similar ideas in the books I was reading and it just clicked very hard with me.

And the final episode has a Beatles music cue that would blow your socks off.

So it was with no small enthusiasm that I sat down to watch the remake the other night.  And it was pretty damn good.  Although some things have changed, the Village being much larger and now isolated in the middle of a vast desert as opposed to next to the sea.  But the core ideas are all still present.

James Caviezel now takes the lead role as Number Six, a man who wakes up in the isolated sands outside of The Village with no idea how he got there.  Caviezel does a workable job, emitting a constant aura of confusion and angry distrust of everyone he meets, but he doesn’t have that heavy brow emphasized glare or the feel of pent up explosive danger of McGoohan’s version of the character.  The decision to change Number Six from an ex-secret agent to an information analysis is an interesting one, sacrificing a man prone to action for an extremely observant protagonist, we’ll have to wait and see how this plays out in the episodes to come.

Playing foil to Caviezel’s Number Six is Sir Ian McKellen, who hams it up as he is often fond of doing as the villainous Number Two.  But even chewing scenery Magneto-style isn’t enough to really take anything away from such a masterful actor and he comes across  as both a believable protector of his fellow Village citizens and sinister face to the secret plot that enslaves them all.  I bought it, and as a fan of the old show, I felt the casting of Number 2 was nearly as important as the lead, so I was pleased by what I saw in McKellen’s performance.

Scaramouch, Scaramouch, will you do the Fandango?

Six’s fellow Villagers all still have numbers for identities instead of real names and there’s an ongoing attempt to convince him that they are living a perfectly happy existence in The Village.  Of course it wouldn’t be a show if everything was really peachy, and it becomes clear very quickly that their harmonious front is a cover for something much more sinister and/or strange.  Ideas of alternate realities immediately sprung to the minds of those watching with me, and I can’t really argue with that kind of logic.  The Village does seem to be in it’s own place and time, and the strange phantom twin towers in the distance raises many questions about the remote locale.  But part of the fun of the Prisoner has always been trying to explain what was really going on.  Much of the same theories people have built around ‘Lost’ were applied to ‘The Prisoner’, things like it being a kind of purgatory or the previously mentioned alternate reality theories.  None of it was really explained in the TV show, McGoohan certainly wasn’t telling, and it’s been way too long since I have read the Alan Moore written comic mini-series for me to recall if it was covered there.

And it’s mostly irrelevant.  The Prisoner, to me at least, was about the man himself and his struggle with his captors and fellow Villagers to dig out the truth and remain a free man.

So I’m in so far, here’s to hoping the rest of the episodes landed on the DVR.

Be seeing you. Te observamos

Number 2. Número 2

Cuarenta y dos años después la cadena británica ITV conjuntamente con Granada Television y Out of Africa Entretaiment han realizado un ambicioso remake  de la famosa serie “EL PRISIONERO”, creada y protagonizada por el actor Patrick McGoohan en 1967. El original poseía 17 capítulos. En ella McGoohan interpretaba a un agente secreto que es raptado y llevado a una isla conocida como la Villa.  En Estados Unidos el canal American Movie Classics (AMC) ha distribuido esta nueva versión homónima y la estrenó el pasado domingo 15 de Noviembre. De momento no hay fecha confirmada de estreno en otros países, pero saldrá al mercado de DVD el próximo mes de marzo aquí en EEUU.

EL PRISIONERO

Es una miniserie de 6 episodios. Está protagonizado en los principales papeles por  James Caviezel que da vida a número 6, Ian McKellen a  2 y Jamie Campbell Bower que en la serie es 11-12 y le vais a ver en breve en los cines de todo el mundo haciendo de Caius en la nueva entrega de la saga Twilight, New Moon. Entre los personajes femeninos hay que destacar a Ruth Wilson y Hayley Atwell que son las siempre inquietantes 313 y 415. La serie comienza con el capítulo llamado…

“The arrival”-”La llegada”

Cuando un hombre misterioso se despierta en las montañas, ve como un hombre es perseguido y acaban matándole. Antes de morir le revela su nombre es 93. Trata de seguir huyendo pero acaba llegando a un misterioso lugar llamado La Villa. Allí dejará de tener un nombre y pasará a llamarse 6. La Villa es una especie de enorme carcel, de la que no se puede salir. En donde todo el mundo conoce a todo el mundo. Nadie posee nombre. Su máximo dirigente es número 2. Este posee una mujer que yace en estado catatónico en una cama, hasta que 2 le pone tres pastillas en la boca, resucita durante unas horas y vuelve a caer en coma. Además las cosas en casa de número 2 se complican porque el joven 11-12 empieza a cuestionarse lo que dice número 6. El único recuerdo que tiene número 6 de su vida en New York es una mujer llamada Lucie. Por más que lo intenta no hay de qué escaparse porque no hay realidad más allá de la Villa. De repente un buen día hay un atentado en una cafetería donde trabaja la amiga de 93, una de las pocas personas que cree a número 6, y antes de morir le dirá la clave: “Sigue a las torres”

“Harmony” -”Armonía”

En la Villa número 6 encontrará a su hermano 16. Pero a pesar de tener recuerdos sobre él, negará su existencia. Por ese motivo le obliga número 2 a acudir al psicoanalista. Este capítulo gira en torno a lo que es real o no. Así 6 se plantea que su casa no es su casa, su hermano no es su hermano. Así descubrimos a través de los recuerdos que tiene de su última cita con Lucie que trabajaba como analista de datos para una compañía llamada Encore y ha dimitido. Pero todo será todo un constructo su imaginación? El sigue soñando con la imagen de la playa.

“Anvil”- “Yunque”

En este tercer capítulo número 2 le propone un trato a 6, y ambos saben que es una trampa. Le propone dar clases en el colegio. El director es 955 del colegio, número 2 encarga a unos de sus agentes 909 que le investigue con la ayuda de 6. Lo que 909 no sabe es que 2 le propone a 6 que le investigue.

“Darling”- “Cariño”

Número 6 se levanta y encuentra una tarjeta de una agencia de contactos. La pareja que le encuentran  no es otra que Lucie, sólo que se llama 4-15. Pero 313 comienza a sentir celos y se siente traicionada, así comienza a ser manipulada por 2 y la necesidad de matar a 6 crece en su interior. 6 acaba encontrándose una noche en el restaurante de la Villa con 4-15, le confiesa que siente que se han conocido con anterioridad. Así realidad y ficción vuelven a mezclarse una vez más.

“Schizoid” -”Esquizo”

Número 6 sospecha que número 2 ha matado a 4-15 tanto dentro como fuera de la Villa. Mientras 12-14 quiere ver a su madre y número 2 le ofrece la llave de la habitación donde yace catatónica. Número 6 comienza a tener problemas con todo el mundo en la Villa, todos dicen que se comparta de un modo extraño, de forma agresiva hasta que descubre que hay dos número 6, y este le dice que mate a número 2.

“Checkmate”- “Jaque mate”

En este último capitulo 313 descubre que número 6 se muere. Este acude a ver a número 2 y este le plantea todo un dilema vivir en la Villa o morir. Así que comienza una verdadera cuenta atrás. Pero encontrará un aliado en 147. Número 6 trata de convencer a 12-14 para que abandone a sus padres y deje la Villa.

Un servidor tiene recuerdos vagos de la serie original. Sólo se acuerda del detalle del globo y de que nadie podía huir de la isla. Así que por ese motivo no puedo compararla con el original. Sólo os puedo adelantar que la trama deja de tener un trasfondo de espionaje. Así que es mucho más que una puesta al día, es toda una vuelta de tuerca.

Dirige esta radical puesta al día el británico Nick Hurran, su currículo es eminentemente catódico, así que no os puedo dar muchas pistas. Pero lo que os puedo adelantar es que ha hecho un producto televisivo con una gran factura, muy cinematográfica. Es más la influencia de directores como Tarsem Singh se dejan ver tanto en el montaje, como en el diseño artístico, fotografía o en la banda sonora creada por Christopher Willis. Así la imaginería es muy curiosa. La mezcla de estética rústica con la minimalista, de aires muy futuristas como la que se puede ver dentro de la consulta del psiquiatra hacen que el espectador esté todo el rato descolocado, y lo que es mejor no da pistas sobre lo que nos deparará el final. Es muy de agradecer que los efectos sonoros y visuales estén al servicio de la trama.

Impresionantes son las localizaciones donde han rodado. Sabe sacarles todo el rendimiento posible, haciendo que parezca un lugar ajeno y desconocido, con un marcado carácter irreal. Así las imágenes del desierto pertenecen al desierto de Namibia, el resto ha sido íntegramente rodado en Sudáfrica, concretamente en Ciudad del Cabo y localidades aledañas como Worcester, el tunel de Huguenot situado en las montañas de Toitskloof o el Resort de la playa de Monwabisi situado en  Khayelitsha. Las escenas del club son del interior del teatro Bijou de Ciudad del Cabo y las de la empresa al Centro Internacional del Convenciones de Ciudad del Cabo.

La serie funciona. Ian Mckellen consigue crear un personaje sumamente inquietante, no deja de ser una suerte de Gran hermano que lo controla todo, es manipulador, dentro y fuera de su familia, tiene a toda la Villa bajo su mando. Es un gran villano, digno del mejor Benjamin Linus, que últimamente anda en momentos de decadencia en “Perdidos”. Ni el menor detalle escapa a su control.

Las relaciones entre los personajes son tortuosas. Nadie saben en quien confiar. Nadie tiene claro si pueden creer que existe un mundo más allá de la Villa. Todos tienen sueños de una realidad diferente fuera de la Villa. Lugar aparentemente idílico, pero que en cuanto escarbas un poco te das cuenta que no lo es tanto. Eso sí, todos tienen cubiertas sus necesidades. Lo malo es que para sobrevivir en ella tienen que acabar traicionándose unos a otros. El argumento posee más dobleces, porque no puedes fiarte de tus sentimientos, ya que cabe la posibilidad de que alguien te los haya manufacturado. Este aspecto me recordó a los implantes de los replicantes en “Blade Runner”.

Los homenajes al original son obvios y directos, por ejemplo en el episodio llamado “Esquizo” podréis ver la famosa bicicleta colgada del techo del pub, o por ejemplo en el primer capítulo se puede ver como emerge del agua el enorme globo blanco y engulle a uno de los personajes. La gradación de los enigmas está bien y hacen que te sientas atraído. Como ver un ancla enorme en el desierto. No pude evitar recordar ese plano tan curioso de “Encuentros en la tercera fase” de Spielberg en el que aparece un barco en el desierto. Los derroteros de esta nueva versión son realmente sorprendentes, así que os aconsejo el visionado de este remake, es una buena puesta al día.

Pero si sois seguidores de Los Simpson en uno de los capítulos hay una estupenda parodia en la que el propio McGoohan ponía voz a su personaje Número 6. Homer es secuestrado y enviado a una isla por descubrir secretos en su página web.

LOS SIMPSON HOMENAJE A “EL PRISIONERO”

lander è un film del 2008 di fantascienza diretto da Howard McCain e interpretato da James Caviezel. Caviezel ha descritto Outlander come una combinazione di luce tra Braveheart e Highlander

Leggi altre notizie su: | Howard McCain | James Caviezel | Sophia Myles | Jack Huston

Por tercera vez Michael Bay viene a engrosar esta sección (tras la infumable Pearl Harbor y la estrepitosamente fallida La isla) con un nuevo despropósito orgiástico de chapa, cristal y pintura hechos añicos para disfrute del personal, puro escaparatismo pirotécnico que envuelve una historia tan gratuita como absurda a la medida del más rancio y conservador patrioterismo de una sociedad esquizofrénica como la norteamericana y con los consabidos “héroes” de cartón piedra que son tan de gusto de Bay como protagonistas absolutos de un pestiño que los seguidores del cine de acción no vacilan en calificar de “obra maestra” (no reírse, que lo dicen en serio).

Revestida, una vez más, de la épica de andar por casa que imprimen Bay y el productor Jerry Bruckheimer a todas sus historias, nos encontramos con una narración sonrojante, no sólo por la, una vez más, histriónica, histérica, autoparódica, ridícula y peripatética interpretación de Nicolas Cage, sino por las incongruencias y tonterías que el guión va soltando aquí y allá sin orden ni concierto y sin que se moleste en ocultar el plagio argumental de Harry, el ejecutor (The enforcer, 1976), película de James Fargo en la que Clint Eastwood y su compañera se enfrentan a un grupo terrorista que amenaza a la ciudad de San Francisco. Nos encontramos con un prólogo típico “de soldaditos”: el coronel Hummel (Ed Harris, probablemente el mejor actor norteamericano vivo en su personaje más incomprensible, más lamentable, más horripilante, pero Dios, ¿cómo es posible que cayera aquí?) es un veterano de los Marines, múltiples veces condecorado, Estrella de Plata, Medalla del Congreso, etiqueta de anís del Mono…, que, no obstante, se encuentra resentido con el maltrato que los politicos y burócratas infligen a los veteranos de guerra que no disfrutan de su grado militar y, sobre todo, hacia la memoria, el recuerdo y las compensaciones económicas a los familiares de quienes perdieron la vida en misiones militares, muchas de ellas ilegales, al servicio del imperialismo norteamericano derrocando gobiernos o apoyando golpes de Estado. Así que al bueno de Hummel y otros patriotas de su mismo cuerpo se les ocurre una genial idea para protestar y hacer que el Gobierno tome conciencia de tan tremenda injusticia: ¿una huelga de hambre? ¿Una manifestación? ¿La denuncia en los medios de comunicación? ¿Un calendario todos en bolas? Nooorl. Nada menos que el robo, el secuestro y el chantaje.

Así las cosas, un grupito de marines mentalizados todos, oficiales y soldados, de la necesidad de hacer justicia a sus camaradas desaparecidos, asaltan una base militar americana (vigilada por lo que parece ser un grupo de boy-scouts incompetentes y torpes, hay que ver cómo vigilan las bases en América, para echarse a temblar) y roban dieciséis (no uno ni dos) misiles cuyas cabezas están dotadas de un gas letal, venenosísimo y fosforescente que viaja en pelotas de cristal hiperfrágil. Pero ojo, como son soldaditos leales a sus camaradas, sólo hieren a los guardias, dejándoles dormidos con dardos cargados de un potente somnífero. Eso sí, la vida de los civiles se la trae floja, porque amenazan al Gobierno con disparar los misiles sobre la ciudad de San Francisco si no aceptan sus demandas una vez que se establecen en la antigua prisión de Alcatraz y secuestran al grupo de visitantes que a esa hora hace el recorrido guiado por esa antigua prisión española. Eso es el prólogo, y de él pueden sacarse dos conclusiones que rayan el absurdo: en primer lugar, el hecho de que no elminen a los guardias en el asalto pero que no les importe intoxicar y matar a toda la ciudad de San Francisco, militares incluidos, algunos de ellos los mismos a los que acaban de salvar, y en segundo, el detallito consistente en que los militares no utilizan sus uniformes reglamentarios, sino que los sustituyen por un sucedáneo de centro comercial; la importancia de esta nimiedad es extrema, dado que responde al tacto de cierto cine de Hollywood (y de ciertos Gobiernos) a la hora de hacer ficción con las sediciones, golpes de Estado ficticios y demás, sobre todo si los asesinos y terroristas visten uniforme americano. Las películas que recogen este tipo de historias han de pasar controles muy férreos de guión y producción para ser vistas con buenos ojos, y de ahí que la trama tome las derivas que toma.

El caso es que a las autoridades no se les ocurre otra cosa que asaltar la prisión para rescatar a los rehenes y eliminar la amenaza de los misiles. Para ello, escogen un grupo de comandos de lo más experto (exterminado a la primera ocasión, no es de extrañar que las cosas vayan como van en Iraq o Afganistán) y a dos asesores cuyo concurso es imprescindible para el éxito de la misión: un especialista en armamento biológico (Cage) que pueda desactivar los chismes, y el único (que insulto a la desmemoria del cinéfilo, que sabe perfectamente que han sido varios los fugados de Alcatraz, cinematográficamente hablando) fugado de la prisión que (nuevo absurdo), a pesar de haber vivido allí recluido en su celda y de haber transitado una única vez por los lugares que atravesó para salir de ella al mar, se conoce la edificación como si la hubiera diseñado él mismo. Quiere la cosa que el preso sea un antiguo agente secreto británico (Sean Connery) enemistado con el director del F.B.I. y que accede a ayudar porque su hija vive, mira tú qué casualidad, en San Francisco y es una víctima potencial de la amenaza.

Y a partir de ahí, ¿qué? Pues eso, incongruencias argumentales de primera clase, testosterona a chorros, acción, persecuciones (muy bien rodadas, eso sí), tiros, diálogos fatuos y grandilocuentes, música apabullante, militarismo de cartón, épica de baratillo, una ironía de parvulario en ciertos diálogos y mujeres reducidas al papel de florero (la novia de Cage, que se plantifica también en San Francisco, embarazada y deseando que su chico la pida en matrimonio) o de tópico (la hija desasistida de Connery, el cual espera recuperar el tiempo perdido junto a ella). Es decir, más espectacularidad vacía en la que la deriva de la trama tiene que reconduciirse hacia el patrioterismo chufletero y por lo tanto el papel de villano termina recayendo sobre dos subalternos, dos cabezas de turco indignos de llamarse Marines, rescatándose en última instancia la memoria de los héroes para el honor y la patria, haciendo inútil, absurdo, estúpido, todo lo anterior que hemos visto y convirtiendo al delincuente y asesino potencial en honorable víctima de la corrupción política. Un asco aderezado con los habituales tics de Bay, sobre todo esas escenas ridículas de ese héroe incorporándose a cámara lenta mirando hacia el horizonte mientras a sus espaldas encontramos un paisaje de desolación… Estupidez supina ante la que hay que dejarse llevar sin hacerse preguntas. Lo contrario nos expone al riesgo de un cortocircuito cerebral severo.

Acusados: todos
Agravantes: Cage, beattlemaníaco en la cinta, para más señas, está más odioso que nunca
Atenuantes: la escena de persecución está bien, entretenida y ocurrente; sólo tiene una pega: que argumentalmente es absurda
Sentencia: culpables
Condena: sin excepción, encierro en Alcatraz a pan y agua a perpetuidad, excepto Harris, con condena revisable; Cage, Bay y Bruckheimer, sin celda, encerrados directamente en las duchas con el jabón clavado al suelo

Jag försökte verkligen gilla den här filmen. En liten stund i början.
Fantasi och förutsättningar finns ju.
Tänk er en högteknologisk rymdfarare från en annan värld som kraschlandar på jorden, i Norge (!) runt 700 e. kr och ovetandes i bagaget har en objuden gäst med sig från sin egen värld.
Nog finns där ett ämne som det kan spinnas vidare på. Kanske t o m byggas en intressant story på.
Men det funkar inte.
Hur mycket jag än vill, så blir detta aldrig mycket till film. Den första kvarten lovar gott, men sedan blir det bara träigt och b-aktigt.

Först tas vår hjälte, rymdkillen kainan, som fånge och behandlas allmänt omilt av de klyschiga norska vikingarna (som naturligtvis pratar engelska). Sedan är han med och gör en heroisk insats, och av bara farten är han plötsligt grabben hela dan!
Och just farten på filmen är ett stort problem. Ett irriterande problem faktiskt.
När man börjar fundera på om det inte är dags för en slutfight snart, eller när man börjar fingra på snabbspolningsknappen under ett lamt försök till filmromantik i vildmarken, då är det illa för en filmnörd som detta lejon. Filmen är på tok för lång och borde ha kortats rejält.

Rymdtemat vs tidig medeltid slarvas blixtsnabbt bort och b-känslan går liksom inte att skala bort hur mycket man än vill. Inget större fel på specialeffekterna dock, men tyvärr håller det inte för att väga upp de andra svaga ingredienserna.

På skådisfronten kan man ju undra vad gamle John Hurt (alien) och Ron Perlman (hellboy 1&2)har gjort för ont för att tvingas ställa upp på det här. Eller är det helt enkelt lättförtjänta pengar för väldigt lite prestation? Och James Caviezel som hjälten kainan fungerar ju bildmässigt, men är på tok för stel och fyrkantig i sin roll. Om han ändå hade fått behålla sin strålpuffra som han så klantigt slarvar bort i början. Outlander kändes intressant på papperet och på omslaget, men visade sig oerhört tunn när det gäller att leverera.

Snabbglömt.

Ah, nothing like Sir Ian McKellan’s number 2 playing mind games and torturing Jim Caviezel in the remake of the classic show.

I think this looks like it could be quite good. Out on 15th November on AMC.

Hasn’t Rover got big!

Source: io9

Ordinarily, when the blurb on the back of a DVD says the enclosed film is like a mix of two other movies, I shudder and just know I’m going to be confronted with something which is nothing like either. So when I read the words ‘Braveheart meets Predator’ I groaned. And yet, as an overview, it works: the back drop of warring Nordic tribes in the 8^th century provides a superb setting for the warrior soul from the stars who has unwittingly brought a vicious alien creature to Earth.

James Caviezel plays Kainan, the Outlander, with real restraint and a consistent depth of sorrow in his eyes that is not fully explained until we’re over half way into the film. He is ably supported by John Hurt whose ‘swallowed a gallon of paraffin’ voice is put to good use as he bestows world-weariness yet defiance and valour as Rothgar, a tribal king. Rothgar’s daughter provides the love interest and offers Sophia Myles a chance to prove that she can outdo Kate Winslett when it comes to smouldering looks and hip-swaying action (especially as Kate Winslett has recently fallen into the Hollywood trap of thinking that thin means beautiful). English newcomer (to me anyway) Jack Huston plays Wulfric, whose father was King before Rothgar and who initially sees the destruction caused by the alien beast – the Moorwen – as reason to wage war on a neighbouring tribe (led by Ron Perlman who cannot escape being Hellboy these days, even if his skin is a normal shade of pink rather than Hades red).

The action scenes are bloody but not excessive; the natural scenery is stunning; the central characters all credible enough to keep the story jogging along between the confrontations and body counts. The one thing that lets ‘Outlander’ down slightly is the Moorwen itself. At times the CGI appears to have been thrown together for ten pounds and a free taxi ride home by a student in his spare time between college assignments. There was something clunky and hasty about the look of the creature, something not quite right about it’s physiology and movements.

Nitpicking aside, the movie is far more enjoyable than I expected. There were some dodgy accents, more drunken Celt than Viking at times (that’ll be the Braveheart bit, then) but everyone threw themselves into the piece with gusto. And the final confrontation with the Moorwen clearly left things open for a sequel, should this instalment make enough returns on DVD to justify the expense. Personally I hope it does fantastically well, that way any sequel can benefit from better GCI, and perhaps a voice coach?

Have you seen the 2008 film ‘Outlander’? It was a great film that you may have missed. This was a big film that had a small distribution in select movie theaters. It was an epic film with a solid story and thrilling action. James Caviezel (Kainan) plays a warrior from a distant planet who crashes on earth in the time of the Vikings. With the aid of the Vikings he battles with an alien dragon for survival.

I was surfing the Internet looking for any up coming, cool new films when I ran into this film ‘Outlander’. I remembered seeing the trailors for this film over a year ago and I was curious about what it was. I wanted to know what people thought of the film so I asked some people I knew, but no one had heard of it. So, I found the film on DVD and watched it with my family. To be honest I didn’t expect much from the film. I figured it would be a B-class movie because it went right to DVD. But I was suprised at how good this film actually was. I couldn’t believe a film like this went straight to DVD. After watching it, I realized there are some really good films that may not have made it to the theaters.

This fim is rated R for violence. If you ever want to see a good film that few people know about, watch this one.

Movie Review by Sunny Gazowsky –

The Prisoner was one of those shows that totally messed me up when I was a kid. I wasn’t sure if I understood it-but then I don’t think Anyone ever really understood it. And that was it’s draw and charm. Well, The Prisoner is getting a “reboot”. It’s been updated and Jim Cavieziel and Ian McKellan starring. I think I will be hooked!

The new one:
The original:

NOTA : 8 RECOMANDAT

Download subtitrare Long Weekend

Trailer Long Weekend :

The Chaos Experiment
Cast: Val Kilmer, Armand Assante, and Eric Roberts

Fragments
Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Dakota Fanning, Guy Pearce, Forest Whitaker, and Jennifer Hudson

Labor Pains
Cast: Linsday Lohan, Chris Parnell, Cheryl Hines, and Janeane Garofalo

Nature’s Grave
Cast: James Caviezel