- Network: AMC
- Series Premiere Date: Nov 15, 2009
Critic Reviews
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
-
Like "Twin Peaks," it raises questions that it doesn't necessarily answer--but even the raising took a bit of daring, and "a bit" is more than one usually gets from television.
-
It's self-absorbed to the point of incoherence.
-
The Prisoner is not compelling. It rambles too much. Its vagaries are not interesting, its unorthodox storytelling not special enough.
-
Maybe you can appreciate this series without the fear that you will be expected to write a thesis on it. But I urge you to heed my advice: Opt out while you can.
-
This Prisoner is visually stunning and risk-taking but not a satisfying rethinking.
-
For the characters and for the viewers, the miniseries is a plodding excursion on the road to nowhere.
-
Somewhere along the way, though, this three-night, six-hour production begins to feel less like a compelling metaphor for totalitarian repression and more like a marathon. No offense, but is it over yet?
-
McKellen, and the production design, and some smart use of Brian Wilson songs on the soundtrack (The Beach Boys' "I Know There's an Answer" is the miniseries' cheeky final tune) weren't enough to overcome my need for coherence.
-
The new Prisoner looks marvelous, even if its desertlike location is initially a lot less appealing to the eye than the original Village, filmed on the lush grounds of a hotel in Wales. But also like "V" (so far), it doesn't seem to have as much to say.
-
This reimagined version, which feels a bit old hat in a post-Matrix fantasy landscape, is more leaden, pretentious and solemn, a tone embodied by Caviezel’s brooding Six, who’s more dour than dashing.
-
Too much of Bill Gallagher's self-consciously arcane script and Nick Hurran's direction unfolds as if through a funhouse mirror, offering less in the way of clues than marking time until the vague, conspiratorial reveal in the closing chapters.
-
This Prisoner is as much about Two as it is about Six and that the actor seems to be enjoying himself makes his scenes pleasant to watch even when they don't add up to much; there is a music to his readings even when the lines are obscure.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
-
Positive: 21 out of 82
-
Mixed: 13 out of 82
-
Negative: 48 out of 82
-
Feb 22, 2018
-
Feb 27, 2013
-
Dec 10, 2012