The competition for worst remake (sorry, re-imagining) continues with a new front runner. The 1960’s Prisoner was an innovative, surreal, philosophical, and influential series about a man (Patrick McGoohan) who finds himself in The Village. The series was about many things including, possibly, the fight of the individual against conformity, or maybe it was all about an internal struggle. It doesn’t matter, part of the timeless appeal of the original series is its esoteric nature.
The new version once again throws a man (James Caviezel) in a mysterious village where everyone has a number rather than a name, but this time it is not the model of obedience and submission of the original, but a place where everyone seems unhappy. In the original, The Prisoner was the only rebel, in the new version, all are potential rebels. In fact, all the elements that made the original so unique and challenging and inspiring are gone. What is left is muddled story of a man who doesn’t know why he is where he is. Not even Ian McKellen can save it. It makes me want to track down The Nowhere Man and rewatch it.
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