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The Prisoner [DVD] [1967]
 
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The Prisoner [DVD] [1967]

DVD ~ Patrick McGoohan
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Actors: Patrick McGoohan
  • Format: Box set, PAL
  • Language English
  • Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
  • Number of discs: 5
  • Classification: PG
  • Studio: ITV DVD
  • DVD Release Date: 14 Aug 2000
  • Run Time: 960 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B00004U8MR
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 28,062 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

    Popular in this category:

    #11 in  DVD > Television > TV Series > The Prisoner

Reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review

Part action series, part psychedelic fantasy, part allegory, Patrick McGoohan's masterpiece, The Prisoner, was initially touted as a sequel to his earlier spy series, Danger Man. But when it was first broadcast in 1967 TV audiences were puzzled; when the show was cancelled 17 episodes later due to declining viewing figures, no one was any the wiser. Shot in the picturesque surroundings of Portmeirion in North Wales, whose architectural fantasies provided an ideal backdrop for the show's surrealism, The Prisoner has subsequently been recognised as one of the most innovative and thought-provoking series ever to be broadcast. Despite the primary-coloured flower-power look, the show's bold ideas haven't dated at all, proving that The Prisoner was simply years ahead of its time.

McGoohan is Number 6, a man whose resignation from the secret service (seen every week in a montage title sequence--itself an impressionistic TV landmark) triggers his abduction and imprisonment in "The Village", a sort of open prison for spies where everyone has a number not a name. It's a pretty comfortable place and the other inhabitants all seem passively to accept the situation, allowing the Village authorities to control and limit their actions without protest (escape attempts are thwarted by mysterious bubble-shaped guards called "Rovers"). Number 6, however, is an indomitable freedom fighter whose refusal to accept the status quo is a metaphor for the individual ego struggling against the forces of social conformity: "I am not a number I am a free man" is the series' most resonant catchphrase.

The Village's allegorical microcosm of society is presided over by Number 2, played by a different actor every week, with whom Number 6 clashes repeatedly in a battle of wills as he continually questions the authority that has imprisoned him ("Who is Number 1?"). In turn the Kafkaesque authorities try to discover the reason why he resigned. His trenchant refusal to provide any reason at all is itself a powerful assertion of individual freedom. The series culminates in perhaps the most bizarre and psychedelic TV episode ever made, "Fallout", in which Number 6's revelatory discovery of the real power that keeps him imprisoned raises more questions than it answers. --Mark Walker



Special Features

English
Region 2

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Customer Reviews

30 Reviews
5 star:
 (26)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (30 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Still the best show ever produced for TV, 3 Aug 2003
Any one of the available reviews will tell you the plot so let's get to the meat of the matter:

It is either a damning or praising thing to say that this show is the best thing that ever happened to British television.

Praise indeed for the show but damning also since it was made in the 1960s and there has been little to rival it ever since.

Truly thought provoking and insightful this show simply refuses to lie down and go away. It's Orwellian view of a world watched by cameras and a population subjugated by petty belief systems predicts our life today. And therein lies some of it's appeal. We like this stuff. There's an element of the rebel in almost every one of us. We will not be told to shut up and toe the line. And this series still pulls at those strings. The Prisoner has not dated and with often intriguing stories, excellent scripts and a sterling lead role performance by Patrick McGoohan it continues to provoke active discussion and entertains a large and loyal fanbase.

Having this boxed set is a must. For this show is unlike many others in that it has a beginning, a middle and a conclusion. So therefore seeing it all is a prerequisite. And despite the reports stating that the 'answer' is never made clear, any intelligent viewer will understand what it's all about.

The quality of the DVDs is very good. The remastering has brought out the full glory of the show. In fact I'd hazard to say that few of those people who saw the series on it's original run would have seen it look so wonderful.

It's little wonder that this show has been slyly referred to within the plots of other shows, (The Avengers, Columbo and The Simpsons to name but three).

Mysterious and at times demanding this wonderful series rewards the inquisitive viewer with insight and above all great entertainment.

Brilliant fun and worth the money.

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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Review of "The Prisoner", 10 April 2002
By Paul Atkinson (SHEERNESS, KENT United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
The greatest TV series ever produced on one DVD set. Don't miss it! The series covers the incarceration of "Number 6" in The Village, a mysterious place which is a fusion of Mediterraenean architecture and quaint upper class British themes. McGoohan is quirky, unpredictable but ultimately defiant as the ex-spy who refuses to reveal to his captors the reasons for his resignation. At first confused, and often out-thought and out-manouvered by his captors, the tone changes subtly through each episode as The Prisoner becomes more than a match for each new "Number 2" who takes control of the Village. The plots also become more fantastic as the series progresses, mixing elements of mystery thriller, action-adventure, and SF, with The Prisoner battling Zombie-like Villagers, Super Computers, Mind-Swap devices, altered realities and the ever-present "Rovers" - strange bubble-like creatures which relentlessly track, pursue and engulf would-be escapees.

....and THAT final episode...!

Watch this to see what can be accomplished in the medium with a big budget, an ingenious plot and a who's who of guest stars that would be impossible in today's TV.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Where am I? In the Village., 23 Nov 2005
By BryBo "brysie" (Hemel Hempstead) - See all my reviews
Just to add to phil1_atr and his excellent review, the prisoner was made 20 years before its time and we have only just cought up with it.

Made in 1966 and put on air in 1967, it is a basic story line (with many different theory versions depending on your point of view) of trying to break someones determination to be individual and on the other hand someones rebellion of the establishment.
Each episode is about trying to get No 6 to tell them why he resigned his position and our hero trying to escape his Idyllic prison. It covers topics like drugs and personality drug alterations, deception, manipulation, disillusionment and dishonesty, to name a few, in differant settings and experiences. You can't even have a full nights sleep with out some one seeing your dreams and trying to alter your perception.

17 excellent storylines and brilliant acting with the odd slow part with a twist at the end to keep you baffled. The music is either brilliant or boring but also moving and hypnotic. Most people who watch the Prisoner love it and watch it over and over again.

Excellent DVD and worth buying, you may even join 6 of 1.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Way ahead of it's time
There's not much to say about 'The Prisoner' that hasn't already been said, but as it made such a huge impression on me, I'm compelled to give my thoughts. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Larry

5.0 out of 5 stars watch it, by hook or by crook watch it!!
someone corrected the reviewer in saying that it wasnt cancelled because of poor ratings which was right but they were wrong in saying there was 13 original episodes planned there... Read more
Published on 22 May 2006 by Mr. S. G. Sheppard

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent program from the '60's
Actually, contrary to what is stated above, the series was *supposed* to be just what-13 episodes? -but McGoohan agreed to pad out the show to make it saleable to American... Read more
Published on 27 April 2005 by Mark C.

5.0 out of 5 stars Best TV Series ever!
If by chance you haven't ever heard of let alone seen the Prisoner, you should be told it is a 1960's ITC (Lew Grade) series running to 17 episodes, which follow a man known only... Read more
Published on 1 April 2005 by Mr. P. Lamdin

3.0 out of 5 stars Two thirds brilliant one third disappointing.
I have to take issue with people who lavishly praise The Prisoner as some sort of panacea of unassailably wonderful TV. Yes its good - but not that good. Good points? Read more
Published on 30 Jan 2005 by A reviewer called

5.0 out of 5 stars A strange masterpiece.
This is a wonderful show that no one can rip off. When it started people hated it because it was too strange for them, but it gradually became sort of a cult. Read more
Published on 19 Jul 2004 by stuart7821

5.0 out of 5 stars The Prisoner
Without a doubt the high water mark of television series. Nothing has even come close to it since.

A word of warning, if you haven't seen this series before don't watch the... Read more

Published on 17 Jun 2004 by monkey-puzzle

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy it!
The Prisoner is simply the most brilliant, thought provoking television series ever made. The boxed set is fantastic, the quality is excellent, you definitely won't be... Read more
Published on 26 Dec 2003 by Richard Henson

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Day!
This collection is fantastic. The digital remastering seems to be brought out the best of both the sound and the colour of the original prints. Read more
Published on 24 Jun 2003 by wilky18

5.0 out of 5 stars Patrick's Masterpiece in all its Glory!
Patrick McGoohan created a masterpiece and asked the world to think. In a time when Get Smart was about as much thinking telly asked of its viewers, it was like an oasis in a... Read more
Published on 7 Dec 2002 by Deborah MacGillivray

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