Prisoner of Honor
by Ken Russell
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Actor: Brian Blessed, Jeremy Kemp, Oliver Reed, Peter Firth, Richard DreyfussDirector: Ken Russell
Brand: Fox
Producer: Richard Dreyfuss
Producer: Christopher Chase
Producer: Colin Callender
Producer: Judith James
Producer: Michael Bendix
Producer: Ronaldo Vasconcellos
Writer: Ron Hutchinson
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 88 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-05-04
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
DVD Reviews of Prisoner of Honor
DVD Review: C'est Bon.
Summary: 4 Stars
'Prisoner of Honor' is Ken Russell's gloomy take on The Dreyfus Affair - a Military secrets scandal which dangerously divided France at the end of the 19th Century.
Made for Cable by HBO and assembling a magnificent one-off cast, Russell dons his serious(-ish) cap for a delve into the foggy, treacherous worlds of counter-espionage and institutionalised racism.
Richard Dreyfuss is excellent as Picquart, an anti-Semitic staff colonel assigned to confirm the guilt of Alfred Dreyfus - a Jewish Artillery officer consigned to Devil's Island for allegedly selling secrets to the nasty Prussians.
Depending on your point of view, Russell's relatively unfussy telling of this complicated tale, is either tragically disappointing or a minor triumph. There's definite Russell impetuosity to some of the rioting crowd sequences, and the bastardisation of the La Marseillaise during a sleazy cabaret scene is typical of his bludgeoning naivety when it comes to anything political, but the rest is pretty subdued.
Without question, 'POH' is exquisite to look at; Russell and cinematographer Mike Southon have fashioned a ravishing vista with which to exhibit all the murky chicanery and dishonour in eye-caressing focus. It looks like a complete location shoot (even though it can't be), and no-one does top-hat-and-tails quite like Russell; the extras - as usual - look splendid.
Supporting cast includes Oliver Reed, almost sedate as a scheming General, who initially supports Piquart before patriotically betraying him; and Colin Firth is good and sweaty as a slippery Major, lusting after Piquart's position.
Russell is in a no-win situation with a film like this. His critics laud his restraint while his fans bemoan his lack of excess (a similar fate befell his BBC adaptation of Lawrence's 'Lady Chatterley's Lover.' A painful example of a usually uncompromising, mono-directional phenomenon falling between two stools), but I think 'POH' stands up.
Ron Hutchinson's script cries out for both shearing and sharpening - two elements where Russell expertly obliges.
'POH' is good without ever approaching genius; and while it's quite obviously a character driven actors piece, it certainly looks and feels like a Ken Russell film - albeit a minor one - and is therefore worthy of at least one attentive viewing.
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