Review of Scarlet Pimpernel, The

Introduction

I remember seeing the critically acclaimed 1934 version of "The Scarlet Pimpernel" many years ago as a child whilst spending the afternoon at my grandparent`s house. I recall that the film was entertaining, and good old fashioned family entertainment.

I`ve had not seen this 1982 remake for CBS TV of America before reviewing this DVD, so was interested to see if the story would still hold the same appeal now.

Video

When you realise that this film was made for American television in 1982, you`ll know not to expect razor sharp visuals and an 2.35:1 anamorphic print.

What you do get is a fullframe image which is generally acceptable but unfortunately suffers from being just a little bit too grainy. The image is however stable and there are no artefacts or compression problems to be seen.

The locations and costumes are all very well done and the film feels authentic.

Audio

Again, being made for TV eighteen years ago, there`s no Dolby Digital 5.1 or DTS sound available, what we do have though is Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0. The sound seemed to be pretty much mono to me, and not of the highest quality but the dialogue was always audible.

Features

"Profiles of the Stars" is the only extra feature on offer.

Conclusion

The cast is strong and the parts are all well played, although I felt that Sir Percy Blakeney played by Anthony Andrews was perhaps slightly over-acted which did begin to annoy me. The locations and sets are again all good, and the plot and storyline cannot be faulted either.

Video and sound are acceptable given the age and source of the material, and the lack of extras is normal for TV sourced drama.

I must admit to having struggled to maintain my interest for the 136 minutes running time. There`s nothing wrong with this DVD, it`s more that "The Scarlet Pimpernel" is not as good fun as I remember, to be honest not my sort of film.

One for fans of the genre only I`m afraid.