The Scarlet Pimpernel

Just so you're not put out as so many who _have_ read the book seem to be. Sir Percy was wonderfully cast (Richard E. Graves! Can you believe he was Bob Cratchit in TNT's "A Christmas Carol"?) I started giggling helplessly every time he gave that I'm-no-fop grin, and he really was a lot of fun to watch. As for McGovern, well, she's all right, but some of the dialogue she has to say! Especially in the company of Chauvelin! What happened to Lord Tony made me want to spit nails, though Ffoulkes was quite nice....What was this Minette supposed to be? (Emilia Fox looks quite different from her bit part as Georgiana Darcy in A&E's Pride and Prejudice.) It had its moments, for sure, but-- where are all those disguises that the Pimpernel does so well? It wouldn't have been too hard to do. Oh, well.

The Scarlet Pimpernel was a wonderful movies!! It's got love, action, and most importantly, plenty of humor. What more can you ask! Richard E. Grant was great as Sir Percy Blakeney (aka the Scarlet Pimpernel). The rest of the cast was wonderful as well! I have never read the book nor heard of it until i saw this movie. Therefore, I don't know what close the movie was to it. However, I trust that the book is as wonderful as the movie! The only thing that I thought wasn't so great was Sir Blakeney's coolness toward Lady Blakeney (Elizabeth McGovern). He seemed too cool and aloof towards her and seems to be constantly trying to embarrass her in public. It was as if he barely knew her. However, the movie was still great and I still give it 10 stars! In fact, I would give it 11 stars if I could!

...if not a very good adaptation. Yes, the film deviates a little from the book, but what adaptation does not? (i.e. Sense and Sensibility, An Ideal Husband, Gone With the Wind, etc.) Some guidlines for watching this oft-critised film: do not expect a line-for-line, blow-by-blow, true-to-the-nth-degree page to film adaptation. Take the film on it's own, and enjoy it as the solid show it is. Do expect an exciting, romantic, wickedly funny trilogy. The costumes a quite good, and the music adds quite a bit, being rather good. The story of The Scarlet Pimpernel is well known, so I won't bore you by recounting what you already know, but I will say this - I and those who have watched with me found ourselves laughing at the exhanges, loving Sir Percy, and cheering on Marguerite. I have read the book, and can say that Richard E. Grant brings a vivacity and new depth to the Pimpernel, and Elizabeth McGovern, though not always outstanding, is wholly adaquate as the passionate, willful and dedicated wife of Sir Percy, Marguerite St. Just. Just watch this film, and enjoy it for what it is. I know I did.

Well I knew this wasn't going to be faithful to the book -- and it definitely wasn't! -- but who cares, movies rarely are anyway, and I was expecting it to be unfaithful to the book. I thought it was hilarious!!! It's just a fun movie, so I suggest that you shouldn't take it seriously and condemn it as sacrilege just because it's a different take on the legendary Scarlet Pimpernel. Richard E. Grant is just hilarious as Percy -- he plays him as a foppish dandy, and it is the funniest thing. I didn't see what was so bad about Elizabeth McGovern. I loved the great one-liners between Percy and his wife. "I know he loves me!" LOL!!!

I'll confess, I've never read the books. I have however seen several productions of the play onstage and I prefer this beautiful miniseries by far. All of the productions I've seen before cast elderly men with cute lines but no charisma. The choice of Richard E. Grant for the Scarlet Pimpernel surprised me, but he did a wonderful job with it. I was very surprised by his performance, as I'd only ever known him as a supporting/character actor (like Twelfth Night and Gosford Park).

As a life-long Elizabeth McGovern fan, I can't help but love her. She's a fantastic actress, but whoever did her hair should be guillotined. For a really beautiful woman, they hid it well under ten pounds of brown wig. It sadly resulted in her looking much older than she actually is, but fortunately this isn't the case for the entire movie (at least at the end she gets a haircut!) But her striking features still shine through and her beautiful performance far outweighs that hairstyle. She also manages her accent very well (she's originally from Illinois) But, well, I watched the whole miniseries just for her, so I can't help but think she's the real star.

Ronan Vibert is another actor I've liked for a long time, and he did a fantastic job as Robespierre. Martin Shaw's Chauvelin got on my nerves a bit, but he's fine. The big surprise was sweet little Emilia Fox in the role of Minette. I'd never seen her play a villain before, and was pretty impressed by it. All in all, I really enjoyed this miniseries, and highly recommend it.