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The Avengers [1998]


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Editorial
Special Features

1.85 Wide Screen
English
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Dolby Digital 5.1
Interactive Menus
Scene Access
Arabic
English

Editorial
Synopsis

In the AVENGERS feature film, the characters of the cult 1960s television show are back at it again. The suave John Steed (Ralph Fiennes) and the sultry Emma Peel (Uma Thurman) team up to thwart the nefarious plans of Sir August de Wynter (Sean Connery), who is out to control the world's weather. Watch for Patrick Macnee, who played the original Steed in the TV series, as Invisible Jones.

Doomed to Failure
Review date: 2008-05-15 Rating: 2 out of 10

Sadly this film was always likely to fail. For a start The Avengers was very much a product of its time - it was uniquely 1960s & would always struggle to involve a new audience in the 1990s. That left the die-hard fans who would almost inevitiably dislike it - that includes me. I tried hard to like it. In fairness the film tries hard to recapture the feel of the tv series, including set pieces from the Emma Peel days. However, Uma Thurman cannot possibly emulate Diana Rigg & Steed and Patrick Macnee are virtually the same person, so whoever took on the role would be on a loser. The fact that Ralph Fiennes has less charisma & charm than Steed's umbrella just made things worse.

So avoid this film & if you can, get the classic tv series instead.

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Reviews


Heheheheheheheheh!!!!
Review date: 2008-03-06 Rating: 2 out of 10

I agree with other reviewers; this is a total stinker! As a big fan of the original series, I remember seeing this and rolling round the roll with hysterics at how bad it was. Who was it aimed at? Origianl fans were always going to be let down with such a feeble and mis-cast effort and new comers to the Avengers story would probably stay away for ever more! Ralph Finnes looks like Stan Laurel rather than John Steel, Uma Thurman's character of Emma Peel had been written to the point that I no longer recognised her, Sean Connery's acting is unusually wooden and cliched, but the icing on the cake is provided by Eddie Izzard and Shaun Rider, plaing henchmen, in a mini! Got to be one of cinema's most iconic poor casting! All in all, a damp re-make of an old episode called 'A Surfeit of H2O'. Perhaps if a remake was on the cards, using the Cybernaughts may have been a better idea, but who know's would have been cast in that! Dale Winton? Geri Hallwell perhaps? Worth buying for mirth value only.

Although edited, still good fun
Review date: 2007-06-25 Rating: 6 out of 10

It's an entertaining movie. I wish there would be a Director's Cut to see if it would be an improvement. But it's certainly better than (and more in the spirit of) the majority of terrible films made from TV shows.

Studio Stupidity
Review date: 2007-05-19 Rating: 8 out of 10

I rewatched The Avengers today and it really is a missed opportunity. The reason it failed was not IMO the surreal wackiness, it was that Warners panicked and cut huge chunks out of the film rendering it not only surreal and weird, but missing links in the story that would have tied all the bizarre stuff together better.

If you look on Wikipaedia it details what was in the original script, and on imdb you can discover things cut from the film, such as the attack on the secret base by the evil Emma Peel that was seen in trailers. My favourite has to be Steed spanking Peel with his sword when they spar in the tailor shop.

On reflection there's a lot to like in The Avengers: Uma Thurman in leather: always a plus, Sean Connery hamming it up more than Porky Pig at a bacon factory, and henchmen dressed as multi-coloured teddy bears. Bonkers. Utter bonkers. I like it.

Badly Made
Review date: 2007-05-17 Rating: 4 out of 10

I think this movie is terrible because they didn't get the joke. The Avengers is cheeky, campy, fun, and never without some form of the double entendre somewhere. Apparently, the script writes never actually saw the series and didn't get the joke. I beg, some British filmmaker somewhere give it a chance. Make your own version. Give some dignity back.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Sean Connery
Uma Thurman
Jim Broadbent
Patrick Macnee
Ralph Fiennes

Creators:
Ralph Fiennes (Primary Contributor)
Uma Thurman (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
EAN: 7321900158732
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL, Widescreen,
Release date: 1999-04-05
Number of discs: 1
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 86 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1998-08-14
Language: Arabic (Subtitled)
Language: English (Subtitled)
Language: English (Original Language)

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