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5.9/10
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Adaptation of the 1939 novel by Rumer Godden. A group of nuns face challenges in the hostile environment of a remote old Himalayan palace that they wish to make a convent.Adaptation of the 1939 novel by Rumer Godden. A group of nuns face challenges in the hostile environment of a remote old Himalayan palace that they wish to make a convent.Adaptation of the 1939 novel by Rumer Godden. A group of nuns face challenges in the hostile environment of a remote old Himalayan palace that they wish to make a convent.
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- 1 win & 2 nominations
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- TriviaThe title comes from a perfume called 'Narcisse Noir' from Parfums Caron, founded 1904, one of the oldest remaining 'Parfumerie', solely devoted to perfume. This scent was created in 1911 by Ernest Daltroff (1867-1941). The Young General knew it as being supplied by the Army and Navy stores in London. It is still available with 'orange scent, with secondary jasmine and rose'.
- ConnectionsRemake of Black Narcissus (1947)
Featured review
Good performances beautifully filmed again but Why?
Mr Review- BBC 3part mini series "Black Narcissus "
My Rating 7/10 I rarely find any satisfaction with remakes of Classic films unless they can add something new apart from new Actors in roles that have been so iconically associated with their famous original interpretations I can't rubbish this 3 part series that has padded out to 187 minutes what the original 1947 Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell masterpiece achieved more effectively in 101. If you haven't seen the original film put in on your list but see this series first and I'd be amazed if you don't prefer the original as I do . I'm inclined to agree with Rotten Tomatoes review which reported an approval rating of 53% based on 19 critic reviews, with an average rating of 5.69/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Black Narcissus doesn't quite escape the shadow of its cinematic forebear, but this miniseries sufficiently keeps the faith with excellent performances and visual splendor. What I enjoyed about this new version were the performances mostly all excellent ,especially Gemma Arterton as Sister Clodagh she had tough shoes to fill as Deborah Kerr was extraordinary in the original. Set in 1934 Sister Clodagh leads an order of hand picked British nuns from her order in Darjeeling to the remote Palace of Mopu in the Himalayas where she sets up a mission school. It's a curious and eerie place, full of shadows, with memories of tragedy attached to its perilous bell tower seemingly soaked in the walls. However the unsettling atmosphere, the distracting presence of Mr. Dean and the ghosts of the previous occupants stir memories she'd thought she had forgotten. In a way it seemed to me the three key characters of Sister Clodagh , Sister Ruth and especially Mr Dean ( Alessandro Nivola) who was eerily like David Farrar the original character were cloned to be as identical as possible to the Original Actors In the 1947 film and they all give terrific performances. Is that a compliment? I suppose so but why copy the mannerisms of the original character if not adding anything new? What I missed in this new version was the magic of the sounds and music of the original. This version looks magnificent,so does the original but the original in my opinion is superior because it looks like a beautiful exotic painting come to life. It's no wonder the 1947 film won 2 Oscars for Best Colour Cinematography and Best Art Direction -Colour Set Direction , The 1947 film Black Narcissus was famously filmed entirely in the UK, shot inside Pinewood Studios and in the sub-tropical Leonardslee Gardens in West Sussex. The painted backdrops of the mountains became synonymous with the film, as they helped create the dreamlike atmosphere. However, the BBC One/ FX limited series was shot partly on location, with the crew filming exterior shots in Jomsom, Nepal, in addition to shooting in Pinewood Studios. Location was key for the limited series, as the beauty of the remote palace of Mopu tests all the nuns in different ways. I also prefer the supporting characters in the original film like Sabu as the young General and Flora Robson as Sister Philippa are irreplaceable and seemed ordinary in this. Even the odd casting of Jean Simmons as Kanchi the lower class young native girl seemed more effective in the original. It however would cause an outrage now if a white actor was artificially coloured to play a native girl and Dipika Kunwar is lovely in the role of Kanchi. It was a joy to see Dame Diana Rigg who plays Mother Dorothea, the senior nun who tells Sister Clodagh about the mission at Mopu and expresses her reservations about their future success - given a group of German monks fled the same place months earlier under mysterious circumstances. Black Narcissus is one of Dame Diana's final performances before she died on September 10, 2020 aged 82 after suffering from lung cancer. I can recommend this series with a few reservations. I enjoyed it and it's better than I imagined. If it's your first experience with Black Narcissus you'll enjoy the performances mystery and exotic location of the story.
My Rating 7/10 I rarely find any satisfaction with remakes of Classic films unless they can add something new apart from new Actors in roles that have been so iconically associated with their famous original interpretations I can't rubbish this 3 part series that has padded out to 187 minutes what the original 1947 Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell masterpiece achieved more effectively in 101. If you haven't seen the original film put in on your list but see this series first and I'd be amazed if you don't prefer the original as I do . I'm inclined to agree with Rotten Tomatoes review which reported an approval rating of 53% based on 19 critic reviews, with an average rating of 5.69/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Black Narcissus doesn't quite escape the shadow of its cinematic forebear, but this miniseries sufficiently keeps the faith with excellent performances and visual splendor. What I enjoyed about this new version were the performances mostly all excellent ,especially Gemma Arterton as Sister Clodagh she had tough shoes to fill as Deborah Kerr was extraordinary in the original. Set in 1934 Sister Clodagh leads an order of hand picked British nuns from her order in Darjeeling to the remote Palace of Mopu in the Himalayas where she sets up a mission school. It's a curious and eerie place, full of shadows, with memories of tragedy attached to its perilous bell tower seemingly soaked in the walls. However the unsettling atmosphere, the distracting presence of Mr. Dean and the ghosts of the previous occupants stir memories she'd thought she had forgotten. In a way it seemed to me the three key characters of Sister Clodagh , Sister Ruth and especially Mr Dean ( Alessandro Nivola) who was eerily like David Farrar the original character were cloned to be as identical as possible to the Original Actors In the 1947 film and they all give terrific performances. Is that a compliment? I suppose so but why copy the mannerisms of the original character if not adding anything new? What I missed in this new version was the magic of the sounds and music of the original. This version looks magnificent,so does the original but the original in my opinion is superior because it looks like a beautiful exotic painting come to life. It's no wonder the 1947 film won 2 Oscars for Best Colour Cinematography and Best Art Direction -Colour Set Direction , The 1947 film Black Narcissus was famously filmed entirely in the UK, shot inside Pinewood Studios and in the sub-tropical Leonardslee Gardens in West Sussex. The painted backdrops of the mountains became synonymous with the film, as they helped create the dreamlike atmosphere. However, the BBC One/ FX limited series was shot partly on location, with the crew filming exterior shots in Jomsom, Nepal, in addition to shooting in Pinewood Studios. Location was key for the limited series, as the beauty of the remote palace of Mopu tests all the nuns in different ways. I also prefer the supporting characters in the original film like Sabu as the young General and Flora Robson as Sister Philippa are irreplaceable and seemed ordinary in this. Even the odd casting of Jean Simmons as Kanchi the lower class young native girl seemed more effective in the original. It however would cause an outrage now if a white actor was artificially coloured to play a native girl and Dipika Kunwar is lovely in the role of Kanchi. It was a joy to see Dame Diana Rigg who plays Mother Dorothea, the senior nun who tells Sister Clodagh about the mission at Mopu and expresses her reservations about their future success - given a group of German monks fled the same place months earlier under mysterious circumstances. Black Narcissus is one of Dame Diana's final performances before she died on September 10, 2020 aged 82 after suffering from lung cancer. I can recommend this series with a few reservations. I enjoyed it and it's better than I imagined. If it's your first experience with Black Narcissus you'll enjoy the performances mystery and exotic location of the story.
helpful•51
- tm-sheehan
- Jan 31, 2021
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- Чорний нарцис
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- Jomsom, Nepal(on location)
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