Prisoner of Honor (TV 1991)

"Prisoner of Honor" documents the French Dreyfus Affair that saw a French Captain sent to Devils' Island for espionage near the end of the nineteenth century. Richard Dreyfuss plays Colonel... See full summary »

Director:

Ken Russell

Writer:

Ron Hutchinson

Stars:

Richard Dreyfuss, Oliver Reed, Peter Firth

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Col. Picquart
Oliver Reed	...	Gen. de Boisdeffre
Peter Firth	...	Maj. Henry
Jeremy Kemp	...	Gen. de Pellieux
Brian Blessed	...	Gen. Gonse
Peter Vaughan	...	Gen. Mercier
Kenneth Colley	...	Capt. Dreyfus
Catherine Neilson	...	Eloise
Lindsay Anderson	...	War Minister
Christopher Ashley	...	Orator #1
Shauna Baird	...	Henry's wife
David Bamford	...	Boy prostitute
Duncan Bell	...	Army doctor
John Bennett	...	Magistrate
John Cater	...	New War Minister

Storyline

"Prisoner of Honor" documents the French Dreyfus Affair that saw a French Captain sent to Devils' Island for espionage near the end of the nineteenth century. Richard Dreyfuss plays Colonel Picquart who is given the job of justifying Dreyfus' sentence. Instead, he discovers that Dreyfus, a Jew, was merely a convenient scapegoat for the actions of the true culprit, a member of the French General staff. His attempt to right the wrong sees his military career ended and the famous French author, Emile Zola, found guilty of libel.

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Plot Keywords:

dreyfus affair | anti semitism

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Taglines:

The crime of one nation. The courage of one man. (dvd)

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 November 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Gefangene der Teufelsinsel

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dreyfuss / James Productions, Etude, Warner Bros. Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Richard Dreyfuss (who plays Col. Picquart in this film) has claimed to be a descendant of Capt. Alfred Dreyfus (played by Kenneth Colley), the main character in this film.

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Soundtracks

"Jamais"
Written by Barry Kirch and Phil Steele
Performed by Phil Steele

User Reviews

PRISONERS OF HONOR (TV) (Ken Russell, 1991) **1/2

The celebrated Dreyfus affair of turn-of-the-20th-century France gets the British TV treatment courtesy of one of its past masters, Ken Russell (thankfully restrained), and starring a famous (and alleged) relative of the man himself, American actor Richard Dreyfuss (albeit playing a different role)! Although in the past there had been more prestigious film versions of the case – most notably THE LIFE OF EMILE ZOLA (1937) which even earned the Best Picture Oscar of that year – the starry cast roped in for this modest production delivers the goods nevertheless and keeps one watching: apart from the afore-mentioned Dreyfuss, we also get Russell regular Oliver Reed, Peter Firth, Jeremy Kemp, Brian Blessed, Peter Vaughan and even iconoclastic film-maker Lindsay Anderson making one of his infrequent appearances as an actor and being entrusted with the important role of the Minister of War! Oddly enough, despite the on screen title of the film being PRISONERS OF HONOR, every online reference to it (including the IMDb) seems to drop the final 's' and turn it into singular!