Rebecca (1979) User Reviews

an involving and well-filmed adaptation, sadly neglected

[didi-5 · 8/10 · 2 August 2007]

The BBC are still refusing to release this superior production of 'Rebecca' officially, but I have finally been able to view a copy, many years after first hearing about it.

So, does it match up to all the discussion and speculation? Close to the book, and well-cast (Jeremy Brett as Maxim, Joanna David - whose daughter Emilia Fox appeared in another Rebecca twenty years later - as the second Mrs De Winter, Anna Massey - the former Mrs Brett - as Mrs Danvers, and Julian Holloway as Jack Favell), it certainly does not disappoint. In four episodes it involves the viewer while making a good stab at translating a complicated book to the screen.

Not broodingly Gothic like Hitchcock's version with Olivier, or convoluted like the Emilia Fox/Charles Dance version, the 1970s Rebecca stands up well against a selection of other period dramas made at the same time by the BBC. Certainly it seems unfair that it is suppressed from view in the UK - the US has had TV repeats, although no video or DVD.

Daphne, Thank you

[Bobby-27 · 8/10 · 22 October 1998]

This was a four part movie on PBS. I did not care much for fiction at the time, but after the second night, I went out and bought the book so I could find out what the finish was. I watch Rebecca nearly every time it is showing.

As close to the book as you can get

[libriarsque · 9/10 · 14 February 2008]

This is one of the most satisfying screen adaptations of a novel I've ever seen, and I've seen a great many. Part of the credit goes to Simon Langton's direction and Hugh Whitemore's excellent script, which is as faithful to the novel as one could wish. The bulk of the credit goes to absolute perfect casting: Jeremy Brett simply IS Maxim, brooding, enigmatic, and attractive. Joanna David manages to portray the second wife's insecurity and shyness without being annoyingly nervous (none of Joan Fontaine's jittery mannerisms here). The very first shot of Anna Massey took my breath away--I thought, "THAT is Mrs. Danvers!" All three give wonderful performances, and the secondary characters are marvelous as well. Locations are exactly as I imagined them to be, and the use of Debussy for much of the musical score is a brilliant stroke.

Why on earth isn't this available on DVD???

Best Adaptation of Du Maurier's Masterpiece--why isn't this on DVD?

[mlktrout · 10/10 · 16 September 2005]

I saw the very last part of this 4-part miniseries 12 years ago on PBS. It was so fascinating I rushed out and bought the book. (And read it until the covers fell off, and because of it years later won a "Who was Rebecca?" essay contest and a trip to England.) For the next two years I besieged PBS with requests to re-run it, in 1996 they finally did. I savored each moment of it, and taped it of course. I still have the tapes, but wish it was on DVD.

Jeremy Brett -- later to become forever identified as Sherlock Holmes -- was the perfect Maxim de Winter. After hearing his story of Rebecca, you could finally understand why he married the Second Mrs. de Winter, shy, tongue-tied, and klutzy. She possessed the innocence he desperately needed. Anna Massey was a very creepy, scary Mrs. Danvers. In real-life, Jeremy Brett and Anna Massey were briefly married in their youth. It throws a new slant on the Danvers-de Winter relationship, doesn't it? And Joanna David goes from a girl afraid of her shadow to a woman who can take whatever is dished out to her by the end of the series. Excellent performances.

I've seen the Hitchcock version -- Maxim was too much a caricature of rude aristocracy, and because of the Hayes Commission certain elements of the story were drastically changed, with ill effect. I've also seen the recent Charles Dance version; interestingly the girl playing the second Mrs. de Winter in that one is the daughter of Joanna David, and she isn't bad, but Dance is nobody's notion of Maxim, and for completely gratuitous reasons they changed the story. Du Maurier's work is perfection itself and nobody should ever change it. The Brett-David-Massey version comes closest to the book, is beautifully photographed and hauntingly scored, with Debussy's "Reverie" and other classical and impressionist music played throughout. This is the one that needs to be on DVD...preferably a "collector's edition," with lots of special features.

Don't miss any chance to see this.

[west-1 · 10/10 · 25 April 2001]

Intense atmosphere, visual beauty, mystery and emotion.

Haunting, Debussy-derived music.

Breath-taking evocation of the dazzling scenery around Monte Carlo, and then of the paradisal estate on the Cornish coast, Manderley - for which Maxim has sold his soul. (The estate - house, gardens, azaleas, beach, boathouse, butler and maids - is so convincing that you have to believe the story is real too.)

Poignant imagery of flowers: exotic, red blooms associated with Rebecca, and wild flowers with the new Mrs de Winter.

And always the threat that the sea will give up its dead.

Unsurpassable performances from the three principals: Jeremy Brett, Joanna David and Anna Massey. All three characters far more deeply analysed than in the Hitchcock movie, and Mrs Danvers no less sympathetic than the others.

Hitchcock changed the manner of Rebecca's death, but this version faces up to what really happens in the book.

The best one ever done!

[sstaker · 10/10 · 11 July 2005]

This Rebecca unfolds the same way Du Maurier wrote her novel. In fact when Gene Shalit hosted this showing on Mystery he told how Ms. Du Maurier had commented it was the truest telling of her book. Yet that isn't what compels the viewer; it's Jeremy Brett as Maxim, Joanna David as the second Mrs. DeWinter, poor dear who has no first name, and Anna Massey as Mrs. Danvers. Julian Holloway is wonderful as Favell. The entire cast is flawless. The sets are as you would picture Manderly. Truly you go back to Manderly again...

Really, I'd love to see this once more, then over and over again. Please whomever has the power to bring this to DVD, do it. New fans will flock to this best version of Rebecca.

Superb

[Tinlizzy · 10/10 · 31 October 1999]

This film contains three superb performances, and it really is a shame that it is not available on video.

Anna Massey, Jeremy Brett, and Joanna David are a wonderful team of actors who bring a great deal of depth to their roles. David has the most difficult job; her character is so self effacing we never even know her name. She is meek without seeming stupid, and perfectly captures the body language of a very young girl.

Anna Massey is a terrifying Mrs. Danvers and is never more sinister than when she is smiling. She did 'everything' for her late mistress, and we get the impression that she was in fact in love with the title character. Massey's original take on this character has influenced all subsequent portrayals. She also resembles an Edward Gorey drawing in her bleak black costume.

Jeremy Brett is all burning eyes and barely-suppressed rage as Max. The character gradually progresses from a vaguely sinister, sardonic figure to a hunted man who finally appreciates his second wife's devotion. This is a fine portrayal by a wonderful actor and it is an excellent complement to his similarly superb portrayal of Sherlock Holmes.

This film has the usual high production values of a British adaptation, and has the sense to use the music of Claude Debussy on the soundtrack instead of some dated 'horror music' that often mars Seventies films.

All supporting cast members are excellent. My criticism is that the show is a trifle long; the Manderley ball and the visit to Max's grandmother do not really need to be portrayed at this length. The ending is, if anything, even more ambiguous than the ending of the novel It would be a wonderful thing to have this title back in print.

Excellent Adaptation of a Great Story

[lisado · 10/10 · 23 February 1999]

A superior production. Stands up well, even compared to the classic Hitchcock film taken from the same work. More faithful to the original story than the film, most particularly in the wonderful, unglamorous portrayal of the second Mrs. DeWinter by Joanna David. Jeremy Brett's Maxim is brittle and at times nasty, as this character should be, but he also conveys the complex, wounded interior that has produced this outer man. Anna Massey is perfectly frightening as the imperious Mrs. Danvers, subtly but constantly threatening. The set design is gorgeous. Definitely recommended for fans of the book.

BRILLIANT

[pippa-6 · 8 October 2004]

I remember seeing this on the TV when it first came out as a teenager and have never forgotten it. However as I have got older I remember it as a film and not a series, either way it was brilliant and Joanna David was the perfect casting as the young Mrs De Winter and Anna Massey is perfect as the housekeeper - Mrs Danvers - I remember her being very scary! The house it was filmed at was amazing and really set the scene for this fantastic programme. I only wish it was available on video or DVD as I would love to see it again. Throughly recommend it to anyone.

Never have so few done so much with so little.

[Tinlizzy · 10/10 · 26 October 1999]

I wish this show was available on video. It perfectly catches the spirit--and leisurely pace--of the novel, which might not to be to the taste of the MTV-cut-watching public, but I think it still has great acting and excellent direction to recommend it.

All the principals are excellent. They have to be, since nothing happens for so long the interaction between the characters is the main 'action' in the film, and it's all rather compactly staged despite some spectacular locations. The production does not date--thankfully, no one tried to 'update' the women's fashions and the music, a major pitfall in shows from this time, is all based on Debussy.

Anna Massey is a terrifying and sadistic Mrs. Danvers, Joanna David is perfectly cast as the clueless heroine (she's pitiful without seeming stupid, no mean feat), and Jeremy Brett is brilliant in showing the past hurts of an essentially selfish and cruel hero, entirely with his facial expressions.

a poorly edited and photographed otherwise fine remake

[Dunham16 · 6/10 · 14 April 2017]

Generally praised for sticking more closely to the Du Maurier plot than the earlier academy award winning 1940 Hollywood film or the shorter and less complete 1997 television remake the speeches are changed too much to seem pure DuMaurier and the panning long shots and low end seventies technology seem at least in my case to make the visual on the DVD reissue in many cases unpleasant. "Do you know Palm Beach" is NOT do you care for Palm Beach and the first lines of the opening speech "I dreamed I was at Manderlay" meaningless when the point of the first speech is neither spoken or filmed. The three most memorable characters namely Joanna David as the second Mrs.DeWinter with no first name, Anna Massey as Danny Danvers and and Jeremy Brett as the present squire of Manderlay do a wonderful acting job not always filmed to best advantage here in a panning shot, here from behind or at an odd angle, here with a filter or Vaseline on the camera lens making the DVD reissue less pleasant to watch than it might have been on small picture tube televisions of thirty eight years ago. More of the plot than the competing versions but the least palatable photography or editing of the multiple available versions of this famous novel.

Terrific adaptation of Du Maurier's book

[fabiennebucci · 10/10 · 11 October 2006]

I've read the book at least six times and always reread it with great pleasure. It is so well written, really. This TV movie was an excellent adaptation, the best compared to a more recent one with Charles Dance as Max De Winter (Charles Dance.... give me a break! This guy has the charisma of an oyster shell!) and even compared to Hitchcock's movie with Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine.

Anna Massey is a terrifying Mrs Danvers, skinny and cold with perfect tight lips. Joanna David plays the ingénue with much wit and charm. Jeremy Brett is the perfect British gentleman, charismatic and mysterious, hiding a terrible secret. As for Rebecca, the first dead wife, she is a real character in this version, the central character even despite the fact that we never see her on screen. Only hear about her but in such a way that it

I've been looking to buy this version in VHS (or DVD now) but BBC has not yet released it. It's a real shame.

Oh, Do Stop Biting Your Nails.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 31 December 2016]

Mousy Rebecca (David) meets tall, handsome, rich stranger (Brett) and is -- for some reason -- swept off her feet by him. He owns one of those stately mansions with a name -- Manderly. He's mysterious too. There are long pauses while he gazes dreamily into empty space. And he's commanding, from big things to small, even when they've just met. About her life course so far: "You're making a mistake." About daffodils: "One should never pick wildflowers." If any shy, plain, disenfranchised young lady is looking for a Sugar Daddy, just apply here. Please use phone because this is only the 1940s. Ask for Daphne.

Rebecca and Maxime de Winter meet at one of those fancy hotels on the Rivera. Rebecca is harnessed to a vulgar American dowager as a female traveling companion. The earlier scenes might look and sound familiar. The TV film opens with the same line as Hitchock's movie, and the same as the novel, I imagine -- "Last night I dreamed I went to Manderly." And Mrs. van Hopper stubs out her cigarette in the cold cream. While the mountainous Ugly American is laid up with the flu, Rebecca and Max use the holiday to drive around the looping roads of the Alps Maritime, having lunches together, getting to know one another. Not that Max is seductive in any way. He rarely smiles or flatters her but at least he treats her as something better than a complete vacuum. Still, the opulence and beauty of the milieu itself encourages romance, especially with Claire de Lune in the background. It's a very pretty place if you have the money. I stayed at what was then the Ritz Carlton Hotel. For about five minutes, just glancing around the lobby.

Then the pace becomes rushed. Mrs. van Grof intends to leave at once for New York, taking Rebecca with her. I know the matron's name is van Horn but this sounds more apt. Well, it puts Rebecca in a bind because she's in Max's thrall. Max solves the problem by marrying her and whisking her away to Manderly on the Cornish coast, an estate roughly the size of Greenland.

They are greeted by a polite and accommodating staff of a few dozen people and Rebecca is introduced to the Headmistress. Mrs. Danvers extends an icy hand in greeting. She's play by Anna Massey, whose hair has been swept back by makeups to emphasize Massy's pointed nose and receding chin, lending her features an openly hostile look and a resemblance to those of some sort of demonic meerkat.

Everyone's performances so far have been at least adequate and the locations are inviting. The photography is a bit flat and colorless -- considering all the color -- but the thing shows promise. Let the thing proceed.

This is the best Rebecca I have ever seen.

[bobbi-2 · 10/10 · 6 June 2000]

This is the best production of Rebecca I have ever seen. Jeremy Brett strikes just the right note of tenderness and distraction, and Joanna David is perfect as the waif who grows into a woman. I have this on tape from a PBS broadcast - I'd give anything to get it on DVD. Anna Massey's Mrs. Danvers is even creepier than Diana Rigg's in the 1999 production. See this if you get the chance.

Strong adaptation of the Du Maurier's novel

[pianissimo_550 · 15 June 2009]

I remember seeing this 'Rebecca'in 1979 -- and saw the Hitchcock version after.I don't like saying that this is superior to the film but it is! It has more time to breathe and builds a slow and chilling tension with Ron Grainer's haunting score. Elspeth March gives a fully fleshed version of Mrs Van Hopper.Joanna David gives a faultless performance of the girl who attempts to fill Rebecca's shoes:she radiates vulnerability from first to last.Anna Massey as Mrs Danvers gives a portrayal of simmering jealousy and Jeremy Brett is brilliant as the haunted and tortured Maxim -- it is a dangerously exciting and sensual performance. This adaptation has not dated at all even 30 yrs on and the music and that tracking shot towards the boat on the sea bed still chills one to the bone!Great performances too from Robert Flemyng, Terence Hardiman and Julian Holloway.

All I can say is WOW!

[Sindaannuniel · 10/10 · 1 March 2010]

To think that I always believed Laurence Olivier to be the ideal Maxim. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine anyone topping him. But Jeremy Brett surpassed him far beyond my expectations. He took the role of Maxim and literally made it his own. I've never thought of Jeremy as an actor. I've always seen him as Holmes. This was refreshing and gave me a new perspective on his remarkably diverse talents as a performer. Truly, this film is perfect, absolutely perfect, from beginning to end. Where has it been all my life!? Now to impatiently wait for it to be released on DVD. Unfortunately, that could be another lifetime in and of itself.

The best dramatization of Rebecca ever

[bobbi-2 · 10/10 · 12 March 2002]

This is the best dramatization of Rebecca that has been filmed so far. Jeremy Brett is perfect a Maxim DeWinter. The mini-series format also allows for a complete telling of the story with all its nuances. I wish it would be released on DVD.

Easily the best version by a mile

[TheLittleSongbird · 10/10 · 8 June 2012]

Before I read the book or saw any other adaptation, I fell in love with Hitchcock's Rebecca. I found it incredibly well made and directed with wonderful music, script and cast. I have since then read the book, and it is now one of my favourite books. The Hitchcock film was and still is one of my favourite movies, but like I try and do with all adaptations I love it on its own merits. I did enjoy the Charles Dance and Emilia Fox version mainly for Diana Rigg's Danvers, but seeing it for the first time a couple of days ago I was blown away by this mini-series. As an adaptation, it is the most faithful of the three, especially with Maxim and the fact that Rebecca is much more mysterious here than in the Dance-Fox version.

But what is also impressive about this Rebecca is how it succeeds on its own merits. Visually, it is not as Gothic as Hitchcock's but just as sumptuous and beautifully shot. The atmosphere is also very evocative and suspenseful. The score is haunting, with some inspired use of impressionist composers like Debussy, the story is faithful, compelling and doesn't feel too condensed or over-stretched and the writing is thoughtfully written. I can't praise enough the acting. Jeremy Brett is magnificent as Maxim, he is handsome with a commanding presence, he brings the darkness and angst of the character better than Laurence Olivier and Charles Dance(who I both still liked actually) and of the three he is closest age-wise to the Maxim of the book.

Joanna David had Joan Fontaine, a revelation in the Hitchcock film, to compete with, and as the second Mrs De Winter she is just as wonderful(and much more believable than her daughter Emilia Fox) shy without being too wan, plain without being too beautiful or elegant and awkward without being too confident. These may sound like negatives, but in my mind this is what the second Mrs De Winter should be like. Anna Massey, like Judith Anderson before and Diana Rigg after, is a chilling(but in a subtle way) presence, especially when she's smiling, as housekeeper Mrs Danvers. Julian Holloway doesn't quite match George Sanders' smarminess, a difficult task seeing as Sanders was a master as well as menace of that style of acting, but is still a very effective Jack Favell.

All in all, the best version, absolutely fantastic. I agree though that this should be on DVD, if there is one mini-series that does deserve it, it's this one. 10/10 Bethany Cox

The best ever!

[pivoine · 10/10 · 9 July 2002]

This version of the Daphne du Maurier novel is the best by far. Much better than the Hitchcock movie even because it is so much faithful to the book. Each scene is the exact replica of what is described in the novel. Excellent performances by the actors (especially the leading trio: Jeremy Brett, Joanna David and Anna Massey). The best, simply the best!

This is simply the BBC at its' most brilliant

[luckysimon8 · 10/10 · 24 October 2002]

I am fortunate in that I have seen this, the BBC version of Rebecca twice, in 1978 and 1980. I think it is the most superb piece of television ever made. It is haunting, shocking and deeply moving and the three leading actors, Jeremy Brett, Joanna David and Anna Massey are the most superlative that have ever been cast. With no disrespect whatsoever to the Hitchcock film or the Carlton ITV version this four part dramatisation will never be surpassed for its' utter and sheer brilliance. If there are any readers out there who would like to get in touch with me then please do write as I would dearly love to hear from you.

Loved it

[cinbabes · 10/10 · 13 April 2005]

I saw this version YEARS ago and just loved it. Jeremy Brett is one of my favorite Actors. I have recently finished watching ALL the Sherlock Holmes episodes with my children thanks to net flix...And was saying to my husband that I remember Jeemy Brett doing Rebecca. He couldn't remember and ordered another version of Rebecca(British television) and I fell asleep during the first ten minutes... Oh how I wish I could get this version... I particularly remember how convincing he was as having really fallen in love with his new bride, as he explained the fact he had killed Rebecca. I want to see more of his works. And will be earnestly searching for it in net flix and elsewhere.

Best version of Rebecca..unfortunately unavailable on video

[paraskoj · 13 April 2003]

I remember watching this in serial form on public television with my wife and then 10 year old son. We were mesmerized by it. While the Hitchcock version is terrific, we all wish we could obtain a video of this TV version. Diana Riggs' version was a disappointment...perhaps because we kept comparing it with the Hitchcock version and with our memory of this version.

Memorable!

[Rongorongo · 10/10 · 24 November 2013]

All the reviews here have already said how superb this adaption is. I want to add that I found this version on YouTube and I also bought a presumably bootleg for 12 bucks from a company I found doing an online search. I frankly don't recall seeing this version on Mystery. I did see the re-make with Charles Dance and I recently re-watched it by getting the DVD at my local library.

Many years ago I picked up a paperback of Rebecca at the beach where the town library leaves books you can read while at the beach- they are usually well-worn paperbacks of classics. I opened Rebecca and inside in loopy girlish hand was written: "If you want to be completely bored read this book- this is the worst book I've ever read". I'd already see the Hitchcock version and the PBS remake so that scribble didn't discourage me. However I only had time to read spots- I didn't read the entire book. I was reading mainly because viewing the Hitchcock and the later PBS I could never understand WHY Maxim was even attracted to "Her" (for lack of a first name) and what would "Her" even want with a stiff, mean, rude, distant old man like Max. It just didn't make sense to me- the whole pretext of the story. Neither version ever said or showed the reasons WHY these two got together! WELL....recently while I was doing some research on Jeremy Brett (one of my favorite actors that I can't get enough of)- I came across this version of Rebecca. I simply can't understand how I missed this when it was shown on PBS in 1979 because this was a program I would not have missed and would always want to see again and again (along with another Brit import on Mystery! "Motherlove" with Diana Rigg- delicious!) I suppose I could read my dusty journals for the NYC air dates and see what was I doing! But anyway.....my point is. Here's the only Rebecca that demonstrates the attraction between Max and "I". So when I bought the DVD and watched their attraction unfold I was FINALLY satisfied.

Now let me tell you about the DVD I bought. This is NOT "DVD quality". It's a DVD clearly copied from a VHS recording on the slowest speed. It has many dropouts, is VERY fuzzy and the DVD "skips". To the owners of this production: PLEASE release this on DVD. But....no matter how fuzzy and poor quality there is no mistaking the high production values and the painfully exquisite Manderly...those outback scenes are SO breathtaking! the rhododendron like trees, the crashing sea under the cliffs, birds eye views of the entire property, et all. I mean to die for! I'D kill, too to preserve this piece of heaven. The performance of Jeremy Brett so subtle, so painful. A lesser actor would certainly chew the scenery. And "I" an actress who IS and acts "plain". Not some too-pretty actress trying to be "plain". Though she looks very lovely in the dark wig in the Carolyn costume. When I saw the memorable PBS Sherlock Holmes series I knew I'd seen Jeremy Brett somewhere -I don't mean as Freddy! (His best known until Sherlock.) He's my "type" and I never forget these guys after I see them once. I just don't know how I forgot about him if I did see this production on Mystery! when it first aired. To summarize: Don't bother watching the Hitchcock Rebecca or the other PBS series Rebecca- they aren't worth watching after seeing this gem.

An Absolute Gem

[MyLadyLorna · 9/10 · 25 October 2021]

While I've never yet gotten through the book, I have now watched 3 film adaptations of Rebecca and even listened to the Orson Welles' radio play.

The 1979 version with the sublime Jeremy Brett remains my favorite. He plays Maxim in a way that makes me like the character. There is a softness to him, reminding the audience that before he became so bitter and cold, he was probably a lovely man and can be one again.

Joanna David plays an excellent Mrs. De Winter, the only woman so far who feels genuine in the role. And I say that deeply liking Joan Fontaine's performance. But Joanna David just knocked it out of the park.

I would give anything for this 1979 version to be officially released on DVD. It deserves a much wider audience. The ultimate dream.

Brilliantly done

[wordsmyth-77599 · 10/10 · 10 April 2020]

This is the best adaptation of Du Maurier's timeless novel. Wish there was a soundtrack offered for this film. Ron Grainer did the music but I cannot find a soundtrack for "Rebecca" Does anyone know if it was made and is still available?