First of all, a huge apology for falling off schedule. I had meant to get something written for last week, but circumstances got in the way. Second, apologies again, for not doing a review. Similar reasons. That out of the way, this time out, I’ll show my methodology when writing a review for Lost in Translation.
One of the things I try to do is get some of the background of the original work, whether it’s a technique, a different approach, or something that advanced the state of the art of the medium. Often, the original work isn’t readily available or is relatively unknown while the remake/adaptation is available everywhere. This means that I need access to the original. Ideally, I’ll have already watched, read, or listened to the original work before even seeing the remake or adaptation. This gives me a baseline to compare to, the core of the review process.
Next, of course, is to view the remake/adaptation. In this, I do try to keep an open mind. I can’t approach with the idea of, “They changed it, thus now it sucks.” I have to let the new material stand or fail on its own merits first, then compare to the original. This is the tricky part. Part of Lost in Translation is to see what went right as well as what went wrong. Sometimes, the point of failure isn’t obvious. Saying, “It sucks!”* doesn’t do anyone any good. Finding what went wrong and noting how the problem could’ve been avoided, if possible, does.
Third step, write the review. In a perfect world, I’d have a six to eight week buffer built up and ready to go so that there’s no schedule slippage. Unfortunately, I live in this world** and slippage happens. Sometimes I don’t have the time to watch a remake. Sometimes I don’t have access to the original. A planned review of The Addams Family with Raul Julia keeps getting pushed back because I need to find a few of the original comics strips.
I’m going to take a moment to do an aside. My preference is to go to the original work and make direct comparisons. If I’m commenting on a Sherlock Holmes adaptation, I will read or re-read one of the original stories as a refresher before watching the remake. Using secondary and tertiary sources, such as Wikipedia or IMDB is reserved to double check dates and to jar my memory. My preference, especially for TV shows and movies, is the commentary*** in the special features. Interviews included in the special features are also handy for my purposes.
Once I get the review written, I go back and fill in details that I skipped over in the name of finishing the writing. Minor fact checking gets notated with a [?], while major work research work is highlighted. I make sure any links I need are in my notes so I can add the hyperlinks before posting.
The last part, the posting, involves making sure that spelling is good, that my markup notations are properly replaced, and the paragraphing isn’t broken. I add the needed tags, make sure that I’ve left nothing out, then schedule for Saturday morning.
And that’s what happens behind the curtain.
Coming up on Lost in Translation…
More reviews.
Guest spots.
An example of me using what I’ve discovered about remakes and adaptation using my NaNoWriMo project as a base.
* Like Jay Sherman.
** When I’m not allowed to be in my own little world.
*** I learned a lot about film making by having /Die Hard/’s commentary turned on.
In 1981, Ray Harryhausen worked on and produced the last of his stop-motion features, Clash of the Titans. Stop-motion animation required building a model and painstakingly taking shot after shot with only small differences in the model’s position; Harryhausen is considered to be the premier filmmaker of the style. However, new methods of special effects were being introduced even in 1981, especially Industrial Lights & Magic’s go-motion, which added a blur effect to stop-motion for added realism.. Go-motion can be seen in the opening sequence of The Empire Strikes Back as the Imperial Walkers advance from the north ridge. Stop-motion is still in use today, though, as seen in The Corpse Bride and the Wallace & Grommit series. However, stop-motion is seldom seen outside cartoon-like films.
The movie Clash of the Titans was loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus, one of Zeus’ many, many bastard children, and Andromeda. Perseus wishes to marry the fair Andromeda and must undergo many tests before winning her hand. The monsters, including the serpentine Medusa, the Pegasus, and the Kraken, are all stop-motion and interact with the cast during the action scenes. The cast was composed of a mix of relatively unknown (at the time) actors like Harry Hamelin as Perseus and veterans of stage and film such as Maggie Smith as Thetis and Laurence Olivier as Zeus. Clash of the Titans had a good return, tripling its budget of $15 million. Audiences got what was advertised, though the stop-motion animation was starting to look limited even in 1981.
A new look at an old gimmick came around in 2009. James Cameron’s Avatar took CGI and blended it with 3D technology to create an immersive world. Instead of using 3D for such old tricks as a monster lunging at the audience, Cameron created a world and placed the viewer inside it, surrounding. Insects were annoyingly realistic and close enough to be swatted. The sheer success Avatar had led to other studios quickly adapting movies already in the works to 3D; among the films was the remake of Clash of the Titans.
The remake was set to be released in March, 2010, but was delayed a month to be made into 3D release. The new Clash was also based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Greek myths vary greatly, though, even in the original, so a change there isn’t major. The plot follows Perseus as he battles monsters similar to the ones in the original movie. The main differences are the use of location shots instead of sound stages and CGI monsters instead of stop-motion. Casting-wise, instead of hiring a relative unknown for the lead*, veteran actors were used. Sam Worthington starred as Perseus**, Ralph Fiennes played Hades, Gemma Arterton was Io, and Liam Neeson played Zeus.
The remake did well financially, not so well critically. The main draw of the original was the stop-motion animation, seeing the craftwork on screen done by the master himself, Ray Harryhausen. The remade Clash of the Titans used CGI, common to many movies of all genres. As a further detraction, the last minute change to 3D made the film appear more gimmicky. However, the remake didn’t become a “gritty” version of the original, though. The producers and the director were aiming for the same audience that the original had, with the actors well aware and agreeing.
So, did the remade Clash lose anything? Perhaps a bit of the charm and whimsy that the original had. Both movies had a thin plot held up by the special effects. Both had elements of cheese. But, both are very much watchable and enjoyable for what they are.
Next time, another review. Also, a reminder that Lost in Translation is on a bi-weekly schedule until December. Keep an eye out for guest spots in the meantime!
* Harry Hamelin was in only one movie prior to the 1981 Clash of the Titans, though would go on to star in LA Law.
** Worthington was busy in 2009 and 2010, staring in Avatar, Terminator Salvation, and Clash of the Titans.
Last week, I covered the most adapted character ever. That got me to thinking about works that aren’t as adaptable, characters that are intrinsically tied to specific actors, works that are a product of their time. So, to add to the previous list, here are more works that I don’t see being adapted anytime soon.
Columbo
Columbo was a twist on the standard police procedural and murder mystery TV shows. Instead of following the lead character as he gathered clues to discover the murderer in the reveal at the end, the series led each episode off with the murder with the killer in plain view. The attraction of the series was to watch Columbo work through the clues and just keep asking questions of the suspects until a the murderer contradicted himself. Adding to the appeal was Peter Falk’s portrayal of the detective; Falk provided all of Columbo’s wardrobe from his own closet and created the distinctive mannerisms on the set to keep the actors off balance. And there’s the reason why a remake would be difficult. A lot of Columbo came directly from Peter Falk himself; it is difficult to imagine a different actor in the role.* It will take a long passage of time before an audience is ready for someone new as Columbo.
The Blues Brothers
In this case, I’m referencing the original movie and Blues Brothers 2000. I’ve written about the original movie before, but, to sum up, the movie’s plot is about two shady musicians who try to raise money for their old orphanage by gathering back the old band and getting an audience. The movie and its sequel, though, were about the music. Blues Brothers 2000 was Dan Aykroyd’s love letter to the blues and a way to say goodbye to the late John Belushi. The sequel failed at the box office, not even making back the film’s budget. Part of the problem was bringing back the band without John Belushi; he was part of the core, and with him gone, many felt that the sequel wasn’t complete. A remake without Aykroyd, well, that’s the rest of the core. Anyone wanting to remake The Blues Brothers would be better off starting fresh, with today’s blues performers.
Airplane
The 1970s saw its share of trends and fads – muscle cars, platform shoes, and even disco music. In theatres, the big draw was disaster movies. Starting with Airport in 1970, big budget disaster movies were the blockbusters of the era, and included The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno. The trend died neared the end of the decade, with Airplane coming along to drive the final nail in place, not with malice, but with laughter. Airplane, riffing off the movie Zero Hour, featured a propeller-driven jet liner** whose crew comes down with severe food poisoning and has to be flown by ex-fighter pilot Ted Striker, who has PTSD from losing his squadron over Macho Grande. The movie has been named on a number of lists of top films, both in comedy and in general. The problem with remaking it, though, is that while Airplane is well known, the movies it parodied aren’t. Disaster movies changed between the closing of the 70s and the mid-90s, when the genre revived. Gone were the vehicular disasters***; replacing them were natural phenomena or extra-terrestrial threats.**** All the tropes that Airplane spoofed are largely unknown now, making a parody difficult.
So, are there any works that you feel aren’t remakable?
Next time, back to the reviews.
And a note – Lost in Translation will go biweekly over the next two months as NaNoWriMo will start eating my brain.
* Oddly enough, the TV series was adapted from a stage play adapted from an anthology TV series episode adapted from a short story, none of which Peter Falk was involved with.
** The studio wanted a jet, so they got the jet. They just didn’t get the engines’ sound effects with the jet.
*** The exception being Titanic.
**** Or both; 1998 had two movies featuring large rocks hurtling at Earth.
The murder mystery has long been a mainstay of television and cinema. Characters from all walks of life have delved into the art of solving a murder – lawyers, doctors, mystery writers, con men, post officer clerks, and, yes, even private detectives. All of these characters have one man to thank: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Doyle’s creation, Sherlock Holmes, first appeared in 1887 in the novel /A Study in Scarlet/. That story, and each one following, featured a mystery as written by Holmes’s friend, Dr. John Watson, solved by Sherlock’s keen observation. No detail was too small for Holmes to ignore, and keen readers could work with the clues found to determine who the perpetrator was. However, Holmes had his flaws. He was a brusque man, didn’t like dealing with people, and tended to brush others aside while working. Incompetence was not tolerated. Fortunately, Watson could be the softer side of Holmes, letting Sherlock do what he did best.
Sherlock Holmes is the most adapted character ever, featuring in theatre, movies, radio plays, television, and pastiches*. Television series that didn’t normally deal with mysteries would have a Holmesian episode; Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s “Elementary, My Dear Data” is a perfect example. The lure of an intelligent man who still has flaws appears to be irrestible to writers. Helping with the temptation is the work being in the public domain.
This brings us to today – specifically, last week – with the premier of a new CBS TV series, Elementary. The series brings Sherlock Holmes, played by Jonny Lee Miller, to modern day New York City after being released from rehab back in England. To help him keep on the wagon, Dr. Joan Watson, played by Lucy Liu, is assigned to keep Holmes company. As part of his self-imposed conditions, Holmes returns to doing what he does best, being a freelance consulting detective, this time working with the New York Police Department to solve crimes. The first episode had Holmes as a brusque, haunted man, one who doesn’t pay attention to social niceities. Watson helps temper Holmes’s rude manner, being the friendly side to the partnership. Throughout the episode, camera tricks help with Sherlock’s observational skills, letting the audience see what he sees. The tricks aren’t overused, though. Often, Holmes would ask an odd question or suddenly change direction and check an area that originally wasn’t part of the crime scene.
Elementary takes some liberties with the original work. Bringing Holmes to modern times and transplanting him to New York are the obvious ones, as is changing Dr. Watson’s gender. Yet, the explanation for moving to New York City makes sense and follows from Sherlock’s addiction to cocaine in the original stories. Holmes is also not starting out as a rookie; instead, he has a proven track record with police and intelligence services in Britain already, though entering rehab did cause some problems there. As for Watson, she is working to get Holmes’s trust while making sure he is healthy, and can keep up with the detective’s quirky train of thought.
Overall, despite the liberties, the show works as a Sherlock Holmes series. Ultimately, the main characters represent the original work well. The writers, cast, and crew of Elementary should take pride in being able to move the setting, both in location and in time, without losing the essence of Doyle.
Next time, another look at hard to reboot series.
* Pastiches are like published fanfiction with the author imitating Doyle’s style of writing.
Last week, I covered how technology and progress affected vehicles in remakes. This week, I look at vehicles that have featured in projects that haven’t been remade yet.
Akira
The vehicle: Kaneda’s motorcycle.
Currently in the process of being adapted for a live-action movie, Akira was a milestone in anime released to North American audiences. One of the plot elements is Kaneda’s red motorcycle, something that Tetsuo coveted. The motorcycle is obviously powerful and futuristic, with no make or model given. For a live action version of the movie, the motorcycle needs to match the appearance.* Fortunately, without a specific manufacturer to worry about, the producers can approach a number of motorcycle firms for sponsor ship or try to get one of the fan-made models.
Airwolf
The vehicle: The titular helicopter.
Airwolf came out in 1984 on the heels of The A-Team and Blue Thunder and featured a helicopter with hidden weapons and capabilities. The Airwolf itself was a modified Bell 222 helicopter, used for both utility and executive transport. Remaking the series would require keeping the fictional helicopter’s role the same, an attack vehicle capable of blending into an urban airspace. With the Bell 222 no longer in production, another base model would be needed. Fortunately, a Google quick search brings up several suitable models from Sikorsky and AgustaWestland that have similar appearances to the original Airwolf.
The vehicle: The Bluesmobile, a former Mount Prospect police Dodge Monaco.
As mentioned last year, The Blues Brothers was adapted from a series of musical sketches by Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi on Saturday Night Live. Elwood (Aykroyd) had to trade their old Cadillac for a microphone, replacing the caddie with a former Mount Prospect police car dubbed the Bluesmobile. The car, a 1974 Dodge Monaco, was chosen because Dan Aykroyd felt it was the hottest police cruiser in the 1970s. In Blues Brothers 2000, the new Bluesmobile was a 1990 Ford LTD Crown Victoria, an ubiquitous vehicle in law enforcement. A remake of the original movie, a daunting challenge in itself because of the music, would need a make and model of car that has been used as a police car. A used Crown Vic from a more recent year would work, as would a used Dodge Charger.
Back to the Future
The vehicle: A silver DeLorean DMC-12, modified.
In the Back to the Future trilogy, crazy Doc Brown modified a DeLorean DMC-12 to become a time machine, powered by a nuclear reactor. The DeLorean had several things going for it – unique appearance and not well known. The former let the car look cool, a different type of sports car than what was normally seen on screen. The unfamiliarity helped with people not knowing about its performance issues. TVTropes lists the car under the Real Life section of The Alleged Car. Doc Brown was crazier than people suspected. A remake of the movies will have to keep the DeLorean in mind; either to keep the signature car or find a new vehicle that fits the same role. Most car manufacturers prefer not to make bad cars; they cost money, either in lost sales or in lawsuits.** At the same time, a car that’s unique would also fill the role well; for example, a Tesla Motors Model X.
Next week, back to the reviews.
* Something has to remain original.
** The Ford Pinto with its exploding gas tank comes to mind here.
As a semi-recurring feature of Lost in Translation, I take time to discuss how adapting, rebooting, and remaking affects the choices made for elements in the project. This week, what happens to a key vehicle when progress makes it out of date? What can be done? Normally, a car is a car, a truck is a truck. However, several works have memorable models that feature prominently, either because the show was based around the car or because the vehicle was chosen specifically for its appearance. Here’s how some remakes handled it.
The A-Team
The vehicle: A black 1983 GMC Vandura van with red stripe and spoiler.
The remake: Reused, then crushed.
In both the original series and the remake movie, the van belonged to B.A. Baracus. The van makes an appearance early in the film as the characters are being introduced and is destroyed when Murdoch accidentally drops a roof ventilation system on it. The appearance of the van helped assure viewers that the original series would be respected. It was replaced by a HMMWV* later in the film.
Knight Rider
The vehicle: A black 1982 Pontiac Trans-Am, modified with front scanner.
The reboots: In both the 1991 Knight Rider 2000 movie and the 1997 Team Knight Rider series, KITT was transplanted and the original Trans-Am was not seen. For Knight Rider 2000, the replacement was a modified Dodge Stealth camouflaged as a Pontiac Banshee. TKR, however, had KITT in a non-mobile installation. The 2008 Knight Rider updated KITT, giving him a black Ford Shelby GT500KR Mustang.
Knight Rider provides an interesting challenge for updating. KITT, the Knight Industries Two Thousand, was an integral character to the show. Removing KITT removes a large element of the show’s appeal. The original KITT was, as mentioned, a black Pontiac Trans-Am with extra bells and whistles to show the high tech nature of the base car. The 1991 Knight Rider 2000 starts with KITT disassembled, then later placed into a 1957 Chevrolet Bel-Air. Not quite the technological marvel, and KITT did remark on the downgrade. Later, KITT received the “Banshee”. With the TKR series, the concept of “one man can make a difference” changed into a team making a difference. The show also had a sponsor in the form of Ford, so all the vehicles were either came from Ford or a Ford subsidiary, which Pontiac was not**. Ford was also the sponsor for the 2008 Knight Rider series, thus the Mustang with two sensor lights instead of one***. However, the Mustang was the Knight Industries Three Thousand, a descendant of the original KITT.
The Dukes of Hazzard
The vehicle: An orange 1969 Dodge Charger with the Confederate battle flag on the roof and the number 01 on the door.
The remake: The same make and model.
The Dukes of Hazzard featured many car chases. The titular characters’ car, the General Lee, appeared in all but one episode, either chasing or being chased. Fortunately, the Charger was already a decade old when the show first aired. The 2005 movie could easily reuse the same model**** as a result. Any differences would be under the hood, usually out of sight of the audience.
Doctor Who
The vehicle: A Type 40 TARDIS with a broken chameleon circuit
The reboot: The same TARDIS
When /Doctor Who/ first aired, the Doctor’s “spaceship” was hidden in a junk yard and disguised as a British police call box. As the show continued, call boxes were phased out of use by British police in favour of radios. However, the Doctor’s TARDIS remained in its form. This was later explained by a broken chameleon circuit, which would allow a properly functioning TARDIS to blend into its surroundings. The Master’s TARDIS had a working circuit and could hide in most terrain. The Doctor did try to fix the circuit, but wardrobes were just as obvious as the call box in the middle of a wilderness. The reboot brought back the TARDIS in its much-loved form, with only the inside changed, reflecting the organic look from the 1996 Fox TV movie. Over the run of the series, the exterior received minor, cosmetic changes, but the essence remained.
Next week, how technological updates will affect more classic movie vehicles.
* aka, the Hum-Vee.
** Pontiac was a brand of General Motors until discontinued in 2009.
*** Like an original Battlestar Galactica Cylon being upgraded.
**** Many 1968 Chargers were totaled in the original Dukes.
The 1970s was chock full of children’s programming on Saturdays, despite (or because of) the lack of specialty cable channels. The three major American broadcasters – ABC, CBS, and NBC – competed for the eyes of the youth. Sid & Marty Krofft produced a number of live action TV series for the networks, many of which were more cartoony than an animated series. Among their work was Land of the Lost, created by David Gerrold, writer of the classic Star Trek episode “The Trouble With Tribbles”. The series told the story of a father and his two children who went canoing and wound up in a different land.
The opening theme served as much of an explanation as anyone would get. Our heroes, Rick Marshall and his kids, Will and Holly, were plunged into a land where dinosaurs roamed, primitive human-like creatures were discovering tools, and reptile-men lurked. Marshall used his survival skills to find food, create shelter, and domesticate young dinosaurs*. Meanwhile, a fearsome** Tyrannosaur hunted, waiting to grab any creature who couldn’t outrun it. Unusual for its time, the series ended with an episode that would work as a finale of sorts, a time loop that brought the characters back to the beginning of the season just in time for reruns.
Although the series was short run, it left an impact on many people***, in part because of the sense of exploration and danger that the series created. The land was an alien world, with beings that weren’t just humans with funny foreheads. The Sleestak were a credible threat and weren’t defeated by their own incompetance. The writers included several science fiction authors, such as Larry Niven, Ben Bova, Norman Spinrad, and Theodore Sturgeon.
In the 2000s****, studios were exploiting the market for remakes of old TV shows, popular or not. Land of the Lost was remade as a feature film. Several liberties were taken. Marshall, played by Will Ferrell, became a paleontologist instead of a park ranger. Will and Holly were no longer related to Marshall or to each other, and both were aged up. The tone went from family adventure to broad, loud “adult” comedy. While the original TV series did have comedic moments, the focus was light adventure, with enough fright to keep the intended audience watching without sending it running under a couch.
The movie did not fare well with audiences or critics. Rotten Tomatoes reported only 26% of reviewers gave favourable reviews. The box office returns didn’t cover the budget of the movie. The movie received seven Golden Raspberry nominations. What happened?
The big problem was that Land of the Lost was used as a Will Ferrell comedy vehicle, with all other considerations coming a distant second. Fans of the original series would be disappointed with how the original material was treated. The care taken in the original series into creating a larger world than seen on screen was not evident in the movie. Things existed solely for comedic purposes. In terms of previous columns, there was no respect for the original material.
The Land of the Lost movie could have been different. It could have followed a family dropped into a strange world and having to survive against numerous threats. Instead, the movie was a brash comedy aimed at a completely different audience than the original series was. The potential was wasted.
Next week, side-tracking a little.
* Herbivores only.
** Supposed to be fearsome, though the special effects budget was already strained.
*** References to Land of the Lost have even appeared in Peter David’s Star Trek tie-in novels, including a character Marshall Willenholly.
**** Also not know as the Oughts and the Naughties.
The Cold War between the USSR and the US allowed spy novels to flourish after the end of the Second World War. During the 50s and 60s, British authors dominated the genre. However, the 70s saw American titles side by side with their British counterparts. One of the earlier successes in spy thrillers was Robert Ludlum. Among Ludlum’s many best sellers was The Bourne Identity, published in 1980. Considered to be one of the best spy novels written, Identity was turned into a movie twice; the first time in 1988 as television mini-series, the second time as a theatrical feature with Matt Damon in the title role in 2002. A review of the adaptation of the novel to the big screen will come in a later column. This one takes a look at the latest in the Bourne series of movies, The Bourne Legacy.
The original Bourne trilogy followed the story of a man with amnesia, several bullet wounds, and a surgically-implanted message found floating in the Mediterranean Sea. The man follows the message to a Swiss bank where he finds cash and documents with his photo and the name “Jason Bourne”. The story continues as Bourne is pursued by several people, all leading back to Operation Treadstone. Through Identity and the follow up movies, The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum, Bourne works to find out who he is, what Treadstone and its successor, Blackbriar, is, and how to get his life back. The end of Ultimatum worked as the end of Jason Bourne’s story. (more…)
Continuing with the comics theme started last week, this week looks at Marvel’s Spider-Man. Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the arachnid-themed superhero first appeared in Amazing Fantasy 15 in 1962. Peter Parker, a high school science geek, received his arachnid abilities after being bitten by a radioactive spider while at a science exhibit. The first thing to go through the teenage Peter’s mind when he realized he had these powers was . . . to make money from them. He lived with his elderly Aunt May and Uncle Ben, who were having difficulties making ends meet. Peter’s idea was to become a TV star, complete with costume. However, when given a chance to stop a thief, he ignored it. Later, the same thief robbed and killed Uncle Ben. As Spider-Man, Peter tracked down the thief and stopped him. “With great power comes great responsibility.”
The Spider-Man line of books is probably Marvel’s top selling comics. Long before The Punisher or Wolverine appeared, Spider-Man was the go-to character to draw in new readers to a book, appearing in The Avengers and Fantastic Four as needed. Since his creation, Spidey has appeared in eight separate cartoons, one live-action TV series, a tokusatsu show in Japan, a daily newspaper comic, four live-action feature films, and a Broadway musical. Oddly, despite the popularity of the character, it took until 2002 to get a major motion picture released featuring the web-slinger.
Maybe not so oddly. The CBS series The Amazing Spider-Man from 1978 performed well in ratings but was costly to film due to the stunts required. In the comics and cartoons, Spider-Man swung between the tall skyscrapers in Midtown Manhattan. Recreating that safely required a lot of work, especially when CGI wasn’t even a consideration yet. However, technology pressed on, and many dangerous effects could be done far safer with the magic of computers.* By 2002, though, CGI had gone long past the experimental stage and into regular use.
Sam Raimi was approached by Sony to direct the Spider-Man film adaptation. Raimi himself had been a fan of the comic as he grew up, and worked to keep the feel of the movie to the original. Several changes were made, though. Instead of being bitten by a radioactive spider, the attacking arachnid was now genetically modified, reflecting the fears of the day. Instead of Gwen Stacy, Mary-Jane Watson was the love interest, though Mary-Jane would be far better known by the younger followers of the comics. The Green Goblin had a change in his costume origin, though the appearance harked back to his comic book likeness.
Despite Raimi not having used CGI in the past, he learned quickly, and had the web-slinging scenes turn into a ballet, complete with a shout-out to the 1960s era Spider-Man cartoon at the end. The mix of live action and CGI succeeded in bringing to life the wise-cracking hero’s unusual means of travel through New York.
The movie’s plot covered two elements. The first was an updating of Spider-Man’s origin, as mentioned above. The second involved the Green Goblin and an adaptation of “The Night Gwen Stacy Died” (Amazing Spider-Man 121). Both elements allowed Raimi to introduce some of Spidey’s supporting cast, including J. Jonah Jameson and his staff at the Daily Bugle. And, just as mentioned in last week’s Iron Man review, the villain didn’t steal the movie. Spider-Man, as a character, was interesting enough to carry the movie, despite Willem Dafoe’s portrayal of Norman Osborn.
The movie was a hit. It made over US$100 million in its opening weekend. But, as mentioned before, financial success is not an indication of a adaptational success. What is an indication is respect towards the original, helped greatly by Sam Raimi being a fan. The changes made reflected the times the movie was made in. In the 1960s, radiation was the boogieman feared by the general populace. Two superpowers sat in a war of escalation that would culminate in the Cuban Missile Crisis in October, 1962, two months after Amazing Fantasy 15 was released. The line, “With great power comes great responsibility,” may not have been a lesson for just Peter. However, 2002, forty years later, the biggest threat to mankind wasn’t nuclear Armageddon, but genetic tinkering of food crops.** Radiation was understood, genetic modification was a wild card to the general public. The change in the origin was meant to resonate with the audience, allowing them to get the same feeling as readers of the first Spider-Man story did.
Overall, Spider-Man was a successful adaptation. The changes reflected modern realities and the need of an audience to have not followed a comic for forty years to understand everything happening in a movie.
Next week, a guest spot by Serdar Yegulalp.
* Watch as ones flip into zeroes before your very eyes!
** The Al-Qaeda attack on the World Trade Centre occurred after filming completed.
Marvel Comics has always had a wide range of superheroes. From the patriotic Captain America to the anti-hero Hulk to the Spectacular and Amazing Spider-Man to the outcast X-Men, each hero was more than just the costume, just the hero fighting crime. Iron Man, first appearing in Tales of Suspense in 1963, is no different in that respect. Unlike the heroes mentioned, though, Tony Stark has no innate super powers*. His origin story, first seen in the above mentioned comic, showed how the Iron Man suit developed.** Over time, Tony takes charge of his company, develops more Iron Man suit variants, becomes a playboy, and develops alcoholism. Many of Iron Man’s foes reflect his origins, either being technical (such as AIM and Hydra), Communist (Titanium Man, the Unicorn), or corporate (Iron Monger, Roxxon Oil, Justin Hammer).
Fast forward to 2008. Marvel’s luck with movies based on their properties had a rough go with 1986’s Howard the Duck, 1989’s The Punisher, and 1994’s The Fantastic Four***. Things started to turn around with 1998’s Blade, but the character wasn’t one of Marvel’s A-listers. X-Men in 2000 marks the turning point for Marvel’s big names, though, at this point, the company had different lines licensed to a number of studios. The successful Spider-Man movie in 2002 further marked the turnaround of Marvel’s cinematic foibles, though not completely. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Ghost Rider, both from 2007, underperformed. However, waiting in the wings, was Iron Man.
There are times when casting directors find just the perfect person for a role. Iron Man‘s trumped all others when Robert Downey Jr. was cast as Tony Stark. Downey had gone through a rough patch between 1996 and 2001, getting arrested for various drug charges. His appearance as Stark capped a career revival. Downey brought forth all of Tony Stark, from his larger than life public persona to the uncertain man wanting to right what he messed up in private. Even when he was in the Iron Man suit, Stark was still himself, still the showboat who was trying to make up for past mistakes.
The movie itself could be divided into two parts. The first part was Iron Man’s origin,** updated for the modern era. Gone was the Viet Nam War and the Communists. This time around, Stark visited the troops in Afghanistan when he ran into the trap. The second part of the film showed Tony improving beyond the original grey suit to the gleaming red and gold and returning to Afghanistan to help free his fellow prisoner. Also linking the two parts of the movie was the villain. With the update to the modern era, elements from the Cold War, including the Vietnam War, were lost; Stark was at most old enough to have seen news reports of the Vietnam War as a young child. That left the main foe to be either technical or corporate. Obadiah Stane fell into both. His machinations behind the scenes while still acting as Stark’s mentor provided a chilling look into executive backstabbing, with the addition of taking Tony’s prototype and updating it for his own ends.
The movie, simply put, was a huge success, allowing Marvel to continue the Avengers Initiative with follow ups Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger, capped with The Avengers. However, financial success isn’t always an indication of a successful adaptation. First, I’ll begin with the changes made. The big one was keeping the story in the now. Most superhero comics are set Today, that is, when the reader reads it.**** However, 2008 was not 1963. The world has changed greatly in those forty-three years. The Vietnam War ended. The Cold War ended. The Soviet Union ended. Iron Man’s origin needed to be updated to reflect the march of history but, at the same time, remain true to the source. Thus, the trap in Viet Nam became a trap in Afghanistan. However, the Stark-Stane rivalry comes straight from the comics, as does SHIELD. The update in the origins doesn’t affect the characters. The other major change is the identity of Iron Man himself. In the comics, Iron Man is Stark’s bodyguard. In the movie, Stark comes out and admits it. However, the movie Tony would have problems allowing someone else, even if that someone is a complete fabrication, to take credit for Stark’s own work. The change made sense in character.
Summary, the movie is a very good adaptation of one of Marvel’s lesser-known A-list heroes. The combination of casting, directing, script, and acting pull together to make Iron Man enjoyable and accessible. As a major plus, Iron Man is one of the few superhero movies where the villain doesn’t upstage the hero. Although it helps that Stark is larger than life, the main reason is that Iron Man is not just the hero, but the protagonist, the character trying to change the status quo.***** Stane is trying to keep things as they are, without Tony making wide-sweeping changes to Stark International.
Next week, still with superheroes.
* His intelligence might qualify, but his background includes being a teen genius, which is possible, but rare.
** Quick version – after getting caught in a trap in Viet Nam and being taken prisoner, Stark and another prisoner build a device to keep shrapnel from reaching Tony’s heart. Tony then works on a prototype suit of powered armour using the power source of the device to break out of the prison.
*** Involving Roger Corman, known for low-budget films.
**** Exceptions being specific days, usually holidays, but even those are implied to be the one most recently past.
***** In the vast majority of superhero movies, the villain is trying to inflict change with the hero trying to prevent it.
