In which we set a record for list length and tell you about the nine screen adaptations that had awesome scripts.
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Our hosts are a bit overwhelmed this episode as we discuss GP Taylor’s The Midas Box and the film adaptation The Adventurer: The Curse of the Midas Box. While enjoying the magical realism of the book, there was a lot to take in, and while the movie had them laughing (probably unintentionally), it was a little watery.
Let us know what you thought of the book, the film and our discussion in the comments!
FINALLY, all the hosts were able to see Brian Percival’s The Book Thief! They discuss the bits that were perfect, the bits that were upsetting and the bits that other people just didn’t seem to understand in this beautiful and sad story.
Also, we have an episode on the novel by Markus Zusak.
In which we list plot changes in film adaptations that actually worked with the story.
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When I was younger there was a certain collection of classic stories that were turned into movies. It seems like everyone around my age was sat in front of them, only to find themselves so engaged they had to watch the films over and over again. Essentially, they may have been the first adaptations we saw, without even realizing.
As a child, when I first saw The Secret Garden I could not read. It was a story that captured me and the relationship I felt I had with my own backyard. I remember being a little girl, thinking the robins that bobbed around could understand me and that we were exploring together in the woods of my backyard, complete with wild flowers and wild rose bushes. It was years later when I discovered the book by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The pages engulfed me once again, but as age does to a reader, I found a new story in the pages that kept me entranced. It was less about the garden and much more about the secrets.
The movie was made for children. Just enough dark to keep you frightened and hiding behind the couch, but enough light-hearted adventure to pull you closer to the screen. The white pony, the castle in the hills, magic around a large fire, the stone walls around a secret place to play and that old wooden swing remain images in my mind as I recall the film. Even the hint of a romance with the dashing Dicken, (the first love of my life), and Mary.
Of course, as a child you can’t quite put a finger on that layer of love, but are intrigued by it all the same.
The book was still made for children, but as literature does in comparison to film, the plot and story lines are considerably slowed down. When I first read it, I was a very slow reader, and the pacing seemed to change the tone of book. I began to see the darkness in the family in contrast to the lighter story of getting a boy in a wheelchair into the garden.
The loss of a mother and a sick little boy abandoned by his father, who refrains from looking at his son from the hurt of memories. The same hurt that caused him to lock up and neglect his wife’s garden for years until Mary’s appearance. The type of loss and the impact it was able to have over an entire household was something new to me and it forever changed the way I watched the adaptation of the film.
The older I became, the more I could see these lines in the film. It seemed the more disturbing depth I could see, the more hooked I became as I began to see the brilliance of a film created for all generations. A good time to a three year old, but with the abilty to bring tear to a woman in her 50s. It even can bring a second thought to a title so familiar that we hardly notice the depth in the words chosen by publishers long ago to describe the entire story…
The Secret Garden
I’m not sure that it’s common knowledge that The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is adapted from a short story, but the current film is actually the second attempt to tell Walter’s story on film. The original short story was written by James Thurber in 1942, a film adaptation starring the comedic and musically-inclined Danny Kaye was made in 1947 and the recently released film has Ben Stiller both directing and starring in the title role. So, last week I made a day of it, reading the story and watching both films. And for your informative pleasure, I am now going to review all three, sans spoilers.
If you were waiting for an early or even late 2014 release of Seventh Son, I have bad news for you… even worse if you’ve been waiting since the original February 2013 release date.
For the Nth time, the release date for this film has been pushed. Its release date is now set for Feb 6, 2015. Hopefully, when that date rolls around we won’t hear of another push.
As some of you know, from the podcasts, I am a huge fan of Jeff Bridges. I was anticipating RIPD for 2+ years and similarly with this one, I am frustrated with the delays. So I decided to do some digging.
Seventh Son is:
An 18th century adventure story centered on young Thomas, who is apprenticed to the local Spook to learn to fight evil spirits. His first great challenge comes when the powerful Mother Malkin escapes her confinement while the Spook is away. – IMDB
It is an adaptation of a young ddult novel The Spook’s Apprentice (The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch in the USA) by Joseph Delaney. The first story in the series The Wardstone Chronicles.
The cast is full of goodies: Ben Barnes as the Apprentice, Jeff Bridges as the Master, Julianne Moore as Mother Malkin, and a supporting cast of Kit Harington (Jon Snow from Game of Thrones), Antje Taue (Faora-Ul in Man of Steel, and Nadia in Pandorun), and Olivia Williams (DeWitt from Dollhouse, and Countess Vronsky in Anna Karenina).
So why does it keep getting pushed?
What better way to start out 2014 than by listing the adapted films that we are most looking forward to seeing on the big screen? And believe you me, there were a lot to choose from!
Honorable Mentions:
The Legend of Hercules
X-Men: Days of Future Past
The LEGO Movie
How to Train Your Dragon 2
Jersey Boys
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
The Hobbit Part 3
Into the Woods
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In this episode on The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, our hosts talk about the added/extended storylines, the awesome CGI, the unnecessary CGI and what it all means for the third film. And also how they would watch an entire film of elves fighting because oh. my. god.
Also, we have an episode on the novel by JRR Tolkien and films 1 and 3.
The hosts have their fair share of laughing fits while discussing the new Starkid musical Twisted, a retelling of Disney’s Aladdin… among other tales. With elements from Wicked, One Thousand and One Nights, and some real life Disney/Pixar happenings, this was the perfect story for Team Starkid to tell and might just be our favorite musical yet.
The hosts think that even ‘loosely adapted’ is being a little too generous with Frozen, Disney’s version of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen. But they are able to find a few elements of similarity as well as a multitude of reasons to love the film, including the sister-driven plot, the love story red herring and of course, the reindeer duet.
The hosts are pretty happy with Francis Lawrence’s film The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, discussing the additions to the cast, the accuracy to Suzanne Collins’ novel and some of the missing pieces that will hopefully show up in the next two installments.
Our other HG episodes: The Hunger Games (book) (movie), Catching Fire (book), and Mockingjay (book) (first movie).
In this episode on Thor: The Dark World, the hosts discuss the brotherly relationship development, the lack of development in the film’s villain and what is in store for the next Marvel installment. But we are still left wondering exactly why Loki let Thor keep his hammer…
In which we give you the scenes that were epically accurate in translation to the screen.
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Adaptation Podcast 