In a decade where Hollywood was adapting literally every classic show from the sixties, regardless of the format, it’s still surprising they not only got the formula right for “The Fugitive” but turned it in to an Oscar Caliber thriller. Twenty years later, “The Fugitive” is still a tense and gripping adaptation that’s set the template for many future on the run films. Harrison Ford is no stranger to films where he’s put at wit’s end by an unforeseen circumstance, but as Richard Kimble, the casting is brilliant.
Tag Archives: Adaptation
The Walking Dead: Season Three [Limited Edition Aquarium Tank] [Blu-ray]
“There’s an economic concept known as a positional good in which an object is only valued by the possessor because it’s not possessed by others. The term was coined in 1976 by economist Fred Hirsch to replace the more colloquial, but less precise “neener-neener.””
One of the main aspects of the limited edition set, is that you really have to read the directions. I know, it’s just common sense, but when you’re opening the box to this and looking through the contents, you don’t really expect a directions slip. My first problem: Would it have hurt them to include batteries with the set? Hell, I would have shelled out a few more dollars for the sake of it.
You have to buy four AAA batteries, and if you can manage to crack open the lid on the bottom, it’s a great pay off. The tanks slide out from the set very easily, and the lids come off allowing you to adjust the zombie heads in whatever order you want. There are pegs behind the heads with springs on the back allowing them to hang there, but they’re invisible. Especially when you turn on the light.
Five Reasons Hollywood Should Never Listen to Fans
I’m not saying Hollywood always knows what the hell they’re doing. But most of time their liberties can do good things for some franchises and properties. The “Lord of the Rings” movies are generally accepted in spite of the fact that they cut out whole characters, and invented sub-plots. And despite the authors hating them dearly, “Willy Wonka” and “Mary Poppins” ended up becoming iconic cinematic masterpieces. But then again we’ve also had “Daredevil,” “Batman & Robin,” “Green Lantern,” and “Elektra,” so you have to take the good with the bad.
Adaptations should be made with an appeal to the fan base and a broader audience, and though Hollywood needs to be called on their bullshit more times than not, listening to the fans for ideas is also a bad idea. It’s the worst idea possible. Fan boys should be given their fix, but never allowed behind the curtain to decide on the recipe. If so, we’ll have thirty fan boys going to war on including the Extended Universe in the new “Star Wars” movies, and arguing about who should play Green Lantern next. It’s an endless pool of petty, annoying shit. Placate them, but never give them power.
The Great Gatsby (Blu-ray+DVD+UltraViolet Combo Pack) (2013)
While many may criticize Baz Luhrmann for his rapid fire and somewhat gonzo directorial style, his sense of glitz and glamour works wonders for the tale of the rich and wealthy, and the one man who had it all, but could never quite grab a hold of what he really wanted. Luhrmann’s film is gorgeous and often times dazzling to behold, and it suits the aesthetic of the story of a young country boy named Nick seeking to strike it rich through business who is wooed and romanced by the rich and ridiculously well off. At first what seems like a fun bit of escapism, soon becomes the realization that the characters Nick surrounds himself with do nothing but escape from life.
The Walking Dead: The Complete Third Season [Blu-Ray]
“You kill or you die. Or you die, then you kill.”
In Season Two of “The Walking Dead,” Rick Grimes and his fellow survivors found out that they’d convinced themselves they’d found an untouched part of the world that was safe from the walking dead. In the end of Season Two, Rick Grimes learned many things about this new world. He learned that the walking dead are everywhere, and that human beings are just as deady–maybe even deadlier–than the walkers that roam around. His experience with the nomads at the bar, and his experience murdering his best friend turned Rick in to a man who will do anything to survive.
Kick-Ass 2 (2013)
I wasn’t too crazy about the first “Kick Ass.” The attempts to take Mark Millar’s homophobic misogynistic fantasy and tame it for broader audiences failed. And it failed fantastically once it watered down the cynicism and introduced that stupid rocket pack. I never understood the appeal of adapting the comic, either. Since I never really bothered to finish “Kick Ass 2” the mini-series (Millar’s “edginess” gets exhausting after the thirtieth anal sex joke), my frame of reference is nil, so “Kick-Ass 2” is a fairly fresh experience as a sequel to a movie that could have done without one.
Re-Thinking My Stance on "Fight Club"
I remember the first time I ever sat through “Fight Club.” Like many of American audiences I expected an action movie about brawlers and didn’t see this gritty, ugly, and grimy tale about psychos and self-mutilation coming to me. And I hated it. Not just that, but I despised it. And the larger my internet presence became, the more it became something I was largely about. People always questioned by credibility through my hatred for “Fight Club,” and once I even received an e-mail from a reader begging me to post his own review for “Fight Club” on Cinema Crazed since he insisted I missed the entire point of the movie.
And perhaps I did.