by KenWritez » July 5th, 2007, 6:24 pm
Coming in as antiphone, I would prefer THS to be in a modern setting.
("Burn him! Burrrrrrrrrrn!")
The 30s-40s are an era I have no experience of except via other movies and books, so it means nothing to me. However, the era I live in now, I'm intimately familiar with, its attitudes, references, etc.
As a writer, I could easily update the NICE aspects like Fairy Hardcastle, the pragmatometer, and even the Head to something more familiar to modern audiences.
(NB: I'm not saying THS *must* be updated, a film maker and writer competent enough could preserve the milieu just as they did in Chariots of Fire. I'm saying it's a way I would like to see.)
That said, there is a very pragmatic reason to set THS in modernity: Ensuring as wide an audience as possible, something *every* filmmaker must consider if he's to produce a film that will be seen and not just another video blog for himself and a few friends.
People who finance films want return on their investment, so the film maker's always under pressure to deliver as wide an audience as possible. At some point the film maker has to say, "This far and no further" and make the film he sees in his head, even if he does have to compromise some things.)
Also, please realize translation between page and screen requires certain levels of editing. A novelist can spend pages describing a character's inner life, his thoughts and emotions, memories and attitudes. A film maker can show only words and action. No lens yet invented will fit inside someone's head.
Also, there are issues with pacing and dramatic structure. What seemed a leisurely, interesting journey on paper can easily turn into tedium on film. When we read, we spend som much more mental energy converting words into ideas, into mental images. Watching a film does that for us already, so we're more aware of pace.
Contemporary screenplays usually follow a classic three act structure: Set Up (Act 1), Confrontation (Act 2), Resolution (Act 3). This structure goes all the way back to Aristotle and it's what we know in all its many forms, from commercials to blockbusters. Pick any movie you like, from Star Wars to LOTR to Steel Magnolias to The Matrix to True Grit: All with distinct three acts.
Sometimes, "butchering" is a necessary trimming. Lots of times it's done for cost reasons as well as story. There just isn't money (or time) in the budget for so-and-so scene. Yes, lots of times the trimming ends up trashing the film, which is inexcusable. I certainly don't defend gratuitous or poorly done trim jobs.
Translating from book to screen is a subject deeper and more complex than one might think.
"The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo. I'm tryin' real hard to be a shepherd." --Quentin Tarantino, Pulp Fiction