The trilogy moved me like few other books do. Is it the type of thing that can easily translate into a movie?
Personally I think all good books can make good movies, but it seems like the men in power have a more limited idea of what would make a good movie. I doubt there’d ever be a film of a book I read called “Cloud Atlas” for instance, but I would *love[i/] to see it.
Well, they are trying.
http://www.bridgetothestars.net/index.php?d=movie
both PPs and the directors interviews are interesting.
side note: New Line also picked up the rights for Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (& Inkheart) - guess they are trying to be the fantasy studio
Brian
Hey Lob - I read these books on holiday this summer in about 4 days - they are incredible. The huge topics they cover in very personal stories are astonishing. As for movies… well the LOTR proved that long tales can be told (almost completely) properly on film, but whether they would be done, as opposed to can be done; I dunno.
I would love to se it tho.
I certainly have polar bear cgi anxiety, but would long to see the underworld and the dead.
I would look forward to seeing these stories made more widely known than I did LOTR.
I enjoyed the books, but can’t imagine them ever being made into movies. For starters, a childrens book that has the Catholic Church torturing children and ends on a strong atheistic note would be rather too controversial for a major studio to take a risk on.
Also, the plots and worlds depicted are very strange and complex, it would be hard to do them justice in a film. People understood LOTR because it took place in a world that people have been made familiar with already through fantasy books, D&D, etc. It also stayed in one world, so people could get used to it, and they had 3 films to flesh that world out in. I really can’t imagine how you could make it work for Dark Materials.
Huh? It’s not the Catholics. It’s basically the Presbyterians (or Calvinists) who have massively won the Reformation.
In Lyra’s world the Papacy was abolished, but the Church remains Catholic (remember the Swiss Guards and the Inquisition?). Regardless of what they called it in the movie, the monolithic european church with a byzantine hierarchy and an inquisition that mercessly prosecuted hieratics would certainly be identified as being based on catholicism.
Also since in the end of the book…the main characters basically kill God after finding he is a weak old fraud these hypothetical movies can’t possibly avoid controversy, especially since its based on books written for children.
This fact, combined with the fact that these books have no where near the devoted fan base LOTRs did makes me think that no studio would be willing to risk the huge amount of money that would be involved in bringing them to the screen.
Warning: This post contains spoilers. STOP READING NOW if you haven’t read the books and don’t want plot points revealed. You have been warned. Warned, I tell you!
Unless it’s massively bowdlerised {which I suspect it will be}, Christians who picket movie theatres to protest against LOTR and Harry Potter movies because they have “magic” in them will spit the dummy about a movie {movies?} in which the Church abducts children to cut their souls out, the heroine goes to hell and lets everyone out, heaven is a floating battleship, and God is a senile old man who is accidentally killed and is rather grateful…oh, and witches. Don’t forget the witches.
I loved the books {although the ending was a little abrupt: the future of the universe is resolved by a fist-fight at the brink of a precipice - mind you, I suppose you could say the same about LOTR}, but seriously doubt whether a Hollywood movie could do them justice, especially given the provocative take on organised religion Pullman has: I think they’ll just opt for massively dumbing it down.
The National Theatre in London did a stage play of the trilogy around this time last year. It was quite popular, I seem to recall. I’ll see if I can dig up some reviews or something.
It seems that reviews aren’t that brilliant, such as the Guardian one here , but looking at the NT website, its still going strong, and is sold out for quite a lot of performances.
I HIGHLY recommend people read the director’s interview:
http://www.bridgetothestars.net/index.php?p=weitzinterview
Brian