# Sin City(The Movie) should be filed next to Van Sant's "Psycho" remake **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 29, 2005, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634 "2005-12-29T21:54:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bubastis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bubastis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubastis)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/1 "2005-12-29T21:54:01Z")
As I consider one to be as pointless an excersise as the other. If you are any way familiar with the sourch material, then the new version is a waste of time. Van Sant was crucified for his shot-by-shot remake of Psycho, and yet Rodriguez was lauded for his version of Millers work? What gives? When I heard Rodriguez was staying faithfull to the source, I was delighted, but when I saw the movie for the first time… I was utterly bored. I know the comics inside out, and as such was speaking the dialogue in sync with the actors at times. Basically the graphic novels were used as storyboards. I can’t imagine what it would have been like for someone who didnt know the g.n.'s… And yet people had the same problems with Psycho, and it was buried because of it. Am I the only one who see’s a huge double standard here? Don’t get me wrong, Rodriguez created an incredible looking world, its just a pity that he told such well known tales in it. I would have loved if just one story out of the three told was an all-new tale. Perhaps in the sequel? ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/2 "2005-12-29T23:28:39Z")
I think there are some important differences. First, Hitchcock wasn’t Van Sant’s co-director; copying someone else’s work isn’t the same as one guy doing the same story twice because it took him 20 years to get the financing to move it from a cheap medium to an expensive one. Second, the change in medium is itself more substantial than changing from b&w to color. And finally and most importantly, IMO, 98% of Van Sant’s prospective audience for his Psycho had already seen the original, definitive version. Had even 2% of the Sin City film’s audience read the comics? I doubt it. So even if the film didn’t add anything for you and the other few thousand people who knew the source material, the vast majority of the movie audience saw something they’d never seen before. (And how!) So in that way the film could be a success even if you didn’t like it – because nothing ever pleases everybody, even every-rational-body. As for the sequel – don’t get your hopes up; it’s going to be additional close retellings of the comics. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/3 "2005-12-29T23:36:37Z")
Comic movies get blasted for not being strict adaptations… and they get blasted for being strict adaptations… Hmmm I think you are comparing apples to rotten oranges in a dumpster. ---
**Author:** ![lonesome\_loser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@lonesome\_loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lonesome_loser)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/4 "2005-12-29T23:38:23Z")
Let me see if I understand this. You are complaining that Rodriguez stayed to close to the source material?? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/5 "2005-12-29T23:38:52Z")
I have to say, it’s refreshing for a comic book fan to dislike a movie because it _didn’t_ deviate from the original. It does strike me as a bit odd, though. Did you want Rodriguez to write new dialogue? Change the endings? Rewrite the characters? What’s the point (as many a fanboy has asked after a disappointing movie adaption) of making a comic book into a movie if you’re going to change everything about the comic book in the process? I also think you’re over-stating things when you refer to _Sin City_ as “well-known tales.” The vast majority of the audience had likely never even heard of the comic before they saw the movie. I’m a pretty big comic fan, and a big fan of _The Dark Knight Returns_, but I’d never actually read any of the _Sin City_ books before. Still haven’t, for that matter, although there’s one included in the DVD set of the movie I got for Christmas, so that’ll change soon enough. ---
**Author:** ![bubastis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bubastis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubastis)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2005, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/6 "2005-12-29T23:51:15Z")
> [@miller](#): > > What’s the point (as many a fanboy has asked after a disappointing movie adaption) of making a comic book into a movie if you’re going to change everything about the comic book in the process? > [@lonesome loser](#): > > Let me see if I understand this. You are complaining that Rodriguez stayed to close to the source material?? > [@bubastis](#): > > I would have loved if just one story out of the three told was an all-new tale. Ahem. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/7 "2005-12-30T00:11:46Z")
\>\> Just shaking’ my head. \<\< It’s amazing how even us jaded purists can be misunderstood, eh, **bubastis?** ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/8 "2005-12-30T00:27:23Z")
Wow, this is quite possibly the dumbest rant I’ve seen in a looooooong time. John, who doesn’t read a lot of comics and had only vaguely heard Sin City was “comic-noir” before seeing the movie. Naturally he was blown away by the third best movie of the year. ---
**Author:** ![Menocchio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/9 "2005-12-30T00:39:07Z")
Honestly, just seeing the comics move and talk was new enough for me. That’s a huge change right there. There’s a big difference between adapting a story, even if the plot and dialogue is largely unchanged, from one medium to another, and remaking something in the same medium wihout changing it. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/10 "2005-12-30T00:52:45Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Wow, this is quite possibly the dumbest rant I’ve seen in a looooooong time. I refuse to believe it’s an actual rant. Bubastis just has to be either trying to start a debate/discussion or one of those guys that **HAS** to take a viewpoint opposite of everyone else’s on every subject just to feel special. It’s just too ridiculous to be a real rant. Can’t wrap my head around it. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/11 "2005-12-30T01:55:11Z")
> [@](#): > > I can’t imagine what it would have been like for someone who didnt know the g.n.'s You don’t have to try to imagine, because I’ll tell you: it was great. I just got the special edition DVD, which includes one of the graphic novels (“The Hard Goodbye”) and now I can see that Rodriguez and Frank Miller did a near-perfect job of bringing Miller’s hyper-noir comic book world to life on the screen. I guess that Miller could have written an original story just for the movie . . . of course, they’d want to storyboard it, so I guess he’d just do it as a graphic novel . . . and then it would be a shame not to publish it . . . . ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/12 "2005-12-30T01:59:23Z")
I knew of the comic & graphic novels, but they really didn’t appeal to me. A friend insisted I watch the movie. I ended up buying the recut version. I was impressed by the story and very impressed by the look of the movie. Hell, I even enjoyed Bruce Willis (who usually does well in strange roles). ---
**Author:** ![First\_Amongst\_Daves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4491bb/32.png) [@First\_Amongst\_Daves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/First_Amongst_Daves)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/13 "2005-12-30T02:07:09Z")
> [@bubastis](#): > > its just a pity that he told such well known tales in it. I would have loved if just one story out of the three told was an all-new tale. Perhaps in the sequel? **Cliffy** hit it on the head: they’re not that well know outside of the ever-declining comics market. Even then, they were a niche product. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/14 "2005-12-30T02:13:40Z")
> [@bubastis](#): > > Don’t get me wrong, Rodriguez created an incredible looking world, its just a pity that he told such well known tales in it. I would have loved if just one story out of the three told was an all-new tale. Perhaps in the sequel? According to interviews and articles I have read, the 2nd movie will indeed have new stories in it. I wouldn’t be surprised if Miller releases them in graphic novel form around the same time, though. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/15 "2005-12-30T02:24:40Z")
You can’t use a graphic novel for storyboarding – a page of a graphic novel is a totally static composition. A storyboard includes indications of camera movements. Yes, many shots referenced microcompositions that were present in print, but making them work in the context of a film took art. _Sin City_ was one of the best movies of the year. _Psycho_ was an exercise in redundancy. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/16 "2005-12-30T03:50:24Z")
_Psycho_ was movie remake of an existing movie - which made it seem kind of pointless. _Sin City_ was a movie very closely based on its source material, which was a comic book. That doesn’t seem any more valid a reason to condemn it than saying the movie _The Lion in Winter_ was too closely based on its source material, which was a play. ---
**Author:** ![mrunlucky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7993a0/32.png) [@mrunlucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrunlucky)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/17 "2005-12-30T04:27:54Z")
I can’t even think of any other movie I’ve ever seen that looked even remotely close to _Sin City_. For cinematography and art direction, this movie stands alone. It’s the kind of movie I would recommend to anyone with interest in unique styles of cinematography, animation, CGI, narrative organization, modern _noir_, make-up effects and costuming I’ve never read/heard any arguments from anyone to validate the _Psycho_ remake. It’s nothing more than an exercise in big-budget directorial onanism. Van Sant even claimed he made it because his target audience would be too dumb to ever want to watch the original since it was in black and white. Great mission statement for a remake! :rolleyes: And given your lame “well known tales” assertion about “Sin City”, I can guarantee that if you polled any random assortment of people on the street, at least 90% of them would have probably have seen at least one version of _Psycho_, (the majority probably having seen the original), and way less than 10% would even have any familiarity with the “Sin City” graphic novel, and I’m talking about people who know of it, while those who have read it would probably be less than 5% of those people polled. ---
**Author:** ![bubastis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bubastis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubastis)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/18 "2005-12-30T11:09:15Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Bubastis just has to be either trying to start a debate/discussion or one of those guys that **HAS** to take a viewpoint opposite of everyone else’s on every subject just to feel special. I don’t post here to feel special, pal. I just like to express my opinion. I’m sorry my opinion isnt always the same as everyone elses. I used to think that everyone was entitled to their own opinion… perhaps I was mistaken. The point I tried to get across was that a shot-for-shot remake is pointless if you are familiar with the source. And if you sre not familiar woth the comics, why not just buy them? To me, its pretty much the same difference. Would people have been as impressed if any of the Harry Potter books or Narnia had copied the text word for word? Does the material not have to undergo some change on its way to the screen? ADAPTED for film, right? ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/19 "2005-12-30T11:28:51Z")
> [@bubastis](#): > > And if you sre not familiar woth the comics, why not just buy them? Perhaps a small segment of the American population likes watching movies more than reading comics. Just a thought. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![bubastis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bubastis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubastis)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2005, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634/20 "2005-12-30T11:58:17Z")
> [@Mr2001](#): > > Perhaps a small segment of the American population likes watching movies more than reading comics. Just a thought. 😉 > [@First Amongst Daves](#): > > the ever-declining comics market So, comic sales slide, movie box office increases. Would it kill people to read once in a while? And, while I am working up a lynch mob, Millers dialogue, which on paper seemed so cool? When you hear it coming out of an actors mouth, IT JUST SOUNDS CORNY!!! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sin-city-the-movie-should-be-filed-next-to-van-sants-psycho-remake/337634.md?page=2)