Sequels, adaptations, remakes, revivals, etc

[o0Ampy0o]

Rant Alert!

Currently an adaptation of a good book I had in mind to read and an adaptation of a good book I have read are reasons to avoid film adaptations. I have never enjoyed a film version of a book I enjoyed and reading the book after seeing a good film version casts a shadow over the experience. It robs me of a creative dimension that I would experience otherwise. Something is handed to me on a plate that I may not want to take along but it is like not thinking of a carrot.

When you have a great film and a great book to choose between it is a bigger decision. I love a good film and I love a good book but I must sacrifice one for the other. There are a limited number of great works in either medium so I hate having to kill one off. For instance Hunger Games is a highly regarded series and the film adaptation is also well-received. I am leaning toward the books because there is more material in a series and a book is a deeper longer lasting experience. I would like to see a good movie though and I thought Jennifer Lawrence was great in Winter's Bone.

As for the Star Wars franchise, I thought the whole series from the first episode was Saturday morning kiddie entertainment. I did like the 2nd movie because it was very exciting with the battle scenes and chases. The 3rd had a stronger spiritual element and I appreciated it at that time as well. But none of the other films have been good. They came off as effect demos of what Lucasfilm can do. George Lucas phoned in the directing. He clearly did not have his priorities. It seems like all of the prequel/sequels were done to generate guaranteed money to fund his monumental Lucas empire which he has now sold.

Lucasfilm had tons of money and with a backing major studio they could have budgeted all they wanted. His films were almost guaranteed to make it back for a studio but they insisted on showing how inexpensively something could be done using their digital alternatives. Yet it looks cheap. Compare the most recent Indiana Jones film to the first ones and the supposedly superior digital cinematography is a new level of cheesy. Maybe it is not obvious to young audiences. If you have paid a little more attention to this stuff as better and better film gear has become attainable to common people you would recognize the traits of a thinning illusion.

I found the Game of Thrones adaptation to be unwatchable. They just simplified the storytelling and put it in visual form. Having read the books which are written by one of the best character writers why would I want to see people pretending to be the characters? I realize it is to be expected of television however, visually, the scope appears small in scale. Some more than others but everyone from the main actors to the extras has the self-consciousness of a rehearsal.