ADAPTATIONS AND EXPECTATIONS / SOURCE MATERIAL V. FILM ADAPTATION [PART 1]
Hello everyone,
Here with another posting and today's subject is something that has come about to be very close to me as it pertains to the love of film and the love of original source material. In the past decade or just over time there have a been adaptations of literature, comic books and graphic novels (yes, there is a big difference between the two) and when productions are release either theatrically or online or hard copy there will be a divide on the film adaptation. This has been proven time and time again from Lord of the Rings to Marvel and DC cinematic releases. In this post, I intend to try to provide both perspectives and also do my best to provide a filmmaker's perspective as well as the third view. So bare with me on this one and please enjoy the ride.
THE MOVIEGOER PERSPECTIVE
Our first perspective comes from the moviegoer. This one particular individual or individuals can be divided to two groups (pre knowledge moviegoers and non pre knowledge moviegoers). The pre-knowledge moviegoers are often individuals be it male or female who have knowledge of the original source material be it the novelization of the movie, comic book or graphic novel and are going I with anticipation of what the filmmaker(s) are have come up with to create the film based off of the source material that they hold dear to them. The Non Pre-Knowledge Moviegoer are often individual(s) be it male or female whom does not have any knowledge of the original source material, they simply saw the advertisement or the movie trailers online or in theaters and want to see what the type is all about. Often at times, they will try to look up information to get a gist of the plot and look up Wikipedia or even may purchase the source material before or after seeing the adaptation.
This is where expectations are born. Both parties are gathered and having anticipation of what they are about to see on the big screen or the small screen depending on the release of the medium.
This is something that both parties have as expectation come naturally from the release of photos from on set, magazine interviews, and trailers released online. The moment that a film is released in theaters the opinions and thoughts from both the Pre-Knowledge Moviegoers and the Non Pre-Knowledge Moviegoers.
The biggest thing that films do for the most part is offer up the audience to draw of their own opinions and feelings about the motion picture. In some instances, their are those who come out of the cinema after the credits roll and had a grand experience seeing the motion picture. Others come out of the cinema after the credits rolls and have a bit of disappointment, but this is the beauty of it. It is never a perfect experience and that's the reality of it. The movie theater going experience is a random and chaotic experience in the minds of all of the moviegoers because it is unknown how people will react to a film.
For the individual moviegoers that are Pre-Knowledge moviegoers, who have spend x amount of dollars on the various novelizations, comic books or graphic novels including audiobooks, they go into the cinemas with the thoughts of the material that they have read and their thoughts about their favorite characters or favorite scenes from the book that they desire and hope that will be incorporated into the movie. And not every person has this mindset but for the individual moviegoer who has been a fan of the material and has been for years to come to the theater and to witness everything that he or she has read on the page to be presented on the screen is often left in disappointment. The reason for this being the case is often that when a fan is going into the movie theater they can often take expectations of what they believe, hope and think will be in the film version of the material they have been following for years, and with that expectation it often blinds them from the reality that the advertisements, commercials or trailers have never showed any of the things that he or she have been reading about and hoping to see in the film. Often at times, entire chapters have been omitted due to the fact that pacing in a book versus pacing in a motion picture are two different paces.
When reading a book, you the reader are able to have as much time as you so desire to read the novel. There are scenes that are very plot driven and a lot of character moments that help flush out the various players of the story but in a film adaptation it does not often move the plot forward and can slow down the overall story to the plot of losing the momentum and the audience at the same time. So there are often times when I have had conversations with my peers that are comic book fans or love a particular novel, when they come out of the theater and have a phone conversation or text messages expressing their initial thoughts and what they expected to be in the final version of the film. Very often, my Pre-Knowledge peers often wanted to have the word for word and panel for panels to be lifted to the comic and put on the screen and this is something that has been a repeated conversation I often have and it is very much understandable for they are coming from the perspective of being big time fans of the source material.
I come from the perspective having wanting to do motion pictures that I do get that there is a lot of desire to have the things you have read be added to the film version and see those scenes come to life on screen before your eyes. I also come from the perspective that from a creative standpoint when you are making a motion picture that is based on a famous written works and hired to do the best job possible with the team and the budget that was set out, you are also given some creative choices yes but at the same time you have to answer to the executives and individuals whom are financially handling and funding the production. And often, a filmmaker is trying to tell the best story that can be made and the creative decisions that are often made during the writing process are made for the sake of telling a story that will be exist and make sense for the story and those decisions are often not accepted by fans. This could be casting choices, scenes that have lines and scenarios written that were not in the book or rewritten or another character to say or costume choices that were not apart of the original outfit or attire but fit into the live action adaptation for logistically purposes and for the world that is being built for the film version versus the book version.
I do try that the middle ground and see both sides of the debate. If you as a person who love this material and waited for years for it to be brought to the screen and to finally see it on the screen and it is not the way that you desired it to be on the screen is understandable, but at the same time, as a fan you have to have the knowledge of going into the theater knowing that not everything is going to be added to the screen the way it was in the comic or the novel. Another factor to take into account is the Non Pre-Knowledge moviegoers. Those are the individuals that studios are trying to pull into the theater more than the Pre-Knowledge moviegoers, reason being is that the studio can make the quick estimation that you being a fan will want to pay to see the film but they can not make the determination that the moviegoers with no knowledge will.
A motion picture film is a multi hands on deck production and there are people behind the scenes that are never seen but have a stake in the final say of the film that goes beyond the director and writing staff. There are so many layers and legal things that take place that the fans going to the film do not take into account and often are left disappointed that the film was not the way they wanted it to be in their minds and expectations. To Be Continued...
The biggest thing that films do for the most part is offer up the audience to draw of their own opinions and feelings about the motion picture. In some instances, their are those who come out of the cinema after the credits roll and had a grand experience seeing the motion picture. Others come out of the cinema after the credits rolls and have a bit of disappointment, but this is the beauty of it. It is never a perfect experience and that's the reality of it. The movie theater going experience is a random and chaotic experience in the minds of all of the moviegoers because it is unknown how people will react to a film.
For the individual moviegoers that are Pre-Knowledge moviegoers, who have spend x amount of dollars on the various novelizations, comic books or graphic novels including audiobooks, they go into the cinemas with the thoughts of the material that they have read and their thoughts about their favorite characters or favorite scenes from the book that they desire and hope that will be incorporated into the movie. And not every person has this mindset but for the individual moviegoer who has been a fan of the material and has been for years to come to the theater and to witness everything that he or she has read on the page to be presented on the screen is often left in disappointment. The reason for this being the case is often that when a fan is going into the movie theater they can often take expectations of what they believe, hope and think will be in the film version of the material they have been following for years, and with that expectation it often blinds them from the reality that the advertisements, commercials or trailers have never showed any of the things that he or she have been reading about and hoping to see in the film. Often at times, entire chapters have been omitted due to the fact that pacing in a book versus pacing in a motion picture are two different paces.
When reading a book, you the reader are able to have as much time as you so desire to read the novel. There are scenes that are very plot driven and a lot of character moments that help flush out the various players of the story but in a film adaptation it does not often move the plot forward and can slow down the overall story to the plot of losing the momentum and the audience at the same time. So there are often times when I have had conversations with my peers that are comic book fans or love a particular novel, when they come out of the theater and have a phone conversation or text messages expressing their initial thoughts and what they expected to be in the final version of the film. Very often, my Pre-Knowledge peers often wanted to have the word for word and panel for panels to be lifted to the comic and put on the screen and this is something that has been a repeated conversation I often have and it is very much understandable for they are coming from the perspective of being big time fans of the source material.
I come from the perspective having wanting to do motion pictures that I do get that there is a lot of desire to have the things you have read be added to the film version and see those scenes come to life on screen before your eyes. I also come from the perspective that from a creative standpoint when you are making a motion picture that is based on a famous written works and hired to do the best job possible with the team and the budget that was set out, you are also given some creative choices yes but at the same time you have to answer to the executives and individuals whom are financially handling and funding the production. And often, a filmmaker is trying to tell the best story that can be made and the creative decisions that are often made during the writing process are made for the sake of telling a story that will be exist and make sense for the story and those decisions are often not accepted by fans. This could be casting choices, scenes that have lines and scenarios written that were not in the book or rewritten or another character to say or costume choices that were not apart of the original outfit or attire but fit into the live action adaptation for logistically purposes and for the world that is being built for the film version versus the book version.
I do try that the middle ground and see both sides of the debate. If you as a person who love this material and waited for years for it to be brought to the screen and to finally see it on the screen and it is not the way that you desired it to be on the screen is understandable, but at the same time, as a fan you have to have the knowledge of going into the theater knowing that not everything is going to be added to the screen the way it was in the comic or the novel. Another factor to take into account is the Non Pre-Knowledge moviegoers. Those are the individuals that studios are trying to pull into the theater more than the Pre-Knowledge moviegoers, reason being is that the studio can make the quick estimation that you being a fan will want to pay to see the film but they can not make the determination that the moviegoers with no knowledge will.
A motion picture film is a multi hands on deck production and there are people behind the scenes that are never seen but have a stake in the final say of the film that goes beyond the director and writing staff. There are so many layers and legal things that take place that the fans going to the film do not take into account and often are left disappointed that the film was not the way they wanted it to be in their minds and expectations. To Be Continued...
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