|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
When news surfaced recently that a movie version of the massively
popular FOX TV series "24" was being put on the back burner, it was
ostensibly because star Kiefer Sutherland would not be able to
commit to it (opponents of torture used as a means of interrogation must
have breathed a small sigh of relief, but that's another story). Yet a
larger question remained: Would a cinematic Jack Bauer white-knuckler even
work in the first place? Could the show's 24-hour format be boiled down to
two, with cliffhangers piling up every five minutes like security leaks?
Whereas box-office history is studded with glittering examples of
successful TV series turned into hit movies (and sometimes even hit
franchises), it is equally littered with numerous corpses of celluloid
cancellations. As we see it, there are five prime areas -- we hesitate to
call them rules, because each has seen instances of being triumphantly
broken -- where a weekly series can either stumble or soar on its way out
of the box and into the multiplex. Here's a look at those often intangible
elements, along with a few examples of shows that successfully made the
transition and those that didn't.
|
|
Keeping the
Same Cast Members
 |
Could "24" make the jump to the big screen without Kiefer
Sutherland's perpetually on-the-edge counterterrorism agent in the
thick of the action? Would a "Sopranos" feature have the
same impact if it focused on some lower echelon members of Tony's
family? The death of Mr. Spock in "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" so
traumatized fans that the studio had to coax Leonard Nimoy back into
his pointed ears. There are television characters, both classic and
modern, that are so closely associated with the actors who played
the role that it would be box-office suicide to proceed without
them. Did anyone go to see "The Honeymooners" with Cedric the Entertainer as
Ralph Kramden a few years ago? Of course not, because in the
pop-culture zeitgeist Jackie Gleason was Ralph
Kramden (and doesn't Paramount feel even a little bit nervous about
a rumored Matt Damon as a young
Captain Kirk?).
Yet the first two "Mission: Impossible" movies prospered,
partially because of Tom Cruise's own
considerable star power, but also because the show was about the
title gimmick more than any single character (indeed, the original
series featured a revolving door of stars). With "The Dukes of Hazzard," as long as you
had two really dopey guys in the car and one sexpot in Daisy Dukes
you could reasonably expect people to show up. "Charlie's Angels" also proved quite
replaceable. It seems that the more character-driven the show, the
more essential it becomes to let him or her keep the same face.
That's why resurrecting shows from 30 or 40 years ago is not
necessarily a good idea.
| |
|
Staying True to the Original Intent
 |
If you must revive or continue a TV series in movie form --
whether the original aired four decades ago or four months ago --
staying true to the core flavor and intent of the program is a
critical factor in getting butts in the seats. Here again, the "Mission: Impossible" movies stuck to
the conventions of the series, including labyrinthine schemes,
outlandish disguises, elaborate switcheroos and all kinds of other
gimmickry. Even the dreadful "Scooby Doo" movies did their
damnedest to virtually recreate the cartoons in live action form.
Nostalgia for what made you watch the shows in the first place is
what drives people to recapture that magic at the movies.
The brass-knuckled, no-nonsense righteousness of "The Untouchables" still translated to
the multiplex even if Kevin Costner replaced
the ultimate tough guy, Robert Stack. But when
"Miami Vice" producer Michael Mann revived his
hit TV show for the big screen last year, just think of how confused
audiences were when, instead of the pastel colors, the sun-drenched
South Beach rhythms and the slick fashions of Don Johnson, they got a
gritty, dark film starring a rather disheveled and mad-eyed Colin Farrell.
For every big-screen misfire like "Lost in Space," which jettisoned the
sci-fi show's campy zaniness, there's a hit like "Maverick," which retained the
original's comedic Western horseplay. Exceptions? Of course: The Ben Stiller/Owen Wilson treatment of
"Starsky & Hutch" outrageously
satirized the cop show's subtle homoeroticism and raked in the
bucks. | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hotmail
