Many people are now counting the days, minutes, perhaps even seconds until they break up for a Christmas holiday. So if it's school or work you're having a break from, check out my hot tips of what to see at the cinema this holiday season:
Thursday 20th December - Life of Pi
Based on the book by Yann Martel, is a stunning piece of cinema that must be seen in all it's cinematic 3D glory to be experienced at its best. With incredible performances and ocean loads of emotion and drama, it is certainly one to watch now while you can! Check out the book vs film.
Friday 21st December - Pitch Perfect
Having been delayed for two months, this hilarious US film finally reaches UK shores just in time for Christmas. It's crude, it's hilarious and it's musical - American Pie meets Glee. Full review at Filmoria.
Friday 11th January - Les Misérables
It's due out in the US on Christmas day so us Brits need to wait a little bit longer - but it is worth the wait! So much more than the incredible music, this incredible cast bring a raw, intoxicating performance. Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman will be the ones to beat come award season. Full review at Filmoria.
I had the absolute pleasure this week of seeing Tom Hooper's new musical film adaptation of Les Misérables which boasts an all-star cast that includes Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Eddie Redmayne, Amanda Seyfried... the list is endless. Let me just say, it's 24 hours later and I still can't get it out of my head. It's raw, powerful and totally captivating - even with Russell Crowe as Javert.
I'm afraid I haven't read the Victor Hugo book but I have seen and loved the stage production and can say that it does the musical justice. It isn't as neat and precise as the stage show but brings something new in its authentic feel.
I highly recommend checking it out - whether or not you are a fan of musicals - if only for Anne Hathaway's interpretation of the infamous I Dreamed a Dream. Stunning cinema.
For my full review, check out Filmoria. The film is out in the US at the end of December and on January 11th in the UK.
Enjoy! x
(If you have read the book, I'd love to know how it compares...)
Adaptations are everywhere. Cinema over the last few years has relied heavily on books, plays, comics and often previously released films for their source material. Some claim that cinema today lacks originality, that filmmakers have run out of new ideas…and with the resurgence in comic book films, English-language remakes and book to film adaptations, is it any wonder? But people are still flocking to the cinema in droves to see these adapted films. So why the appeal?
Think back to your favourite film from the last few years – was it a new idea? In just a few years, we’ve had adaptations made from the books for Anna Karenina, We Need to Talk About Kevin, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, The Lucky One and the massive blockbuster hit, The Hunger Games. On the side of comics, there’s been Avengers Assemble (The Avengers in the USA) and The Dark Knight Rises – two of this year’s biggest films. In the last few weeks alone, adaptations of The Silver Linings Handbook, Breaking Dawn and Argo have hit, with a new take on Great Expectations arriving in cinemas this weekend. The play Carnage was adapted into a hilarious film with big names including Jodie Foster and Kate Winslet.
So why do filmmakers keep taking these ideas, instead of coming up with their own? Well, for one there is an audience already out there to tap into. The popularity of The Hunger Games book trilogy, written by Suzanne Collins, meant that fans of the books were already going to see any film adaptation that was made – no matter how good it may have been. Just look at the staggering box-office success of Twilight!
The other factor, I imagine, is the opportunity to bring something old and tired back into the limelight. The number of times Batman has re-imagined himself would put even Doctor Who to shame. He is a fascinating and beloved character and fans will always want to see new guises for him. Classics such as Pride and Prejudice, Anna Karenina and Jane Eyre are always getting new adaptations because, after all these years, people are still enjoying the stories over and over – be they in book, TV or film form.
It’s worth considering that the dominance of adaptations at the cinema does not mean there is no room for something new. Two of the greatest films of 2012 so far – The Raid and The Cabin in the Woods – took old, tired ideas and injected new life into them. Cabin took every cliché in the horror genre and flipped them on their head to make something brilliantly clever and original – but it was done by lovingly taking everything that had been done before and making something new with it. The Raid had a fundamental plot similar to that of Judge Dredd but by using a new martial arts star (the insanely talented Iko Uwais) and showcasing the martial art style of silat, writer/director Gareth Evans managed to redefine the action genre.
More solemn and incredibly well-acted adaptations like We Need to Talk About Kevin and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy did tremendously well with critics and audiences alike, winning numerous awards and worldwide acclaim. Sadly though, for every We Need to Talk About Kevin, there is a My Sister’s Keeper – a debacle of an adaptation which can be seen to take a strong, powerful idea and turn it into overly sentimental drivel. Film adaptations like these have no need for adapting a source text when all they want to do is change it into something that has been done already – and often done better.
This tendency to adapt shows no sign of slowing down any time soon. Still to come in the next few months are adaptations for Life of Pi, Les Misérables, Gangster Squad, Cloud Atlas and The Great Gatsby.
The old phrase goes that you need to adapt or die. Well it seems filmmakers are finally learning to adapt to new ideas – even if they sometimes need to use old ones to get there.
Which adaptations have you enjoyed so far this year and which ones are you really looking forward to in 2013...?
There have been no adaptations this year that have got this book, film and musical theatre geek quite as excited as Les Misérables. Check out this stunning (and rather lengthy!) new trailer for the film - which hits North America at the end of the year and the UK in early January.
The film stars an impressive list of acting and singing talent including Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmaye, Samantha Barks and Amanda Seyfried.
The film is based on the book by Victor Hugo and the hit musical theatre production.
