Thursday Movie Picks - Movies Based on a TV Series
Written as part of the weekly blogathon hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. You can play along by picking three movies that fit the week's theme and telling us a bit about them - it's so easy!
Oof, you guys.
As if things weren't bad enough in the world, this week we have to pick movies based on TV series. While not ALL of them are disasters (Guy Ritchie's recent take on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was perfect late-summer fun), pretty much all of the ones I can think of are.
With one notable exception.
What follows are, in order, a truly terrible adaptation that might as well not even be one, a pretty good adaptation that might as well not even be one, and quite possibly the greatest film adaptation of a TV show ever made.
Lost In Space (Stephen Hopkins, 1998) As a child of 14, I remember thinking this was fun, but certainly inferior to such classics of cinema as Independence Day. Time has NOT been kind to it. It's a low point for pretty much everyone involved, but thankfully (nearly) all of their careers suffered barely a bit. The set-up is exactly the same as the 60s TV series, but updated with a lot more serious action and big VFX set-pieces. As they did in the 90s. But in its quest to be a blockbuster, the film abandons all of the charm of the TV series, becoming just another generic sci-fi film. Trivia alert: This (of all things) was the movie that ended Titanic's 15-week reign at the top of the box office.
Get Smart (Peter Segal, 2008) Look: the original Get Smart TV series is one of my favorite shows of all time, and if I'm being honest, this movie is almost as funny as that series. But it's ONLY because of Steve Carell as bumbling secret agent Maxwell Smart, perfectly riding the tone set by the legendary Don Adams from the TV series. The rest of the movie, though, is boilerplate spy stuff, with decent support from Anne Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson, Alan Arkin, and Terence Stamp. In other words: This didn't have to be an adaptation of Get Smart. It could have just been a spy spoof with that cast going by completely different character names. Nonetheless, I still enjoy this movie. It still makes me laugh, despite the fact that everything it did, Spy has since done better.
In The Loop (Armando Iannucci, 2009) An extrapolation from his successful UK comedy series The Thick of It, Armando Iannucci's In The Loop is the best political satire in AGES. It also has the filthiest language ("Why don't I pop a jaunty little bonnet on your purview and ram it up your ass with a lubricated horse cock?"), the best one-liners ("Okay, fuckity-bye," "Kiss my sweaty balls, you fat fuck!"), and the single greatest, most hard-won punchline in recent years. Inimitable performances from Anna Chlumsky, Mimi Kennedy, James Gandolfini, David Rasche, and of course Peter Capaldi as Malcolm Tucker, the foulest mouth in the United Kingdom, make the already great script even better. What makes it such a brilliant adaptation is that it takes existing characters from a TV series and puts them on a much larger playing field while staying true to the feel of the series without feeling like a bunch of TV episodes stitched together (Sex and the City), a Very Special Episode (Veronica Mars), or like any other generic movie (Charlie's Angels). All of this feels completely true to the series that spawned it while also feeling like its own thing, which is difficult to do. Plus, it's GREAT on every single level.
You know The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was the first one that came to mind but I didn't use it since being so recent I thought it would be all over the place today but haven't seen it show up. Really liked the adaptation though.
While I wasn't the biggest fan of the TV show it's heads and tales above that ghastly remake of Lost in Space.
Any version of Get Smart that doesn't include Barbara Feldon as Agent 99 isn't worth existing!! However Carell does a good job as Maxwell Smart, not Don Adams good but he's okay. The rest is just so much filler and Hathaway isn't a patch on the divine Miss Feldon.
Your last pick is new to me but sounds worth checking out.
Since there were so many possibles this week I just went with the first three that came to mind rather than driving myself crazy.
Serenity (2005)-Continuing the story of Captain Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and his crew who are roaming the galaxy in their beat up spaceship Serenity from the short lived show Firefly. With a brother and sister who are being pursued by a hired killer, the ruthless Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) the group planet hop from place to place in their somewhat unreliable rust bucket. By turns light-hearted and tense.
The Fugitive (1993)-Dr. Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford) is attacked in a home invasion and his wife murdered by a one armed man. Falsely accused of the crime he escapes after a spectacular train wreck and sets out to find the person responsible all the while pursued by the dogged efforts of Deputy Sam Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones). Fasted paced and entertaining, TLJ won a best supporting Oscar for his work. Updated and slightly rethought version of the classic David Janssen series with some terrific action set pieces.
Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)-There’s a plot to turn innocent people into assassins and through them kill prominent people including Queen Elizabeth II but the police are on it. The problem however is that the case has been assigned to Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) an utterly clueless detective who specialty is bumbling. Silly comedy turned formerly stern leading man Nielsen into a comedy mainstay. Based on the comic TV series Police Squad.
Yeah, so much of the Get Smart movie just isn't on the level of the show, even though it's enjoyable.
In The Loop is tremendous satire, and incredibly funny to boot.
Of your picks, I've only even seen pieces of Naked Gun. I need to watch the whole thing. I'm embarrassed to say I haven't seen The Fugitive, and despite my love for Joss Whedon, I've never seen even a second of anything Firefly-related.
Love these picks!! Of course Lost in Space - I was meant to pick it but forgot to. Hahahah I saw this at the cinema - twice! Get Smart wasn't my favourite (Hathaway ruins things) but In The Loop, was great.
When I came home from school, I would drop my books, turn the TV on and watch Gilligan's Island and then Lost In Space ("Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!). They were both hokey but fun. The big screen remake sucked big time! I love Gary Oldman and thought he must have been drunk when he signed on to play Dr. Smith. I have never seen the whole film of Get Smart but I agree with your assessment since I love the TV series which was brilliant. This appears to be fun but could have been anything. The last film, I have not seen and must see it asap!!
I wouldn't be surprised if most of the cast of the Lost in Space movie was drunk the entire time while making it lol. See In The Loop ASAP. It's GREAT.
I agree, Lost in Space is terrible. I find it hilarious that this cinematic masterpiece took down Titanic. Thanks for that tidbit. Get Smart was meh.
I didn't know In the Loop was based on a TV show until after I saw it. I still haven't seen even a single moment of The Thick of It, but In the Loop is absolutely fantastic. Peter Capaldi was flat out brilliant.
Couldn't agree with you more on all of this. I didn't realize until long after I'd seen In The Loop that it was based on a Brit TV show. Peter Capaldi should have WON the Supporting Actor Oscar that year.
Oh man, I completely forgot about Get Smart. In The Loop I've had in my Netflix queue for ages, I really need to get around to that.
ReplyDeleteIn The Loop is so fucking great. Watch it ASAP.
DeleteI love you for featuring In the Loop! Have you seen Thick of It? It's even more hilarious!
DeleteYou know The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was the first one that came to mind but I didn't use it since being so recent I thought it would be all over the place today but haven't seen it show up. Really liked the adaptation though.
ReplyDeleteWhile I wasn't the biggest fan of the TV show it's heads and tales above that ghastly remake of Lost in Space.
Any version of Get Smart that doesn't include Barbara Feldon as Agent 99 isn't worth existing!! However Carell does a good job as Maxwell Smart, not Don Adams good but he's okay. The rest is just so much filler and Hathaway isn't a patch on the divine Miss Feldon.
Your last pick is new to me but sounds worth checking out.
Since there were so many possibles this week I just went with the first three that came to mind rather than driving myself crazy.
Serenity (2005)-Continuing the story of Captain Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and his crew who are roaming the galaxy in their beat up spaceship Serenity from the short lived show Firefly. With a brother and sister who are being pursued by a hired killer, the ruthless Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) the group planet hop from place to place in their somewhat unreliable rust bucket. By turns light-hearted and tense.
The Fugitive (1993)-Dr. Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford) is attacked in a home invasion and his wife murdered by a one armed man. Falsely accused of the crime he escapes after a spectacular train wreck and sets out to find the person responsible all the while pursued by the dogged efforts of Deputy Sam Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones). Fasted paced and entertaining, TLJ won a best supporting Oscar for his work. Updated and slightly rethought version of the classic David Janssen series with some terrific action set pieces.
Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)-There’s a plot to turn innocent people into assassins and through them kill prominent people including Queen Elizabeth II but the police are on it. The problem however is that the case has been assigned to Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) an utterly clueless detective who specialty is bumbling. Silly comedy turned formerly stern leading man Nielsen into a comedy mainstay. Based on the comic TV series Police Squad.
Yeah, so much of the Get Smart movie just isn't on the level of the show, even though it's enjoyable.
DeleteIn The Loop is tremendous satire, and incredibly funny to boot.
Of your picks, I've only even seen pieces of Naked Gun. I need to watch the whole thing. I'm embarrassed to say I haven't seen The Fugitive, and despite my love for Joss Whedon, I've never seen even a second of anything Firefly-related.
Love these picks!! Of course Lost in Space - I was meant to pick it but forgot to. Hahahah I saw this at the cinema - twice! Get Smart wasn't my favourite (Hathaway ruins things) but In The Loop, was great.
ReplyDeleteI didn't think Hathaway was bad in Get Smart, but certainly not at the level of the original 99, Barbara Feldon.
DeleteOmg I had no idea Get Smart was based on a tv series. And thank god I'm not the only one who thought that movie was funny!
ReplyDeleteYup, Get Smart was indeed based on a TV series - and it is HILARIOUS. WAY better than the movie. Watch it!
DeleteWhen I came home from school, I would drop my books, turn the TV on and watch Gilligan's Island and then Lost In Space ("Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!). They were both hokey but fun. The big screen remake sucked big time! I love Gary Oldman and thought he must have been drunk when he signed on to play Dr. Smith. I have never seen the whole film of Get Smart but I agree with your assessment since I love the TV series which was brilliant. This appears to be fun but could have been anything. The last film, I have not seen and must see it asap!!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be surprised if most of the cast of the Lost in Space movie was drunk the entire time while making it lol. See In The Loop ASAP. It's GREAT.
DeleteIn The Loop was fantastic! I have yet to watch the TV show it was based on, hopefully I'll like it.
ReplyDeleteI've seen a couple of episodes of The Thick of It and it's really funny.
DeleteI agree, Lost in Space is terrible. I find it hilarious that this cinematic masterpiece took down Titanic. Thanks for that tidbit. Get Smart was meh.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know In the Loop was based on a TV show until after I saw it. I still haven't seen even a single moment of The Thick of It, but In the Loop is absolutely fantastic. Peter Capaldi was flat out brilliant.
Couldn't agree with you more on all of this. I didn't realize until long after I'd seen In The Loop that it was based on a Brit TV show. Peter Capaldi should have WON the Supporting Actor Oscar that year.
DeleteHave not seen Lost in Space, both movie and series. Netflix is making a new series, so I'm looking forward to that.
ReplyDeleteGet Smart - I love the tv-series, but pretty much stayed away from the movie.
In the Loop - Wish I remembered it. It's a great pick! I would love to check out the Thick of it some time, but it's not really available here :(