Life On Mars remake pilot
Jun. 19th, 2008 07:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
timepiececlockI tried to watch the first few minutes, got bored and skipped to The Scene. And... it's so wrong! The guy's acting is terrible. And the direction/set design... WHY IS THERE NO ARTISTRY? It's flat colors, no dominating objects like the billboards in the original scene, no intense, high-contrast, high-saturation colors. And the circle-shot, which is so iconic in the original LOM episode 1, is done face-on at head height, instead of at the far more visually angle-from-below the original's director chose. There's also the fact that, aside from the car, there's nothing in this shot that tells me he's in a different time. It's just... junky L.A. scenery.
And what the hell is up with the costume department? And who decided this guy looked right? He looks like a tall, military guy, like someone who bullied kids in middle school. I dont' think that Sam Tyler needs to look like John Simm, but I do think it works better if the guy is smaller and less FBI-looking. Someone who looks like he got the job because he was a good investigator and not because he had a muscled physique. Also, someone with an interesting face. A little more sensitive and yet cynical. Less...dopey. This guy looks DOPEY. And Sam Tyler is many fucked up or crazy or weird things, but he's not dopey.
I hate this gamma thing they're doing with the colors. And why, I ask, is this scene completely lacking in dramatic tension? I must have watched the original scene in the british version at least six times, because I loved the cinematography of it so much. ...oh, now it's over and he's wandering. What happened to the cop finding him? I'm going to skip forward to the parts with Gene.
Gene's not bad. Annie, I'm not to keen on. How come she doesn't actually LOOK like she's from the 70s? I'm skipping to the end.
47-48 minute mark: holy crap, I know this music. HAHAHA! ::plays back to listen again:: They're using the Donnie Darko score! This is... this is either "Liquid Spear Waltz" or "Manipulated Living", I'm not sure, but it's definitely from Donnie Darko. If I close my eyes I can see Jake Gyllenhaul in my head following the glowing spirit balls around his house. It has that tell-tale "whrrrrooooommm" sound effect, and the piano.
What hacks! I hope they weren't planning to air it with that score. And I can't believe there wasn't any 1970s music they could use instead.
He's such a bad actor. His "sad face" looks like an exaggerated clown face.
Overall: I knew the trailer was bad, and I know some people were nervous, but I didn't think it could be THIS bad. I generally don't mind watching remakes of shows. I was excited for the idea of an American Sam Tyler, in a different setting and with different people. But this tried to follow too closely to the original show (a mistake) while not giving any serious thought to casting, set design, costume, or cinematography. I am le sad.
If they wanted something good, they should just air the original British series uncut as two miniseries. That would get plenty of attention.
And what the hell is up with the costume department? And who decided this guy looked right? He looks like a tall, military guy, like someone who bullied kids in middle school. I dont' think that Sam Tyler needs to look like John Simm, but I do think it works better if the guy is smaller and less FBI-looking. Someone who looks like he got the job because he was a good investigator and not because he had a muscled physique. Also, someone with an interesting face. A little more sensitive and yet cynical. Less...dopey. This guy looks DOPEY. And Sam Tyler is many fucked up or crazy or weird things, but he's not dopey.
I hate this gamma thing they're doing with the colors. And why, I ask, is this scene completely lacking in dramatic tension? I must have watched the original scene in the british version at least six times, because I loved the cinematography of it so much. ...oh, now it's over and he's wandering. What happened to the cop finding him? I'm going to skip forward to the parts with Gene.
Gene's not bad. Annie, I'm not to keen on. How come she doesn't actually LOOK like she's from the 70s? I'm skipping to the end.
47-48 minute mark: holy crap, I know this music. HAHAHA! ::plays back to listen again:: They're using the Donnie Darko score! This is... this is either "Liquid Spear Waltz" or "Manipulated Living", I'm not sure, but it's definitely from Donnie Darko. If I close my eyes I can see Jake Gyllenhaul in my head following the glowing spirit balls around his house. It has that tell-tale "whrrrrooooommm" sound effect, and the piano.
What hacks! I hope they weren't planning to air it with that score. And I can't believe there wasn't any 1970s music they could use instead.
He's such a bad actor. His "sad face" looks like an exaggerated clown face.
Overall: I knew the trailer was bad, and I know some people were nervous, but I didn't think it could be THIS bad. I generally don't mind watching remakes of shows. I was excited for the idea of an American Sam Tyler, in a different setting and with different people. But this tried to follow too closely to the original show (a mistake) while not giving any serious thought to casting, set design, costume, or cinematography. I am le sad.
If they wanted something good, they should just air the original British series uncut as two miniseries. That would get plenty of attention.
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no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 02:34 am (UTC)I can't get over the fact they used "Slow Ride", when that song didn't come out until '75. Way to stick to the facts, dudes.
I'm halfway through it and ... oh, God, this is worse than I could've imagined.
no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 03:20 am (UTC)I skipped most of it, like my entry says.
no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 04:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 04:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 02:42 am (UTC)THE WORLD IS WRONG.
Thank you for watching this. Now I don't have to! ;)
no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 03:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-06-20 05:43 pm (UTC)So they basically cribbed the entire thing. Huh. The only legitimate suggestion I have is that they might have just stuck these pieces of music in as placeholders while they secured rights to/created a score for the show. After all, if it was a pilot, and presumably not meant for a wider audience (heh), well.
I KNOW. THEY COULD HIRE RIFF REGAN TO BE ANNIE. >3