First off, the death-knell for any movie, TV or otherwise, is having the Sci-Fi channel involved in any way, shape or form, in the production of it. They've yet to turn out anything that has aroused anything but scorn in my heart. What's more, they seem hell bent on taking the greatest of fantasy and sci-fi fiction and reducing it to mindless drivel suitable only for retarded morons.
Riverworld, based on Philip Jose Farmer's books, is a rich fantasy/scifi world deserving of far more than the atrocious mauling it received here.
Normally, I can gloss over minor deviations from the book, if the spirit of the work is maintained intact. But here there are so many "minor" deviations that it got ridiculous. Plus, the spirit of the books has clearly been exorcised in favour of cheap action and even cheaper effects.
Gone is King John. Gone is Richard Burton. Gone is Hermann Goering. The Grailstones look like some kind of weird fungus. There are horses on Riverworld. The Grails apparently float about on the river and get washed ashore along with the new arrivals. People are resurrected at different times, instead of all at once. All complete nonsense.
People are resurrected naked (which is true to the books) but with a complete head of hair (not true to the books). What's worse, this hair springs magically into an appropriate hairstyle at the beginning of each day, regardless of the lack of modern amenities to style/shape/cut it.
And what was with the Grails producing clothes straight off? If I recall, it was some weeks before the Grails produced clothing.
But putting aside all these inaccuracies (sorry...re-imaginings) how could you take this material and make a movie that is D-U-L-L. The cast blunder from one tedious scene to the next. There is no real sense of wonder or excitement at any of it. It just plods along like a substandard episode of "Days of Our Lives".
And why axe Richard Burton? Most people seem to think it was to appease the American audience by having the main hero more identifiable. But whilst this may be partly true, I propose another reason. The writers believe that we're all too stupid to figure out who Richard Burton was. Anyone that is capable of butchering this material so badly is also quite capable of thinking we'll all confuse Richard Burton the Adventurer with Richard Burton, the Actor.
Further, what was with Sam Clemens being reduced to a "Please Sir! I only want to steer the boat!" character. A far cry from the version portrayed in the books. But then....can't be two strong male leads in a movie...no, no, no! Might confuse us poor souls as to who we're supposed to be rooting for. Bah! The acting is, as you might expect, of TV movie standard. Unfortunately the main character played by Brad Johnson bore a striking resemblance to Reb Brown, another muscley actor who starred in the dire Space Mutiny. Even the acting styles were similar. Given this, I found it hard to take Brad seriously in his role.
The rest were OK in the acting stakes. But why did the alien have a facial tic? It became increasingly irritating as the film went on and served no purpose whatsoever. And why was the black 17th century slave also a martial artist? These questions (and many more) will no doubt be glossed over casually if the series ever gets greenlit. Here's hoping it never does.
With costumes and sets left over from episodes of Xena and Hercules, you might begin to get the idea of what you are in for if you watch this rubbish. Take my advice. Read the books instead.
And to any authors out there who get approached by the Sci-Fi Channel....I don't care how much money they offer you! Just say No!
Riverworld, based on Philip Jose Farmer's books, is a rich fantasy/scifi world deserving of far more than the atrocious mauling it received here.
Normally, I can gloss over minor deviations from the book, if the spirit of the work is maintained intact. But here there are so many "minor" deviations that it got ridiculous. Plus, the spirit of the books has clearly been exorcised in favour of cheap action and even cheaper effects.
Gone is King John. Gone is Richard Burton. Gone is Hermann Goering. The Grailstones look like some kind of weird fungus. There are horses on Riverworld. The Grails apparently float about on the river and get washed ashore along with the new arrivals. People are resurrected at different times, instead of all at once. All complete nonsense.
People are resurrected naked (which is true to the books) but with a complete head of hair (not true to the books). What's worse, this hair springs magically into an appropriate hairstyle at the beginning of each day, regardless of the lack of modern amenities to style/shape/cut it.
And what was with the Grails producing clothes straight off? If I recall, it was some weeks before the Grails produced clothing.
But putting aside all these inaccuracies (sorry...re-imaginings) how could you take this material and make a movie that is D-U-L-L. The cast blunder from one tedious scene to the next. There is no real sense of wonder or excitement at any of it. It just plods along like a substandard episode of "Days of Our Lives".
And why axe Richard Burton? Most people seem to think it was to appease the American audience by having the main hero more identifiable. But whilst this may be partly true, I propose another reason. The writers believe that we're all too stupid to figure out who Richard Burton was. Anyone that is capable of butchering this material so badly is also quite capable of thinking we'll all confuse Richard Burton the Adventurer with Richard Burton, the Actor.
Further, what was with Sam Clemens being reduced to a "Please Sir! I only want to steer the boat!" character. A far cry from the version portrayed in the books. But then....can't be two strong male leads in a movie...no, no, no! Might confuse us poor souls as to who we're supposed to be rooting for. Bah! The acting is, as you might expect, of TV movie standard. Unfortunately the main character played by Brad Johnson bore a striking resemblance to Reb Brown, another muscley actor who starred in the dire Space Mutiny. Even the acting styles were similar. Given this, I found it hard to take Brad seriously in his role.
The rest were OK in the acting stakes. But why did the alien have a facial tic? It became increasingly irritating as the film went on and served no purpose whatsoever. And why was the black 17th century slave also a martial artist? These questions (and many more) will no doubt be glossed over casually if the series ever gets greenlit. Here's hoping it never does.
With costumes and sets left over from episodes of Xena and Hercules, you might begin to get the idea of what you are in for if you watch this rubbish. Take my advice. Read the books instead.
And to any authors out there who get approached by the Sci-Fi Channel....I don't care how much money they offer you! Just say No!