What type of person are you? Let’s do a little test to find out. I
want you to imagine that you have just found out a beloved book or series of
books is about to be made into a film. Are you type A, who upon hearing this
news buries their head into their arms and silently weeps. Type B, who gets super
excited exclaiming that you finally get a chance to enter an exciting land. Or
are you type C, who reserves judgement until later. Well reader, which are you?
Right now I am quite firmly type A after
seeing the second trailer for Seventh
Son; the upcoming film 'inspired' by Joseph Delaney's Spook's Apprentice series of books. I put inspired in
quotations because after seeing the trailer I can't imagine much inspiration
came from the page.
To start with the main character Tom Ward,
in the books, is aged twelve in book one. Seventh
Son's Tom is played by Ben Barnes, a man aged thirty-three
almost three times the age of his character. The same can be said of Tom's love
interest Alice, played by Alicia Vikander who is twenty eight. In my mind these
casting choices have been made so that the film can target an older age range.
An age range that has had enough pandering to, in my opinion. Twilight, Hunger
Games, Divergent, The Mortal Instruments and The
Host, films whose central characters end up in an teenage angst-fuelled
romance. Yes, Tom and Alice have a romance in the books, but at their age it's
a subtle one that doesn't match the audience the film makers are targeting.
That audience is rather removed from the original book's, which targeted
children aged between nine and fourteen. I have to wonder why the makers are
shifting the focus of the viewers, especially when this shift dramatically
alters the story.
I will give them credit in casting Jeff
Bridges as the Spook. He's tall, gangly and sports an impressive beard. He is a
great choice for the role and matches the image in my head. The costume he has
doesn't quite match. It has the appearance of a knight from the crusades but
with a gothic twist: too much chain mail for my liking. Delaney's Spooks wear a
long black cloak that leaves them rather fragile and their greatest defence is
their knowledge of the dark. In my opinion plates of armour offer little
protection from the magic of a witch or the mental torment of a boggart.
This brings me to my next gripe with the
film. The book series fits comfortably in the horror genre, it even states on
the back 'Not to be read after dark'. I remember when I first read the books
feeling slightly uneasy at some of the horror found in its pages. An unease
that came from a very psychological place as the story took advantages of very
subtle, yet powerful fears. One part that was rather effective came early in
the first instalment and young Tom Ward's training. He was tasked with spending
a night alone in a cellar haunted by a ghost known for killing those who
dwelled within. Before the task begins Tom is briefed on the ghost and the
cellar's history, then the candles blown out and we are left alone with Tom in
that cellar. Soon thumps and groans are heard from its darkest corner and Tom
slowly begins to investigate. The tension created from the approach to the pile
of sacks is almost unbearable with great detail made about the slow walk. I
won't ruin it for you by detailing his grim discovery; you'll have to read for
yourself.
I say this because I can't imagine the
scene will be brought to the big screen. From the looks of the trailer subtlety
flew out the window when the four-armed monster opened the blinds. It looks
like horror isn't the genre the film sits in; instead it looks like a
fantasy/adventure film. So, not only does the film want to get in with the
tween romance trend, but also wants to ride The
Hobbit 's tail-coat too. If the directors don't have enough
confidence to allow the film to stand on its own merits why should the viewers?
Talking of The Hobbit, I can't help but think that it
'inspired' the setting of the film. The books are firmly set in England,
specifically around Lancaster. It anchored the plot and made it more
believable, which when dealing with the horror genre is very important. Freud's
work The Uncanny tells
us that when what we find familiar is altered it becomes unfamiliar and a sense
of unease is created. Think about the view you get every time you open your
front door, it's an image that I'm sure is pretty strong in your mind. Now I
want you to imagine something that doesn't belong there, for instance a
sinister clown, it would unsettle you to say the least, am I right? By changing
the setting to something that looks a lot like Middle Earth shatters any
familiarity and horror it may have.
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| With his cloak on the Spook does look right I must admit. |
Lastly, perhaps most tragically, the film
appears to mess with the rich lore that the series created. In the trailer
spooks are described as being 'noble knights'. Anyone who has even read the
first chapter will know this isn't true. Spooks are seen as a blight on
society, omens of death and misfortune, they are an unfortunate necessity. If
one has to call a spook in then one would hope it leaves soon. They are seen as
anything but noble. The books also utilize Celtic folklore and contain
creatures and myths from the British Isles. I can't imagine much of these are
included and indeed the monsters in the trailer look rather CGI and far removed
from ancient.
It is a shame the film seems to deviate so
much from the source material, especially when other films have shown it can be
done, and done successfully. Harry Potter did it right, J.K Rowling kept a
firm grasp on the treatment the films delivered and it paid off. The films are
a gift to the fans of the book and a joy for them to watch. Twilight does this too, mainly because the
makers had true passion for the books. If Twilight can get it right, then surely
anything can, am I right?
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| I found this map which illustrates the books locations. |
As you can tell I'm rather disappointed in
how Seventh Son is shaping up. I have a feeling
that Delaney signed away the rights to the film and ran with the money.
Researching this post reminded me of a film adaptation being made of another of
my favourite childhood series, Artemis Fowl. I then looked that up and it seems
that the film will cover book one and two, this news sent my head right back
into my arms, and I'm not coming out.
What do you think about film adaptations
of beloved books, or perhaps the other way around? Let me know in the comments
section.
Back cover image from Bookcrossing, Cast image from Comingsoon, Map from Larissabookgirl.
