Adapting books to the screen: a brief consideration

With the seventh installment in the Harry Potter film saga being released in the cinema this week, the subject of 'book-to-film' adaptations has been on my mind. It's a topic that is very easily seen in polemic terms, with one camp stating that the book is always superior to the film, and those at the other end of the spectrum saying the exact opposite. However, I think a little more consideration needs to be taken before any judgements can be made.

It is short-sighted to judge the film adaption of a novel by the same criteria as the original text. I get really annoyed when I hear a movie being criticised for 'leaving out' parts of the book; if a literal adaptation of a novel was ever attempted, it would be an extremely tedious and dull experience for the viewer, not to mention the longest film ever made. The director's job when making a screen version of a written work is to put across the essence of the story, using the elements of the book that are most relevant to the visual medium. With some books this task is quite simple. For example, Cormac McCarthy's novels read very much like screenplays and embody a cinematic tone, meaning that the film adaptations of No Country For Old Men (2007) and The Road (2009) easily retain the qualities that made the books so enjoyable. With longer fantasy-based novel's like Harry Potter, the director's retelling has to be much more subjective.

This leads me onto my next point: the role of a film adaptation isn't to provide a carbon copy of the original. Like it or not, but the director has a duty to present their own interpretation of the story, not just regurgitate the author's views and sentiments. When Katsuhiro Otomo adapted his own manga classic Akira (1988) to the screen, he made drastic alterations to the narrative, presenting the version of his story that works best for film. I will admit that I haven't always agreed with the choices a director/screenwriter has made during the adaptive process, but I'll defend to the death their right to make those choices. In a way, the activity of adapting a novel to the screen is just a continuation of the tradition of oral storytelling. As the narrative is passed on by one teller to the next, it is warped and contorted, gradually leaving behind many of the elements that made up its original form. In this case the director becomes just another link in the storytelling chain, passing on their version of the tale.

Don't get me wrong however; I'm not saying that cinematic retellings of novels should replace the original written document. Both are equally valid versions of the story, as long as they told with skill, imagination and integrity. Although I don't like people automatically attacking an adaptation movie, I also detest it when someone states that they won't read a book because they can just watch the film version. This attitude ignores the fact that all films start out as a written document; a screenplay. Without reading, and the imaginative processes it generates, there wouldn't be any films.

There is one situation where I do oppose the adaptation of books into films, and that is when 'Hollywood' gets involved. By this I mean, when studio execs look at a literature masterpiece and only see dollar signs. When this happens all the truth of a text is lost, replaced with the shallow goal of generating the biggest box office success. My example for this phenomenon would be I Am Legend (2007). Richard Matherson's original novel is a horror classic, chilling and inventive, with a really powerful if bleak conclusion. Director Francis Lawrence's adaptation removes almost all of the tension, replacing it with off-the-shelf jumps and scares, and reduces the vampires (yes, they are vampires, not weird zombie things) to unrealistic CGI ghouls. And the altered ending; don't get me started! Without wanting to spoil the story, the film's conclusion has no meaning at all, it says nothing new. But who cares when the film took $585 million worldwide? Isn't that what filmmaking is really about? I'm not so sure.

So in conclusion: not all novel-to-film adaptations are bad, in fact some books feel like they were written to be converted. I think I'm right in saying that Chuck Palahnuik actually acknowledged that he considers David Fincher's version of Fight Club (1999) to be superior to his novel. However, that doesn't mean that reading should now be obsolete; film cannot exist without the written word. I'll let you know what my assessment of the latest Potter adaptation in the not-too-distant future. In the meantime, keep reading AND watching!

The end has arrived!

As of today, I have unofficially finished my university degree! I handed in my last essay this morning, just gotta wait and see what marks I get. Hopefully good ones! It's a little bit surreal. Hasn't really sunk in yet that after three years of uni (four if you count my year doing Sociology and Criminology - worst course ever), it's all finished. And I've gotta find a job now, and be a real person!

This week has been an interesting one so far. Started off well on Monday, I'd done over half of my essay and the rest was well planned out. However, for reasons I've yet to ascertain, I spent Monday night/Tuesday morning worshipping 'the porcelain throne'. The culprits could be either a dodgy chili, essay stress, the fact that I drank a copious amount of Pepsi with my dinner, or a combination of the three! I spent most of Tuesday sleeping, playing PS3 and feeling sorry for myself (sigh, get the violins out).

However, I felt much better on Tuesday and was able to finish off my Post War American Writing essay with minimal stress. I think it was quite a good one, well I hope and pray it was! I chose to write about the importance of the outsider figure to American identity, using Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon and Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club to demonstrate the argument. I thought it would be really difficult to find secondary material on Fight Club, but there were actually some really useful journal articles online. I didn't get a good mark in my earlier Post War American Writing essay (not many people did apparently), so there's a lot riding on this one!

Having handed in my final essay, there was one inevitable thing that was going to occur today. After over a month of waiting, the moment has arrived...Final Fantasy XIII has been played! By me! I'm enjoying it so far, the graphics are amazing, the story-line is involving, and the battle system is actually quite fun, while being a complete departure from the ones of the past games. Some of the characters are a little bit annoying, like soppy Hope and over-enthusiastic Vanille, and the game feels very linear at the beginning, not much scope for customisation or any side quests so far. But it's still really good, worth continuing with until the choices open up a bit more.

I've really been RPG-ing it up this month, as I bought Fallout 3 the other day. It's an awesome game, and a nice change to the FF-style RPGs that I'm used to. However, in my opinion, it's strongest feature is also it's biggest weakness. Fallout 3 is a BIG game, with almost limitless permeations of how it can be played. This is really cool, as it means you definitely get your money's worth (especially if you get the Game of the Year edition with the DLC included), but it left me feeling a little bit lost to start with and forced me to wander around aimlessly before I got to grips with the game. It's really fun though, great mix of first-person shooter and RPG elements.

Managed to persuade my housemate and Lauren to watch The Usual Suspects the other day. And, as I knew they would, they enjoyed it very much! They should listen to my film recommendations more often. Watched Kick-ass and Iron Man 2 at the cinema recently, both of which I enjoyed, but the former was better than the latter. Kick-ass was really original and superbly shot, but was a little bit lazy with the humour at some points. There are cleverer ways to make people laugh than having a pre-pubescent girl cursing like a trooper. Iron Man 2 was good, but lacked a little bit of sparkle. I think the first one was a fair bit better.

So it's gonna be a lazy day tomorrow, with much Final Fantasy to be played. However, I don't wanna rub it in Lauren's face that I've finished my uni work MUCH MUCH EARLIER than her. So I guess I'll be looking for a job...any ideas?

I have been ever so slightly busy...

The last couple of weeks have been hectic. It was dissertation hand-in time for most people at my uni last week, so both Lauren and myself have been going a bit spare with our academic work. Writing, double-checking, proof-reading, checking again, printing, finding one tiny mistake that means you have to print all over again...you get the picture. But it's over now, both our dissertations are handed in. We've just gotta try to stop thinking about them, or I know we'll find things we could improve.

As well as finishing my dissertation this week I finished a couple of other things as well. I completed Batman: Arkham Asylum the other day, which is a fantastic game. I know what you're thinking: how did he have time to play games when he's got so much work to do? I've relax at some point, or I'll go mad! Anyway it's a great game with an engrossing story, awesome graphics and really fluid controls and gameplay. The voice acting is really good too, especially Mark Hamill's take on The Joker.

I also finished reading Fight Club for my Post-War American Writing unit. What a book. I don't know whether I like it better than the film version, they're both fantastic in their own ways. Chuck Palahniuk, the author, actually said that he thought the film was better than his novel, which I thought was a really humble and honest thing to say. There's a fascinating afterword in the edition I own where he talks about the phenomenon the book created and how he never expected any of it.

Discovered my new favourite metal band the other day; Becoming the Archetype. They're a progressive death-metal band from Atlanta, Georgia; kind of a mix between Killswitch Engage and Opeth. I'm consciously not calling them 'Christian Metal', because I don't believe there should be 'Christian' genres of music. All music belongs to God; whether people acknowledge that with their lyrics is up to them. Let's just say it's metal performed by a group of Christians. I (legally) downloaded their album 'Dichotomy' the other day; it's amazing. The opening track 'Mountain of Souls' thunders powerfully, followed by the epic riffage of the title track, soft keyboards adding extra dimensions to the soundscape. Other songs to look out for are 'Ransom' and the band's cover of the hymn 'How Great Thou Art'; an original and innovative take on a song with truly inspired and worshipful words.

I may have finished my dissertation but that doesn't mean things are any less busy! I'm playing guitar at church tomorrow, so I'll have a very busy Sunday. Then my writing project it due next Thursday, which is almost complete but there's still a fair few things to be done to it. I also have to finish reading Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon by Monday, and I'm at work this afternoon. Phew! And then there's a certain wedding that needs to be planned, although that's all coming together quite well.

And in the midst of all this, Lauren has somehow persuaded me to wait until I've finished ALL my uni work before I play Final Fantasy XIII. I don't think I can wait till the 20th of May! What have I agreed to?!

Mistabishi - Drop - Review

Music by Jamie Pullen, produced by Jamie Pullen and published by Hospital Records.

When you were standing in the office, staring blankly at the sheets of A4 paper relentlessly dropping into the tray, did you feel musically inspired? Mistabishi did, and he didn’t stop there, producing probably one of the best drum and bass albums this year.

Making his debut on Hospital Records in the later part of 2007 with the piano-led rave ‘No Matter What’, Mistabishi quickly gained critical acclaim, in particular from radio one’s Zane Lowe, Jo Whiley and Annie Mac. Now returning with his first studio album, the drum and bass innovator has generated a rising band of followers and has been nominated for the ‘Best Newcomer Award’ at the Drum & Bass Arena Awards 2009.

I first discovered Mistabishi the same way most casual drum and bass enthusiasts would have done; through the radio one promotion of his tune ‘Printer Jam’. A wonderfully inventive piece of music employing the whirrings and chirps of an ancient printer, the story goes that the song was created when the artist knew he was facing job loss and wanted to make use of his last few days in the office. Therefore he took his recording equipment in and sampled the sounds for his music, using the sonic by-product of the machinery to produce a pounding drum and bass anthem.

Of course with a song like ‘Printer Jam’ there is the danger that people will either dismiss it as a gimmick, or be disappointed when the other Mistabishi tracks do not have exactly the same ethos and feel. The ‘true’ drum and bass fans would mock the mainstream interest as a fad and Mistabishi would remain a favourite only to a select few. But this would only be a danger if the rest of Mistabishi’s tracks did not deliver the same level of ingenuity and passion, which happily is not the case.

Although pigeonholed as a drum and bass artist, Mistabishi demonstrates that he is not bound by genre with the vast array of styles and influences found on Drop. There certainly is a powerful drum and bass presence throughout the album, but even within that aspect there are differing facets. The grimy and gritty tones and beats of tracks like ‘Printer Jam’ and ‘Damage’ are contrasted by the ethereal synths and chilled feel of ‘Heaven’s Sake’ and ‘The View From Nowhere’. Breaking from the drum and bass mould Mistabishi dabbles in dub-step with relentless grinding of ‘White Collar Grime’ and ‘Wipe Your Tears’, the latter of which features a clever windscreen wiper sample. The use of trance-style piano riffs pummelling over the rhythms of ‘No Matter What’ demonstrates that even with his first hit track, Mistabishi is not content to churn out the expected, throwing off conformity from any aspect of his music.

Mistabishi has been described as the ‘Tyler Durden’ of drum and bass, a description that Drop supports very well. Although there are relaxed, ambient areas of the music, the album is laced with an unnerving edge, the feeling of violence and feral energy beneath the surface, which sometimes breaks through. In the same way that Fight Club’s protagonist eschews the mainstream material conformity proscribed for society, Mistabishi’s music seems to suggest a search for alternate meanings in a world that has been sold short by the vendors of greed and selfishness. Creativity brought on by the financial collapse is definitely a motivating factor Mistabishi, with Drop as the call to leave your office cubicle and find something that actually matters.

The only thing I don’t particularly like about this album, and it’s only a tiny little flaw, is that it has one of those extensive final tracks, made up mostly of noise in this case. Hidden tracks and silent gaps really annoy me, right from the days when I used to listen to Korn and had to skip the first twelve tracks on their album Follow The Leader to get to the music. On a practical level it wastes space on your hard-drive and MP3 player, which is just frustrating unless you have software to remove the gaps. Not a big deal really, I just would rather it wasn’t there.

Mistabishi’s Drop will not disappoint hardcore drum and bass enthusiasts or those enticed by hearing ‘Printer Jam’ in the mainstream setting either. Full of interesting and varied styles, the album speaks an ethical message on greed and materialism but without preaching or condescending. A unified collection of catchy tunes, Drop will get you on your feet and dancing in no time.

If you like this, then try: Badmarsh&Shri, Bloc Party, Chase & Status, Enter Shikari, Faithless, High Contrast, DJ Hype, Innerpartysystem, Pendulum, The Prodigy.

Visit Mistabishi’s official website

Vote for Mistabishi in the Drum & Bass Arena Awards 2009