World War Z! From book to movie trailer...

Started by Mathim, November 14, 2012, 03:51:21 PM

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Shjade

Quote from: Mathim on November 15, 2012, 02:50:04 PM
The scary thing about the slow-moving ones is the claustrophobic feeling the book generated, like that pilot lady who got dumped right into Z country and had to be careful about noise and find a safe spot to sleep but still got surrounded. It's a numbers game, the terror comes from being outnumbered, surrounded, and with no place to hide. If they really wanted to they could have made the slow thing work, it just needs a director who's good with atmosphere. It just feels like they wanted to take the lazy approach because it speeds up the narrative.

I thought the book did an excellent job describing in-depth what was happening before and during the war, or at least enough to make a movie with. General Raj Singh (the one you couldn't remember how to spell) showing up to detonate those charges and stop the last-resort nuking would have been an awesome scene. And frankly, it's not intended to be a linear narrative, it should have played like a documentary from the way the book was structured, so it would be expected to be less focused on a single area by the readers, and it could have been an original approach for those unfamiliar with the actual background. I think it would have been worth the effort to make it reflect the book more accurately. As it is, the trailer makes it look like a full-movie version of what's happening in 2004's Dawn of the Dead where it shows what's happening on that montage while Sarah Polley is unconscious.

True, they could have done it pseudo-documentary-style like the book, basically stringing together a series of narrated flashbacks rather than  a more central linear plot, but it's pretty clear they wanted to cover the actual war which, while you can piece it together from the book, isn't really covered. I mean, you basically get to hear about one major engagement in several different countries and...that's it. What happened after Yonkers? We're just suddenly "later, after everyone was dead, we came back and did it right." The whole "war" part is pretty much summarized in one skirmish and that's it. The bulk of World War Z is build-up, society's collapse and mop-up post-collapse; it's not really zombie-focused most of the time, despite that being the core drive of events. Zombies are just the background while Brooks goes through a series of "what if" scenarios for how various regions would respond to that level of catastrophe. Translated into a movie, this would most likely mean not much zombie screen time and a lot of political/interpersonal drama. Which, hey, don't get me wrong, that could make a great movie (I'm thinking something akin to Clear and Present Danger-type content...with zombies), but it's not really a "zombie movie" in the sense that 90% of people would be expecting to get out of their ticket to see a zombie movie, y'know?

Sidenote, why did I remember Raj Singh's name as being something four syllables long? Hm. Must be thinking of someone else.
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Avis habilis

Quote from: Shjade on November 15, 2012, 06:47:54 PM
... but it's not really a "zombie movie" in the sense that 90% of people would be expecting to get out of their ticket to see a zombie movie, y'know?

As I was reading it, I found myself thinking it would make a pretty good cable miniseries. The episodic storyline would have fit the hour-a-week format better.

Oniya

They brought Max in to do an episode of 'Deadliest Warrior', Vampires vs. Zombies.  He went with the slow shamblers in that one.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
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Mathim

#28
Quote from: Shjade on November 15, 2012, 06:47:54 PM
True, they could have done it pseudo-documentary-style like the book, basically stringing together a series of narrated flashbacks rather than  a more central linear plot, but it's pretty clear they wanted to cover the actual war which, while you can piece it together from the book, isn't really covered. I mean, you basically get to hear about one major engagement in several different countries and...that's it. What happened after Yonkers? We're just suddenly "later, after everyone was dead, we came back and did it right." The whole "war" part is pretty much summarized in one skirmish and that's it. The bulk of World War Z is build-up, society's collapse and mop-up post-collapse; it's not really zombie-focused most of the time, despite that being the core drive of events. Zombies are just the background while Brooks goes through a series of "what if" scenarios for how various regions would respond to that level of catastrophe. Translated into a movie, this would most likely mean not much zombie screen time and a lot of political/interpersonal drama. Which, hey, don't get me wrong, that could make a great movie (I'm thinking something akin to Clear and Present Danger-type content...with zombies), but it's not really a "zombie movie" in the sense that 90% of people would be expecting to get out of their ticket to see a zombie movie, y'know?

Sidenote, why did I remember Raj Singh's name as being something four syllables long? Hm. Must be thinking of someone else.

There are actually many more instances of during-war and zombie chaos than you make it sound; that one situation in Europe where a small group of soldiers had to get a bunch of people across a bridge before the army dropped a bunch of nerve gas on everybody would have been a great in-war scenario to showcase; they can embellish things, naturally, they don't necessarily have to follow the book exactly but the overall situations are easy enough to imagine and put to the screen. The build-up is also great (before the 'official' start of war), like that one scene where people are scrambling to get to the coast and hit the seas when they find that the shipyard they thought would be their salvation was actually a dry-dock dismantling station. And don't forget all those castle sieges that one guy was talking about, if the movie chose to they could go more in-depth with what happened with some of the failures whose defenses didn't hold up.


QuoteAs I was reading it, I found myself thinking it would make a pretty good cable miniseries. The episodic storyline would have fit the hour-a-week format better.

This is actually true of almost any zombie story.
Considering a permanent retirement from Elliquiy, but you can find me on Blue Moon (under the same username).

Shjade

They could, yes. And then people would complain about how they're not making the movie in lock step with the book anyway. ;p
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TheGlyphstone

Quote from: Shjade on November 16, 2012, 01:04:26 PM
They could, yes. And then people would complain about how they're not making the movie in lock step with the book anyway. ;p
There's always going to be purist haters in every fandom. But you can definitely do better than the Starship Troopers route.

Mathim

I actually enjoyed the (first) Starship Troopers, never read any of the books but I thought the idea was awesome and well-executed, but I am aware of the differences. Still, I considered the movie to be successful whether or not it followed the books; usually if it's the movie totally bites that I harp on them for not following the books, but in this case the departure is so extreme I just couldn't hold it in.
Considering a permanent retirement from Elliquiy, but you can find me on Blue Moon (under the same username).

Oniya

I read Starship Troopers before seeing the movie (well before it was even considered), and with the exception of the aliens being 'bugs', I couldn't recognize them as being the same story.  It was about as different as Andre' Norton's 'Beastmaster' was from the movie she yanked her name off of.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
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Avis habilis

Considering how Demi Moore's "Scarlet Letter" turned out, some people have a very loose definition of "based on".

Oniya

Quote from: Avis habilis on November 16, 2012, 02:31:48 PM
Considering how Demi Moore's "Scarlet Letter" turned out, some people have a very loose definition of "based on".

Did Dimmsdale get the girl in the end and live happily ever after? [/lit geek]
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
Requests updated March 17

Avis habilis

Quote from: Oniya on November 16, 2012, 02:36:20 PM
Did Dimmsdale get the girl in the end and live happily ever after? [/lit geek]

There was a sequence with a maid watching them through a keyhole as he & Hester were getting it on & doing ... uh ... stuff to herself with, I think, a candle.

A tallow one at that. *squick*

Mathim

Well, no one ever said that every attempt that deviates severely from the original source is going to be decent...but it's hard to believe the people making them could be ignorant that the end result will be as bad as they end up being.
Considering a permanent retirement from Elliquiy, but you can find me on Blue Moon (under the same username).

Shjade

Quote from: Oniya on November 16, 2012, 02:25:56 PM
I read Starship Troopers before seeing the movie (well before it was even considered), and with the exception of the aliens being 'bugs', I couldn't recognize them as being the same story.  It was about as different as Andre' Norton's 'Beastmaster' was from the movie she yanked her name off of.

I didn't read the book until years later.

Honestly? The movie was more entertaining. ST is a good novel, but not very...compelling I guess is the word I'm looking for.

That said, I did like that the ST animated series re-introduced the Skinnies.
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Oniya

With 'Beastmaster', I read (and enjoyed) the book long after seeing (and enjoying) the movie.  However, I could see why Andre' was so upset.
"Language was invented for one reason, boys - to woo women.~*~*~Don't think it's all been done before
And in that endeavor, laziness will not do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think we're never gonna win this war
Robin Williams-Dead Poets Society ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Don't think your world's gonna fall apart
I do have a cause, though.  It's obscenity.  I'm for it.  - Tom Lehrer~*~All you need is your beautiful heart
O/O's Updated 5/11/21 - A/A's - Current Status! - Writing a novel - all draws for Fool of Fire up!
Requests updated March 17

Lux12

People can often get more out of a book than a film.They often cut things out of the movie because of time constraints as we all know and unfortunately, the adaptation often lacks a little something as a result. Such is often the case with these things though.

NotoriusBEN

#40
Im not mad... Im just disappointed.  I've only heard those words once from my old man because I really screwed up back as a teenager, and that hurt much more than if he was just angry.

They could have still done great with the zombies as shamblers because its all about the inevitable crush of bodies. That bus could have easily been toppled by slower fare just from the mass of zeds pressed against it. I mean, they could have done the Battle of Yonkers with the damn things not going down because you need a legit head shot or spinal hit above the shoulder to immobilize the WWZ zeds. A bunch of Army and Marines that were trained to put as much fire as possible down range and into center mass, and the fuckers just. keep. coming...   THAT'S Horror.

I just hate the idea that some hollywood exec was like... "well, dawn of the dead and resident evil and 28 days sold millions of tickets and Im sure it's because there wasnt a single slow zombie in either of them. Sure beat Romero's slow ass zombie movie, nevermind inflation, so that must mean that fast sells better than slow. Make them runners."

and then the guy is rewarded for that line of thinking because people will still drop money on this thing.

Mathim

Quote from: NotoriusBEN on November 17, 2012, 01:03:48 AM
Im not mad... Im just disappointed.  I've only heard those words once from my old man because I really screwed up back as a teenager, and that hurt much more than if he was just angry.

They could have still done great with the zombies as shamblers because its all about the inevitable crush of bodies. That bus could have easily been toppled by slower fare just from the mass of zeds pressed against it. I mean, they could have done the Battle of Yonkers with the damn things not going down because you need a legit head shot or spinal hit above the shoulder to immobilize the WWZ zeds. A bunch of Army and Marines that were trained to put as much fire as possible down range and into center mass, and the fuckers just. keep. coming...   THAT'S Horror.

I just hate the idea that some hollywood exec was like... "well, dawn of the dead and resident evil and 28 days sold millions of tickets and Im sure it's because there wasnt a single slow zombie in either of them. Sure beat Romero's slow ass zombie movie, nevermind inflation, so that must mean that fast sells better than slow. Make them runners."

and then the guy is rewarded for that line of thinking because people will still drop money on this thing.

Yep, that about sums it up. I mean, how predictable is it that the fast-moving zombies could cause an outbreak overnight? At least if it's the slow kind, there's lots of stuff to factor in to how the outbreak gets to that level, and by that time it's too late to call it anything but a global catastrophe even though at their base level they aren't really a threat. That was the entire point of the book, that we let it happen when it shouldn't have. The runners don't let us have that self-reflection.

And yeah, the formula for success with those movies is not even remotely down to the type of zombies, I don't know what wannabe hotshot got his wires crossed when they made that assumption.
Considering a permanent retirement from Elliquiy, but you can find me on Blue Moon (under the same username).

Shjade

It's different from the book-style zombies, which disappoints me too, but I'm not sure why you guys seem to be assuming it's going to be a bad movie because of that...
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TheGlyphstone

Quote from: Shjade on November 17, 2012, 03:23:12 PM
It's different from the book-style zombies, which disappoints me too, but I'm not sure why you guys seem to be assuming it's going to be a bad movie because of that...

I don't think anyone has said it's going to be a bad zombie movie in its own right. Looking at the trailer, it will be a formulaic movie in its own right, which means it could be bad, mediocre, or good, but likely not great. But as far as a World War Z movie, it will be awful.

Shjade

It was implied by BEN's assertion that "the guy is rewarded for that line of thinking because people will still drop money on this thing," suggesting it won't be worth paying to see but people will anyway.
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NotoriusBEN

my intent of that line was that hollywood is taking the low road and not being innovative or daring with plot ideas. The fact that people will drop money on this movie further reinforces it.

Mathim

My interpretation was that they will piss on artistic integrity if it means they make a few dollars more. Calling this movie World War Z is frankly insulting to anyone who's read the book, is the point. I can't say whether it will be good or bad in and of itself but I get the feeling that trying to blend WWZ with fast zombies seems like it will lack substance beneath the style. You can't really tell a story if the emphasis is on action which the trailer is apparently doing. Not to mention it seems like it will feel less worldly; and of course we have no idea what kind of aftermath we'll be dealing with since this is during the war and there feels like no way to actually win it; every zombie movie where the fast-moving kind feels way less like humanity can ever come back from the brink compared to the slow-moving ones. At least if the slow-moving kind were in the movie, we could have some hope that the war can be won.
Considering a permanent retirement from Elliquiy, but you can find me on Blue Moon (under the same username).

Lux12

Quote from: NotoriusBEN on November 18, 2012, 03:55:02 AM
my intent of that line was that hollywood is taking the low road and not being innovative or daring with plot ideas. The fact that people will drop money on this movie further reinforces it.

Join the club.Innovation in the world of cinema hasn't been a major thing for years now.

Callie Del Noire


Moraline

Quote from: Callie Del Noire on November 20, 2012, 08:42:24 AM
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Brad-Pitt-Back-Set-More-World-War-Z-Reshoots-34152.html

Annnnnnnd they go back for ANOTHER round of reshooting.

Oh my...

" ...  plagued by repeated delays, onset disputes, reshoots and need of a new screenwriter to craft a totally new third act-- was finally coming together. Well, don't hold your breath. "

Why do these guys even bother buying up book movie rights if they are going to make a completely different story? I mean, really... just save yourself the money.