The Color of Magic
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Movie Reviews of The Color of Magic
Movie Review: long-time Pterry fan
Summary: 4 Stars
i'm going to presume that you, like myself, are a long-time Discworld reader. if you're not familiar with the plot of the first two books, or Terry Pratchett's writing, or the themes and characters of Discworld, you should skip this. although the movie would be a good starting point for anyone unfamiliar with Discworld lore, this review is specifically for veterans of the books, if not the previous adaptations (Wyrd Sisters, Soul Music, Hogfather).
the plot(s) of The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic were carried over mostly intact. some specific scenes or events are left out or glossed over, but i think it was an acceptable adaptation.
i have no problem with Twoflower being "American." it works, it really does! i don't remember it saying anywhere that Agateans *look* Asian. but Twoflower's gormless optimism? Sean Astin nails it!
i *do* have a problem with Rincewind. for one, he seems too old; i know that's also a minor complaint, but he didn't look much younger than Cohen. my bigger gripe is that Rincewind is supposed to be a runner (away), not a eye-roller. less befuddled muttering, more screaming for help in 87 languages. too much of his faux-exasperation falls flat
since i mentioned Cohen, i must say they did him justice. mostly. i mean, you can *clearly* see his teeth while he's complaining about not having teeth. but his mannerisms and fight scenes are spot-on!
what else? oh, the Librarian. one of everyone's favorite characters, they must have gotten him perfect, right? nope, it's an unconvincing guy in an ape suite. i'm presuming they had reasons not to use a *real* orangutan, but the costume simply didn't work, in my eye. put a man in an ape suit and it still moves like a man, not an ape. it would have been less unreal (eg, more fantastic) to use a CG orang, or a Henson-esque puppet.
Death seemed better actuated (physically) than in Hogfather, but some of his lines sound more like Marvin from HHGTTG than Death. for easy example: "I WAS AT A PARTY, YOU KNOW" sounded more like a complaint than a reproach. still, "I THINK I JUST HAD ANOTHER NEAR-RINCEWIND EXPERIENCE" is worth the price of admission =)
finally, the Luggage. its movement was perfect! it trundles around in a bouncy gait, often chasing people around in the background. i wish its homicidal nature had been more on display, and they never did show its mouth ("lots of big square teeth, white as sycamore, and a pulsating tongue, red as mahogany") but its "expressions" and reactions were subtle and brilliant.
all in all, i enjoyed The Colour of Magic more than Hogfather. i also feel more comfortable recommending it to non-fans as there's less background to know and hidden context to be aware of.
i can't wait for Going Postal, the next adaptation. oook!
Movie Review: You in-sewered the Drum?
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the second attempt to make a movie out of a Terry Pratchett novel and it succeeds rather well. In this case, the movie is based on the first two novels in the 'Discworld' series, 'The Colour of Magic' and 'The Light Fantastic'.
Rincewind (David Jason), an inept wizard, is expelled from Unseen University. On a dare, he snuck a look at the Octavo, the book used to create the world, and one of the eight great spells lodged in his head.
At the same time, Twoflower (Sean Astin) arrives in Ankh-Morpork to "look at it". He's the Discworld's first tourist and he travels with the Luggage, a box made of sapient pearwood that moves about on hundreds of little legs and will follow it's owner everywhere.
After conning Twoflower, Rincewind is dragged to the Patrician's palace and ordered by Lord Vetinari (Jeremy Irons) to guide Twoflower safely through the city.
Twoflower, introducing the concept of fire insurance to Ankh-Morpork, inadvertently causes the entire city to burn down and he and Rincewind escape and Rincewind is plunged into several life threatening situations which he survives by sheer luck.
The good parts of this movie are Jeremy Irons as the Patrician and Tim Curry as Ymper Trymon, second in command of one of the eight orders of wizardry at the university. Both play their roles with relish and Curry's performance is as good, if not better, than that of Cardinal Richelieu in 'The 3 Musketeers'.
The bad parts? Well, a lot of the good scenes in both novels are left out. There is no travelling shop, no Hrun the Barbarian, no flying rock and no Tethis the sea troll. There is also no gingerbread cottage or broomstick flying.
Also, they unfortunately chose a white actor to portray Twoflower, when it's made clear in both 'The Colour of Magic' and 'Interesting Times' that Twoflower is Chinese. A real shame, but Sean Astin does a fantastic job at portraying Twoflower's attitude of looking at the world through rose coloured glasses.
And they got Cohen the Barbarian's (David Bradley) teeth wrong.
Although this movie takes a while to get going, it does get funnier as it goes along and there are some great one-liners. "I am having a near Rincewind experience."
Christopher Lee reprises the voice of Death, as he did in the animated versions of 'Soul Music' and 'Wyrd Sisters' and he has some of the best parts in the movie.
Aside from the little annoyances, the movie is quite good, the actors are superb, it's got all the wittiness you'd expect from Pratchett, and I loved it.
Movie Review: Good Effort at Early Pratchett
Summary: 4 Stars
The Color of Magic was the very first Discworld novel, published in 1983. The Light Fantastic: A Discworld Novel, a direct sequel, and the second Discworld tale, was published in 1986. Pratchett's writing and plotting are better by several orders of magnitude in his later books. And the later books are less overtly satiric. The highly episodic nature of these first two novels must have made them tough to script. But, over all, this is a decent effort at a difficult task.
The casting is generally good. Sean Astin is quite good as Twoflower, the Disc's first tourist. He was a controversial choice because Twoflower is from the Discworld's equivalent of China in the hearts of Pratchett fans, but Astin brings such strong skills to the role that it all works well. David Jason as the failed wizard - excuse me, "Wizzard" - is less successful. He's simply too old. And the script down plays Rincewind's strongest trait: cowardice. This is a man who knows how to say "Don't kill me" in a hundred different languages. Jason just doesn't fit the character. Jeremy Irons is superb as the Patrician. David Bradley as Cohen is at once not old enough and too old. He is obviously much younger than the 92 years Cohen claims. He tries to "act" older by being slower in fights, something that would surely have killed Cohen long ago if it were right. Tim Curry is completely right as the power-hungry, scheming Trymon, a larger role in the movie than in the books.
Another problem is that Color of Magic/Light Fantastic cries out for a big special effects budget. Let's just say that The Mob, the movie's producers, didn't have Peter Jackson's budget. Except, perhaps, for the Librarian, they do reasonably well with what they had, and the final few scenes are especially good.
Still, even a so-so Pratchett movie is still a Pratchett movie. If all of the jokes aren't there, and some destinations skipped or somewhat changed, there are enough laughs to remind you why Pratchett is a world treasure.
Reportedly, The Mob will make Going Postal next, a much later, much better written Pratchett novel. I look forward to it, but in the meantime Color of Magic, if flawed, is still great fun. And the flaws may just be, like octarine, the color of magic, a pigment of my imagination. Recommended.
Movie Review: Remember, it was "made for TV"
Summary: 4 Stars
Actually, considering it was made for TV, this adaptation is very well done. I'm a long-time Terry Pratchett fan, but I think this movie (well, pair of movies) should also be quite accessible to people who have never read Pratchett's work.
The only trouble is that there is a LOT of material to cover (Pratchett novels are never thin!) So, to the eye that is not familiar with Discworld, I fear that these adaptations may seem to ramble a bit. But, in any case, the rambling is always fun. The apparent rambling is due to the fact that the storyline sticks very closely to the books, something I appreciate as a fan, and only hope that newcomers to Discworld don't feel lost or overwhelmed by the enormous scope that has been crammed into a short, movie-length time span.
Speaking of newcomers, I was delighted by Astin's portrayal of Twoflower, even though I had actually pictured Twoflower as more of a skinny, geeky type when I read the books. Astin really carried off the sense of innocent wonder and plain fool's luck that kept Twoflower alive throughout all his adventures, and everything he did, even the simplest little line or gesture, just made me smile.
Rincewind was also very convincing, and Cohen the Barbarian was completely delightful. I can't look at shoop the same way anymore!
I wasn't too keen on the way the Luggage was rendered, though. I think its legs really should have looked more like those of a millipede. The humanesque legs were distracting and unbelievable. I guess I had pictured the legs as being more like those of a millipede. Your mileage may vary!
Altogether a fun romp with a generous handful of thought-provoking zingers thrown in; almost as good as a Terry Pratchett novel, and that's saying a lot.
Movie Review: The Color of Magic
Summary: 4 Stars
I disagree with the reviewer that says pass if you're not a reader of Terry Pratchett's books. Anyone that enjoys fantasy, especially with some tongue in cheek humor will probably enjoy it. It reminds me a little of the better fantasy movies with a helping of some Monty Python type humor. I was drawn to rent this because I thoroughly enjoyed "Hogfather". This story revolves around what seems a normal traveller, well played by Sean Astin, that has somehow ended up in Discworld. He accompanies a bumbling wizard, played by David Jason, that is charged with the safe visit of the tourist and then trying to prevent the destruction of their world. Their adventures to see and then save Discworld are exciting and funny. Little comments about a chest with a "wooden expression", and "I have a Wizard and I'm not afraid to use him", sometimes might not be all caught the first time you watch it and add to the pleasure with repeat viewings. The wonderful cast includes Tim Curry as an evil wizard, Christopher Lee as Death, and Jeremy Irons as the Patrician. The costumes, sets, music, and special effects are quite good. Hats off to the screenwriter and director for making this work so well. I loved it and so I ordered the DVD from Amazon and got a great price for a new one from one of the sellers. Great quality DVD with lots of replayability. If you enjoyed this be sure to catch Stardust (Widescreen Edition).
CA Luster