How's that going to work again?

[geekchick]

If they cut out all the references, they could probably just make this an animated GIF instead.

The director and screenwriter of the film adaptation of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials is to remove references to God and the church in the movie.

Chris Weitz, director of About a Boy, said the changes were being made after film studio New Line expressed concern.

Yeah, I know, things will probably just be called by different names, but I had that first line and I wanted to use it.

Weitz said he had visited Pullman, who had told him that the Authority could "represent any arbitrary establishment that curtails the freedom of the individual, whether it be religious, political, totalitarian, fundamentalist, communist, what have you".

He added: "I have no desire to change the nature or intentions of the villains of the piece, but they may appear in more subtle guises."

Hm, I certainly can't think of any establishments that curtail individual freedoms that might make a reasonable substitute if such a thing has to happen. Nope. Not a one.

(Link posted in nikkinewsnet this morning.)

Comments

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

I enjoyed the trilogy, even if I did find myself arguing with it. Although I disagree with his theology (and have enough knowledge of early Christian history to spot where his some ofhis ideas came from) it was very well written and quite exciting. (I never understood the religious right's objections to Harry Potter, but I understand their objections to this.)

But you know? if you deal with something like this, you have to be honest. Changing the villians ignores most of the substance of the piece. Do it right or do not do it at all. And yes, that means in the current social climate it probably could not be made: it would need enough money to do the FX, which means a big studio (which New Line is after LOTR), and that is going to be hard to sell in this social climate. To be honest, I'm a little surprised that they are going ahead with filming "The Da Vinci Code," for similar reasons.

[geekchick]

To be honest, I'm a little surprised that they are going ahead with filming "The Da Vinci Code," for similar reasons.

I wouldn't be. Obviously the people who gave "His Dark Materials" the green light hadn't read the books or else they'd have known up front about the church. Probably the same situation with this one; no idea what it's actually about, they just know that it sold millions of copies and they'll be able to cash in on it. Don't be too surprised at them until you see what changes they force on it once they realize someone, somewhere, might object. We certainly wouldn't want anyone to read or see something that might possibly offend them.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

I don't seen how they could do much to Da Vinci Code to remove the religiously "objectionable" (in quotes because, while I find it laughable, I don't find it offensive) material without completely gutting it. My hunch on that one is that they will take the high road -- once they realize that they can't satisfy the fundamentalists and still have the movie, they will claim that they are presenting an alternate view and that this is designed to make people think, sort of like "The Last Temptation of Christ." (Which would be a complete load of hooey: it's a potboiler, not much else, certainly not in the same league as "Last Temptation.") And all the controversy can't help but be good for ticket sales.

[winterbadger]

My guess is that they may leave the nature of the secret beliefs in DaVinci intact, but do much more to portray those who believe them as crackpots and loonies (a fair cop), and those who are trying to suppress them as a rogue faction of The Authority (so to speak).

I agree on the potboiler judgement; what bothers me most about DvC is that its great popularity somehow gives people the impression it's well written (it isn't) or that the underlying ideas are new, even though the "astonishing secrets" are lifted more or less entirely from several quite good nonfiction books (well, mostly one specific book) on the same subject written nearly twenty years ago. Dan Brown isn't a great tale-teller, an amazing researcher, or a clever plot-writer. He's a mediocre adapter of other people's work who happens to have a great agent and publicist.

[crouchback.livejournal.com]

New Line Cinema, the House that Freddy Built (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087800/trivia), is worried about offending people? After making the whole Nightmare on Elm Street series and Freddy Vs. Jason (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0329101/), which had a few scenes which I thought were too much?

Man, have they turned into wimps.