Went to see The Lightning Thief last night with siblings 19, 16 and 13. Sibling 11 going later this week.Wasn't overly impressed with the novel, but assumed the film would be way different. It was. Not really better, not really worse. But there are new plot lines and motivations, absent villains, etc. Faithful to the book's spirit? Pretty much. But skewered for an older age category.
Fan siblings (13 & 16) were disappointed with a lot, but really liked the film anyway.
??
(Could this have something to do with Logan Lerman?)
I couldn't believe the number of 8/9 year olds in the audience. They made up the majority. It was not a 8/9 year old film. I mean, when the heroes entered a Las Vegas casino to strains of Lady Gaga, no one laughed besides me and my brother. Jokes about the recession and several instances of Grover's wandering eye...
From trailers before the film began, it was clear that even the marketing crew wasn't sure who they were targeting, exactly. Cats & Dogs II: Revenge of Kitty Galore led into a preview of M. Night Shyamalan's latest film, which led into a preview of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. When that faded out, the entire theater was buzzing with whispers: "I want to see that!" I whispered to my mom, "These kids are at the wrong movie."
In trying to cast such a wide net demographically, filmmakers only hurt their end product. Large chunks flowed well, but were jarred by "little kid" bumps. But I guess, if the fans are happy, who am I to complain?
5 comments:
Interesting comments. I'm seeing it tomorrow, and I don't expect it to live up to the book. I'm not surprised that it's lost as far as audience. I think Hollywood has lost touch with youth.
It's hard, because with kids' films, there are always wide gaps in the audience, vs., say, a slasher film, where the audience is pretty condensed.
Village campfire is a primitive model, but the simplicity is gold. To tell a story in a way that can be enjoyed by many ages, on many levels... easier said than done, but filmmakers used to get a lot closer to the mark than they ever has lately.
Noel, you didn't really like the books? hmmm
personally, I had gone in expecting to be disappointed. I came out not sure how to react- I was way more disappointed than I'd anticipated. I almost felt like they didn't TRY to follow the books- the whole plot was turned inside out...
on the bright side, Mr. Riordan is writing a new series! :)
I said novel, singular. I've only read the first two, and was only mildly impressed by the LT. Sea of Monsters was better. According to Robbie, the last three are the best...
Okay, now that I've seen it, I think you're dead on. It wasn't better or worse. Just different.
I missed a few characters...Big D, Ares, Clarissa. But it did maintain the spirit of the book.
I was sitting across the aisle from an older gentleman who was there by himself and I enjoyed his immaculately placed laughter as well if not more than the movie itself. For instance, Uma Thurman as Medusa, dressed in black leather got a hearty belly laugh from him.
I'll be curious to see what they do with the next movies. I think it's fair to assume that they will also be different, but not better or worse.
P.S. you really should read the rest of the series, it's kind of awesome. ;)
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