That said, (sighs), it's time to finally address something I've been meaning to for some time. When I began my experiment with live-action coverage on this blog; I knew there was something else in all this. While I did get plenty of content out of covering the live-action remakes of Ghost in the Shell and Death Note (both are among my least favorite films of the year), there is still much more to talk about something that's been irking me for a long time: the problem with live-action anime adaptations.
To give you some perspective on this, this post was originally going to be titled "Voltron, Robotech and the Problem With Live-action Anime Adaptations." However, while both those series will still come up later; it's clear to me that it's not just one or two series that have this problem. It's an issue that has spread over the entire idea of adapting the genre in live-action.
Sadly, it's not a simple problem either; and it's been one that's been going on for years. While adapting any piece of animation in live-action is never easy, anime and manga in particular seem to have the most trouble. Even though the medium of tokusatsu has many similarities to the genre, the overall success of direct adaptations has been less than impressive to say the least. Most of them, no matter who makes them; have been panned by critics, and their performance at the box office varies significantly.
Yet, despite being polarizing among critics and fans; and most of them doing middling business or outright bombing at the box office, there are still more in development or planned to come out over the coming years. So, I will be putting ones that have come out in my lifetime (as well as a handful before that) into several categories.
First, we have films that are not outright adaptations, but bear some stylistic similarities in terms of story, characterization and visuals. Some of them even have the benefit of being based on works that already take influence from anime and manga or at least have some noticeable influence, admitted or otherwise. They include, but are not limited to: Scott Pilgrim VS The World, Tron Legacy, Pacific Rim, James Mangold's The Wolverine and Logan, and Edge of Tomorrow: Live Die Repeat (which was also based on the light novel series All You Need is Kill).
Next, we have ones that try their best to be faithful to their source material, but go in different directions. They do come close to replicating their seniors, but go in different directions for their new medium. Even though they're not the best, they do have some cult followings. Examples include the DTV adaptations of The Guyver and Fist of the North Star, and the Wachowskis' live-action version of Speed Racer.
Then, there's the unfortunate films that make up the justification for me doing this post. Ones that have the same problem that video game adaptations and many past adaptations of American comic books do: Basically, the creative staff just says: "Let's take this successful, genre-defining property and do almost nothing that made it popular! It'll make millions!" Infamous examples include Dragonball Evolution, and this year's adaptations of Ghost in the Shell and Death Note. The latter two I riffed extensively this year, I'm contemplating making the former my first official live-action recap, depending on what happens.
Even though the whole "racebending" thing is still a problem, it's not the only problem these adaptations have (I do mock The Last Airbender frequently as a fan of the TV show, but that trainwreck had many things wrong with it). More than often, the visual style itself is so distinct that it's difficult to replicate in live-action. Admittedly, however; the productions are starting to look less like chintzy low-budget messes and more like glossy high-budget messes.
Still, it's often tricky to make the transition. While a character with an unusual hair color or style may be easy to swallow in an anime, in film; it can often look awkward. Even more when you have an IP with very bizarre characters you wouldn't see in real life. Even though I'm still not doing the third
Yo-Kai Watch movie until after I hear confirmation of the third game getting a Western release, there was just something that felt off to me. The fans claimed it was like an evolution of the effects in Roger Rabbit and Space Jam, but I disagree. To me, a non-fan, it looked like a mix of one of my old PS2 games and those live-action Scooby-Doo movies they had in the early/mid 2000s. I admit they tried given the budget and time constraints, but it will definitely be something I'll address further if and when the time comes.
What's more, the casting is even trickier. Even though the "racebending" is fairly well-documented here and seems to be in its death knell (what with the failures of the aforementioned Ghost in the Shell and Death Note movies, as well as big series such as Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe proving successful with new, ethnically-diverse actors), it's still interesting to see how Japan handles it. Notably, reception to the 2017 Ghost in the Shell and Death Note was less hostile in Japan, but still mixed. It also turns out that people were actually as divided on the casting of the Full Metal Alchemist and Attack on Titan adaptations there as something like casting ScarJo as the Major or Nat Wolff as Light was here. Even though FMA did prove to be successful, the AoT/SnK films were roundly panned in both Japan and the US, despite relatively decent box office numbers. The one thing that both countries can agree on is that if the script and actors are bad, the whole thing falls apart.
Suffice to say, both countries have had trouble getting proposed franchises off the ground. The live-action Jojo's Bizarre Adventure movie was intended as the first of a planned trilogy earlier this year, but didn't meet expectations of ticket sales; so the second and third installments likely won't happen.
There's also how long most of these films have been in development Hell, many of which have never left; and are unlikely to. Even if they do, sometimes it makes you wonder if they should have left well enough alone.
In the case of the former, Akira is nearing its 30th anniversary next year, and is still my favorite anime movie and one of my all-time favorite movies. FYI: my final recap on this blog before retirement will probably be a positive one of that. I am still skeptical, but with the success of Thor Ragnarok, I am glad that Taika Waititi is attached to the project; and wants to be faithful to the source and cast unknown Japanese actors in the lead roles. This, along with the original director Katsuhiro Otomo having final say on everything; gives me some cautious optimism; since both are subtle digs at the last director's infamous claims before he left the project.
On the other hand, I am much more skeptical about the live-action Voltron and Robotech ever getting made, especially in the wake of Pacific Rim just barely getting a sequel and the relative box office disappointments of Transformers: The Last Knight and the new Power Rangers. At this point, I submit a documentary about trying to get them made would probably be more interesting than any actual films would be. If you want a Voltron movie, I implore you to go watch Legendary Defenders on Netflix. It's as close as we're going to get right now, if ever.
In the latter case, there is another catalyst for making this post: the live-action remake of Battle Angel Alita next year. The film has been in development for ages, and will be released next July for the 25th anniversary of the franchise. The film will be a co-production between James Cameron and his company of Lightstorm Entertainment, with Robert Rodriguez directing with help from his company of Troublemaker Studios. While this should normally get me interested, based on what I've said above; I still have my doubts. It doesn't help that the design for the title character looks like this.
 |
| Alita, as played by Rosa Salazar (Maze Runner: The Death Cure). |
Even in an age where CGI can do many great things on film, that image is squarely in the uncanny valley. In fact, attempts to rationalize it by commenters online and a tweet that accused the detractors of being "fake woke" (really? That sounds like a 4-year-old that doesn't want to take a nap.) were shot down for the simple reason of this: how something looks in an anime or manga is not the same as how it looks in a movie. Although some people are suggesting that this could finally break the curse, I have my doubts. I mean, it has all the same red flags I saw with Ghost in the Shell, and spending $200 million to remake an anime that I am aware of; but not everyone is, is a very high risk. Though Cameron was understandably waiting for the technology to reach the stage where it could be done at all, it still ends up coming off somewhere in between a game of Tekken and those horrible YouTube videos with Spider-Man and Elsa doing unspeakable acts. The other cast members (including acclaimed actors Christoph Waltz and Jennifer Connelly) look fine, so I have no idea why she's the only one that had this done. It doesn't help that I can think of plenty of ways to have Rosa Salazar appear like Alita with makeup and practical special effects, since this looks like it was done by someone fiddling with Microsoft Paint.
 |
| Rosa Salazar or Meowth: who wore it better? |
I mean, when this screencap of Meowth looks more convincing than millions of dollars of special effects, maybe it's time to step back a bit. In an age where a raccoon and a talking tree can be movie stars, a neurosurgeon can bend reality to his will and Peter Cushing can take part in a movie despite the notable handicap of being dead; this doesn't make me want to part with my Hamilton. So, my plan for this one is to stay home, watch the original material (as well as Altered Carbon on Netflix); then buy a ticket to Mission: Impossible 6.
As for any more live-action anime adaptations, I will say this: if people are willing to put effort into the script and characters as much as the visuals and special effects; then I will support them. I am glad that Toei is getting directly involved with the live-action One Piece TV show, and I submit the Pirates of the Caribbean films would definitely be a good model to follow.
However, if they continue to crank out these miscast; badly-written, over-produced CGI trainwrecks, then I will continue to avoid them. If you keep giving these films a pass, then studios will keep making them. Without any compelling scripts or engaging characters to go with your creative sets and CGI androids, it's all a bunch of rattle and hum. It's less sound and fury, and more merely flickering lights and toys. Part of me is also hoping Alita could beat the odds, but with competition from Ant-man and the Wasp, Hotel Transylvania 3 and the aforementioned M:I 6 also on the docket for next July, it's a tall order to say the least.
Like with Ghost in the Shell, I will try to keep up with any more information as I get it, and continue the live-action experiments next year. For now, however, I just got back from my second viewing of The Last Jedi a while ago; so I will wait for the Dragon Ball Super marathon on Toonami tonight, and I will be back over the next couple days for my own brand of New Year's Evil: The Next Top 13 Pokémon Villains and the Next Top 13 anime villains! See you, space cowboy!
No comments:
Post a Comment