He is by turns both frightening and vicious, but there is always the hint of a pathetic Richard III type – a photocopier salesman who became a tyrant when the opportunity arose. In this role, Will Patton’s General Bethlehem was a point of derision by critics of the time, but I suspect they misunderstood what he was trying to do. For one thing, there is a well-defined hero and a definite, singular villain. The film version of The Postman is, like most good adaptations, streamlined.
The reluctant hero might seem like a well-worn movie trapping, but it reflects one of the main themes of the book, one that could be summed up with the saying: “All that is needed for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing.” Throughout the book, the main character reflects that his quest is to find someone who is willing to take responsibility for things, and gradually, it dawns upon him that the mantle is his. The Postman is certainly a classic slice of what Costner does best, in contrast with the unlikable, emotionally dull performances of, say, Viggo Mortensen in The Road (2009) or Denzel Washington in The Book Of Eli (2010). To some, he brings a likeable, intelligent, everyman quality to a heroic role. Whether you enjoy his characterisation probably depends on how you feel about Costner. Preserved is the premise of a scam, involving an old postal uniform, that is so effective that it soon takes on a life of its own.Īs the loner who gets caught up in events and eventually comes good, Costner’s character is fairly stock. The film adaptation strips out the futuristic elements of the latter parts of the book (genetic engineering, super computers) and grounds the story as a pure survivalist tale that could be considered a neo-western. “Instinctively realizing that the tale ought to be about decency, heroism and hope, he threw out all the dismal old drafts and hired Brian Helgeland, esteemed screenwriter of L.A. It’s as though the author took every suggestion he had been given and tried to cram it in into the final part. Part three is where the story takes a somewhat different tack, with a jarring transition into the realms science fiction rather than the speculative fiction of the first two parts.
Part two follows on from this, and details his contact with a technological civilisation that aspires to reform and reclaim the wasteland. Part one is a highly entertaining story that follows the adventures of the main character as he journeys across the remnants of a disaster-ravaged North America. Originally, it comprised three short novels that were later collated into a longer book in three parts. In a nutshell, the film is a somewhat different adventure featuring the same character, setting and premise.Īlthough a great read, the source novel has some problems of its own.
The Postman is loosely based on the book of the same name, and like all adaptations, the filmmakers were faced with choices over the content.
0 kommentar(er)
