When British TV Goes To Hollywood

Super-sizing the UK's small-screen classics

By Simon KinnearJan 15th 2010
1

Edge Of Darkness (2010)

The Original:  The BBC’s acclaimed 1985 Cold War thriller about a copper (Bob Peck) discovering a massive conspiracy after daughter Joanne Whalley dies. 

Directed by future Bond reboot king Martin Campbell from a complex script by Italian Job scribe Troy Kennedy Martin, it swept the BAFTAS with six wins, including Best Drama Series and Best Actor.

The Makeover:  Unusually for a remake, the original team – director Campbell and producer Michael Wearing – are on board, alongside three alumni from The Departed: producer Graham King, writer William Monaghan and co-star Ray Winstone.

Sturdy credentials, then – but all eyes are on Mel Gibson, in his first acting role since 2002 after taking time off to direct two obscure foreign-language movies.

Moment You Know You're Watching A Hollywood Movie:   Sombre and downbeat it may have been, but the British version didn't skimp on set-pieces, notably an agonisingly tense infiltration of the enemy's stronghold.

The one thing it didn't have, though, was a car chase.  Then again, the original didn't star Mad Max.   

1 of 13

Latest Reviews

Comments

    • EmilyFJ

      Jan 27th 2010, 16:28

      The Hitchhiker's TV series came out in 1981 and Adams wrote five books before he died.

      Alert a moderator

    • BillC

      Jan 27th 2010, 22:42

      A little depressing it may be, but the film version of "Pennies From Heaven" was one of the most grossly under-appreciated films of its decade.

      Alert a moderator

    • SimonK

      Jan 28th 2010, 16:41

      EmilyFJ - the series was indeed 1981. 1989 is a glaring typo; as a huge H2G2 fan, it pains me to look at it. As for numbers, I specified four (not five) because I was referring to different media - ie radio/novel/telly/film - rather than the number of books.

      Alert a moderator

    • DanielMcA

      Feb 11th 2010, 19:48

      @SimonK Much as I like Mos Def his casting was a mistake. Ford Prefect acts as exposition so the audience needs a clear explanation of what is going on in a complicated, rapidly changing universe (particularly within the comparatively brief running time of a movie). Mos Def is a mumbler. If you didn't already know what was going on you wouldn't have a clue.

      Alert a moderator

Leave a comment

Latest News