The Day of the Triffids

[mediastar]

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Remake screened on Monday and Tuesday.

[ginnie]

Was looking forward to this but it was dreadful.

[jedidjahjulia]

was it? I've recorded it, was looking forward to it... Will watch it and let you know if I liked it. Am looking forwrd to the Taming of the Screw tonight too, by the way.

[Foxello]

Was looking forward to this but it was dreadful.

Same. Was expecting something quite good but it was like a poor man's Dr Who, and the ending was too farfetched. Waste of 3 hours bed time........

[dexydal]

We were really looking forward to watching it.  What a load of rubbish, didn't even bother with last night's.

[Dreamweaver]

Maybe I am easily pleased .... I thoroughly enjoyed it!

[mediastar]

I recorded it too but over skimmed it. What I can't figure out is why it felt so boring. Was it the script, that comedian as a lead actor, Vanessa Redgrave, poor acting or just that the BBC can't do drama besides soaps and bonnets these days?

[ginnie]

If you've never seen the 1981 adaptation (six 30 min episodes) with John Duttine, you can find it on youtube.  This was faithful to the original story, and is way more effective in exploring the effects of the catastrophe and the difficulties faced by the characters.  (No glaring plot holes, which the latest adaptation freely created for itself.)

The triffids were better too.

[jedidjahjulia]

I just finished watching the first part together with Mr.Julia and we both had a blast - shouting at the tv, that is. So we'll definately be watching the second part as well...
I sincerely don't understand why noone saw that the script needed work before shooting this thing, as there's so much beginners faults in it. I'm a screenwriter myself so I can see it very clearly but in this case anyone can see what's wrong with the thing. The biggest problem is that WE JUST DON'T CARE because 1. we don't know anything about the main characters and 2. the world is in such a mess that noone has any idea what to do so why would we?
Everyone had been instructed by the director to act very slowly and underwhelmed, or so it seems. Noone is emotional or worried about anything - well, the extra's and minor characters are, but the main characters aren't.
And to be honest, those Triffids seem to be the least of their problems, the planet is doomed as it is, the production designers really did their best to show us a world that is totally wrecked.
I was secretly hoping that dr. Who would fly by to help, but alas. MediaStar, to answer your "question", it was all definately the screenplay (and partly the direction). I really felt sorry for the actors who stood no chance of ever making this work. Oh, and under what rock did they dig up Jason Priestley?!  

[ginnie]

It was just ludicrous.  "Taking over London", for godsake!  If you're going to try and survive, you go somewhere you can cultivate the land.  London would have been a most unhealthy place to be.  Where was the disease that rapidly spread, with all those bodies lying around and the breakdown of sanitation?  They left it out!  

Arrghh, there was so much wrong with it that I can't face listing all the mistakes. 

[Spawn]

Oh where to begin. As stated above where was the plague? If it was based on the book how could they leave the plague out? Why suddenly is it the main charachters mum that had first intereacted with triffids who on earth dreamed up that weak plot?

  The book was brilliant because Windham follows a sequence where he gueses at whats happening about how to deal with it and comes up with one soloution which is then challanged by Coca who represents another. This version didnt do that. insread it was just the script writers from the TV series A team givinbg it a bash.

 Dire dire dire

[jedidjahjulia]

Well I finished the second part two and I just couldn't believe the ending. I haven't read the book (but am going to do so, it has been on my "to read" list for a long time) but can someone who did explain to me if the ending there is as ludicrous?
At first they wanted to fight the Triffids and were worried about saving mankind but in the end they found out about the mask and the juice (which just came out of nothing despite the recurring flashbacks) and they decided to just go to the Isle of Wight and let everything be. They were even sort of happy, why not sad about the fact that they were not able to save the world. I mean, not all of mankind fits on that isle....