Something Wicked This Way Comes - Blog Post #5

"By the prickling of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes."

     One of my favorite book is called Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. The book is about a mysterious carnival that rolls into town at midnight in October, led by the enticing but menacing Mr. Dark. A nightmare comes to life as 2 boys, Jim Nightshade and William Halloway, fall into the hands of Mr. Dark. Lured by what they want most, they encounter countless of disturbing situations. Be careful for what you wish for…
     As for the movie, I was not satisfied. Many things were changed, from the little details to even main events. One of the most important event that was changed was the way Mr. Dark was killed (I will not spoil how he died in the book) and the way the Dust Witch was killed. Another important aspect changed was how the Dust Witch travels to the homes of Jim and Will (they’re neighbors). In the book, she travels via hot air balloon, but in the movie she travels in as a green smog that’s just makes the movie kind of dumb. Because the movie was released in 1983, the visual effects weren't all that great. Despite the changed scenes in the movie, some parts were good. One part of the movie that was similar to the book and well executed was the part where Mr. Halloway and Mr.Dark confront each other in the library. As for the characters, Mr.Dark lacked in appearance. From the description in the book, Mr.Dark is supposed to have black hair and many tattoos all over his body (which gives Mr.Dark the nickname, The Illustrated Man). The movie did not portray him this way. The way Mr.Dark acted in the film was, in my opinion, close to what he is like in the book. (Jonathan Pryce played the role of Mr.Dark) Overall, the movie wasn't as good as the book but still entertained me.
    If I were to remake a movie, I would follow the book. The movie still, might not be the same as the book exactly but I would be sure to keep the main events the same. In the movie, they missed many events important to the moral of the story. This includes the death of the Dust Witch and the ending (how Mr.Dark dies). By remaking the movie with all the technology we have now, we can create a less corny version. It'll be more visually appealing, more realistic, and more accurate compared to the original movie. We can create the hot air balloon the Dust Witch rides in, the mirror maze (the characters see different things in the mirror other than themselves), the age changing carousel, the appearance of the carnival freaks (Mr.Dark's imprisoned workers), etc. The casting would have to be different because the characters that played in the original movie are too old for the role now. I would take out some of the father-son talking from the book because it would just drag on the movie and get boring, but it would be critical to keep the information that the audience needs to know in order to understand the story.

I feel like a new movie needs to be made for this book, it would be much better than the original.

Mr.Dark and his parade.