Film versions of musicals that are unfaithful to the original- Page 2

[Kringas]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 2:38pm

The 1951 version of Show Boat.

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 2:39pm

I think Fiddler is one of the most faithful.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 2:56pm

I think the biggest change in Fiddler was making it look and feel more "realistic." The original show had very stylized sets (almost like Van Gogh paintings --- Starry Night, etc.). It felt like short stories or tales come to life from literature (which it was).

The movie had real locations, and a more "realistic" cast. As upset as some fans were in not having Zero Mostel recreate Tevye on film, he was too "theatrical." Topol was the right choice for the movie they made.

EDIT: I would love to see "Into the Woods" approached the same way as a film. Realistic. Even though it's a fantasy, I'd love to see a big "woodsy" setting, on location, with realistic characters/performances... Take it completely out of the "storybook."

Updated On: 12/14/05 at 02:56 PM

[Sant]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 3:15pm

MY FAIR LADY is probably the most faithful movie adaptation of a stage musical that I've seen.

Of course, THE PHANTOM... movie was somewhat different from the stage show (Mme Giry bringing The Phantom into the Opera house, the chandelier falling in a different point of the story, The Phantom's disappearance is done differently, some of the songs being a bit altered from the stage version etc.)

EVITA was a bit different, no major changes though. Changing the singer of "Another Suitcase..." was pretty much the biggest change that I remember.

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 3:17pm

I agree, I love Topol in the movie.

And the movie is almost word to word close to the staged show (except for the added bit where you see Golde going to the church which I thought was fine...and showing the fight - which really shows the difference between the city and rural Anatevka.)

[Kringas]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 3:18pm

Someone mentioned West Side Story earlier, but apart from switching "Cool" and "Krupke," and moving "I Feel Pretty" up to the first half, that movie is pretty damn faitful to the stage version.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 3:20pm

The biggest change in Phantom actually ruined the film for me. They made the Phantom's character a dashing, swashbuckling super-hero. It was a terrible idea. I want my Phantom to be a monster and a horror. Let me fall in love with him for other reasons... not because he looks "hot" at the ball.

EDIT: And Kringas, I agree. The West Side changes were similar to Sound of Music and Oliver! Mostly clever repositioning, which actually helped the stories they were telling.

Updated On: 12/14/05 at 03:20 PM

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 3:21pm

I agree best12.

Afterall, POTO is supposed to be a horror story with love healing all, no-ish?

[Hanna from Hamburg]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 3:22pm

Yeah, she should have taken his clothes off and left the mask on.

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 4:00pm

"Someone mentioned West Side Story earlier, but apart from switching "Cool" and "Krupke," and moving "I Feel Pretty" up to the first half, that movie is pretty damn faitful to the stage version."

I said something to that nature, but the changing of those song order really changed the dymnaics of the show, IMO. Also, another change is the Addition of the Shark boys in "America." It was all Shark girls in the original.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 5:16pm

There's also the irritating habbit of adding one or two "new" songs into film versions. I think many times (not always) it's hoping one will get an Oscar nod for Original Song... sometimes it works, and sometimes it feels so "tacked on."

Evita - You Must Love Me (Oscar winner)
Phantom - Learn To Be Lonely (nominated)
Music Man - Being In Love
Sound of Music (two:) - I Have Confidence & Something Good
Sweet Charity - My Personal Property & It's a Nice Face
A Chorus Line - Surprise, Surprise (nominated)
Little Shop - Mean Green Mother... (nominated)
The Wiz - You Can't Win & Is This What Feeling Gets?

[bwayboi4life42]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 5:35pm

The movie version of "Evita" kept most of the first act the same, but they switched/changed a lot in the second act. It didn't bother me that much, though.

"Hello, Dolly" is pretty faithful, as well.

[jackson992]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 6:42pm

hmmm IMO Rent and Annie both were faithful to the original so not sure where this thread is going.

[Marquise]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 6:47pm

annie? was faithful to the original?
you're not referring to the 1982 john huston directed overblown fiasco are you?
because that most definitely was NOT failthful to the original stage production.


"climbing up an elevated railroad track to escape the bad guys..." talk about over-the-top, overly dramatic puke inducing pablum.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 6:53pm

Actually they did change the message of Evita. The stage version is much more anti-Evita than the movie is.

[jackson992]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 6:53pm

Both Annie fils I thought were faithful to the original, the Disney one and the 80s one I think it is

[broadwayboy430]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 7:19pm

yeah, a chorus line for sure

[Marquise]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 7:25pm

the 1982 big screen version of annie is far from faithful to the original show.

for starters the show's best known song was relegated to the opening credits sung by a chorus of sickly sweet orphans and then sung again by Annie, Warbucks, Eleanor and Franklin D Roosevelt. that is NOT the way it was done on stage.

NYC was jettisoned for an overblown piece of crap: "Let's Go To The Movies"

The characters of Punjab and The Asp although part of the original strip were NOT in the stage version.

And Annie doesn't try to escape Rooster, Lily and Miss Hannigan by, of all things climbing up an elevated railroad track only to be rescued by a helicopter....

so no that version of ANNIE was not faithful to the stage show.

you may have it confused with the television movie.



Updated On: 12/14/05 at 07:25 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 8:47pm

Yes, I agree about Annie.

Let's take a show with a signature hit song ("Tomorrow")... and then CUT it from the film.

They play it as a complete throw-away (almost like a "love theme") over the opening titles, and then they do the small reprise in the White House with Roosevelt.

But the whole scene where Annie runs away from the orphanage, finds Sandy, and saves his life from the pound... and belts out "Tomorrow" fearlessly, while standing next to a trash can (pretty dramatic, actually)... was CUT.

Brilliant.

They missed the entire point... and heart of the show. Why even bother, then?

(Rumor has it this was because John Huston hated the song. Hey, John... then direct another movie, and get out of the way of this one!)

[Tirso de Molina]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 9:29pm

The Sound of Music film really mutes the original book's political content. In the stage version, the Baroness's willingness to accomodate the Nazis and thus keep control of her late husband's very profitable manufacturing empire is the key reason for the failure of her relationship with Capt. von Trapp. In the film, Eleanor Parker graciously steps aside when she realizes that the Captain really loves Maria and the financial consequences to her of resisting the Nazis are not mentioned, much less her willingness to essentially collaborate in order to protect her, er, assets.

[gumbo2]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 9:41pm

waaaaaaait a minute. I recently saw Sound of Music at the 5th Ave. in Seattle, and the songs "I Have Confidence" and "Something Good" were definitely in there. And the baroness/Nazis plotline wasn't in there either, I don't think. The differences I noticed were they sing "My Favorite Things" at the convent instead of during the storm, and during the storm they sing the yodeling one (I forget what it's called). Is this different than the original stage show?

[Marquise]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 10:14pm

i have confidence and something good were both written specifically for the film version. they both have music and lyrics by richard rodgers. oscar hammerstein II had passed away by the time the film was made.


getting back to that monstrosity known as annie...

they added that other obnoxiously annoying song "dumb dog" and "sign" for hannigan and warbucks as well as "we got annie"for grace. the only redeeming quality to "we got annie" was to see ann reinking exhibit those long lucious killer legs of hers, those other songs positively reeked.

funny john huston hated the song "tomorrow", which just happened to be the show's signature song... that's just absurd.
he's an idiot.

[gumbo2]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 10:45pm

Yes, in the program there were asterisks by those songs, saying that both music and lyrics were by Rodgers. They definitely added them in the show...interesting. As for Annie, I agree, the film version just totally ruined it for me.

[DG]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 11:25pm

PAINT YOUR WAGON.

[jackson992]

Posted: 12/14/05 at 11:31pm

I actually loved Dumb Dog & especially Sign. Sign was a great song for Carol along with her Little Girls. I think we also need to be acreful of how we use the word unfauthful. Just because things were changed in the movie doesn't mean a film was unfaithful IMO