What the Fantasy Genre Needs.

Toby Frost said:
I'm amazed that nobody has suggested a reboot of Knightmare yet.

Knightmare - Wikipedia

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I went to see a live version of Knightmare with the man himself Hugo Myatt running the show, and it was great fun.

It would be interesting to see how a new version would go, but I'm not sure it would work.

I'd love to see another puppet-style scifi series. They have a different feel to animation and obviously quite different from real life actors, but a show similar to X Bomber/Star Fleet aimed at an adult audience would be pretty cool. Unlikely to ever happen or be successful if it did, but would be great from a personal point of view.
 
I watched SWORD OF THE VALIANT recently--I found it kind of lacking-it wasn't Hawk the Slayer in greatness but the set decoration etc was better than I expected--I still prefer the 1973 version.

I think a knights in armor movie seems kind of boring on paper but I watched a couple which had really good knight scenes--Prince Valiant 1954 and The Warriors 1955. They used to sell these little miniature knight figures and they so closely resembled the knights in that movie.
So colourful.
Not the dreary looking skies and bland armor.
Maybe they should try that approach.

The black knight in Prince Valiant = Darth Vader.
 

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I guess I might be one of the few who don't like medieval or heroic fantasy like the Conan series very much. I take mine contemporary, for the most part. I do think the fantasy genre needs some help, but I don't think it needs any more barbarians or demons. Fantasy is a genre with many possibilities and I feel authors in the field limit themselves too much.
 
It puzzles me when people complain that there isn't enough variety in the fantasy genre when I have no problem finding books that take place in all sorts of settings and with all kinds of premises. It does help, I think, if one doesn't limit oneself to authors of one gender and books for one age group, because a lot of the variety I am seeing is admittedly sold as YA (though with some rather mature themes, and by mature I don't mean sexual but serious and relevant) and/or with main characters who are female, which I know a lot of men automatically avoid. People choose what they want to read, as is their right, but by instinctively turning always toward the familiar they do limit their chances of finding something fresh and new. There is lots and lots that is new out there. I don't say that all of it appeals to me personally, but when a book disappoints me it is seldom because it lacks originality. More often it is something lacking in the characters.

What I would like to see more of and what the fantasy genre actually needs may be two different things, since the world does not (alas) revolve around my personal tastes, but if it was up to me, I'd like to see more character development combined with superior worldbuilding and fresh premises.
 
KGeo777 said:
I remember it advertised as Rona Jaffe's Mazes and Monsters.

The only Jaffe I am familiar with is Sam Jaffe.
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Sam Jaffee was great charter actor in lost films . I recall he played Gunga Din, He played one the lead scientists in The Day The Earth Stood Still, a holocaust survivor in one of the segments for the movie pilot of Night Gallery . He was around for a long time played many roles in movies and television. In the Ben Casey tv series , he was Dr Zorba . The last film I recall seeing him was Battle Beyond the Stars he played the scientist Dr Hephaestus.
 
BAYLOR said:
The last film I recall seeing him was Battle Beyond the Stars he played the scientist Dr Hephaestus.
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I think of his role in that almost daily!
His line:
"My daughter."

The producer, Gale Anne Hurd, she did a commentary for the movie and when one of those clone aliens is told that the doctor is an expert at inflicting pain, he says: "It's good to have skills."
She said she used that line all the time since-and didn't realize it was inspired by the movie.

The commentary with John Sayles and Roger Corman is a really good conversation on filmmaking.
 
KGeo777 said:
I think of his role in that almost daily!
His line:
"My daughter."

The producer, Gale Anne Hurd, she did a commentary for the movie and when one of those clone aliens is told that the doctor is an expert at inflicting pain, he says: "It's good to have skills."
She said she used that line all the time since-and didn't realize it was inspired by the movie.

The commentary with John Sayles and Roger Corman is a really good conversation on filmmaking.
Click to expand...

As an actor , I always liked Sam Jaffe no matter what role Battle Beyond the stars a had a great cast of actors Among them was Jeff Cory, anther great long time character actor and I think Marta Kristen who play Judy Robinson in Lost in Sace had a cameo role in that film.:unsure:
 
BAYLOR said:
I think Marta Kristen who play Judy Robinson in Lost in Sace had a cameo role in that film.:unsure:
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Oh yes-I thought she seemed familiar.
She is the one who laughs when he shows her the drink making thing.
 
I think Elizabeth Moon's 'Deed of Paksenarrion', the first three books especially, would make a good TV show.
 
KGeo777 said:
I watched SWORD OF THE VALIANT recently--I found it kind of lacking-it wasn't Hawk the Slayer in greatness but the set decoration etc was better than I expected--I still prefer the 1973 version.

I think a knights in armor movie seems kind of boring on paper but I watched a couple which had really good knight scenes--Prince Valiant 1954 and The Warriors 1955. They used to sell these little miniature knight figures and they so closely resembled the knights in that movie.
So colourful.
Not the dreary looking skies and bland armor.
Maybe they should try that approach.

The black knight in Prince Valiant = Darth Vader.
Click to expand...
Ive seen Sword of the Valiant. visually stunning and Love Sean Connery as the Green Knight. This film comes ever so close to being a good film. But , I still like it.:)

Ive seen {Prince Valiant and scarily enough Robert Wagner does a good job in the roles of Prince Valiant.:cool:

Ive seen Hawk the Slayer more than a few times , warts and all , this is a fun film to watch. It clearly deserved to have sequels.:cool:
 
The 1973 version feels like a school educational film on the Middle Ages but I liked it because it felt so regional. It didn't feel Hollywood-influenced. I could feel transported back to the Middle Ages watching that.

On second viewing the negatives of Prince Valiant show more but it still works as an adventure story.
They could do cool stuff with knights and dragons and ogres...but Jack the Giant Slayer had very muddy cinematography.

Robin Hood 2010--what a disaster that was.
Wasted opportunity. They could have done so much with a cast like that.
 
KGeo777 said:
The 1973 version feels like a school educational film on the Middle Ages but I liked it because it felt so regional. It didn't feel Hollywood-influenced. I could feel transported back to the Middle Ages watching that.

On second viewing the negatives of Prince Valiant show more but it still works as an adventure story.
They could do cool stuff with knights and dragons and ogres...but Jack the Giant Slayer had very muddy cinematography.

Robin Hood 2010--what a disaster that was.
Wasted opportunity. They could have done so much with a cast like that.
Click to expand...

I didn't care much for the 2010 Robin Hood


Jack the Giant Killer wasn't a bad film at all.
 
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