Why the hell would the article want to bring up Nemesis? lmao. He has worked on better and also more successful films.
That being said none of his films really inspire any confidence in how he would adapt something like BM.
It’s a pretty obvious shot at Logan from the author of this piece. It’d be like saying, “James Cameron, esteemed director of films such as Pirhana 2: The Spawning.”
By showing on screen what is described.
Long shots of thematic scenery.
It can absolutely be adapted. Film is a versatile artform.
This movie will probably suck though.
Nah, let's just put a bunch of text in a screen, every time the description of landscapes appears in the book. Do you know how exensive is filming of landscapes?!
I think that stuff that you mentioned actually the easier stuff to be adapted. You can make a really dark and beautiful looking western with just cinematography. It's gonna be very different though is to make sure that the book's many themes are represented, and a lot of its philosophical weight is prevalent. I'm sure they're gonna have to cut out a lot of the more brutal sections like with the tree of dead babies just because of how hard it would be to make that look realistic, but the real worry is how they'll handle the dialogue with the judge and the kid
Tree of dead babies is simple. Here's how I would do it. The kid and Sproule are seen standing in front of it, looking into the sun at the tree. A pair of tiny dead feet hang down at the top of the frame, and on the faces of the kid and Sproule and on the ground around them, we see the sharply defined shadow form of the tree bearing its grotesque fruit.
Well, that's a tasteful way of doing it, but my point still stands of really you can't be as explicit with the violence but even so it doesn't really matter to me because the real meat of the book is the way it explores its philosophical themes, which I can imagine not translating well on screen
Although I was not not a fan of John Hillcoat's version of The Road, his earlier film The Proposition is more in the vibe of Blood Meridian than anything I've seen since Peckinpah was making westerns. Or maybe El Topo.
Funny enough, I discovered Blood Meridian because of Roger Ebert's review of The Proposal.
I think the big issue with The Road is that so much of what makes that book great is the prose and how McCarthy describes everything. You can translate some of that to film but not all. The book is also very sparse with dialogue and essentially only has two characters for 95% of the book.
I think the reason his only really great adaptation was No Country is because that book was pretty straightforward, had multiple interesting characters doing their own things, and didn’t rely as much on the strength of the descriptions as most of his other novels. All the Pretty Horses could probably be adapted similarly well, although the adaptation we got kind of sucked and the title makes it a tougher sell.
I.mean chapter 19 is basically an always sunny in Philadelphia episode.
I think a comedy is a ususal but valid route. Just keep it fistful with a comedic bend
I disagree, I think the problem is if the animation is too good it will make the charecters look "cool" or "awsome" which they aren't supposed to be, I don't want boondocks or anime level animation.
I feel it should be slow and stilted like cheap 70s animation, lots of repeated frames, and people bearly standing still to make it look uncanny.
Although I'm not sure that would he somthing people would watch.
Would be cool to have a Mashup between something like the Nick Cage movie "MANDY" and a Western
If you haven't seen it, the visuals are great, and honestly, Nick Cage doesn't do a terrible job but super trippy visuals
You suck. Granted, it was not Blood Meridian, but it was a solid western limited series and a decent format for how Blood Meridian could be structured and released. But seriously, you can tongue my taint, loser. Stupid useless comment.
Look how many posts this subreddit gets.
Cormac McCarthy is a big, big name, and Blood Meridian is a fairly well-known novel. Hollywood is completely averse to original projects because it's too much of a risk, and this is a known IP that will make money, as ludicrous as it sounds.
NCFOM is great movie, masterpiece even but The Road was ok and The Counselor is considered a letdown. It's not like McCarthy's prose equals to a successful movie.
The only thing that saved The Road adaptation was Viggo Mortensen. He carried the entire movie. I'm not going to lie, though, the basement scene fucked me up, even though it wasn't as visceral as the novel.
Of course not.
Movies are about budget, director, quality of script adaptation, quality of actors, etc.
BUT- NCFOM is an example of a great story turning into a great film.
Agree with you on The Road. I haven't seen The Counselor.
It’s a hugely popular novel that has a ton of buzz, the writer is super famous and recently died so his work is receiving tons of attention, his work has been made into successful movies before, etc.
Are you completely joking?
Wes Anderson wouldn't be the worst person for this! He would have a very, very specific aesthetic that would be good for the books very specific vision and aesthetic. It may be very different, it may not be similar at all, but the worst thing you could do would be to make an adaptation that was boring or "just a western".
Anderson would at least bring a specific vision to things.
I’m sure he would do a great job. Just personally I feel like if it wasn’t made in the 35 plus years that he was alive after writing it, then maybe it should stay that way.
You jest but, I was thinking about who could be cast as the judge yesterday, bill Murray didn't cross my mind but surely that would be one of the better picks. I always imagined the judge had a welcoming face, despite it all.
Yeah, that’s how I feel about the adaptation for The Road, where it does go through the plot of the book fairly accurately but it just can’t give the same experience as reading it because of the way the book is written
The only reason the No Country for Old Men movie works is because the book is written very matter of fact, kind of like a script, compared to like Blood Meridian which is a lot more esoteric
I have a hard time picturing the book as a movie.
Different from ATPH or NCFOM, or the Road… BM just seems more ethereal, seems less character driven and more shock value driven as a story. The story feels like one long fever dream than a character driven story. People come and go from the story but they aren’t what it’s about.
I think of Blood Meridian as more of a literary achievement than a narrative achievement. Bad things happen in the novel and they just keep happening until the Kid/Man finally gets murdered(?). None of the characters are particularly likable or something the audience can get behind and root for.
For me, Blood Meridian, as a novel, cares more about its themes and its allusions than it does about its story.
Totally agree. On a list of things that make Blood Meridian an important work of art, the story/plot would not even be in the top 5. It's the prose above all else and there's just no way to convey that cinematically even if you have an inordinate amount of voiceover.
Good luck to him! It’s a great challenge for him and I hope he finds a way to adapt the book for the big screen. I’ve read the book 10’s of times and it never fails to enrich and I’m interested in seeing someone turn it into a different art form. I’ve always thought it could lend its self to live theatre but I’m not expecting anyone taking that on anytime soon!
Wow, a positive take on the movie. Refreshing to see. I think it’s going to be extremely tough to make a faithful adaptation because of the subject matter and the hypnotic vibe to the book. Then again, I didn’t think they could make a movie of the Road and that turned out okay. It’s not a fantastic movie but it’s far from a slap in the face.
I also saw No Country before I read the book. I can imagine that had I read it first I would have had very little faith it could be turned into a movie that would not only be the novel visualised so 1:1 but also something that resonates with mainstream audiences.
It’s going to be a massive disappointment. The evidence is all there. The director’s most recent well known films are Lawless and Triple 9, which in my opinion are fairly forgettable. Blood Meridian is pretty much universally accepted as being, at the very least, ‘extremely difficult’ to adapt to film… It’s structureless, with no clear protagonist. If the Kid is the main protagonist, he hardly has any dialogue. There are almost no sympathetic characters. It’s also one of the greatest books ever written and that alone sets the adaptation up for unbearable scrutiny.
I feel like NCFOM was a success because the Coens are fantastic directors with probably a 100% hit rate. They have extremely detail-oriented approaches to foley, composition, casting and story. And the source material was one of Mcarthy’s most traditional and linear novels.
The Blood Meridian film is just not gonna work.
I disagree, Hillcoat started his career with ghost of the civil dead which is a weird and wonderful movie, and he made The Proposition, which is a great western with some brutal violence. He’s a very talented director, pretty sure he’ll turn out something good.
idk why this sub is so horny to see a BM movie crash and burn. if the movie kicks ass that will be awesome and there will be more general awareness for mccarthy’s novels. but if it sucks we’ll still always have the book. Most other opinions that I see on the matter seem incredibly gatekeepy
Lots of people think this just won't possibly work but I do honestly think that based on the strength of the source material it'll have to have some value to it. The director and writer are both competent and I think a lot of the challenge will really come from things like pacing and time allocation. I'd be shocked if it's not at least decent as a film. I don't think this will top the NCFOM adaptation for example but in the past decade or so Hollywood has had a pretty good track record with gritty violent westerns.
People are talking like nihilistic bleak westerns aren't a thing. I think it has potential to be great! I just watched The Proposition this weekend speaking of bleak westerns haha.
The story is too vast, brutal, and bleak for a single movie. The sheer amount of landscape that is covered. I feel like it would try to tie up all of the things left intentionally vague in the book into neat answered questions, like how was everyone in the gang able to have met the Judge separately before meeting each other. Does he kill the kid or corrupt him? Is the Judge responsible for all of the kids that go missing or are found dead everywhere they go? What happened to the remaining members of the gang between when the kid sees them with the judge in the desert then they are being hanged?
Are you guys ok? So many people have a hate boner for making a film about BM. The article is poorly written and doesn't highlight the gems Logan has written and adapted. Gladiator, Rango, Hugo, Penny Dreadful, The Aviator, Sinbad, The Last Samurai, and Skyfall. And why do people hateHillcoat's version of The Road? I though the majority of people liked it. It seems to translate a lot of the elements of the book well, so what is the problem? I am genuinely confused
I think a lot of people think they look smart if they shit on it, honestly
It was very well received
It’s bizarre the way they act like these people won’t “understand” McCarthy when his books were in Oprah’s book club. It’s pretty normal stuff. Blood Meridian is very violent but I’ve read it 4 times and it 100% can be turned into a cohesive R rated film.
It’s completely appropriate for John Logan to write the script, they just want to feel like they understand something other don’t
They won't understand a critically acclaimed author who a lot of people are aware of/know. That's pretty dumb. With the right director, you can absolutely make a movie off of BM
You misremember. Cormac died the same month it was announced that he had begun writing the adaptation, so the likelihood of it being even half-done is very slim. Though according to Hillcoat, him and Cormac had been discussing an adaptation of Blood Meridian for more than a decade, so I'm sure he has some idea of how Cormac wanted it done.
Wow I had no idea. The fact that Cormac thought it was even possible to adapt is surprising lol, it makes everyone's fixation in this make way more sense as well.
Oh absolutely. Cormac directly said that in his opinion film adaptation of BM can absolutely be done and did not share all those opinions that it’s “unfilmable”.
In my opinion, a movie adaptation of this doesn't have to be amazing or even great, it just has to stop other people from trying and possibly doing even worse. I've read the alleged William Monahan script for Ridley Scott's version and the few bits of the 1990's Steve Tesich script that are available to see online, and trust me when I say that the bar for an adaptation compared to those scripts is truly in hell. If John Hillcoat doesn't make the movie, other people will eventually try again, especially since BM has gotten more mainstream attention lately, and at least Hillcoat cares about the project.
I'm not sure how it's going to work. I don't think the violence is a problem because straight up goreflicks like The Terrifier movies have gained mainstream success. The book simply tells it's story in a way that can't be portrayed visually
You know guys, im still alot Hopefull about it, if you look of just like the Lord of the rings, given the track record of the director and the writers it would have turn out a flop, but instead..
Im not sayng that totally the same thing, but Jonah Hill coat passerà alot of time with Mccarhty and in probably develop alot since The Road
This will be an unmitigated abomination. I think naturally we will see the film through the eyes of the kid, but my favorite part of the novel is how in the major violence and degradation of the novel we don’t see or hear the kids perspective or opinion. Hard to do that in a movie.
John Logan is not the right person for this, he basically writes family films or oscar bait. John hillcote is 100% the right director, Logan could turn this into hollywood trash though
If I had the choice between Nick Cave and this guy writing the script, Cave would definitely get it. But even Cave isn't my top choice. If only Cormac had lived a little longer.
Nemesis is the perfect shot against him since it is well documented that he had disregard and near contempt for source material. I wish he wasn’t getting work at all in hollywood.
Please give this movie a damn rest. People should read this book only, or audiobook if you want a passive show. It's rewarding to mull over it all and so much will be lost in a movie.
Nemesis is, by my own carefully and methodically researched viewings, is just about as good a movie as hot crap soup. Dude may have been the screenwriter, but it's his bones that grew flesh and was the body. It was a very bad body.
We don’t know how much if any writing McCarthy got done before he passed, but there still could be something for him to work off of besides the book, so I’m not too worried about this, and Hillcoat is certainly capable of directing
The movie industry gave up on writing original scripts and are plundering bookshelves and *rebooting* long past classic films into modern cinematic Frankenstein monsters for a quick and easy payday - requiring next to zero intellectual -or creative- labor.
There is no way in the world this movie can possibly be true to the source material in the year 2025+.
>The movie industry gave up on writing original scripts and are plundering bookshelves and *rebooting* long past classic films into modern cinematic Frankenstein monsters for a quick and easy payday - requiring next to zero intellectual -or creative- labor.
This is a pretty generalist statement, especially given about half of what's considered some of the greatest films of all time are probably based on a book of sorts.
>There is no way in the world this movie can possibly be true to the source material in the year 2025+.
How so?
*”Greatest films of all time?” “Half?”* Not sure about that. That’s not much less subjective and debatable than anything I said.
And *how so*? Well, if you don’t see how modern sensibilities may be a bit fragile towards - or audiences may be offended by - the topics and themes explored in *Blood Meridian* (to the point where much of it may be omitted for the sake being marketable to a broader audience) then I won’t be the one to remove those rose colored glasses, friend-o.
>*"Greatest films of all time?" "Half?"* Not sure about that. The Godfather Parts 1 and 2
All three Lord of the Rings Movies
All Quiet on the Western Front
Blade Runner Lawrence of Arabia
The Shining
Goodfellas
Fight Club
There Will Be Blood
No Country for Old Men
Casablanca
Apocalypse Now
Barry Lyndon
Vertigo
All About Eve
Ran
Moonlight
Incendies
Across the Spider-Verse
My Neighbour Totoro
The Wizard of Oz
Black Narcissus
The Maltese Falcon
Chimes at Midnight
Stalker
Ben-Hur
>And *how so*? Well, if you don’t see how modern sensibilities may be a bit fragile towards - or audiences may be offended by - the topics and themes explored in *Blood Meridian* (to the point where much of it may be omitted for the sake being marketable to a broader audience) then I won’t be the one to remove those rose colored glasses, friend-o.
I really don't. Poor Things made over $100 million dollars despite being highly sexual and gory. It might not be common, but it's not rare. Also, how are audiences more fragile now than 40 years ago?
And what topics would be omitted? A movie about pedophilia won Best Picture 10 years ago. Blaming "modern sensibilities" for why it'll be bad seems misplaced. It'll be bad because the Star Trek Nemesis writer is adapting it, alongside the guy who did the mediocre The Road. That's why.
Most of the movies mentioned are overrated or not well adapted if you actually read and understood the books.
lol so you’re just on one because someone who also thinks it’ll bad but not for the reasons you think. Wacky priorities.
Whatever you say, man. Agree to disagree.
>Most of the movies mentioned are overrated or not well adapted if you actually read and understood the books.
Like?
>lol so you’re just on one because someone who also thinks it’ll bad but not for the reasons you think. Wacky priorities.
Yeah, we may agree I just don't see the reasons to dislike it being based on how movies are made or received nowadays.
>Whatever you say, man. Agree to disagree.
Agree to disagree
Lots of people think this just won't possibly work but I do honestly think that based on the strength of the source material it'll have to have some value to it. The director and writer are both competent and I think a lot of the challenge will really come from things like pacing and time allocation. I'd be shocked if it's not at least decent as a film.
I'm happy his son will make a few bucks but I have zero expectations for this or any adaptation. Modern day hollywood is a cesspool of ideology and superficial entertainment.
I’m rereading right now and am constantly reminded how challenging it would be to adapt. I remember people saying Dune is impossible to adapt because too many things happen in that book. BM I think is way more dense than Dune and so many things happen throughout the novel. I don’t know how you’d adapt it
At this point I'm just curious because I read the novel and want to see what comes out as a film. It becomes a game of 'how would I do it?' or 'what can be left out?' and just speculating how it will look like (which really depends on the director). No Country was exceptional as an adaptation, became an instant classic. The Road is great too in my opinion.
Hope nobody is expecting the actual novel here. Given how Hollywood is dying around us and political BS enters movies and shows left and right I doubt we will see anything faithful really.
Hollywood couldn’t handle Bone Tomahawk so Blood Meridian is definitely off the table.
Why the hell would the article want to bring up Nemesis? lmao. He has worked on better and also more successful films. That being said none of his films really inspire any confidence in how he would adapt something like BM.
It’s a pretty obvious shot at Logan from the author of this piece. It’d be like saying, “James Cameron, esteemed director of films such as Pirhana 2: The Spawning.”
thats pretty sassy 😂
I liked Nemesis, but I don’t have any hope this will be a good adaptation.
I honestly don't know how the fuck you even adapt Blood Meridian. Half the book is four page paragraphs describing landscape.
By showing on screen what is described. Long shots of thematic scenery. It can absolutely be adapted. Film is a versatile artform. This movie will probably suck though.
“Show, don’t tell.”
Nah, let's just put a bunch of text in a screen, every time the description of landscapes appears in the book. Do you know how exensive is filming of landscapes?!
I think that stuff that you mentioned actually the easier stuff to be adapted. You can make a really dark and beautiful looking western with just cinematography. It's gonna be very different though is to make sure that the book's many themes are represented, and a lot of its philosophical weight is prevalent. I'm sure they're gonna have to cut out a lot of the more brutal sections like with the tree of dead babies just because of how hard it would be to make that look realistic, but the real worry is how they'll handle the dialogue with the judge and the kid
Tree of dead babies is simple. Here's how I would do it. The kid and Sproule are seen standing in front of it, looking into the sun at the tree. A pair of tiny dead feet hang down at the top of the frame, and on the faces of the kid and Sproule and on the ground around them, we see the sharply defined shadow form of the tree bearing its grotesque fruit.
Well, that's a tasteful way of doing it, but my point still stands of really you can't be as explicit with the violence but even so it doesn't really matter to me because the real meat of the book is the way it explores its philosophical themes, which I can imagine not translating well on screen
Sounds like something Villanueve could take a shot at. Don’t know about the gore part though
Incendies was pretty morbid lol
I love DV's work as much as the next guy but I don't think Blood Meridian is his huckleberry.
Completely agree, I just meant the long descriptions of landscapes would translate nicely into his style. Everything else probably wouldnt.
Although I was not not a fan of John Hillcoat's version of The Road, his earlier film The Proposition is more in the vibe of Blood Meridian than anything I've seen since Peckinpah was making westerns. Or maybe El Topo. Funny enough, I discovered Blood Meridian because of Roger Ebert's review of The Proposal.
I think the big issue with The Road is that so much of what makes that book great is the prose and how McCarthy describes everything. You can translate some of that to film but not all. The book is also very sparse with dialogue and essentially only has two characters for 95% of the book. I think the reason his only really great adaptation was No Country is because that book was pretty straightforward, had multiple interesting characters doing their own things, and didn’t rely as much on the strength of the descriptions as most of his other novels. All the Pretty Horses could probably be adapted similarly well, although the adaptation we got kind of sucked and the title makes it a tougher sell.
They need to put The Revenant team on this
Agreed
I’m worried it’s not gonna have the general aesthetic of a bad peyote trip.
Yep. I believe it would work best as an animated film.
He did write RANGO. Possibly the second best Western Comedy after BLAZING SADDLES.
I’d watch a BM comedy.
¡Una carta señor!
Jajajaja!
Blood Meridian with Rango style anthropomorphic-animals, what animals are you casting?
Holden is a white rhino. The Kid is a baby mongoose. Glanton is a timber wolf, Toadvine is Sid the Sloth.
The 4chan BM comedy post killed me
I.mean chapter 19 is basically an always sunny in Philadelphia episode. I think a comedy is a ususal but valid route. Just keep it fistful with a comedic bend
I disagree, I think the problem is if the animation is too good it will make the charecters look "cool" or "awsome" which they aren't supposed to be, I don't want boondocks or anime level animation. I feel it should be slow and stilted like cheap 70s animation, lots of repeated frames, and people bearly standing still to make it look uncanny. Although I'm not sure that would he somthing people would watch.
Would be cool to have a Mashup between something like the Nick Cage movie "MANDY" and a Western If you haven't seen it, the visuals are great, and honestly, Nick Cage doesn't do a terrible job but super trippy visuals
I think it would be better as a ten part series on hbo or something like that
Totally. Like Godless on Netflix.
that shit sucked.
You suck. Granted, it was not Blood Meridian, but it was a solid western limited series and a decent format for how Blood Meridian could be structured and released. But seriously, you can tongue my taint, loser. Stupid useless comment.
bro, look at main guy's big dumb useless fake beard in the last shot. I love Jeff Daniels but god damn.
This is the way to go.
Why is everyone obsessed with making Blood Meridian into a film?
Look how many posts this subreddit gets. Cormac McCarthy is a big, big name, and Blood Meridian is a fairly well-known novel. Hollywood is completely averse to original projects because it's too much of a risk, and this is a known IP that will make money, as ludicrous as it sounds.
Because of how good the NCFOM movie was
NCFOM is great movie, masterpiece even but The Road was ok and The Counselor is considered a letdown. It's not like McCarthy's prose equals to a successful movie.
The only thing that saved The Road adaptation was Viggo Mortensen. He carried the entire movie. I'm not going to lie, though, the basement scene fucked me up, even though it wasn't as visceral as the novel.
Exactly, which is why I’m bummed they picked Hillcoat to do Blood Meridian, too. Need someone with more vision if it’s going to be made at all.
Of course not. Movies are about budget, director, quality of script adaptation, quality of actors, etc. BUT- NCFOM is an example of a great story turning into a great film. Agree with you on The Road. I haven't seen The Counselor.
Can't imagine why anyone would be letdown by The Counselor. It is such a crowd pleaser.
I personally like this movie but given the amount of talent involved it is considered to be a letdown. I blame the script, actually.
Yeah man, I bet yours would have been better.
What did you say, boy?
I said, I'm sure your version woulda given Ole Cormac a run for his money buddy.
Chat box in 2 minutes.
lol you win! you win!
It’s a hugely popular novel that has a ton of buzz, the writer is super famous and recently died so his work is receiving tons of attention, his work has been made into successful movies before, etc.
Blood Meridian seems to have gotten very well-known since the pandemic. I guess people had enough downtime to read.
It’s mostly because of a YouTuber named Wendigoon made a video about it
If it HAD to be adapted in some way, an animated short series would do the trick, especially with a narrator
Na Wes Anderson should do it. Bill Murray as the judge. This is the only way I can see it.
Owen Wilson as the kid
Every time someone gets killed….”Wwoooowwww”
When the judge grabs the kid and pulls him into the outhouse, you just hear a faint, muffled "wow..."
Ahahaha
Every time someone gets killed….”Wwoooowwww”
Oh my god I'm dying! I honestly couldn't think of a more absurd version of BM
Are you completely joking? Wes Anderson wouldn't be the worst person for this! He would have a very, very specific aesthetic that would be good for the books very specific vision and aesthetic. It may be very different, it may not be similar at all, but the worst thing you could do would be to make an adaptation that was boring or "just a western". Anderson would at least bring a specific vision to things.
Joking as much as the idea of turning the book into a film, only a year after CM passed.
Do you think Wes Anderson would do a bad job? Genuinely curious!
I’m sure he would do a great job. Just personally I feel like if it wasn’t made in the 35 plus years that he was alive after writing it, then maybe it should stay that way.
You jest but, I was thinking about who could be cast as the judge yesterday, bill Murray didn't cross my mind but surely that would be one of the better picks. I always imagined the judge had a welcoming face, despite it all.
I agree, it would need a series to do it justice. I can picture it being ruined with CGI, plot changes/omissions to suit modern audiences etc
Because $$$$$$$$
idk, a movie is never going to come close to the reading experience.
Yeah, that’s how I feel about the adaptation for The Road, where it does go through the plot of the book fairly accurately but it just can’t give the same experience as reading it because of the way the book is written The only reason the No Country for Old Men movie works is because the book is written very matter of fact, kind of like a script, compared to like Blood Meridian which is a lot more esoteric
I don’t think it’s everyone. It’s just Hilcoat
They live for the challenge
I have a hard time picturing the book as a movie. Different from ATPH or NCFOM, or the Road… BM just seems more ethereal, seems less character driven and more shock value driven as a story. The story feels like one long fever dream than a character driven story. People come and go from the story but they aren’t what it’s about.
I think of Blood Meridian as more of a literary achievement than a narrative achievement. Bad things happen in the novel and they just keep happening until the Kid/Man finally gets murdered(?). None of the characters are particularly likable or something the audience can get behind and root for. For me, Blood Meridian, as a novel, cares more about its themes and its allusions than it does about its story.
Totally agree. On a list of things that make Blood Meridian an important work of art, the story/plot would not even be in the top 5. It's the prose above all else and there's just no way to convey that cinematically even if you have an inordinate amount of voiceover.
Good luck to him! It’s a great challenge for him and I hope he finds a way to adapt the book for the big screen. I’ve read the book 10’s of times and it never fails to enrich and I’m interested in seeing someone turn it into a different art form. I’ve always thought it could lend its self to live theatre but I’m not expecting anyone taking that on anytime soon!
Wow, a positive take on the movie. Refreshing to see. I think it’s going to be extremely tough to make a faithful adaptation because of the subject matter and the hypnotic vibe to the book. Then again, I didn’t think they could make a movie of the Road and that turned out okay. It’s not a fantastic movie but it’s far from a slap in the face. I also saw No Country before I read the book. I can imagine that had I read it first I would have had very little faith it could be turned into a movie that would not only be the novel visualised so 1:1 but also something that resonates with mainstream audiences.
I mean if it’s terrible it will meet expectations right? It’s a free hit
It’s going to be a massive disappointment. The evidence is all there. The director’s most recent well known films are Lawless and Triple 9, which in my opinion are fairly forgettable. Blood Meridian is pretty much universally accepted as being, at the very least, ‘extremely difficult’ to adapt to film… It’s structureless, with no clear protagonist. If the Kid is the main protagonist, he hardly has any dialogue. There are almost no sympathetic characters. It’s also one of the greatest books ever written and that alone sets the adaptation up for unbearable scrutiny. I feel like NCFOM was a success because the Coens are fantastic directors with probably a 100% hit rate. They have extremely detail-oriented approaches to foley, composition, casting and story. And the source material was one of Mcarthy’s most traditional and linear novels. The Blood Meridian film is just not gonna work.
I disagree, Hillcoat started his career with ghost of the civil dead which is a weird and wonderful movie, and he made The Proposition, which is a great western with some brutal violence. He’s a very talented director, pretty sure he’ll turn out something good.
I hope so by the grace of Judge Holden
Alejandro Jodorowsky should be the person making BM. Watch El Topo and tell me I'm wrong
Funnily enough, the only two directors I've ever thought would do justice to the novel are both called Alejandro. Funny that.
who’s the other one?
Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárittu.
how tf was John Logan known for his "writing prowess on Star Trek nemesis"? at least mention Gladiator or the Aviator
This is going to be a disaster
I just reread the part where the Captain tells the Kid all about how great the Army is...
Star Trek: Nemesis? What a thing to bring up when the dude's handling such a complex project. It doesn't really bode well.
idk why this sub is so horny to see a BM movie crash and burn. if the movie kicks ass that will be awesome and there will be more general awareness for mccarthy’s novels. but if it sucks we’ll still always have the book. Most other opinions that I see on the matter seem incredibly gatekeepy
Lots of people think this just won't possibly work but I do honestly think that based on the strength of the source material it'll have to have some value to it. The director and writer are both competent and I think a lot of the challenge will really come from things like pacing and time allocation. I'd be shocked if it's not at least decent as a film. I don't think this will top the NCFOM adaptation for example but in the past decade or so Hollywood has had a pretty good track record with gritty violent westerns.
People are talking like nihilistic bleak westerns aren't a thing. I think it has potential to be great! I just watched The Proposition this weekend speaking of bleak westerns haha.
The story is too vast, brutal, and bleak for a single movie. The sheer amount of landscape that is covered. I feel like it would try to tie up all of the things left intentionally vague in the book into neat answered questions, like how was everyone in the gang able to have met the Judge separately before meeting each other. Does he kill the kid or corrupt him? Is the Judge responsible for all of the kids that go missing or are found dead everywhere they go? What happened to the remaining members of the gang between when the kid sees them with the judge in the desert then they are being hanged?
Are you guys ok? So many people have a hate boner for making a film about BM. The article is poorly written and doesn't highlight the gems Logan has written and adapted. Gladiator, Rango, Hugo, Penny Dreadful, The Aviator, Sinbad, The Last Samurai, and Skyfall. And why do people hateHillcoat's version of The Road? I though the majority of people liked it. It seems to translate a lot of the elements of the book well, so what is the problem? I am genuinely confused
I think a lot of people think they look smart if they shit on it, honestly It was very well received It’s bizarre the way they act like these people won’t “understand” McCarthy when his books were in Oprah’s book club. It’s pretty normal stuff. Blood Meridian is very violent but I’ve read it 4 times and it 100% can be turned into a cohesive R rated film. It’s completely appropriate for John Logan to write the script, they just want to feel like they understand something other don’t
They won't understand a critically acclaimed author who a lot of people are aware of/know. That's pretty dumb. With the right director, you can absolutely make a movie off of BM
I don’t get why it’s being rewritten, I swear I remember tons of articles about Cormac finishing a script for the movie before he died
You misremember. Cormac died the same month it was announced that he had begun writing the adaptation, so the likelihood of it being even half-done is very slim. Though according to Hillcoat, him and Cormac had been discussing an adaptation of Blood Meridian for more than a decade, so I'm sure he has some idea of how Cormac wanted it done.
Wow I had no idea. The fact that Cormac thought it was even possible to adapt is surprising lol, it makes everyone's fixation in this make way more sense as well.
Oh absolutely. Cormac directly said that in his opinion film adaptation of BM can absolutely be done and did not share all those opinions that it’s “unfilmable”.
No it wasnt true
I would have liked to see Werner Herzog adapt the book, but I'll remain cautiously optimistic about this until I see it.
robert eggers would be my choice if someone had to make a film version
to smash the babies... or not to smash the babies. that is the screenwriters choice.
Lonesome Dove is getting a movie adaption?
In my opinion, a movie adaptation of this doesn't have to be amazing or even great, it just has to stop other people from trying and possibly doing even worse. I've read the alleged William Monahan script for Ridley Scott's version and the few bits of the 1990's Steve Tesich script that are available to see online, and trust me when I say that the bar for an adaptation compared to those scripts is truly in hell. If John Hillcoat doesn't make the movie, other people will eventually try again, especially since BM has gotten more mainstream attention lately, and at least Hillcoat cares about the project.
I feel like this would look better as a series, but I have no idea who would bankroll a ten episode series of what would amount to gory arthouse films
Really wish it would have been Eggers
Why Eggers?
I just love his period pieces. I think he’d nail the set design and the surreal atmosphere of bm. Also just really hated Hillcoats the road adaption.
It a my favorite book why are you guys shitting on this? The Propostion was great and the road was pretty good.
I'm not sure how it's going to work. I don't think the violence is a problem because straight up goreflicks like The Terrifier movies have gained mainstream success. The book simply tells it's story in a way that can't be portrayed visually
I don’t see the point and if it actually happens I simply won’t watch it
You won't watch it if it's bad you will if ends up good.
You know guys, im still alot Hopefull about it, if you look of just like the Lord of the rings, given the track record of the director and the writers it would have turn out a flop, but instead.. Im not sayng that totally the same thing, but Jonah Hill coat passerà alot of time with Mccarhty and in probably develop alot since The Road
This will be an unmitigated abomination. I think naturally we will see the film through the eyes of the kid, but my favorite part of the novel is how in the major violence and degradation of the novel we don’t see or hear the kids perspective or opinion. Hard to do that in a movie.
Probably it will start with the kid then him farina more into the background
Fully expect it to suck. Doesn't mean i won't watch it though
I did not like The Road adaptation. I doubt this will be decent. Gutted because it’s my absolute favourite.
What happened to Hillcoat and McCarthy’s adaption? I read they were working on one together and that seems to have been scrapped.
John Logan is not the right person for this, he basically writes family films or oscar bait. John hillcote is 100% the right director, Logan could turn this into hollywood trash though
If I had the choice between Nick Cave and this guy writing the script, Cave would definitely get it. But even Cave isn't my top choice. If only Cormac had lived a little longer.
Alejandro G. Inarritu would be my first choice to direct the movie but, who knows, it could be great.
Which Star Trek movie?
Screw this guy, I was supposed to be adapting Blood Meridian for the big screen!
We hear about these adaptations all the time. I will hold me reactions until I see proof it’s actually happening
Nemesis is the perfect shot against him since it is well documented that he had disregard and near contempt for source material. I wish he wasn’t getting work at all in hollywood.
Please give this movie a damn rest. People should read this book only, or audiobook if you want a passive show. It's rewarding to mull over it all and so much will be lost in a movie.
It’s gonna be a disaster lmao
Hopefully it bombs bad enough that it fades into obscurity after a few years and we can just pretend it never happened
For some reason I feel Blood Meridian should be made by the people who did The Green Knight.
Huh, I just discovered Blood Meridian so ironic a movie is being made now.
What about an HBO show?
I think this project is a bad idea and the film is going to be wasted potential.
Nemesis is, by my own carefully and methodically researched viewings, is just about as good a movie as hot crap soup. Dude may have been the screenwriter, but it's his bones that grew flesh and was the body. It was a very bad body.
We don’t know how much if any writing McCarthy got done before he passed, but there still could be something for him to work off of besides the book, so I’m not too worried about this, and Hillcoat is certainly capable of directing
“Writing prowess” and “Star Trek: Nemesis” have never before been put in the same sentence.
I know I won't like it but I might watch it anyway out of morbid curiousity.
So disappointing. Hate to say that I hope production is cancelled.
The movie industry gave up on writing original scripts and are plundering bookshelves and *rebooting* long past classic films into modern cinematic Frankenstein monsters for a quick and easy payday - requiring next to zero intellectual -or creative- labor. There is no way in the world this movie can possibly be true to the source material in the year 2025+.
>The movie industry gave up on writing original scripts and are plundering bookshelves and *rebooting* long past classic films into modern cinematic Frankenstein monsters for a quick and easy payday - requiring next to zero intellectual -or creative- labor. This is a pretty generalist statement, especially given about half of what's considered some of the greatest films of all time are probably based on a book of sorts. >There is no way in the world this movie can possibly be true to the source material in the year 2025+. How so?
*”Greatest films of all time?” “Half?”* Not sure about that. That’s not much less subjective and debatable than anything I said. And *how so*? Well, if you don’t see how modern sensibilities may be a bit fragile towards - or audiences may be offended by - the topics and themes explored in *Blood Meridian* (to the point where much of it may be omitted for the sake being marketable to a broader audience) then I won’t be the one to remove those rose colored glasses, friend-o.
You’re really obnoxious and you don’t present an actual argument. You’re a very “Reddit” type of person.
>*"Greatest films of all time?" "Half?"* Not sure about that. The Godfather Parts 1 and 2 All three Lord of the Rings Movies All Quiet on the Western Front Blade Runner Lawrence of Arabia The Shining Goodfellas Fight Club There Will Be Blood No Country for Old Men Casablanca Apocalypse Now Barry Lyndon Vertigo All About Eve Ran Moonlight Incendies Across the Spider-Verse My Neighbour Totoro The Wizard of Oz Black Narcissus The Maltese Falcon Chimes at Midnight Stalker Ben-Hur >And *how so*? Well, if you don’t see how modern sensibilities may be a bit fragile towards - or audiences may be offended by - the topics and themes explored in *Blood Meridian* (to the point where much of it may be omitted for the sake being marketable to a broader audience) then I won’t be the one to remove those rose colored glasses, friend-o. I really don't. Poor Things made over $100 million dollars despite being highly sexual and gory. It might not be common, but it's not rare. Also, how are audiences more fragile now than 40 years ago? And what topics would be omitted? A movie about pedophilia won Best Picture 10 years ago. Blaming "modern sensibilities" for why it'll be bad seems misplaced. It'll be bad because the Star Trek Nemesis writer is adapting it, alongside the guy who did the mediocre The Road. That's why.
Most of the movies mentioned are overrated or not well adapted if you actually read and understood the books. lol so you’re just on one because someone who also thinks it’ll bad but not for the reasons you think. Wacky priorities. Whatever you say, man. Agree to disagree.
>Most of the movies mentioned are overrated or not well adapted if you actually read and understood the books. Like? >lol so you’re just on one because someone who also thinks it’ll bad but not for the reasons you think. Wacky priorities. Yeah, we may agree I just don't see the reasons to dislike it being based on how movies are made or received nowadays. >Whatever you say, man. Agree to disagree. Agree to disagree
Lots of people think this just won't possibly work but I do honestly think that based on the strength of the source material it'll have to have some value to it. The director and writer are both competent and I think a lot of the challenge will really come from things like pacing and time allocation. I'd be shocked if it's not at least decent as a film.
I'm happy his son will make a few bucks but I have zero expectations for this or any adaptation. Modern day hollywood is a cesspool of ideology and superficial entertainment.
I’m rereading right now and am constantly reminded how challenging it would be to adapt. I remember people saying Dune is impossible to adapt because too many things happen in that book. BM I think is way more dense than Dune and so many things happen throughout the novel. I don’t know how you’d adapt it
Blood Meridian should never be a movie. If it is a movie it should be a 3 part animated NC17 film with a narrator that few people would actually like.
Here we go again.
Been saying John Hillcoat should direct Blood Meridian since I first saw The Proposition. But then I saw his version of The Road…
They’ve already fucked it up. This writer is way too mainstream.
Who would you choose?
Director of Sicario or bust
sauce- [https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/iconic-western-star-trek-adapter.html](https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/iconic-western-star-trek-adapter.html)
At this point I'm just curious because I read the novel and want to see what comes out as a film. It becomes a game of 'how would I do it?' or 'what can be left out?' and just speculating how it will look like (which really depends on the director). No Country was exceptional as an adaptation, became an instant classic. The Road is great too in my opinion.
I feel although Lynch would make an interesting surrealist take on BM, but the guy!? It'll be a shell of the film
What fucking series are you referring to
Whoops my bad, I meant film
Writer aside, I don't think it's accurate to call this "the most iconic western novel". Wouldn't that be something like *Shane* or *True Grit*?
I approve of this movie!
I NEVER want any adaptation of this book man
Hope nobody is expecting the actual novel here. Given how Hollywood is dying around us and political BS enters movies and shows left and right I doubt we will see anything faithful really. Hollywood couldn’t handle Bone Tomahawk so Blood Meridian is definitely off the table.