The Day Of The Triffids to return to BBC next year
- Thread starter msmalls74
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I expect copious amounts of dreadfull bargain basement CGI and acting to the same standard as Eastenders...but with giant plants.
...or is that a good thing?
Bet the intro isn't as good either!
To be fair, the original story did emphasise the world's increasing reliance on vegetable oils and the triffids were farmed for their own oil, which was superior to regular vegetable oils.
I assume you've not watched the 1980s BBC version then? Excellent, dark depressing adaptation!
I've seen some brief clips of some plants being wobbled about with strings.
I just think it would be hard to do plausible looking walking plants, especially when everything has to be fast pased now. But if they can somehow get the plants looking moving right then it will definitely be worth a watch.
The original worked very well. They had the main lump of the plant and little rooty legs than shuffled them along. Quite convincing really.
They were designed by Steve Drewett, who appropriately used to work at the Natural History Museum. He produced a superb, convincing look for the monsters, based on research into real life parasitic plants. Having re-read the book he decided to make the plant look initially attractive so that its victims would be drawn nearer to look at it. The carnivorous pitcher plant was his main inspiration. The most important element of his Triffid is that it looks as though it could exist. Its colour is mainly brown, just as parasitic plants like fungi are. When it moves, it lurches from one branch to another which is a reasonable concept. The tall, slender stalk is very photogenic and there is an obsceneness about its long whip-like sting, dripping with venom. In fact the whole plant has an uncomfortable phallic appearance that adds to its threatening quality. The sound of its 'clackers' are simple but they quickly become chilling to the viewer's ears because it heralds the sudden violence of the sting which slices through the air with deadly accuracy. The scene at the Triffid farm where ranks of plants click in a random chorus is vaguely unnerving. The long tubular sting was Steve Drewett's idea. It explained how the Triffids disabled and fed off their prey, something that the novel was vague about.
A Triffid was operated by a man crouched inside, cooled by a fan installed in its neck; the 'clackers' were radio controlled. The gnarled bowl, based on the ginseng root, was made of latex with a covering of sawdust and string while the neck was fibreglass and continued down to the floor, where it joined with the operator's seat. The plant was surmounted by a flexible rubber head, coated with clear gunge.
A Triffid was operated by a man crouched inside, cooled by a fan installed in its neck; the 'clackers' were radio controlled. The gnarled bowl, based on the ginseng root, was made of latex with a covering of sawdust and string while the neck was fibreglass and continued down to the floor, where it joined with the operator's seat. The plant was surmounted by a flexible rubber head, coated with clear gunge.
As for your statement "especially when everything has to be fast pased now," is what really concerns me. This approach is why the new Survivors series failed in so many ways - It rushed, and in doing so missed too much.
ps: Do yourself a favour and watch the original series. It's really good 1980s depressing apocalytic stuff. We have trouble making films/tv like that now...
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Right... Let's predict an apocalypse rating for this new prediction. How dark and horrible will it be? Given say the 80s version was about a 7-8?
I'm predicting about a 6-7 at best?
If you think about it, not only 95% of the worlds population are blind and slowly dying, but a huge proportion of those non-blind survivors will be 5yrs and younger (asleep during the event). As our survivors walk around for the first couple of weeks, countless babies will be heard starving to death, followed by them encountering numerous ill/starving young children unable to find supplies/food as they're too young. Imagine the new-born and childrens wards in hospitals for example...
I bet it won't dare touch on that!
I'm predicting about a 6-7 at best?
If you think about it, not only 95% of the worlds population are blind and slowly dying, but a huge proportion of those non-blind survivors will be 5yrs and younger (asleep during the event). As our survivors walk around for the first couple of weeks, countless babies will be heard starving to death, followed by them encountering numerous ill/starving young children unable to find supplies/food as they're too young. Imagine the new-born and childrens wards in hospitals for example...
I bet it won't dare touch on that!
Soldato
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When's Blake's 7 remake meant to screen?
Caporegime
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So when does this actually start?
Unlike the book, where there were almost only middle class survivors, I predict a PC collection of survivors, including at least one black etc. I'd also go with about 6 on a 10 scale. But then the book was about 4 on a 10 scale.
M
Soldato
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Quite enjoyed that - looking forward to tomorrows conclusion 