The Doctor Who movie...still not quite getting the criticisms.

[Starkers]

You have to love the delicious irony of people claiming that the Doctor Who movie that followed the original series looked "cheap".

Oh I know, but I'm talking about context. I'm not suggesting it looked cheap compared to Genesis of the Daleks, I'm saying it looked cheap compared to something like Voyager. Whether it was the film stock they used, the type of cameras, the editing, the choice of titles... I don't know what, but it didn't feel like a high end, polished American production. Clearly it wasn't cheap per se, not with the likes of Julie Robert's brother in it, not to mention the Tardis interior, although there aren't a huge amount of effects in there (most of the regeneration is down to McCoy gurning rather than FX) and the use of a contempory setting likely kept costs down as well.

 

[Aldo]

It does have a very "lifetime movie" look to it at times. But then there are scenes that look very striking, such as when the Doctor is walking through the abandoned wing of the hospital, or most of the outdoor scenes between Grace and the Doctor.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

Yeah, there's a lot of 1990s "cheap" looking aspects to it. I would also compare it to some of the more badly shot Vancouver episodes of Highlander: The Series. True, it looks a lot better than the ultra-cheap 1963-1989 series but it suffers quite a bit when compared to later stuff like the 2005 series or even to its contemporaries like Star Trek: Deep Space 9, Star Trek: Voyager, & the early seasons of Stargate SG-1.

And does anyone really buy Vancouver standing in for such a unique, iconic looking city as San Francisco?

I almost like the TARDIS interior design. I like how it looks like an actual lived-in space rather than some super space-y thing. My one issue is the big pillars around the console. They take up too much space and ruin the feng shui of the entire room. Here you have this enormous set, but the pillars prevent you from getting a good look from one end of the room to the other.

On the plus side, Paul McGann is great as the Doctor. (Once you count the audios, McGann stands a very good chance of being my favorite Doctor ever.) Daphne Ashbrook sure is purdy (reminds me of Justina Vail from 7 Days). I like Eric Roberts as the camp Master at the end but not as the Terminator Master towards the beginning.

As for the Eye of Harmony being inside the TARDIS, my theory is that the Eye of Harmony is inside every TARDIS simultaneously.

 

[arch101]

You have to love the delicious irony of people claiming that the Doctor Who movie that followed the original series looked "cheap".

Funny thing is, when I watched it back in '96, my first impression was "ah, Dr. Who with a real budget looks great!" I mean, I grew up with the string pulling the Cybermat and the cardboard rocks.

 

[Aldo]

The more I hear it, the more I love the updated rendition of the them tune used for the (albiet brief) credit sequence at the beginning of the film.

 

[Cyke101]

It does have a very "lifetime movie" look to it at times. But then there are scenes that look very striking, such as when the Doctor is walking through the abandoned wing of the hospital, or most of the outdoor scenes between Grace and the Doctor.

Hah, too true about the lifetime movie look, but I figure that's because it's a product of its time. Somewhat muted lighting, soft colors, and the music plays a role in that as well.


With that said, my favorite "non-lifetime movie" shot would be when the Doctor walks through the glass window to prove a point to Grace.

The more I hear it, the more I love the updated rendition of the them tune used for the (albiet brief) credit sequence at the beginning of the film.

The arrangement seems nice and is perhaps just as different from the standard as Murray Gold's theme for the Eleventh Doctor, but my only gripe is that I wish they had used an actual orchestra rather than a few Casio keyboards (budget reasons, perhaps?).

 

[Aldo]

I don't mind the casio approach so much as it was a tv movie. But the theme (as used in the movie) does scream out for a full orchestra.

If they ever decide to put Doctor Who on the big screen I hope we get something along the lines of what was used in the movie, only longer and with a full orchestral backing.

 

[Whofan]

BTW according to The Visual Dictionary, what happened in the Pandroica opens to the Universe is caused by the Eye of Harmony being exposed at all points in time-so makes me wonder if the TV movie's Eye of Harmony problem was also a 'total event collapse'.


I personally see Simm's Master as sort of a mix of Delgado and Roberts. He had Delgado's nack for business suits, intelligence and disguises which were plays on his name, while also having the giddiness and camp of the Roberts Master.


Although I feel that the reincarnated End of Time version of Simm's master was more like the insane, struggling to survive 70s-80s version.

 

[DWF]

Seeing as how one of the BBC's maor complaints about the movie was that it was too dark, I can't see how it resembles a Lifetime movie at all. the movie even had to edited to be broadcast on BBC.

 

[G2309]

Part of the inittial reaction may be due to the buildup and expectations of seeing Dr Who back on the screen.

 

[Yminale]

Most of the criticism was due to a minority of British DW fans who hated the fact that those damn dirty Americans had the audacity to do Doctor Who. They would oppose any "Americanized" DW not matter what form it took. For the most part the movie was warmly received on both sides of the Atlantic. The whole half human issue was overblown.