Where's Hollywood?

[RichMerk]

I'll toss another vote out there for Ringworld, but I'd also love to see one of Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champions find his way to the big screen. Hawkmoon would be a good choice, because of the over-the-top visual extravagance you can get with all those animal armor masks and science/magic setting. On the other hand, what actor wants to spend the entire movie behind a mask?

 

[Nardpuncher]

No love for Heinlein around these parts?

"Stranger in a Strange Land?"

"Time Enough For Love?"

"Moon Is A Harsh Mistress?"

Yup! Cast Richard Dreyfus as Jubal in Stranger.

And a proper adaptation of Starship Troopers would be welcome.

I was just thinking this earlier today!
What with Trek and Bond and Hulk getting reboots so close to their umm...ancestors or whatever...someone could go ahead and do Starship Troopers the way it was written.
Too many people have a very bad image of this book in their head that isn't deserved.

 

[M'Sharak]

I think an adaptation of Theodore Sturgeon's 1947 novelette "Tiny and the Monster" would be interesting in it's original mid-20th century setting, but probably easier to market if updated.

I'd also like to see a faithful adaptation of Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (i.e., not the Bing Crosby or Bugs Bunny comedy version, but the dark and ultimately pessimistic story as Twain wrote it.) A steampunk treatment of Rudyard Kipling's "With the Night Mail: A Story of 2000 A.D." or "As Easy as A.B.C." (or both) could be entertaining as well, with proper handling.

 

[RichMerk]

not the Bing Crosby or Bugs Bunny comedy version

Don't forget the MacGyver version.

 

[auntiehill]

"Magic Kingdom for Sale" by Terry Brooks. This just screams MOVIE to me. And it already has sequels ready and waiting.

"Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" and its brilliant sequel, "The Long, Dark Tea Time of the Soul," by Douglas Adams. Of course, I don't think you could properly cram the great scope of these books into a film. Perhaps a mini-series?

Neil Gaiman's "Anasazi Boys." A great book, very theatrical. Not as violent and dark as "American Gods," (also a great read) and with a very likable lead character.

 

[Forbin]

Arthur C. Clarke & Stephen Baxter's "The Light of Other Days."
Freaking brilliant story of what happens to society when we find a way to view the past.

 

[Lonemagpie]

"Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" and its brilliant sequel, "The Long, Dark Tea Time of the Soul," by Douglas Adams. Of course, I don't think you could properly cram the great scope of these books into a film. Perhaps a mini-series?.

Part of the problem there is DGHDA in particular is basically a mash-up of Adams' Dr Who stories Shada and City Of Death, so the screen rights would almost certainly be a nightmare to sort out...

 

[Mr. Adventure]

That's already been done - "True Blood", big hit on HBO.

You must be joking! That's like saying The Shield is an adaptation of LA Confidential!

Or that STARSHIP TROOPERS and FLASH GORDON are the same because they both involves ray-guns and space travel . . . .

Starship Troopers has ray guns?

 

[Mistral]

I'd like to see:

Guns of the South
1632
First Contact
World War: in the Balance
the Star
Dies the Fire
Island on the Sea of Time
Victory Unintentional (would have to be be reset to an extra-solar planet)

I don't see how they could do some of these-the exposition is so great in the Turtledove and Stirling stories. Maybe your first 2 choices would work.

I always thought Rama would be great. Maybe some of Allen Steele's work. And I would love to see the original Amber Chronicles by Zelazny done.

 

[The Comedian]

FEVRE DREAM by George R. R. Martin. Vampires on the Missisippi!

That's already been done - "True Blood", big hit on HBO.

Nah. Martin's FEVRE DREAM is very different than Charlaine Harris's "Sookie Stackhouse" books. FEVRE DREAM is an historical horror epic involving rival steamboat captains in the 1850's. TRUE BLOOD is more of a black comedy/soap opera set in a contemporary Southern town.

Very different in tone and ambition.

But you know how Hollywood is...producers would think those are identical.

 

[The Comedian]

And on another note, I wouldn't mind seeing a Bolo onscreen, for that matter...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolo_(tank)

 

[Rackon]

I hope I live long enough to see Enders Game made into the kind of feature film that it deserves.

I've actually had quite enough action/super hero/comic book style movies to last me for a good long time. Think how old 2001, Alien and Blade Runner are! Sheesh, we are overdue.

I'd love to see a SF film with a little more *content*. I liked Moon a lot, but it would be nice to see a good SF movie that had a decent budget. A major directing talent attached would be swell.

On the fantasy side, with all the popularity of Merlin and Arthur over the years (and all the truly awful movies and miniseries about them) I've never understood why a filmmaker (or even HBO) never wanted to do Mary Stewart's The Crystal Cave. The Crystal Cave and The Hollow Hills are my favorite Arthur/Merlin books.

Meanwhile, Peter Jackson is apaprently still committed to making the Temeraire books into movies...someday. I'd have rather had Temeraire than Tin Tin.

 

[Greg Cox]

That's already been done - "True Blood", big hit on HBO.

Nah. Martin's FEVRE DREAM is very different than Charlaine Harris's "Sookie Stackhouse" books. FEVRE DREAM is an historical horror epic involving rival steamboat captains in the 1850's. TRUE BLOOD is more of a black comedy/soap opera set in a contemporary Southern town.

Very different in tone and ambition.

But you know how Hollywood is...producers would think those are identical.

But since when would that stop them? Any resemblance to a current hit would be seen as a plus, not a minus.

"It's TRUE BLOOD meets Mark Twain!"

 

[Mistral]

Nah. Martin's FEVRE DREAM is very different than Charlaine Harris's "Sookie Stackhouse" books. FEVRE DREAM is an historical horror epic involving rival steamboat captains in the 1850's. TRUE BLOOD is more of a black comedy/soap opera set in a contemporary Southern town.

Very different in tone and ambition.

But you know how Hollywood is...producers would think those are identical.

But since when would that stop them? Any resemblance to a current hit would be seen as a plus, not a minus.

"It's TRUE BLOOD meets Mark Twain!"

You forgot: "And vampires are hot with the teen crowd!"

 

[CDR6]

I would like to see a film done on the game "Space 1889", or Ben Bova's "Mars", and last suggestion for the evening, "The Throne of Saturn".

And of course being a reenactor I have to second "Guns of the South".

-Chuck

 

[Temis the Vorta]

There are plenty of books that have been optioned for years: "The Demolished Man,"

That's the one I was going to nominate.

 

[Mistral]

I would like to see a film done on the game "Space 1889", or Ben Bova's "Mars", and last suggestion for the evening, "The Throne of Saturn".

And of course being a reenactor I have to second "Guns of the South".

-Chuck

Guns is made for the movies-but most of Turtledove's work is too convoluted and repetitive to film, IMO.

 

[Greg Cox]

There are plenty of books that have been optioned for years: "The Demolished Man,"

That's the one I was going to nominate.

I actually own an old paperback edition that says "SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE!" on the cover.

That was back in the eighties . . . .

 

[Klagg]

I would love to see either Mind Scan or Rollback by Robert J Sawyer. Both are great books that would easily make the transition to film.

 

[Greg Cox]

I would love to see either Mind Scan or Rollback by Robert J Sawyer. Both are great books that would easily make the transition to film.

Well, if FLASHFORWARD is a hit, maybe we'll see more Sawyer adaptations. That tends to be how it works.

"From the creator of FLASHFORWARD . . . !"