Rand Careaga

I’ve read the original trilogy a few times since the early sixties—revisiting it most recently about five years ago—and provided allowances are made for the author’s youth and the conventions of “Golden Age” science fiction, the books hold up well. Still, I can see how a rigorously faithful screen adaptation might not have worked for a modern audience, and could have taken some benefit from a certain amount of polishing, as distinct from sandblasting. I have no issues with the casting choices, but regarding the narrative itself, I would have preferred to see more of the original ingredients and fewer additives. This isn’t old wine in new bottles—it’s Kool-Aid in new bottles with the old label. A few weeks back I read an interview with the screenwriter, who said: “…I need to write about what's happening now. I need to write about Brexit, MeToo, the ascent of nationalism again. I need to write about climate change.” (Well, boyo, it’s gratifying to know that you’ve met 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 needs.) I had a feeling, accordingly, of what was to come, so I am disappointed but not surprised. If the showrunners were remaking 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘢 as a miniseries, they’d set it in a midtown Manhattan cybercafe in the late nineties, and the main narrative thread would focus on the Sydney Greenstreet character as he tries to secure a green card for Peter Lorre’s twin daughters. And, you know, it might make for good television, but viewers tuning in on the basis of the title might find themselves pardonably disappointed. Perhaps the best way to approach this production is to think of it as “inspired by” rather than “based on” the trilogy.