chickenfeet: (death)
chickenfeet ([personal profile] chickenfeet) wrote2007-06-11 01:24 pm
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More thoughts on "historical" films

The recent discussion about Kingdom of Heaven got me thinking more about what does and does not make for a satisfying "historical film" by which I think I mean one that is satisfying as a film while not providing fodder for [livejournal.com profile] history_spork.

First, it seems to me, too much budget tends to be deadly. Too much budget creates a need for a return on a vast investment. This in turn leads to patronising the audience, casting overpaid stars who can't act, spurious romance and even altering historical events to broaden the audience appeal. It also, of course leads to gratuitous overuse of CGI.

Kingdom of Heaven pretty much manages to incorporate all of these sins. Another example I might cite would be A Bridge Too Far which is pretty good overall but transfers key bits of the action from the British to the Americans, presumably for box office reasons. I often feel that one of the reasons The Duellists is so successful is that it is modest in scope and extraneous elements are avoided. If the director had had unlimited budget the temptation to include a set piece Napoleonic battle would probably have been quite strong. I wonder too whether the extremely unromantic treatment of sex and marriage would have survived.

A second observation would be that the best "historical" films tend to be grounded in a solid story. The Name of the Rose, The Duellists, Master and Commander were all solid novels or short stories before they were films. For whatever reason, directors and screen writers seem to take fewer liberties with fiction than fact!

And, finally, beware of directors on a mission. There are few surer ways of screwing up history than letting some overpaid denizen of the Hollywood fishbowl 'educate' the great unwashed (ie us) about historical events and their current relevancy. Yes, Mel Gibson, I'm talking to you.

I guess when one gets right down to it, it boils down to a solid story, respect for the past and respect for the audience.

[identity profile] albionwood.livejournal.com 2007-06-13 05:02 am (UTC)(link)
Romance is almost always deadly to a historical. Most of the great history stories are not romances, as the term is used nowadays - boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl. H'wood tries to inject that story line into nearly every movie they make. Some of the worst aspects of KoH arose from the need to have a modern romance plastered onto what was otherwise a compelling story.

The three you mention - Duellists, Rose, Master - all lack that romance angle. I think that is a distinguishing feature that partly accounts for how well they work as historicals. Same for The Advocate, Le Retour du Martin Guerre, and even Henry V (until the absurd business with Katherine de Valois). Dangerous Liaisons turned romance on its head.

Last of the Mohicans actually did have the romance angle but worked pretty well anyway.

[identity profile] chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com 2007-06-13 10:56 am (UTC)(link)
Romance is almost always deadly to a historical

Good point! That's one of the things that is really impressive about The Duellists. It treats sex and marriage in a clinically accurate and very unromantic way.