Great movies captivate, excite, and seamlessly transport their audience into a new world. Often they make us reflect on life, love, humanity, and even our perception of reality. But where audiences can appreciate and admire a film’s creativity, one can’t deny that sometimes its lore and mythology can be a bit complex for a single movie.
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Nowadays, television has become an optimal medium for the storytelling of an intricate world since it has the luxury of time. A narrative can develop across multiple episodes rather than being restricted to a two-hour window. Look at the phenomenon ofHouse of the Dragon— its first season is based on a sliver ofGeorge R. R. Martin’s book. Redditors seem to think a select few movies could have done better if they got the same treatment.
‘World War Z’ (2013)
As a viral infection sweeps across the world, turning the human population into mindless aged zombies, Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) — a former United Nations investigator — goes on a mission to track down the source of the infection in hopes of stopping its spread.
Wherethe movie captures the thrill and danger of the zombie apocalypse, some fans felt it could’ve done better honoring the style ofMax Brook’s horror novel. More specifically,u/bretton-woodsargues thatWorld War Zshould’ve been a “fictional docudrama” given that the book is an eight-part collection of individual accounts.
‘Eternals’ (2021)
In 500 B.C., a group of immortal beings descended onto Earth to protect humanity from the forces of Deviants. Since then, they have continued to live among the human race and secretly helped shape the ways of civilization. Now, they must reunite as the threat of Deviants looms once again.
Introducing new heroes to theMarveluniverse is no easy feat. That’s why for fans likeu/megadoomer2,introducing 10 new heroesinEternalsfelt “a bit too much,” especially since these characters were “relatively obscure even to most comic fans.” Instead, a Disney+ MCU series would’ve given these characters more time to breathe, ensuring they wouldn’t be “underutilized” like when squeezed into a two-hour movie.
‘The Purge’ (2013)
Swarmed with crime and overcrowded prisons, America’s only solution was for its government to sanction an annual 12-hour period where criminal activity is null and void. Robbery, assault, and even murder are now all legal. As such, despite his well-barricaded home, wealthy man James Sandin (Ethan Hawke) must protect his family as they become targeted by a murderous syndicate.
Given that the story world ofThe Purgeis built on the foundations of a national annual event, some fans believed that condensing it into a film only limited its possibilities of storytelling.u/xetasuggested that making it a series could see “every episode follow[ing] a different group on the same night of the Purge.” How spooky.
‘Hail, Caesar!’ (2016)
Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) is the “fixer” for Capitol Pictures, solving every problem for the biggest names in 1950s Hollywood. Upon his day-to-day life on the job, Mannix is suddenly struck with his toughest challenge when shining star Baird Whitlock (George Clooney) gets kidnapped while on set.
Given its premise of the day-to-day fixer-upper, fans likeu/oldkingwhiterbelieve that this movie would’ve made a perfect “10-episode run” with Mannix solving the shenanigans on “different movie sets with different guest actors each week.” This would be a fun comforting comedy that would entertain all, especially with it beingset in the 1950s golden age of Hollywood.
‘Fantastic Four’ (2005)
A team sent to outer space for scientific experimentation is exposed to a cosmic energy storm. As a result of this event, each mysteriously gains superpowers and must learn to harness them as they face the dangerous force of Victor Von Doom (Julian McMahon).
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According tou/tattooer4236, everyFantastic Fourmovie fails to meet expectations as they cannot fully capture the “changing family dynamics” that make this story so unique to the Marvel universe. “Members often leave, are replaced, turn evil, and redeem themselves” — all of which can’t be squeezed into “90-120 minutes”. Asfans are eager for the MCU’s rendition of theFantastic Four, perhaps a series may add a needed flair to its style of storytelling. A different cinematic approach would give this narrative new life.
‘The Count of Monte Cristo’ (2002)
Edmond Dantes (Jim Caviezel) is a good honest man whose life is unfortunately shattered as his best friend, Fernand (Guy Pearce), falsely accuses him of treason so that he may have Edmond’s love for himself. Imprisoned on an island for 13 years, Edmond escapes and ultimately transforms into the wealthy Count of Monte Cristo, ready to seek revenge on those who wronged him.
Given that this classic revenge tale crosses over decades, it’s understandable that people likeu/CameronWalker_Writerweren’t pleased that it was turned into a movie. For them, “there’s simply too much to the story to reduce to a two-hour movie”. A miniseries would give more time for audiences to form stronger emotional connections with each character, making it much easier for viewers to understand the magnitude of the betrayal Edmond experiences.
‘The Dark Tower’ (2017)
Jake Chambers (Tom Taylor), an 11-year-old boy, is haunted by visions of a dark tower and a Man in Black. He soon discovers that his dreams are all real as he meets Roland Deschain (Idris Elba) — the last Gunslinger — who’s determined to stop the evil Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey) from destroying the Dark Tower that holds the universe together.
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Wherefantasy book adaptations are often praised,The Dark Towersadlydid not receive such sentiments. For fans likeu/simonf75, the movie was “a whole new level of bad” as they “tried to shoehorn seven doorstops-worth of books into 1h35m”. Translating this world across an episodic miniseries would’ve at least made its mythology more palatable for its audience.
Set in 1969, four strangers check into the run-down El Royale hotel located on the border between Nevada and California. Soon the night goes completely awry as the dark secrets of each guest ultimately come around to haunt them.
Where this movie generated positive reception,u/redhopperbelieves that “it would have made a much bigger splash if it had been a four-episode miniseries.” Withthe movie being an unfortunate box-office bomb, one cannot help but presume that its interesting premise and well-written twists would’ve better fit a weekly released show. Given that the movie is already split into chapters, making it a series would’ve been a straightforward adaptation.
‘Ender’s Game’ (2013)
In the near future, Earth is ravaged by an alien race known as the Formics, who are determined to wipe out all of humanity. Years later, the young but brilliant strategic mind of Enders Wiggins (Asa Butterfield) is recruited by the International Military to train and lead a team that will defend humankind from the genocidal aliens that threaten them.
For fans likeu/Mikolaj_Kopernik, the film adaptation ofEnder’s Gameloses the intimacy of the books. Readers were hooked to the story as it “essentially takes place inside Ender’s head,” — allowing them to see what he’s “actually thinking.” The movie couldn’t accurately reflect that single-POV, so its world felt condensed and “mediocre.” Making it a series would’ve given this dense universe its needed time to develop.
‘Don’t Worry Darling’ (2022)
Alice (Florence Pugh) and Jack (Harry Styles) are a young married couple living an idyllic life in the 1950s utopian town of Victory, California - or so she thought. As time passes, Alice notices cracks in her reality and can’t help but question her life and the sinister secrets that lurk beneath.
This was a divisive film. It was praised for Pugh’s performance, but the rest didn’t meet the same expectations. For fans likeu/avatarkai,Don’t WorryDarlingwould’ve better suited a miniseries as there would’ve been more opportunities for the story to fully flesh out. For many, this film ended with too many unresolved questions — and not the good kind. With its fun visual aesthetic and a “mostly easy-to-grasp concept,” many could see this as a successful streaming show.
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