Initially, I thought I’d skip this week’s Top 5 Wednesday topic. But then, I got hit with a couple brilliant ideas. And so, I decided to take the plunge and do today’s T5W post. This week’s topic is classics you’d like to see modern adaptations of. I tried to avoid classics that have already had modern adaptations (ex. She’s the Man is a modern adaptation of Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare). As I said, I’ve got a few good ideas. So, if you ever see one of these concepts come true, know they originated here. Anyway, let’s get on with the show:
I don’t have a super concrete idea for this. I just think it would make a really funny romantic comedy. Everyone falls for the wrong person based on misinformation. It would be hysterical.
Now, I do believe there was a movie made of this book with a modern twist, but it apparently isn’t very good and no one remembers it. I have an idea that I think people would not only remember, but love. A mockumentary in the style of a reality television show. Make it blatantly obvious that these characters are assholes who do nothing but ruin each other’s lives. After all, that’s why I love this book so much.
So, I’m not a big fan of The Great Gatsby. That said, it’s rife with potential for a modern day adaptation. My idea? It takes place in Hollywood and they’re all celebrities. Except maybe Nick Carraway is a reporter. Or he’s writing (or ghost writing) Jay Gatsby’s biography. Jay and Daisy Buchanan were childhood friends, until she became a big star. Jay doesn’t get his big break until later, but by then she’s with fellow superstar Tom Buchanan. Wait a minute… is Bojack Horseman a modern adaptation of The Great Gatsby? Holy shit, my mind is so blown.
Once again, I don’t really have a concrete idea for this one. I just really love this story and would love to see a fleshed out, modern take. Cyberbullying gone wrong? I don’t know. I just want a modern version of this story that’s just as dark as the original.
So, part of the beauty of this story is that, while it takes place in Salem during the Witch Trials, it’s really an allegory for the Communist panic that was taking place in the ‘50s. Though a modern retelling would take away from some of the genius of this play, there are so many situations in which it can be applied. Middle Eastern people accused of being terrorists because of the color of their skin, black kids being called thugs and shot for the same reasons. Hell, it can even be retooling to be about gay people being sent to conversion camps. Whatever! This play is just as poignant now as it was then, but I fear people are becoming less and less willing to find the subtext (no matter how blatant). Thus, The Crucible needs a modern twist to get people talking again.
Which classics would you like to see an adaptation of? Tell me about them in the comments!
Strange Storyteller 