Published: May 1st, 1990 (one month before Film's release)
Author: Max Allan Collins
 |
| Shadow of a tough guy. |
To me, the film was a saturday morning favorite of mine growing up i the '90s. My dad had recorded Batman (1989) and this film on the same VHS. After The Joker had fallen to his doom, the tape would roll over to the start of Dick Tracy for an epic double feature. Rewatching it in 2015, I feel the film still holds up as a clever and stylish feature. Plus, the ensemble cast of eccentric Gangsters was an impressive array of talent for the era.
Like The Dark Knight Novelization, adaptation duties went to a writer who was already familiar with the character--Max Allan Collins. His reputation as a Crime Writer is as prolific as any, having contributed to comic books, dozens of novels, an assortment of established series, and over twenty novelizations: Waterworld (1995), Air Force One (1997), U-571 (2000), G.I. Joe Rise of Cobra (2009).
In 1977, Collins replaced Chester Gould, the comic strip's creator, as the lead writer of the Dick Tracy strip after his retirement. As a fanatic of the comic since his childhood, Collins restored the tone of the series to its original crime concept, purging out Science Fiction elements. The redux edition brought back original golden-era characters that had long been absent. In addition to the novelization, Collins also wrote two follow-up novels--Dick Tracy Goes to War and Dick Tracy Meets His Match--before leaving the character in 1992.
Because of the vast amount of characters in the film and the plethora of writers working on the script, a number of aspects were altered in the movie tie-in--including Junior's role, the impact and mystery of Blank, the actions of Tracy, and more. The screenplay itself went through substantial rewrites for over a decade as Warren Beatty first began to orchestrate a film adaptation back in the mid-'70s.
The entire vibe of the novelization divulges a darker edge to it than the gaudy, comical film version. This is usually what I covet from an adaptation and Collins infuses a gritty tone that kept me engaged throughout. The prose is solid but not fantastic. The peculiar characters is what makes the series standout from other Crime Comics: Lips, Mumbles, Pruneface, Flattop, Big Boy.
You know, it's only a matter of time before a Dick Tracy reboot is announced as the next comic book revival, but i don't see them ever eclipsing this garish canvas. It may not be a great film, but the performances are make-up effects were well executed. Nowadays, they drain most comic book franchises of their iridescent colors. I understand bright colors don't transition well to live-action (ala, Schumacher's Batman films), yet Dick Tracy was the most successful at capturing the imagery of the comics.
If you ever go on a Dick Tracy binge, make this novelization a must to check out. It can usually be found floating around ebay for less than $10 USA. Even though it has its share of monotonous moments, there's a bevy of added tidbits and an alternate ending to look forward to.
Overall: B-
No comments:
Post a Comment