The 1962 mystery novel We have always lived in the castle Was adapted into a movie in 2018, but the story would make a better miniseries. The book was written by American author Shirley Jackson, who is best known for her controversial short story “The Lottery” and horror novel. The Haunting of Hill House, which was adapted by Mike Flanagan for Netflix. We have always lived in the castle is told from the point of view of Mary Katherine Blackwood, or Merricat, an 18-year-old girl who lives with Constance, her older sister, and Julian, her sick uncle, on the Blackwood estate.
Six years before We have always lived in the castle Starts, a terrible tragedy killed the trio family, leaving them to live alone in the house and isolated from the rest of the world. It is revealed that Merricat and Constance’s parents and brother – along with Julian’s wife – are victims in a mass murder. The shock twist is that Merricott orchestrated the murders, even though Constance was the one facing the townspeople’s guilt and hatred. While Shirley Jackson’s versions of the events are gripping, the We have always lived in the castle The movie didn’t quite hit the mark – although perhaps it would have done as a miniseries.
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Why we have always lived in the castle did not work as a movie
The limited screen time of a movie was too restrictive
The movie adaptation of We have always lived in the castle Came in 2018. The film version of the story was directed by Stacey Pason and written by Mark Kruger. Taissa Farmiga starred as Merricat, while Alexandra Daddario played Constance, and Crispin Glover portrayed Uncle Julian. The movie featured phenomenal performances and was mostly faithful to the main plot points of Jackson’s novel, but it garnered mixed reviews from critics due to its lack of drama and excitement. For many reasons, a miniseries would be better suited to adapt Jackson’s story, as a movie can’t quite cover everything properly.
The book, although relatively short at about 214 pages, takes its time detailing Merricott’s stream of consciousness and explaining past and present events through her point of view. The movie had to accommodate Merricat’s thoughts—as well as plot developments, both small and large—in just 96 minutes of screen time. The pace of the movie felt a bit rushed, with its twists and turns rushed and almost confusing. What’s more, because the movie doesn’t take the time to fully delve into Merricat’s psyche, the reasoning behind many of her actions often seems irrational.
Why we always lived in the castle would have worked as a miniseries
The story has too many intricate layers to be limited to a feature film
A miniseries adaptation of We have always lived in the castle May be unhurried in developing Merricat and her unique, albeit disturbing, character arc. In the book, she practices “sympathetic magic”, burying things like coins and marbles in the ground and nailing objects like books and watches to trees. She believes that the “spells” will keep the estate safe.
Merricutt, who poisoned and killed many of her family members, certainly displays sociopathic tendencies. She also demolishes things during stressful moments and suggests over and over that she and Constance should live on the moon. With a mini-series adaptation, entire episodes could be devoted to the past, detailing how the Blackwood family lived before tragedy; In the movie, Constance only hinted that their father was “bad”.
A miniseries of We have always lived in the castle Could also fully illustrate the poisoning incident, which in the book is told only through the ramblings of Uncle Julian. Other episodes may examine how Constance lives her life, being agoraphobic and the keeper of Merricott’s evil secret. The character of Uncle Julian can also be fully explored, as is Charles and his greedy attempts to disrupt Constance’s life. Other episodes may center on the townspeople, examining their hatred of the Blackwoods.
generally, A miniseries adaptation of We have always lived in the castle May take time to dig into each of Jackson’s characters, and may slowly build up to the story’s brilliant ending.As was done in other similar series, such as the ones mentioned The Haunting of Hill House And The Haunting of Bly Manor.
Other movies that would have been better as a miniseries
There is no shortage of stories that would benefit from a longer format
Director Stacey Passon and screenwriter Mark Krueger struggled to capture the nuances of Shirley Jackson’s story in 2018. We have always lived in the castle, Although this is mostly due to the limited runtime of a movie compared to a miniseries. The adaptation definitely would have worked better in a format that allowed for more screen time. However, it is far from the only movie that would have worked better as a miniseries, and most films that feel like they would be better on the small screen are also adaptations of books.
For example, author Bret Easton Ellis wrote american psycho, And the 2000 adaptation of his novel is widely regarded as a cult classic. However, there was a second movie based on his work, The rules of attraction In 2002, this was nowhere near as successful. It focuses on a trio of college students (one of whom is Patrick Bateman’s brother), and recounts specific events from very different perspectives. The movie was a critical flop, and the pacing elements that let the story down prove that it would have worked much better as a miniseries, instead of trying to recreate the success of American Psycho By creating another Bret Easton Ellis movie.
More recently, 2017s The Dark Tower and 2013s world war z Adapting books of the same name by Stephen King and Max Brooks, respectively, are both divisive because of their changes to the source material. Both stand out as movies that would have made better miniseries for similar reasons We have always lived in the castle. The limitations of a feature-length runtime meant that both movies lost much of what made the books so successful and thrilling to read, although a miniseries might have provided the breathing space to make a successful adaptation possible.
There are dozens of examples of movies that should have been miniseries, and not just those based on books. Many period dramas, such as 2003’s The last sAmory, could be argued to be better suited to miniseries, as it would allow for a fuller exploration of their setting. However, these examples are all also arguably less successful than We have always lived in the castle too. The 2018 movie was far from a critical flop, and unlike any other The Dark Tower Or the rules of attraction, The movie adaptation was at least a solid movie, it just didn’t quite live up to the reputation of Shirley Jackson’s original work.