Peter Jackson Tackles another beloved Fantasy. Mortal Engines.
Coming to the big screen on December 14, 2018 is one of my most anticipated films in a season when film blockbusters traditionally battle it out for the holidays. Based on the books from Paul Reeves, published in 2001, the steampunk dystopian thriller is a set of books that has too long been on my TBR. It was reported in 2009, in Bloody Disgusting, that director Peter Jackson had his sights set on the adaptation and has apparently been secretly developing this release for almost nine years.
I discovered the teaser trailer last year and it really piqued my interest, but alas, I have yet to read these books. I’ll be enjoying the film before I read the novels as is my habit when I’m somewhat unfamiliar with the material yet. I missed these titles when they were originally published. In 2001 I didn’t know Steampunk existed as a genre and I wouldn’t have been browsing the YA market they were placed in. Nowadays, I find Steampunk highly entertaining and am always looking for interesting stories in the genre. I find I usually enjoy the screenplay much more when I have nothing to compare it to, or criticize it for by comparing it to the books. For me, reading the originals afterward just enriches the experience as you discover the details which simply never seem to make the screen. I’m seeking the entertainment value of the big screen first on this one. I saw the newest trailer in the theater this week and I’ll certainly read the books after watching this amazing looking film if it meets my expectations and judging from the visuals in the stunning trailer below, I think it may possibly exceed them.
Synopsis from Book 1:
London is hunting again. Emerging from its hiding place in the hills, the great Traction City is chasing a terrified little town across the wastelands. Soon, London will feed.
In the attack, Tom Natsworthy is flung from the speeding city with a murderous scar-faced girl. They must run for their lives through the wreckage–and face a terrifying new weapon that threatens the future of the world.
Beloved storyteller Philip Reeve creates a brilliant new world in the Predator Cities series, called “phenomenal…violent and romantic, action-packed and contemplative, funny and frightening” by the Sunday Times.
author Philip Reeve: Mortal Engines (2001), Predator’s Gold (2003), Infernal Devices (2005), and A Darkling Plain (2006).*London
London is the principal Traction City in the novel, which has returned to a Victorian-era society. London’s society is divided into four major and a number of minor Guilds. The Engineers are responsible for maintaining the machines necessary for the survival of London, many of which are found by the Guild of Historians. The Historians are in charge of collecting and preserving highly prized, often dangerous artifacts. The Navigators are responsible for steering and plotting the course of London. The Merchants are in charge of running London’s economy. London is officially ruled by an elected Mayor. The Lord Mayor is Magnus Crome, who is also the head of the Guild of Engineers. Like most Traction Cities, London is built on a series of tiers. This encourages the system of social classes, with the wealthier nobles at the top of the city and the lower classes further down, closer to the noise and pollution of the city’s massive engines. Atop the whole of London sits St Paul’s Cathedral: the only building known to have survived the Sixty Minute War. (Wiki)
Grimmedian 