3.
Mission: Impossible
Based on “Mission: Impossible”
While I may not have Brian de Palma’s The Untouchables on this list, his first installment in the Mission: Impossible franchise is a must inclusion. Looking at the Mission franchise I almost considered including J.J. Abrams’s third film here as well, but De Palma’s is what got the thing started and from a filmmaking perspective is still the cream of the crop when looking at the franchise as a whole. I still remember the scene in which Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt descends into the pressure sensitive room at the CIA. To this day I believe it is the quietest I’ve ever “heard” a movie audience. It was like no one was even breathing the tension was so high.
2.
In the Loop
Based on “The Thick of It”
I was absolutely floored when I first saw In the Loop back when it opened the Seattle Film Festival in 2009. Yet, as much as I loved it I still haven’t seen the television series it was based on, “The Thick of It,” which also stars the king of all swearing, Peter Capaldi as the British Prime Minister’s communications chief Malcolm Tucker. This is a film that is essentially the mad-capped comedy equivalent of “The West Wing” and I simply fell in love with it in an instant and still am dying to watch “The Thick of It”. Hopefully one day I’ll be able to give it a look though it currently isn’t available on Netflix.
1.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Based on “Star Trek”
I only went with one film from the Mission: Impossible franchise, but it was even harder with the Star Trek franchise as I just as easily could have gone with J.J. Abrams’s (coincidence?) Star Trek or Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (aka “The One with the Whales”). However, if it wasn’t for The Wrath of Khan I can’t help but wonder what would have come of the Star Trek franchise. Would it have continued? The first film is often looked at, and rightfully so, as quite bad. Had Khan been equally or more disappointing would we have had The Search for Spock and the countless movies and television series that followed?
I have a pretty good feeling this was a franchise that was never destined to die based on how hard it tried to survive on television and did for three quality seasons before turning in the first film and of all those films that were made, I don’t think many will argue that Khan still rises to the top.
So that does it for me and I’m sure many of you will quickly disagree. What will you point to? The Untouchables, The Blues Brothers, The X-Files, Borat, Wayne’s World, The Muppets, The Simpsons Movie, Jackass, The Night at the Roxbury, Twilight Zone: The Movie, Charlie’s Angels, Starsky & Hutch, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut? Which television adaptations top your list?
