At first glance my watching Cutthroat Island might seem a bit out of place with the purported purpose of this website. My goal was to watch lesser known films, specifically films I knew nothing about going into them, in the hopes of finding the occasional gem as well as simply taking a few risks when compared to my standard movie watching habits. I’m as guilty of being selective as anyone else and this seemed like a fun way to test the cinematic waters. And, well, watching one of the biggest financial flops in film history certainly has its own brand of appeal. How often do you get to watch a movie that killed an entire genre of film?

The pirate film, as most probably know, had a long, rich and financially successful relationship with Hollywood since Hollywood’s inception. They would have been considered the “blockbuster” films of their day, at least in comparison to modern day films. Big stars, big sets, bigger production budgets and big, big profits. While over time the popularity of pirate films, and the assured giant box office takes, fluctuated within Hollywood, their were few genres considered as sure as a thing as the pirate film.

By the time Cutthroat Island was being made the pirate film’s greatest glories had long since passed. While they were still being produced with regularity, they hadn’t dominated at the box office in years. So, as production began on Cutthroat Island, word soon began to spread that it would mark a return to Hollywood’s Golden Age, a time when people of all ages could lose themselves in the wonder of the movies. Cutthroat Island, it was promised, would mark the first step of many to a new Hollywood Golden Age.

Even years later I still remember being inundated with the marketing push for Cutthroat Island. TV spots were everywhere, and I specifically remember all the television tabloids like Inside Edition and Access Hollywood offering numerous “exclusive” behind-the-scenes looks at the film. Geena Davis, whose star had steadily risen for years, was being pushed as the next Hollywood superstar, an actress who could excel in both dramatic and action roles. Her husband, and Cutthroat Island’s director, Renny Harlin, was being touted with equal fervor. As the next “it” action director. The press simply couldn’t get enough of this husband and wife duo battling to resurrect a cherished but slightly forgotten genre. Cutthroat Island quickly became a looming juggernaut. A Christmas film that simply could not fail. Would not fail. That is, until it failed. Rather spectacularly as it turns out.

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In the recent film Watchmen, Zack Snyder attempted a near shot-for-panel adaptation of the iconic comic, resulting in numerous scenes from the comic that clearly wouldn’t work on film not working on film. While the film kept the basic plot framework it eliminated so many of the messy and complicated details that made the comic such a rich character study and substituted in its place gratuitous violence and the occasional laughable sex scene. All this results in a film that is more a recreation then an adaptation. Accurate enough for the studios to feign deference to the rabid fanboys, yet empty enough so that it might be consumed by the masses without making their brainpan hurt. Really the highest compliment I can pay the film is that it is decent enough that it seems to be convincing people to read the original comic.

But rather then continue to get frustrated over such a lost opportunity, I decided to come up with a few film adaptations that often stray wildly from their source material, whether the source is books, plays, television shows or comics. While I know there are plenty of people who seem to be claiming that this is the best Watchmen film anyone could reasonably expect, I would much rather watch a film take a chance at creating something different and unique for film rather then simply try to be an accurate recreation of its source. That and I am often quite unreasonable.

So I give you my 6 gutsiest adaptations:

Howard the Duck

Fans of the foul mouthed, philandering, alien water fowl had to be scratching their collective heads when they found out George Lucas would be executive producing an adaptation of the often racy Steve Gerber comic Howard the Duck, into a children’s movie. The 80’s weren’t exactly known for children’s films loaded with social satire either, making for what had to have appeared to be a horrible fit. The result is what one would expect, a watered down version of the comic, but credit must be given for the ample duck nudity, as well as the film portraying alien bestiality in a positive, if incredibly awkward, light. How that got past the ratings board, I have no idea.

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