The Dresden Files - The Complete First Season
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Actor: Paul Blackthorne, Valerie CruzBrand: Lions Gate
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 530 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-08-07
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Lions Gate
DVD Reviews of The Dresden Files - The Complete First Season
DVD Review: Not The Dresden Files From The Books (And Take From That What You Will)
Summary: 4 Stars
Visual Media versions of print stories often vary from the original source material, causing outrage in those who wanted to see the story made for film. This show polarizes people more than just about any other. It would be fair to say that in its day The Dresden files created as much shock and horror from Jim Butcher's readership as poor old Peter Jackson generated with his LotR trilogy.
Let me start by saying that I've read most of the Dresden Files books, and regard them as an okay waste of a few hours but very uneven in feel. Butcher's admitted approach to writing them (according to a talk he gave in NY shortly after the publication of White Night) means that they a Dresden story can never be more than a spectator sport anyway; the reader has no chance of anticipating events and becoming thereby part of the story. You pays your money etc.
The TV Dresden is what would be called today a "re-imagining", not quite a Star Trek "reboot" but a remix using the basic ideas from which the books are built. In this approach lies much of the chagrin. "Harry doesn't look right". "Murphy doesn't look right, and they changed her name". "What on earth is Bob doing with a face?" "The Chateau Dresden isn't right". etc etc etc
Well, let's get that out of the way. All the complaints are spot on. The physical descriptions of just about everything from Dresden to Bianca to the Blue Beetle (now a olive green jeep) are different to those in the books. Big Furry Deal.
Okay, anyone who doesn't want show spoilers should move on.
The TV Dresden is an excellent envisioning of the Wizard private eye, with a great screen presence and just the right amount of slobbish attitude for the role. Much has been made of the improvised nature of the Wizard Staff (or Hockey Stick) and blasting rod (now a drumstick) but I think these actually work well to reinforce the image of the down-at-heel, one step away from the bailiff wizard with barely two bucks to rub together. The Jeep was picked for the ease of camera work (can't see the actors in a VW Beetle) but the rationale for the Beetle in the books actually works better for the Jeep (lack of mechanical complexity) in my opinion. Murphy isn't blonde, but *is* in-your-face feisty (though I have to agree changing her name was dumb and the suggestion she has a nine year old daughter - whom we never see - is unnecessary). Some characters from the books appear wearing new and unexpected faces. Some are in very different roles than in the books - Bianca is a vampire of the Red Court, but that's about all that survives the transition to the screen. If this is going to ruin the experience for you, better save your dollars for more books.
The Special Effects are good for their day (people forget how quickly the state of the art in CGI advanced when they critique this show sometimes) but sometimes have a slightly bargain basement feel, especially when the producers attempt to "wow" the viewer. As I say, the pace of progress should inform the viewer, but it should also inform the maker of cgi-intensive shows and dictate a suitable approach to using SFX.
What really makes or breaks a show is, of course, the plot and character interaction we get to see, and like any show in its first season, these tend to vary. Occasionally there is a whiff of "the special effects will blind everyone to the lack of quality plot here", but on the whole the plots are tight, the stories compelling and the chemistry between the actors is convincing, especially that between Harry and Bob the Skull.
Remaking the character Bob into a cursed sorcerer whose spirit is bound to the skull for eternity for a wizardly crime was inspired, and getting the actor Terrence Mann to play Bob was genius. The irony of Paul Blackthorne (Harry) being an Englishman using an American accent and Terrence Mann being an American using an English accent is a free gift (both seem well executed to my ears). Scenes between Bob and Harry are generally high spots in each show, though sometimes the actors have to work with dialog that makes them work for their money.
Finally, I thought combining Dresden's workplace with his voluminous living quarters was a good move. It gave the actors space to use when setting the scene for each episode.
I enjoyed the show, and this three disc set represents it in a nice package. there are a couple of deleted scenes, a couple of commentaries and a "making of" featurette and that's it for the special features. I wished for more, but didn't buy the discs for the blooper reels and cutting room floor sweepings.
I'm sorry this show didn't get a large enough following to garner a second season. The first season was only twelve episodes too (do you remember when a season was 24 shows or more?) so it burned bright but burned quickly. I doubt being more faithful to the books would have made it more popular, but who knows? Personally, I rather like the original touches the show added to the Dresden Files, *including* the hockey stick and a Bob you can see.
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