Ramin Setoodeh is the author of the ‘Veronica Mars’ Movie review - “‘Veronica Mars’ Movie Makes No Sense Unless You've Seen the Show”, written for Variety.
Dear Ms. Setoodeh, First, I would like to say that your snarky and witty writing style is usually something I would enjoy under any other circumstances, but bashing this clearly wonderful movie based off my third favorite show is something I cannot look past. ‘Veronica Mars’ Movie Makes No Sense Unless You've Seen the Show - you know who paid for this movie? People who have seen the show - not Hollywood, not some big film studio, but fans of the show. I bet if Rob Thomas made a movie not for the fans, you would be complaining that he didn't give the backers what they wanted - and, hey, they paid for the movie, so they should get a say in what’s in it, dammit! Who else would he make a movie for if not for the fans, the people that paid for it? And, yes, I agree that the cult-show-following does not translate well into mainstream media - but that is what makes it a cult show. Do you remember the show Dead Like Me? It was another cult-show that got cancelled after two seasons. They made a movie that you would be able to understand if you did not see the show - they explained the background of the characters, the background of the relationships, the background of the entire grim-reaper circumstance. And you know what? It was horrible. It was actually one of the worst movies I have ever seen - not just in continuation of the show but also as its own movie: it was just horrible - so bad that I actually regret watching it. These movies - movies that are made for a show that is cancelled way too early - are made for the fans of the show because they are the ones who want it, who need it. You’re complaining that Thomas was “targeting his feature only to those diehard supporters who wrote his paycheck”? Well, who else would the movie be directed at? When a movie is made normally - funded by the studio - the studio gets the final say: if they don’t like something, it gets cut, and if they want to see something, it gets put in. Fans who funded this Kickstarter payed for a movie that answered the questions that the premature cancellation gave them - where did the characters go, who is still in-touch with whom, who does Veronica end up with? And this movie did a beautiful job of answering all of these questions. Now, I can't tell if you were a fan of the show or not... who am I kidding, you clearly have never seen it because you go on complaining about the lighting. Veronica Mars, the TV show, is a teen soap-detective drama - with a little deviation from the soapy-teen stuff in the third season. The show itself contrasted light and dark shots to portray the mood, even the forthcoming mood. And I don’t know if you watched the movie with sunglasses on or what, but clearly something was blocking your vision because what you describe is not the movie I watched. There were clear contrasts and clear reasons to use the darker shots: for example, the scene between Logan and Veronica - oh, man, that scene - was intentionally dark because a) it happened at night, so there’s one pretty obvious reason; but also b) Logan and Veronica’s entire relationship is messy and impure and chaotic - which is represented by the dark lighting and slightly-choppy camera work. It follows the shows lighting and editing patterns, which, again, gives fans the comfort that they paid for. I understand where you’re coming from, I really do - the movie may not make sense if you have never seen the show. And if that’s the case, then I’m sorry, but this movie was not made for you. It’s like if you started watching a show at the fourth season and then complained because you did not understand the relationships of the characters. The whole point of the movie was to be a continuation, not to introduce the characters to a whole new set of fans - but, hey, if it did, that’s great. Maybe they’ll watch the show and we can make even more money for the sequel’s Kickstarter. An Avid Veronica Mars Fan, Olivia Federici
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O. FedericiI like to like things. Archives
May 2014
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