Sci Fi Channel resurrects Riverworld

29 June 2009

Gerard Wood

In what could be interpreted as an act of atonement for its first attempt at adapting Philip José Farmer’s Riverworld novels for the small screen, the Sci Fi Channel has announced that it is producing a new four hour “movie event” based on the classic science fiction series. According to screen writer Robert Hewitt Wolfe (Andromeda, The Dresden Files), there is a chance that a TV series will follow. For those who missed the 2003 Riverworld pilot, just count yourselves lucky. As adaptations of classic science fiction and fantasy go, only the Sci Fi Channel’s Earthsea mini series surpasses it as an act of literary vandalism.

Philip José Farmer’s Riverworld series of five novels kicks off with a Hugo Award winner (1972): To Your Scattered Bodies Go introduces the Riverworld, an earthlike planet on which the whole of humanity (and more) has been resurrected along the banks of an immense river by a mysterious godlike race, and for purposes unknown. The cast of characters spans the entire breadth of history (in fact pre-history and beyond, into our future) and includes the fascinating Sir Richard Francis Burton (Victorian adventurer, linguist, writer, translator and all-round swash-buckler), Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain), author and adventurer Jack London, the infamous King John, Alice Liddell (the real-life inspiration for Alice of Alice in Wonderland fame), as well as fictional characters and a pseudo-auto biographical character by the name of Peter Jairus Frigate (signalled by the shared initials, PJF). The series follows the characters’ attempts to investigate their new world and understand the purpose behind their resurrection.

Putting aside the average production standards of the 2003 pilot, its chief offence was that it took a great premise, replete with philosophical and ethical questions, an amazing cast of characters on a compelling adventure, and trashed the lot by introducing its own inferior characters and story. We can only thank the mysterious gods of Riverworld that the Sci Fi Channel’s first attempt never progressed beyond a pilot and was mercifully put out of our misery before it could be mistaken for anything remotely like Farmer’s creation.

It sounds like those behind the new four hour “movie event” haven’t learned any lessons from this experience or from other unsuccessful adaptations however. Which is unfortunate because it would appear that screenwriter Robert Wolfe has a real appreciation for Farmer’s fiction. In interview with Sci Fi Wire he explained with some reservations it would seem that the Sci Fi Channel had very specific ideas about how the series would be framed: “They wanted a viewpoint character that was an American, which isn't in the books. Once you start with these marching orders, you pick and choose the things in the book you love and try to keep as much as you can. Hopefully the spiritual and philosophical nature of the Riverworld books will come through in the miniseries.”

The American view point character is Matt Ellman (Tahmoh Penikett) an American war zone reporter killed, alongside his fiancée, by a suicide bomber. Ho hum. Frankly, if I were American I’d find this kind of decision by the producers fairly insulting because at its heart lies a judgement that American audiences are insular and incapable of empathising with non-Americans. Which is doubly bizarre (and a slap in the face for American readers) because the late Philip José Farmer (1918-2009) was of course an American author whose success was due in the first instance to an American readership.

There’s no better lesson in the pitfalls of introducing American view point characters into an established work than Walden Media’s disastrous attempt to adapt Susan Cooper’s classic fantasy The Dark is Rising for the big screen. The second novel in a hugely successful and well-loved fantasy series on both sides of the Atlantic, The Dark is Rising is a quintessentially British story. Other than seeking to pander to an American audience by replacing the British protagonist in the novel with an American view point character for the screen there was actually no reason for such a decision and the integrity of the story was inevitably undermined. All that the producers succeeded in doing by introducing this and other poorly reasoned changes was kill off a potential franchise: they made an awful movie and alienated a long established fan base that would otherwise have paid good money over the years as other books in the series made their way to the big screen.

Back to the Sci Fi Channel’s new adaptation of Riverworld. Leaving aside the flawed commercial decision to introduce an American view point character and entirely new story line, it doesn’t sound all bad. Wolfe really does appear to have an excellent appreciation of the novels, and we can only hope that he’s able to bring some of the novels’ complexities, fun and adventure to the screen. Should the show go to series he’s promising to pursue some of Farmer’s philosophical questions, “Why are we here? What is the point of existence? How do we affect the world? How do we deal with the idea of God? What happens to us after we die? All these characters are still struggling in this pseudo-afterlife they've ended up in. There's the mythological aspect of who built it—and why? What's the point of this place? Is it good or bad? Is it a positive, or is this place some giant rat maze? I'd love to explore those themes, and with Matt trying to make a difference by improving the situation of everyone around him.”

You can read the whole interview with Robert Wolfe on Sci Fi Wire. The four hour “movie event” is scheduled for release in 2010.

So, what do you think? Adapting a work of fiction for the screen inevitably involves changes as page and screen are two completely different media, but is the introduction of an American view point character justifiable or even desirable in this case?

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