This adaptation of Something Wicked This Way Comes looks to have been filmed on a very low budget with semi-professionals both in front of and behind the camera.
First off, to get any enjoyment from this version, one must forget the excellent 1983 adaptation by director Jack Clayton. Made ten years before Clayton's film, this adaptation of the novel is perhaps slightly more faithful to the book's plot. However, the atmosphere seems far removed from Bradbury. After the admittedly evocative opening that utilizes Bradbury's text in a voice over, the film settles down in the time and era in which it was made. Thus, this variation is set in the Great Britain of the early 1970's. Everyone smokes, the buildings are ugly, and disco music plays at the carnival. This just feels wrong for Bradbury.
In addition to the setting, the film suffers from a lack of coverage. Take for example the scene where the boys (here re-named Ben Hopewell and Jim Stone) encounter their teacher now a young girl. The scene goes by so quickly that what happened might not register with some viewers, and Bradbury's point (that it is not good to try and be young a second time) will be lost on anyone who has not read the book. This was obviously the director's first film and it shows in the way the film lurches from scene to scene.
As for the actors, I had difficulty understanding some of the dialogue between Ben and Jim in the exterior shots. The boys talk fast and the mics pick up the sound of the wind. Adult actor Les Scott has the unenviable task of playing Mr. Black (Jonathan Pryce owns that role). Scott does fine in the quieter moments but lays the ham on a little thick in the more dramatic moments. However, it would have been hard for anyone to outshine Jonathan Pryce. On the plus side, Tony Collins, the actor playing Ben's father, does a good job throughout. He is not Jason Robards, but his love for the boys always convinces and he is certainly the best actor here.
This adaptation of Something Wicked This Way Comes has been forgotten, if it ever was known in the first place. I had never heard of it until very recently. The filmmakers get points for ambition (tackling this adaptation with few resources), but the end result is not very good. Still, I cannot bring myself to beat up on the film too harshly. If nothing else, it made me get the Ray Bradbury novel down off the bookshelf and start re-reading it. I began last night right after the film ended and I have something wonderful coming my way.
