The day of the Triffids makes its return

Some time ago I wrote about one of my favourite Sci-Fi TV Series “Day of the Triffids“. Made in 1981, much like “Blakes 7” it is a little known British gem of a show that never really seemed to get the regard it should have got. Over Christmas the BBC have finally shown the new version. With some excellent actors, and a more grown up feel it is an excellent addition to the growing catalogue of remakes of this classic story.

I have to confess I have not read the book, and now I am starting to think I should. Every remake of this story has something new, while the core story still remains as chilling as ever.

What’s new?

Once you have remade the same story a few times can you really bring something new to it this time round? Simply put yes! I personally find this a very strong story. It probably appeals to my love of zombie films. You have a very simple enemy, who is slow moving, unintelligent foes who can do very little. But their power is in their unrelenting progress . With no fear and lack of respect for the human race you have an unstoppable enemy that create a very tense and claustrophobic atmosphere.

This version is very much like the older series. The stories are surprisingly close, but I much preferred this version explanation of the event that blinds the majority of the population. I also enjoyed the more detailed look at the triffid farming and the explanation of why the male and female plants are kept separated.

Which do you prefer?

If I am honest I prefer the 1981 version. Not because I think it is a better telling of the story, but just because they had more time to go into the ideas. While the initial story is very straight forward, the stories that evolve from it are far more interesting. While the new version touched on these emerging stories, and even created a new one with the nuns sacrificing their useless residents. It never had the time to really explore any of these.

There is a whole six part series just in the idea of a safe haven the where the Triffids show no interest in attacking. Once you know the secret it makes perfect sense and that reveal could have been much more dramatic and thought provoking. Is it so wrong to sacrifice a dying old man to save a fifty more? Where do you draw the line? What if you could save a thousand for someone who would die anyway, or was no longer interested in helping the whole? This is actually something I miss from Dr Who.

British Sci-Fi Rant

You have to love David Tennant as the doctor, in fact you have to love the doctor in general, it is an amazingly clever and simple idea for a show. It exemplifies something I love about British Sci-Fi and Horror in general. In US shows you know the core people are safe. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are safe, they are definitely coming back. McGyver will get into a tough spot, but he will find away out of it (even if you do steal the whole ending to “The Italian Job”.. you bastard!).

But British work is not so simple (at least it never used to be.. but that’s a different story). You are totally entitled to kill your main hero and all his friends if you like. You can never be sure who is safe. “Blakes 7” has to be the epitome of that, your main hero doesn’t even appear in the last two series to the point you are sure he is dead. Only to have him pop up right at the end, only to be killed by his friend Avon (you Bastard!). If this is a spoiler to you… grow up! You should already know this stuff, there is no excuse, it was made in 1981 for god sake!

Dr Who is the pinnacle of that idea, you have a character that you can kill off at any point. There is no guarantee he will be about to help. Yes you know he can come back, but each iteration is a little different so you do lose one character and gain another.

This was the feel I got from the the old Triffid series, any one of them could go at any point. That unpredictability makes the show watch-able. With no clear villan you are never really sure who you should looking out for. Yes the acting is not the greatest, but I love that. Dr Who would be nothing without Tom Baker hamming it up for all he’s worth.

Failing

So this was the failing I felt in the show, Torrance was just there you make you dislike him, he didn’t serve much purpose apart from that. So there was no really need to spend as much time as they did on him.

Because of all the time lost to making you hate him, we lost a lot to Triffid time. Towards the end they talk about the Triffids using the sewers and over running the city. But we didn’t get to see any of that, and that was a real shame. It would have given a chance for Izzard to really make you dislike Torrance as he sacrificed his own men so he could make his escape.

Again this is something I miss from current Sci-Fi, Dr Who is the biggest culprit of this. It used to be that a single story would take six episodes to play out. It would start of all nice with some strange happenings, until the really weird stuff would come out, then the doctor would step in and save the day. Fairly standard stuff, but at least there was time to play with the ideas and come up with something with a little meaning. Admittedly not all the stories deserved all this attention but some of the classics are better for it. This is where I think Triffids could have done with being a few episodes longer. Rather than being a film cut in half they should have gone for more shorter episodes. But that is just my personal opinion.

My conclusion

This new version was excellent, the visuals were good, and the acting was excellent. But something was lost. There was too much time spent on the run, and not enough time to see the tragedy unfold. It is worth seeing, and I especially liked the new design for the Triffids.

Check out some other peoples thoughts on the new show:

• Den of Geek – A great in depth look. Points out some things I had not even considered.
• Dan’s Media Digest – Also talks about the rushed nature of the new series. But overall a good show.
• BCS – I think this sums up my thoughts.. it was good, but doesn’t quiet hit the mark.