The Shroud on 1/12/2008 at 20:53
I'm in the process of writing a screenplay for Thief: the Dark Project aimed for the big screen. Right now I'm going over the weapons and items featured in the story, which include many of Garrett's favorites. However, not all of Garrett's implements make an appearance. I'd like to know which weapons/items fans consider to be the most crucial to TDP (i.e. the ones you'd most want to make an appearance in a Thief movie). Currently, the weapons/items from TDP that I've included in my screenplay are as follows:
Blackjack
Constantine's sword
Broadhead arrows
Water arrows
Fire arrows
Rope arrow
Compass
Lockpicks
Flash bombs
Let me know which weapons/items you'd have chosen and why.
jtr7 on 1/12/2008 at 21:16
You can use everything, but the stealth items should be used heavily, while the deadlier, noisier stuff should be used sparingly--except in the case of the Bonehoard and barricaded areas of Old Quarter, for examples. The dead should remain dead, and if they rise as undead, they should be put back into their place! (Or just run past or away from them. :p ) :cheeky:
Since it's a screenplay, it should play up the scares, and exploding zombies are reasonable. Although, if time permits, a good zombie vs. burrick or giant spider fight would be a good way to keep Garrett moving. Other missions should showcase excellent Ghosting, and play it up as showcasing Garrett's master thievery. Some items are necessities for telling the story, but are rare items, like gas arrows/crystals. They are integral to the universe and elemental themes, but hard to come by. Following the template laid out, the gas arrows could be introduced in the last third of the story, but used in the Maw.
Zillameth on 1/12/2008 at 22:13
Lockpicks, water arrows, rope arrows, and blackjack, because they define Garrett as a character. A film is only 90-120 minutes long, so there isn't much time for gadget showcase. Even a Bond movie would use only four or five items. TDP setting is somewhat more sophisticated, and its pacing is slower, leaving less room for action sequences.
Beleg Cúthalion on 1/12/2008 at 22:17
I'd like to see more art and (although it might seem contradicting the first) some kind of soberness than in most commercial movies. And not silly fantasy stuff, as always. :p Honestly, I think weapons and tools are secondary and merely something for the fans who want to see their original square-shaped lockpick or whatever. Just don't make it too spacy and always keep in mind which elements were rather gameplay-like (health potions for instance). Good luck!
PS: A guy named....I dunno wrote and sort-of-released a screenplay some time ago. Reading the thread and reception of it might be useful.
jtr7 on 1/12/2008 at 22:24
I wouldn't be interested in medieval fiction about a thief, but a movie realising
Thief would get my attention. Objects don't have to look low-poly, they just have to be plausible. I'm still waiting to see how an historically and technologically accurate adaptation of
Thief could possibly work, without compromising it's atmosphere and heart.
Thief is fantasy.
Unfortunately, Jon Marck's script deviated too much from
Thief and was not welcomed. The script contains lots of good stuff, separate from what it has to live up to:
(
http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113764)
Calmbeforethestorm was likewise treated like crap for not making good on his
promises wishful-thinking:
(
http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=110500)
So, I recommend sticking to the purest version of
Thief you can with limited screen time.
The Shroud on 1/12/2008 at 22:35
Quote Posted by Beleg Cúthalion
I'd like to see more art and (although it might seem contradicting the first) some kind of soberness than in most commercial movies. And not
silly fantasy stuff, as always. :p
I agree. Which weapons/items from TDP would you classify as silly?
jtr7 on 1/12/2008 at 22:50
Just remember: Nothing has to be used by the characters, merely shown. An item may be used only once, and not by Garrett, so all are shown to exist, but in limited fashion. What we never see in the games are the other characters using the items in their own armouries. We see others use healing potions and using fire arrows, but little else.
I know what you mean, but a movie about Thief cannot be made not silly for a large portion of the populace. You would have to stick with the Bafford job, and avoid all the other missions, because then you could avoid using water arrows, potions, and keep the spiders numerous and tiny (realistic and can avoid CGI!), replace the Collector Towers with standard street lamps, etc.
I reiterate, Thief is fantasy, embrace it, or don't call it "Thief" and enjoy doing what you want, uninhibited by the canon. Say "loosely inspired adaptation". But you say you want to do a Thief screenplay, so it requires compromises for time.
I would hope that screenplays could be considered fan-fiction.
The question is, who is the target audience. Fans of Thief will threaten your life if you do it "wrong". Those unfamiliar with it would have to be wooed.
The Shroud on 1/12/2008 at 23:19
Quote Posted by jtr7
I wouldn't be interested in medieval fiction about a thief, but a movie realising
Thief would get my attention. Objects don't have to look low-poly, they just have to be plausible. I'm still waiting to see how an historically and technologically accurate adaptation of
Thief could possibly work, without compromising it's atmosphere and heart.
Thief is fantasy.
Well, while the screenplay I'm writing does not adhere to our history or historical technological eras, I have managed to figure out how things like water arrows, fire arrows, rope arrows, and flash bombs could work in a medieval/early-industrial setting like Thief's. Some items were too far-fetched or technologically advanced for that kind of setting (explosive mines, gas mines, etc.), which is why I've left them out. What I have done is work out how someone with Garrett's education could have constructed certain items, utilizing knowledge of chemistry and other sciences, and employing resources available in a setting like Thief's.
jtr7, would you feel the setting is not really Thief if
any of TDP's weapons/items were missing?
Beleg Cúthalion on 1/12/2008 at 23:43
Heh, I even made the word silly italic. :p Of course Thief is fantasy and anachronistic but that's IMHO too nice a chance to make it spacy and everything. That's why I wanted to point out that one has to be really careful... at least for me.
About weapons...well... I guess mines are less problematic than elementary crystals which I never really liked, but there's no way around. :erg: I'm a fan of historical things as I always tend to make extra clear simply because historical things have a much smaller chance (than fantasy elements) of being implausible even in their own context. Some halberds on the streets would be nice. After all they're canonical.
The Shroud on 1/12/2008 at 23:56
Water arrows and fire arrows don't have to use elemental crystals. A plausible water arrow could be constructed using water and baking soda in a molded gelatin arrowhead. A fire arrow could be constructed using sodium, methanol, and dynamite or napalm inside a glass arrowhead.
