Ad Copy from the Planet Clueless

[primsong]

I can't help but wonder who gets paid to write the schlock I so often find on some of my favorite movies or books - jacket blurbs that seem to indicate the writer never even scanned the book, much less actually read it, 'summaries' on dvds that make you go "are they talking about this movie or just making something up - and just how many drinks did they have first?"

I would love to see publishers of media offer fans of those works a chance to submit 'reviews' for the packaging - certainly would be less annoying.

And what brought this little rant about? I just got a copy of one of my old favorites, The Scarlet Pimpernel, the one with Ian McKellen and Anthony Andrews on dvd... and what does it say on the back?

The swashbuckling classic comes to rip-roaring life in this lavish production, filled with breathless romance and derring-do!.... ack....gack.... ptui! ptui!

Then to add insult to injury, they add a quote from the 'New York Times' - "A whale of a yarn! Crammed with adventure...lavish...sumptuous!"

Just kill me now....A whale of a yarn? The Scarlet Pimpernel is a whale of a yarn???

Help!

Comments

[meneleth.livejournal.com]

I think some "reviewers" just have index cards with phrases on them. (These days it might be a computer generated program.) So for this movie, for example, they go to their "adventure" file, pull out some random comments and fill them in on the dust jacket or DVD cover.

PS. That is my favorite version of "Scarlet Pimpernell".

[primsong.livejournal.com]

Lud love me, such conjectory could drive a man insane - but you may have hit upon it, I think - like those slogan generators, which would allow copy to be written by illiterates... :-P Or Chinese.

And yes, this has been in my top list for years - wonderful show. I also greatly enjoy the broadway musical, the version with Douglas Sills and Terrance Mann. Mann has the most amazing Chauvelin voice, and Sills is (as always) simply fabulous. His rendition of "Prayer" makes me want to cry. (all of us still end up saying things like "Poor Percy!" when we hear it)

[acciochocolate.livejournal.com]

I'm a Frank Wildhorn fan from way back, early 90s, when the music store I was working in one Christmas season for extra bucks got in a sample of songs from the concept album for "Jekyll and Hyde". Linda Eder, his now-ex-wife, was just amazing as one of the female leads. I did see a national tour of J&H with Chuck Wagner in the lead, but have never seen any of Wildhorn's other musicals, more's the pity.

[primsong.livejournal.com]

Oh what I wouldn't have given to see SP onstage - I'll have to investigate J&H, as I've heard good things about it before. If you haven't heard the Pimpernel's music, btw, order it! You won't regret it. Get the one with Terrence Mann if you can, his voice was (I think) better suited to the music for Chauvelin over his later replacement (Rex Smith).

[acciochocolate.livejournal.com]

Mine, too! I've seen the Leslie Howard one, and it's very strange, because of the lack of incidental music--took me a while to figure this out.

The Anthony Andrews version, I am given to understand, was a re-working of the Howard script--I think the production company was the same!

[primsong.livejournal.com]

I am (among many other things) also a Leslie Howard fan so I very much enjoy his version too - but Anthony Andrews remains the definitive Percy for me.