THE INTRODUCTION OF THE WITCHER: HOW WILL HOLLYWOOD ADAPT POLANDS GREATEST FANTASY.

Dear friends,

On Friday November the 6th it was announced that Adrzej Sapkowski's infamous Witcher novels had been picked up by the Sean Daniel Company and Platige Films to adapt the series into a movie.

There was no doubt in my mind that this scenario would, at some point, eventually play out. Ever since The Lord of the Rings was given the full Hollywood treatment, the public has been inundated with one tiresome fantasy film after another. This has had the unfortunate side effect of severely diluting audience’s interest in the genre as, little by little, with each passing year as they're force fed the same tiresome "Blockbuster Epic" with slight alterations.

That’s why it's imperative that The Witcher's transition from novel and computer game format is treated with the due care and attention it deserves.

The story follows the exploits of Geralt of Rivia (pictured above), an albino monster slayer (aka Witcher) who travels the lengths of his world killing monsters for coin. His journey takes him across the lengths and breadths of the land where he encounters sorceresses, demons, genies, minstrels, kings and emperors.

All of this sounds par for the course of any fantasy story, right?

Wrong.

Unlike most mercenary leading heroes, Geralt is not a wise cracking "anti-hero". Nor is he the withdrawn and tortured trope of which we have seen so often before. Geralt is unique; a character who is so utterly neutral that unless you had read the story for yourself you might consider him boring. His heroism is not born from a desire to save the world, nor has he been entrusted with the task of ridding his world of evil and therefore striking a blow for righteousness.

No, Geralt is a working man with a working man's problems which creates a character born of pragmatism, not destiny.

That's not to say that destiny does not play a part in Geralt's story but as I don't wish to spoil anything I will allow you all to read the books and play the games and discover that destiny for yourselves.

Hollywood's history of bad adaptations far outweighs the good ones. When America came for The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo they were roundly bitten by the Swedish original, when Eragon flew onto the screen the audience flew out of the Cinema; and when The Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy flew in from outer space that’s exactly where the audience went to escape it.

This is to say nothing of the many sins studios have perpetrated against some of the best comic book works known to date - Constantine and Judge Dredd being the two gravest offences for fans.

It is with these examples in mind that I urge all current and future fans of The Witcher to approach this news with caution. Our hero, as well as the cast we have all come to know and love, may well be getting their moment in the sun but there is something we must all bear in mind.

The studio that produced The Mummy Franchise is now holding the fate of this story in their hands and that means one thing - CGI over storytelling and money over substance.

Thank you for reading.

Steve