Jeff Lemire, for “Sweet Tooth”: “Adaptation Should Stand Alone” – Comics – Culture
This comic adaptation is likely to elicit controversial reactions. On June 4th, the adaptation of Jeff Lemire’s “Sweet Tooth” and post-apocalypse begins. On Netflix. Directed by Jim Mikel, the series is produced by Robert Downey Jr. and his wife, Susan Downey. The first two trailers were released recently – and they were not only positively received by fans of the series.
The series, which was published in 40 issues between 2009 and 2013 by DC label Vertigo and has since been discontinued, is set in a post-apocalyptic future and is about the struggle for survival of a group of humans and hybrid animals. The main character is the boy Goose, who wears deer horns and has a weakness for chocolate bars.
In the trailers, Gus – played by Christian Convery – is shown to be strikingly cute, and judging by the first few scenes, the mood of the movie, despite some threatening moments, is sweet and sometimes more comical than dark and existential.
While many fans of the series Al Majalla expressed their anticipation on social media channels after the trailer was published, there were voices as well. like this To hear: “On the 4th of June, we might expect to distort the comic year. If there’s one thing that’s not Sweet Tooth, it’s cute. But the trailer conveys exactly that, a lovely fairy tale about the end of the world.”
For the 45-year-old Lemire, “Sweet Tooth” was an important step in the transition from independent comics to genre novels, which at the same time are an important part of his work – Salon Erlangen.
Shortly before the movie began, Lemire is back in the world of Gus: he has a miniseries on DC “Sweet Tooth – The Return” has been published, which deals with the central motifs of the original series and develops them further.
Tagesspiegel asked the Toronto-based author in a short interview about photography, variations in his comic book, and a return to the world of “sweet tooth”.
Jeff Lemire, to what extent did you co-adapt Sweet Tooth as a movie?
Jeff Lemire: You only participated indirectly. I have been busy with many of my comic projects and am editing some of my other books for further adaptations of the films. So, in this case, I wasn’t directly involved in the implementation as the Netflix series. Film viewer Jim Mickle and everyone in Team Downey were really great at keeping me updated and making me feel involved every step of the way. For example, I visited the test photography site in New Zealand and had a very open conversation with Jim.
How was it working with Robert Downey Jr and his wife Susan as producers?
Robert and Susan Downey are gorgeous. They are very involved in adaptation and believe in the characters and the story, and their passion for it is very evident.
How does the movie match what you meant by “Sweet Tooth” and how is it different?
Each mod will be different from the original. A comedian will always be a comedian, and that was my vision for Sweet Tooth. The TV app should be a standalone thing that can stand on its own. The characters and traits definitely still exist, but the world has changed a lot since Sweet Tooth first created it a decade ago.
Which way?
There have been a lot of post-apocalyptic stories on TV since then, and it might be a bit boring to approach the story the way it did with the comics. So they decided to take a slightly lighter approach to materials. Perhaps this is more suited to a world already in the middle of a pandemic. The movie version definitely has some big differences, but I think that’s a good thing.
How focused is the movie on your first story arc for “Sweet Tooth” – and how does it incorporate elements from your recently completed “Sweet Tooth – The Return” series?
There is absolutely none of “Sweet Tooth: The Return” in the TV series. She wrote and drew comics after the film was already well ahead of production.
However, the reader gets the impression that it is no coincidence that there is also a comic book sequel almost parallel to the beginning of the film. How far did you create the comic book “Sweet Tooth – The Return” in anticipation of the Netflix quote?
I finished “Sweet Tooth” in 2013 and then devoted myself to other projects. But when I visited the movie in 2018 and saw the passion and excitement all of the participants had for the world and the Sweet Tooth characters, my special love for Sweet Tooth renewed and in my head the wheels started spinning. I just wanted to visit the characters again after that. I would say the movie version made me want to go back to the world of “Sweet Tooth” again.
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