For one thing, there is a well-defined hero and a definite, singular villain. The film version of The Postman is, like most good adaptations, streamlined. The reluctant hero might seem like a well-worn movie trapping, but it reflects one of the main themes of the book, one that could be summed up with the saying: “All that is needed for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing.” Throughout the book, the main character reflects that his quest is to find someone who is willing to take responsibility for things, and gradually, it dawns upon him that the mantle is his. The Postman is certainly a classic slice of what Costner does best, in contrast with the unlikable, emotionally dull performances of, say, Viggo Mortensen in The Road (2009) or Denzel Washington in The Book Of Eli (2010). To some, he brings a likeable, intelligent, everyman quality to a heroic role. Whether you enjoy his characterisation probably depends on how you feel about Costner. Preserved is the premise of a scam, involving an old postal uniform, that is so effective that it soon takes on a life of its own.Īs the loner who gets caught up in events and eventually comes good, Costner’s character is fairly stock. The film adaptation strips out the futuristic elements of the latter parts of the book (genetic engineering, super computers) and grounds the story as a pure survivalist tale that could be considered a neo-western. “Instinctively realizing that the tale ought to be about decency, heroism and hope, he threw out all the dismal old drafts and hired Brian Helgeland, esteemed screenwriter of L.A. It’s as though the author took every suggestion he had been given and tried to cram it in into the final part. Part three is where the story takes a somewhat different tack, with a jarring transition into the realms science fiction rather than the speculative fiction of the first two parts. Part two follows on from this, and details his contact with a technological civilisation that aspires to reform and reclaim the wasteland. Part one is a highly entertaining story that follows the adventures of the main character as he journeys across the remnants of a disaster-ravaged North America. Originally, it comprised three short novels that were later collated into a longer book in three parts. In a nutshell, the film is a somewhat different adventure featuring the same character, setting and premise.Īlthough a great read, the source novel has some problems of its own. “So this is what you do: you wear your mask and you go vote.The Postman is loosely based on the book of the same name, and like all adaptations, the filmmakers were faced with choices over the content. And anyone who would interfere with that process in a deliberate way to have an outcome-that’s criminal. “And we now, because of the way the country is set up-which is beautiful-we have that opportunity. “What you have to try to lean on is that every four years we get to decide whether we’re going in the right direction or we’re not,” he says. That’s why the star of Field of Dreams and The Bodyguard is urging all Americans to get out to the polls in November and exercise their constitutional right. And there’s a lot of people where, when you look back ten years, they’re going to see themselves.” “When you look back at McCarthy, when you look back at black-and-white footage and see people who were beating on those who were marching for freedom, you don’t want to be that person. The 65-year-old screen icon campaigned for Pete Buttigieg during the Democratic Primary, and though he identifies as an independent, having voted for both Democrats and Republicans in the past, he says he’s alarmed by what he’s seen from the current White House occupant. Everything is highly real, and it’s dangerous. Postal Service, which has already caused massive delays in the delivery of life-saving medications to elderly patients and the distribution of pension checks, among other things, Costner doesn’t mince words. That’s how I did the movie.”Īs for Trump’s starving of the U.S. Because it is like a fairy tale you’d read to your children at night. The only thing people could count on.’ I didn’t say that, and I should have. ‘Once upon a time, when things got really rotten, the only thing that could stand the test of time was the post office. “I thought that I had made a mistake not starting out the movie with, ‘Once upon a time…’ because it’s kind of like a fairy tale. It has a chance to be revisited, and I was always kind of proud of it,” Costner tells The Daily Beast. “Listen, a movie is what it is when it comes out. Postal Service appears to have been rather “prophetic,” as he puts it. Postal Service in recent months-that he’s openly admitted is being done to stop mail-in voting, and thus influence the outcome of the 2020 presidential election-Costner’s film glorifying the U.S. But now, given Trump’s systematic dismantling of the U.S.
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