Mark Gatiss' The First Men in the Moon
Definitely doesn’t have the name recognition that both War of the Worlds and The Time Machine have, but H.G. Wells’ The First Men in the Moon is still, well, H.G. Wells. With only a single screen adaptation in 1964 to is credit, The First Men in the Moon is getting a great dust off by way of self-proclaimed sci-fi fanatic, Mark Gatiss, of League of Gentlemen, Doctor Who, Sherlock fame.
As the story goes, the world is eagerly awaiting the Apollo astronauts landing on the moon. What the world doesn’t know is that 90-year-old Julius Bedford got there first — in 1909. Along the way, he and a rather eccentric Professor Cavor, discovered a secret buried deep beneath the barren surface.
Gatiss adds his midas touch to this BBC 4 update. It’s not as dramatic an “update” as his and Steven Moffat’s current brilliant 21st adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock that starred Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. But, much has changed since 1964 with respect to what we know about the Moon…like, we’ve actually been there so the science has changed just a bit.
Good reviews and good audience figures when aired last week on BBC4. Anyone see it last week? Let’s hope this crosses the Atlantic soon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk8jWObYgCk
