Book-To-Movie: Guest Blogger Alex Cavanaugh Reviews 'Relic'

Credit: Tor Books

The fourth weekend of the month, when we normally have our Book-To-Movie review has passed us again. However, the review is still on! This month I have a guest blogger for our Book-To-Movie review. The two of us agreed to trade our book-to-movie reviews and present them to you today, this last Monday of the month. In a Book-To-Movie, we review a work of prose fiction and its movie adaptation. 

And my guest blogger and reviewer is Alex Cavanaugh. Alex is the author of the Cassa series of novels and founder of the Insecure Writers' Support Group! Here at the Fantastic Site, he’s reviewing a best-selling novel of detective horror, "Relic", and its movie adaptation. In turn, at his site, I have the pleasure of reviewing "The Black Phone" short story by Joe Hill and its movie adaptation. So, after you're finished reading Alex’s awesome review, please leave a comment for him in the box below and then head on over to his website to check out my review of the "The Black Phone". Let us not delay any longer and move on to Alex's review of the "Relic"!

  

Guest Book-To-Movie Review

Relic

Released in 1996, Relic (Pendergast, Book 1) by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child was the first book following Agent Pendergast. (There are over twenty now.)

The basic synopsis:

Just days before a massive exhibition opens at the popular New York Museum of Natural History, visitors are being savagely murdered in the museum's dark hallways and secret rooms. Autopsies indicate that the killer cannot be human...

But the museum's directors plan to go ahead with a big bash to celebrate the new exhibition, in spite of the murders.

Museum researcher Margo Green must find out who--or what--is doing the killing. But can she do it in time to stop the massacre?

The story is spectacular. It’s a rare page-turner that you can’t put down, similar to Jurassic Park. The authors have masterfully woven together horror, suspense, and a crafty detective story.

They have also introduced some interesting characters. This becomes our first exposure to Agent Pendergast, and after the sequel, Reliquary, he quickly gained a huge fan base. (There is even a website dedicated to him - https://www.agentpendergast.com/.) He’s a quirky character and certainly one of my favorite literary characters. Margo Green is a tough and smart researcher and the next main character. She is joined by Lt. D'Agosta, and the two of them go on to appear in numerous other Pendergast stories.

The museum setting adds a very creepy vibe to the story. Almost all of the story takes place there and the authors use the museum to their advantage, ramping up the atmosphere and fear.

Then there is the creature, something out of a nightmare. The three must not only track it down but figure out where it came from in the first place. And what exactly it is. (Or who.)

The movie Relic was released in 1997, spurred by the huge success of the book. It was directed by Peter Hyams and starred Penelope Ann Miller, Tom Sizemore, and Linda Hunt.

I actually saw the movie first and it was a decent creature feature. The setting and basic storyline follow the book rather faithfully. The creature stalking the museum is huge and terrifying. The special effects department did a great job bringing it to life. Margo is just as sharp and the one who defeats the creature in the end. Overall, it was well done and quite enjoyable.

And then I read the book. And it completely ruined the movie for me.

The movie left out Agent Pendergast. 

While he was not the huge star yet, he was the main character. Plus, he would go on to star in so many more Preston and Child books. This could have been the beginning of a great franchise for the studio, following a detective almost on par with Sherlock Holmes. They missed a huge opportunity. And they alienated fans of Pendergast and the authors’ books.

If you separate the movie from the book, it’s an enjoyable creature feature. But leaving out a main character is an unforgiveable sin. It still follows the book, but it substitutes Lt. D'Agosta as the hero.

So, in this instance, if you want to enjoy the movie at least once, I recommend watching it first. If you’d rather just go straight to a great story and one of the best literary characters ever created, then skip the film and curl up with an outstanding book.

Credit: Alex J. Cavanaugh

Alex J. Cavanaugh works in web design and graphics. A fan of all things science fiction, his interests range from books and movies to music and games. Online he is known as Ninja Captain Alex and is the founder of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. His Cassa books are Amazon Best Sellers and winners of the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award.

www.alexjcavanaugh.com  

www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

Credit: Alex J. Cavanaugh

Thanks Alex, for sharing this wonderful review of a groovy book and movie! I’ll have to read and see them, they both sound really interesting. 

Book-In-Progress (BIP)

I'm still grinding away at the two short stories I talked about last time for my upcoming short fiction collection, "Bad Apps". I've also been a little behind on producing the cover, but I'll be resuming that hopefully this week sometime. 

I'm still looking for beta readers for "Bad Apps", and so if you're interested in reading the book before its official release and helping me make improvements, and, of course, getting a free beta copy! then please let me know in the box below. You can also email me at sarellanorose@gmail.com. More great beta reader benefits are listed in the July 24 post. For more details about the progress and behind-the-scenes of "Bad Apps", sign up for my newsletter, "Night Creatures' Call". It's free! Hopefully, we'll see you at Alex's blog!

Have you read Preston and Child's novel "Relic" and/or seen its movie adaptation? If both, what did you think of the movie omitting the book's main character, Agent Pendegast?

Until next time . . .