Movie studios and TV networks seem to love destroying a good book. Case in point is this horrible adaptation of Peter Benchley's "Beast" (no "the" here). I read the original work when it first came out. It gave me a few sleepless night fearing that a giant squid would appear in my room at any moment. Beast did for me what Jaws did to many people before it. I've since gone back and read it again several times. That's the mark of an enjoyable book. But the word enjoyable cannot be applied to the TV miniseries. Your hopes are raised in the first ten minutes where the miniseries really mirrors the book but it's all to hell in a handbasket after that. Characters are completely changed from what they were in the original work, characters who also never appeared in the book are invented for the show. William Petersen must take the award for the "worst case of miscasting in this or any other century" for his his portrayal of Whip Darling. Petersen apparently knew as much and it is obvious he is terribly umcomfortable in the role. It's a shame because in the right part (say, Manhunter), Petersen is magnificent. But The Beast is not about magnificence. Monster fans will also be disapointed in the terrible squid effects. The squid in the book was a true monster, vicious, destructive and huge, 120 feet or more. One gets the feeling of a Godzilla sized creature in the climax when it destroys Whip's boat. But in the TV adaptation we get a squid (or squids, another change from the source material)that is fake looking and not at all impressive. Maybe it's the small screen or the poor effects work or both, but the squid comes off as phony and unmenacing. It's a shame that John Carpenter, who made it known that he would have liked to have visualized the book, didn't get his chance to make the movie. A film done by him would have been far more interesting, exciting and above all scary.
It sadly didn't end here. Not long after this, Benchley's Beast follow up, White Shark, was turned into something called either Creature or Monster. It would have been better served to be called "garbage." And so would The Beast.
It sadly didn't end here. Not long after this, Benchley's Beast follow up, White Shark, was turned into something called either Creature or Monster. It would have been better served to be called "garbage." And so would The Beast.