It's quite hard to believe that the author of Gone Girl & Sharp Objects is also responsible for this screenplay. Where is the subtlety or the emotional complexity - which is synonymous with her writing? Where's the subtext or the rich, layered dialogue? Everything's just so surface level & simplistic.
Even harder to believe is the fact that Gillian Flynn genuinely sat down during interviews, proclaiming how she watched the original version of UTOPIA, taking notes in preparation for her personal adaptation, jotting down whenever she thought they'd missed something out - so she could add those new additions to her scripts in order to expand further upon the narrative... Insinuating that there were mistakes she had apparently corrected - & yet what she's produced is a pile of shallow, convoluted garbage.
This is demonstrably false when you consider the fact that she's demonstrated a complete inability to understand even the most basic things about the original. As an example, Arby's character; he's not organised or strategic. He's an adult that's been mentally regressed to a child; emotionally stunted, isolated & distant, suffering from severe trauma after years of manipulation at the hands of his handlers in the Network - who've pressured him & exploited his trust in them so that he'd carry out unspeakable acts on their behalf - in the name of the "greater good". He's as much of a victim as the people he kills because he's unable to process his actions due to constant abuse. That's why he's such a complex, three-dimensional character; every person he kills only exacerbates his inner conflict (which triggers the redemption arc in S2) & so an argument could be made that he isn't culpable for his crimes because of an evident diminished responsibility - whereas here, Flynn's version is conscious of his behaviour. He's calculated, preemptive & complicit. Therefore, his portrayal's dissatisfying & mediocre - due to the complete lack of depth.
Even harder to believe is the fact that Gillian Flynn genuinely sat down during interviews, proclaiming how she watched the original version of UTOPIA, taking notes in preparation for her personal adaptation, jotting down whenever she thought they'd missed something out - so she could add those new additions to her scripts in order to expand further upon the narrative... Insinuating that there were mistakes she had apparently corrected - & yet what she's produced is a pile of shallow, convoluted garbage.
This is demonstrably false when you consider the fact that she's demonstrated a complete inability to understand even the most basic things about the original. As an example, Arby's character; he's not organised or strategic. He's an adult that's been mentally regressed to a child; emotionally stunted, isolated & distant, suffering from severe trauma after years of manipulation at the hands of his handlers in the Network - who've pressured him & exploited his trust in them so that he'd carry out unspeakable acts on their behalf - in the name of the "greater good". He's as much of a victim as the people he kills because he's unable to process his actions due to constant abuse. That's why he's such a complex, three-dimensional character; every person he kills only exacerbates his inner conflict (which triggers the redemption arc in S2) & so an argument could be made that he isn't culpable for his crimes because of an evident diminished responsibility - whereas here, Flynn's version is conscious of his behaviour. He's calculated, preemptive & complicit. Therefore, his portrayal's dissatisfying & mediocre - due to the complete lack of depth.