It's not a movie, but a miniseries, but I just finished watching Tin Man from the Sci-fi channel. 2/10. I'm all for awesome imaginative reworkings of older material, but this show missed the mark on so many levels. Firstly, they dues ex machina'd like 90% of the movie. The main character didn't have to actually learn anything or struggle in any way. She didn't grow as a character. The main antagonist had potential, but there wasn't enough struggle in that arena either. And I swear to god if I have to see Zooey Deschanel looking concerned about something one more time I'll have to barf. There were so many extraneous shots of her just looking at something with a concerned expression on her face I don't even. And of course the only non-human character talked like a freaking idiot--referred to himself in the third person constantly, used simplistic terms, was generally a caricature of the tamed savage, and also had psychic powers that--you guessed it--only got used when the plot needed to be forced forward.
And despite it being called "Tin Man", it had NOTHING to do with the "Tin Man" character. There was some C plot action regarding the character and his family, but there was no point to it. If I were to rewrite this script, I would have made the Tin Man's search for his family the A plot, or at least the reason that the protagonist is led to all the clues regarding her past. That would have been way more interesting than "Your parents set this all in motion 15 'annuals' ago, and all you have to do is show up and follow the gigantic signs we've laid out for you." And speaking of the parents, why the hell were they so unconcerned about their oldest daughter being possessed by a freaking witch?! You'd think that would be their main motivation here. Saving the younger daughter, yes, but also arranging things (if they're going to be so masterfully adept at manipulating events anyway) so that their oldest daughter has a freaking chance. But no, they're just worried about their younger daughter getting mysterious clues and signs that basically do all the work for her.
And apparently only a few people can do any significant magic in this universe, but the only tutelage the protagonist gets is "Concentrate." Concentrate on what, bitch? "Let the light flow through you." What light? What are you talking about? Oh, and at one point the father, who is from "our" universe and doesn't show any magical ability, is the one telling the protagonist how to use her magic power. I mean, what the f? How does he know how to use magic?
I don't even know why I'm giving it 2 points. I think they're pity points.
HOW DOES THIS HAVE A 3.7 RATING ON NETFLIX.
