Dick Francis: In the Frame

Why, why, why, when producers decide a book is good enough to make a film, do they then change it all? And especially why do they take English stories and make them into poor American versions of the original? And, most of all, why do the authors allow it to happen? This was a good book, based in England, with British characters, and then shifting to exciting action in Australia. So, of course, they shifted the story to Canada and Germany. Ian McShane should have been a good choice for the character (whose name, of course,was changed, seemingly for no good reason, to that of a character in a totally different DF book). He is not too bad, but he is now an investigator for the British Jockey Club, instead of the book's painter of horses, a fact which was crucial to the plot of the book. Fail, fail, fail! I bought the set of 3 TV movies, and this one was so bad I don't know if I can bear to watch the other two! (which, on Googling, I find have also been altered). Grrrrrrrrrrrr!

How these mace for TV movies can be said to be based on the Dick Francis novels I don't know. His books are well written, well plotted thrillers whereas this is one of the most awful things ever put to film. Although In the Frame does follow the basic plot of the book, it seems to be playing things for lauhghs, which are turn out not to be funny. Ian McShane is cringeworthy as the hero and he is the best performance of the whole thing, which does not say much really. Not even bad enough to be entertaining I can honestly say I felt like I had wasted an hour and a half of my life afyter watching this film, I strongly advise other people not to make the same mistake.