The gimmick of the Fox series 24 is that the stories play out in real time over 24 hours. Entertainment Weekly reports that the producers of 24 are seriously considering a feature film version that would follow a story that unfolds in real time over two tense hours. They also forsee the possibility of extending the 24 brand into spin-off series, ala LAW AND ORDER and CSI, with any number of different heroes in different settings in stories that play out over a single day.
I see a real difference between the LAW AND ORDER branding and what has been done with CSI. The three LAW AND ORDER shows are essentially stand-alone, unique series that share the same name, music cues, and style. The three CSI shows, however, are exactly the same show set in different cities. 24 could, concievably, strike a middle ground between the two approaches to branding…only the storytelling device is the same and everything else is different. But will viewers tire of the real-time gimmick? They haven’t lost their interest in the three identical CSIs yet…
Why not just put out a real-time series called “52,” in which a character has one hellish night of adventure a week — then six boring off-camera days — for 23 weeks; then gets caught in a time-loop during the holidays and summer months, and must go through the same damn experiences again?
I hate the idea of a feature film. Or spin off series. One hour of 24 a week and at a time is about all I can handle.
Let’s face it, great though the 24 concept is (and it really is) Keifer Sutherland is 24. That’s why a TV franchise wouldn’t work for me.
As to a movie, the shorter the time frame for a thriller the better the tension. Die Hard and Speed to name but two. So I think the flick could be terrific.
Though shouldn’t it be 2.4 to maintain the franchise link, with a running time of 2 hours 24 minutes?