English author Philip Reeve began his career as an illustrator, something which is reflected in his writing style. Unlike some other writers, Reeve doesn't plan before he writes. Instead, he starts writing with an opening and closing image in mind. Mortal Engines, Reeve's first novel published by Scholastic in 2001, begins with a startling image: the city of London on wheels chasing another town on wheels called Salthook. The world, Reeve tells readers, has gone through the so-called "Sixty Minute War," which has ravaged the world and necessitated the creation of cities on wheels. These cities and their inhabitants must fight with other cities over scarce resources through difficult circumstances.
Few authors are given the opportunity to turn their novels into a movie. Reeve was given that opportunity by one of the world's most famous and well-respected filmmakers—Peter Jackson, who acquired the rights to Reeve's well-reviewed and bestselling novel (which The Guardian said is an "apt metaphor for where we could be heading: a powerful few trapping the rest in a deadly loop of stale ideas, with ordinary individuals helpless to break the cycle") in 2009. After nearly ten years of development, Mortal Engines was finally released in 2018. Though the film was a critical and financial failure, grossing only $83.7 million against a budget between $100 and $150 million, critics and audiences lauded the film for its faithfulness to Reeve's novel.
