MY TAKE ON THE NEWS
By Noel Wood

I've toyed with the idea of adding a news section to MCFTR on a few occasions, but have always voted against the idea because of the fact that it would require almost daily updating. Since I do this site in my spare time and not for profit, that's just a bit too much of a burden to put upon myself, so I've always decided against it. However, I'm not opposed to putting a news article on the site every now and again when it seems worthy of a mention, which is why I will sometimes update the blog with a tidbit from the Hollywood press.

Lately, though, there have been a few big pieces of news in regard to the future of movies, so I decided that I would do a little commentary on that. After all, I've seen so few movies this year due in part to time contraint and moreso because there's not a lot that looks interesting out there; so anything to fill a little space here on the site is probably a good thing. So here are some of the news items I've come upon in the last few weeks, and my take on them.

1. KEVIN SMITH TO ADAPT THE GREEN HORNET.

Gearing up for one of its most ambitious film franchises to date, Miramax Films co-chairman Harvey Weinstein announced today that renowned filmmaker and comic book author, collector and self described "comic fan-boy" Kevin Smith will write and direct the film version of the classic action-adventure persona, The Green Hornet. The film represents Miramax's expansion of its development and production slate to include motion pictures that can compete in the "tent pole" marketplace. George Trendle, the son of Green Hornet creator George Trendle, will executive produce the film along with Harold Berkowitz.

Well, if there's anything that you can rely n here at MCFTR, it's the fact that any discussion of Kevin Smith is going to be met with some strong opinions. I've expressed my displeasure in the declining body of work that Smith has been amassing in the last several years on numerous occasions. While I've been a fan of the guy's work since CLERKS, I feel that he has failed to improve as a filmmaker and refuses to acknowledge his own weaknesses. I wasn't a big fan of DOGMA, and I loathed JAY AND SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK. There's a lot at stake with the upcoming JERSEY GIRL, which I am going in to with a completely open mind. But JERSEY GIRL is new territory for Smith, as it's his first outing without relying on his hackneyed "Jersey Trilogy which I managed to stretch into five films" characters.

So now, he's landed the job of writing and directing an adaptation of the comic series The Green Hornet. As someone who grew up with comics, this wasn't a title I was particularly interested in, so there's not a lot of personal feeling in regard to the property itself. What I'm concerned with is Smith trying to adapt his style to this type of film. Now, Smith has an advantage here: he's one of the biggest comic book geeks out there. However, as was reported when he was offered the opportunity to write a screenplay for a Superman film, he just couldn't pull off finding a compromise in his style. Of course, that was several years ago, and there's a good chance Smith has grown a bit since then. It's also probably a good thing that he's actually got some experience under his belt writing real comics now as well. What bothers me more, though, is the fact that Smith is set to direct the film (which is being touted as a possible franchise) as well.

Harvey Weinsten, who made the announcement, said that Kevin Smith "has demonstrated his continued growth as a filmmaker and we have no doubt that he will tackle this franchise for us in a compelling and entertaining way." There's what worries me. Smith has hardly shown any growth as a filmmaker, save for the ability to hire a bigger staff. The fact of the matter is that this is a huge project to shove onto the shoulders of a guy like Kevin Smith, and it's going to take a lot for him to prove his mettle in this arena. I guess JERSEY GIRL is going to be quite the barometer of what we can expect from Smith as a filmmaker, and as someone capable of more than lowbrow humor and inside jokes.

2. THE GOONIES GETS A SEQUEL?

The new group is called the Groonies, because they happen to live in a town where [Data], the Chinese kid, lives ... and he's got an electronics repair shop and all the kids hang out at his shop. He has this Chinese accent and he calls the Goonies the Groonies, and so the new kids call themselves the Groonies, until they get into a situation where the old Goonies have to save the new Groonies, or vice versa.

Okay, so this ain't exactly new news. This was reported back in November by several big entertainment resources, and piqued the interest of millions of children who grew up in the 1980's. It was set to reunite the entire cast of stars from the first (minus the late Anne Ramsey, of course) and feature a new generation of Goonies. However, about as soon as the news broke out, it seemed to stall. Apparently, some friction between Steven Spielberg and Alan Horn had completely extinguished all hoped of making the film a reality. However, it looks like things may be on the way back to fruition. The following is from Ain't it Cool News:

"Last night, the midnight show at the Nuart in Los Angeles was Goonies, and to the delight of the audience, there were appearances from Corey Feldman and Robert Davi. Corey got up in front of the audience, fielded questions, and talked a bit about what’s happening with Goonies 2. The deal is this: there was a fan petition some time ago, and several thousand signatures were gathered. The petition was presented to Richard Donner, who was delighted with the prospect. Spielberg is behind it, the ensemble cast is behind it, and there have been something on the order of 5-6 scripts, according to Mr. Feldman’s heat-of-the-moment figures, but none of them have yet lived up to the original. A screenwriter has been brought on board to start hashing it out, and the WB has decided to use the petition to gauge the pent-up demand for this project. Corey said that the executives suggested that they go out and see if they can’t get “a few thousand” signatures. The bottom line is that if the fans get to the online petition that’s running en force, and if the execs are surprised with the amount of support the project has, then it seems we’ll get an original cast reunion."

Well, take that for what it's worth. I personally don't see much hope in fan petitions as far as saving a movie franchise, but anything is possible these days. I'm certainly keeping my fingers crossed for this one.

3. CHEWBACCA HINTS AT STAR WARS SEQUELS.

No wonder Peter "Chewbacca" Mayhew is smiling. Not only has he been rescued from obscurity and given the chance to reprise his role as our Wookiee comrade for Episode III, but his contract also stipulates that he'd be required to appear in Episodes 7, 8, and 9.

Yes folks, seems there are actual whispers at Lucasfilm that the 'sequel' trilogy might be in the works...

I actually updated my blog with this news last month, and made the disclaimer that this really means jack shit in the grand scheme of things. All that he really said was that if they happen to make Episodes 7, 8, and 9 a reality, that Chewy would be required to appear in them. IT's probably just some fine print that some lawyer slipped in just to cover their asses in the unlikely event that this happens, but it sure did get the dwellers of dozens of STAR WARS message boards salivating.

For the record, Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in the original trilogy, went on a talk show shortly after this announcement and made a case that if they were to make sequels, she would be interested in participating. Of course, seeing the object of millions of fanboys' fantasies appearing as a middle-aged woman might be a bit of a letdown for some.

4. PIXAR DUMPS DISNEY.

Forget the Oscars — suddenly the most sought-after prize in Hollywood may be Pixar.

A surprise announcement by Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney that talks aimed at renewing their lucrative film deal had broken off opened the way for a rival studio to strike a lucrative distribution deal with the maker of the hit FINDING NEMO.

Well, damn. The Animation company that has revolutionized feature-length animated movies is out of bondage. Pixar, who brought to life the amazing TOY STORY and TOY STORY 2, as well as A BUG'S LIFE, MONSTERS INC, and last year's megahit FINDING NEMO, is on its own. This is huge news for the industry, as Disney has been relying on Pixar for some of its best material, both critically and financially. The last Pixar film made for Disney, THE INCREDIBLES, is still yet to come out under the Disney name, but that's all she wrote for that partnership.

This could be a major coup to whomever Pixar partners up with. Warner Brothers and MGM are both looking to benefit from the split, and either one could easily be skyrocketed to the top in the field of children's entertainment. On the plus side for you and me, this means less of the Michael Eisner eye glaring over the shoulder of Pixar, which can only mean good things as far as avoiding the overly-safe fare that Disney is known for. Pixar's got the clout now to take a lot more control of their product now, and that can only be a positive.

5. THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE GOES HOLLYWOOD.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is finally casting up. The trade says that actor Martin Freeman (The Office, Love Actually) has been cast in the film version of Douglas Adams's classic. He'll play Arthur Dent, Earthling-turned-interstellar adventurer.

Variety adds that Mos Def (The Italian Job) will portray Ford Prefect and Zooey Deschanel (Elf, The Good Girl) will play Trillian.

The trade failed to mention a previous BBCi Films report linking actor Bill Nighy (Love Actually) to the project, but Nighy was the first to name Freeman in association with the lead role, so it's likely that he's signed as well. Nighy says he'll play Magrathean planet designer, Slartibartfast.

Buzz on a Hollywood adaptation of Douglas Adams' novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has been going on for a while, but the casting is now out of the way and it looks to start shooting within the next few months. This property is a very touchy one for me, as I'm a huge fan of the novel, and there has not been a true feature film version previously. The BBC produced a mini-series with lackluster special effects, but it wasn't much worth writing home about.

Some of the casting choices are odd (Mos Def is probably the last person I'd expect in the role of Ford Prefect;) however, I can agree with them for the most part. Also mentioned in the casting decisions are Sam Rockwell as Zaphod Beeblebrox and Warwick Davis as Marvin the Paranoid Android. However, what concerns me the most are some of the rumors I've heard about making changes to the basic elements of the story to make them work on film. Most notably is the fact that Zaphod, who has two heads in the book, may just be a regular guy in the movie. Of course, it's still too early to know for sure, but this kind of thing will really chap the hides of some of the Adamsphiles out there. And believe me, they can be an unruly bunch.

It's just too bad Douglas Adams wasn't alive to see this thing become a reality.