Rants and Rages

JonnyQ Responds to reimaginations

Jonnyq — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 12:22:15 -0700

Becker (news): "That sound you hear is JonnyQ screaming."

KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!

Oh, wait, wrong scream (No, that's for the OTHER steaming pile of fetid "reimagination" that J.J. ABRAMS is doing.) The HELLRAISER reimagination is disturbing in that it looks to veer even farther away from THE HELLBOUND HEART than HELLRAISER did... I'll reserve judgment on the HR situation until after I've seen more of what these two French writers/directors are going to do to it... Clive writing the treatment gives me a few gossamer threads of ethereal hope.

Are either of you as pissed off as I am that they've cast Sulu, Chekov, Uhura and Scotty in this god-forsaken remake idea that Abrams is doing?? I mean, is it me, or does it look more and more like he's going to singlehandedly undo over 40 years of fucking continuity for his own pride??? Doesn't this take place beFORE the Original Series? So, Kirk HAPPENS to meet and have an adventure with Spock, Sulu, Uhura, Scotty and CHEKOV (who wasn't even a crew member until long after the others!) ALL before he ever takes command of the Enterprise? What is this, Star Trek, or is it Smallville?! BULLshit is what it is! And if this takes place post-Academy but pre-Captaincy of Kirk, then Spock should be off on the Enterprise as Science Officer under Captain Pike, not meeting a young James Kirk!

I have a feeling that this is going to be what the LOST IN SPACE film was to the Lost in Space TV show... And you know that means that they could ultimately create a whole new continuity...

And that's why the concept of a HELLRAISER remake doesn't piss me off nearly as much as the STAR TREK remake. The HELLRAISER films, by and large, failed to adhere to any rigid rules of continuity. The sequels were each (mostly) standalone films that involved a box, some cenobites and their rules, but little beyond that. A remake won't really affect (in my opinion) the storyline and mythology that's already been created; it will be a separate continuity, the same way that the Godzilla films generally fall into three different continuities.

STAR TREK, on the other hand, paid deep, deep attention to continuity, which is what made it far superior to STAR WARS, given its scale. But screwing with THAT continuity DOES have downstream consequences on everything thereafter... and THAT is a tragedy waiting to be unfurled.

*SIGH*

An Open Letter to Uwe Boll

skyhawk — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 19:12:36 -0700

Dr. Boll,
Our people had been in contact regarding an interview in regards to "Raging Boll." This formally rescinds that offer. After seeing the footage of the event, and the comments that have been attributed to you after the fact, I don't want to sully the name of our show with your presence.Fighting your critics by creating a better product is one thing. Getting into an obviously one-sided physical confrontation indicates that you have not only the temperament, but the maturity of an adolescent bully. We (critics who have seen your work but not directly boxed you) will only change the tenor of our reviews when you spend more time on your craft, costuming, story telling, dialogue, and mes en scene then you do on publicity stunts such as this travesty. You degrade everyone in the film industry by your actions.

Can Smith Pull off Robert Neville in the Upcoming I Am Legend?

erisa — Thu, 25 May 2006 03:05:59 -0700

I just watched Last Man on Earth last night and read I Am Legend a couple of weeks ago. I loved the book, but I was disappointed with the movie. I thought Last Man on Earth did a fantastic job of establishing the world in the first few frames, but overall, I thought the movie was lacking, mostly in regards to the character Robert Morgan. I will not say "aka- Robert Neville" because the characters are nothing alike. I will discuss that in a moment.

To say that Vincent Price's performance was good because he wasn't hamming it up as much as he did in some of his other movies, does not make it a good performance. It makes it good for Vincent Price. Yes, he did have pathos, as in the scene where he was watching old movies of his family, but where was the anger, that drove him to drink? Where was the disgust in his cowardess for not being able to commit suicide? Price, sadly had two emotions in this movie, pathos, as Pus emphasized, and scientific detachment. Not all of this was Price's fault. Much of it had to do with the script which is the very reason why Matheson did not care for the movie.

(The following is taken from an interview that I found online between Matheson and Paul Riordan - a Sci-Fi Station Contributing Author. You can find the whole interview at this linkhttp://www.scifistation.com/matheson/matheson_index.html)

MATHESON:
I don't think much of it (1964's THE LAST MAN ON EARTH) at all. It follows the book rather more closely than the other picture with Charlton Heston, but it does it very poorly.

(Vincent) Price (was) too particular a kind of actor to be appropriate as just a hard-drinking, family-man type. I have never had a translation of either my book or my screenplay, regarding I AM LEGEND.

I agree with Matheson. Robert's character is all wrong, and when something is a character study, like this book was, it can really throw it off. This is the reason why I believe they changed the title of the movie and Robert's name. He was not Robert Neville, he was Robert Morgan, that is all.

I said above that I would discuss character, and I want to tie this in with why, although not my first choice, Will Smith can be a great Robert Neville.
First of all, in order to envision him in the role, you have to use a little imagination and only think about the book. Like I, and even Matheson said, Price's character in Last Man on Earth is not accurate to the book.

Firstly- Neville is an ex soldier who was stationed in Panama. He is a fighter who owns at least two guns, and he knows how to use them. When he finds himself outside at sunset, he fights like hell to get back into his house, and furious at allowing this stupidity he comes back at the mindless vampires, guns blazing. We see the same when the new order comes to take him away. It's obvious Smith can do this, as Pus as pointed out, he has done it before in movies like Independence day where he was a soldier, and in Bad Boys and even Men in Black where he played a cop.

Secondly- Neville is a family man, in pain over the loss of his wife and child. I think Smith exudes father as he is a self-proclaimed proud father of three children. In his work, he has always worked well with children, such as Tatyana Ali in the Fresh Prince. We've also seen touches of pain in him, most recently in I, Robot. People laugh at me when I bring this movie up, but the character was hurting, he wanted to die, and I was impressed with Smith with a minor choice that he made in the movie. Getting ready for work that day he had a gun in his hand, and sitting on his bed he pointed the gun to his temple, but like Neville, he couldn't end it.

Thirdly- Neville is not a scientist, he doesn't even know how to use a microscope. His first try angers him so, he throws it against the wall and has to search for another. He is self taught, though he rebels against this side of himself because he does not want to follow in his father's, Fritz, footsteps. Actually Robert Morgan's character is more how Neville describes his father then he does himself. How will Smith do? He is a very bright man who was excepted at MIT, but decided to pass in order to find his own way in the world. I believe that the audience will easily be able to go along with him in the journey that he is learning this all for the first time.

Lastly- Obviously Will Smith is not a blonde haired blued eyed 35 year old from German descent, but he is nearly 6'5" like Neville and around the same age. At the end of the novel, Neville is also ripped from all of the hard work and vampire slaying, but he also has the wild look of a hermit, with a long beard and scraggly hair. Smith is in good shape, but some movie magic will need to happen to make him less clean cut.

So basically, I am on board with Smith. Smith is thought of as a wise cracking smart ass, but his performances made a turn after Ali. He began to listen more and make choices that involved his castmates. His acting choices were also more subtle, one could even say intimate. However, an actor is only one component of a movie. Hitchcock said actors are cattle, and once you look at how much editing can change a performance, you can see why. So, if the scriptwriter can trust that an audience does not mind having very little dialogue, and the director and editor work together to make this movie feel more arthouse then blockbuster, we are going to see some of Smith's best work, and then maybe Matheson will finally be happy to put his name on this one. I hope, I hope, I HOPE.

Upcoming Movie Adaptation of I Am Legend- Pus's Dismay

pus — Wed, 24 May 2006 03:05:59 -0700

I am going to post here my dismay at the upcoming movie adaptation of Richard Matheson's most excellent novel "I Am Legend". And let it be known that I am a huge fan of the novel, and without saying, but I will, the world's biggest fan of the 1964 adaptation known as "Last Man On Earth".

I will begin my dissertation with those who have been connected and are now connected with the new "I Am Legend".

The Director: Francis Lawrence II.
His major "horror" accomplishment is the CGI crapfest known as "Constantine". He is more well known for his music videos directing "artists" such as Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez and ... get this ... Will Smith. I have nothing against his accomplishments, but an MTV music video presentation of a dark classic like "I Am Legend" just seems waaaaay out of his league.

The Producer: Akiva Goldsman.
He produced "Constantine", "Starsky and Hutch" and "Lost in Space". Mr. Goldsman is also connected to the writing of the "I Am Legend" screenplay. His previous screenplay adaptations include "I, Robot", "Lost in Space" and what was almost the end of the "Batman" franchise, "Batman and Robin". I don't even have to carp about Goldsman, his resume does that for me.

The Screenwriter: Mark Protosevich.
His only credits are "The Cell" and "Poseidon" (Another CGI crapfest remake.) I will give props to Protosevich on "The Cell" though. It was a decent movie, not great, far from it, but decent. "Poseidon" was just another "grand disaster movie" now relagated to lower shelf perusal. Period.

What I can't understand is why not have Richard Matheson write the screenplay? I mean gees, he wrote the novel "I Am Legend". One of the most wonderful horror/suspense novels ever penned. And he's got almost innumerable screenplays to his credit. Who else better to know the mind of Robert Neville both inside and out.

What can we find wrong with the book "I Am Legend"? Not a damn thing. It's exciting, it plays out well, it has insight into the mind of a very lonely and incredibly sad man, it has pathos. You feel empathy towards Robert Neville. You find yourself wanting him to find not only solace, but also closure. And, in the end, you cry for what he has lost. Not only his life, but his dreams. Matheson could bring ALL of these attributes to a screenplay. ALL OF THEM! Protosevich and Goldsman cannot and will not have the same effect on the screenplay. They will and have already fucked it up.

The Lead: Will Smith
And now for my biggest bitch! ...... Will Smith being cast as the lead, "Robert Neville". I will not, as some have already done, say "It's gonna suck because Will Smith is only a comedian and on top of that he was the old "Fresh Prince". That's not proper, nor does it prove anything as Smith has moved on from his "Fresh Prince" days. So, here's my think so's.

First, if I may make comparison to my favorite film "Last Man On Earth", which is a pretty decent adaptation of Matheson's "I Am Legend", not perfect as Matheson has stated, but still pretty damn close, one can easily see Vincent Price as the character Robert Morgan, aka Robert Neville. Not because he had been in numerous horror movies, but because he played THIS character for pathos, not horror. He played it not as a "wink, wink, nudge, nudge" smarmy motherfucker, but as a lonely man looking for companionship. A lost companionship with his wife Virginia, or the little vampire dog, or even Ruth Collins. Vincent Price may have hammed it up in numerous horror movies, but "Last Man On Earth" was NOT one of them.

Now, why Will Smith cannot and will not be a proper Robert Neville. Smith has accorded himself as a decent comedy/action movie star. Smith did a fine job in the action/comedies "Bad Boys 1 & 2", a decent job in the sci-fi/action movies "MIB 1 & 2", as well as "Independence Day". But, and here is the BIG BUT, Smith has never brought a dark dramatic role to life. Yes, he portrayed Mohammed Ali, but what was Ali know for? His one liners. Smith played the comedic portions of "Ali" wonderfully, but in my opinion he fell short in the dramatic portions. Some will say, "Well, what about 'Six Degrees of Seperation'"? Go back and watch it again. He struggles when drama is needed, but shines when his comedic nature shows through. "Enemy of the State"? More action, no real drama. "I, Robot"? Asimov is still spinning in his grave. "Wild, Wild West"? I'll leave that one alone.

"I Am Legend", if done in a faithful adaptation, must have a lead who has a depth of soul. A darkness and consiousness that permeates his character. It needs gut-wrenching pathos. ...... Sadly, Will Smith cannot bring these attributes to fruition.

"I Am Legend" will end up being, in the least, a poorly accomplished horror movie. Or, God forbid, a vampire/action movie."

I'm gutted.