It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?
So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.
And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.
There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.
I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.
So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.
But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”
My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher
“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.
~ David Simon
It sounds like another reason this hasn’t been bought is because it sounds so incredibly familiar, genre-wise. It’s the same style of movie as Shaun of the Dead and Slither and Snakes on a Plane (sort of) and Peter Jackson’s first three movies etc. and as much as I like all of those, there is a limit.
Gee you blow hot and cold. Isn’t it easier to just refer people to Boam when it comes to this sort of stuff Dave?
Jeff – no offense but that last post made zero sense and the little that did wasn’t true at all. And what the hell does genre-wise mean?
There is a limit to the market for these films? To what – 5 films (that aren’t that that alike) appearing over a period of 20 years or so?
I’m saying that a zombie sheep comedy sounds clever but also very much like a further example of what has become a fairly tired genre, the wacky zombie comedy, which reached its apotheosis with Dead Alive/Braindead, got new life with Shaun of the Dead because of the comedy skill involved, but now Black Sheep sounds a little desperate.
It makes sense for studios to not buy movies like this.
Look at Slither just this year.
The biggest problem with horror comedies is that they usually suck. For every Braindead and Shaun of the Dead there’s ten Club Dreads. This situation reminds me of that lame Aussie zombie film Undead from a couple years back.
Like in the 80’s, the prevalence of upcoming horror comedies is just one more death knell for the current horror resurgence.
Now that I think about it, that 1:10 ratio pretty much applies to all horror films so maybe I shouldn’t be so harsh on the comedy hybrids but damn I tend to really hate horror comedies.
JBD – What are you actually trying to say?
And no, I don’t think there is a limit to any market ever… but that doesn’t mean that the industry feels that way. This is part of what I do… report what IS happening, not what I want to have happening. This fact seems to eluding some of you guys lately.
There was high heat. And now, there is high cool. Happens. The point of the post, no?
“This situation reminds me of that lame Aussie zombie film Undead from a couple years back.”
God that was bad. Nobody cared here let alone anywhere else in the world.
I don’t see why filmmakers need to be so wrapped up in big figure deals and studios look at something and go, “sigh….too much work.” It’s getting caught up in the standard “bidding war” bullshit that costs us all. Can’t anyone try anything new?
Didn’t Apple/iTunes just announce they’re going to start selling first run features? Would it be all that hard for someone to think outside the box on “small” titles like this one? BLACK SHEEP does seem hokey, but it also seems like something a good deal of people would want to see. Why not release it multi-platform? Multi-platform was MADE for horror…but instead we get some arty Soderberg flick that fails and the whole concept dies.
It’s like everyone wants to find out how to bilk us out of our money, but no one wants to try anything new. It’s like, “great idea! You go first!”
Incidentally…I’m just talking in generalities here. BLACK SHEEP seems fun but I’m not going to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge if it doesn’t get picked up. The whole system is lame and frustrating.
My bad. Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between reporting and opinion in your columns. Especially when you drop your own estimates about a films potential (13m-30m) for SHEEP into the equations… all I did was pull you up on that and predicted no release and no payoff to the title. Hope this clarifies.
“Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between reporting and opinion in your columns.”
I agree.
No one seems to be mentioning the other wacky zombie comedy at Toronto… FIDO… anyone see it? Its been getting good notices.
I think the problem with Black Sheep being a breakout hit is that even good movies of that ilk with recognizable stars like Eight Legged Freaks haven’t performed all that well. The price tag would probably mean that it wouldn’t have to make a whole lot of money before going to DVD where it would find success. It’s also that Black Sheep is a better idea on paper than in execution. There are some amusing moments and it would be a decently fun DVD rental.
The horror movie from Toronto that I hope really finds an audience is Severance. Forget all the “controversial” films, it has the most subversive moment in any of the Toronto films, and it’s mix of The Office and The Hills Have Eyes is funny and effective. It would be nice to see it turn out to at least have Shaun of the Dead level success in the US.
SEVERANCE has lost any momentum it had leading up after its Cannes preem. Been getting good nods from fans on the Fantasy fest circuit but that doesn’t necessarily translate into good sales. People were surprised it got into Telluride. Director showed a flicker of promise with CREEP but again, a import horror comedy needs more than a subversive thread to go out on 1000 screens in the US.
Magnolia is releasing Severance, so 1000 screens isn’t in the cards and a $10M “breakout hit” for it in the US is more wishful thinking on my part since I really enjoyed it. It was up there with Borat, The Bubble, My Best Friend, Fay Grim, Taxidermia, and Private Property as my favorites.