April 24, 2024
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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
I think this looks great. The stills hadn’t sold me, but seeing it in motion has done the trick. It helps that claymation is so good and I’m surprised Anderson’s self-contained world molds quite well into the form. Loving Murray’s line reading: “Demolitions expert.”
One of the most terrifying looking movies of the year. The image of the Fox diving into the pool in swim shorts is enough to give me nightmares. But seriously, I know Anderson was going for a retro stop-motion feel here. But what he ends up with LOOKS to me more off-putting to me than Polar Express of Beowulf.
Also two other complaints:
*George Clooney as a voice actor is distracting here (you can picture him in the sound-booth smoking a cigar), and his voicework here sounds “off” in relation to the other actors like he was on the phone.
*Referring to Roald Dahl as “the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” really ticks me off. Does the studio really think people are too stupid to know who Roald Dahl is??
Looks cheap. A lot of close-ups and flat plain animation with little depth of field. Looks and feels nothing like the original story.
LOVE the look of this film….you guys are like, tainted by top of the line stop-mo, CGI and animation. Everything Anderson does reflects on his childhood and the animation here reminds me of those old Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer stop-mo’s I loved and still love to this day. I cannot wait to see this…although no matter what, “Where the WIld Things Are” will destroy it at the B.O. I can’t believe they’re putting these out so close together. Someone should bump back a month.
In fact “Fantastic Mr. Fox” is an ideal Christmas film due to the retro appeal. Adults will be all over this, feeling like they’re reliving their youth.
How incredible is that old skool stop-motion? It jars folks because it has an individual style, ala Harryhausen or Vinton. And the fur bristles!
I don’t think WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE and this will be neck in neck — they’re two very different types of child fantasy films that serve very different purposes. If anything WTWA will be the harder sell since it’s keyed at an adult level too.
But finally, Santa’s Coming Back To Town!
Looks charming and fun to me, but what do I know?
Looks good to me. But sheesh, if even some of the cinephiles here aren’t on board with the retro look, I dread to think how the great unwashed will react.
EthanG: Maybe I’m cynical (see “great unwashed” comment above), but I seriously doubt that the average person seeing that trailer has any idea who Roald Dahl is, even if they’ve enjoyed adaptations of his work. I mean, how many Shrek-lovers recognize the name William Steig? But it’s probably more an issue of cultural illiteracy than stupidity.
They should’ve said, “From Road Dahl, The Screenwriter Of YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE…”
Other suggestions: “From Roald Dahl, late ex-husband of Patricia Neal…”
“From Roald Dahl, former secret agent for MI-6…”
Or Chucky in Jersey’s choice: “…”
Yeah apparenlty not as many kids grew up with stuff like Matilda, The BFG, James and the Giant Peach etc like me…boo (speaking of which I’m pretty sad that they’re remaking “The Witches,” a twisted kids movie on par with Labyrinth)
I mean…I’m all for stop-motion that isn’t necesarrily top-notch like “Coraline” and “Wallace and Gromit” as opposed to fusion stuff like Polar Express and Beowulf. But it looks forced here..though that might partly be a reaction to Clooney, the most miscast voice lead in an animated movie in quite awhile…
“From Roald Dahl…No, Not RONALD, Roald Comes…”
Looks terrible.
ANYONE who GOES TO SEE THIS should get the DEATH PENALTY via electrodes.
PERIOD.
Christ, are you guys all two years old?
cue Jeff with a pot, kettle, black in 3…2….1…
wes is marching to the beat of his own drummer and i for one love him dearly for it.
this looks intriguing, love the old fashioned stop-mo (but clooney’s voice does stick out like a sore thumb for some reason, takes a bit of getting used to…it’s almost as if his voice is out of sync with his fox by about a quarter of a second)
If it weren’t for the fact that this is obviously a quirky (i.e. annoying) Wes Anderson vehicle, I’d be on board. But this is Anderson quirk, not the nastly Dahl we all know and love.
Sorry to disappoint you, Don, I now work in an office without internet access.
I just guess I wish that there was some kind of cap – if you post ten or more suicide notes per month then maybe you shouldn’t get to criticize anything anyone ever does, perhaps?
Wes is the man, this trailer looks fantastic, and I have something to do this Thanksgiving besides eating shrimp. WINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!
EthanG is right on. Gimme a shotgun and an M-16 and this LOSER will be done away with when the obligatory name-checking is carried out.
i’d be scared to dig in the crawlspace under your house in jersey, chucky
Chucky once murdered a movie just to watch it die.
you know, going by a couple of these recent posts, i think chucky has a bit of a thing for ethanG
ethanG: be afraid. be very afraid
Chucky:
Props on the new “LOSER” in caps shtick.
Thumbs-up!
I hope Lex goes to see this movie.
(oh that was perhaps too harsh.)
Lex’ hatred of animation always makes me giggle for some reason. It’s so asinine, but it does some the guy up. He’s no fun. Only someone without zero whimsy could hate on animation, and Mr. Suicide seems to be that guy.
God. This week is finally getting to my posting. Not enough sleep, but fuck it! I’LL DO IT LIVE!
He lacks whimsy, he’s Mr. Suicide, and that sums him up rather well.
Wreck-like all the cheerfully done death scenes in Wes’s last 2 films??? I just rewatched “Life Aquatic” and man, that Ned death scene KILLS a perfectly awesome movie.
And Jeff….you know I’m just screwing with ya….
Ned’s not dead. He’s on look-out on top of the boat. Easily one of my favourite touches of that Buckaroo Banzai ending. If Cowboy is not dead in Buckaroo Banzai. NEITHER IS NED! He’s just else where like Charlie Pace.
“Loving Murray’s line reading: “Demolitions expert.”
I can’t stop replaying that line! Two words delivered with total perfection.
“Does the studio really think people are too stupid to know who Roald Dahl is??”
My dental hygienist, who is 26, has never heard of Frank Sinatra, Bela Lugosi, Charlie Chan or a grasshopper (meaning the cocktail). Yeah, I’d say the studio is correct on this one.