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
“The 8/9/10 films from Friday hit landmarks and are looking to hit the next landmark by the end of the weekend.”
I see the landmarks they hit on Friday, but beyond that, Julie & Julia’s next real landmark would be at $100 million, which isn’t even happening for it next weekend; GI Joe would be $150 million, which could happen next weekend, who knows; and The Time Traveller’s Wife would be $75 mil, and that’s just not going to happen at all.
On the other hand, District 9 is going to cross the $100 million mark this weekend, while The Final Destination has a longshot-squared chance at the $50 million point.
When you are down to $1 million weekend days, every $5 million is a landmark, Hallick.
“When you are down to $1 million weekend days, every $5 million is a landmark, Hallick.”
No. It’s a little like me saying that when my bank account hits the $2000 mark, it’s a landmark in banking.
Great for me? Oh god yes. A landmark to the financial world? No.
Yeah, what’s the point of a landmark if you have one on a weekly basis?
Oy.
Hey, every day I pick up the newspaper and look at the obituary page and don’t see my name on it — that’s a landmark for me.
“Oy.”
Aw come on, Dave. I’m just trying to uphold a minor standard here. Does “G.I. Joe” possibly progressing from 135 to $140 million this weekend really represent a landmark to you?
“Hey, every day I pick up the newspaper and look at the obituary page and don’t see my name on it — that’s a landmark for me.”
It’d be a bigger one if you did see your name on it, wouldn’t it?
Wasn’t that the plot of a Twilight Zone episode?
Actually, it was a plot point in your favorite film, Joe…THE DARK KNIGHT!
Just to make it clear: I enjoyed The Dark Knight. But if you told me that I had a choice between seeing it or seeing any one of a dozen or so other movies I enjoyed during the past year, I doubt that it would be my final choice. Now, if it was a choice between Dark Knight or Wicked Lake, well…
If you like the Indian influences, Mad Cowgirl is the movie of mine you should be watching, not Wicked Lake.
Though I’d strongly recommend the latter to LexG.
I can’t believe LexG doesn’t own Wicked Lake: The Deluxe Edition.
BTW: I think it’s reasonably safe to say you’re a better actor than I am. Check out the video clip from After Twilight on my Facebook site, and you’ll see what I mean.
I may be wrong, but I think the line about Rachel (or Alfred) checking obituaries for Bruce’s death notice was in Batman Begins…? Correct me if I’m wrong.
I think LYT’s referring to the mayor of Gotham City getting his obituary printed by the Joker in The Dark Knight.
Saw Extract today. How does a picture like that get an R in the US and a PG in Canada? It could have so easily been a PG-13 with just a few seconds gone.
I’m starting to become a real fan of 14A for those soft R pictures.
Thanks Hallick. That works too.
“I can’t believe LexG doesn’t own Wicked Lake: The Deluxe Edition.”
Well, it doesn’t exist quite yet. But it will. There were tons of extra things shot that didn’t make it onto version one!
And Hallick – yes.
GAMER uses BLOODHOUND GANG on the soundtrack. That was AWESOME and I can’t BELIEVE no one (let alone David Poland or the neutered dudes on THB) want to see ALLISON LOHMAN IN DREDS and AMBER VALETTA IN TUBE SOCKS while GERARD BUTLER caps fucking JOHNNY WHITWORTH FROM EMPIRE RECORDS and TERRY CREWS runs around being INSANE and Dexter tosses off LEXIAN lines like “I wanna breach YOUR firewall.”
That coupled with a MILA GOD KUNIS BOW movie tanking and H2 dropping means American moviegoers are GIANT PUSSIES who can’t handle anything that shakes their backyards and BBQs worldview.
Anyone who doesn’t see GAMER just unofficially cast their vote for President Palin in 2012.
Not like she isn’t going to win in a landslide anyway, she’d beat Obama 99% to 1% if the election were held TOMORROW.
As if it wasn’t already true, now you’re officially just saying stupid things in order to get attention.
And it worked! But not for much longer.
I like Neveldine and Taylor. Loved Crank, liked Crank 2, and appreciated their screenplay for “Pathology,” though the execution was a little off.
“Gamer” is eh. It’s like there’s 3 seperate movies. One is about the high concept idea of mind control on death row inmates…the sequence of Michael Hall puppeteering to Under My Skin by Frank Sinatra is one of the creepiest/most awesome this year. But there’s another movie, that is just a generic actioner. And ANOTHER movie, about another alternate world, called Society, in which players control female inmates to be used as their sex toys which takes up almost half an hour, and could have been interesting…but for me left “Gamer” feeling as disjointed as Hall’s puppeteering of the death row inmates.
EthanG, I agree, the SOCIETY game would’ve RULED and made for a much better movie; The MOST DANGEROUS GAME “Slayers” stuff is pretty straightforward grunge-vision B-action shit, and way too close to last year’s Death Race remake, to really stand out.
And the movie comes to a screeching halt almost every time N/T work up a good head of steam; Just tons of tech explanations and all those groggy scenes with Ludacris and the douche gamer kid, when I wanted more Butler and more VALETTA IN TUBE SOCKS running through NEON RAVES and Terry Crews going insane and more BRIGHT COLORS and LESBIAN KISSING and more BLOODHOUND GANG.
It’s frustrating because it’s like they hedged their bets or combined two screenplay ideas; Because SOCIETY was where it’s at. (It also appears SOCIETY is the same basic plot as the upcoming SURROGATES.)
Any way, a lot of GOOD IDEAS there because it would BE AWESOME if you could CONTROL WOMEN and dress them in sexy outfits and have them LIKE YOU instead of being so scary and mean like women usually are.