April 19, 2024
Box Office
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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
North of 150. School is ending, NBA playoffs are a mess and either too much rain or too much heat across the country.
IM2 will beat Dark Knight, but won’t be applauded for doing so.
Just got home from a midnight show of Iron Man 2. Was kinda psyched, just rewatched the first one, but the sequel just didn’t deliver in the same way.
The sequel not only expanded on the first film, it made the entire marvel film universe that much richer for it. It’s a tremendous film. How people are walking away from this film disappointed is a mystery to me, but I did sit next to a guy who seemed to enjoy it as much as Stumble and Eric, so the WOM could be mixed, but that won’t stop that weekend for being huge.
Yeah, I loved it. Thought it was loads better than the first. Not sure how people are not taking what they expected from this one.
NickF,
I agree with you; IM2 could well beat TDK… and again, I agree with you that it won’t be applauded. But mainly because I don’t think it deserves to be. It is nowhere near as technically ambitious or narratively compelling or as intricately structured or as thematically textured or … I don’t think I need to go on.
But it hardly matters. With the exception of its budget and boxoffice gross, the achievements of IronMan2 are modest in every way.
TDK is still the standard but IM2 easily jumps to two on that last because of this… again… http://www.aintitcool.com/node/44977 . I will gladly applaud it for beating that record that we will see reclaimed in 2012 by the Dark Knight, who probably has a 200m opening weekend in him next go around.
Sorry IOv2, I don’t really know what you are saying there.
But…
Offering a link to anyone who finds “deep psychological depth” to IM2 is in need of rapid intervention, if not brain surgery, doesn’t add any credance to the film. You can wade through the most profound moments in Iron Man and never worry about getting your ankles wet.
Pope, I meant LIST not LAST as in the LIST OF THE BEST COMIC BOOK FILMS OF ALL-TIME! That aside, your sort of response is the type of response that only negates you from any further discussion about anything worthwhile, but it also comes across as such pompous snobbery, that I could easily imagine you eating a crumpet as you typed it.
If you miss the psychological depth of this film, then you missed it, but seeing as it’s psychological depth. It makes me wonder what else you may be missing psychologically and what you find unbelievably… deep. Seriously, that response is more about you than the film but you are so pompous, you may miss that, and that’s truly hilarious.
Is it really unreasonable for someone to question claims of psychological depth in Iron Man 2? I haven’t seen it, so maybe it truly is deep and complex, but that contention reminds me of a horror freak I know who swears the Saw series is deep and complex, carefully and expansively addressing issues of life, death, right, and wrong.
Great, so IO’s back to berate anyone who doesn’t agree 100% with his opinion that every superhero movie is excellent. Yay.
Just drop off the last seven words from Storymark’s post and it’s a tad more accurate.
The Saw series is deeper and more complex than most people give it credit for (name ANY other franchise where the same storyline has continued through ALL 6 installments — Freddy and Jason diverge, FWITW). But that’s not saying a whole lot.
Star Wars?
Also, I’m not sure that Saw continuing the same story is a good thing anyway…I saw one of them, I have no idea which, and it sort of felt like I needed that narrator in Dune who patiently explained who everyone was and what planet they lived on.
If you folks are that insecure about your own feelings and opinions, that’s your problem. Seriously, stop it.
Perm — tru dat about Star Wars, but it required Lucas actually physically changing the older movies, as opposed to Saw’s sequel ret-conning.
You don’t need narration if you watch from the beginning…but definitely if you jumped on at, say, part 4.
Wait… people watch Saw movies for the story?
Foamy:
1-3, yes.
4-6, less so, though we are entertained by the writers’ attempt to jump through hoops with all the ret-conning required to keep things going. It’s not an insignificant factor.
I thought for #1 the “story” only actually happened in the last 2 minutes?
Not sure how you’d get that, Foamy…the entire Danny Glover storyline is done by then, as is the establishing of Amanda, whose developing relationship to John Kramer is the emotional heart of 1-3, at least when watched in a row.
You might as well say the entire story of Fight Club only happens in the last two minutes. And you could say that, but it would be dismissive.
Not like I’ll change anyone’s mind at this point, though.
It would indeed be dismissive! 😉
I’m being flippant, but for me the first 3/4 of each film is rendered largely irrelevant by the extended “explanations” that occur. The early parts establish character… which I find fairly useless since the clear modus operandi of the films is “anyone can die without warning”. Once that settles in it’s hard to form any sort of attachment as you’re simply killing time waiting for the other shoe to drop – which ironically for me kills any suspense the “twists” may have. It’s rather like knowing everything about a wrapped Christmas present except its colour.
Some people may find that appealing, and I’m never one to judge anyone’s exotic preferences after watching 4 months of professional wrestling when it was the only English television I had access to when coming home from work in Japan. (After that it was 4 months of Stargate SG-1, followed by 4 months of Two Guys and a Girl. They tend to buy their English programming in blocks and repeat the shit out of it)
Is 52M the final number? Saturday should be above 60.
Exhibitor Relations is saying that it did $52 million first day, including those $7.5 million midnights – very good, though I’m sure some will call it disappointing. We’re now so used to sequels (TDK, New Moon, Pirates) taking quantum leaps from the first film’s opening and this is not the case.
I’ll be interested to see how front-loaded it and whether it drops a bit today, which is likely – I can see a $140 million opening, which is damn good. I also have a feeling that Paramount will try their damnedest to push this over $400 million just like they did with Tranny, last summer. And the overseas gross is going to shatter what the first one did.
I would say that the amount of story is to the detriment of the Saw movies, not to their benefit. They’re so cluttered with characters and plotlines for no good reason that it ends up feeling very pretentious (I’ve only seen Saw 1-4, maybe 5 and 6 are AWESOME).
Saw VI was arguably the best Saw film of the whole series (I’m not a fan of the original), but it was a lost cause for anyone who hadn’t seen Saw parts II-V at least once (if not twice). 4 and 5 are the series low points, but I rather enjoy Saw II, III, and VI. And whether it actually succeeds at being art, it’s certainly trying harder for substance than any other horror franchise around.
“And whether it actually succeeds at being art, it’s certainly trying harder for substance than any other horror franchise around.”
i submit that honour goes to romero’s night/dawn/day/land of the dead quadrilogy
Yeah what the lady above said.