Unexpected Creative Collaborations - Both (Un)Fortunately Real and Those Hoped For

[Lumenskir]

Just got back from seeing the Green Hornet movie (which is a little too slight to make a whole thread for*) and I got to thinking about how kind of strange the whole endeavor was from a creative standpoint.

I'm a bit of an apologist for both Gondry and Rogen, but I never really envisioned them joining forces. Not that their sensibilities are polar opposites or uncombinable, but it's not the sort of thing that immediately pops to mind (as opposed to, say, how right the fusion of Scott Pilgrim and Edgar Wright was).

And as I was thinking about this I realized that there a bunch of these weird team ups happening recently. Like what, you might ask?

Opie + The Dark Tower: This is pretty much the reason I included the Unfortunate part. Not that I have anything against Howard personally (and indeed, a lot of Arrested Development's existence has to be attributed to his name staving off death for however long) but there is nothing in his directing filmography that suggests that this will be anything good in regards to the source material. I like that he's got a movie + TV show structure in mind, but I was a lot more excited when the Lost guys had the rights to the story.

Shane Black + Death Note: This is sort of the mirror image of the above; I love Black's current renaissance (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is in my top ten films of all time, and the Doc Savage stuff that's been teased looks great), but...Death Note? Really? I'll admit to bowing out of the series around the time that Light joined forces with L and it became DBZ except with 'plans' instead of 'spirit balls', but I don't really see the source material engendering a lot of opportunities for the smart ass dialog I love in a Shane Black movie.

Spiderman: Turn off the Dark - I mean, what?

So yeah, just a thread for noticing weird creative collaborations and your thoughts on them.

*UNASKED FOR REVIEWEnjoyable with some ingenious bits, especially the fights, but a little too flabby pacing-wise, with most of the funnest Gondry-isms restricted to flashes of brilliance, and I can see the Kato-actor being a make or break factor (I thought he did ok, since he appears to have been reading his English lines phonetically from somewhere offscreen). From what I've heard the 3-D was an afterthought, so just get the cheaper 2D ticket. Or just wait for the DVD, it's not a must-see in the theater, but will probably make a decent cheap night in. 4 and 1/2 Lumenskir bulbs out of 7.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

Most tragic case of one of these averted was before Lynch made Dune, Jodorowsky was working on it and he was going to pay Salvador Dali a million dollars to play Baron Harkonsis. Jodorowsky directing Dali in a ridiculous sci-fi romp- genius! Funding fell through unfortunately.

[The Artist Formerly Known as Hawk]

I am fully expecting the tv/movie versions of The Dark Tower to dissapoint. I just can't see it working. Plus it doesn't help that usually when Kings stuff is transffered to screen, it's not so great.

My only hope is that by doing a miniseries in between films will at least give them the time they need to flesh out the story properly, though I dunno how that's going to affect the pacing and such.

[Archbio]

Jodorowsky was working on it and he was going to pay Salvador Dali a million dollars to play Baron Harkonsis.

Dali was going to play the EMPEROR!! (which just makes more sense) and not the Baron Harkonnen, and it was for $100,000 an hour (which is still outrageous.)

I think the upcoming Tintin movie does count, if it's not a hoax. You have Moffat, several of the people from Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead and Spielberg together. It's weird.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

Originally Posted by Archbio

Dali was going to play the EMPEROR!! (which just makes more sense) and not the Baron Harkonnen, and it was for $100,000 an hour (which is still outrageous.)

Also music by pink floyd, with david carridane, mick jagger, orson welles. Giger designing the sets. Why didn't we get this instead of the shithouse film we ended up with.

[Krylo]

Originally Posted by Lumenskir

I was a lot more excited when the Lost guys had the rights to the story.

[Lumenskir]

I think the upcoming Tintin movie does count, if it's not a hoax. You have Moffat, several of the people from Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead and Spielberg together. It's weird.

I dunno, all of those people have [swap=dabbled]bathed[/swap in nostalgia-sluttery in the past, it's not that surprising that they all have fond memories of a globally present iconic figure.

[Archbio]

Originally Posted by Krylo

Because the guys from Lost aren't terrible

Well, Lost did have semi-horror supernatural/fantasy elements in it before dragging on and sort of fizzling at the end, so I think it might have been a good match.

Originally Posted by Lumenskir

I dunno, all of those people have [swap=dabbled]bathed[/swap in nostalgia-sluttery in the past, it's not that surprising that they all have fond memories of a globally present iconic figure.

No, it's not like Tarantino directing a romantic comedy starring Tom Hanks with a script written by Gaspar Noé; meaning that yes I agree that the collaboration makes some sense in some respects in hindsight... but I think these people have enough things setting their respective careers apart from each other to make this unexpected and odd.

Why didn't we get this instead of the shithouse film we ended up with.

Shithouse film?

Originally Posted by Alejandro Jodorowsky

Dalí agrees with much enthusiasm the idea to play the Emperor of the galaxy. He wants to film in Cadaquès and to use as throne a toilet made up of two intersected dolphins. The tails will form the feet and the two open mouths will be used one to receive the "wee", the other to receive the "excrement". Dalí thinks that it is of terrible bad taste to mix the "wee" and the "excrement".

Shithouse. Film.