The Next of Hollywood Franchise?

Bloodthirsty New Book Incites a Bidding War

By ROBERT ITO
Published: August 11, 2007

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 10 — The item up for bidding was, at first blush, unremarkable. It was an unfinished manuscript, 397 pages long, less than half of the planned book, as well as an outline detailing story arcs and plot points to come. The writer? Someone named Jordan Ainsley, whom no one had ever heard of — not readers, not book editors, certainly not anyone in Hollywood. Yet the biggest movie studios were being asked to pony up seven figures for the privilege of committing the book, sight half-unseen, to film.

Full New York Times Article

Post 80s Blockbuster, Post 90s SFX Movies, and Post 2000 Return of the Franchise Sequels, Hollywood scrambles for the next big thing with the close of Harry Potter/Spider Man/X-Men/Pirates/Resident Evil... (how did that ever become a franchise?).

Other than the revival of campy horror films (Splat Pack Films ie. Saw/Hostel), Hollywood has been feeding off franchise films to fill in their coffers. More specifically are the fantasy/comic genre films tailored for multiple merchandise deals (video games/novelizations/fast food deals/you name it) on release.

Some franchises are fun (Oceans/Bourne/and.. thats it) but what worries me are rumors like a new Fast and the Furious being planned. All I can hope is that we'll sit this through and wait for something better... or make our own movies!

r.i.p. antonioni (1912-2007) & bergman (1918-2007)

Some respect for two filmmakers who passed away last week. BTW: The New York Times articles will require registration (well worth it IMO!).

LINKS:
Antonioni
New York Times's Antonioni Obit.
Via R. Ebert. "In Memory: Antonioni."
UK Gaurdian: Antonioni's Best Scenes.

Bergman
New York Times's Bergman Obit.
Via R. Ebert. "In Memory: Bergman."
Via R. Ebert. "Artists Paying Tribute to Bergman."
UK Gaurdian: Bergman's Greatest Scenes.
UK Gaurdian: "How the Muppets made us all Bergman experts"


And now for some discourse...
J. Rosenbaum's "Scenes From an Overrated Career." A full on Op-Ed debunking of Bergman's work and importance?

Leading on to a response from R. Ebert Defending Ingmar Bergman.

Via Guardian Unlimited.
A look back at the differences between the filmmakers.

I also think that Antonioni has somehow aged less well than Bergman. Perhaps it is the fate of all "modernists" to eventually turn antique, or even retro. Through no fault of his own, Antonioni seems to have been almost too fashionable, too much an index of his age. For many contemporary viewers his cool inquiries can now look a little too mannered and clinical.

Update 8/14: Rosenbaum responds to Ebert in another article.

Woody Allen and Marty Scorsese both chime in for Bergman and Antonioni respectively with articles for the New York Times.

On other news:
Oldest Living Directors

1911
Jules Dassin, December 18, Circle of Two (1980)

1915
Kon Ichikawa, 20 November, The Inugamis (2006)

1920
Eric Rohmer, 4 April, Les amours d’Astree et de Celadon (2007)

1921
Chris Marker, 29 July, The Case of the Grinning Cat (2004)

1922
Alain Resnais, 3 June, Private Fears In Public Places (2006)
Jonas Mekas, 24 September, Elvis (2001)

1923
Seijun Suzuki, 24 May, Princess Raccoon (2005)

1924
Stanley Donen, 13 April, Love Letters (1999)
Sidney Lumet, 25 June, Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007)

1925
D. A. Pennebaker, 15 July, Addiction (2007)

(Via Movie City Indie)