Assorted Discussions of Films That Never Happened

[The Invunche]

I salute you, sir.

[Kirkinson]

What a disappointment. Hitchcock was the only sacred cow left in Hollywood, and now they're cutting him up, too. And here I thought everyone had silently agreed to a moratorium on Hitchcock remakes after Gus Van Sant's stab at Psycho.

I worry about where this will go. How long before we get Michael Bay's own North by Northwest (probably starring Will Smith)? Can you imagine what he would do to the drunken car chase or the airplane sequence? I think I'm getting nauseous....

[Fletch F. Fletch]

And giant robot spiders! oh, sorry, that's Peter Guber...

Jon Peters. Guber is the smarter one.

#-o You are correct, sir!

[Andre Jurieu]

How long before we get Michael Bay's own North by Northwest (probably starring Will Smith)?

Don't shoot the messenger, but I do believe there is a North by Northwest re-make in the works. There were some rumblings about it sometime last year. I'll try to dig up the article.

[jon]

Michael Bay's North by Northwest...with BIRDS!

kill two birds with one stone?

[DrewReiber]

It doesn't look like there's going to be any news until Argento completes The Third Mother. The film is due to premiere in the latter half of 2007, so I guess we'll find out then.

[DrewReiber]

Actually, the full title is "Bubba Nosferatu and the Curse of the She-Vampires":

When I met Don Coscarelli during his tour of the original "Bubba Ho-Tep", back in March 03, I didn't get the feeling that the sequel was anything more than a joke. Since then, they decided to take it seriously and everyone is coming back, except for the wonderful Ossie Davis (who will be missed). This one is supposed to be a prequel/sequel, with Paul Giamatti playing Colonel Parker. Shooting is scheduled for the summer. I'm sorry that I don't have production links, as Campbell recently dropped out of an appearance to make sure he could be available for the sequel.

[Lino]

I've been really hoping that this sequel/prequel would materialize as I've enjoyed Bubba Ho-Tep and its quirky premise and concept. Glad to see that this is really going to happen. A shame that we have to wait another year for that. I hope we don't have to wait as long for a third chapter of this Elvis-fights-Evil series of films -- Bruce Campbell might be too old for that one. But on a second thought, it doesn't really matter (you'll know what I mean if you've seen it)!

[DrewReiber]

I've been really hoping that this sequel/prequel would materialize as I've enjoyed Bubba Ho-Tep and its quirky premise and concept. Glad to see that this is really going to happen. A shame that we have to wait another year for that.

My biggest concern, honestly, is to see Don Coscarelli wrap up the Phantasm saga. What began as a bizarre experiment in horror filmmaking ended up becoming a decently thought out mythology, thanks in large part to the development of Roger Avary's epic Phantasm 1999 / Phantasm's End. Avary wrote it for Coscarelli just after receiving the Oscar for Pulp Fiction and yet the two filmmakers could not find financing.

It was to star Angus Scrimm and Bruce Campbell (as a gungho military hero) after much of the US had fallen to the culmination of the Tall Man's work in the earlier films. When the filmmakers couldn't get it funded, Coscarelli wrote and directed Phantasm IV: Oblivion, a film intended to serve as a bridge between the first trilogy and the final Avary-penned sequel. It's really frustrating to watch the film knowing what the imagery and lingering plot details are building to, which is essentially a massive invasion from that alternate dimension... turning middle America into a plague-infested wasteland of undead.

Anyway, Coscarelli seems to have lost his passion for continuing the series himself after coming pretty close to selling the entire franchise off to a studio to be remade. Despite not having finished the original series, he was even bargaining with the Phantasm's End script as a potential third film in the reworked franchise. Honestly, I wasn't very interested as Coscarelli would have only served as a producer and it was his vision and style that drove the entire franchise. Without his directorial efforts, I have no doubt someone else would turn it all into purely ridiculous and unengaging sci-fi nonsense.

Now it's obvious that the window to finish Phantasm is quickly closing forever, as Angus Scrimm isn't getting any younger and the plans for Phantasm's End have been abandoned. I don't even know if we're ever going to see that story at all, as the comic book series that had been proposed as an adaptation of the script completely disappeared. A few years back, Coscarelli had proposed a Phantasm V script he might write on his own to wrap it all up on a more realistic budget... but he hasn't said a word since the remake plans fell through as well.

My guess is that his Landsdale collaborations are his primary interest now and the greater design of the Phantasm series is just going to implode once the key actors move on, if you know what I mean. *sigh* Oh well.

[Fletch F. Fletch]

Actually, the full title is "Bubba Nosferatu and the Curse of the She-Vampires":

When I met Don Coscarelli during his tour of the original "Bubba Ho-Tep", back in March 03, I didn't get the feeling that the sequel was anything more than a joke. Since then, they decided to take it seriously and everyone is coming back, except for the wonderful Ossie Davis (who will be missed). This one is supposed to be a prequel/sequel, with Paul Giamatti playing Colonel Parker. Shooting is scheduled for the summer. I'm sorry that I don't have production links, as Campbell recently dropped out of an appearance to make sure he could be available for the sequel.

Sounds promising. Yeah, I've heard that this is supposed to be more of a prequel as Campbell was keen on playing a slightly younger version of The King. With Giamatti along for the ride as Colonel Parker, this film could be a real hoot.

[Joe Buck]

THANK. YOU. GOD.

[DrewReiber]

I heard from a friend of mine in L.A. that they're starting to crew up for the production. It's third-hand info though, so I can't confirm anything myself.

[ranaing83]

Variety just announced that Mann's next film will be a noir drama set in Hollywood, amongst the studio backlots. It's got something to do with a private eye being hired to investigate a starlet who may have committed murder. Leo DiCaprio is set to topline, and the script is by John Logan, who apparently has been working closely with Mann on it for a while.

I thought that Miami Vice was one of last years best, and I think Mann + noir is as intriguing a match-up between director and material as there is, so I'm excited. Word is that the budget is going to be quite large, which surprised me a bit, considering how much money Miami Vice cost vs. what it made, but I'm still glad that Mann is able to get big-budget projects of the ground.

[sevenarts]

Yea, because noir is traditionally such a big-budget genre...

It sounds interesting though. I thought Miami Vice was a huge disappointment, but I've liked all Mann's other films to various degrees. And he's undoubtedly a master of mood and striking visuals, so he should be an excellent match for a modern noir.

[flyonthewall2983]

It'll be interesting to see him do a real period piece again, but in a framework of the genre he's most at home at. And of course to see him and Leo work, will undoubtedly be intriguing.

[che-etienne]

This is the best film-related news that has hit the net in a long while.

[Fletch F. Fletch]

Yeah, I'm excited by this news as well. It should be interesting to see if he shoots this completely digitally or not.

Mann's got a lot of pull within the industry so it doesn't surprise me that he's going to command another large budget after the financial failure of Miami Vice.

[Antoine Doinel]

I've always thought of Collateral as somewhat of a neo-noir (it reminds me a lot of He Walked By Night) so it isn't suprising to see Mann return to this territory.

I too am kind of baffled that he is (supposedly) commanding a large budget especially since other attempts at reviving the genre have recently fizzled at the box office (Black Dahlia, Hollywoodland, Lonely Hearts (the entire film is now available for free download from AOL)).

[Matt]

To be a complete snot for a moment: there's no such thing as a "'30s noir." Even if you're extremely generous and consider Stranger on the Third Floor the first noir, that's still 1940.

[che-etienne]

Agreed. Then again I'm not sure if noir has to relate to a specific period anymore. Suspect genre that it is...

[Barmy]

I thought he was directing that Tom Cruise flick.

Agreed that the public has zero appetite for noir.

[Fletch F. Fletch]

I thought he was directing that Tom Cruise flick.

The Battle of Britain-era film? I think Paramount still owns it and after their highly publicized dust-up with Cruise I doubt they'll be doing that film any time soon.

[akaten]

The title of the thread is misleading, see the quote for clarity;

Also uncertain Wednesday: whether Mann would get a studio to pay the projected $120 million pricetag for an untitled period drama set in 1930s Hollywood in which DiCaprio would star as a private eye used by studios to clean up star scandals and keep them out of the papers.

I liked Miami Vice, in part because I was amazed Mann was able to get away with making such an expensive film yet it remains his film, for better or worse I mean it is certainly a divisive film even among his fans.

I think a tough film to beat let alone build upon thematically will be Thief, my favourite Michael Mann film which displays noir influences on its sleeve, but develops them into his own vision of how criminality is all pervasive in society. However I look forward to any new Mann film with great interest...

[Matt]

The title of the thread is misleading, see the quote for clarity;

Also uncertain Wednesday: whether Mann would get a studio to pay the projected $120 million pricetag for an untitled period drama set in 1930s Hollywood in which DiCaprio would star as a private eye used by studios to clean up star scandals and keep them out of the papers.

Fixt.

[flyonthewall2983]

I thought he was directing that Tom Cruise flick.

The Battle of Britain-era film? I think Paramount still owns it and after their highly publicized dust-up with Cruise I doubt they'll be doing that film any time soon.

Plus, I'm sure Tom has no interest in it since he's already doing another WWII movie with Bryan Singer.