DarrenLemke Tagged Articles at Cinematical

When we last heard about New Line's adaptation of Jack and the Giant Killer, the fantasy tale was being helmed by D.J. Caruso. It started popping up on Bryan Singer's To Do list when they announced the inexplicable Excalibur remake -- but now it's become official, as The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Jack will be Singer's next film, leaving Caruso free to work on Y: The Last Man if he so chooses.

Jack is a slight reworking of (shocker!) Jack and the Beanstalk with a dash of The Brave Little Tailor. It dispenses with that "I'll sell you some magic beans, and some oceanfront property in Arizona" trope, and is instead set in motion when a giant kidnaps a princess. Obviously, that premeditated action is unacceptable, and it threatens the longstanding peace between men and giants. A young farmer named Jack is given the task to lead an expedition to the giants' kingdom in the hopes of rescuing her. Mark Bomback and Darren Lemke penned the script, which is reportedly a more mature take on the fairy tale than you or I might expect. I don't think that means any rampant sex, violence, or cussing but rather that it'll feature the kind of unblinking action that Lord of the Rings did. I mean, Jack's fighting giants. That's hardcore when done realistically.

The project has no start date, but is being fast-tracked and will be Singer's next film if something else doesn't catch his eye. There's no rumors yet as to who might play farmer Jack, but if they run into a crunch, I think our own Erik Davis still knows the script by heart. He already did a fine job on stage from all reports, and going with an original cast member is always good for the material.

Walt Disney Pictures is finally moving forward with a sci-fi project called Gemini Man, which blockbuster producer Jerry Bruckheimer is producing. Not to be confused with the 1976 television series of the same name -- which could make for a good adaptation or remake -- the movie is about an aging hitman being hunted by his young clone. The clone has been sent to enforce the elder's retirement so that it can replace him. The idea has been around for at least four years, when the CGI team The Secret Lab (Kangaroo Jack; Snow Dogs) was doing test effects involving a young Mel Gibson from The Year of Living Dangerously interacting with an older Gibson from Payback. Originally written by Darren Lemke, the script had then been redone by Armageddon's Jonathan Hensleigh. Now, the project is getting another kick start by Troy's David Benioff, who is also writing the Wolverine spin-off for Fox. Who will play the young and old version of the hitman (same actor? different actors? father and son?) is still up in the air.

The idea of a character fighting a version of himself has been around for years in many different forms, and yet it remains an interesting concept. And it can be done in so many different ways: twins; evil doppelgangers; time travel; split-personalities (I'd link, but I don't want to spoil any films); face-switching. The clone device is not completely fresh -- see The Sixth Day and The Island (actually, don't) -- but the plot of Gemini Man still sounds promising. Just imagine what it would be like to fight a younger you. The clone will have your strength at a time when you were likely more fit, but you presumably have more experience and intelligence. Who will win? The simple Hollywood idea is to have the older hitman win, but if both versions are played by a hot 20-something actor, with the "real" hitman portrayed with old-man makeup, then much of the audience would probably rather see the clone win. Either way, if Benioff can deliver a smart script, hopefully one that comments on the issue of age in the job market -- or even better, self-reflectively on the issue of age in Hollywood -- then the movie will be worth-seeing (especially if it can go head-to-head against the similarly themed Logan's Run remake). Of course, watching a fight sequence where, say, Josh Hartnett beats himself up, could be appealing, as well.