HeavierThanHeaven Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Page Six is trumpeting the scoop that Woody Allen and his muse Scarlett Johansson have both jumped aboard New York, I Love You, an anthology film currently in pre-production that will feature short directing efforts from several filmmakers such as Anthony Minghella and Mira Nair. Although you'd think this means that Johansson is appearing in the Woody short, the Post reports that Johansson is actually directing her own piece independent of Woody's. Details on the films in question are still forthcoming -- all that's known so far is that they will all be love stories and will of course be set in Manhattan. Johhansson has a number of acting projects lined up for the near future so this must be enough of a priority for a little re-arranging of her schedule.

The paper also reports another Johansson scoop, although this one is more of a rumor than anything else. Courtney Love is apparently seeking out Johansson to play her in a forthcoming biopic of Kurt Cobain called Heavier than Heaven. Why are outer-rim celebrities like Courtney Love and Jenna Jameson always harassing Scarlett Johansson to play them in the movies? Don't they know that she's very busy doing Woody Allen movies and period pieces? She doesn't have time for anything else. Anyway, Woody Allen is doing a round of press for his latest film, Cassandra's Dream, in the coming week so expect some enterprising reporters to pry some more details out of him about this latest turn of events.

Nirvana held on to its legacy for about a decade, but little by little their power and mystery is being stripped away. When I first started hearing their music in movies and television, it didn't bother me nearly as much as I expected it to. "All Apologies" was used brilliantly in a late episode of Six Feet Under. "Something in the Way" was put to good use for an effective scene in Jarhead. But then, it all started to fall apart. "Breed" used in Shoot 'Em Up and a baseball video game? Eight Nirvana songs used, badly, on Cold Case? Just how much heroin money does Courtney Love need? Lately, several films have dealt with the life of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain. Gus van Sant gave us the staggeringly boring Last Days. I'm eager to see the new documentary Kurt Cobain: About a Son. And Variety has just announced a big-screen adaptation of what many consider the definitive Cobain biography -- Charles Cross' excellent Heavier Than Heaven.

Apparently, "the producers and studio would not address whether they had locked down music rights, or the nature of the story they are trying to tell." Cobain's widow Courtney Love is listed as an executive producer, so I'd imagine they'll have pretty unlimited access to Nirvana's vaults. No director has been announced, but David Benioff will write the script. That makes me a little more comfortable with the idea, because I think he's a fantastic writer. Benioff adapted his novel The 25th Hour for Spike Lee, and that's one of my favorite films of the decade. Still, the whole thing fills me with unease. So much of this could go very wrong and further tarnish the Nirvana legacy. I wonder what they're going to do about Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl? Won't it be a little odd to see those two portrayed by actors? And since their relationship with producer Love is so strained, what if she paints them in a negative light? Ewan McGregor was rumored to play Cobain at the beginning of the year (I could see that), and something tells me Jared Leto is calling his agent as we speak. Ugh. Who would you cast?

Just as one bit of news comes out, the rumors start to spin into one hell of a hurricane. Last week I shared news that Courtney Love had acquired the rights to Charles Cross' Cobain biopic, Heavier than Heaven. It was in an "embryonic" stage, and there was no further word. Now it seems there is, although it's sketchy whether this is full-stop, accurate news, or just the hopeful rumor and buzz of those interested in the biopic of the legendary Nirvana frontman.

According to Virgin's movie news, Ewan McGregor is on his way to becoming Mr. Cobain, news I'm sure Cinematical reader Kaonashi will be happy to hear -- "If anyone is to play Cobain, it has to be Ewan McGregor." According to the buzz, a source for the Daily Express newspaper shared: "A number of actors have been talked about for the role but Ewan has emerged as the number one choice. Despite being 35, he looks young enough to play him." Considering that Love was just shopping around at studios, there's a good chance this is wishful thinking, but only time will tell. She's also quoted as saying that it will be an "A-list and high-end film."

That seems to end my hopes that Buffy co-star Amber Benson would be Ms. Love ... but, more importantly, would Ewan be the right choice? Sure, he doesn't look terribly weathered, but he also doesn't look like he's in his twenties. Is there anyone younger who could possibly play Cobain that won't make the upcoming film look like an episode of 90210? There's Jared Leto with the acting and music ability, and yeah, that's it. I'm tapped out. Do you have any better ideas?