bbc films Tagged Articles at Cinematical
'Jane Eyre' Loses Ellen Page, But Has A New Director
Filed under: Classics », Independent », Romance », Deals », Mystery & Suspense », Scripts », DIY/Filmmaking », Remakes and Sequels »
Bronte and Austen movie adaptations are cyclical things. Every young actress seems to get her shot at playing Elizabeth Bennet, Emma Woodhouse, Jane Eyre, or Catherine Earnshaw. Five years later, they're now Mature Actresses, and watching the next crop come through the English classics. Right now, we're on the Brontes (spurred undoubtedly by Bella and Edward) and Ruby Films' adaptation of Jane Eyre spurred a lot of talk when it hooked Ellen Page as its poor and plain heroine. Variety reports that Page has officially dropped out of the project, but that it's landed Cary Fukunaga as its director. Fukunaga has earned a lot of positive buzz for his feature debut Sin Nombre, which nabbed him a Best Director award at this year's Sundance Film Festival. Since then he's landed writing-directing deals at Universal and Focus, and it will undoubtedly surprise many that he's eying an English classic as his next film. But hey, if Gothic dramas are good for young actresses, why not young directors too?
As the project now boasts Fukunaga and Moira Buffini (one of Britain's rising screenwriters) Ruby Films now plans to "ramp up casting" for the roles of Jane and Rochester. With Page uninterested, which ingenue will leap at the chance to be one of literature's finest heroines? What brooding hunk will they cast as Rochester? As a lifelong Bronte addict, I await the news with fluttery, Victorian breaths.
Margaret Thatcher Film Coming From Makers of The Queen
Filed under: Drama », Foreign Language », Politics », Cinematical Indie », War »
Hot on the heels of The Queen, Pathé Pictures and BBC Films have teamed up for a film about former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Like The Queen, which was co-produced by Pathé, this picture will not be a biopic and will instead deal with only a few weeks. Specifically, it will focus on the 17 days leading up to the Falklands War (Malvinas War, for the Argentines) of 1982. Aside from the production company, there isn't much else connecting this and The Queen, but that certainly won't stop its marketing. Currently the only people attached to the project are screenwriter Brian Fillis and producer Damian Jones, so it is of course still possible for others involved with The Queen to become involved here -- would Helen Mirren make a good Thatcher? (I couldn't see it). I actually say make up Julianne Moore for the part. Seriously.
It is too bad nobody thought about making a film earlier since it would tie in perfectly right now -- today is the 25th anniversary of Argentina's initial flag raising on South Georgia, which kicked off the conflict (I'm figuring it is the first of the 17 days). I'm not an expert on the proceedings from March 19 on, but much of the plot of the proposed film would likely consist of the attempted negotiations prior to Argentina's actual invasion of the islands. It is also too bad the film will be stopped at the moment the war begins, as it would make an interesting companion piece to last year's excellent Argentine film Blessed by Fire (read my Tribeca film festival review), in a Flags of Our Fathers/Letters from Iwo Jima-sort of way. The aftermath would be a worthy focus, too, because the war positively changed the British people's attitude toward Thatcher and the government. In any regard, I'm looking forward to the film and I hope it can be somewhat close to as good as The Queen.
Peter Pan Sequel's Film Rights Sold
Filed under: Deals », Family Films », Remakes and Sequels »
I haven't read Peter Pan in Scarlet, the recently published book that was an officially-commissioned sequel to J.M. Barrie's classic children's novel Peter Pan. The Peter Pan sequel was written not by Barrie, but by author Geraldine McCaughrean. Apparently Peter Pan in Scarlet takes place when Wendy and the Lost Boys are all grown up and learn that Neverland has been damaged by WWI. To save it, they have to find a way to become children again, since adults are generally disallowed in Neverland. I can't tell from the summaries whether the book is meant to appeal more to adults or to children.I admit I have a built-in distrust of sequels that are not written by the original author -- I won't go anywhere near the "sequels" to Rebecca, Gone with the Wind, or The Secret Garden. It's a trend I would very much like to see fade away. However, Peter Pan in Scarlet has obviously gathered some popularity, as the film and television rights have just been sold ... and no, not to Disney, either, or any American studio for that matter. The rights to film the book were bought by a group that includes the U.K. Film Council, a government organization that encourages filmmaking in Britain, BBC Films, and the Headline Pictures production company. There's no word on whether the final result will be a theatrical release or a made-for-British-TV movie, although I would guess that the potential box office on a family film about Peter Pan would indicate the former. I would also guess that the feature will be live-action rather than animated, considering the groups involved. If you've read Peter Pan in Scarlet, do you think it would make a good movie, and why (or why not)?
Aesop Entertainment Has Jesus On Line Four
Filed under: Comedy », Independent », Deals », Newsstand », Cinematical Indie »
Everyone has heard the cliché, "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," but how can we tell when an imitation has become the sincerest form of a rip-off? Evan Almighty is due to hit screens June 2007, but another "divine comedy" is already on the way. Although, it looks like this one might be a little more profane in its approach.The Hollywood Reporter announced that Aesop Entertainment has picked up the comedy Jesus on Line Four. The story follows a regular guy who starts receiving phone calls from none other than the Son of God himself. The twist on the regular-guy angle is that he's a shock-jock with a local radio call-in show. Bob Comfort wrote the script and Richard Davenport is on board to direct. Davenport is better known as an F/X artist and had worked on Daredevil and X2. Jesus on Line Four will be Davenports first attempt at directing a feature film.
It looks like Jesus on Line Four will hit screens sooner rather than later, as it garnered a fair share of buzz at The American Film Market. No casting announcements have been made, but Aesop is currently in negotiations with BBC Films to start preproduction this January.
BBC Films to Make Boy Soldier
Filed under: Action », Thrillers », Deals », Newsstand »
Andy
McNab is the pseudonym used by a former British solider who, after writing the autobiographical Bravo Two
Zero (which detailed a failed SAS mission during the first Gulf War and has had its veracity repeatedly
questioned), began writing war-related fiction. His Boy Soldier series - aimed, like everything else these days, at
"young adults" - currently consists of four books, and is wildly popular in the UK (only the first
installment has been published in the US). And, since popular kids' series are like catnip to movie studios, it's no
surprise that BBC Films have picked up the rights to the first two books (Boy
Solder and Payback). The nice thing is that this particular series is uncommonly badass, considering
that it was written for kids: The first novel, for example, is about a 17-year-old boy who is hell-bent on tracking
down his (supposedly) traitorous, drug-dealing grandfather, a man the British government mistakenly believes is dead.
Nice, huh? I mean, that sounds like a Bourne movie, except with some kid in place of Matt Damon.McNab and his writing partner Robert Rigby (whose background is mainly in television) are currently working on adapting the first book, and a BBC Films spokesperson is describing the film as representing a new "commitment to mak[ing] more ambitious films for wider audiences." Whether that means it's something we're likely to see on this side of the Atlantic, however, remains to be seen.
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