john whitesell Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Katt Williams Takes on 'Mission: Intolerable'
Filed under: Comedy », Casting », The Weinstein Co. »
Have you ever had a co-worker who was so terrible that it seemed like he was planted there just to make you miserable? That seems to be the premise behind Mission: Intolerable, a workplace comedy about a temp agency that hires out a "temp from hell" for companies who'd rather have an unwanted employee quit than have to fire him or her. According to the Hollywood Reporter, comedian Katt Williams (Norbit) is set to take the role as the temp (and founder of the agency, I guess). The movie's plot will focus on one job he's assigned where the employee he's supposed to force out stays his ground and fights back. The idea sounds kinda brilliant, actually, in a slightly derivative-of-The Office-and-Office Space sort of way. Unfortunately, the guy in talks to direct is John Whitesell, maker of such unfunny movies as Malibu's Most Wanted, Deck the Halls, Big Momma's House 2 and See Spot Run.Also, the script received a rewrite from Malibu's screenwriters Adam Small and Fax Bahr (the original was by Steven List and Astrid Neal), who were also responsible for a number of Pauly Shore comedies. But how hard could it be to make a funny workplace comedy that we can all relate to and enjoy? Enough people hate or are at least annoyed by their jobs that any office-set movie could be appreciable by simply exaggerating the usual terrible and annoying work situations. Maybe a few seasons of NBC's The Office have fully mined the territory, though. It's been awhile since I worked at a job like that, so I have no clue what's funny about offices anymore. Of course, I'm not exactly part of the demographic the movie will be for, anyway. Mission: Intolerable is being produced by The Weinstein Co.'s Our Stories division, which means it will be made intently for black audiences. Actually, that exclusivity just makes me want to try to like the movie more.
Who's Ready for Another Serving of 'Meatballs'?
Filed under: Comedy », Lionsgate Films », Remakes and Sequels »
I'm not exactly sure why you couldn't just make a summer camp comedy and NOT use the name Meatballs, but according to a CHUD source, it sure looks like Lionsgate is about to kick a new remake into production. Yes, world, there will now be two separate movies with the title of Meatballs -- neither of which have anything to do with ground beef.The original "camp" comedy known as Meatballs actually hails from Canada, and it hit the scene in the summer of '79. Kick-started the (very) successful careers of Bill Murray and Ivan Reitman is what it did -- although it didn't really do all that much for folks like Chris Makepeace. Aside from young master Murray's inspired aloofness, the flick's a fairly forgettable affair. And as the CHUD source points out, it's not like Meatballs is on the same level as a Caddyshack or even a Stripes. Plus, who wants to share a title with movies like Meatballs Part 2, Meatballs 3: Summer Job or Corey Feldman's Meatballs 4?
But without Bill Murray, does the title "Meatballs" even matter? I say not. Er, no. Having said that, at least Lionsgate had the smarts enough to hand the project off to some funny people. Sean Anders and John Morris (of the very funny indie Never Been Thawed) have been tapped to pen the remake, while further buzz indicates that John Whitesell (See Spot Run, Malibu's Most Wanted, Big Momma's House 2, Deck the Halls) is in talks to direct, although with a resumé like that, forgive me for being a bit skeptical. I'm just wondering if they'll keep that song in the remake. You know the one I mean...
We are the C.I.T.s so pity us!
The kids are rats, the food is hideous!
We're gonna smoke and drink and fool around....
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