roman coppola Tagged Articles at Cinematical

With the writer's strike in full swing, I thought I'd pay tribute to a few of the writers who currently have films in theaters. Quite frankly, you really have to admire some of them. Take Allison Burnett, who adapted Feast of Love (2 screens) as well as this year's earlier Resurrecting the Champ. Burnett received very little love for either movie, but consider how hard it must have been to cut down a novel and expand a newspaper article at the same time? It makes my head spin. It's also quite impressive that Burnett was able to work again after his earlier script was turned into the universally panned film Autumn in New York (2000). But the thing that impressed me most of all about Burnett is his first produced script, Bloodfist III: Forced to Fight (1992), a vehicle for "Z" level action star Don 'The Dragon' Wilson. This is from a guy who studied playwriting and has published a novel. I can only imagine what it must be like to sit down and actually write something like that. Do you tape the paycheck on the wall next to your desk and keep staring at it? Good for Burnett that he made it out of that hole.

Then there's The Simpsons Movie (96 screens), which has at least eleven credited writers, and possibly more who added material without credit. Among them we have David Mirkin, who directed one of my all-time favorite guilty pleasures, Heartbreakers (2001), and James L. Brooks, who won an armload of Oscars for Terms of Endearment (1983). Most of the others are from TV, and I'd like to think they wrote this movie the way they might have written a half-hour episode: by sitting around a big table and throwing out ideas and laughing a lot. Those writer rooms are usually decorated with stuffed animals and novelty items, as well as plates of donuts and other snacks -- perhaps some kind of air freshener as well. It makes me all warm just thinking about it.

Early buzz hasn't been too nice to Wes Anderson's The Darjeeling Limited, which opens this week, on the 29th. But does it really matter, at least, if you're a fan? I remember hearing a lot of bad things about The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, but Wes still caught me hook, line, and sinker. This time around, things are up in the air. Beyond some crappy response to the film, fans were dealt a blow when Fox announced that the prequel short, Hotel Chevalier, would not screen in its regular release like it did during festival screenings. However, Apple is coming to the rescue, at least for fans in selected cities, according to indieWIRE.

Lucky fans in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and LA will be able to see the short in all of its 12-minute glory, tomorrow, September 25, at 9 pm. Sweetening the pot even further -- Anderson, Jason Schwartzman, and Natalie Portman will be at the SoHo store in New York, and co-writer Roman Coppola will make an appearance at the Chicago store. Darjeeling is about three American brothers, Schwartzman, Adrien Brody, and Owen Wilson, who head to India on a spiritual quest and then find their journey veering into unexpected territory. Chevalier is a prequel to the story, which stars Jason and Natalie in a Paris hotel room -- the end of their love, and the prologue of the journey.

After teasing us with his involvement in a new Wes Anderson film, Owen Wilson has finally dished out some more info on the upcoming project. I'm not sure why Wilson is the only one talking about this, but hey -- we'll take it.

According to Production Weekly, Wilson confirmed his role as one of three brothers in The Darjeeling Limited. Wes Anderson will direct off a script written by Anderson, Jason Schwartzman and Roman Coppola. Wait, Roman Coppola? What's he doing in there? Hmm, this has me wondering if Schwartzman and Coppola will play the other two brothers? Now, that would be interesting. As previously reported, pic will follow the three boys as they journey through India. An assortment of Wes Anderson-style hilarity ensues.