The Lost Mullet Returns--"The Lost Symbol" gets a new writer

Some novels, as good as they are don't translate well to the big screen. I thought Dan Brown's novels Angels & Demons and The Da Vinci Code were fantastic books and very poorly executed films. Despite the fact that both films had Academy Award winners Tom Hanks and Ron Howard behind them, the movies fell flat at the box-office and with critics. Not surprisingly, Howard has since backed out of directing the third novel that features the adventures of Robert Langdon, 2009's The Lost Symbol*. However, Tom Hanks and his wooden performance and bad haircut are on board for the third movie which recently lost writer Akiva Goldsman.

Well faster than you can say "Papal Ban" Deadline reports a new writer has already swooped in and filled Goldsman's position. It's none other than Danny Strong who's best known for...wait for it...a co-starring role on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer television show. Granted Goldsman wrote both the previous films, which did not pan out well so I can understand the desire for a change. At the same time, Goldsman is an Academy Award winning screenwriter, so to say this is a major downgrade is like saying Mr. Burns from The Simpsons is fiscally conservative. Both are massive understatements. How can the studio possibly think that a guy who co-starred opposite Sarah Michelle Gellar on a WB television show can save this script let alone this movie?

If Tom Hanks has any sense he should cut and run now.

*In case you're wondering "The Lost Symbol" is exclusively set in the United States and deals with the secret society of the Freemasons.

Indiana Jones and the Unused Script--Frank Darabont's Anyways

In 2008 George Lucas and Steven Spielberg unleashed Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on the world with, to put it mildly, mixed results. Often lost in the vehement diatribes about the ills of nuked fridges and CGI monkeys, is how long it took to develop the fourth film in the first place, mostly because of George Lucas. Several people took a hack at the script including M. Night Shylaman, but the one most people often buzzed about was director Frank Darabont's (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile) entitled Indiana Jones and the City of the Gods. Darabont delivered a script in October 2003 that he worked on for over a year, a script that Ford and Spielberg loved and that dovetailed nicely into the release of the Indiana Jones DVDs. Unfortunately Lucas didn't like the script and shot it down.

Author David Hughes just came out with a new book called Tales from Development Hell and touched on Darabont's script. At this point I'd like you the reader to head to this website: http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/features/tales-from-development-hell-frank-darabonts-indiana-jones-and-the-city-of-the-gods.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FilmSchoolRejects+%28Film+School+Rejects%29&utm_content=Google+Reader and read the actual description. It's only about a page so it won't take too long. Once you've done that come back to my blog and I'll give you my thoughts.

Done? Ready? Ok.

After reading this information my emotions are decidedly mixed. For one I think there are many elements of Darabont's script that I like--the plutonium aspect, the heightened Cold War issues, Indy's Dad and Salah being in the film, as well as the friend who betrays him being a Russian. The Marion Ravenwood character feels a little more like Marion Ravenwood too. Additionally, even though there is still an alien angle to the movie, it seems a little easier to swallow then Skull with all the psychic rigmarole.

Having said that, I'm sad to see that Darabont was the one that came up with the "Nuke the 'fridge" idea. I'm sorry that I ever thought George Lucas came up with that concept. (I don't forgive him for keeping it in the last movie however.) The fact that Darabont actually confronted Lucas and told him that he was a stubborn SOB makes up for the scene a little though. Even more infuriating however is that Lucas flat out rejected this script and then pulled a lot of the same concepts, and in some instances specific scenes, right out of Darabont's script and put them into Skull. If I'm Darabont I'm spitting nails because essentially Skull is a bastardization of his original screenplay.

Leaving the "nuke the fridge" aspect aside it seems to me that not only did Darabont have a better title for the fourth Indy film but a much superior script as well. I'd like to think that in some alternative universe this film was actually made but sadly in this one it was not be.*

*I'm hoping in that universe that Hayden Christiansen was never cast as Anakin Skywalker, Jar Jar Binks died in the first reel of Episode I, and that Saddam Hussein never came to power.

Maverick closer to flying again: Top Gun 2 script gets a complete re-write

1986's Top Gun was the quintessential 1980s homoerotic*--er--buddy action film. I remember being 8 watching it on my Uncle Gil's VCR. For the next few months all I could think about was being Maverick when I grew up and flying jets. Sadly I cannot see the Great Wall of China if it's two feet in front of me without my contacts, so my dream of being a fighter pilot was not to be.

I've been hearing about a sequel to Top Gun for over a year now and hoping it would simply crash and burn. Alas I think that hope is becoming less likely than resurrecting Iceman's (Val Kilmer's) career.

According to the "Hollywood Reporter" the studio has been less than thrilled with the current script. Rather than doing the smart thing and scrapping the project altogether, the studio has hired The Town co-writer Peter Craig to completely rewrite the script. While I absolutely loved The Town, completely re-writing a script is never a good thing. Fortunately, it should be some time before we hear anything more about this sequel, so that gives the project plenty of time to run out of fuel.

And just in case you were wondering, yes Tom Cruise is fully on board with this and is reportedly very anxious to resume his role as Maverick.

*You've gotta admit that the beach volleyball scene was about as laden with homosexual undertones as you can get. Do you really need to do an exaggerated flex to check your watch?

Kiwi Director gets distributor for Memphis Documentary

Although Peter Jackson is best known for splatter films, King Kong, and some trilogy regarding a magic ring that I think almost nobody saw,* one of his pet projects over the last few years has been a documentary about the "West Memphis Three."

For those of you who don't know about the "West Memphis Three" they are Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelly, three men wrongfully accused of killing three boys in Arkansas and sent to prison in 1993. All three were released from prison in August of last year.*

Peter Jackson and his partner Fran Walsh produced the film and Amy Berg directed. The movie first debuted earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival and now Sony Classics Pictures has picked up the distributing rights.

At this point Sony hasn't unveiled a release date but my guess will probably be late this year since this has Oscar written all over it.

*That was a joke.

**Director Joe Berlinger also chronicled the Memphis Three's plight in his Paradise Lost trilogy. The exposure the three's story received led to overwhelming support from celebrities like Johnny Depp and Eddie Vedder. That coupled with a strong internet campaign was incredibly influential in Echols, Baldwin, and Misskelly's release. Never underestimate the power of movies to change the world.

99 Virgins are probably not attending the premiere of Kathryn Bigelow's next movie

Hollywood and Academy Award winning director Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) have been kicking around an Osama bin Laden film for over a year now. Just before the film received a green light however, Seal Team Six stepped in and gave Osama a one way express ticket to visit Allah and the project was put on hold. Well after a Daytona 500-like delay the project is finally moving forward.

According to the "Hollywood Reporter" Bigelow's Bin Laden project (as yet untitled) has just begun shooting in New Delhi, India and already has a release date of December 19, 2012.* Unlike the previous incarnation, this film will focus almost completely on Seal Team Six and the operation to take out Bin Laden. The script is penned by fellow The Hurt Locker collaborator Mark Boal who also won an Academy Award for the same film. Joel Edgerton** (Warrior) and recent Academy Award nominee for The Help Jessica Chastain both have starring roles, although at this time no one knows exactly what those roles are.

So lets see:

Academy Award winning director--check.

Academy Award winning screen writer--check.

Two solid up and coming actors--check.

Compelling source material--DOUBLE check.

Sounds to me like the makings of a solid film. The film and the worldwide critical reaction ought to be very interesting.

*Obviously the film is being released in late December because of Oscar considerations. However, isn't it odd that this film is a week before Christmas? "Hey kids do you want to go see Jingle all the Way or a movie about a horrible person who gets shot in the head?" Although to be fair actually watching Jingle all the Way is the cinematic equivalent of getting shot in the head.

**Fun fact: Edgerton actually played the young version of Luke Skywalker's Uncle Owen Lars in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.

Face melting in hi-def--Indiana Jones movies to be released on Blu-Ray this fall

Halalejiah! At long long last the complete Indiana Jones movie collection is going to be released on Blu-Ray later this year. Indy fans have been eagerly anticipating the Blu-Ray release for over two years but of course George Lucas wanted to make sure things were just right. Thankfully that does not include adding extra scenes, Jar Jar Binks, replacing Willie Scott with Emma Stone, or turning the giant boulder in Raiders of the Lost Ark into a giant chocolate Milk Dud.

The set will include all four films and tons of documentaries, interviews, featurettes, and according to Paramount "a few surprises." (Whatever that means) There's no official street release date* yet but it should be coming out soon. My thought is probably October.

*Ironically I found out about this when this morning I woke up to an email from Amazon saying it was available for pre-order. They know me too well.

Aykroyd Slimes the World with latest GB3 News

Ok that's it. I'm officially done with Ghostbusters 3 updates until I get word that the production has officially begun. And if Dan Aykroyd's latest statements to "The Telegraph" are any indication that post may never happen.

Aykroyd tells "The Telegraph" that the film right now is in "suspended animation" and that "Bill Murray will not do the movie." In fact he says it is "a surety" that he won't do the film. To quote the great Peter Venkman, "Come in Ray!" Murray has been saying this for over a year now. It's patently obvious that he doesn't want to be in the film.

In spite of Murray's adamant refusal to be in the film, Aykroyd says there is still some interest from the studio in doing the movie. That's fantastic because I have zero interest in seeing a Ghostbusters film without Bill Murray in it. Aykroyd has toyed with the idea of recasting Peter Venkman or even having Murray appear in the film in a cameo role* as a ghost. I think both of those ideas are absolutely atrocious. To his credit however, Aykroyd says that he will "not do a movie that exploits the franchise."

As enthusiastic as I originally was about the possibility of a third Ghostbusters film, at this point I hope the project is dead in the water. I don't want the studio to throw gobs of money at Bill Murray just so he can be the in film. I also don't want a subpar script. If the studio doesn't plan on doing Ghostbusters 3 in an appropriate manner, than I believe I speak for the majority of the franchise fans when I say don't do it at all.

*Incidentally I think that Murray's cameo as himself in the film Zombieland is one of the all time great cameos in movie history.