Butler's Script Sale of the Week...
May 20th, 2001
I thought there were a lot of intriguing premises in the sales this week including TIME AND AGAIN, PROTECT AND DEFEND, STONEFLIGHT, THE WATCH, DAMNATION GAME, and Ollie Stone's return to Vietnam, SPITE HOUSE. Plus, I'm dying to know what the Soliel Moon Frye (Punky Brewster) pitch POPPED is all about.
With Terrence Malick involved, how could BRIGHTON ROCK not be my pick of the week?
The legendary director Malick (being legendary a feat in itself with only three features films to his credit) is producing BRIGHTON ROCK, an adaptation of the classic novel by Graham Greene. Screenwriter Don MacPherson (POSSESSION, 2001) has been hired to adapt.
Brighton Rock tells the story of small-time gangster Pinkie Brown and headstrong young woman Ida Arnold. When Pinkie kills corrupt newspaperman Charles Hale in an ill-conceived attempt to position himself as a serious force in the Brighton underworld, Ida, having meet Hale on a holiday, takes it upon herself to learn the truth about the journalist's murder.
I haven't read the book, but by all accounts it's rife with symbolism and operates on many levels. Greene is known for his mixture of psychology and philosophy in his novels and this book is a prime example. Symbols? Many levels of meaning? Philosophy? This is also, of course, pure Malick territory. His THE THIN RED LINE (1999) was the ultimate in cinematic symbolism. (Personally, I preferred the simplistic symbolic complexity of DAYS OF HEAVEN [1978].) And the young criminal storyline of Brighton Rock draws a nice parallel to Malick's own BADLANDS (1973).
So Brighton Rock would seem a perfect project for the visionary Malick. Then why the hell isn't he directing it? And why has MacPherson been brought in to adapt, a scribe who is best know for the much hyped box-office failures THE AVENGERS (1998) and ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS (1984)? He did, however, write the script for Neil LaBute's upcoming POSSESSION (2001) so perhaps I'm wrong. Maybe he's a literary genius who just hasn't gotten a proper chance as of yet. Still, I can't understand why a creative perfectionist like Malick would (or could even stand) to hand over the reigns on a project like this. Perhaps Malick has discovered that it's the producers who hold the real power in the film world and he'll be able to shape and mold things as he pleases, without anyone trying to tell him what to do. Possible. And maybe he will direct it. After all, a director has yet to be announced and with all the commotion when it was announced he was directing THE THIN RED LINE, who could blame the ol' guy for not wanting to be bothered just yet.
With Malick's involvement we can be rest assured that Brighton Rock will not be your average movie going experience. I just wish the old codger would do it himself.
-- Edward Butler
With Terrence Malick involved, how could BRIGHTON ROCK not be my pick of the week?
The legendary director Malick (being legendary a feat in itself with only three features films to his credit) is producing BRIGHTON ROCK, an adaptation of the classic novel by Graham Greene. Screenwriter Don MacPherson (POSSESSION, 2001) has been hired to adapt.
Brighton Rock tells the story of small-time gangster Pinkie Brown and headstrong young woman Ida Arnold. When Pinkie kills corrupt newspaperman Charles Hale in an ill-conceived attempt to position himself as a serious force in the Brighton underworld, Ida, having meet Hale on a holiday, takes it upon herself to learn the truth about the journalist's murder.
I haven't read the book, but by all accounts it's rife with symbolism and operates on many levels. Greene is known for his mixture of psychology and philosophy in his novels and this book is a prime example. Symbols? Many levels of meaning? Philosophy? This is also, of course, pure Malick territory. His THE THIN RED LINE (1999) was the ultimate in cinematic symbolism. (Personally, I preferred the simplistic symbolic complexity of DAYS OF HEAVEN [1978].) And the young criminal storyline of Brighton Rock draws a nice parallel to Malick's own BADLANDS (1973).
So Brighton Rock would seem a perfect project for the visionary Malick. Then why the hell isn't he directing it? And why has MacPherson been brought in to adapt, a scribe who is best know for the much hyped box-office failures THE AVENGERS (1998) and ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS (1984)? He did, however, write the script for Neil LaBute's upcoming POSSESSION (2001) so perhaps I'm wrong. Maybe he's a literary genius who just hasn't gotten a proper chance as of yet. Still, I can't understand why a creative perfectionist like Malick would (or could even stand) to hand over the reigns on a project like this. Perhaps Malick has discovered that it's the producers who hold the real power in the film world and he'll be able to shape and mold things as he pleases, without anyone trying to tell him what to do. Possible. And maybe he will direct it. After all, a director has yet to be announced and with all the commotion when it was announced he was directing THE THIN RED LINE, who could blame the ol' guy for not wanting to be bothered just yet.
With Malick's involvement we can be rest assured that Brighton Rock will not be your average movie going experience. I just wish the old codger would do it himself.
-- Edward Butler
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