Quick hits: DICKIE ROBERTS, FORMER CHILD STAR & MALIBU'S MOST WANTED
April 14th, 2004
Script Review(s): DICKIE ROBERTS, FORMER CHILD STAR & MALIBU'S MOST WANTED
Review(s) by Honest Abe
WARNING: SPOILERS!
DICKIE ROBERTS, FORMER CHILD STAR (positive, minor spoilers)
Fred Wolf and David Spade have written a smart snappy comedy that should appeal to any David Spade fan. With his smarmy delivery, I think Spade is highly underrated. I thoroughly enjoyed Joe Dirt and of course, Just Shoot Me. While reading this, I can tell where Spade directly wrote some lines for his character. So, for all you Spade fans, let's get into it.
When he was a child, Dickie Roberts was Gary Coleman, the Little Rascals, and Webster all in one. He was on top of the world with the number one hit show in the country. Unfortunately, fame was fleeting and the show was gone after a few short years. However, the memories lingered. Too bad the money didn't. Today, Dickie (Spade, by the way) is nearing the age of 30 and is desperate for that one big role that will launch his comeback. His agent manages to score him an audition with Martin Scorsese and while Scorsese was a fan of Dickie's show, he feels that Dickie lacks the youthful spirit required to play the main character in his next movie. It seems that Dickie never really had a normal childhood. He was always in the spotlight and had a lavish lifestyle. Dickie decides there's only one thing to do....relive childhood like a normal kid. He sells his autobiography and uses the advance to pay a family, the Tracy's, who are willing to take him and "raise: him alongside their two kids, Sam and Sally, for one month so that Dickie can see how kids and families interact in a normal setting. Actually, George Tracy arranges the deal without consulting his wife and kids first. George is a shrewd car salesman who needs the money for his business and wants to try to capitalize on Dickie's former fame. While it sounds wild, it's funny to see Dickie trying to incorporate himself alongside a soccer mom in the suburbs while keeping his cell phone glued to his ear to keep up with his agent. Even simple things like learning that children don't have coffee for breakfast baffles him. More and more, Dickie becomes immersed in the family and sparks kinda fly between Dickie and Grace Tracy. (there has been problems between Grace and George for quite some time.) The majority of the script involves scenes of Dickie finding his inner child. Everything from learning about dealing with school bullies to typical family disputes. He soaks it all in and becomes practically a new man. He learns the real meaning of family from all this and the revelations are touching. All is well until Dickie's on again off again girlfriend, Cyndi (Alyssa Milano) shows up towards the end for a few minor disruptions. She tells the networks what he's doing and before you know it, Hard Copy is covering his adventures with the Tracys like another reality TV show. But Dickie is reborn by this point and he learns what's truly important. All along, he had said that it wasn't the money that he missed, but the love of the public.
Again, being a Spade fan, I'll be there opening weekend. I know I'm gonna love it. If they make it to the movie itself, keep your eyes peeled on the scenes of Dickie playing poker with fellow former child stars, Leif Garrett, McCauley Culkin, Jerry Mathers and Gary Coleman. Those were some of the funniest scenes in this script. On one nitpicky note, when I heard that Alyssa Milano had joined the cast I was looking forward to it all the more (and not just for obvious reasons!) because I've long been waiting for something major to come along for her to break out of the TV mold. Not that there's anything wrong with TV, I just think that she's someone who, kinda like Dickie, just needs that one role to have that really massive breakthrough. Unfortunately, this ain't it. Anyways, the bottom line is I'll be there opening weekend. So should you.
MALIBU'S MOST WANTED (originally titled Suckaz) (mixed, minor spoilers)
Nick Swardson has written what could be the Vanilla Ice story. Jamie Kennedy stars as Brad Gluckman, the son of Bill (Ryan O'Neal), a prominent candidate for the governor of California whose entire existence is devoted to phat beats and keepin' it real. Of course, in his case, you just don't get any more Caucasian. He lives in Malibu and hangs with his "crew" at Starbucks of more wannabes at Starbucks. After trying to reach their son through psychiatric means, his father hits on the novel idea to "scare him white". He has his staff hire two black actors with the agenda of showing him how rough the streets of south central Los Angeles really are. Some of the humor comes from the two actors, Sean and PJ trying to act like gang members while remembering their acting methods along the way. The saving grace for these two comes from the fact that Sean has a cousin named Shondra (Regina Hall) who really does live in the inner city who agrees to go along with the elaborate scheme. (By the way, they are all being paid to terrorize Brad....or B-Rad as he calls himself.) Shondra, while being from the streets, is quite intelligent and dreams of starting her own business some day. She comes to like Brad, but I'm getting ahead of myself. See, Shondra's ex-boyfriend, Tec, is a full on hard core gang member but after Brad, not realizing that Tec is for real, steps to Tec and tries to act tough, Tec comes to respect Brad and welcomes him into the gang. Now, unbeknowest to Shondra, Sean and PJ. Brad overhead them talking about the plans to pull a drive by as part of their tactics. So, Brad knows the whole thing is fixed, not even realizing that when he gets caught in an ambush with Tec's gang and their rivals, that the bullets are real.
All this time, Bill's political team, even though they never intended for Brad to get hurt, decide to spin this around and play up the sympathy for Bill if Brad gets killed. Once Bill discovers their duplicity, he rushes to his sons aid. More chaos ensues as both father and son try to come to grips not only with their hostile surroundings but with each other as well. Well, since this is a comedy, you can imagine how it all plays out.
Apparently this idea spawned based on a skit from The Jamie Kennedy Show (which I have never seen). In a way this reminds me of countless Saturday Night Live skits that tried to cross over into a feature length film with few successes. (It's Pat. Coneheads. Superstar to name a few.) The problem is that while I like Kennedy, the whole whiteboy wannabe gets tired after awhile and ya just wanna slap him and glue his face to a mirror. What's gonna be needed is a strong supporting cast and with Hall, Taye Diggs, Blair Underwood and Anthony Anderson along for the ride...I don't know. This could go either way. If it's hammed up to much, it'll sink faster than a stone. It's one thing to be funny and/or paradoy. It's another to be overdone. Bottom line: I gotta see the trailer. Otherwise, I think I'd have to settle for sneaking in on this one. Don't get me wrong. Again, I'm just a bit squeamish that Kennedy could overdo it.
Review(s) by Honest Abe
WARNING: SPOILERS!
(05/24/01)
NOTE: The screenplays we review are often in development and may experience many rewrites, some could end up being completely different than what is reviewed here. It is our hope that our reviews generate more interest in the film. Thank you.
DICKIE ROBERTS, FORMER CHILD STAR (positive, minor spoilers)
Fred Wolf and David Spade have written a smart snappy comedy that should appeal to any David Spade fan. With his smarmy delivery, I think Spade is highly underrated. I thoroughly enjoyed Joe Dirt and of course, Just Shoot Me. While reading this, I can tell where Spade directly wrote some lines for his character. So, for all you Spade fans, let's get into it.
When he was a child, Dickie Roberts was Gary Coleman, the Little Rascals, and Webster all in one. He was on top of the world with the number one hit show in the country. Unfortunately, fame was fleeting and the show was gone after a few short years. However, the memories lingered. Too bad the money didn't. Today, Dickie (Spade, by the way) is nearing the age of 30 and is desperate for that one big role that will launch his comeback. His agent manages to score him an audition with Martin Scorsese and while Scorsese was a fan of Dickie's show, he feels that Dickie lacks the youthful spirit required to play the main character in his next movie. It seems that Dickie never really had a normal childhood. He was always in the spotlight and had a lavish lifestyle. Dickie decides there's only one thing to do....relive childhood like a normal kid. He sells his autobiography and uses the advance to pay a family, the Tracy's, who are willing to take him and "raise: him alongside their two kids, Sam and Sally, for one month so that Dickie can see how kids and families interact in a normal setting. Actually, George Tracy arranges the deal without consulting his wife and kids first. George is a shrewd car salesman who needs the money for his business and wants to try to capitalize on Dickie's former fame. While it sounds wild, it's funny to see Dickie trying to incorporate himself alongside a soccer mom in the suburbs while keeping his cell phone glued to his ear to keep up with his agent. Even simple things like learning that children don't have coffee for breakfast baffles him. More and more, Dickie becomes immersed in the family and sparks kinda fly between Dickie and Grace Tracy. (there has been problems between Grace and George for quite some time.) The majority of the script involves scenes of Dickie finding his inner child. Everything from learning about dealing with school bullies to typical family disputes. He soaks it all in and becomes practically a new man. He learns the real meaning of family from all this and the revelations are touching. All is well until Dickie's on again off again girlfriend, Cyndi (Alyssa Milano) shows up towards the end for a few minor disruptions. She tells the networks what he's doing and before you know it, Hard Copy is covering his adventures with the Tracys like another reality TV show. But Dickie is reborn by this point and he learns what's truly important. All along, he had said that it wasn't the money that he missed, but the love of the public.
Again, being a Spade fan, I'll be there opening weekend. I know I'm gonna love it. If they make it to the movie itself, keep your eyes peeled on the scenes of Dickie playing poker with fellow former child stars, Leif Garrett, McCauley Culkin, Jerry Mathers and Gary Coleman. Those were some of the funniest scenes in this script. On one nitpicky note, when I heard that Alyssa Milano had joined the cast I was looking forward to it all the more (and not just for obvious reasons!) because I've long been waiting for something major to come along for her to break out of the TV mold. Not that there's anything wrong with TV, I just think that she's someone who, kinda like Dickie, just needs that one role to have that really massive breakthrough. Unfortunately, this ain't it. Anyways, the bottom line is I'll be there opening weekend. So should you.
MALIBU'S MOST WANTED (originally titled Suckaz) (mixed, minor spoilers)
Nick Swardson has written what could be the Vanilla Ice story. Jamie Kennedy stars as Brad Gluckman, the son of Bill (Ryan O'Neal), a prominent candidate for the governor of California whose entire existence is devoted to phat beats and keepin' it real. Of course, in his case, you just don't get any more Caucasian. He lives in Malibu and hangs with his "crew" at Starbucks of more wannabes at Starbucks. After trying to reach their son through psychiatric means, his father hits on the novel idea to "scare him white". He has his staff hire two black actors with the agenda of showing him how rough the streets of south central Los Angeles really are. Some of the humor comes from the two actors, Sean and PJ trying to act like gang members while remembering their acting methods along the way. The saving grace for these two comes from the fact that Sean has a cousin named Shondra (Regina Hall) who really does live in the inner city who agrees to go along with the elaborate scheme. (By the way, they are all being paid to terrorize Brad....or B-Rad as he calls himself.) Shondra, while being from the streets, is quite intelligent and dreams of starting her own business some day. She comes to like Brad, but I'm getting ahead of myself. See, Shondra's ex-boyfriend, Tec, is a full on hard core gang member but after Brad, not realizing that Tec is for real, steps to Tec and tries to act tough, Tec comes to respect Brad and welcomes him into the gang. Now, unbeknowest to Shondra, Sean and PJ. Brad overhead them talking about the plans to pull a drive by as part of their tactics. So, Brad knows the whole thing is fixed, not even realizing that when he gets caught in an ambush with Tec's gang and their rivals, that the bullets are real.
All this time, Bill's political team, even though they never intended for Brad to get hurt, decide to spin this around and play up the sympathy for Bill if Brad gets killed. Once Bill discovers their duplicity, he rushes to his sons aid. More chaos ensues as both father and son try to come to grips not only with their hostile surroundings but with each other as well. Well, since this is a comedy, you can imagine how it all plays out.
Apparently this idea spawned based on a skit from The Jamie Kennedy Show (which I have never seen). In a way this reminds me of countless Saturday Night Live skits that tried to cross over into a feature length film with few successes. (It's Pat. Coneheads. Superstar to name a few.) The problem is that while I like Kennedy, the whole whiteboy wannabe gets tired after awhile and ya just wanna slap him and glue his face to a mirror. What's gonna be needed is a strong supporting cast and with Hall, Taye Diggs, Blair Underwood and Anthony Anderson along for the ride...I don't know. This could go either way. If it's hammed up to much, it'll sink faster than a stone. It's one thing to be funny and/or paradoy. It's another to be overdone. Bottom line: I gotta see the trailer. Otherwise, I think I'd have to settle for sneaking in on this one. Don't get me wrong. Again, I'm just a bit squeamish that Kennedy could overdo it.
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