Finished this script by Anthony Jaswinski.
As in TRANSATLANTIK, the script just strains credibility to the point where you just want to chuck it in the trash. Here, a high-school student is forced to assassinate a Senator that comes to visit the school on his campaign to become President.
You would think that the security for a Presidential-Hopeful would be intense. Not at all here. The assassination attempt is easy. The kid is sitting in the front. When the Senator goes to shake his hand, the kid will shoot him three times in the head with a gun that has managed to make it through security.
It's ridiculous. An example of this is when the lead gets attacked by a fellow student wielding....a candy cane!
Again though, Jaswinski can write. His pages fly by. His stories are the problem. They're too simplistic. Too connect-the-dots-type of writing.
Pass on this script but I'm still not ready to pass on Jaswinski. With his style, he'll always have a chance.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
PEEP WORLD
Terrible movie. Not even worth sitting through its short 75 minute run time. Was this a comedy? The laughs are nowhere to be found.
What a waste of talent. Sarah Silverman should be starring in films. Give her a role to play. She's funny.....except in this film. Give Michael C. Hall something to do. Is this really the best script he could find? Lesley Ann Warren, Kate Mara, Judy Greer - all wasted here. Ron Rifkin showed a lot of life in his scenes.
How does a script like this get made? Who read this and thought, "this has GOT to be made!"
We don't care about any of these characters. Wherever that happens, your film is DOA.
What a waste of talent. Sarah Silverman should be starring in films. Give her a role to play. She's funny.....except in this film. Give Michael C. Hall something to do. Is this really the best script he could find? Lesley Ann Warren, Kate Mara, Judy Greer - all wasted here. Ron Rifkin showed a lot of life in his scenes.
How does a script like this get made? Who read this and thought, "this has GOT to be made!"
We don't care about any of these characters. Wherever that happens, your film is DOA.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
DEATH VALLEY
Caught the pilot of the new MTV series. Reminds me of RENO: 911. It has some laughs but after awhile I can see the concept wearing thin. How many zombies can you kill for laughs before it stops being funny?
MTV must still be smarting over dumping the TWILIGHT franchise. Looks like they're trying to get the horse back in the barn with this and TEEN WOLF.
TEEN WOLF though has character development and can take its leads through interesting plots. In DEATH VALLEY, since it's going for the laughs found on JACKASS, there isn't any subplots to be found. It's all about the gross-out laugh.
We'll see how far they can take this series.
MTV must still be smarting over dumping the TWILIGHT franchise. Looks like they're trying to get the horse back in the barn with this and TEEN WOLF.
TEEN WOLF though has character development and can take its leads through interesting plots. In DEATH VALLEY, since it's going for the laughs found on JACKASS, there isn't any subplots to be found. It's all about the gross-out laugh.
We'll see how far they can take this series.
Monday, August 29, 2011
CRUISER
Finished this script by Marc Gottlieb.
Story's about two police officers trapped in their car which is rigged with a bomb.
The immediate comparison is SPEED. However, that's where the comparison ends. SPEED was smart with characters you rooted for. You had a bunch of innocent people onboard a bus. In CRUISER, the cops are dirty. So do we really care that their lives are in danger? The bomber is forcing them to confront their shady past. As we delve deeper into their story, we come to loathe the officers' past actions.
By not having us root for the characters which are in peril, Gottlieb has effectively robbed the plot of any dramatic tension. I bet half the audience will root for the car to explode. Their situation isn't compelling. They're getting what they deserve.
A pass on the script. Not ready to pass on Gottlieb however as a writer. His pages moved. I'd look for his next one just to see if there's any growth in his storytelling ability.
Story's about two police officers trapped in their car which is rigged with a bomb.
The immediate comparison is SPEED. However, that's where the comparison ends. SPEED was smart with characters you rooted for. You had a bunch of innocent people onboard a bus. In CRUISER, the cops are dirty. So do we really care that their lives are in danger? The bomber is forcing them to confront their shady past. As we delve deeper into their story, we come to loathe the officers' past actions.
By not having us root for the characters which are in peril, Gottlieb has effectively robbed the plot of any dramatic tension. I bet half the audience will root for the car to explode. Their situation isn't compelling. They're getting what they deserve.
A pass on the script. Not ready to pass on Gottlieb however as a writer. His pages moved. I'd look for his next one just to see if there's any growth in his storytelling ability.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
COLOMBIANA
I don't get the title. Shouldn't it have been called Cataleya?
Standard revenge flick that's elevated by Zoe Saldana's acting. Kind of how Liam Neeson elevated TAKEN's script.
Lennie James is always good. So is Jordi Molla. Cliff Curtis has some nice moments as well.
Seems to me though that Cataleya could've found Don Luis anytime she wanted. But let's not quibble. The film delivers exactly what it promises: action. Nice jail sequence plus I liked the bit about the sharks and the dogs in the end.
Luc Besson is churning them out. Same type of story over and over (THE PROFESSIONAL immediately comes to mind) but you have to admit, he does it well.
Standard revenge flick that's elevated by Zoe Saldana's acting. Kind of how Liam Neeson elevated TAKEN's script.
Lennie James is always good. So is Jordi Molla. Cliff Curtis has some nice moments as well.
Seems to me though that Cataleya could've found Don Luis anytime she wanted. But let's not quibble. The film delivers exactly what it promises: action. Nice jail sequence plus I liked the bit about the sharks and the dogs in the end.
Luc Besson is churning them out. Same type of story over and over (THE PROFESSIONAL immediately comes to mind) but you have to admit, he does it well.
KNOWING
Alex Proyas should be an A-List director. He's got all the talent in the world. Yet, his films just seem to miss.
KNOWING is a good example of this. He certainly knows how to build tension. Yet, there's long passages of time in his movies that are...boring.
Making a film in which we witness the end of the world is a hard endeavor. Kind of depressing, no? Do we really want to go to a film to be depressed? This film makes it worse because the heroes really have nothing to do. Their fate is inevitable. They cannot change anything. It's always a dicey proposition to make a film where the lead is helpless. There's nothing to root for.
But again, Proyas knows how to tell a story visually. He just has to work on telling one emotionally now.
KNOWING is a good example of this. He certainly knows how to build tension. Yet, there's long passages of time in his movies that are...boring.
Making a film in which we witness the end of the world is a hard endeavor. Kind of depressing, no? Do we really want to go to a film to be depressed? This film makes it worse because the heroes really have nothing to do. Their fate is inevitable. They cannot change anything. It's always a dicey proposition to make a film where the lead is helpless. There's nothing to root for.
But again, Proyas knows how to tell a story visually. He just has to work on telling one emotionally now.
TRANSATLANTIK
Finished this script by Anthony Jaswinski.
Jaswinski is a screenwriter. His descriptions are short. his dialogue is sharp. his pages fly when you read them. His scenes move bullet-fast. If you want to get your scripts past readers and onto an exec's desk, study Jaswinski's style. Having said all that, I have to pass on this script.
Story's about Idelle who comes to Europe with her boyfriend Paul. Paul proposes to her and the rest of the trip immediately goes downhill as it's revealed that Paul is working for the mob and has been stealing diamonds from them. The mob captures Paul and takes Idelle hostage.
There just isn't anything new or surprising about this story. It's a run-of-the-mill plot without any twists.
Are we really supposed to root for Marius after he inexplicably has a change-of-heart and begins helping Idelle instead of continuing to work for her captors?
The biggest problem is, nothing happens until Paul is kidnapped which is finally revealed forty pages in. That's way too long.
Looking forward to anything else Jaswinski writes.
Jaswinski is a screenwriter. His descriptions are short. his dialogue is sharp. his pages fly when you read them. His scenes move bullet-fast. If you want to get your scripts past readers and onto an exec's desk, study Jaswinski's style. Having said all that, I have to pass on this script.
Story's about Idelle who comes to Europe with her boyfriend Paul. Paul proposes to her and the rest of the trip immediately goes downhill as it's revealed that Paul is working for the mob and has been stealing diamonds from them. The mob captures Paul and takes Idelle hostage.
There just isn't anything new or surprising about this story. It's a run-of-the-mill plot without any twists.
Are we really supposed to root for Marius after he inexplicably has a change-of-heart and begins helping Idelle instead of continuing to work for her captors?
The biggest problem is, nothing happens until Paul is kidnapped which is finally revealed forty pages in. That's way too long.
Looking forward to anything else Jaswinski writes.
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