Cool News
The Coens adapt Chabon!!!!
Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. All this lawsuit business... nasty, bad vibes... Now time for some good vibes. The Coen Bros rule. We know this. Michael Chabon rules. We know this. Together they shall rule the earth, wind, water, wood... everything Captain Planet loves, essentially.
The Coens are adapting and directing Chabon's THE YIDDISH POLICEMAN'S UNION.
I haven't read this particular Chabon book, but it sounds right up the Coens' alley. Check out this blurb from the Variety article about the story:
"Chabon sets up a contemporary scenario where Jewish settlers are about to be displaced by U.S. government's plans to turn the frozen locale of Sitka, Alaska, over to Alaskan natives. Against this backdrop is a noir-style murder mystery in which a rogue cop investigates the killing of a heroin-addicted chess prodigy who might be the messiah."
Yep, I'll be seeing that.
-
+ Expand All
-
What a shitty cover.
-
Its such a wry, funny and knowing book. That will be one of the very finest films the Coen's have ever done.
ROCK ON!! -
I'll admit, I bought this book, but haven't managed to read it yet. Obviously this is gonna prompt me to get it done. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay was pretty, well, amazing...
-
I dig their noir AND their wacked-out films - and this sounds like a good mix.
-
We need more Eskimo comedies. And I could use an eskimo pie right about now. Mmmmmm...
-
goody goody....now when is someone gonna adapt The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay...this is a story that needs to hit the big screen
-
This is going to be fucking fantastic.
-
BURN AFTER READING's almost in the can. But have the Coens' even cast A SERIOUS MAN yet?
-
Coen Style!
And I thought Joel couldn't find any in the phonebooks....lol. -
Feb 12, 2008 3:14:55 AM CST
I thought they wanted to make that ultraviolent western.
by derlanghaarige
I hope they don't enter Tarantino country and announce every few weeks a new project that will never come. (But it's a little bit too early to worry about this yet.)
-
What a great synopsis. They're probably the greatest American filmmakers of the past 20 years.
-
i asked the same hours ago...even emailed ambush bug...gerber had a huge impact on creator rights and how comics were propelled out of being just kids stuff, and he deserves some props...and he was a fuckin nice guy to boot...and i think im gonna cry again
-
Feb 12, 2008 3:40:27 AM CST
I am George the VIIth Chicken!!!!1!one!!!!!!!!!!!112!!!!!!!!!!!
by seppukudkurosawa
"EARTH!"
"FIRE!"
"WIND!"
"WATER!"
"HEART!"
"Go Planet!"
"By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet!"
Captain Planet, he's our hero
Gonna take pollution down to zero
He's our powers magnified
And he's fighting on the planet's side
Captain Planet, he's our hero
Gonna take pollution down to zero
Gonna help him put asunder
Bad guys who like to loot and plunder
"You'll pay for this Captain Planet!"
We're the Planeteers
You can be one too
'Cause saving our planet is the thing to do!
Looting and polluting is not the way
Hear what Captain Planet has to say!
"The Power is Yours!"
</p-sponsored by the Vote 4 Obama campaign- -
Brought to you by the Vote 4 Obama campaign...
-
That's the Chabon book I want to see made into a movie!
-
CHABON? ISNT THAT ONE OF THE LEAD SINGERS TO VAN HALEN?
-
Can't wait for what I'm sure will be another great movie from the Coens! That synopsis sounds awesome.
-
I'm going to be the one that has the guts to say it. 'No Country..' sucked. And the reason it is getting all these great reviews is because no reviewer wants to be labeled the 'idiot who didn't get it'. Well, I got it, and I still think it sucked. Lame, semi-philosophical mutterings do not really add meaning to a movie, and there is such a thing as trying to be 'too original' in the way you tell a 'story'. Yes, the acting was awesome, the cinematography was amazing, but it wasn't a film. It was a self-obsessed result of people believing their own shit. So, I said it, and now you can all join in with aggreement, because you can finally come out against this turd of a movie,
-
But I wasn't totally in love with it either. It seems to be a bit oxymoronic to say something sucked and then list off all the things that are awesome about it,
-
...the sum of the parts is less than the parts themselves. Like building a giant asshole out of gold and diamants.
-
how on earth can you think it "sucked"? i can see where a reasonable person would not like it or have a luke warm opinion of the movie, but to say it "sucked" just gives more credit to movies that actually sucked than they deserve
-
... I thought they were doing Kavalier and Clay. Still, this is good news. Love Chabon. "You hit like Anne Rice".
-
Especially since it was shot by Emmanuel Lubezki, probably my favourite working cinematographer.
-
I know it's a rather strong, childish, simplistic term to use, but the movie actually succeeded in pissing me off. So I have an even stronger reaction to it than a simple 'bad' movie, cause I don't care about bad movies, I just move on, usaully still finding something to enjoy in it. In this case, also, I'm sure there is a good movie somewhere hiding in it, which only adds to the frustration. Combined with the general love and appreciation for this film, has pushed me firm into the 'haters' camp, blindly lashing out. I really, really hope that the Coens bring me something better next time.
-
Love the Coens. Love Chabon. Perfect mix. Anybody who hasn't read Yiddish Policemen's Union should really pick it up. It's a great read.
-
that it was better than Captain Planet.
-
My mild disappointment gets closer to rage with every gushing review of No Country. Some good parts, but you'd think the Coens of all people could make sure there was some kind of heart beating at the centre, even if the heart's probably going to get shot at some point.
-
Excellent book, and a great matching of talent in adaptation. Looking forward to this.
-
Is Michael Jackson in this?
-
Feb 12, 2008 7:33:18 AM CST
THE COENS COULD HAVE PICKED UP JLA AND INSTEAD DO THIS??
by bringingsexyback
Josh Brolin for Hawkman!!!
-
I was gonna do the Shamoan Chamon thing. Bastard.
-
No Country is a slow-burner. The kind of movie that you need to see a few times before you get familiar enough with its plot and dialogue beats to enjoy on its own terms. You'll probably find yourself growing fonder and fonder of the movie through the years, when the edge of that ending and its other more unconventional moments have smoothed out.
It's been said that it's like Fargo, but without the humour. Which I completely agree and have no problem with... -
But this is much more "Coen-esque". Oh well, I'm sure it will kick ass anyway.
-
It's nothing like 'Fargo'. I think people just say that so they can give it a place, a name. 'Fargo' was a perfectly scripted, dark, beautifully filmed- and told story about a small crime with major concequences. In addition, it had interesting characters in the universe and a 'heart beating'(thanks for that Mothman) firmly in its chest. Now, 'No Country', where it is indeed a crime story set in a desolate landscape, could not be further from 'Fargo' if it was on the moon. Somewhere in 'No Country' is a beautifully shot and told story about crime, age and an unforgiving land, yet they deliberately chose NOT to show that movie. They chose to show the boring bits. Which I can respect as a short filmschool 'arthouse' project, but not as a full length feature from the Coens. I feel cheated. I understand that a lot of people will wallow in the 'better then though' feeling they get from saying they like this movie, feeling the 'fit in' with 'real' movie lovers, but they are wrong. 'No Country' is not an entertaining movie. And I don't care how 'artsy' you want to pretend to be, the goal of each movie should be to entertain, or inform. A movie can shock you, trigger you to think, challenge you, open your eyes or make you want to close them, but a movie should always entertain. And I am indeed now thinking of watching it again, to see if I really missed something, if I had shut my eyes during that one milli-second that ties it all together, but I just don't think it is worth the time.
-
I really liked the book, and the tone is a perfect fit for the Coens. GREAT news!
-
It seems like the people have a problem with the source material which was a book by Cormac McCarthy and not an original story by the Coens. While not exactly like the book, it is a fairly loyal adaptation. The criticisms of the movie are usually about elements that were lifted right out of the book. So I think if you hated the film you should question whether it should have been adapted from the book in the first place.
-
Feb 12, 2008 9:29:33 AM CST
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is being produced righ
by backrivercatfish
It's being produced by Scott Rudin who produced No Country and directed by the guy who directed Billy Elliot. Maybe Rudin will re-team with the Coens, it worked pretty good the first time.
-
Just my opinion.
-
But I'm not complayining. This sounds cool.
-
Thanks for leading the way. Until this point I thought it was one of the best of the year. But I only came to that conclusion by seeing it twice. I obviously was blinded by the acting, the direction, the extremely interesting characters, the cinematography, the compelling story, the themes of morality and death, etc. Wow was I suckered! Thanks for opening my eyes. And thanks for the recommendation of "The Hottie and the Nottie"! I thought it looked like a cinematic abortion but you said it's fantastic so I'll trust you!
-
Sounds like fun...
-
This is awesome, but where's my super-hero tinged Cav and Clay? Anyone else read The Escapist?? Now THAT I would like to see!
http://tinyurl.com/ysm7hg -
That's not true right? Nobody is really recommending that film right? Because there would be extreme credibility issues if anyone ever did, ever....like ever in their lives ever. Up until now I could respect why people hated NCFOM. It took me until about a week after I saw it for me to like the film, but then I really likes it. I watched it again and it's awesome. Sorry, but it's true. Yeah, in my opinion it's true, but I can admit that what I say is not necessarily the word of God (not necessarily). I also don't think that if you didn't like No Country you didn't get it. People have different tastes, but just because people did like the film doesn't mean that they didn't get it either and have just jumped on the bandwagon. Yeah, OK some have; but there's a hater bandwagon too.
Also, is it just me or is the Nottie actually hotter than the Hottie? -
But then again, I'm not one for melancholy fiction.
-
Interesting characters who get nothing to do, except show up, mubmle and die? The compelling story that takes place of screen and you don't actually get to see? The themes of morality and death that are shoveled down your throat so ham-fistedly it almost reaches Lucassian proportions? Please, just because I saw through the pretentious pile of shite, doesn't mean you have to get all righteous on me, but I guess it must be really comfortable joining in with the majority, loving a movie you didn't understand.
-
...this is what happens when you FUCK A STRANGER IN THE ASS!
-
Oh yeah, the post topic. I welcome any collaboration between Chabon and the Coens, but I would really like to see The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.
Regarding my last post, The Hottie and the Nottie I was ridiculing whilst NCFOM I liked. Whatever.
27...not million but THOUSAND. $27,000.00 opening weekend box office gross for the Hottie and the Nottie. We all know that box office receipts are not an indicator of quality, but I hope that this finally sends a messaged to the studios that Paris is not a star, now that would be hot. -
I admire your courage Starsky, you brave brave soul. While I didnt love No COuntry, I thought it was pretty good, but the transition in POV at the end was just to much and really really took me out of the film. I dont think it was bad or it sucked and some of it was incredibly good, but the end just ruined it for me. And no, before anyone says it, I can deal with not seeing Moss die, but switching over to Tommy Lee JOnes afterward just felt..retarded. But then again, I didnt really dig Children Of Men. Felt like an excercise in directing techniques than an actual film. Felt more like Cuaron was showing off what he could do rather than tell an entertaining story. But I guess I'm retarded.
-
Your first post made a reasoned argument and, although I disagree, I could at least respect your opinion. But saying stuff like "I guess it must be really comfortable joining in with the majority, loving a movie you didn't understand." just makes you come off like a dick with an axe to grind because you're upset more people didn't dislike a film that you do.
-
If the Coens can do McCarthy, I have little doubt that they can do Chabon! Hell, yeah!!! I can't wait to see this!!!
-
Well done for calling No Country For Cold Men. You know that's going to be the title of every magazine article written about this when it comes out.
-
That was just a dig at Kingdaddy, for stating that me disliking 'No Country' is equal to liking 'Hottie or Nottie', or whatever the hell it's called. The remark is in no way intened to other people who may like the movie, it was just used as a put down.
-
One of the best novels of last year adapted by one of the best directors in the biz. Yes! This is cool news.
Re: NCFOM pissing match. Sometimes it seems like people spend more time hating on a movie than they spent watching it. It's not the best movie or book but lots of people liked it. I just hoped us Chabon fans could bask in this news without it turning into the 10th No Country talkback. Guess not.
-
I laughed so hard I farted, twice.
-
and Hail Cesar and Burn After Reading
-
Although Chabon fans really want to see the K&K book adaptation happen already, the Coens doing well with this one will probably help get K&K back on track to be made.
-
regarding movies, that is
-
Good material, right up Coen's alley.
-
That is an awesome design!
-
Thank you for clarifying your dig at me. Again you have shown your utter lack of everyone else's intelligence. Not all of us need an explanation for everything. Now I'll let you get back to your reading of "Film Watching for Dummies". Chapter 1 : Only Like Films With Simple Plots. Chapter 2 : Why Lindsay Lohan Is The Best Actress In Hollywood. Chapter 3 : How To Complain About Films You Didn't Understand. Chapter 4 : How To Come To Terms With The FACT You'll Never Move Out Of Your Parent's Basement.
-
Because I thought it was an adaptation of Kavalier and Clay. Oh,well. Hopefully, this book is good too.
-
Get over it already! I actually read the Variety article and Scott Rudin is producing both the Coens adaptation and K & C, so both will be good.
-
I was worried for a second it might have been kavalier and Clay, which was a shitty, shitty second half of a book.
-
you're not a golfer.
-
As a longtime Cormac McCarthy fan, you just couldn't ask for a better adaptation than this, especially after the maudlin misfire of All the Pretty Horses. After seeing it, I was convinced that the Coens must be the ones to at last adapt McCarthy's and most influential novel, BLOOD MERIDIEN, which, if you haven't read it, is a terrifying and poetically surreal account of scalp hunters in the old West. However, I'm not sure that is at all possible, perhaps as an epic, 10-hour miniseries. NCFOM was kind of written for adapting to the screen, and I'm not sure that anything else should be attempted, except perhaps his earlier Child of God. God help us if Rob Zombie or anyone like him gets their greasy mits on The Road. Any way, this is great news, but when will the Coens find the time to do this? As noted above, they've got Burn After Reading coming out this year, pre-production beginning on Hail Caeser! for next year. And, also for 2009, they're writing Suburbicon for Clooney to direct as well as a re-make of Gambit. Then, there was their talk of an "ultra-violent western," which I'd hoped just might be Blood Meridien.
-
YPU is a great book and I'm eager to see what the coens make Sitka look like. As for kav & clay, am I the only person who thinks it might not translate well from book to movie? It's a long, dense novel, has scenes on three different continents, takes place over numerous decades and gets a lot of its power from the contextual background it provides; I think it'd be all too easy to make it into a piece of shit film that all the fans of the book wish didn't exist.
-
The Coens have two more original stories coming out before they tackle Union. Shut up.
-
Were you the kid in Transformers who was pumping his fist and shreiking "Yeaaah! Yes!" everytime a robot came onscreen? Go see Pirates of the Carribean again and talk about what a masterpiece it was you silly little fucktard.
-
Dude, more Cormac McCarthy is already in the works. THE ROAD will be directed by John Hillcoat (he did THE PROPOSITION). Viggo Mortensen, Charlize Theron, Guy Pearce, and Kodi Smit-McPhee (the boy) have apparently been cast. I've heard rumor that Robert Duvall will make an appearance as well.BLOOD MERIDIAN is to be Sir Ridley's Scott's project for 2009. No word on casting but the screenplay is being credited to William Monahan.I'm both excited and nervous for both productions.
-
so is The Road.
-
... but i want a "Kavalier and Clay" movie - or an "Escapist" movie
-
... that movies like this one (or Kavalier and Clay, No Country for Old Men, etc.) get bogged down in developement taking for ever to get seen - while shitty remakes, video game adaptions and 1970s tv show adaptions get fast tracked - hollywood, take note - good movies make money too
-
Everyone talks about him but never reads him.
-
Excellent news. Very excited. And jgeh, that's a really good point. At first I wanted this to be about Kavalier and Clay, but now that you mention it, it would be near impossible to properly capture the essence of the story. As for NCFOM, I thought it was fantastic, thrilling, engaging, and unpredictable. For those scorning the "switch" at the end, you might want to remember that the movie started with Jones as a narrator... it's not like they pulled it out of their ass. I am fucking sick of people who take pride in slamming movies people love and the people who love them. Fuck all of you. You have a different opinion, that's cool and I'd never try to tell you that you have to like a movie. So quit telling me I can't like a movie, or I'm an idiot bandwagon jumper, cause honestly, it just makes you look like you're bitter cause you actually didn't get the movie. Also, thinking you're some kind of fucking hero for having that different opinion? Pull your head out of your ass. OK, I'm done.
-
Unlike the sprawling Kavalier & Clay, YPU a pretty self-contained story. The setup might need a flashback or two, but the Coens are good about packing exposition into the background and trusting their audiences to figure things out. Also - Javier Bardem for Berko Shemets.
-
Love them, but they don't match the material. They match this book to a T.
-
This title accurately describes both Chabon and McCarthy if you ask me. Personally, I love most Chabon but find Cormac a struggle. I would be shocked if more than a dozen talkbackers have ever read Blood Meridian. That book is no joke. This is outstanding fucking news though.
-
Those who thought NCFOM had a "POV shift" weren't paying attention. Who was narrating the film from the beginning? The film reverted to its rightful owner. Moss was the detour. Chabon and Coens were made to go together, but Kavalier & Clay is probably too sprawling and dense with plot to make a well-oiled film.
-
And it could fit in well with the Coens' sensibility. In some ways a very dark story, but oddly funny. The language better be kept in, though - the yiddish phrases are like another character in this book. Also - the "string runner" overlord type character in this book could be great in the right actor's hands.
-
...Is also really bad. That would be a good reason not to adapt it into a movie. Maybe they could do something similar to what happened with A Widow For One Year. Just adapt the first half of the book, which is actually not bad.
-
Based on synopsis alone.
-
AND a beautifully designed cover. Whoever says the design sucks should go back and fondle the cover art for their cherished copy of "Star Wars: Cloak of Deception". Seriously, everyone should go pick up a copy of the book and read it. You can find it at Borders, etc. on the cheap.
-
YPU is a gritty, noir-ish detective book that is full of the two things that the Coens are so good at: (1) wide-open, barren but beautiful landscapes; (2) lots of brief encounters with personalities so weird and bizarre that they look like they've been hidden under a rock and away from mainstream humanity their whole lives. I'm not sure if it would be commercially viable, but I would love to see it shot in black and white (they've done it before).
As far as the book is concerned, I thought it didn't live up to Cavalier and Clay, but it's hardly fair to compare anything by any author to such a modern masterpiece. I enjoyed it--as much for the high-concept premise as for anything else--but I have been a little concerned lately with Chabon that he's falling so much in love with the sound of his own voice that he's overindulging himself. His prose might be angled a bit too much toward the purple. He can get away with it more than most, since he's actually got the talent to back it up, but at times he can be a bit much for me. Still, I'm a fan, and I think the Coens are the perfect directors for this one. -
*K*avalier and Clay
-
"K&C" is the only Chabon book ive read - i think the Coens could translate it very well, put their stamp on it - apparently it wont happen, according to the news i read from other posters above - but if you look at theur collected work/visual style and storytelling skills - i think theyd be perfect - look at their 3 period movies - "barton fink", "millers crossing" and "hudsucker proxy" - those three alone tell me they could handle "K&C" - im sorry it wont happen - having said that, i agree with mraig, (although i havent read this latest book) it sounds tailor made for a Cohens adaption
-
Feb 12, 2008 9:33:52 PM CST
oh, i left out "o brother where art though" - another period mov
by jimmyjoe redsky
-
A History of Violence. There I said it, now you can jump all over me. At least No Country had that sick killer. That actor has a future, the best part of that movie was seeing him in action. But the film just seemed to unravel 3/4 in.
I absolutely did not see what all the raving was about with History of Violence. -
Almost all the Coen Brothers films are period pieces. I think the onyl ones that aren't are Raising Arizona, Intolerable Cruelty and The Ladykillers. All the others were set previous to the years they were made.
-
sambrook... Thanks for the props, cuz. I contacted my lawyer about getting that phrase copyrighted.
hatespeech... My lawyer also said I may be liable for skidmark damage. Send me the bill from the dry cleaner and I'll have my manservant promptly tend to the matter. -
Mr. Nice Gaius and BackRiverCatfish, thanks for setting me straight on this. Jebus! Where have I been? This news is like almost a year old. Well, The Road could be good, but Ridley's going to Gladiatorize Blood Meridien with quick cuts, slo-mo and high-gloss gore. UGH!! Too bad The Coens, Herzog, Mallick, or PT Anderson didn't get it.
-
&*$#in' spelling! And *$#& C#$@S*&%$ing Ridley Scott!!! I've just been in a bad mood about this all evening.
Readers Talkback
User Login
Top Talkbacks
- Whitney Houston 1963 - 2012 -- 273 total posts 271 posts
- New JUDGE DREDD post production footage pops up -- 92 total posts 92 posts
- AVENGERS enemy revealed as pink boardgame pieces... You might suffer some form of elation... SPOILERS!!! -- 160 total posts 69 posts
- There's a STAR TREK video game that is going to lead into JJ's STAR TREK 2 apparently... -- 151 total posts 63 posts
- Does ‘SNL’ Rhyme With ‘Deschanel’?? Learn Which SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE Vet Hosts After Sexy Zooey!! -- 67 total posts 59 posts
- HANNA's Saoirse Ronan to boss around seven little people -- 60 total posts 57 posts
- To Commemorate The 3D Release Of STAR WARS EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE, George Lucas Wants You To Know...Greedo Shoots First!! -- 484 total posts 49 posts
- Here's The Red Band Trailer For Drafthouse Films' THE FP! -- 69 total posts 42 posts
- Friday Brings SWEEPS DAY NINE!! Gab Here About Tonight’s FRINGE!! Plus Einstein on TIM, Wiig On PORTLANDIA, MAHER, CLONE, GIFTED, GRIMM, SPARTACUS, SUPERNATURAL, GOLD RUSH And More!! -- 120 total posts 32 posts
- SPACE 2099!! -- 183 total posts 24 posts