Who Ya Gonna Call? Bill Murray… But he probably won’t answer

matt

Part of me is annoyed at Bill Murray, and part of me sympathizes with why he’s turned his back on the long-gestating “Ghostbusters 3.”

The latest news, as reported by IGN.com, is that production for the long-talked-about sequel will begin summer 2013 and will do so without Murray.

My inner fanboy is crying out, “Why not do this for the fans, Bill?! We all are dyeing to see you back as Dr. Peter Venkman. We love you, and we love you in this unforgettable role. We are the ones who put all that money in your pocket. We’re the ones who waited in line and spent our hard-earned money to see your movies. We made you who you are, and you owe us — even if you’re not crazy about doing it.”

But  the truth is, we paid our money to see Bill Murray because he’s an incredible talent. I’m a huge fan of his, and I trust him. I believe when he makes a movie, it’s going to be a good one. I’m looking forward to his next movie, “Hyde Park on the Hudson,” in which he plays Franklin D. Roosevelt. There’s already early Oscar buzz surrounding his name. This is a man whose made some amazing movies, has incredible range, and always delivers a good performance — even if the movie isn’t great.

So I have to trust that he’s making the right choice to not take part in Ghostbusters 3. There have been so many prequels, sequels and spin-offs that I’m confident to say I could have lived without a third installment in the franchise. I’m sure it would be much better with Murray back in the cast, but it’s not going to ruin my day.

As a public, we often get the feeling that we’re entitled to the work of an artist. We feel that authors, artists and movie makers owe us their work, but it’s really not true. The greatest creations are those born naturally. It goes back to the old saying that sequels are never as good as the original, and it’s true for the most part. The reason being is that great original works are organic. When a spin-off is born out of request by the public or the demand for more dollars by a studio, it’s usually watered down, forced, and not fresh.

All great artists produce work that satisfies them. Stanley Kubrick never set out to please studios with his films. Pablo Picasso didn’t paint more or pursue surrealism because people demanded it. They created because they were artists, and people enjoyed their work because they were great at it. Bill Murray’s his own man, and I can’t help but respect him for it.

I look forward to the rest of Bill Murray’s career much more than I long for a third Ghostbusters movie.

Ghostbusters 3 update

Matt

We’ve been following the story for a pontetial third installment of the Ghostbusters franchise, and it finally looks like things are moving ahead. Filming is expected to begin in the spring, according to a report by The Guardian.

Productions Weekly, a reliable source, also tweeted: “Hearing that @SonyPictures is planning to put Ivan Reitman’s “Ghostbusters 3” into production in May 2011.”

Clearly, the wheels are turning. And to add interest, Bill Murray appeared at Spike TV’s Scream Awards to accept the best picture award for “Zombieland” and donned a Ghostbusters uniform, complete with proton pack.

The Guardian reports that Dan Aykroyd has been revising a screenplay by Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg, who worked on the American television hit “The Office.” Aykroyd said that there was a “comic role of a lifetime” for Murray in the new movie, and confirmed it would concern handing over ghostbusting duties from the old team to a new generation. 

“My character’s eyesight is shot, I got a bad knee, a bad hip – I can’t drive that caddy any more or lift that psychotron accelerator any more, it’s too heavy,” Aykroyd told the U.K. paper. “We need young legs, new minds – new Ghostbusters; so I’m in essence passing the torch to the new regime, and you know what? That’s totally OK with me.”

There have been plenty of reasons to feel skeptical this film would ever make it to the cinema. Murray and others expressed concern that the original screenplay was written by the team responsible for “Year One,” a dopy comedy with Jack Black and Michael Cera — whom I can’t stand.  In a rare interview, Murray told GQ: “Harold Ramis said, ‘Oh, I’ve got these guys, they write on The Office, and they’re really funny. They’re going to write the next Ghostbusters.’ And they had just written this movie that he had directed. Well, I never went to see ‘Year One,’ but people who did, including other Ghostbusters, said it was one of the worst things they had ever seen in their lives. So that dream just vaporised.” 

Since then, Aykroyd has been very involved in make the screenplay. He also worked on the video game screenplay, which was very good and starred the original cast. 

Get your ruby slippers on for Oz overload

It seems like everything coming out of Hollywood these days is a remake, reboot, sequel or prequel.

One such movie that has escaped the same treatment — for the most part — is the classic “The Wizard of Oz,” aside from Disney’s 1985 “Return to Oz” and Motown spiritual, “The Wiz.” But that’s all about to change. Poor Dorothy and the gang are about to be reused, rehashed and recycled.

Following on the heels of the highly financially successful “Alice in Wonderland” ($1 billion worldwide) Hollywood is looking to cash in on older franchises — there’s even a new “Pinocchio” in the works. According to multiple reports, Sam Raimi of “Spider-Man” fame is set to direct a film starring Robert Downey Jr. as the Wizard during his days as a carney when he was taken to Oz and mistaken for a wizard. The film will be called “Oz, the Great and Powerful.”

There are other Oz-related projects in the works, like “Witches of Oz,” due out later this year. The movie follows the exploits of the grown Dorothy Gale, now a successful children’s book author, as

she moves from Kansas to present day New York City. Dorothy quickly learns that her popular books are based on repressed childhood memories, and that the wonders of Oz are very, very real after the Wicked Witch of the West comes after her. There are also plenty of rumors about a “Wicked” movie, based on the book and successful musical.

There’s also an animated film in the works called “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” due out next year that is directly based off the books by L. Frank Baum (see photo on left). There’s another movie in the works to star Drew Barrymore called “Surrender Dorothy.” Barrymore would play a descendant of the original Dorothy, in this case her great, great grand-daughter, who has to stop the original and not nearly as dead as we thought Wicked Witch of the West from taking over both Oz and Earth. Barrymore has said she wants to direct.

“Oz: Return To The Emerald City” is a Warner Bros’ Oz project. Return to Emerald City would have Dorothy Neil, a Chicago lawyer and granddaughter of the original Dorothy, transported to Oz with her boss’s daughter where they team up with the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion to stop a new witch who threatens to destroy all the magic in Oz. Reportedly, this take originated back when comic book artist Todd McFarlane pitched the production company Thunder Road on an Oz film based on his very bizarre “Twisted Land Of Oz” toy line. Thunder Road passed on McFarlane’s take but were still interested in the basic idea on an Oz-update when “A History Of Violence” screenwriter Josh Olson pitched them a similar idea in a meeting. Thunder Road approached Warner Brothers, who snapped up the project. It is currently being rewritten and has no director attached.

Principle character sketches for Dorothy of Oz

The last Oz project is “Dorothy of Oz,” an animated musical film with a nice voice cast including Lea Michele of the popular television series “Glee” as Dorothy, Dan Aykroyd as the Scarecrow, Kelsey Grammer as the Tin Man and James Belushi as the Cowardly Lion. Based on a story by Baum’s grandson Roger S. Baum, Dorothy once again returns to Oz to help her friends stop the menace of someone known only as the Jester.

A couple of these films have a shot at being good. I really like Sam Raimi. But because of the overload of Oz movies coming out, some of these will be delayed, get lost in the shuffle, or just plain tank.

Some footage of “Witches of Oz.”

Yogi Bear trailer… and other reasons to be hopeful

Justin Timberlake as Boo Boo and Dan Aykroyd as Yogi in the live action remake of this classic cartoon

Matt

I know it may seem strange, but with all the remake movies that have been out — and we’ve written about a lot of them — I’m glad they’re making their way to the theaters. Let’s blow the trumpets upon their entrance! Once they’re out and tank, the studios will start to put together that even if a movie taps into our nostalgia, like recent films “Speed Racer” “The Smurfs” and “Marmaduke,” we’re not going to see them if they’re bad.

“The A-Team,” a popular TV show in the 80s, hasn’t even broke the $100 million mark at the box office domestically. Marmaduke only pulled in $32 million domestically and cost $50 million to make. “Speed Racer” took in $93 million worldwide and cost $120 million to make — a huge bath for Warner Bros. to take. These all give me hope that you won’t support bad movies, and confidence that you won’t go see “Yogi Bear” — in 3D nonetheless (something we here at The Movie Brothers hate). I don’t have a problem with remakes, but if you’re going to do them, do them right.

So, without further ado, sit back and don’t enjoy the following trailer: