A part of me would like to go all Robin Sandza on the Fox lot this morning, but there is an upside to the studio’s decision to remake Brian De Palma’s The Fury: they’ll have to upgrade the title to Blu-Ray!
Then again, that’s only if the film goes forward. Right now, it’s just in the scripting stage with the rookie duo of Brian McGreevy and Lee Shipman, who wrote the Black List-ed Of Every Wickedness (about America’s first serial killer). Whether they plan to go back to John Farris’s novel or simply cut-and-paste the author’s screenplay (ala The Omen ’06, which was so unoriginal, the WGA gave sole credit to David Seltzer), it’s not like they’ll have name-brand recognition on their side; The Fury was a box office disappointment in 1978, and hasn’t acquired much of a following outside of De Palma-philes. One lasting impression: the movie really blew up John Cassavetes for younger filmgoers.
Though they’re calling The New Fury a “contemporary reimagining”, they’re sticking with the basic premise: young man with frightening telekinetic powers gets kidnapped by the U.S. government, which plans to exploit his ability. Since the studio (and producer Ted Field) will likely want to appeal to the teenage demographic, I’ve a feeling they’ll play up the romantic possibilities of the telepathic connection between Robin and Gillian while jettisoning the old-man-looking-for-his-son device.
And unless they hire De Palma to remake his own movie, I can guarantee you they’ll have nothing this deliriously cinematic.
It’s our loss that De Palma never hooked up with John Williams again.
As I’ve said in the past, The Fury is a movie drunk on the power of the medium. This redo strikes me as a quick cash-in. No offense to McGreevy and Shipman, but even if they bang out an excellent screenplay, Fox will most assuredly fuck it up. It’s what they do.
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I completely identify with this. Whenever I sense danger, I leave the safety of my home and bolt outside and run down the middle of a busy street knowing that Kirk Douglas will be there to pick off any bad guys, who of course were too afraid to actually enter my home, with his revolver as well anyone stupid enough to follow me into said street. Who feels safe just hiding in their house?
Moviegeeks sites should make a general arrangement that they will stop informing about the announced remakes. It's just so annoying, lately it is one remake per day.
And not only studios' obsession with them sucks, I also think 80 percent of them will never get made.
Jeremy, your DePalma love is touching. But this is badly acted shit.
I wouldn't say The Fury is drunk with the power of the medium. I would say De Palma is. Watching Snake Eyes recently on Showtime (as well as his other movies), De Palma is a brilliant director who really knows how to work the camera and add atmosphere. It's just too bad De Palma doesn't get better writers or actors for his movies. So, of course a remake of one his movies won't be as good, because it will miss his use of cinematic techniques.
I mean, the Fury is great–but half of that is because of the cheese. De Palma is a true cinematic talent, but his best movies are loaded with seemingly unintentional surrealist comedy. De Palma seems too affected, too much in love with his own talent, to ever produce a work that could actually touch people, like the other cinematic legends of his era have. I almost think he wants it that way–to produce a great movie would require working with great actors and a great script…which would mean he would have to share credit for his vision, in the end.
De Palma has never made a good movie. You heard it here first.
The comedy is definitely intentional, radar. He's a satirist most of the time. But, as far as his (relatively) straightforward films go, I can't think of a single unintentionally funny moment in CASUALTIES OF WAR, THE UNTOUCHABLES or CARLITO'S WAY. Some bitch about Nancy Allen's performance in BLOW OUT, but I think it all works, and is emotionally devastating in the end.
I know he's a satirist most of the time, but how do you excuse WISE GUYS? ( I share your love for THE FURY. More fun than CARRIE. More thrilling than SISTERS or OBSESSION)
Call me deranged but Body Double is my favorite De Palma film. That scene where Craig Wasson follows the girl through the mall as she is simultaneously followed by the Indian is one of the greatest suspense sequences of all time. And it culminates in an utterly realistic Hollywood kiss that just puts the cherry on top. Then you have the rest of the film, which not only features Dennis Franz and death by power drill, but also a Frankie Goes to Hollywood music video. Cinematic bliss.
i have never seen De Palma's movie.
But just reading the premise the first thing that popped into my mind was
SCANNERS…
Maybe FOX will cast MICHAEL IRONSIDE …
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