Copyright © 2005 Peter Sarver
Machiavelli Hangman
http://www.hangmanmovie.com
Lawrence Kasdan has been the prolific writer behind such films as
Indiana Jones and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and Return
of the Jedi, but oddly enough, he has never worked with Harrison
Ford.
Since the last installment of the Indiana Jones films – Indiana
Jones and the last crusade – it has been 16 years that Lucas and
Spielberg have been trying to come up with a good enough story
line to continue the franchise.
Then why is it that Lawrence Kasdan who has so well-written these
parts for Harrison Ford, is not put back in charge of putting the
finishing touches to Indian Jones 4?
Frank Darabont who was brought in to pen out a umpteenth version
of the script felt that he had done a solid job until George
Lucas decided against it. You would think that the scribe who
gave us Shawshank Redemption could write better material than
Revenge of the Sith.
"This is what happens. Producers, often than not, get into these
positions of power where they want to write-direct-edit and
sometimes even act in their own projects," offered James Globins
of free Hamburg entertainment.
Kasdan has had man box-office hits starting with the Big Chill,
and followed by such films as The Accident Tourist, French Kiss.
"He hasn't had a hit since French Kiss. His last two films
Mumford and Dreamcatcher were both very quiet and we're waiting
to see what Risk Pool is going to do at the box-office."
What made the Indiana Jones series so great was the relationships
between the characters and that's a key strength in any
filmmaker. Relationships should always take front seat in any
story and that's a mistake that many Hollywood films make. They
overwhelm the audience with special effects and don't give them
enough of what they went to the theatre for in the first place.
And please don't get me wrong, a film that concentrates and
highlights the relationships between the characters doesn't have
to fall into the "chick flick" category. 2005 has been a great
year for those films that transcend categories and still prove
that character and story are number one priorities. See Crash,
Machiavelli Hangman, Sideways.
Indiana Jones 4 has to understand the dynamics of those great
films and keep up with the present-day audiences. After so many
years, Indiana Jones has to stretch or it'll fall flat on his
face.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Peter Sarver is a movie reviewer.
He wants you to know about the upcoming
movie, "Machiavelli Hangman".
http://www.hangmanmovie.com