On more than one article some 'reporter' dared to compare me to the god of gonzo journalism HUNTER S THOMPSON. This is a sacrilege and is by far a humbling experience for me. I mean come on, Hunter is having a movie made of his exploits... and by TERRY "God" GILLIAM. Now this film has been veiled in secrecy, with very little spilling. Oh yeah the title is "FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS" Personally I'm hoping for an animated "Ralph Steadman" title sequence. This would rock more than just about anything has rocked before. Well the problem is the following report comes from the wonderful world of Hollywood, and that ain't always a good thing. Trusted Spy Jonathan Shields chimes in this report of problems on the set. Of course as both you and I know (especially since TITANIC delivered through all the doomsayers) news of problems is not always an indication of the quality of the film. I love GILLIAM, and I could give a rat's furry behind if he's giving execs fits, I say more power to him, I know they aggravate him more than it is reciprocated.
And come to think of it, if a movie based on Hunter S Thompson came off without a hitch, that would be a grand injustice... no?
The first comes from Rhino Films where executives are learning "Fear and Loathing" are words which apply not just to the Hunter S. Thompson classic but also words which accurately describe how they feel about director Terry Gilliam. Since this summer I have heard nothing but news about strife, conflicts and budget overruns on the set of the film starring Johnny Depp since Terry Gilliam took over the project. 1st the budget balooned. Then Gilliam spent and spent and spent and didn't listen to the bean counters at Rhino. Well, didn't they read that book that came out 10 years ago about Baron Munchausen (I forget the title)? I haven't heard about how the pic turned out but it'll probably be brilliant or at least watchable. We all know that bad rumors, cost ovverruns, bile towards the director DO NOT equal bad movie. As I said in "Bad and the Beautiful" reminds us "Great movies are made by people working together who hate each others guts"
Sleeper Hit from SNL???
The great Jonathan Shields also brings the sort of news you studio folks like to hear. "Sleeper Hit" ahhhhh, music to a studio boss' ears. Personally though I'm a bit of a Missouri Jackass when it comes to current 'Saturday Night Live' film adaptations, meaning "show me". Here's the word on "WELCOME TO THE ROXBURY...
In the more of the heresay department, it seems Paramount has another sleeper hit in the form of "Welcome to the Roxbury" starring Chris Kittain and Wil Ferrel (is that spelling right - who the fuck cares). Well, I wouldn't have believed Lorne Michaels could actually produce a good SNL spin-off dumb-assed comedy (I thought that was Bob Simonds department to steal his talent) but test audiences have been responding.
Well, I could be wrong about this but then again I predicted "Money Talks" and you thought I was INSANE about that one. Also, I have the fact to back me up that Amy Heckerling wrote the script.
