When actor and sometimes director Matthieu Kassovitz started shooting his long gestating sci-fi project, Babylon A.D., early set reports were not good, and seemed to hint at friction between the director and star Vin Diesel. Now with the film set to open in a few days, Kassovitz has gone public with his frustrations, and it isn't Diesel in the crosshairs, it's 20th Century Fox. According to Kassovitz, they meddled with the film every step of the way resulting in a final product that is nowhere near what he intended.
Some people, while somewhat sympathetic, think that Kassovitz is effectively killing his career in Hollywood by lambasting a major studio, and that he would be best advised to stay quiet, but I disagree. Kassovitz was never really a big commodity in Hollywood, and he will continue to get gigs and opportunities in Europe. However, the bigger issue here, and what is never mentioned when these types of situations arise, are the countless projects that are greenlit everyday by studios who have no real grasp of what they're signing onto on the dotted line. The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Across The Universe, The Invasion and I Am Legend are just a few recent films that went through very public troubles with their respective studios regarding their content, and of course there is the forthcoming Where The Wild Things Are, whose release date has been postponed indefinitely as rumors persist of the studio's unhappiness with overall tone of the film. Too often, stars or directors stay silent about projects they're unhappy with, in order not to upset the wrong people and to stay viable in the constantly shifting popularity contest in Hollywood. But studios have to start acknowledging their role in this too, and that a big part of this problem comes from signing first and asking questions later, resulting in projects that are losses for both the talent and money involved.
So bravo to Kassovitz for taking a stand!
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1 comment:
I saw BABYLON A.D.
Its an ok film, nothing more nothing less. But while watching it and without knowing any of the troubles around making it, you can sense that there is something missing.
Without spoiling anything, for me on some levels it felt like a prequel to the world of BLADE RUNNER and very remiscent of the GYPSY bande dessinée from France.
Good for him to stand up but part of him is to blame. This is NOT a film that would make money. No way would 20th Century Fox or any major studio would see this has somekind of a money machine (which is why they exist after all). Matthieu Kassovitz should have done it with someone else, maybe Studio Canal in France. Sure, the FX wouldnt be as "great" but so watch, the story wouldn't be so alienated and he would have probably make the movie he wanted.
And he should have seen this coming! Its happening to all of the French directors working with Hollywood studios right now, all of them!
And as a director, Matthieu Kassovitz has yet to impress me! LA HAINE was an overrated crap about a bunch of loser kids that no one give him damn (but apparently some did), LES RIVIERES POUPRES was a lifeless French police thriller with Jean Reno in the same old boring role. Seriously, watch some Italian police thriller from the 70s for the real deal! And the less said about GOTHIKA the better!
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