Madman (film)
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| Madman | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Robert Rodríguez Mike Allred |
| Produced by | Elizabeth Avellan |
| Written by | George Huang (screenplay) Mike Allred (comics, screenstory) Robert Rodriguez (screenstory) |
| Cinematography | Robert Rodriguez |
| Editing by | Robert Rodriguez |
| Distributed by | The Weinstein Company |
Madman is the motion picture adaptation of the creator-owned comic book of the same name by Mike Allred. The movie will be co-directed by Allred and Robert Rodríguez (similar to the way Rodriguez co-directed the comic book-film Sin City with its creator, Frank Miller).
Allred had received several offers for a low-budget adaptation of Madman in the early 1990s. In 1998, he gave the film rights to Robert Rodríguez who had the intention of shooting it soon after. However, the movie was put on the back-burner as Rodriguez went on to shoot the Spy Kids trilogy, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and Sin City (point-in-fact, Allred was instrumental in connecting Rodriguez with Frank Miller--hesitant to sell the movie rights to any of his comics--thus making Sin City possible). Nevertheless, both Rodriguez and Allred insisted that a Madman film was in the works.
In 2005, while promoting The Golden Plates, Allred announced [1] that the script was being written George Huang and that they'd cast the titular lead (Allred would only tease that it was "star of 2003's biggest money-making film"). In February 2006 at San Francisco's WonderCon, Allred announced [2] that the film was in pre-production, that he'd "fallen in love" with Rodriguez style of digital film-making (saying the two were working on a unique look for the film) and once again teased as to who would be the lead.
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[edit] Plot
Currently, the plot for the film is unknown. Rodriguez has gone on record [3] as saying that it would not be a word-for-word, panel-for-panel translation of a specific story from the comic (as was Sin City), but rather an adaptation of the titular character and his world (similar to Guillermo del Toro's film Hellboy, based on Mike Mignola's comic).
[edit] Possible cast
Since the movie rights were first acquired, both Rodriguez and Allred have dropped cryptic hints as to who they see in the lead role. Internet rumours have abounded for years that the role likely belonged to either Johnny Depp [4], Viggo Mortensen [5], Elijah Wood [6], or Brandon Routh. Allred has openly denied that role belonged to Depp [7] or Routh [8]. While clearing up the Johnny Depp rumours, Allred said the person cast (at the suggestion of Robert Rodriguez) was "younger than the mid-30s vision I originally had, but is absolutely perfect and a terrifically talented actor!"
In 2004, Allred went on record [9] as saying the lead had indeed been cast. He would only say that it was "the star of 2003's biggest money-making [movie]." It should be noted that the most lucrative film that year was The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, starring Elijah Wood and Viggo Mortensen.
In February 2006, at the annual WonderCon convention in San Francisco, Allred was a given his own panel. To the delight of the crowd, he said that they had their Frank Einstein (Madman's alter-ego) cast. To the crowd's consternation, he went on to say "But I can't tell you who it is yet... When we announce it, you're gonna be like 'What?', then you'll think about it for a second and see that it's perfect."
These factors have leant credence to the possibility of Elijah Wood having been cast in the lead role. Wood starred in Rodriguez' movies The Faculty, Sin City, and had a cameo in Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over.
During the WonderCon panel the crowd was given the pleasure of learning who was in Allred's "dream cast" of supporting characters (these are actors who, apparently, have not officially been offered these roles, but who the creator would love to cast all the same):
- Natalie Portman as Frank Einstein's incredibly patient girlfriend, Jo.
- Steve Buscemi as Jake
- Gene Wilder and Robin Williams as Madman's creators, Dr. Flem and Dr. Boiffard (respectively).
[edit] Shooting Technique
At the WonderCon panel, Allred emphasised that he'd "fallen in love" with the digital film-making techniques for which Rodriguez has become known. Allred said the film would use the same "digital backlot" technique employed for Sin City with all greenscreen backgrounds that will have numerous environments added in post-production.
He specifically described the intended look of the film as being "like Technicolor. Like a black-and-white film that's been coloured in".
[edit] Comic adaptation
It's been made clear that the movie will not be a direct translation of any particular Madman story. However, at the 2006 WonderCon, Allred noted the comic adaptation of the movie will be made up of the "HUNDREDS of storyboards" that he himself is creating for the movie.
[edit] External links
- 2004 Newsarama.com interview with Mike Allred in which mentions the progress of film to that point and announces George Huang as screenwriter.
- 2006 WonderCon report. Includes review of Allred's panel in which he discusses the progress of the film in the most detail yet, including possible cast and shooting techniques.
