This morning I was listening to a playlist on my iPod I call Easy Listening. It's a collection of songs from the '40s to the '90s, a mix of instrumentals and vocals comprising music probably more familiar to your parents or even grandparents (depending on your age). What struck me while listening to this music (and not for the first time) was that it put me in a particular frame of mind, cued especially by certain pieces I think would be perfect as part of a soundtrack for a period piece film. The signature song that really set the stage for me was You Belong To Me sung by Jo Stafford. I can just so easily see this as the theme song for a James Bond film set in the 1950s, the era when the bulk of the original Ian Fleming books were written. The song refers to travel to exotic faraway destinations perfectly fitting a globetrotting 007 aboard the prop driven aircraft and trains of the era. This isn't a totally novel idea really because if you watch the early Bond films, particularly the first two (Dr. No and From Russia With Love) you get a taste of the period setting, because those films--while contemporary when filmed--are essentially period pieces now. And for today's younger audiences the early 1960s wouldn't seem much different from the early to mid 1950s. This is something that likely will never happen--just like a '40s or '50s era Superman or Batman project--but I think it's something that would be awesome to see...assuming it was well done. Anyone else with a pet movie (or TV series) wish?
I would love a period-piece revisiting of Bond, but not bound by the production code of the day. I think Mad Men has demonstrated it could be done.
An American version of series like the UK's Warship or Australia's Sea Patrol. Alas, The Last Ship is probably as close as I'll ever get...
- A Power Rangers movie directed by Quentin Tarantino. - 10 seasons of Abrams' Trek on the CW. - A period-piece Bond film as mentioned above.
I have actually have two personal movie wishes: A Batman movie directed by David Fincher A Dune film trilogy covering the entire book
At the top of my movie wish list, "The Mote in God's Eye" and/or the John Varley "Titan" trilogy. I once gave "Mote" to a medium to low grade producer several years ago. He had never heard of the book back then. Never heard back from him, but my hope is that one day this guy will get the movie made and mention that he was given the book years ago and it has taken this long to get it on film.
I'd like to see a Tarzan film that actually followed the plot of the first book. Including the downer ending.
Ringworld came immediately to mind [and I'd 2nd PJ, cue the screaming ]... ...but what I'd really like to see is Terry Gilliam direct The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers. Or Drawing of the Dark.
As far as a Star Wars standalone movies go I would love to see an animated (a la TCW) adaptation of "Shadows of the Empire". I think that doing another one about Darth Plagueis (Sidious' ill-fated master) would be a nice tie-in to the PT since the novel that James Luceno wrote was well-received (though not incorporated into Canon). As far as other stuff, hmm........... a REAL Robotech animated movie series that perhaps resurrects the aborted Sentinels project would be pretty awesome, if really unlikely. A live screen adaptation of some of Christopher Moore's books, particulary the "Bloodsucking Fiends" trilogy (about Vampires but really zany characters and plots) and/or his "Practical Demonkeeping" story, which is also darkly humorous. I don't really have a whole of of practical ideas of stuff that I would like to see movie-wise but there is a LOT of stuff that I'm getting bored stiff in movies like endless (mindless) reboots (i.e. Spiderman, Superman, etc). I'm getting tired of movies always being so long and moody. Movies don't always have to be 100% cheerful but sometimes they get way too dark and angsty and the writers feel like they have to kill off a bunch of characters all the time. I just want a good story with colorful and engaging characters. I'm also tired of animated properties being switched over to live action. Some things just don't translate well from animation to live-action IMHO (i.e. Transformers). Back in the 1980's, they didn't have problems with doing animated movies but nowadays it all has to be live-action.
What i would love to see is a true to the source movie series adaptation of the Perry Rhodan series, especially the Council of Seven cycle.
I could think of a few things that would work best as period pieces if faithfully adapted, from the Shadow and Doc Savage to the Fantastic Four and the Night Stalker. I'd love to see Universal add to their 30-40s Universal Horror Universe, done in black-and-white with the same style and ambiance, so that they fit seamlessly with the originals. Adaptations of classic SF works like Foundation, Rendezvous With Rama, or Ringworld, without turning them into spectacles of video-game violence. And, of course, a real Star Trek revival would be very welcome.
- Rendezvous with Rama: 10-part TV series - Peter F Hamilton's Pandora's Star & Judas Unchained: 2x 13-part tv series
A Battletech TV show (SF effects have become good enough to be done on TV budgets and look good) A Shadowrun TV show (probably far too expensive to be done on a TV budget) A Warhammer 40K movie trilogy covering the Horus Heresy with the LotR level budget and quality of cast
The Wheel of Time. Either a film series or a TV series (both with appropriately large budgets, of course), but either way every book gets covered.
"Running With the Demon" could make either a good film or a great miniseries with a John Ross "Knight of the Word" spin-off series if it proves popular. For my money it is the best thing Terry Brooks has ever written. "The Lies of Locke Lamora" would make for a fantastic film.
Yes, definitely. The Macross Saga was the only good part of Robotech and I'd love to see more of that someday. As for other ideas, I want to see a Greatest American Hero movie with Owen Wilson before it's too late. And maybe Matthew Perry can play Robert Culp.