Alex Proyas to direct "I, Robot" (1 Viewer)

[Rich Malloy]

http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Movi...eut/index.html
Asimov's "I, Robot" was the first sci-fi novel (collection, really) I recall reading as a kid, and one of those books that really stayed with me over the years. I think Alex Proyas could do a great job with it, despite the fact that the book isn't exactly a perfect fit for his more gothic tone. Definitely looking forward to it.

 

[Ross Williams]

Sounds pretty great. I look forward to any movie directed by Alex Proyas. (Including the recently released, in Austrailia, Garage Days.) However, Will Smith's involvement has me a little worried. I sure hope he doesn't bring his brand of humor to the project.

 

[Patrick Sun]

So...who plays Susan Calvin? (She does appear in this book of short stories of robots, right? I've read almost all of Asimov's robot stories, but can't keep them straight as far as what appeared in what book).

 

[DaveBB]

The only thing I'm afraid of is that Avika Goldsman is doing the screenplay.:frowning:

 

[Chris Harvey]

Harlan Ellison wrote a screenplay for "I, Robot" some time ago. Any word on whether Proyas will be using that as a foundation or starting point?

I'm totally stoked to see his name attached, btw -- I had the opportunity to chat with him several months ago and he's a well-rounded, very pragmatic individual, and (of course) his movies speak for themselves.

 

[Michael Caicedo]

However, Will Smith's involvement has me a little worried. I sure hope he doesn't bring his brand of humor to the project.

Same here. I am really tired of his schtick. He does have the ability to put in a strong serious performance.

 

[Rich Malloy]

"Six Degrees" and "Ali" are all I need to know about Smith... but this Akiva Goldsman thing does have me concerned. He strikes me as all wrong for adapting Asimov, and the thought of him being a "prevailing presence" in the shoot is just depressing.

 

[Peter Apruzzese]

The project originated as "Hardwired," a futuristic script by Jeff Vintar that was amalgamated with elements of "I, Robot" when Fox bought rights to Asimov's landmark book. Subsequent drafts of the script have been done by Hillary Seitz ("Insomnia") and Oscar-winning "A Beautiful Mind" scribe Akiva Goldsman, who wrote the last draft and is expected to be a prevailing presence on the picture.

This part of the article scares me more than a little. It's obvious they are not really using Asimov's "I, Robot" stories. And they certainly aren't using Harlan Ellison's near-brilliant screenplay as a basis for this. "Goldsman... prevailing presence" is more frightening than anything I've heard all year...

 

[Ross Williams]

It all depends on what Will Smith shows up, Ali or MIB2. With Proyas at the reigns, I think he'll give a good performance.

Avika Goldsman though, yikes!! He's written some of the worst screenplays in recent history, but won an Oscar last year. Who knows which version of him will show up.

This could get dicey.

 

[Louis C]

Will this have an Alan Parsons soundtrack?

 

[Randall Dorr]

It's nice to finally see a serious film (as opposed to that trecaly piece of crap Bicentennial Man) about Asimov's positronic robots.

But why is Proyas using "I, Robot" for the title? Only a film made from Ellison's screenplay should have that honor. "Hardwired" sounds fine to me.

And I'm not that worried about Will Smith. We know he can play drama, and I suspect he's tired of his shtick, too. I think the problem will be with audiences that go to this expecting Men in Black with robots. When actors primarily known for comedy move into drama, (and's it's not very, very obvious that the film is a drama, like with Ali) idiot audiences go in with the wrong expectations, come out disappointed, and say the film sucked, as evidenced by Ebert's Movie Answer Man from Nov. 17:

Q. Sadly, all my suspicions came true when I went to see "Punch-Drunk Love" this past weekend. Oh, not about the movie, which was beautifully done and surprisingly touching. No, as I feared, I found myself in a theater full of "Billy Madison" and "Happy Gilmore" worshipers who were programmed to laugh when Sandler cried, and look confused in between bodily-harm jokes. In your experience, can we expect Sandler to make more movies like PDL, or is the following of his first audience going to force him to continue SNL vehicles forever?

Ryan Cooke, Denton, Texas

A. Sandler has been bitten by the hands that feed him. "Punch-Drunk Love" has not appealed to his traditional audiences, and there is a big disconnect between critics and fans. According to the Tomatometer, 85 percent of major critics praised the film, and yet Cinemascore.com shows that exiting moviegoers rated it between C-plus and F.

Matt Fields, who operates the Athena Theater in Athens, Ohio, (home of Ohio University's 20,000 students) writes me: "There are actually people out there who think that 'Punch-Drunk' is Sandler's worst movie. Sony has just expanded 'Punch-Drunk' to 1,200 theaters (still not very wide) and as they have expanded it, the per screen average has tumbled. It just isn't playing to crowds outside of large metro areas. I just think that the moviegoing public isn't very sophisticated. I am always surprised how many college students don't know anything about art films at all. It seems that an earlier generation grew up on Godard while today's is growing up on 'Jackass.' "

(I was a bit angry with myself for not making time to see PDL, but if the above is what a theater experience of it is like, I'll gradly wait for DVD.)

I think the jury is still out on Goldsman. He's probably pretty talented, but he's never made anything away from big studio projects, which too often are controlled by marketing departments.

 

[GeorgeTW]

Wouldn't that be cool if Allan Parsons Project scored the movie?

 

[Jason Seaver]

The thing that aggravates me about Goldsman is that I've seldom really hated any of his movies - they've just felt like they needed another trip through the word processor (even the Batmovies), but no-one had the guts to say so.

I'm wondering how much "I, Robot" will be in this; I don't think Will Smith will be playing Dr. Susan Calvin (although there was another robopsychologist who appeared in Asimov's later stories).

And as much as I love Proyas and think he can do great things with "I, Robot"... What about "Berserkers"? Has New Line axed that?

 

[Norm]

Will Smith has me not so exited about this movie now. What will happen is they will change the story to suite Smith.