comment #1

Joel says ...

No kidding.

comment #2

Monument says ...

Give the guy a little credit, he doesn't live in a cave; I'm sure he is aware that people know who he is. He seems to be a pretty smart fellow, I can't imagine he'd go out and try to do the same thing that he did before.

comment #3

lesterg says ...

My gut feeling is that the Bruno thing is a ruse to divert attention away from whatever Sacha is really doing for Universal. The word was that his people were shopping a "new character" at first, then the trade reports came out that it was Bruno.

It just doesn't make any sense that the same people who were so secretive about Borat (who would not even confirm that the film was in production when Todd Phillips' departure was reported by Variety) would advertise their next move so brazenly.

comment #4

Webster says ...

Lesterg, my thoughts exactly: I think the "Bruno" film announcement is a smokescreen for whatever Cohen has up his sleeve (after he gets done w/his bit in "Sweeney Todd").

comment #5

Jeff says ...

If you read the full length Rolling Stone interview, Cohen says that the trades did not get the story right. He is developing the Bruno movie right now but it is not a done deal. He said obviosuly he won't do the film if he doesn't think it will be the best it could be. He also said that he is not even sure if it would be scripted or docu-style. Universal just has the rights to it if he decides to go through with it.

comment #6

JD says ...

Form the beginning to the end of Borat, how many real people does Borat interact with? 50? 100? Nationwide, I'm sure they can find many more people than that (millions even) who won't recognize Cohen (Bruno doesn't even look that much like Borat). Remember, no matter how media-saturated the United States becomes, half the country will always live in a cave. Just look how long it took the general population to realize that the War in Iraq was a fiasco.

comment #7

Sean says ...

The first time I watched 'Da Ali G Show' on HBO, I didn't realize all three of them were the same person. Halfway through the Bruno segment, I realized he was the same guy as Ali G, but I didn't know they were Borat also until the end credits.

Yeah, I hadn't been paying attention; all I knew going in was Ali G, I didn't even know about the other two.

comment #8

Michael says ...

It reminds me of the trick Daffy Duck used to pull on stage, after a night of unsuccessful entertainment...the crowd goes wild, but we're left with Daffy ascending..."of course, you can only do this trick once."

comment #9

Mgmax, le Corbeau says ...

First thing I thought of when I saw they were planning to make Bruno was Mike Meyers getting sued for pulling out of Sprockets: The Movie, and being widely talked about as a prima donna for not doing what he was told. Instead, he eventually came up with Austin Powers. Don't do the first idea the studio wants you to do, especially when they don't really want to do it, either.

comment #10

Mgmax, le Corbeau says ...

P.S. Just look how long it took Dieter to realize that the War in Iraq was a fiasco. I'm going to end all my posts here with that line, from now on.

comment #11

Craig Kennedy says ...

I spoke with someone over the weekend who still didn't know Ali G, Borat and Cohen were all the same people even after all these months of hype and discussion.

I was going to be snarky and suggest you should never underestimate the stupidity of the average person, but in fairness, people who aren't in the industry or who don't have they time to waste lurking around movie themed message boards are too busy living their lives to focus on stuff like this.

comment #12

lesterg says ...

Mgmax,

I think "Dieter" was sold after the second Austin Powers movie hit. Instead, Myers went on to do "The Cat in the Hat" and "Goldmember"...both of which I could have lived without.

comment #13

JD says ...

Yeah, Austin Powers came out in '97 and the Sprockets lawsuit was in 2000, I believe.

comment #14

lesterg says ...

Also, the script for Sprockets was (allegedly) fairly brilliant.

comment #15

christian says ...

mike myers made a soul/career choice around the time of the second austin powers to eliminate the cultural wit that is his true gift to focus on shit jokes.

watch the first austin powers film then goldmember to see the actual devolution.

comment #16

nola says ...

I read Sprokets. Granted it was a few years ago but I remember thinking it was hilarious. I was pissed the movie didn't happen.

comment #17

jeffmcm says ...

"Alleged civil rights violations"? What's the deal with this?

comment #18

D.Z. says ...

I could understand why Meyers was wary of doing another movie based off an SNL sketch. Wayne's World 2 disappointed, and he didn't want his character to be associated with other recent flops from the show like "Superstar" and "A Night at The Roxbury". Plus the first Austin Powers wasn't even a hit. The fact that New Line had to play it at midnight screenings to build an audience for the sequel would probably mean the same for Dieter.

As for Bruno, I don't see the point. Unlike the Brits, Americans have plenty of comedies with gay caricatures(The Birdcage and In And Out being the most recent ones), which is why it wouldn't sell here.

comment #19

D.Z. says ...

Anyway, Universal's currently run by idiots. But I guess all that matters is the bombs built by GE, not the bombs at their studio.

comment #20

travis b says ...

"Unlike the Brits, Americans have plenty of comedies with gay caricatures(The Birdcage and In And Out being the most recent ones). . . ."

yes, 1996 and 1997 are so very recent

comment #21

D.Z. says ...

Ok, the gay guy in Marie Antoinette who wasn't played by Jason Schwartzman.

comment #22

jeffmcm says ...

Austin Powers 1 was a modest hit in theaters ($53m gross on a budget of $17m) that became a bigger hit on home video.

Why are you bringing up GE on this completely unrelated thread, DZ?

comment #23

D.Z. says ...

Austin Powers only made money, because of the midnight screenings. And GE owns Universal.

comment #24

christian says ...

the first AP was a brilliant parody and even had a bit of soul. a limited cultural comedy that made only 53 million from a cost of 17 is a hit. audiences discovered that film like we did opening day; word of mouth and video did the rest. but the more shit jokes the more box office.

dieter was such a spot on satire that i couldn't wait. it would clearly
have a more limited audience, and myers took the shrek road.

comment #25

jeffmcm says ...

I never heard of any midnight screenings of Austin Powers. It made money because it opened to $9m and had good legs and then did well on home video.

And yes, GE owns Universal. So, your connection is the minorly tangential instead of completely unrelated...and still completely unnecessary.

comment #26

D.Z. says ...

The first Austin Powers was an average parody which had a couple of witty jabs about the spy genre and the decade from which it emerged. The rest of the film was devoted to Benny Hill-esque humour. And while I liked Deiter, too, most SNL sketches have trouble filling out a 90 minute running time, with the few success stories being Blues Brothers and Wayne's World. So I think Myers did the right thing, in this case.

comment #27

D.Z. says ...

jeff: "I never heard of any midnight screenings of Austin Powers."

They probably weren't in your city, but they did happen.

"It made money because it opened to $9m and had good legs"

It had awful legs. New Line had to extend its run, so they could make their money back on it.

comment #28

jeffmcm says ...

DZ, it opened to $9m and grossed $53. That's a multiplier of almost 6x its opening, which means it had good word of mouth. New Line had a profit on the movie after 2-3 weeks or so. Then it hit home video and did very well, hence The Spy Who Shagged Me's $55m opening.

I respectfully suggest that you don't know what you're talking about.

comment #29

D.Z. says ...

If you want to be technical, with advertising and theater counts, it probably made about $20 million(more or less) on the big screen. And that's AFTER WOM. While that's still double its money back, it's still only slightly better than Wayne's World 2. Hell, I don't even remember anyone who took the film seriously back then. It was just some blip on their cultural radar they chose to peruse briefly, before moving on to The Fifth Element.

comment #30

jeffmcm says ...

IMDB lists its theatrical rentals as $24m. I forgot your initial point, but it was a successful movie which is why they greenlit a sequel.
And have you seen The Fifth Element lately? It's fairly annoying.

comment #31

christian says ...

not in the FIFTH ELEMENT fanclub. while it's a perfect french comic book, that's not always a goood thing especially when it involves chris tucker screeching for an hour. i do think willis is very good in it tho.

"New Line had to extend its run, so they could make their money back on it."

so by that odd definition of failure, all a studio has to do is extend a run to make back money? so if they just let THE FOUNTAIN play awhile it will recoup its cost. hmmm.

and there are poignant moments in the first AP particularly when he goes out by himself on the town and the nifty exchange between him and dr evil about the changed values. the script is a lot wittier than most comedies and a unique riff on the spy genre. i loved the first and loathed the others.

comment #32

D.Z. says ...

jeff: "I forgot your initial point, but it was a successful movie which is why they greenlit a sequel."

They greenlit a sequel, because they built an audience through the midnight screenings.

"And have you seen The Fifth Element lately? It's fairly annoying."

True, but so is AP.

"so by that odd definition of failure, all a studio has to do is extend a run to make back money? so if they just let THE FOUNTAIN play awhile it will recoup its cost. hmmm."

I didn't call AP a failure, just a disappointment.
And The Fountain's a different kind of film from Austin Powers.

"and there are poignant moments in the first AP particularly when he goes out by himself on the town and the nifty exchange between him and dr evil about the changed values. the script is a lot wittier than most comedies and a unique riff on the spy genre."

I agree with the wittier part, but not the unique part.

comment #33

jeffmcm says ...

They greenlit a sequel to Austin Powers because of HOME VIDEO. You can't make a profit from midnight screenings unless you're The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This is probably not the best reference, but:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin_Powers:_International_Man_of_Mystery
I don't know why it would be considered a disappointment, unless you're assuming it was expected to do Wayne's World business, and Myers' other movies from that phase in his career proved that WW was the exception, not the rule (see: So I Married an Axe Murderer, Wayne's World 2, 54).

comment #34

The Movie Man says ...

For what it is, and this is barely on topic, I thought Waynes World 2 was more charming that the first one. It seemed a little wierder and in tune with what Myers used to be about. I agree that the AP series was shit after the first one, and Myers hasn't been interesting since. AP did ok (then had the cult resurgence) then 54 did nothing, so I imagine Myers decided that it was lowest common denominator time.

comment #35

Mgmax, le Corbeau says ...

I'd love to see actual figures on D.Z.'s semi-mythical midnight showings. I'd be amazed if it made $500,000 that way.

I agree, what turned Austin Powers from a modest success to a sequel-worthy hit was its popularity on home video-- especially the fact that it was one of the earliest movies whose "deleted scenes" were a well-publicized selling point.

comment #36

corey3rd says ...

Andy Dick is already filmming his version of Bruno.

comment #37

christian says ...

i tracked AP when it opened as i was hopeful the film would make money. i never saw a midnight screening nor did anybody i know. i'm sure it played at midnight in a few places but not the major theater chains.

please to show proof dz.

comment #38

D.Z. says ...

http://weeklywire.com/ww/07-06-98/chicago_comingattractions.html

comment #39

lesterg says ...

Just to put a fork in this Austin Powers thing:

- According to this ancient Austin Powers fansite http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Set/6172/news.html
Midnight screenings did not start until May of 1998.

- In May 1998, Myers was already well into the second draft of the sequel (the version online is dated 6/25/98).

Therefore, the midnight screenings had absolutely ZERO effect on the production of a sequel.

comment #40

D.Z. says ...

Scripts get written all the time, particularly for sequels. Look how long it took to get The Mask 2 off the ground, and the first film was much more successful than Austin Powers.

comment #41

KeithNYC says ...

Movieman..I was waiting for someone else to say it before me but Waynes World 2 was WAY better then the original. I recently watched both again on HBO. I barely laughed during the original but was consistently laughing during the sequel. It is ironic given that the original was such a huge hit and the second was a disapointment (the Waynes World craze was over by the time of the second movie). I love Dell Preston!!!

comment #42

Dave Polands Gut says ...

And who didnt hear about Ali G and Borat? Let the guy make the film before you say it cant be done.

comment #43

Dave Polands Gut says ...

And who didnt hear about Ali G and Borat? Let the guy make the film before you say it cant be done.

comment #44

christian says ...

as someone who thought both wayne's world films were devoid of major laughs or interest, there is one laugh out loud funny scene in WW2: a brief bit of myers becoming the leprechaun and scaring dana carvey. it's about 30 seconds. and that's it.

comment #45

D.Z. says ...

Dave Poland's Gut: It can be done, but whether there's a major market for a wise-cracking gay guy-a Hollywood cliche if there ever was one-is the real question.