Drop The Dinos?

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A wild-card vision came to me late last night, just before nodding off. The only way Terrence Malick can save The Tree of Life from embarassment and possible ruin is to deep-six the dinosaur sequence. How do I know that embarassment and possible ruin are likely or even possible scenarios for this much-dithered-over film, which may or may not be released in 2010? I don't. I haven't the first clue about how Malick's dinos integrate with the whole. Nada, nothing. It may turn out that The Tree of Life will be seen as a work of genius because of the dinosaur sequence.

But I've always suspected on some deep, murky, primordial level that mixing a time-flipping personal drama (i.e., Sean Penn's screwed-up older guy looking back at his dysfunctional family travails with Brad Pitt as his dad) with some kind of dinosaur sequence was a nutball idea that just couldn't work. And I'm just thinking that if -- if, I say -- Malick is having dinosaur difficulties that perhaps he needs to man up and cut bait and just drop the whole thing and make The Tree of Life into a straight personal/psychological weight-of-the-world drama and let it go at that.

In other words Malick may need to follow in the footsteps of James L. Brooks when he decided that I'll Do Anything , which he filmed as a musical, didn't work in that mode and that he needed to remove all the songs. What a painful decision that must have been, and what a shame that the musical version never saw the light of day.

I got started on this jag when I completely cracked up after reading the following section from Scott Feinberg's assessment of The Tree Of Life: "The story, from what little we know about it, is set in the 1950s Midwest and focuses on a character during both his happy childhood and his troubled adulthood; the sad events and experiences that brought about the change; and his quest to regain meaning in his life. Somehow or other, dinosaurs come into play, according to a visual effects artist who worked on the film and apparently didn't get the gag-order memo from Malick."

"Somehow or other"....exactly!

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on July 23, 2010 at 8:57 AM

comment #1

JChasse says ...

Hollywood Elsewhere April 1, 1997... "A wild-card vision came to me late last night, just before nodding off. The only way James Cameron can save Titanic from embarassment and possible ruin is to deep-six the ship-sinking sequence."

Posted by JChasse at July 23, 2010 9:43 AM

comment #2

Ryan Stewart says ...

If Malick has state-of-the-art, fully CG dinosaur sequences in his film, I doubt he has the means to drop them because of the sheer cost involved, without getting sued. I don't know if he has an ironclad final cut clause in his contract, but I can't imagine any financier taking a look at a finished film and saying "Oh, good idea, dropping those elaborate special effects we spent untold millions on!"

Posted by Ryan Stewart at July 23, 2010 9:47 AM

comment #3

Jeffrey Overstreet says ...

And I hear Kubrick wants to flash back to cavemen in his upcoming science fiction epic about an astronaut fighting a renegade starship-computer. He's crackers.

Posted by Jeffrey Overstreet at July 23, 2010 9:57 AM

comment #4

paul_kolas says ...

Jeff, your late night epiphany on what to do about "The Tree of Life", and Malick's obsessive, endless tinkering with it, put me in mind of another once great - and still hoping he has another great movie left in him - auteur who spent over 2 years dabbling with his legendary 1979 opus. Yep, I'm talking about Francis Ford Coppola and "Apocalypse Now". He began shooting in the Philippines in the spring of 1976, hoping to release the film on his birthday, April 7 ,1977. Of course typhoons and Martin Sheen's heart attack put an end to that idea, but we all know how he struggled in the editing room to make the last third of the movie "work" as a Vietnam metaphor for Conrad's "Heart of Darkness". A friend of mine I worked with in local community theater knew Coppola's assistant, Mona Skager. Apparently Skager told him that Francis was going nuts trying to make it all come together. He knew he had a great centerpiece - the helicopter sequence - but didn't know what to do with the Brando finale, let alone the French plantation scene. He would leave it in and take it out over and over. "Apocalypse Now" was finally released, after nearly 2 and a half years of post production, in NY, LA and Toronto in mid August of 1979. I was one of the lucky ones who saw it at the now extinct University Theater in Toronto, with a friend, that August. NO credits on the screen, just a playbill that was handed out to each member of the audience, a la a live theater production. It was one of the greatest movie experiences of my life. I'm going to give Malick the benefit of doubt that he'll pull off what Francis did, despite the similar endless wait.

Posted by paul_kolas at July 23, 2010 10:15 AM

comment #5

Deathtongue_Groupie says ...

Dollars to donuts the whole dinosaur thing will turn out to be 30 seconds of fantasy involving either the young or older Sean Young character as a commentary on how life beats the rich imagination everyone has a children out of you.

And if the older Sean Young turns out to be a film exec who must grumpily attend Comic Con as part of his duties and he imagines a rampaging dinosaur ripping whiskered fat-asses with man shorts and ugly-ass corporate T-shirts apart, then Jeff will call it "brilliant!" And "totally worth it for the dinosaur sequence alone!"

Posted by Deathtongue_Groupie at July 23, 2010 10:16 AM

comment #6

Lord Ozark says ...

The telling quote is that Wells has no idea how the dinosaurs fit in with the story, yet he calls for them to be cut.

If you don't know do some research or bag the post. Otherwise it's the ramblings of a crank.

Posted by Lord Ozark at July 23, 2010 10:20 AM

comment #7

Thesilenttype says ...

I think I'm gonna stop reading this site. Jeff's posts are becoming increasingly random (not to mention, completely pointless). You are commenting on something, with an air of authority that is not deserved, since....you haven't seen the film, or read the script. So zip it, and wait until you're given the chance to see the flick before spewing such tripe.

As said above, you don't know the first thing about how the Dinos fit into the story, so why would you consider dropping them?

Also, your "grumpy old man" take on Comic Con is kinda annoying. Kids shouldn't have a bit of fun eh? Better they are into comic books and all things related, than hanging out on street corners, causing trouble right? Surely?

Let em have their Con. What is the bloody difference to you?

Having said all of that, I am sure I'll be back tomorrow, to read Jeff's latest diatribe on the state of the movie-going nation.

I'm a glutton for punishment.

Posted by Thesilenttype at July 23, 2010 10:35 AM

comment #8

phantasmata says ...

this is truly one of the most brilliant blog posts ever in the history of blog posts. the dinosaurs, sean penn's "screwed up older guy," wells' indignant rage, malick the weird recluse--i couldn't have *dreamt* of a more beautiful confluence of disparate phenomena.

i literally just took a screenshot of this post and have saved it to my archives. brilliant. THIS IS WHY I CAN'T QUIT, HE.

Posted by phantasmata at July 23, 2010 11:11 AM

comment #9

Deathtongue_Groupie says ...

"Sean Young"?????

I can't multitask for shit.... FACEPALM

Posted by Deathtongue_Groupie at July 23, 2010 11:12 AM

comment #10

moviemorlock says ...

Jeffrey Wells' apartment. September 1, 1966... "A wild-card vision came to me late last night, just before nodding off. The only way Stanley Kubrick can save 2001 from embarassment and possible ruin (if he ever finishes it in the first place) is to deep-six the rumored pre-historic apes thing we hear he filmed. It would speed up the movie by a good 15 minutes or so. At least from the reports I've heard."

Posted by moviemorlock at July 23, 2010 11:12 AM

comment #11

phantasmata says ...

there's supposed to be a "you" in that last sentence.

again, though, brilliant post.

Posted by phantasmata at July 23, 2010 11:13 AM

comment #12

lapshin says ...

Jeffrey Wells' apartment. 1982... "A wild-card vision came to me late last night, just before nodding off. The only way Ridley Scott can save Blade Runner from embarassment and possible ruin (if he ever finishes it in the first place) is to deep-six the rumored speech Roy Batty makes right before dying, wihch we hear he filmed. It would speed up the movie by a good 2 minutes or so and would make the movie far less depressing for the audience."

Posted by lapshin at July 23, 2010 11:20 AM

comment #13

Deathtongue_Groupie says ...

Daniel Schorr is dead, will miss that voice especially. He and Bob Edwards were soundscape of NPR for me.

Let's see HALF the copy HE has spent on the Lohan jail bullshit eulogizing someone who actually made real contributions to our understanding of the world we live in.

Otherwise, consider yourself no better than the Comic Con fantasy strafing victims.

Posted by Deathtongue_Groupie at July 23, 2010 11:29 AM

comment #14

raygo says ...

Daniel Schorr was aces in The Net. But seriously, a commanding and authoritative voice, second to maybe Walter Cronkite, but I'd prefer Schorr. RIP and thanks for commentaries.

Posted by raygo at July 23, 2010 11:53 AM

comment #15

michael says ...

The best way for Malick to insure that this film doesn't suck is to make sure it involves more than actors standing around looking at grass and trees and leaves. Jesus Christ, The New World was half a film and half people looking at the beauty of the new world. If I want to watch grass grow and trees blow in the wind, i'll go the fuck outside. Please don't give me 2 hours and 45 minutes of Brad Pitt watching children play or some shit. I read the shooting script of New World and it was pages and pages of description. I know film is a visual medium, but give me a break.

Posted by michael at July 23, 2010 12:46 PM

comment #16

Gabriel says ...

Fuck's sake, Jeff. You're the one guy on the internet who's trying to tell Terrence Malick how to finish this movie. Find another film to try to bully into your vision of how it fits in the Oscar race.

Posted by Gabriel at July 23, 2010 12:47 PM

comment #17

crazynine says ...

With all credit for inspiration to JChasse--

"A wild-card vision came to me late last night, just before nodding off. The only way James Cameron can save Titanic from embarassment and possible ruin (if he ever finishes it in the first place) is to deep-six the rumored afterlife sequence at the end of the film with Kate Winslet joining Leonardo Dicaprio in the hereafter, which we hear he filmed. We already know the boat sinks and that one or the other has to die in order for tears to be shed-- why go ahead with some touchy-feely glurge ending right out of a Hallmark movie?"

(Note to others: this is Jeff's favorite moment in the film, IIRC)

Posted by crazynine at July 23, 2010 1:06 PM

comment #18

crazynine says ...

Anyway... when I heard about the dinosaurs in the film, it struck me as batshit crazy. Like, WTF? How do THEY fit in the movie?

*Probably* a dream/daydream sequence... but maybe not. Maybe more of a metaphor-- the dinosaurs happy before the asteroid hits, ignorant of their fate, believing that their concerns were the most important in the entire world and that nothing had come before and nothing would come after. And then suddenly, doomsday-- and nothing they ever worried about mattered at all any longer.

THAT would have me interested, and that's why I'm letting Terrence frickin' Malick make the movie he wants to make. Even when he fails, he fails better than most directors succeed.

Posted by crazynine at July 23, 2010 1:10 PM

comment #19

TulseLuper says ...

This might be the dumbest fucking thing you've ever written.

Posted by TulseLuper at July 23, 2010 1:32 PM

comment #20

Rich S. says ...

Okay, one more...

"A wild-card vision came to me late last night, just before nodding off. The only way King Vidor and Victor Fleming can save The Wizard of Oz from embarassment and possible ruin (if they ever finish it in the first place) is to deep-six the rumored sepia bumper sequences at the beginning and end, which we hear they filmed. It would speed up the movie by a good 30 minutes or so and would make the movie far less depressing for the audience, mainly by sparing them from a complete grainstorm nightmare."

Posted by Rich S. at July 23, 2010 1:41 PM

comment #21

Hip Hop Homey says ...

This is classic Wells. Seriously. Gotta love a guy who is second guessing one of the 4,5 best directors in the world without seeing a frame of the work. Christ, didn't TM spend three years editing DAYS OF HEAVEN? Look how good that turned out.

Posted by Hip Hop Homey at July 23, 2010 2:06 PM

comment #22

DiscoNap says ...

Good rule: If you have dinosaurs, never cut them.

Posted by DiscoNap at July 23, 2010 2:23 PM

comment #23

Jeffrey Wells says ...

According to a guy who's read the script, the whole dino thing is way overblown. He says they're barely in it. If the finished film is anything like this guys description of the script, no one should ever again mention The Tree of Life and dinosaurs in the same breath. Because, according to this guy, dinos flash by in the space of half a page and that's all. There's much, much more going on in the time-trippy part of this film.

http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/2010/07/tree_of_life_sy.php

Posted by Jeffrey Wells at July 23, 2010 3:30 PM

comment #24

gazer says ...

Jeffrey -

It really saddens me reading the above. Again: what's this fixation with the dinosaurs?! Whenever you keep focusing on this aspect of the natural history segment of the film, which houses the evolution of the universe - as a whole!, it makes it seem awkward indeed because of your damn urge to mingle simplistic Jurassic Park with a 50's family drama set in smalltown Smithville, TX.

Please, just for once have a little sense of daring and even faith, if you will, and stay a little with your obsevation "that The Tree of Life will be seen as a work of genius because of the dinosaur[plus a LOT more] sequence." I surely understand your questioning how these segments of the film will complement each other, as do I, but why not speculate in the direction of their meaning and the visionary scope of the film instead of going Misters Weinstein apeshit on Tree and leaving it in a hypothetical limp state?

A little observation on Tree allegedly being postponed: says who? Rumors have swirled about in abundance on the state of production on the film, yet no one seems to have been aware of the real progress in post production - save the very few actually involved assembling it, and who are at the same token the ones NOT being asked, nor at hand to answer.

As long as the press sets up new imagined(that is: based on heresay) release dates the film can get postponed as often as they see fit, and for no reason in any way related to the film itself. Meaning: there's TALK about The Tree of Life, but it's likely nothing more than that.

Posted by gazer at July 23, 2010 3:38 PM

comment #25

gazer says ...

Jeffrey -

Sorry, you got ahead of me, and yes, what your source is saying is true.

Posted by gazer at July 23, 2010 3:41 PM

comment #26

Marty Melville says ...

Silly HE commentators, dinosaurs are for kids.

Posted by Marty Melville at July 24, 2010 12:22 AM

comment #27

party animals says ...

but wells is the real dinosaur here.

Posted by party animals at July 24, 2010 1:06 PM

comment #28

Jeffmc2000 says ...

If this came out without the dinosaurs all people would talk about is why they weren't in the movie. That's all anyone talks about regarding I'll Do Anything---not dinosaurs (although they wouldn't have hurt) but the missing songs. And I think the lesson is they should have just put out the musical version of I'll Do Anything. It's not like it would have made less money.

Posted by Jeffmc2000 at July 25, 2010 8:36 AM

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