hhs@hou2h.UUCP (H.SHARP) (07/18/85)
I have read that Steven Spielberg is producing a movie version of Alice Walker's _The Color Purple_. I read this in the Washington Post. Has anyone got any information on this? And why Spielberg?
robertsl@stolaf.UUCP (Laurence C. Roberts) (07/18/85)
> I have read that Steven Spielberg is producing a movie version > of Alice Walker's _The Color Purple_. I read this in the > Washington Post. Has anyone got any information on this? > And why Spielberg? I've been hearing this rumored for several months, and when it turned up in Time's article about Spielberg, that pretty much confirmed it. Why Spielberg as director? Well, you know how his movies are all the same? He wanted to do something different. Why he chose this book to (probably) murder, I don't know. Sort of makes me mad. I'm afraid he's going to go for sentimentality. It'll be one of those movies that manipulates its audience. I really wonder what Alice Walker thinks about all of this. By the way, I'd advise anyone who hasn't read the book yet to do so. -- Laurence Roberts ...ihnp4!stolaf!robertsl If we didn't have so many polls, how could we be expected to all think the same things?
sophie@mnetor.UUCP (Sophie Quigley) (07/19/85)
> I have read that Steven Spielberg is producing a movie version > of Alice Walker's _The Color Purple_. I read this in the > Washington Post. Has anyone got any information on this? > And why Spielberg? Oh, no!!! I hope not Spielberg! One of the most wonderful things about "The Colour Purple" is that it is written in the form of letters to God or between sisters. These letters depict the evolution of those two sisters so well I cannot imagine how a movie would be able to do justice to this wonderful book. -- Sophie Quigley {allegra|decvax|ihnp4|linus|watmath}!utzoo!mnetor!sophie
reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP (07/28/85)
Spielberg is indeed currently shooting a film version of "The Color Purple",
in North Carolina, I think. The star is Whoopie Goldberg, a black comedienne
with no film experience. No word on how faithful it will be to the book.
Why Spielberg? Because he wanted to. To a first order approximation,
Spielberg makes whatever he wants nowadays. Would you want to be the film
executive who said "no" to Steven Spielberg? If he got it into his head
to make a film version of the Domesday Book, I have no doubt someone would
finance it. (I'll bet a lot of us would go see it, too.) The deeper question,
of course, is why Spielberg wants to make it. Undoubtedly the major reason
is that he liked the book, but a contributing factor is probably that he's
been getting a lot of heat for a number of things: making kiddie movies rather
than films for adults, not making films about women, patronizing attitudes
towards non-whites (or, in many cases, merely ignoring their existence).
"The Color Purple" is a project for people who think, has an almost entirely
black cast, is based on a book by a black woman, and has a woman for the
central character. What better project could their be for Spielberg to show
the world that he isn't a childish, insensitive yahoo?
Those who think this an odd matchup might want to think back to Spielberg's
first feature film, "The Sugarland Express". Spielberg did an excellent
job there with that film, which was not a children-of-all-ages rollercoaster
ride, and was centered around a female character. Spielberg is, in my
opinion, quite talented enough to make a good film outside his self-defined
genre. Whether "The Color Purple" is that film should be clear in about
six to nine months. (I don't think even Hollywood executives are foolish
enough to try to pass it off as a big adventure/laugh riot extravaganza
for next summer's release.)
And once he's gotten adulthood out of his system, Spielberg will, according
to rumor, be back at his old tricks with a remake of "Peter Pan". Live
action, boy not girl in the lead. Any votes for John Lithgow as Captain
Hook?
--
Peter Reiher
reiher@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU
{...ihnp4,ucbvax,sdcrdcf}!ucla-cs!reiherbch@mcnc.UUCP (Byron Howes) (08/01/85)
In article <6445@ucla-cs.ARPA> reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP (Peter Reiher) writes: >Spielberg is indeed currently shooting a film version of "The Color Purple", >in North Carolina, I think. Good. We need the business. We also need a respectable film to make up for "Brainstorm" and "Firestarter." > >And once he's gotten adulthood out of his system, Spielberg will, according >to rumor, be back at his old tricks with a remake of "Peter Pan". Live >action, boy not girl in the lead. Any votes for John Lithgow as Captain >Hook? I read or heard somewhere that Michael Jackson had been approached or signed for doing the title role (interesting and probably appropriate.) I love John Lithgow, but I don't think he's marble-eyed enough. How about Malcolm MacDowell? -- Byron C. Howes ...!{decvax,akgua}!mcnc!ecsvax!bch