Javier Bardem to play Roland Deschain in 'Dark Tower' film

[psychosis090]

SOURCE: Deadline

Well, he's got the physique and the acting chops for the role (look at No Country For Old Men for example. Damn). Just age him up a bit with some makeup and he'll be right as rain.

Now the next question is: who's gonna play Walter?

[BornIn1142]

Interesting. I just watched No Country for Old Men last week.

Doesn't Bardem have a noticeable accent? I remember hearing something about his slightly stilted speech as Chigurh being a result of him trying to suppress it. But then again, maybe he's gotten better in the years since then.

[Xard]

WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT

WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WAHT WAHT WAHTTAWÅGM*ÄGVW


DARK TOWER FILM?!?!!?!?!?!?


OOOOOOHHHH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOD

the mammoth adaptation of the Stephen King 7-novel series that’ll span three movies and a limited run TV series in between each film.

OH SWEET JESUS

OH SWEET JESUS

If they play their cards right we have LotR of this decade here

please don't fuck this up

[psychosis090]

WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT

WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WAHT WAHT WAHTTAWÅGM*ÄGVW


DARK TOWER FILM?!?!!?!?!?!?


OOOOOOHHHH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOD






OH SWEET JESUS

OH SWEET JESUS

If they play their cards right we have LotR of this decade here

please don't fuck this up

EDIT: Aw shit, didn't see the quote you posted up there. Eh well.

2013 is going to be pretty interesting.

[cyharding]

Even with some editing of the story, this will take more than three films, that's for sure.

[Xard]

Even with some editing of the story, this will take more than three films, that's for sure.

you missed the part about tv series between the films

[BornIn1142]

Interweaving film releases and television tie-ins... Has something like this ever been done before?

[psychosis090]

I dunno. With some clever writing/adaptation, I'm sure it can be done. Just one layout for example:

- Film 1: The Gunslinger

Series 1: Drawing of The Three and The Wastelands

- Film 2: Wizard and Glass

Series 2: Wolves of The Calla and Song of Susannah

- Film 3: The Dark Tower

Drawing and Wastelands seem to be most suited to an episodic format (though what to do about Shardik on a TV budget....), but that might involve splitting the single 'season' into two separate 'chapters', so to speak. Who knows, maybe they'll end up commissioning another season if things go well!

Wolves and Susannah seem like the next best candidates for episodic storytelling. Then it's just Gunslinger, Wizard and Dark Tower for the feature films, as those, I think, will probably be considered the big 'event' parts of the saga. Nothing much happens in the first volume, granted, but it's still got to introduce the audience to Roland's world and capture their interest. The other two volumes I mentioned would probably also benefit from a feature film budget.

[Gendo'sPapa]

I love love LOVE the Dark Tower novels. Only second to Frank Herbert's original DUNE novels (F his son's lazy cash-ins) as my favorite book franchise.
But sadly, I can't see the films working.... at all. It's going to be a trilogy of three films with two TV seasons in between each film. Compelling concept but this franchise is being geared as BLOCKBUSTER entertainment which is the very last thing The Dark Tower franchise is.
The series is very hard R. I can't see things like a recovering junkie, Succubus rape, & so much more questionable content working in a PG-13 format.
Even more problematic the series is Weird with a capital WEIRD. It hops genres like nobodies business, there's multiple Harry Potter references (the Bad guys throw Snitches or whatever that winged Quidditch ball is), features a legless black woman who has multiple personalities (most of them incredibly racist) & in the later novels has STEPHEN KING himself as a leading character integral to the narrative. Not to mention a character from another King novel introduced in the 25th hour who defeats the grand Evil of the franchise in the most anti-climatic way possible.
It's weird & incredibly-meta. The only filmmaker working in Hollywood who I feel could do The Dark Tower franchise justice is Charlie Kaufman of all people. Maybe Frank Darabont because he is so adherent to King's original novels.
But who is the powerhouse pair bringing us this complex & unsentimental universe?

Director Ron Howard & screenwriter Akiva Goldsman.
Howard is a mediocre filmmaker who is only capable imitating Spielberg...badly.

And Goldsman- the sole screenwriter on The Dark Tower- gave us such "classics" as:
Angels & Demons
I Am Legend (that sure represented it's source novel)
The DaVinci Code
I'Robot
A Beautiful Mind (& A Terrible Film)
Lost In Space
&
Batman & Robin

I can't get excited about The Dark Tower films. They're undeniably going to be terrible & Dark-Tower-In-Name-Only Adaptations.
You know how critics often say "The movie was so bad I fell asleep during it"? I thought that was BS....until a friend took me to see The DaVinci Code.... and I actually DID fall asleep during it!

[The Bastard King]

Bring him back, amazing 80's hair-fro and everything. He's a damn good portrayal of RF if I ever saw one.

[gatotsu911]

Tell me... what's the most you've ever lost on a coin toss?

[Azathoth]

oh lawds

too bad the Dark Tower books are utterly crap after the first dozen pages or I'd be rereading them right now. Guess I'll reread the comic books instead...

Luckily the movies/series will be mercifully free of King's horrible attempts at Tolkienesque descriptive prose in elevated tone. Hopefully they also change the shitawful "and then Stephen King got hit by a truck" ending.

I kind of expect this to fail halfway through, though, regardless of whether it's any good or not...repeated shift in medium is going to restrict the hell out of the fanbase

[child of Lilith]

This could potentially be awesome.

[cyharding]

you missed the part about tv series between the films

That's what you get when you don't read the article in the first place. Sorry about that.

[THE Hal E. Burton 9000]

WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT

WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WAHT WAHT WAHTTAWÅGM*ÄGVW


DARK TOWER FILM?!?!!?!?!?!?


OOOOOOHHHH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOD






OH SWEET JESUS

OH SWEET JESUS

If they play their cards right we have LotR of this decade here

please don't fuck this up

first of all, calm down

secondly, the only films adapted from a Stephen King creation that are remotely good can be counted on two hands, Carrie, The Shining, Misery, The Running Man, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, everything else is either very disappointing in the end (i.e. Dolores Claiborne, Sleepwalkers) or are so laughably bad that MST3K should be resurrected from the dead just so they can be lampooned (i.e. Maximum Overdrive, practically every TV adaptation)

thirdly, it is being produced and directed by Ron Howard, he has not consecutively good movies since Apollo 13 was followed by Ransom, his last decent film Frost/Nixon was overrated but solid and next recent, decent movie was A Beautiful Mind, also overrated but solid

fourthly, what GP said

[Xard]

you guys sure know how to bring me down

[THE Hal E. Burton 9000]

^just trying to protect your expectations so you don't have Star Wars prequel experience of said expectations being quashed

I mean, I can and will defend Ron Howard for a film like Far and Away, but Howard has never taken on an epic project like this and I am concerned The Dark Tower under his directionship and production will be snore-worthy like most of his work has been over the last 10 or 15 years

sure, he could come out smelling like roses like Peter Jackson did with The LotR trilogy, but be careful not to give your hopes up

[backseatjesus]

I think Ron Howard's past films have only been tolerable because he seems to go with lame plots. His direction style honestly isn't remotely bad.

[Gendo'sPapa]

Like I said, Ron Howard is all types of wrong for Dark Tower. This isn't some young, still pretty fresh director with something to prove in epic scale filmmaking- like Christopher Nolan on Batman or Peter Jackson on Lord of the Rings. This is Ron F'ing Howard who has been an industry stalwart for over 30 years. He's shown who he has a filmmaker & that filmmaker is not wright for Dark Tower in any form. He's more suited to remaking The Dilemma again.
Hell, he's such a set Hollywood insider that Clint Howard has made a solid career out of just being RON HOWARD'S UGLY BROTHER!!!

Anywho, also like I mentioned earlier, the bigger concern is the writer. Akiva Goldsman is batting 0 at handling adaptations of previously existing material. Akiva is also a high level producer in Hollywood so he has the power to reject any script doctors.
To refresh the films he wrote based on previously existing material include:
Angels & Demons
I Am Legend (did he even read the book? I mean come on)
The Da Vinci Code
I, Robot (once again, I believe Goldsman only looked at the back cover of the book)
Lost In Space
Batman & Robin.

In terms of quality, Dark Tower is going to a King adaptation more in line with The Lawnmower Man & Thinner than The Shining or anything by Frank Darabont.

[BrikHaus]

secondly, the only films adapted from a Stephen King creation that are remotely good can be counted on two hands, Carrie, The Shining, Misery, The Running Man, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, everything else is either very disappointing in the end

I hope you forgot Stand By Me, because it is anything but disappointing.