Star Trek Into Episode VII. An All-Star Team Led By J.J Abrams Should Give Justice To The Star Wars Saga.

Many of the current generation of filmmakers can be given credit for changing the game for comic book adaptations by giving the genre careful attention to writing, casting and direction. For these filmmakers realize that a movie does not have to be a drama or romantic comedy to be taken seriously. The same applies to film serials from which George Lucas based both the Indiana Jones and Star Wars series.  J.J Abrams is a near emulation of legendary director/producer and occasional writer Steven Spielberg, one of the earlier directors to make adventure films on par with “serious dramas”.  Abrams is currently going where no man as gone before by helming entries in both Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek and George Lucas’ Star Wars. 

On October 30, 2012 Lucasfilm merged with the world’s largest media conglomerate with swift signatures from visionary George Lucas and former Warner Bros CEO and now Disney Chairman Alan Horn.  Of course the most anticipated project expected from these studios is Star Wars Episode VII. Veteran producer Kathleen Kennedy leads Lucasfilm; and she has been attempting to sway director J.J Abrams to the dark side (pun intended) since Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm.  Initially Mr. Abrams responded to rumors as the next director of Star Wars, by stating that he would rather view the film as a fan and audience member, rather than crafting his won vision.  Now with J.J Abrams onboard the Internet is on fire with reactions from moviegoers and hard-core fans alike. 

 

Overall the response to J.J Abrams being hired is positive.  There are some people that are truly concerned about Abrams’ involvement and there are the usual suspects known as Internet trolls that are cherry picking away at any supposed flaws in Mr. Abrams’s work. In regards to the latter entity there have been posts about Episode VII ending as a dream that was shared by stranded people on an eerie island.  Of course this is a poor quip and referencing the anticlimactic and unsatisfying conclusion to the television series Lost.   I will be the first to admit that I was not a fan of Lost, save for the first season.  Yet Super 8, Mission Impossible III, Alias, Fringe, and 2009’s Star Trek are more than enough on his cinematic resume to make me a believer.

J.J Abrams is stellar at executing proper exposition and character direction.  He knows how to literally and metaphorically position characters in situations that will propel the action.  Abrams is not alone in this endeavor, for series veteran Lawrence Kasdan (writer of Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back) is back to write Episodes VIII and IX.  And he is an advisor on Episode VII. 

Academy Award winning writer Michael Arndt (Little Miss Sunshine, Toy Story 3) is currently writing the yet to be formally titles Episode VII.  Arndt has been extremely busy after the third Pixar film about toys that secretly come to life while their owner(s) is not looking.   His screen plays for Oblivion and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire will be on screen this year, so now his focus is fully into the force.   I am not sure if Arndt is a long time fan of the saga, but his originality and ability to stay true to the original source material is impressive.  

Will Abrams also direct Episodes VII and IX?  It is a possibility since he can alternate between shooting Star Trek and Star Wars entries.  The certain-to-be-good Star Trek Into Darkness hits theaters this year and after publicity for that film ends he is going to need to start pre-production for the planned 2015 release of Episode VII.   But if Abrams does not return, I am sure that Kathleen Kennedy will get a suitable replacement, with the possibilities being endless.  Perhaps Kennedy can court Brad Bird or Jon Favreau if Abrams does not return.   

The new “Suits” in town.

The new “Suits” in town.  Disney and Lucasfilm have new additions to their executive leadership with Alan Horn and Kathleen Kennedy respectively. 

Alan Horn

 

Warner Bros. is not known for frequent change within their corporate structure, however over the past two years key executives in production, marketing, and distribution have been promoted or ousted, the latter action happened despite high box-office sales.  Alan Horn was replaced as Chief Operating Officer of Warner Bros. by then leading production executive Jeff Robinov.  Mr. Horn’s track record with Warner Bros. was stellar; yet due to the reducing of production deals and the number of films being made annually (and perhaps the need to promote others who have paid their dues), Mr. Horn’s tenure ended after 13 years at the Burbank based studio.   Now Mr. Horn has been hired by Disney CEO Robert “Bob” Igler to oversee all Disney productions, which includes Marvel and Pixar pictures.   The greatest challenge that I see coming to Mr. Horn’s team is to continue financing original ideas once the superhero craze is over.  As much as I (and the rest of the world) have enjoyed The Avengers, Iron Man, Iron Man 2 etc., the obsession with heroes with extraordinary abilities will eventually end for a decade, or settle down significantly.   This seasoned studio mogul must be able to spark creativity to keep Disney profits steady, and continue complementing the art and science of filmmaking.  Pixar is renowned for its creativity and anti-redundancy (with the exception of Cars 2), and does not appear to be running out of fresh ideas in the near future.  To supplement the live-action side of the spectrum, the challenge will be daunting.   Take for instance Universal’s Jason Bourne series:  Would audiences seriously consider watching an action thriller with the glitzy Disney logo preceding the opening scene?  Can Disney find the proper book series to adapt into a lucrative franchise?  Alan Horn’s tenure may somewhat rest on the preceding questions. 

Kathleen Kennedy

 

Mr. George Lucas is retiring (for real for real this time) from orthodox filmmaking and dedicating his professional time to experimental filmmaking.  In the wake of this decision, Mr. Lucas has hired the world’s second most successful producer, Kathleen Kennedy to co-chair Lucasfilm.  Madame Kennedy has the commerce savvy and the love of film to contribute to the business and creativity ends of the film industry spectrum.  I am not sure if any potential sequels are prequels to the slightly underperforming (but well intentioned) Red Tails will be on Kennedy’s and COO Micheline Chau’s radar.   And only wild assumptions can be made about the future of the Star Wars series.  Kennedy’s presence could also help streamline the negotiations of utilizing Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light & Magic division for other movies requiring heavy visual effects. 

And The Honorary Oscar Goes To...

Despite having a life span less than four decades Irving G. Thalberg is just as legendary as moguls and producers such as The Warner Brothers, Adolph Zukor of Paramount Pictures, David O. Selznick, Alfred Hitchcock, and Walt Disney.  The latter three would eventually become recipients of the award that is named in Thalberg’s honor.  Thalberg possessed incredible initiative and an unmatched work ethic that was so intense that it induced a heart attack while overseeing the editing of the 1925 version of Ben Hur. 

The Irving G. Thalberg is awarded periodically at the Academy Awards ceremonies to "Creative Producers”, whose bodies of work reflect a consistently high quality of motion picture production.  The visionaries below embody all the qualities that will continue to set the bar for superb films.   Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Spike Lee, Graham King are a select few who are also worthy of being considered for The Irving G. Thalberg Award.   Perhaps we will include these individuals and more on a later date in a follow-up article. 

Kathleen Kennedy

 

Kathleen Kennedy is a talented mogul that has certainly paid her dues to the entertainment industry.  Kennedy began her film career working at various California based television stations after graduating from San Diego State University.  Her experience in programming and communications landed her an entry-level job at Amblin Entertainment.  Her lackluster typing skills were an easy trade-off for her extraordinary production ideas.  Kennedy is the 2^nd most financially successful producer of all-time after her friend and colleague Steven Spielberg; who was awarded the Honorary Oscar in 1987.   She is a demonstration of going from the mailroom as the “gofer” person to a top-level executive. 

Kennedy’s collaborations with the highly influential and respected Steven Spielberg oddly enough have not won her an academy award.  She served as an executive producer on Schindler’s List instead of producer, and the statuette went to Spielberg and Gerald R. Molen.  Her next chance(s) will be with the upcoming War Horse and the 2012 Lincoln.  Her non-Spielberg collaborations are also not too shabby, which includes Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Cape Fear, and Signs. 

Christopher Nolan and Wife Emma Thomas

 

“If you have that vision and want that vision, then it may be difficult, but it is not impossible”.  The previous quote was from David Keighly, the Vice president of IMAX.  Keighly is speaking of Christopher Nolan’s vision of shooting The Dark Knight in 70mm IMAX.  IMAX is an outstanding use of technology to give the audience the most immersive experience possible.   But for Christopher Nolan there is no vision without story.  Nolan has been intrigued with cinema since his childhood while experimenting with a Super 8mm camera that his father purchased.  After graduating with a B.A. in English Literature from the University College London, Nolan collaborated with old college friends to film Following.  Following gave the world insight on future aspects to come from a man whom is the master of non-linear psychological story telling, neo-noir, and practical visual effects.  In regards to practical visual effects, Nolan takes great pride in improving upon the revolutionary cinematic worlds created by Ridley Scott and Stanley Kubrick.   Nolan carefully and meticulously uses storyboards and guides his production team to build sets and utilize locations that were never fathomable before.  Nolan dedicated hours daily to the film facilities at UCL, and acquired technical skill(s) that even those who went to a top tier film school have not learned. 

Emma Thomas met her future husband at University College London, while she was studying History and Nolan studying English Literature.  After two years of marriage, the couple produced their first feature length film: Following.  Thomas was able to secure a budget to produce the highly acclaimed Memento from NewMarket Films.  Major film studios thought that Memento’s script was too laborious for audiences, despite seeing the film’s true potential.  The film was a sleeper hit even within a limited release and garnered two Academy Award nominations.  After a critically acclaimed and financially successful Insomnia, Thomas produced the first good caped crusader movie:  Batman Begins.  Thomas handled a $150 million dollar budget and despite being initially shrouded in secrecy, she was invaluable in gaining publicity for the serious and realistic take Batman.  The Dark Knight entirely speaks for itself, but Thomas was instrumental in securing the rights to film in Hong Kong.  Perhaps was Thomas’ most important contributions were to Inception.  She was highly supportive of her husband going back to his Inception script, and tweaking it to near perfection.   Thomas also garnered publicity for Inception while at the 2010 Comic Con Convention.  She is not simply a tag-along of Nolan’s.  She understands the industry and knows what audiences want.

With their combined talent, the couple has the potential to become legendary.  They have yet to produce a bad or even mediocre film.  The Batman franchise is now taken seriously as a crime saga, like it was intended to be.  And many critics and film historians consider Memento and Inception to be masterpieces.  The husband and wife duo have delivered every project on or ahead of schedule for Warner Bros. 

Thomas Tull.

 

There is not a large amount of information known on this traditional minded modern day mogul.  Thomas Tull grew up reading graphic novels and was highly disappointed with the early film representations of Marvel and DC comic books.  After undergraduate school, Tull abandoned plans to attend law school and headed to Hollywood.  Heading to Hollywood sounds cliché’ but Tull was able to raise $500 million dollars from investment firms to start Legendary Pictures.  Since 2005 Legendary Pictures has shared production costs with Warner Bros, which has lead to releases of 300, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Hangover, Inception, and the upcoming Man of Steel and The Dark Knight Rises.  The most profitable studio in the world saw endless potential in the new studio mogul who had not even had his 35^th birthday at the time of the signing of the joint venture. 

Mr. Tull also serves as an executive producer on some of Zack Snyder's and Christopher Nolan’s films.  In the tradition of the Golden Age of Hollywood, he also brings forth original concepts and selects the right director to film the project.  Legendary East is a subsidiary that will focus on producing Asian-themed films for Western Audiences.  The first product scheduled to come forth from this venture is an Edward Zuwick depiction of the building of the Great Wall of China to defend against the Mongolian Empire.  Tull’s success stems from the fact that he was and still is a moviegoer, while still maintaining a capitalist mind-set.  He knows that he has parent companies and shareholders to appease; yet he gives the audience a quality product that simultaneously satisfies critics and box office numbers.