Angelina Jolie's Wanted Leaps from Comic Books with a Hard R
Michael Brandt and Derek Haas discuss Wanted's cast, action, and MPAA rating
Writer/directors Michael Brandt and Derek Haas had to go into production on Wanted before the comic book had even picked up steam. With only two issues published, the writers came up with their own story based on the set up.
"The first two issues were pretty much act one," said Haas. "The first two issues were a great set up, the first two issues of the comic. Then it went in a different direction than what we took the film."
The story of a loser drafted by assassins who believe he has his father's talents, the movie is action packed adventure, but not comic book-y. "Our take on the material was big, but not big like the comic book," said Brandt. "The comic book took it to crazy heights with superheroes and we kept ours kind of grounded into today's world so you could actually believe that it could take place in today's world."
Haas still promises hard action. "We really want to make a hard R movie," said Haas. "To the studio's credit, all the way through they said, 'Do it. Keep that same tone'. And then when they cast Angelina [Jolie], Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy we thought, 'Oh here it comes. Here comes the PG-13, got to have the broadest audience possible.' But, no. The whole time they said keep it the same way so that's the movie they shot."
Wanted is due March 28, 2008 and will be the English language Hollywood debut of Night Watch director Timur Bekmambetov.
"The first two issues were pretty much act one," said Haas. "The first two issues were a great set up, the first two issues of the comic. Then it went in a different direction than what we took the film."
The story of a loser drafted by assassins who believe he has his father's talents, the movie is action packed adventure, but not comic book-y. "Our take on the material was big, but not big like the comic book," said Brandt. "The comic book took it to crazy heights with superheroes and we kept ours kind of grounded into today's world so you could actually believe that it could take place in today's world."
Haas still promises hard action. "We really want to make a hard R movie," said Haas. "To the studio's credit, all the way through they said, 'Do it. Keep that same tone'. And then when they cast Angelina [Jolie], Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy we thought, 'Oh here it comes. Here comes the PG-13, got to have the broadest audience possible.' But, no. The whole time they said keep it the same way so that's the movie they shot."
Wanted is due March 28, 2008 and will be the English language Hollywood debut of Night Watch director Timur Bekmambetov.
Related Items
| Movie: | Night Watch |
| Celeb: | Morgan Freeman |
| Angelina Jolie | |
| Timur Bekmambetov | |
| Michael Brandt | |
| Derek Haas | |
| James McAvoy |
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blank blank writes: on Sep 14 2007 01:38 PM this is a little disappointing. it would have been kind of cool to see the craziness of the comic book on the big screen. however, there's nothing wrong with a well grounded hard R action movie. but its not really "wanted". (Reply to this) |
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OctEgon writes: on Sep 14 2007 02:04 PM Really....what's the point? The last couple of pages are amongst the best endings in recent comics. (Reply to this) |
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Satenza writes: on Sep 14 2007 02:46 PM this guy's grammer made me laugh: "The first two issues were a great set up, the first two issues of the comic. " (Reply to this) |
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tabascoman77 writes: on Sep 14 2007 03:16 PM I don't get this... It's like saying, "We got half the script for this thing called 'Star Wars' and we said, 'No! Don't write anymore! We can do a movie based on what we've read so far!'" Why would anybody do that? :-/ (Reply to this) |
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PlanBFromOuterSpace writes: on Sep 14 2007 04:31 PM Really, regardless of whether the movie itself ends up being good or bad, I don't know why they even bothered basing it on the comic anyway if it's going to go in a completely different direction. Use a similar set-up if you want, who cares, just don't call it "Wanted", y'know? Part of the fun of the book was that it was not set in reality at all. It's a satire of traditional superhero comics, more of a role reversal thing where evil was finally able to extinguish good, and it clearly pokes fun at specific characters. I get a feeling that if they're going for a "realistic" approach, that a lot of good stuff is going to get scratched. (Reply to this) |
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knowingtoast85 writes: on Sep 14 2007 06:23 PM My thoughts on "Wanted" were that it just wasn't very good, a rather shamelessly transparent attempt to snag Eminem for a lead role in a movie deal that had a completely anticlimactic ending, half-hearted allusions to "Fight Club" aside. The premise, however, had potential. So this is the best news I could hear about this project, although I'm still not fully convinced it will be decent. We3, however, is a different story. Man, I need to get my hands on that book. (Reply to this) |
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PlanBFromOuterSpace writes: on Sep 14 2007 07:15 PM As far as WE3 goes though, they're really gonna have to beef it up for the movie. The trade paperback seriously takes only about 15 minutes to read, so hopefully there's more storywise. 30 Days of Night also falls into the same category, as the original story that the movie's based off of is very, very short. Anyway, back to Wanted. The artist, JG Jones, does have a tendency to REALLY make his characters look like actors or celebrities. If ANYONE should've been in the movie that looked the part of their comic book self, it should have been Halle Berry. Not only is she just a better actress than Jolie (well, more often than not), she's also a bit older, which is something that that character needs to be, as she's supposed to be the main character's father's old partner who's been around a while. If I remember correctly, the father looks a lot like Tommy Lee Jones. Anyhow, depending on how much the story diverts from its comic roots, none of that might even matter in the long run anyway. (Reply to this) |
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eastern2western writes: on Sep 14 2007 09:43 PM They are going to hire the nightwatch guy for this movie. No, thanks because I rented that movie and I hated almost every second of that whole complete mess. (Reply to this) |
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ManofStee1 writes: on Sep 15 2007 10:39 AM They take a Mark Millar comic book, make a movie out of it with a hard-R rating, and then decide to take all the comic book feeling out of it? What the hell? Mark Millar is arguably the best writer of crazy, over the top action scenes in comics today (read Civil War or Wolverine: Enemy of the State if you don't believe me), so why take that feeling out of it? (Reply to this) |
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knowingtoast85 writes: on Sep 15 2007 11:08 AM In reply to this comment (#1124208) Yes, Halle Berry was clearly the inspiration for that character, I forgot. I think "Wanted" suffered from having an arc that only lasted for 5 comics; I thought we were really going to explore the angle of pursuit, how he is, well, wanted by the villains he's turned his back on. The character usually just talks about how awesome his new lifestyle is, we never see it. There was so much more to show in terms of the aftermath of a war that wiped out most of the heroes. And man, that final showdown defines "anticlimactic." (Reply to this) |
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Mazula writes: on Sep 15 2007 12:16 PM Whats the point of making a movie like this that deviates so drastically from the original material? Couldnt they have waited just a little bit longer until the comic series was finished? And geez, cant that guy say something other than "the first two issues"? (Reply to this) |
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PrecentorEpsilonXVI writes: on Sep 16 2007 06:32 AM It sounds to me like they were forced by the studio to get started on the movie before all the comics were out. The couldn't wait for any info on the books, so they made stuff up. Why they didn't ask the author of the comic what the overall plot would end up being is beyond me, though... (Reply to this) |
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dahluzz writes: on Sep 17 2007 09:58 AM hey tobasco guy, try chaloula. it's spicy AND flavorul. (Reply to this) |
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High School With Money writes: on Sep 17 2007 11:19 AM [b]"The comic book took it to crazy heights with superheroes and we kept ours kind of grounded into today's world so you could actually believe that it could take place in today's world." [/b] Translation: "Jolie and Freeman are gouging the budget, so we're making this on the cheap." (Reply to this) |
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Circe Prankster writes: on Sep 17 2007 12:31 PM In reply to this comment (#1124491) Sorry that you didn't like "Night Watch," east2west, but just to offer an alternate opinion, I loved it. Sure, the story was kind of confusing and all over the place, but I thought the style was really unusual and intriguing. There were some beautiful visual moments in it, as when a building is collapsing and rocks are falling from the roof, and then the rocks turn into dark birds in midair and fly away. It definitely had a foreign vibe, sort of like the French film Brotherhood of the Wolf (another favorite of mine), and I understand that not everyone can get into such a foreign sensibility toward action film conceits. I thought it was refreshingly different. Anyway, I don't know the comic but I'm excited about a new film from that director. (Reply to this) |
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The_Duckling writes: on Dec 28 2007 03:40 PM i never read Wanted, but the fact that it is going to be kinda based on the first two issues as a starting point pisses me off. from what i've heard, wanted is supposed to be a total satire of the action/superhero kinda thing. If ur not gunna make it over the top and based on its source material, at least make it PG-13 so it will go to the right audience. at least, thats what it seems like to me. (Reply to this) |
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BowieSwimmer writes: on Jan 03 2008 07:53 AM if you're going to use the Wanted name to associate with the comics, why not just wait until the series had run its course before finalizing the script? Whatever. I'm still interesting. Because, for once, this type of film gets a summer release date instead of being dumped in January/February, and also features a wholly recognizable cast. (Reply to this) |
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