Joe Carroll, a former University professor who killed a bunch of female college students, escapes from jail.  Ryan Hardy, the man who caught him, is brought in after leaving the FBI to team with a Mason, a tough female FBI Agent, to recapture Carroll.  It turns out Carroll had help on the outside from a network of wanna be serial killers.

In an interview with Collider, Kevin Williamson had this to say about his upcoming serial killer show on Fox:

You’ll be routing for the FBI agent who is going to bring him down. It’s very emotional. It’s this huge, big, hybrid show like The Vampire Diaries, where it relies on the twists and turns, and the tears, where you just get so invested in the characters and you’re like, “No, not that one,” and then they die. It’s one of those shows.

The Vampire Diaries is probably my favourite show on TV right now, so a comparison by Williamson to that show piqued my interest.  After reading the pilot script by Williamson I see hints of his description, but I don’t know how it will develop into a “huge, big, hybrid show”.  To me it comes across as a standard kinda dark procedural.  I did experience a “no, not that one” reaction whilst reading the script, and I think if it can generate that reaction in me without any of the sensory factors which go along with actually watching a TV show, I think this reaction may be a common occurrence should the show end up running for a while.

I thought the flashbacks to when Ryan was tracking and caught Joe were done well, as well as the ones featuring other character like the student who survived, and Carroll’s wife, and they helped to introduce some of the characters who I assume will be major players going forward.

Whilst reading the script I couldn’t help but picture Carroll as being played by Jere Burns (Duffy from Justified).  He’s not written in any particularly definitive way, but it was the first actor that came to mind and I couldn’t shake it.  Likewise, I couldn’t help but imagine Robin Tunney playing Mason, in no small part because I don’t like Robin Tunney and I didn’t like Mason.

My initial impression whilst reading was that it will probably need to be toned down a bit.  First of all the language, ‘cos I’m fairly certain Fox doesn’t want a bunch of f-bombs being dropped each episode.  Plus it’s a little bit too gruesome in its depiction of violence against women.  I like violence in movies but I don’t like my TV shows to be too gratuitous.

I can say right now that I’m not going to enjoy the initial feeling that every new character introduced could be a potential serial killer.  That shit will get old real fast.

I’m also not too sure about the potential longevity of a show based in essence on tracking serial killers controlled and motivated by someone behind bars, especially if the authorities do what they should and place Joe in solitary to avoid him influencing people on the outside.  It seems rather limited and a bit freak-of-the-week to me.  Still, it’s just a pilot, and shows typically develop and evolve as time moves on.  The thing I always come back to is Seinfeld, which I thought was pretty damn ordinary for the first season and a half, and then developed into arguably the best TV show of all time.

I think that casting, and a commitment for the show to be something more than an ordinary procedural, will ensure that it develops an audience.  This in turn should keep the notoriously cancellation happy Fox from axing the show prematurely.  If both of those factors aren’t covered then I can see myself losing interest like I did with Prison Break and Fringe.

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My thoughts on UNTITLED KEVIN WILLIAMSON PROJECT serial killer script HollywoodHubbub

Written by: Chad St John
To be directed by: Timur Bekmambetov
To star: Robert Downey Jr and Reese Witherspoon

Aliens are destroying our planet by going back in time.  They travel back each day to destroy each yesterday.  One man, James Smith (Downey Jr), beats them to a yesterday to warn people of impending disaster.

Talk about a nonstop action flick.  The action in this one starts from the 2nd page and doesn’t let up for another 109 pages.  This is nothing but pure action which will be infused with the charm of Robert Downey Jr and Reese Witherspoon and with Timur Bekmambetov’s visual flare as an added bonus.

There’s probably no-one hotter in Hollywood right now than Robert Downey Jr and it’s surprising that it took the success of Iron Man for the industry (and the public) to realise just how fantastic he is.  The guy’s 100% pure charisma isn’t he?  Show me someone who doesn’t like Downey and I’ll show you an idiot.

Reese Witherspoon is equally as charming as Downey but packaged in a different way.  I actually like Reese Witherspoon, not her tired romantic comedy roles, but the few things she’s done outside of that typically shitty genre.  She was great in Freeway and Election.  Reading the script it was exceptionally easy to picture her in the role of Riley with everything Riley says sounding like it could come from Witherspoon and her sexy as hell accent.

The dialogue and banter between Riley and Smith is pretty natural save for a few instances and I’m hard pressed to think of two actors who’d be better in these roles than Downey and Witherspoon.  Now it may be that because I had these actors in mind before I started reading the script that I somehow projected their suitability onto the characters, but the casting seems pretty spot on to me.

As for the actual aliens the jury’s still out.  From what’s in the script I pictured them as the velociraptors from Jurassic Park covered in armour, carrying futuristic assault rifles, and with a Blackberry on their hip.  Kinda like a douchebag dinosaur.  There’s something equally terrifying and comical about that image.  Depending how they’re done and the combination of live action and CGI they could be halfway decent or absolutely terrible.  I certainly wasn’t that fearful of them the way they were described in the script though.

On an end note I’d like to say that I really disliked the very last action line which has the Blackberry device powering on, indicating that the alien ships are near.  Every time I encounter something like this in a script or film it drives me fucking crazy.  Kinda like the shitty ending in the Eagle Eye script where the PS3 says hello to the kid as some indication that the supercomputer AI is still around.  Those kind of tags bug the living hell out of me.  Just end the fucking story already.  It’s one step above winking at the audience.  There’s nothing wrong with the film ending with a sense of closure.  Hopefully when The Days Before is released that final shot of the Blackberry in the trash won’t make the cut.

RATING: 6/10

CONCLUSION
It’s a very cool concept to be going back in time day by day to prevent aliens from destroying the world but I just wasn’t a fan of the aliens being repilian.  Dinosaurs take over the world with assault rifles and Blackberrys. Ugh.  I think the imagery of New York being ripped apart will be a major factor in how the film turns out, just as the visual effects for the reptile aliens will be.  I have the utmost faith in Downey Jr, Witherspoon and Bekmambetov so if the visual effects are up to scratch I think the film could turn out to be a fairly enjoyable popcorn flick, but that’s all it’s gonna be.

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3. Script review of Diablo Cody’s YOUNG ADULT

THE DAYS BEFORE script review HollywoodHubbub

Written by: Diablo Cody
Genre: Drama

Mavis, a 30-something writer of young adult fiction who’s struggling to finish the final book in the long running series, goes back to her old home town in order to win the affection of her high school sweetheart Buddy.

When speaking to Vulture a few weeks ago, Diablo Cody had this to say about Young Adult:

It has elements of humor, but it’s pretty serious and fucked up. You don’t get to see women be antiheroes that often, where it’s like somebody like Mickey Rourke, who gets a comeback in The Wrestler. It’s rarer that you’ll have a studio say, “Let’s have an actress come back and be ugly!

After reading the screenplay I dare say she’s pretty spot on with her analysis.  It was actually pretty weird reading the script and having the protagonist/lead be so completely mean spirited, cruel and unlikeable.  I have no idea who they’d get to play Mavis but no-one’s gonna like her, not even at the end of the film because she never has that moment where she resolves to set her life in order.  She just pity fucks a cripple, makes small talk with his sister, and drives off back to the city whilst daydreaming about her high school sweetheart Buddy like the events of the film never took place.

I don’t know if I’d say the script was bad, it just wasn’t particularly good either.  Not much happens during the whole thing other than Mavis becoming an even bigger bitch, a few revelations come about, and Buddy and Beth come off as saints.  The success of the film will probably hinge on who they cast in the major roles of Mavis, Matt, Buddy and Beth.  One thing’s for certain though, this is not gonna be a film anything like Juno or Jennifer’s Body, because both of those had leads who you rooted for/liked despite either being a bratty know-it-all kid (Juno), a wide eyed nerd (Needy) or demon possessed hot chick (Jennifer).  The major characters in Young Adult are the previously mentioned mean spirited, cruel and unlikeable Mavis, the sometimes equally mean and bitter Matt, and the husband and wife Buddy and Beth whose actions are motivated by pity for Mavis and Matt.

I know a great deal of people don’t like Diablo Cody but I really enjoyed Juno and Jennifer’s Body, and I was genuinely excited to read Young Adult (hell, I broke away from reading Michael Connelly’s Angels Flight to read the whole thing just now) but I came away from it sorely disappointed.  I had no idea what it was gonna be about but I certainly expected more from it than what I ended up getting.  Those that do hate Diablo Cody, and her unique dialogue in particular, will be pleased to know that there is none of that verbal wackiness that infected both Juno and Jennifer’s Body.  Young Adult does not contain any nonsensical language.  But seen as how Young Adult is so decidedly average maybe Diablo Cody’s peculiar use of words is what translates to a good story.

RATING: 5.5/10

CONCLUSION
I hate to do it, being such a big fan of Diablo Cody and all, but the script just wasn’t that good.  My excitement was for nothing.  Read Young Adult if you want to see how to write a completely miserable, unlikeable, selfish, cruel, liar bitch.  Otherwise don’t waste your time.  Young Adult certainly isn’t enough to turn me off Diablo Cody but I’m going to try and be a little bit more subdued in my excitement the next time I get a chance to read new material of hers.

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Script review of Diablo Cody’s YOUNG ADULT HollywoodHubbub