The Movie
So if this movie isn't even cast yet, when would it be coming out? Like..2005 or something?
i dont know, but the book was great so i hope that they dont screw it up like most movies do!
Most movies that havnt been cast yet are still in that iffy phase wherein it is not known whether or not they will actualy be made.
I do see a big problem in getting the movie made, that being all the permissions they will have to get to use corporate names and logos in negative ways, its just not going to happen, if it does the movie will be vastly changed from the book to kind of try and make the corporations look like they were doing good all along, or they are just going to have to substitute real corporations with fake ones which will make the movie vastly less entertaining.
The disclaimer that says Barry made up everything wouldn't have any effect on that?
the disclaimer will work for the book but probably not for the movie because the movie is a much bigger deal and the companies that look bad like nike, would probably try and sue anyway and since they are such big companies they might actually win
The disclaimer that says Barry made up everything wouldn't have any effect on that?
Maybe you can *say* someone works for McDonalds or Nike or ExxonMobil... but do you really think they'll make the movie without the corporate logos? Heck, the Nike corporate logo is crucial to the climax of the book.
Do you think Nike is going to think the image of post-coma John is going to be okay just because it's a movie? :)
Ooh I'm excited that there's a movie! I feel stupid for not knowing one was coming out!
Here's some info on the movie you might find useful. It comes from the Hollywood Stock Exchange (another online game site--someone there hooked a bunch of us to come over here, so maybe this is my way of returning the favor.) :)
http://movies.hsx.com/servlet/SecurityDetail?symbol=JEGOV
A movie? Have any of you actually read the book? It has the vision of a VCR instruction manual, and is on par technically with the writings of Gibson; when he was five. Did anyone catch the book when it was first released by Huxley or by Orwell? Don't get me wrong, I like the site; and agree with the changing industrial paradigm as displayed by Berry (and a million other contemporaries), but Jennifer Government is nothing new.
not sure about you, tabernacle, but i worked in advertising creative depts. for about 7 years, and can tell you that max is spot on with this story.
I've seen assistant brand managers drool over marketing concepts, and there's not one among them that wouldn't sell their own grandmother to gain an advantage over the competition...let alone their immediate superiors..
Jennifer Government, i think, because of it's weighty subject matter, is getting a bit unfairly compared to the works of gibson and orwell....
the fact of the matter, is that at it's heart, Jennifer Government is trying to deal with many of the same issues (globalization, capatalism etc) but is also a character driven story....
and it is what it is...
ive read many statements here and on amazon.com saying that the story doesn't delve deep enough into the world it created...
but that, i think is one of it's strengths...
it gives you enough background, and enough detail to give the story a right proper setting, and then lets the reader use their imagination to fill in the gaps...
George Lucas once said, the failing of many sci-fi directors is that they'll spend millions on a set, and then waste film footage trying to show it off....rather than focus on the characters...
max luckily has not fallen for that trap....and has given the readers the benefit of the doubt as to their intelligence, and their ability to figure things out, and to let their imaginations flesh out the society he created....
and i for one appreciate that...
i thought it was an excellent book, and thoroughly enjoyed it!...
i'll be first inline to see this in the theatres if it gets made...but i don't hold out much hope for that...
the idea of this as a script getting through a legal dept. is a bit absurd...Nike and co.'s lawyers would never let them get away with half the things in this book...
and as for trying to convince them it's product placement....
uh...nope...
why would they do that?.
it's like IBM walking out of the production agreement with stanley kubrick during 2001...
they saw the script and said 'whoa...holy sh*t...we can't have an IBM computer go completey bonkers and waste a whole crew!'
so out went IBM and in came HAL..
nike gets product placement far more efficiently with hiphop artist like Nelly...having him wear the swoosh on his feet and have it carved into his hair is far more beneficial to their bottom line and street cred, than having 'john nike' impaled on their logo....
which is a total shame..cuz i would LOOOOOVE to see this as a movie...
but only if it was 100% true to the book..
i would be really really disappointed if it was mellowed out or softened for the sake of the corporations it was making fun of....
ok..
rant over..
the book is amazing...i urge all of you to read it!
cheers
exador of the federation of longnow..
I think it is *legal* to parody copyrighted items (i guess including logos) as long as it is clear the purpose is for parodies/satires/spoofs/send-ups.
This is why spoof movies and shows (like Airplane, Naked Gun, SNL, the Simpsons) are able to spoof other movies, shows, songs, and cultural reference without having to pay roaylties or obtain approvals.
Alternatively, they could use altered logos that spoof the real-life logos, but where the original remains recognizable.
This is what they used to do at MAD magazine etc, which spoofed films, logos, TV shows, ads, etc.
Maybe, but it doesn't stop the lawsuits. Like this one from Starbucks against comic book artist Kieron Dwyer: http://www.cbldf.org/pr/001130-starbucks.shtml
Maybe, but it doesn't stop the lawsuits. Like this one from Starbucks against comic book artist Kieron Dwyer: http://www.cbldf.org/pr/001130-starbucks.shtml
Egad! Starbucks must be off their rockers! What they are doing is not copyright protection, but copyright abuse.
George Lucas once said, the failing of many sci-fi directors is that they'll spend millions on a set, and then waste film footage trying to show it off....rather than focus on the characters...
Sorry, but George Lucas has a lotta nerve talking about the "failing" of sci-fi directors showing off F/X and sets, and not focusing on characters.
I love the Star Wars films (mostly the old trilogy) but man the characters therein (especially the new trilogy) have got to be the DULLEST one-dimensional characters ever commited to film.
To put it bluntly, Lucas' work is ALL sets and NO characters.
(Apologies for sidetracking from the main topic of the thread, but I just had to point this out.)
I finally got the book. It is HILARIOUS. I couldn't stop laughing. The man is a genius, but there is also a problem I can see with the movie, a huge one. How is he going to get permission from all these companies to use their names and logos? Expecially Nike, and McDonalds after that girl is shot?
HUGE bad press.
George Lucas once said, the failing of many sci-fi directors is that they'll spend millions on a set, and then waste film footage trying to show it off....rather than focus on the characters...
I once said that the failing of George Lucas is that he has become a hypocrite. Can anyone appreciate how much irony the quote above has presently come to carry? A weighty load, indeed. George Lucas had also said, "A special effect is a tool; a means of telling a story. A special effect without a story is a pretty boring thing." Right on, Georgie!
Most movies that havnt been cast yet are still in that iffy phase wherein it is not known whether or not they will actualy be made.
I do see a big problem in getting the movie made, that being all the permissions they will have to get to use corporate names and logos in negative ways, its just not going to happen, if it does the movie will be vastly changed from the book to kind of try and make the corporations look like they were doing good all along, or they are just going to have to substitute real corporations with fake ones which will make the movie vastly less entertaining.
I don't know about that...Max was allowed to use the names in the book, theoretically (even though in america, it seems like far inferior) books are the same as movies....
Steel Butterfly
27-05-2003, 05:46
i just got the book...haven't read it yet...
reading the Bear and the Dragon
sorry max....Tom Clancy wins out
[violet]
30-05-2003, 02:23
I finally got the book. It is HILARIOUS. I couldn't stop laughing. The man is a genius, but there is also a problem I can see with the movie, a huge one. How is he going to get permission from all these companies to use their names and logos? Expecially Nike, and McDonalds after that girl is shot?
This is a question the film guys are grappling with. 8)
I don't know about that...Max was allowed to use the names in the book, theoretically (even though in america, it seems like far inferior) books are the same as movies....
Maybe that's because the book isn't from America; Max is an Australian. Also, I haven't seen Jennifer Government on the NYT Bestseller List yet.
As far as a movie goes, I have no idea. I strongly agree that Max's book is something William Gibson could have written when he was five years old. However, when the Matrix came out, I also recall some SF writers noting that Neuromancer was so good that it would be impossible to make a movie out of it!
Johnny Mnemonic was a pretty crappy adaptation of one of Gibson's short stories, but when it comes to the big screen, it's pretty hard to translate. Don't forget it was Gibson who wrote that screenplay.
Johnny Mnemonic was one good film.
In fact, thanks for mentioning it, as this decides what video i'll rent today (it would be for the fourth time or so.)
Johnny Mnemonic was one good film.
In fact, thanks for mentioning it, as this decides what video i'll rent today (it would be for the fourth time or so.)
Ha! I own it. 8)
Johnny Mnemonic was one good film.
In fact, thanks for mentioning it, as this decides what video i'll rent today (it would be for the fourth time or so.)
Ha! I own it. 8)
You know what's amazing - that I just noticed now -
When he's (Keanu Reeves) in Central Beijing, all the Chinese demonstrators are wearing medical maks
just like they are right now because of SARS. :?
:wink:
hmmm, you what'd be cool? if there was some sort of contest here on this site, and whoever won it would get to be like an extra walking around in the backround of the movie! :D
muhaha.. if i won id wear a t-shirt with my flag on it! ^_^
So funny. You scoff at Lucas as if he is a washed up wannabe director. As if his movies are all hailed as some of the greatest sci-fi works of all time.
3) Phantom Menace
10) Star Wars IV
15) Clone Wars
3 of his movies in the top 15 for most money made ever
(the other two were 18 and 21) (source, www.worldwideboxoffice.com, note that those figures are world wide, domestically StarWars IV is #2 and Phantom Menace #4)
You may find his movies crappy, but from the looks of it the rest of the world doesn't.
And any negative things, such as whats presented in the book will not be aloud by these companies. Plain and simple. Every person in that company might like it, but it would portray a negative image of the company and it wouldn't be allowed. Unless maybe they paid for like damages or something. And no one here has that many millions of dollars. So yeah, either rename or don't make the movie...
Sorry for getting all of topic and I know I'm biased, I've always loved starwars. I think clone wars had a lot better character devolpement than the previous one. I'd have agreed with the quote about his no char dev. a year or two back when I hadn't seen the more recent one. But I think half of the movie could have had better sets and graphics or he could have shown them off, but instead he took more time revolving around character. Agreeably there is alot of eyecandy, but thats just one more thing that makes star wars star wars :P
West Siders
10-06-2003, 18:02
this is what I have heard/seen:
Jennifer Government is an adaptation of the satiric novel from Max Barry about American consumerism. In a future where you can claim your employer as your identity, Hack Nike refuses to shoot teenagers as part of an ad campaign and is soon pursued by a crazed agent named Jennifer Government. Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney will produce through Section Eight.
Here's some info on the movie you might find useful. It comes from the Hollywood Stock Exchange (another online game site--someone there hooked a bunch of us to come over here, so maybe this is my way of returning the favor.) :)
http://movies.hsx.com/servlet/SecurityDetail?symbol=JEGOV
this game looks incredible
i agree. ive started playing HSX.
Catholic Europe
17-07-2003, 10:42
Are they actually going to do the movie...or is it just rumour? Sorry if this seems a silly question, or one that has been answered! :oops:
I do not understand why they would be having problems with the major corps listed, in using their names on screen in a gaf. The solution to obtaining their permission is very simple; having 10 years in network affiliate broadcasting, sales, promotions. ;)
Should they really hit a terrible snag, i am sure the admin; if needed, can provide my contact information to provide the simple, legal solution. :)
Ciao.
Syskeyia
05-08-2003, 20:43
Just 1 comment about the novie...
If they do make it, I'd love it if they'd put in a few NationStates "Easter Eggs," like someone reading a book about the Amerigan Slaver War, or in somebody's office is an Elvish Poster with Lady Sirithil nos Feanor saying, in Evlish "I want YOU" for the Mornahasse (sp?).
No big plot changes, just little things like that.
And no, I have not read the book.
God bless,
The Republic of Syskeyia
The Most Glorious Hack
06-08-2003, 06:06
That would certainly be amusing.
I suppose it depends on A) how much Max keeps up with NS, and B) how much creative control Max has over the movie.
If he's just signed off the rights, and isn't even part of the screen-play team, I doubt such things will happen.
Unless one of the writers or producers is a big fan of the site...
Personally, what I would like is if the scene towards the beginning where Violet's trying to work and Hack's freaking out shows Violet managing her nation.
TJHairball
09-08-2003, 19:31
Oooh, yes, NS "Easter Eggs" in the film would be fun to catch... couldn't be too many of them, though.
What am I saying? Actually, quite a few subtle ones could be snuck in :lol:
...although I honestly doubt we'll see that happen.
They had tons of real corporations in Minority Report. And with all that obnoxious advertising, from wall panels that speak directly to you to animated cereal box cartoons, how could that not be negative depiction? :wink:
Jennifer Government could definitely have all the companies mentioned in the book as long as they get permission. Sure, Clooney and Soderbergh may not have as much influence as Spielberg, but it's certainly possible.
who is Jennifer(i'm new)
I gotta say, I was just looking through the posts and I cracked up when seeing this..
As they are now an ex nation. Ok, you think im nuts..let me elaborate!
you could look at it in the way that her stupid question led to the downfall of herself...(post hoc ergo propter hoc)
*sighs*
digging myself into a hole here. I should probably just stop