Liberal Hollywood fights over patriotic war book
Tons of you are reading “Lone Survivor,” the NYTimes best-seller I’ve spotlighted here and here. Now, there’s this incredible news from Hollywood gossip columnist Nikki Finke. Tinseltown wants to make a movie out of the book:
I hear there’s a frenzied Hollywood bidding war going on today over the No. 1 book on The New York Times non-fiction bestseller list: Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes Of SEAL Team 10 by Marcus Luttrell. Studio toppers are interrupting their vacations to try to get this book which was sold to Little Brown by superagent Ed Victor for a seven figure advance. How interesting that liberal Hollywood is hot for this patriotic tell-all by a proud conservative.
Hey, it’s about damned time.
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Trackbacks
- Bill's Bites
- Tammi's World
- Michelle Malkin » Hollywood’s war on the war
- Michelle Malkin » Meet Marcus Luttrell
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Categories: Hollyweird
Mudville Gazette
» The five-year plan
Legal Insurrection
» Is "Finish the Job" the New "Peace With Honor"?Sister Toldjah
» WaPo and NYT to Obama: We love ya, you stylish deep thinkerPundit & Pundette
» Hiding the decline: Deniers made them do itPower Line
» More From the East Anglia ArchivesFounding Bloggers
» Did The New York Times Just Tell Glenn Reynolds To “STFU”?Riehl World View
» Google Refuses To Remove Michelle Obama Image
What it is – is dollar signs.
It’s obvious to anyone who opens their eyes that stories like this one – true heros and positive tales of America and Americans – that people want to see and hear about.
But yet, Hollywood keeps putting out their anti-American BS wherever they can to bolster the overwhelming ideology of that town.
It’ll be interesting to hear what the left will say about this movie – that it’s propaganda? War-mongering?
They love being patriotic until the instant it stops making money hand over fist.
Then it’s “you all suck be we’re cool” all over again…
Be careful here. Hollywood may turn the story around to reflect the futility of a senseless war for oil.
I don’t have much hope for the Hollywood version of this book. Either someone’s bidding on it to keep it from becoming a movie (maybe do some tricks like riddle the set with problems and a director no one wants to work with, to keep it out of public eye). Or they will probably do something like change the name to the “Good Jihadist” and it really be a story about the guy that nursed Luttrell back to health. Make it look like Jihadist are good people out to help America.
Call me pessimistic, but I’m not holding my breath.
I would just hope that whomever he sells the rights to that he get in writing that no changes be made to the story otherwise we end up with them all dying for a Bush lie. I can see it now as they are dying they are cursing George Bush and hating America.
Fortunately as the author, Luttrell holds a lot of script power, since it’s his IP.
Damn those warmongers and their evil inspiring stories or bravery! There is no bravery in these wars for oil!
/idiot
You took the words right out of my mouth. Since when does Hollywood do a movie that follows a book? Did you see what Hollywood did to Christ?
Books are always better – always.
But “We Were Soldiers” and “Blackhawk Down” were fairly close…
Because they were books. Authors have WAY more power than writers.
Somehow I think they’ll blame Halliburton for the lives lost on this mission.
Yep, not a bad job.
Still, paint me skeptical – sorry.
Every so often – even the most entrenched nancy-boy blowhards have to admit what real men are like…
IP?
The book is Luttrell’s property but the script isn’t. Unless he specifies that he keeps control of the slant of the movie they can adapt it pretty much anyway they want.
How much power the author has all depends on the deal they make with the studio. Luttrell is not going to have the same power as Rowling does with the Potter films.
My prediction, they’ll throw all the Bush bashing and anti-American crap into the film and pass it off as either making a film with a balanced point of view or as a way of putting Luttrell’s story into the context of the times.
Regardless of how big or small they will find a way to take a shot at Bush and the U.S. in the film
Let’s hope they don’t do to “Lone Survivor” what Werner Herzog did to Gene DeBruin in “Rescue Dawn”.
http://rescuedawnthetruth.com/
I really liked that movie and now I’m just disgusted with it. I hope they don’t sell a single DVD.
The show “24″ has been highly successful because it was more or less a patriotic show. Apparently, this next season, they are going to push political correctness to the limit with a female president (read Hillary) and a global warming plot (read Gore). My prediction is that this will begin the demise for “24″ — although they probably don’t care.
You just have to wonder if any book, no matter how patriotic and positive for America, can survive the schemes of the hollywood left. I can see it now, by the third sequel, everything that was good and patriotic will be bad and unpatriotic. The first run will be neutral. The second a little to the left. The third will be all the way left.
#13 & #14
You think the former SEAL is going to go for that? I suspect he’d ratehr it not be a movie than let it get slanted.
When money talks, nobody in Hollywood criticizes its political orientation. However, the slant of the movie will depend on how much leeway Luttrell contractually gives the script doctors. If they alter it enough, word will get out and the film will tank, just like the one about Daniel Pearl that tried to justify jihad.
Depends on who produces and directs. My prediction is that the scope will be narrow, will stick to the survival story, only providing the minimal amount of details for context. Much like Rescue Dawn, which practically had zero context. You basically ‘met’ Dieter Dangler in the opening scene or two, and then he crashes and the survival story begins. The movie is still out and they did a great job with it. Two stand out pro-American scenes. Go see it if you have not already.
“My prediction is that this will begin the demise for “24″ — ”
100% agreement – none of the loyal viewers of that show want to see that type of drivel coming from such a great program.
They will learn that lesson the hard way.
pedro4 said:
Be careful here. Hollywood may turn the story around to reflect the futility of a senseless war for oil.
Oh, you bettcha, ya! Luttrell had better get a good lawyer and make sure he (Luttrell) has ALL say in this venture. And NO friggin’ Sean Penn, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, actor in the lead either.
Despite the MSM’s free publicity for the left-leaning Hollywood hogwash, it boils down to money.
Now if the right folks hire the screenwriters, this could be a good show.
This is great news. Let’s just hope Hollywierd does him justice.
Chuck Norris is too old….Steven Seagal is too and doesn’t fit the mold….
How about ‘The Rock’ ?
What a sad indication it is that this was the immediate thought that came to my mind.
I’d love to be wrong here; and swj719AWG’s post #9 offers some reason for hope.
As for “24,” I think that program’s already jumped the shark. I’ve watched every season so far, but have noticed that after the first season the plots always seem to orbit around WMDs on American soil.
That, and although any good work of fiction relies on the “suspension of disbelief,” if pushed too far it can fail the, “Aw, c’mon!!” test: And 24 has been doing a lot of that (e.g., terrorists with preternatural abilities to anticipate CTU’s next move and to penetrate CTU security to blow up/gas/shoot up the place).
So we’ll see about next season. At least it appears to be breaking out of the WMD pattern… but I’m not optimistic.
I was thinking the same thing. They did it to Tom Clancy after all. At best they are going to tone down the overall patriotic feel of the book (i.e. more “he did it for his buddies” than “he did it for his buddies AND his country”), at worst they will have moonbat characters spouting anti-war/anti-Bush sentiments so that the writers/director/actors can save their social standing. Or, have Luttrell fight Russian mobsters and white supremacists in Kentucky instead of Al-Qaeda guys.
Can Luttrell play himself? He’s pretty cute.
Greenfaire, “he did it for his buddies” and “he did it for his buddies AND his country” are the same thing, in my mind…
I would suspect they are the same in the mind of every SpecOps guy out there…
lmao Doppel. I’ll take your word for that…
Couldn’t agree more with the negative comments about Hollywood.
To any of you who don’t have a copy of the book yet: Check out Namvet George Mellinger’s review here then hurry up and order a copy.
With Hollywood making Luttrell’s story, the Taliban could turn out to be the good guys. This is the same Hollywood that turned psycho spree-killing bank robbers like Bonnie & Clyde into heroes.
I agree that Luttrell needs to insure he keeps creative control. Otherwise it’s just another Starship Troopers.
You have refferanced That Which Was Butchered…
You will now say 5 Hail Heinlein’s…
Add DiCaprio to that list too please…
Ya know, after the Bourn trio of movies, I actually wouldn’t mind Damon…
It’ll never get made. They’ll buy the rights to it and then shelf it. Or they’ll change it up to fit their spin.
Outside of Stallone, Governator, and Die Hard Willis, it is pretty slim pickings.
Hollywood supported the effort in WW II, and it would be nice if even a smidgen of that patriotism existed today.
http://blacktygrrrr.wordpress.com/2007/07/14/war-is-for-tough-guys-bring-on-the-80s-rock-music/
Respectfully,
eric
One word of warning: script.
It is very important that when he sells the rights he maintain some control over the final form of the script. Otherwise, Hollywood will buy the rights then manipulate and mangle the story into some manifestation of anti American incompetence (at best) and malignance.
Sean Penn is brilliant…. dont y’all remember when he took his boat in the flood ravaged city of New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. He went to save the people trapped on roof tops in his 4 man boat.Well he had to go makes 1… he needed a reporter in the boat … makes 2… he also needed someone to take his picture..makes 3..always room for a 4th.. He could have saved 1 at a time he he didnt forget to put in the drain plug…that was classic
I have over sixty military books and Manuels. (Marine vet) I consider “Lone Survivor” in the top five. If you don’t have it you should!
Just finished the book. The respect and love I hold for our military increased by several orders of magnitude.
If Hollywood can make this into a movie without butchering it, I nominate Matt McConaghey for the role of Luttrell. Texan and most physically fit.
Robert Baer. Former CIA and FNC contributor. He wrote a book, then George Clooney got a hold of it, the whole story was turned around, and we wound up with “Syriana”. ExxonMobil is Al Queda, or something. This story is too compelling to let that happen. I need to get that book!
Hmmm, how will Hollywood write the screenplay?
Knowing the penchant for America-hating among the moguls, I can think of several ways they can turn this story of America’s finest brave men and patriots into something smarmy.
Alternative 1:
Seal Team 10 has gone rogue and was torturing little kids in the village and the brave Taliban Freedom Fighter Patriots attacked to protect the little Cheeeldreen from the evil-doers. The TFFP’s took no casualties.
Alternative 2:
In a tangled web of intrigue, Seal Team 10 was sent by BOOOSH to secure and build an oil pipeline through Afghanistan so that Cheney could make hundreds of millions of dollars in oil profits.
When the Team refuses to destroy a village and its inhabitants that straddle the pipeline route, the evil oil companies executives back-stab them by telling the Taliban where they are held up.
Alternative 3:
A rogue CIA agent is trying to corner the opium market in Afghanistan. He tricks Seal Team 10 into thinking they are on a rescue mission for the agent’s son. There is no son, and the CIA agent discloses the whereabouts of the Team, enabling the Taliban to ambush the Team. While the Taliban are busy slaughtering the Team, the CIA agent steals 10000 tons of opium and flies it out of the country in an old DC-3.
Alternative 4:
It’s a comedy! The wacky incompetent leader of Seal Team 10 gets lost in the mountains. His XO, his loyal Chief Petty Officer, suffers from dyslexia and can’t read maps and gets them further lost in the rugged mountains of Afghanistan. The rest of the Team are goofballs who are also running an illegal craps game while scrounging supplies and molesting the wimmen (who all naturally love our American hunkys). When the Taliban chief’s daughter is caught making nookey-nookey with the Team leader, he orders the entire team killed. In a brilliant stratagem, concocted out of raw necessity, the Team fools the Taliban into thinking that all but one were killed. The Navy hears that the Team is all dead and writes them off.
Then the fun begins when the team goes to the base laundry and finds that their uniforms have been turned into rags to be used in the Chaplain’s kids car wash benefit. In a series of chase scenes and zany adventures, the Team finally gets their uniforms back, but find that their base housing was reclaimed and the movie closes on their planning on what to do about it in the sequel movie.
Alternative 5:
Seal Team 10 leader, Lt Cmdr Joe Montague and the Taliban chief’s daughter, Jasmine Capulet, fall in love after a chance meeting in the mountains and run away together with the Team covering their escape. The chief, Lord Capulet, orders his men to hunt down and capture Joe and rescue his daughter. Rather than see the two young lovers die (or be separated, a fate worse than death), the Team fights to the bitter end and all but one dies (that one to bear witness as to what happened). Rather than be separated, Joe and Jasmine take poison; and as they pass into eternal sleep they vow eternal love. Hmmm, this sounds familiar. Where have I seen this before?
The one thing I think we can count on is that the final story will have littel relationship to the truth.
I think Jim Caviezel (a conservative Catholic best known for playing Christ in The Passion of The Christ) would be wonderful as Marcus Luttrell. He also played a would-be SEAL in GI Jane, but I won’t hold that against him.