The Lovecraft Challenge: Sell me/pitch your Cthulhu Mythos movie.

[Whiskey Tango]

I dig Lovecraft. A lot. I got hooked on his stories after I played my first Call of Cthulhu game back in the late 80's, and I've been a fan ever since.

But one thing every Cthulhu nerd lacks is a stack of kickass movies to worship. Granted, various peeps have tried over the years, but the results have been almost universally butt-awful. The Great Old Ones hate film, apparently.

Granted, many of Lovecraft's stories don't translate well to film. There are no badass action heroes anywhere in sight, unless badass = scholar who can decipher old languages. And happy endings are...well, you know how those work out.

In other words, not the kind of stuff most people like to see when they rent a movie.

But...lets say you had $150 million bucks to spend, and you REALLYREALLY wanted to see a Lovecraft story on the big screen, the little people (normal moviegoers) be damned.

What story would you pick, and why?

Cast?

Director?

Why would your flick be awesome?

DISCLAIMER: I know I'm targeting a very small audience with this thread, but I've been thinking about it all day. I don't expect many responses, so forgive me if I bump it a time or two before it fades into obscurity.

 

[Flexo]

Guillermo del Toro want to make At the Mountains of Madness.

Wouldn't that be the greatest ****ing thing ever?

For starts, we'd finally see a Lovecraft movie being handled by a true professional that not only understands the material, but how to make a good movie.

Second off, Ron Perlman would be in it, so there's a guarantee that the movie would be badass.

Plus, Latino Review gave its script a very positive review. Sadly, I doubt he'll ever get to make the movie. I mean, a sixty million dollar horror movie that relies almost exclusively on atmosphere instead of visuals/action that has no love story? How would you even approach a studio with an idea like that?

 

[Mr. Socko]

Del Toro has his own production company in Mexico, so if it's just at a 6 mil budget, he could probably fund it or co-fund it himself at the least.

 

[Flexo]

Del Toro has his own production company in Mexico, so if it's just at a 6 mil budget, he could probably fund it or co-fund it himself at the least.

No man, not 6 million, 60 million.

Besides that, he'd need to get the movie rights to the story, which're probably already owned by one of the major studios.

 

[Mr. Socko]

Whoops, I read that wrong.


But if a studio owned the rights, they'd probably be interested in getting it filmed right

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Guillermo del Toro want to make At the Mountains of Madness.

Wouldn't that be the greatest ****ing thing ever?

It would be damn close.

For starts, we'd finally see a Lovecraft movie being handled by a true professional that not only understands the material, but how to make a good movie.

Agreed, but he would also need enough studio pull to ensure that it doesn't get FOX'ed into eternal lameness.

Second off, Ron Perlman would be in it, so there's a guarantee that the movie would be badass.

Perlman, like drugs, makes everything better.

Plus, Latino Review gave its script a very positive review. Sadly, I doubt he'll ever get to make the movie. I mean, a sixty million dollar horror movie that relies almost exclusively on atmosphere instead of visuals/action that has no love story? How would you even approach a studio with an idea like that?

That's the rub. You can't count on Hollywood suits being able to read, much less sign off on a story that doesn't have massive gore or teen boobage. Pitch them a script for The Dunwich Horror and watch 'em as they get confused.

At least I'm not alone, you've given me that much.

 

[Flexo]

Whoops, I read that wrong.


But if a studio owned the rights, they'd probably be interested in getting it filmed right

GdT's been pushing for years to get the movie made. The studios just feel that his vision won't bring in lots of cash, since it doesn't follow the typical horror movie formula. He'd probaby make some progress if he'd make some concessions, like adding a love interest, but he's adament about staying true to Lovecraft's intentions.

 

[Flexo]

Here's the script review.
http://latinoreview.com/scriptreview.php?id=43

If I may shed some hope on our situation, del Toro's critical and financial success with Pan's Labyrinth may provide him with some clout. It shows that an unconventional movie can make a large profit, the studios just need to lay off a little.

Del Toro has mentioned that he wants to make a ATMOM trailer to convince the studios what a good idea he has. So, if everything plays out right, one day he'll get the chance to make it. I'm certain that if he gets enough grip to make a trailer, the footage would convince the studio to give him the green light.

I guess his biggest problem is actually time. He's got the Hellboy series to worry about, several Mexican/Spanish films to do, multiple producing jobs, Tarzan, and tons of other things. He may want to do a Lovecraft movie, but the guy's booked years into the future.