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Author Topic: Exodus: Is it going to be another "Noah?" Martin McCaffery Film God Posts: 2481 From: Montgomery, AL Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-10-2014 06:41 PM                        As I keep telling my audiences "Based on a true story" means fiction. Of course, as far as the Gunfight at OK Corral, Earp was pitching his version of the story to Hollywood in the 1920's. If you read his approved biography by Stuart Lake, the book is almost complete fiction. Taking liberties was never just for Hollywood story tellers.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-10-2014 06:49 PM                        I guess I don't mind them bending the source material a bit to make for a better story. After all, alot of Bible stories are really very short in the Bible, or they leave out a lot of details, so it's necessary to flesh things out a bit. But it still seems so stupid to do things that are GUARANTEED to make the audience hate the movie. Like those "rock monsters" in Noah. There's also nothing wrong with making a movie fun to look at. Special effects and biblical sources aside, the 1956 "Ten Commandments" probably owed at least half of its ticket sales to people oohing and aahing over the stars. (Who could ever get tired of looking at Anne Baxter as Nefretiri?) Getting people to talk about the movie is fine. But doing things just to antagonize them is something else. Hollywood had a great chance to rein in a gigantic crop of new moviegoers this year with all the biblical movies that were released. Unfortunately they have mostly blown it so far; none of the movies were very good. Exodus will either put the nail in the coffin, or repair the damage a little bit. I'm hoping it's the latter.  |  IP: Logged Steve Matz Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 672 From: Billings, Montana, USA Registered: Sep 2003 posted 12-10-2014 11:06 PM                     I remember seeing "The Ten Commandments" back in 1956.Of course the Special Effects for the day were pretty spectacular on the Big Screen.When Moses Parts the Red Sea, that was awesome for a little kid to see and years later when I found out it was Done on Paramount's Back Lot along with Optical work;That was hard to believe. I think the Catch Tanks they used back then are still on their Lot. When you watched a DeMille Film back in the day,you knew it was going to be spectacular in one way or another. This would be a Good Vintage Film to be redone in 3D... The illusion of the Red Sea parting was achieved by large "dump tanks" that were flooded, then the film was shown in reverse. The two frothing walls of water were created by water dumped constantly into "catch basin areas" then the foaming, churning water was visually manipulated and used sideways for the walls of water. A gelatin substance was added to the water in the tanks to give it more of a sea water consistency. Although the dump tanks have long since been removed, the catch basin section of this tank still exists today on the Paramount lot, directly in front of the exterior sky backdrop, in the central portion of the studio. It can still be flooded for water scenes, but when not being used in a production, it is an extension of a parking lot. btw: I got to meet Frasier Heston at an NRA Function where he accepted a Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of his Dad,who was too Ill to attend(advanced stages of Alzheimers) I asked him if he remembered being put in a Basket and floated down the NILE. He laughed; he was only 3 months old at the time !  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 12-11-2014 11:39 AM                        quote: Martin McCaffrey Earp was pitching his version of the story to Hollywood in the 1920's. If you read his approved biography by Stuart Lake, the book is almost complete fiction. Taking liberties was never just for Hollywood story tellers. I've just finished reading this unapproved biography, the author of which spends most of the introduction explaining how difficult it was to unpick facts from printed legends, the origin of most of the legends being Lake's book. Ironically, unpicking the legends reveals Earp to be a far more interesting and multi-dimensional character than the one portrayed in Gunfight, My Darling Clementine, etc.  |  IP: Logged Martin McCaffery Film God Posts: 2481 From: Montgomery, AL Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-11-2014 12:21 PM                        Oh, he's definitely interesting. Especially when juxtaposed against not only his legend and myths, but especially the whole Wild West myth. John Ford nailed it at the end of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance: "This is the West, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend."  |  IP: Logged Steve Matz Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 672 From: Billings, Montana, USA Registered: Sep 2003 posted 12-11-2014 09:12 PM                     I'm very skeptical of Old West History and so called Facts. I don't believe all these Super Gunfighters like Hickcock,Holiday,Ringo,etc. were the lightning Fast Icons that Books and Movies have portrayed them forever. Just the fact that John(Doc)Holiday(he was a Dentist) had TB;was a Chronic Drunk; makes me question how he would be this Elite Gunfighter when half the time he was Coughing his Lungs out from Tuberculosis and Drunk most of the Time. It reminds me of when I was in School; we had what was supposedly the Toughest Guy in your School. Never saw him Fight but you believed all the Stories because he was Muscular and looked Tough. Then one day after School he gets in a Fight with a Guy you would have Thought couldn't punch his way out of a paper bag and proceeds to beat the Shit out of Mr Tough Guy. Then the Following Day; The Whimp Guy that beat the Toughest guy in School has become someone that was everything from a Blackbelt Karate Expert to a Golden Gloves Champ, etc. all of which was untrue but made for a Good Build up. I believe most of these Old West Tales have been so embellished through the Decades from when they were first told; These Guys should be Supermen Today...  |  IP: Logged

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