This is topic Tomb Raider problems in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.
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Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 06-10-2001, 12:25 AM:
This is interesting (from filmforce):
New score composers, new film editors - what's going on here?
by Paul Davidson
2001-06-01
We reported here not long ago that the Tomb Raider movie, still in post-production, had had a sudden change of composers for the film score. Without any explanation, Michael Kamen was replaced with Graeme Revell, who had barely a week and a half to pen the entire soundtrack for the film.
Now, according to a report yesterday at Coming Soon, yet another major crew change has been made only a month and a half before the film's domestic release. The latest upheavel is the result of the rough film cut that was shown to Paramount some weeks ago. Apparently, reactions to the rough edit were not very positive.
"[Director] Simon West turned in a terrible edit, virtually unwatchable and a sure bomb. So the studio took the film away from him and gave it to an editor (not sure of his name) to completely re-cut. It's changed so much that they are completely re-doing the score, and bleeding money in round-the-clock overtime in order to get the film finished in time."
Yikes, with all the hype being built up as this summer's big action-adventure blockbuster, it's no wonder the studio is scrambling to prevent the latest blockbuster-bomb catastrophe. This also explains why a new composer (Revell) was called in to re-write the score.
A new report today from Dark Horizons sheds more light on the issue. It confirms that Paramount was unhappy with Simon West's finished product and brought in editor Stuart Baird (Mission: Impossible 2, Maverick, Die Hard 2) to re-edit the film and save the project. A new cut was shown to the studio last Thursday, and met with much greater approval. Baird's talents were apparently called into play in a similar manner during the production of Mission: Impossible 2.
Posted by Matt Elzie (Member # 877) on 06-10-2001, 05:12 AM:
Fascinating.
I have to admit, I had very little intrest in this particular film, at least from what I saw in the trailers. I wonder what exactly constitutes "a terrible edit, virtually unwatchable and a sure bomb." to Paramount, a bloodsucking, money grubbing, atrtistic quashing, demographics whore (a.k.a. - a major motion picture studio).
Their decision may have very possibly (considering what else Simon West has directed) just been based on common sense, and the movie may really have sucked. Or, just as possibly, the studio could have decided that the film took too many risks, or didn't appeal to the lowest common denominator enough, or showed too much originality. As a director, I feel that editing plays a tremendous part in the creation of a movie. In my opinion, you cannot truly direct a film unless you edit it as well; it's shocking how much a film can change during the editing process. To me, the fact that West did his own editing for the first incarnation of the movie, says that he had a very specific idea of the final, completed film. Whether or not his edit would be any better or worse than the current edit is negligible. In any case, I'd like to see how his version differs from the final release. I may never know. At least until the director's cut is out on dvd. 
Posted by Jesse Skeen (Member # 586) on 06-10-2001, 06:01 AM:
I'm still waiting for them to make "Pong: The Motion Picture"
Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 06-11-2001, 09:07 PM:
Videogame to movie translations have always sucked a remarkable amount of ass. Tomb Raider will be no different. Am I the only one who finds Angelina Jolie weird looking? Sure, she has big boobs and nice skin (until you see the tattoos) but what other good features does she have? None! Her face is butt ugly. Ah well. I guess that's what happens when Jon Voight is your dad.Final Fantasy might be a good video game to movie translation, but only because the movie has absolutely nothing in the world to do with the game.
Posted by Jesse Skeen (Member # 586) on 06-12-2001, 05:10 AM:
"Super Mario Brothers" is a work of cinematic greatness. It even inspired a porn video called "Super Hornio Brothers", starring Ron Jeremy as the Mario character.
And yes, I AM being sarcastic 
Posted by John Scott (Member # 520) on 06-12-2001, 09:57 AM:
Apparently, Simon West is considering going the Alan Smithee route.
Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 06-12-2001, 06:34 PM:
Uh-h-h-h, Joe...... OK, she's no Sandra Bullock, but I wouldn't call her "butt ugly!"
Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 06-12-2001, 07:22 PM:
Lara Croft, being from a cartoon/video game , she is meant to be of "fantastical" proportions. This doesn't translate to real life very well. She looks positively DEFORMED.Just the same as as a Barbie doll... if she was a real person she'd have something like a 50 inch bust and a 15 inch waist!
I just don't see how this movie can be any good. It is a rare movie, indeed, that has undergone such post-production tinkering and has turned out to be any good.
Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 06-12-2001, 08:38 PM:
I'll admit that Jolie certainly looks better in Tomb Raider than in other movies, but I just can't get the image of "Gone in 60 Seconds" out of my mind. She was very butt ugly in that movie, ya gotta admit! It's almost as if they found a way to make her lips look even bigger! Oh well, to each their own.
Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 06-12-2001, 10:59 PM:
Yes! She certainly has that Tina Turner/Mick Jagger gene! 
Posted by Charles Everett (Member # 889) on 06-14-2001, 06:42 PM:
Problems? What problems? 
The Loews megaplex near me opens Tomb Raider on 4 screens and Atlantis on 2. I see a $40M-$50M opening for Tomb Raider and maybe half that for Atlantis.
However, Atlantis will definitely do better than Pearl Harbor
Posted by Bill Dunphy (Member # 730) on 06-14-2001, 07:52 PM:
Test screenings for any feature film will most likely result in changes to the film depending on how the test audience reacts. Major crew changes in post-production are not a good sign either it usually means something is severely wrong with the film..I was on the Paramount lot the day they had the screening for Tomb Raider. Shortly after the screening had ended, I was near the Studio Theatre and several people from the test audience were discussing what they had seen. Overall they seemed to like it, the average age seemed to be around 17-21 and they had just seen at the Studio Theatre at Paramount so their opinion may be skewed a little.
I agree that most video games turned into motion pictures are not such a hot idea, Tomb Raider will probably have a solide two week run then drop off quite fast.
Has anyone been to a test screening for a major motion picture?
If you have what was your experience like?
Did you see any noticable changes in the film when it was released?
Bill
Not all of this Summer's films will be blockbusters you need some "filler" as well.
Posted by Mike Heenan (Member # 392) on 06-14-2001, 08:49 PM:
A friend of mine saw the workprint screening of Armageddon, and said it was at least 20 minutes longer, of which Im sure alot of the deleted scenes didnt make it to the dvd.
Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 06-14-2001, 09:50 PM:
I was at a screening of Independance Day (ID4) a few months before it opened. I worked at the theater that was playing it, so I just wandered into the near-full auditorium. A rep from the studio was there talking about it. The movie was longer than the release, and had filler music from Apollo 13. I then saw another cut before it was released. I had a different ending (slightly) and this time had original music (worse than the Apollo 13 music). When it was finally released they changed the ending back to the first one and kept the crappy music.I've run a lot of other test screenings. Die Hard 3, Wild Bill, Hope Floats, and a few others I don't remember.
Posted by Christopher Duvall (Member # 284) on 06-15-2001, 05:47 AM:
My theatre just started running test screenings and from what I understand we will be running alot from now on for the Vegas area. In January, we ran an un-named animation from the Mouse House for next summer and it received very favorable reviews. That movie was about 30% complete and still had quite a bit pencil sketch animation and an unmarried print with the sound on huge mag reels. Roy Disney showed up for this one.The most recent one was just this last May for Rollerball. Mixed reactions. This print was about 70% complete and unmarried. The soundtrack was on hard drives. The director, John McTiernan was there for that one.
Unfortunately, I am not allowed to say anything about these until after the fact. However, I will post when I have another...
BTW, has anybody ran unmarried prints before?
------------------
Chris Duvall
General Manager
Regal Cinemas Colonnade14
Las Vegas, NV
Posted by Mike Heenan (Member # 392) on 06-15-2001, 11:03 PM:
Hi guys, found this link from aintitcool, its pretty funny with the directors reaction. Also has a horrible story of the "teenage projectionist" tearing down the print, though it probably deserved it http://www.filmjerk.com/010613.html .