Belle from Celebration, FL. writes:
Dear Jim:
Love the web-site. But you have to be kidding me? Disney’s actually talking about doing a live action movie version of “Beauty and the Beast”? I don’t care how good the Broadway musical is. Seeing live performers portray Cosgworth, Lumiere and Mrs. Potts will just ruin the original for me …
Belle,
Would it help if I told you that Disney’s animated version of “Beauty and the Beast” actually started out life as a live action project?
Strange but true. But as a follow-up to his highly acclaimed 1983 Touchstone Pictures release, “Never Cry Wolf,” director Carroll Ballard talked with Disney execs about doing a big screen version of this classic fairy tale. This project made it so far along in the studio’s development pipeline that “Beauty and the Beast” warranted a mention in the company’s 1982 annual report.
The problem – as you might well understand – was how to pull off the Beast in a live action film. Carroll reportedly didn’t want to copy Jean Cocteau’s 1946 take on this tale and just have his romantic lead slathered in make-up. So – for a time – there was actually supposed some talk about doing the Beast (at least while the character was in Beastly form) as an audio-animatronic.
However, before Ballard’s “Beauty and the Beast” made it too far along the Disney development track, there was a management change at the studio in September 1984. Suddenly Ron Miller was out & Michael Eisner was in. Consequently, any film projects that Miller had initiated just prior to his exit had to be reviewed by Eisner’s people before they could officially go forward. These folks then read through Carroll’s treatment and said “Well, I don’t know about live action. But this might make a cool animation film.”
So the new management team at Disney reportedly told Ballard “Thanks but no thanks,” then sent him packing. (Which was really kind of sad. Why? Because after his Disney deal fell through, it would be nine years before this gifted film-maker could deliver another film to the big screen: Columbia Tristar’s 1992 release, “Wind.”). They then assigned a few screenwriters the task of turning “Beauty and the Beast” into a screenplay for a feature length cartoon.
Of course, these guys ran into the same problems that Walt Disney’s team ran into in the late 1930s, and again in the late 1940s (When these guys repeatedly tried to turn the story of “Beauty and the Beast” into something that could support a full length animated feature). Which is: What do you do in Act II? When all that the girl and the beast seem to do is sit around and eat dinner. Every so often, the Beast blurts out “Will you marry me?” The girl says “No” … Which is not nearly as entertaining as watching – say – a Fairy Godmother conjuring up a pair of glass slippers (Which is why Disney ultimately decided to make “Cinderella” instead of “B & B”.)
So, from early 1985 to 1988, two different teams of writers took a whack at turning “Beauty and the Beast” into a big screen cartoon. Both failed … Which is why the project eventually end up in Linda Woolverton’s lap. Woolverton (Whose only work for the Mouse prior to this point was churning out a few scripts for “Chip ‘n Dale’s Rescue Rangers”) had written a novel that had impressed an unnamed executive at Disney Feature Animation. Which is why Linda ended up getting a shot at writing “Beauty and the Beast.”
Four drafts later, Woolverton came up with a screenplay that everyone at Walt Disney Feature Animation thought they could live with. Mind you, this was the now-legendary non-musical version of “Beauty and the Beast.” The one that then-Disney-Studio-head Jeffrey Katzenberg shut down after just 10 weeks of production. One look at the film’s leica reel convinced Katzenberg that “B & B” was still too dark, too dour, too slow.
So “Beauty & the Beast”‘s original director – animation veteran Richard Purdum was “persuaded” to step aside. Alan Menken & Howard Ashman were reluctantly (And when I say “reluctantly,” I mean “REALLY reluctantly.” These guys just didn’t want to make “Beauty & the Beast” as their follow-up to “The Little Mermaid.” They wanted to push ahead with Howard’s dream project: a big goofy Bob-Hope-and-Bing-road-picture-version of “Aladdin”) recruited to write some songs for the film …
And the rest of the story … Well, you can see for yourself next Tuesday, when the Platinum Collection edition of “Beauty and the Beast” goes on sale everywhere. Hopefully, somewhere among all those cool extra features that Disney crammed onto this DVD, they’ll make some mention of the live action version of “Beast” that Carroll Ballard wanted to make. Or – at the very least – give us a peek at those 1930s & 1940s versions of “Beauty” that Walt tried to get off the ground.
So anyway, Belle … To make a long story short (“It’s too late now!”), Disney turning “Beauty and the Beast” into a live action film isn’t really all that strange an idea. I mean, if the cards had fallen the other way, Carroll Ballard would have probably gotten a chance to make his version of “B & B.” Which undoubtedly would have been loaded with sumptuous cinematography.
So who knows? Maybe some enterprising executive at Disney Feature Animation will read this and think: “That’s what we should do! Hire Carroll Ballard to direct the live action version of ‘Beauty and the Beast’!”
Don’t laugh. This is Hollywood that we’re talking about, after all, Belle. A place where bizarre things like this happen all the time …
And speaking of bizarre Hollywood related stories, let’s go to our next letter. BigFatTom from Cleveland writes:
What’s the deal with Disneyana fans getting so excited about that “Journey to the Center of the Earth” ride over at Tokyo Disney Sea. I mean, it looks like a cool ride and all. But it’s not like Disney ever made a movie based on that Verne book.
That’s true, BigFatTom. But you might interested to know that – within the last 10 years – Disney actually came within inches of making a big budget live action version of Jules Verne’s “Journey to the Center of the Earth.”
The screenplay that I’ve seen for the project (Which – on its title page – says that film was to have been called “Walt Disney’s ‘A Journey to the Center of the Earth’) was written in September 1993 by Clifford & Ellen Green. For those of you who don’t know, the Greens are a fairly successful screenwriting team. They’re the folks who wrote “SpaceCamp,” “Three Wishes,” “The Seventh Sign” and “Bless The Child.” (Disneyana fans might know Clifford & Ellen best from their work on their 1985 ill-fated Touchstone Pictures’ release, “Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend.”)
Anyway … Jules Verne fans will no doubt be disappointed to hear that the Greens’ script wasn’t exactly a faithful adaptation. To be honest, it ditches the book’s original 18th century setting entirely and sets “Journey” in the modern world. A few memorable locations and set pieces are carried over from the novel. But, beyond that, it’s basically a brand new story.
That said, this story does start off with a bang. Disney’s “A Journey to the Center of the Earth” begins out in the Mojave Desert in the middle of the night. Scientists at the Goldstone Tracking Station think that they’re on a brink of a huge scientific break-through. Why for ? Because their enormous array of antennas are picking up what appears to be a signal from deep space.
But – as they try to get a fix on the signal – the scientists are in for a rude shock. For this beacon isn’t actually coming from outer space. It’s coming from inner space. Deep inside the center of the earth, to be precise.
Eventually, we learn that this signal – a distress beacon, to be precise – is being sent by a speleological expedition that being lead by Robby MacLachlan. Who – not-so-co-incidentally is the son of the gruff, driven billionaire J. Robert MacLachlan.
Of course, Robby and J. Robert have been estranged for a number of years. But that doesn’t Mac from quickly mounting a rescue mission. As is usually the case in films like this, the billionaire assembled a team of colorful characters to help him find his son. These include Billy Holden, a caving expert who’s looking for a big score; Dr. Caryl Wickham, a trauma specialist; Alex MacLachlan, Mac’s headstrong grandson who’s determined to go along on the expedition and help save his dad; as well as Hans, an expert rock climber that the script describes as looking “like a Norse God with the smile of an angel.”
This unlikely group of explorers journeys to Iceland. There – on the slope of Mt. Snaeffel – they follow the clues in an ancient manuscript – which directs them down a particular lava tube in the not-so-extinct volcano. From there, it’s an exciting but often treacherous trip down deep into the bowels of the earth.
I won’t lie to you, folks. There’s a reason that Disney ultimately opted not to make the Cliffords’ version of “A Journey to the Center of the Earth.” The third act of this proposed film kind of loses its way. Instead of being an epic adventure, suddenly “Journey” becomes about how greed undermines the team at a very crucial point in the plotline. And what do the explorers have to be greedy about? How about rubies the size of softballs?
But before that happens, there are some great set pieces in this script. Mac and his hand-picked team sailing across a vast subterranean sea while seated inside of an enormous upturned mushroom cap. A hellish electrical storm that sends ball lightening raining down on the explorers. Fleeting encounters with the citizens at the center of the Earth.
Which is why Disney Studio officials probably felt that “Journey” – once the Greens’ version was significantly rewritten, of course – would be a pretty safe bet for the company. A film that they could advertise as being “in the tradition of Disney’s ‘20,000 Leagues Under the Seas.'”
At the very least, the Imagineers were excited by the idea that Disney was thinking of making a movie based on Jules Verne’s “A Journey to the Center of the Earth.” Which is why WDI immediately set to work designing “Journey” – inspired rides and attractions.
“What sorts of rides?” you ask. Some of you who visited “The Walt Disney Story” at WDW’s Magic Kingdom in the early 1990s may recall seeing some intriguing artwork up in the post-show portion of that theater. It showed a giant magma worm (which reportedly was going to be the largest audio-animatronic figure that WDI ever built) rising up out of a pool of lava, snapping at passengers who were riding through a “Journey to the Center of the Earth” attraction.
Where exactly would this ride have been located at Florida? At Disney-MGM, actually. The preliminary plan was that a “Journey” – themed sequence would be added to that park’s Backstage Tram Tour. The tram would roll into a soundstage where several scenes from the “Journey” movie had allegedly been shot. You’d pass through jewel encrusted caverns, the ruins of Atlantis and then – just as you pull alongside a boiling pool of lava – the magma worm would rise up out of the muck and begin snapping at the trams full of tourists.
The idea was – by adding another big special effects filled sequence like “Catastrophe Canyon” to the Backstage Tram Tour – the Imagineers could finally get guests excited about riding this somewhat underwhelming Disney-MGM attraction again (Let’s face facts, folks: “Catastrophe Canyon” aside, rolling past facades used in the filming of “Ernest Saves Christmas” as well as rusted-out wrecks from “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” just doesn’t scream “reride.” At least to me.)
But all of this never happened. Why for? Because – in the end – Disney execs weren’t entirely certain that modern moviegoers would turn out for a film that was based on a 125 year-old novel. Which is why the studio ultimately ditched “Journey” in favor of doing a film that was based on a 43 year-old book: “Robert A. Heinlein’s The Puppet Masters.”
That this Hollywood Pictures release sank without a trace was – in a weird sort of way – actually a comfort to Disney Studio execs. If you can believe this circular bit of thinking, they actually used the failure of “Puppet Masters” to make themselves feel good about their decision to cancel production of “Journey to the Center of the Earth.”
See if you can follow this logic: “Puppet Masters” bombed at the box office NOT because it was a bad movie. But – rather – because movie-goers don’t like films that are based on science fiction books. Which is why – ultimately – it was a real good thing that Disney didn’t go ahead with production of “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” After all, that movie would have been based on a really OLD science fiction book. And everyone in Hollywood knows that people hate old books.
So everyone at Disney Studios forgot about “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” At least on the live action side of the house. Over in Feature Animation, Kirk Wise, Gary Trousdale and Don Hahn – for a short time, anyway – did toy with the idea of doing an animated version of “Journey.” Until they decided that it might be more fun to make up their own journey-to-the-center-of-the-earth story. Which is where “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” ended up coming from.
But the Imagineers … They never, ever forgot about “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” Which is why – as they were prepping the “Mysterious Island” section of Tokyo Disney Sea – someone floated the idea of folding the “Center of the Earth” mythology into Capt. Nemo’s secret base at Vulcania. Particularly the notion of guests having this far-too-close encounter with an enormous, extremely angry audio-animatronic creature.
So, yes, BigFatTom, you’re right. There was no Disney’s “Journey to the Center of the Earth” movie to serve as the inspiration for the Tokyo Disney Sea attraction. But – just like with Carroll Ballard’s proposed live action version of “Beauty and the Beast” – if the cards had fallen just a little bit differently, there could have been.
And – finally – Steve C. wrote to say:
Hi Jim,
Given your Big Idea article on Digital Media FX a while back, I was wondering if you had any thoughts or insight regarding their feature film debut this Friday, “Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie.”
Love the new site, keep up the good work!
Thanks, Steve
Okay, Long story short here, folks. I am NOT a Christian. (The joke that I usually make at this point is that I am so far from being a Christian that I’m actually in the Express Lane to Hell. Down to three virtues or less. Anyway … ) That said, I still have nothing but respect for the folks over at Big Idea.
Why? Because they make these great videos that could be preachy, but aren’t. Sure, the VeggieTales tapes (as well as 3-2-1 Penguins and the LarryBoy Cartoon Adventures) all slip in a little spiritual teaching. But it’s not in your face stuff. It’s subtle. Soft-peddled. You wanna listen and learn, that’s okay. If you just want to laugh at the silly talking vegetables, that’s okay too.
And the VeggieTale tapes ARE funny, folks. Personally, I’d put them right up there with the very best work of Jim Henson and Charles Schulz. Loaded with wit and whimsy. But plenty of heart too.
Which is why I’m heading out today to check out Big Idea’s very first feature film, “Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie.” I just can’t wait to see what the Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything do on the big screen.
I promise that I’ll be back next week with a full report on this sure-to-be fun motion picture. But, in the meantime, if you’re in need of a laugh and/or a bit of a spiritual lift this weekend, I’m betting that it would be a good idea to check out Big Idea’s “Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie.”
That’s it for today, folks. Here’s hoping that you all have a great weekend. We’ll talk again on Monday, okay? Til then, take care.
jrh