Post by jo on Jan 4, 2016 22:50:18 GMT -5
Glenn Close is doing a revival of the musical SUNSET BOULEVARD in London in April with the English National Opera.
There is talk again of a film adaptation --
filming of the live performance?
or a totally new film project?
www.standard.co.uk/goingout/theatre/glenn-closes-west-end-debut-sunset-boulevard-could-transfer-to-the-big-screen-a3147736.html
Billy Wilder's film classic is iconic. Fortunately, the musicalized version, with Andrew Lloyd Webber providing the musical score and lyrics by Chris Hampton and Don Black was a great success artistically but its stage life was cut short by the economics of the live production.
If it stars Glenn Close, who is 68 years old now, I am not sure that casting a 30-ish leading man will work. Maybe someone in his early to mid-40's as Joe Gillis will sound a little more credible. But the original story by Billy Wilder cast the female lead as someone who is about 50 and Joe as around 20 years younger.
Of course Meryl Streep ( who is 66 now) has played the middle-aged mother in Mamma Mia...so anything can happen in Hollywood
When Hugh played the role, he looked a bit too young to play the jaded Joe Gillis...He would have been ideal for the film role had the movie been made 10-15 years ago, with someone like Barbra as Gloria Swanson ( I think Barbra reads more diva, compared to Glenn even if Glenn had already done the role onstage). I had seen Glenn perform one of the numbers in a Lloyd Webber birthday tribute, and she reads more " insane" than just a fading diva. Barbra was also the first one to record the two major songs of Norma ( With One Look, As If We Never Said Goodbye) as Lloyd Webber was then courting her for any film version possibility.
Who knows what Paramount has supposedly agreed to do? Maybe all it has supposedly agreed to is to film the stage production for theatrical release?
Jo
There is talk again of a film adaptation --
filming of the live performance?
or a totally new film project?
www.standard.co.uk/goingout/theatre/glenn-closes-west-end-debut-sunset-boulevard-could-transfer-to-the-big-screen-a3147736.html
Billy Wilder's film classic is iconic. Fortunately, the musicalized version, with Andrew Lloyd Webber providing the musical score and lyrics by Chris Hampton and Don Black was a great success artistically but its stage life was cut short by the economics of the live production.
If it stars Glenn Close, who is 68 years old now, I am not sure that casting a 30-ish leading man will work. Maybe someone in his early to mid-40's as Joe Gillis will sound a little more credible. But the original story by Billy Wilder cast the female lead as someone who is about 50 and Joe as around 20 years younger.
Of course Meryl Streep ( who is 66 now) has played the middle-aged mother in Mamma Mia...so anything can happen in Hollywood
When Hugh played the role, he looked a bit too young to play the jaded Joe Gillis...He would have been ideal for the film role had the movie been made 10-15 years ago, with someone like Barbra as Gloria Swanson ( I think Barbra reads more diva, compared to Glenn even if Glenn had already done the role onstage). I had seen Glenn perform one of the numbers in a Lloyd Webber birthday tribute, and she reads more " insane" than just a fading diva. Barbra was also the first one to record the two major songs of Norma ( With One Look, As If We Never Said Goodbye) as Lloyd Webber was then courting her for any film version possibility.
Who knows what Paramount has supposedly agreed to do? Maybe all it has supposedly agreed to is to film the stage production for theatrical release?
Jo
