|
Kevin Smith is back to his old tricks again. Smith recently admitted that he loves to drop hints of news in various different places [1] to see who picks up on them and he's done it again, two times. First up, Smith tweeted that we could have a chance to see his independent thriller Red State on Labor Day, weeks before it's regularly scheduled October 19 release date. He also told NHL.com that he plans on releasing the script for Hit Somebody in advance of the film actually being finished. We explain, and speculate about, both after the break.
Thanks to Bleeding Cool [2] for the heads up on both of these stories. Here's our spin.
First of all, Smith said the following [3] regarding Red State:
Via @bdkreviews “any word on RedState coming out earlier than October?” What’re you doing Labor Day weekend? Details this month…
So what could that possibly mean? In the past, Smith has teased a smaller version of his Red State USA Tour, which had pricey tickets and lengthy Q&A's, so maybe that's what he's referring to. Smaller runs of the film, less personal with lower ticket prices. He's even got specific and said he might be playing multiple dates at the New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles, CA. [Attempts to contact's Smith's camp have been unsuccessful as of press time]. Or, maybe, he's jumping onto a Premium Video On Demand bandwagon and will make the film available that way for a limited time. This is just pure speculation, of course, but chances are it's one or the other.
Next up, Smith has already released two chunks of his Hit Somebody script on his blog (you can read those here [4] and here [5]) so the fact that he's thinking of releasing that script early isn't all that surprising. Here's what he said in the interview with NHL.com [6]:
I have a new plan for Hit Somebody. I’m going to publish the script way before I make the movie. It’s so much more difficult to explain your intentions to people or to open up your head and let them see what the plan is or how you connect the dots. It’s so much easier to just say here and cut to the chase. So much of film, if you’re a writer or director, is predicated on keeping it secret. It’s my currency, right?
But … it feels stupid to be working on something in the dark that you just want to share. The only reason we do it is because we want people to see it, want people to share in the feeling, the emotion.
That's incredibly confident and could go one of two ways. If it's well-received, it could help get investors interested in the film and maybe bring other actors on board. Leaking scripts in the past hasn't hurt Quentin Tarantino, so maybe it helps Smith. The flip side, if people don't dig the script, is that it could turn people off from heading to the theater to see how it turned out. It's a huge calculated risk. I've found that reading a great script and then seeing the movie after it is like reading a book and then seeing a better version of the book on screen. Obviously, that's what Smith intends.
Bleeding Cool also points out that, in that same interview, Smith once again says he's hoping [7] for Matt Damon and Ben Affleck to appear in Hit Somebody, but he now mentions their roles:
In my head, both of those dudes are on the Boston team Buddy gets traded to.
What are your thoughts on these latest Smith happenings?
[1] http://www.slashfilm.com/kevin-smith-cast-colin-hanks-hit-somebody-twitter/
[2] http://www.bleedingcool.com/2011/06/01/kevin-smith-moving-release-of-red-state-forward-planning-to-publish-script-of-hit-somebody-before-shooting-the-movie
[3] http://twitter.com/#!/ThatKevinSmith/status/75949432373387264
[4] http://www.slashfilm.com/kevin-smith-publishes-scene-hit/
[5] http://www.slashfilm.com/read-scene-kevin-smiths-hit-somebody-bid-props-films/
[6] http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=564018
[7] http://www.slashfilm.com/kevin-smith-bring-ben-affleck-matt-damon-hit-somebody/
source: |
