Ron Howard's Drought

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  • Ron Howard's Drought

    Watched In the Heart of the Sea. Dude, can ANYONE remember the last Ron Howard movie?
    "There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."
    -Maya Angelou

  • #2
    Re: Ron Howard's Drought

    Didn't see it but heard mostly praise for Rush.

    Howard's always been a Capra-esque workman director. Spielberg-lite, for better or worse. Served him well on a film like Apollo 13. I don't know if he's the guy for a bleaker survival story like Heart of the Sea where the ending, presumably, isn't all swelling music and triumph of the crew

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    • #3
      Re: Ron Howard's Drought

      I thought Frost/Nixon (2008) was really good. Almost forgot he directed it.
      "No man gives me a crown. I pay the iron price... I will take my crown." -- Balon Greyjoy

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      • #4
        Re: Ron Howard's Drought

        It was OK. Theme was dull -- "Don't mess with whales?" It felt like "Alive" on water. But generally speaking, adventure films set entirely in one bland landscape don't do very well. Just look at John Carter, Lone Ranger, Waterworld, Master & Commander. Basically, visually one note westerns or sea adventures.
        I'm never wrong. Reality is just stubborn.

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        • #5
          Re: Ron Howard's Drought

          Originally posted by JoeBanks View Post
          Didn't see it but heard mostly praise for Rush.

          Howard's always been a Capra-esque workman director. Spielberg-lite, for better or worse. Served him well on a film like Apollo 13. I don't know if he's the guy for a bleaker survival story like Heart of the Sea where the ending, presumably, isn't all swelling music and triumph of the crew
          Yeah. Commercial friendly, seldom edgy, and that sometimes comes across as bland. It worked during the 90s, when technologies and new ways of directing could spice up that kind of thing. Not so much now. But I enjoyed APOLLO 13 and (although many here hated it) A BEAUTIFUL MIND.
          "I ask every producer I meet if they need TV specs they say yeah. They all want a 40 inch display that's 1080p and 120Hz. So, I quit my job at the West Hollywood Best Buy."
          - Screenwriting Friend

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          • #6
            Re: Ron Howard's Drought

            RUSH is ****ing great. Super underrated.

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            • #7
              Re: Ron Howard's Drought

              What ihavebiglips said.

              RUSH has an amazing narrative strategy: Show the rivalry between the two biggest legends of formula one ... as a race!

              Great character development (SPOILER: Niki Lauda changing, James Hunt being unable to change and getting destroyed by it).

              All in all a great story about friendship.

              Here's an interview with screenwriter Peter Morgan about the script: http://www.scriptmag.com/features/sc...morgan-on-rush

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              • #8
                Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                For most of his career, I had little interest in what others accurately describe as RH's workmanline filmmaking. But it seems to me that recent films like 'Frost/Nixon' and 'Rush', both written by UK playwright-turned-screenwriter Peter Morgan are on a much higher level than that of most of his earlier films except for 'Apollo 13' - the credit for which I believes accrues to John Sayles' last-minute page-one rewrite rather than Howard's direction. Since he's neither a writer nor a visual virtuoso, the quality of his work seems very much related to the quality of the script.

                Also - I've heard from those who have dealt with him that he's one of the best people in the business re integrity - something to admire in such a cutthroat business.

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                • #9
                  Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                  Originally posted by Captain Nemo View Post
                  Also - I've heard from those who have dealt with him that he's one of the best people in the business re integrity - something to admire in such a cutthroat business.
                  This above all else, IMHO. Ron Howard's track record is extensive, noteworthy, praiseworthy, and an award-winning one. Who can say anything negative about that? Who would want to do so? And as for a drought, well, who's to say the man is only taking a hard-earned break from it all?
                  “Nothing is what rocks dream about” ― Aristotle

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                  • #10
                    Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                    Originally posted by FoxHound View Post
                    It was OK. Theme was dull -- "Don't mess with whales?" It felt like "Alive" on water. But generally speaking, adventure films set entirely in one bland landscape don't do very well. Just look at John Carter, Lone Ranger, Waterworld, Master & Commander. Basically, visually one note westerns or sea adventures.
                    Master and Commander? You're not kidding? That movie was great! Not only did it win 2 Oscar awards, it was nominated for them in a slew of other categories.

                    Recently I caught this movie yet again on cable. Each time watching it is as good as the first time, and everyone remembers how great was their first time, right?

                    Back on topic, though, as a Director, Ron Howard has some 38 credits, while as a Producer he owns some 84 credits. I hardly think the man has any kind of drought ongoing, although the subtext of your post might as easily have been "Ron Howard! We miss you already! When's your next movie going to be released?"
                    “Nothing is what rocks dream about” ― Aristotle

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                    • #11
                      Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                      I agree with the Howard fans. I think he's seriously underrated and don't understand all his haters. For what it's worth, I also think he seems like a really good guy and very unpretentious. But that's besides the point.

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                      • #12
                        Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                        Originally posted by TigerFang View Post
                        Master and Commander? You're not kidding? That movie was great! Not only did it win 2 Oscar awards, it was nominated for them in a slew of other categories.
                        That was 13 years ago. And it was a commercial failure. Unless you consider a profit of 30 million on a 180 million dollar budget a success. But my point wasn't that his films were bad, just that they have little commercial appeal.

                        I mean, look at the movies that make big bucks nowadays, and now look at how Heart of The Sea has nothing to do with those films. Following your heart usually means your BO numbers are gonna stink.
                        I'm never wrong. Reality is just stubborn.

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                        • #13
                          Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                          My only consideration in these instances is whether or not the film worked as a story, especially engaging me, the lone audience member, not the box office take. The film Master and Commander was a great story well told. The reason for this singular consideration of story-- independent of box office money -- is to see what kinds of stories get picked up and made. At my level of skill, box office is not my concern, just good premise and story choices, so I look for that to enhance my chances of selling a screenplay.

                          Many a great film didn't do well at the box office (It's A Wonderful Life or The Red Violin), and many a summer blockbuster is pure mediocrity and little or no substance (too many examples to list) though they may be fun movies to see.

                          Every now and then, though, something miraculous is birthed from the womb of Hollywood that satisfies both creative merit and box office take, movies such as To Kill A Mockingbird or The Revenant.

                          No one knows for certain what does or doesn't draw audiences to a film. The Shawshank Redemption, I've read, true or false, may have suffered low box office take all because of its name being too difficult for folks to remember for word of mouth play.

                          In The Heart of the Sea seems like an excellent film to me, and I'll go see it because Ron Howard is the Director. Perhaps the mistake that caused the box office fizzle was made in the Marketing Department by including the name "Moby Dick" on the poster, a story every kid knows from long ago. It could be something as small as that could turn moviegoers away thinking that the movie would be a remake of the old classic tale with a few new bells and whistles. Hindsight is always 20/20 vision, but maybe it would have been better to leave that tasty morsel of information regarding the inspiration for the movie off the poster and place it at the end of the last shot and before credits roll.
                          Last edited by Clint Hill; 01-18-2016, 09:35 AM.
                          “Nothing is what rocks dream about” ― Aristotle

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                          • #14
                            Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                            Originally posted by FoxHound View Post
                            It was OK. Theme was dull -- "Don't mess with whales?" It felt like "Alive" on water. But generally speaking, adventure films set entirely in one bland landscape don't do very well. Just look at John Carter, Lone Ranger, Waterworld, Master & Commander. Basically, visually one note westerns or sea adventures.
                            Waterworld turned a profit and is really nothing like In the Heart of the Sea. And neither are John Carter or Lone Ranger, completely different beasts and failed because they were bad films not because they were adventure films on one landscape.

                            The closest film to it would obviously be Moby Dick which didn't do too badly.

                            Recently the likes of Gravity and The Martian would be more similar, both done not too badly either

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                            • #15
                              Re: Ron Howard's Drought

                              Originally posted by Bairn_Writer View Post
                              Waterworld turned a profit and is really nothing like In the Heart of the Sea. And neither are John Carter or Lone Ranger, completely different beasts and failed because they were bad films not because they were adventure films on one landscape.
                              Than why does Transformers make money? It's 2x worse than all of those. Add Cowboys/Aliens + Sahara to the list of desert/western failures. There's something just so visually dull about these films.
                              I'm never wrong. Reality is just stubborn.

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