HOLLYWOOD – Netflix is to produce a movie that charts the behind the scenes drama of the HBO movie about the making of The Godfather: Francis & the Godfather.
In a brilliant postmodern move, Netflix studios is developing a film about the making of a HBO film about the making of The Godfather. The HBO film, Francis & the Godfather, chronicles the making of Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of Mario Puzo’s bestselling novel. The Netflix movie HBO, Francis & The Godfather will follow the way Andrew Farotte’s black list script was brought to the screen in collaboration with the filmmakers of the original Godfather movie.
A source close to the production had this to say:
We’re really excited. The Godfather stands as milestone in cinema history. One of the best films ever made. And the drama of how it was made is almost as interesting. When we heard HBO were making a film about the making of it, we couldn’t help but think, what about a film about the making of a film about the making of The Godfather? What could be more interesting than that?
Showtime has announced plans to make a film about the behind the scenes drama of the making of the Netflix film about the making of the HBO film about the making of The Godfather.
Netflix, HBO, Francis and The Godfather will be released in 2018.
Hidden Gems is brings to light little known filmic gems and rarities that have somehow managed to slip through the collective cinematic consciousness. This week The Godfather. You’re welcome.
There have been some great films made about the Mafia. Analyze That, Oscar, Billy Bathgate. It’s impossible to measure the profound effect those classics have had on the genre but way back in the early 70s, a small time director called Francis Ford Coppola was living on stale bread dipped in week old pasta sauce and attempting to make the ultimate mobster movie.
As it turned out, he accidentally ended up making the most expensive wedding video of all time but you can understand his decision to push the gangster stuff into the background. Brando turned up on set mumbling with his cheeks full of cotton wool after slicing his gums when he put a whole pie in his mouth and forgot to take it off the plate. Then they couldn’t get Redford or Nicholson to play the lead role of Michael so at the last minute Francis grabbed a random hippy called Al Pacino off the street, strategically shaved him and pushed the poor guy in front of a camera.
It’s difficult to find a review of the film online but after days of searching I found one reference in the Maryland Chronicle that describes Pacino’s performance as being like “A girl getting fingered for the first time in the back of her boyfriend’s Buick”. In hindsight that was a little unfair on Al but that one review knocked his confidence and he faded into obscurity. Rumour has it he’s now running a car rental business in the Bahamas.
Anyway, it’s well shot and the soundtrack is catchy enough. It would probably have worked better as a TV movie rather than a full-length feature and it’s a shame Coppola never got to make a sequel. If you’d like to buy a copy it’s only available on VHS but there’s a Facebook Campaign to get it released on DVD. The page only has 13 likes though so you might be waiting a while.
HOLLYWOOD – Following on from the critical and commercial success of Twixt, Tetro and Youth Without Youth, Francis Ford Coppola has turned his attention to his long gestated Apocalypse Now prequel, provisionally entitled Apocalypse ASAP.
‘We have a script, that I’m very pleased with,’ said Coppola, speaking from his vineyard and olive oil export/import business headquarters. ‘The one thing that has been holing us up has been to find a star of the caliber of Marlon Brando to play the young Kurtz. But when I saw Shia LaBeouf in Lawless I knew I had my man.’
The official studio synopsis reads:
We meet Col. Kurtz as a boy organizing orchard raids with the other children and playing in fields of gardenias. This idyll will change when the Vietnam War breaks out and – now a man and career soldier – Kurtz gets in trouble with his the brass after organising a blues/rock concert when they wanted a rock/blues concert. He becomes a Green Beret – he was ‘the oldest to hump it round that course’ – and then heads of into the jungle for larks.
Coppola has already stated that he wants Apocalypse ASAP to be lighter in tone to Apocalypse Now. ‘For instance, in Apocalypse Now, The Doors gave us this brooding disturbing soundtrack. For Apocalypse ASAP, I’ve asked One Direction to come up with something jaunty and fun,’ said Coppola.
However, Shia LaBeouf has yet to confirm his participation. In a statement issued via his agent, Mr. LaBeouf commented:
I would be very excited to work with the legendary director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, but less excited to work with the director of Dracula and The Godfather Part Three and I really don’t want to work with the director of Twixt and Jack.
Coppola seemed unperturbed by the setback.
‘I have an ace up my sleeve,’ he said pulling at his beard with both hands. ‘And his name is Hayden Christensen. Cheap my friend. Very cheap.’
Apocalypse ASAP starts filming sometime in 2014.
It has been confirmed this morning that legendary actor Al Pacino is to pose nude for the summer edition of popular skin magazine Playboy.
Pacino’s agent Rita Block filled us in on the details.
“Al did the photo session yesterday. It’s a 10 page spread that will feature him recreating some of his most famous roles. For example there’s the tango scene in Scent of a Woman, the restaurant shooting scene from The Godfather and the 8-ball Pool scene from Carlito’s Way.”
It was rumoured that Pacino would be heavily photoshopped but Block insisted no images will be altered.
Al wants them to be as natural as possible. He’s a 72 year old man and it would look silly if they airbrushed him. In fact his exact words to me were “I want the world to know exactly what an old man’s cock looks like.”
Block also revealed another famous actor has also gone nude for one of the photographs.
Let’s just say that epic scene in Heat will be even more epic!
We asked Playboy owner Hugh Hefner why he wanted Pacino in Playboy and his reply was somewhat puzzling.
He just turned up to the house one day when we were doing a shoot with Pam Anderson. He shouted at everyone, took his clothes off and demanded the photographer take pictures of him. I think he might have been drunk but I didn’t want to say anything in case he hit me.
Hefner went on to say that although his hand was forced, he’s quite happy with the results.
Al looks buff for an old timer. Though I can only speculate what our predominately male followers will think when they open up Playboy and see Pacino naked firing an AK-47 in the Scarface parody.