Caffeinated Clint
Luc Besson knows how to make an entertaining movie. Ask any action fan. But his films, which do usually fall under the action/thriller umbrella, are sometimes much more than straight-up shoot ’em ups, they’re doused in subtext, go deeper than what other flicks of the same ilk would, and feature performances not usually found in such films – heck, look at Jean Reno in “Leon the Professional” or Christopher Lambert in “Subway” ! you’d think they’d been told they were in with a shot for an Oscar if they gave it their all! They’re that good in those films. Sure, there’s the “Transporter” films, and I guess there’s nothing too borderline brilliant about “The Fifth Element”, but by-and-large Besson knows the meaning of classy fun.
Next up for Besson is the space-set thriller “Lock-Out” and yeah, Okay, so it’s story seems lifted straight from Besson’s own “Taken” (and having Maggie Grace in the cast for both doesn’t help deter comparisons), but it looks like great fun.
Here’s the trailer, released a couple of days ago :
After this, Besson hopes to nab Angelina Jolie for a film. And it sounds like the project they may do together is as far removed from “Lock-Out” and “Taken” than he can get.
Says Deadline :
I’m told that there are serious talks going on for Jolie to star next spring in a dramatic thriller that is rooted in true scientific elements. Besson’s EuropaCorp developed it and will co-finance, and negotiations are already underway with a studio for domestic distribution. The Besson film would be Jolie’s next as an actress, and it would come before she teams with director Ridley Scott on a historical epic about Gertrude Bell that The Constant Gardener scribe Jeffrey Caine is currently rewriting. I’m told there’s a high likelihood that both films will land at the same studio.
A dramatic thriller with scientific elements? Okay, so I guess that could be another of these “Taken” meets “Fifth Element” types that Besson seems to be crushing on at the moment, but I can’t see Jolie circling something that doesn’t encompass a little meat around the calves. It must be a bit grander. Or at least, original.
