BOTH EXORCIST PREQUELS HIT DVD
So what’s the hottest rumoured bootleg tape out there now? That security footage of a ‘Rings’ star having a good time in an elevator? The gossiped about but highly suspect Colin Farrell orgy tape? (if it exists and anyone has a copy, my address is at ‘Contact’ below and hey, today’s my birthday).
In actual fact, it’s Paul Schraeder’s original cut of ‘Exorcist: The Beginning’. Somehow a rough cut is out there and floating around, and more than a few people are trying to get their hands on it in hopes of checking out the film which til now its thought probably would never see the light of day as Warners will be releasing the completely reshot Renny Harlin-directed prequel in August. To be able to compare the two films would be a rare treat as in almost all vaguely similar cases, the original cut would be destroyed. Today it sounds like quite a few of us will get to do just that.
Variety reports that Morgan Creek topper James Robinson has plans: He’s seeking to have Warner Bros. release both helmers’ Exorcist pics simultaneously on DVD. This move would cause a variety of potential problems (DGA accreditations, marketing interest surveys, etc.). If Warners were to accept the idea, it’s also unsure how the release would be handled.
Robinson though says the films are distinct enough that it’ll generate interest – ‘This is going to sound unbelievable, but we made a movie – twice. If you see the two movies, you wouldn’t believe it’s the same d.p. It’s almost like a case study (in the difference a director can make’. One notable difference is budgets – Schrader’s more introspective talky drama cost $32-35 mil, Harlin’s action oriented version came in at $52-54 million.
Schrader himself seems keen on the idea – ‘I’m very proud of my film, and I think it deserves to be seen. If I get the DVD, I can say ‘God bless you Renny; may your film do well…The situation is in some ways the ultimate film school exercise, though you usually don’t give each director $35 million to make their film’.
Courtesy of Dark Horizons
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