Should This Be Made? 'Outlander' And 'Scarpetta'

Consider this a weekly look at whether these big studio project should be crowding multiplexes or not. If we had our way, everything would be French, in black and white, with Asia Argento smoking cigarettes, naked, but we often try to look at matters in the eyes of the major studios. They have feelings too, you know.

This week: two female-led best-sellers.Click here for last week's installment.
"Outlander"
Who‘s Behind It: Essential Pictures, screenwriter Randall Wallace, Katherine Heigl
What Is It?: Based on the best-selling series of books, the “Outlander” chronicles concern a British WWII nurse who is able to slip back and forth between her world and the battlefield of 18th century Scotland, where she falls for her ideal mate amidst war.

Why Should It Be Made?: The “Outlander” saga, which has just branched out into graphic novels, has sold seventeen million copies worldwide, and with seven books of material to adapt, you could reasonably age the female protagonist, Claire Randall, over the course of three movies, and perhaps a television spinoff. The books have a time travel hook that viewers will find familiar as well as the contrast between epic WWII battle and rural Scottish romance, with a little medieval action for the boys. It’s textbook four quadrant material.

The books also have a lot of roles for colorful character actors, or at least appealing male performers men and women want to see. A hardcore fan could easily imagine the men of “Grey’s Anatomy” in each lead role, with emphasis towards husband and WWII soldier Frank Randall and his evil ancestor “Black Jack” Randall, men of the same genealogy who could conceivably be played by the same actor - Gerard Butler? Russell Crowe? Or, if you’re going discount, Kevin McKidd?

Why Shouldn’t It Be Made?: These movies would need a strong anchor, so casting is everything. Unfortunately, Katherine Heigl is currently involved with the process with an eye towards playing Claire Randall. Heigl’s touch has been suspect, as her films since “Knocked Up” (which she apparently disliked) have been of substandard quality. As a box office draw, she remains a somewhat viable leading lady (though too one-dimensional to play a supporting role), but her last effort "Killers" was DOA and her upcoming "Life As We Know It" faces stiff box office competition. As a leading lady, she’s also become a brand, one that exclusively caters to female fans, which could mean men are indifferent, or (quite possibly) that they don’t like her. If “Killers” was a hit, this wouldn’t have been an issue, but Lionsgate dumped that in mid-summer with little care.

She’ll need that male audience too, because “Outlander” wouldn’t be cheap. 18th century Scotland might afford some affordable, obscure filming locations, but World War II won’t be easy to render. And battle scene extras in two time periods won’t feed themselves. With the salaries of Heigl and a strong male lead, the budget for this could conceivably run up to $60-$80 million, though a more resourceful filmmaker could tweak it back to $50. But Heigl’s taking creative control, and she and her producing partner/mother haven’t exactly been handpicking a bunch of Spielbergs and Scorseses for her films so far.

Similar Films: With the time travel and ancestor romance, “Outlander” bears a strong superficial resemblance to “Kate And Leopold,” the Hugh Jackman-Meg Ryan romance that actually almost went out to the public despite strongly hinting at an incestuous romance. The film was released in a busy Christmas period and grossed $47 million in America, $75 overall.

Final Word: It’s hard not to imagine “Outlander” not being an eye-roller with Heigl in the lead. The fish-out-of-water stuff could be pretty irritating, especially considering Claire Russell has to avoid accusations she is a witch by marrying a Scot, which results in an icky forced-marriage love. Really, the only element keeping Russell from being just another passive female protagonist in modern literature is that she is a nurse, but then you have the image of Heigl returning to her “Grey’s Anatomy” roots, this time in a British accent, and its wince-worthy. If “Outlander” is a hit, then Heigl rises to the A-List for the next five years or so, but that ship may have sailed, and considering this will cost more than the average Heigl picture, it just doesn’t seem worth the gamble.
Should It Be Made?: No.

"Scarpetta"
Who’s Behind It?: Angelina Jolie who signed on in 2009, but then cautioned this summer that the project is, "still in development."
What Is It?: Kay Scarpetta is a crafty medical examiner in Richmond, Virginia, always able to crack the case, even if the culprit ends up in her backyard.

Why Should It Be Made?: The Scarpetta books, from author Patricia Cornwell, have spanned eighteen entries and consistently ranked at the top of the best-seller list. It’s safe to say there’s a fan base. The books in question combine the “CSI” medical examiner action with more traditional suspense thriller tropes and an ongoing romantic saga, as Scarpetta finds herself getting involved with a series of men as she ages. It’s arguably the most viable un-adapted literary property for a female lead, so of course Jolie would be everyone’s first choice to star in the films.

For Jolie, this is a role where you’d match her naturally aggressive, action film appeal with a softer, more feminine approach. Scarpetta isn’t a wallflower, but she isn’t a kung-fu master like “Salt” either, so it would be a change-of-pace for her, but not so different as to alienate her core. Of course, her movies are also much bigger overseas, so signing or not signing her is the difference between a $200 million worldwide gross, and a $50 million score. Which is nice if you have multiple movies.

Why Shouldn’t It Be Made?: The stories in the Scarpetta novels are pretty standard boilerplate crime narratives, not any different than what you’d see on an average episode of “CSI.” It’s not exactly stretching the medium or defying the genre. Hire the wrong director, and these will be stage-bound TV-movies, where you won’t be able to tell the difference between Jolie in an $80 million studio offering, or Dana Delany in a $4 million Lifetime movie.

And there’s always the moviestar gamble. With Jolie, when gunfire erupts, the audience can’t be left wondering why she doesn’t start dropkicking fools. She has to play Italian as well, which could be questionable, though it won’t involve an accent, thankfully. Furthermore, studios struggle to cast her next to strong leading men, which is why she’s usually sharing the screen with either a softer, more feminine lead (James McAvoy) or another movie star significantly de-glammed (Johnny Depp, “The Tourist“). “Mr. And Mrs. Smith” differed in that she wasn’t the face of that film, but she is most definitely the face of “Scarpetta.”

Similar Films: James Patterson’s superstar creation Alex Cross featured in two films, “Kiss The Girls” and the prequel “Along Came A Spider.” “Girls” was a hit, with $60 million domestic tally, while “Spider” was even bigger, collecting a $100 million global take. For some reason, the franchise lay dormant for years, but Idris Elba is set to take on the mantle in “Cross.”

Final Word: If you can get Jolie, you get Jolie, it’s as simple as that. And if it involves putting her in some airport novel garbage, as long as she’s willing, it’s an easy decision to make. The “Scarpetta” movies wouldn’t cost much, as there are rarely big action sequences, nor are there complex big city shooting locations. Jolie onboard means you can juice at least two profitable, mediocre movies from this property at worst, a decent-sized franchise at best. With Jolie’s robust salary, that’s a $60 million budget at least, and considering Jolie’s global popularity, there’s no way to say no.
Should This Be Made?: Yes

>>> Should This Be Made? 'Outlander' And 'Scarpetta' >>>

Weekend Box Office: Katherine Heigl, Horse Lose To Nerd Entrepeneurs

Like a horse race, this weekend had three photo finishers, with a Sunday winner possibly being a bit too premature to call - expect some Monday morning jostling, especially with the holiday. As in many equestrian events, there was a former first place finisher, a starry upstart, and a stoic newcomer with success painted all over its face. And like a few horse races in the past, “Secretariat” was involved.

The Randall Wallace drama, however, was a definite underperformer, and with numbers still in debate, it does look like Disney’s proud thoroughbred is going to bow before last week’s top picture, “The Social Network.” The critically-lauded internet drama has definitely won over a few fair-weather fans with a muscular second weekend hold. Those dubious about a movie garnering success by dealing with a website grown adults should be ashamed of using have reason to reassess their thoughts. Critics don’t really matter anymore unless, in the very rare case of films like “The Social Network” and “Toy Story 3,” the deafening consensus of go-alongs and reverent homers (in this case, a large number of uncritical writers and commentators blindly banging the drum for David Fincher and Pixar as if they were on studios' payrolls) pushes a film’s Q-rating into Joe PBR declaring, “This movie sounds like something Jesus would pay to see!”

Not to say “The Social Network” isn’t an interesting picture, mind you, but the talk has transformed the film from “great picture” to “event movie” status. A second weekend pull isn’t a major factor against weaker competition like this, but if this picture is still doing double-digit weekends by the late October horror boom, it’s time to upgrade from a Strong Success to a People’s Choice, and the year’s first genuine Oscar lock. At this juncture, nothing can be forecast until the film reaches $100 mil., and after two weekends, it still lies on the other side of $50.

There’s a smaller margin of error for actresses than there is for actors, so while some leading men can survive a number of bombs, it only takes a small failure to sink the brand name of a leading lady. And this is two in a row for Katherine Heigl, as “Life As We Know It” landed at #2. It drew enough business to lead the pack on Friday night, but Saturday wasn’t as date-worthy, and the picture looks to land behind Heigl’s “Killers” in the realm of frail openers. While she was starring alongside human wallpaper Josh Duhamel, and the title and premise suggested a vague bummer aura, Warner Bros. used a serious marketing push to get this out to the public. The core audience for a movie where Christina Hendricks dies so Katherine Heigl gets to raise a baby in her empty house liked the film enough to give a strong Cinemascore rating, but others likely realized that it sounded like a premise from Hell and stayed far away.

Expected winner “Secretariat” was a non-starter, possibly shutting the door on a potential awards push. Nobody thought the movie was genuinely good (Ebert did, but he’s very good friends with the author of the book), but with a strong box office showing, “Secretariat” was poised to take the Movie White People Like slot filled by “The Blind Side” last year. A better comparison, obviously, is “Seabiscuit,” which benefited from having Gary Ross (as opposed to Randall Wallace, Oscar-winning writer but oblivious behind the camera), as well as a strong cast that included "Spider-Man" and The Dude. “Secretariat” could only muster chick flick star Diane Lane (playing old, therefore nixing males) and John Malkovich (playing himself, scaring children).

The smallest audience loss in the top ten belongs to “Legend of the Guardians: The Owls Of Ga’Hoole.” That opening was considered disastrous, but in its third weekend, the film is inching towards final numbers that at least hint at profitability, though this looks like a money-loser in the long run. Again, 3D helps, as it makes an average hold look muscular, but there isn’t exactly a huge kid market to compete with right now. 3D couldn’t save “My Soul To Take,” which debuted in “Piranha 3D” territory. Studios need to consider that the lure of taking a generic thriller and adding the extra visual dimension doesn’t outweigh the audience’s realization that they have to pay a premium price. Ideally, this development should lead to lowering, or maybe getting rid of, the surcharge altogether, as it’s a cynical process that potentially alienates viewers, but when the format is attached to a hit, it artificially raises grosses so a $50 million weekend becomes a $60 million weekend. Studios will never ditch a tool that helps inflate grosses, mostly because of vanity. But they might stop tagging it on tepid-looking Wes Craven thrillers that have sat on the shelf for a couple of years.

The WB's “The Town” was close behind, itself losing a small audience from last weekend, and after four weekends, it's threatening to hit $90 million provided weekday grosses remain robust. The possibility of “The Town” entering the Oscar race remains small, but the box office will likely keep Ben Affleck’s heist drama in the race. No such hope for "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” which is quickly making its way out of the top ten. Even during its first weekend, it was looking less like a bonafide hit/event, and more like a smash-and-grab based on brand name recognition. In other words, a typical Fox picture. But getting this over $50 million isn’t bad at all, and there should be a DVD profit if international receipts remain strong. “Easy A” is staving off small audience losses as well, close to hitting $50 million: another Screen Gems winner. It again outpaced “You Again,” which has hung around in the top ten only to be backslapped weekly by the Emma Stone comedy.

Did anyone know "It's Kind of a Funny Story" had a semi-wide release this weekend? In a seeming last-minute decision, Focus Features pushed the indie into 742 engagements for a feeble per-screen, and a $2 million total to place outside of the top ten. The premise is a definite turn-off, and the title is more than a little vague, so a hard sell was needed, and Focus' strategy was more than questionable. Zack Galifianakis has been racking up the credits, but like "Hangover" co-star Bradley Cooper, he hasn't exactly broken through yet, despite a colorful mix of roles. Galifianakis, to his credit, is at least extending his range and doing some occasional quality work, while Cooper is not exactly working as leading man superhero. Both of them need "The Hangover 2."

In indie cinemas, "Waiting For Superman" is starting to break through, with a $1.4 million gross after three weeks of aggressive platforming. The per-screen returned to a solid level after spectacular showings in previous sessions, but the film is poised to be one of the year's biggest docs, if not on a par with Davis Guggenheim's previous work. "Catfish" is swimming downstream, however, and while screens are still being added, the approach by Rogue Pictures remains tentative, as the film continues to bleed viewers. The highly-buzzed doc might close under $5 million.

There were a couple of larger debuts on the indie stage. "Stone" and "Nowhere Boy" hit on six and four screens, respectively, and both had steady per-screen averages, landing at $73k and $56k. Success could come if the expansion is played right, but Overture and the Weinsteins aren't exactly in the best shape. The best per-screen average came from Charles Ferguson's "Inside Job," which exploded on only two screens with a strong $21k per. The news wasn't so good for the noxious "I Spit On Your Grave" remake, which sneaked onto twelve screens and stole $33k, while Stephen Frears' "Tamara Drewe" was lost in the shuffle, with $19k at four engagements. Meanwhile, it might be bad news for "Buried" - the Ryan Reynolds drama did $200k in weekend three, but has registered terrible per-screen numbers in each week, likely threatening the planned expansion Lionsgate was eying. Support your local indie theater, boys and girls.

1. The Social Network (Sony) - $15.5 million ($46 mil.)
2. Life As We Know It, Judging From Terrible TV Shows (WB) - $14.6 million
3. Horsey Movie (Disney) - $12.6 million
4. Legend Of The Owls: The Hooting Of Ga'Hoole (WB) - $7 million ($39 mil.)
5. My Soul To Take (Universal) - $6.9 million
6. The Town (WB) - $6.4 million ($74 mil.)
7. Wall Street: Money Presses Snooze (Fox) - $4.6 million ($44 mil.)
8. Easy A (Sony) - $4.2 million ($48 mil.)
9. Case 39 (Paramount) - $2.6 million ($10 mil.)
10. You Again (Disney) - $2.5 million ($21 mil.)

>>> Weekend Box Office: Katherine Heigl, Horse Lose To Nerd Entrepeneurs >>>

Review: 'Life As We Know It' Ends Up Being Pretty Much Everything You Expect

We've generally given Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel a hard time around these parts but not without good reason. Heigl has starred in a string of increasingly terrible, incredibly predictable and thoroughly undercooked romcoms while Duhamel has pretty much been a non-entity in whatever film he happens to be in. So color us surprised that in the latest, seemingly run-of-the-mill romantic comedy "Life As We Know It," not only do Heigl and Duhamel shine in their parts, but the film attempts a surprisingly fresh take on the genre that is, unfortunately, done in by an ending that sells both the film and the actors short.

The film starts out with a fairly standard set up: Holly (Katherine Heigl) and Messer (Josh Duhamel) are set up on a blind date by their mutual friends and from the first moment its apparent they are not a match. While she is dressed to the nines, Messer shows up an hour late looking hobo chic. They decide to go out anyway, but Holly calls it off after Messer takes gets a phone call confirming an appointment for a booty call later in the evening. While Holly would like nothing better than to never see him again, they are each best friends of married couple Peter (Hayes MacArthur) and Allison (Christina Hendricks). Holly and Messer keep bumping into each other at various social gatherings but their mutual dislike for each other is not a secret.

However, things take a turn for the serious when Peter and Allison are killed in an accident and, as stipulated in their will, leave the guardianship of their young daughter Sophie (Alexis, Brynn and Brooke Clagett) to Holly and Messer. Yes, it's pretty much the cinematic equivalent of the "Seinfeld" sentenced-to-be-a-butler sitcom gag but it's sold with enough convincing that audiences will let it slide. Anyhow, fearing Sophie will end up with a foster family and with no other next of kin, Holly and Messer agree to both move into Peter and Allison's home and care for the child until they figure out what the next steps are.

And from this part on -- basically the middle section of the film -- is where the script by Ian Deitchman and Kristin Rusk Robinson goes in some potentially intriguing directions. Basically, they don't fall in love as you would expect. They both sleep in separate rooms in the house, go about their dream jobs (Holly runs a gourmet bakery and Messer is a technical director for the Atlanta Falcons), while splitting the duties of raising Sophie. Holly takes an interest in the local pediatrician Sam (Josh Lucas) while Messer continues his string of one night stands. Now living in the suburbs, they meet a gallery of neighbors, all of whom seem to underscore that the traditional family isn't all its cracked up to be. Each of the couples they encounter seem trapped in relationships now driven by their offspring with their former ambitions and dreams dashed. And just when the film seems to settle on an ending that is both bittersweet and mature, the film lumbers on for another twenty minutes where you can practically hear Warner Bros. executives shaping the conclusion as if they're reading directly from test screening comment cards.

Without spoiling things too much, the film pretty much ignores everything it has set up to that point while the last quarter of the film only serves to highlight more than ever the shortcomings of the script that until now could be have glossed over. While Heigl and Duhamel are both charming in their roles -- particularly Duhamel who has never been as engaging or as funny as he is here -- they can't overcome their thinly drawn characters as hard as they do try. Heigl once again plays a frigid bitch in some fantastic pencil skirts and heels, while Duhamel is a self-centered, sports-loving, motorcycle-riding, pussy-chaser. And if the film had ended where it should have, it would have been a harsher, but more honest evaluation of the characters (and yet, without enough sincere growth to be hopeful). But as it spirals into its final act (pushing the film into a too-long two-hour running time) the characters embrace a lifestyle that the script has been criticizing for the bulk of the film, suggesting -- as every other film of this ilk boringly does -- that people have no choice but to choose between children or their dreams. God forbid a movie actually show a couple who find a way to incorporate a new life while keeping their great jobs and friends. You know, like actual people do?

Greg Berlanti, who returns behind the camera ten years after "The Broken Hearts Club" (and is better known in geek circles for writing "Green Lantern") does a solid if not particularly remarkable job. He does have a good sense of pacing even if he does fall onto the crutch of a montage a few times too often throughout the film. But you know what? Give the guy a decent script and perhaps set him up with an indie production and we could see him nailing it. Anyone who can make Heigl and Duhamel likeable on screen for two hours is clearly doing something right. He strikes the difficult tone between comedy and drama in "Life As You Know It" pretty much right on, and we'd be curious to see what he could do with better material.

"Life As We Know It" might see some better than average reviews merely because it's better than what the misleading trailers are selling. It's definitely far more dramatic, and even more complex than it seems, but as the running time goes on, any initial spark it may have had is quickly deadened by a turn to the conventional. "Life As You Know It" ultimately becomes pretty much everything you likely expected. [C+]

>>> Review: 'Life As We Know It' Ends Up Being Pretty Much Everything You Expect >>>

'Life As We Know It' Soundtrack Features Amy Winehouse, Bruno Mars & Taken By Trees Cover Of Guns N' Roses

We haven't really discussed Greg Berlanti's upcoming rom-com, "Life As We Know It," much cause... well, it's a Katherine Heigl-led picture and as much as we dislike the excessive pile-on hatred of the actress (it begins to border on misogyny, dear media), most of her films aside from "Knocked Up" have been rather loathsome. The picture, which comes out this weekend on October 8, centers on two single adults (Heigl and Josh Duhamel) who become caregivers to an orphaned girl when their mutual best friends die in an accident (the film also co-stars Josh Lucas and Christina Hendricks).

Anyhow, yeah, we haven't paid attention and have been asleep at the wheel, but it's soundtrack arrives in stores tomorrow (October 5) and the tracklist has been kicking around for several weeks now so might as well post it. To be honest, it's not terrible.

The song that closes out the soundtrack, and presumably the film in its credits, is Taken by Trees' cover of Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child of Mine." The band is the solo project of Victoria Bergsman, former lead singer for the quite-good Swedish indie-pop band the Concretes. The soundtrack also features Amy Winehouse, The Black Keys, Ray LaMontagne, The Hot Rats (covering Elvis Costello) and songwriter of the moment Bruno Mars (he wrote Cee-Lo's awesome 2010 summer jam, "Fuck You"). But Roberta Flack's cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye" is one of our all time favorite songs, so we're actually terrified to see how they use it. The original is a killer song too so we're hoping this romantic comedy doesn't butcher it. Regardless, soundtrack tracklist below, plus some audio samples of the key cuts discussed.

Various Artists - "Life As We Know It" soundtrack tracklist
1. " You Know I'm No Good" - Amy Winehouse
2. "You and Me" - Beggars
3. "Your Touch" - The Black Keys
4. "Tidal Wave" - Josh Kelley
5. "Love Is Endless" - MoZella
6 . "Something in Common" - Free Energy
7. "Pump It Up" - The HotRats
8. " Three More Days" - Ray LaMontagne
9. "For You Now" - Bruno Mars
10. "Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye" - Roberta Flack
11. "Sweet Child O' Mine" - Taken by Trees

"Sweet Child O' Mine" - Taken by Trees

>>> 'Life As We Know It' Soundtrack Features Amy Winehouse, Bruno Mars & Taken By Trees Cover Of Guns N' Roses >>>

Katherine Heigl Considering Lead Role In Adaptation Of Diana Gabaldon's 'Outlander'

With the rom-com "Life As We Know It" hitting theaters next weekend, and the high concept private investigator flick "One For The Money" arriving in 2011, Katherine Heigl is considering a shift into some straight fantasy/dramatic fare for her next film.

In an interview with the NY Times, the actress reveals she's circling the lead role of the film version of Diane Gabaldon's "Outlander" saying, “Scotland? 2012? What do you think?” The book, the first in a six novel series, starts in 1945 and follows Claire Beauchamp Randall, an English nurse, who while on honeymoon in the Scottish highlands is transported back in time to 1743, where she finds a series of adventures and romance.

The books were optioned by Essential Pictures back in 2008 with an eye to creating a franchise. Randall Wallace ("Braveheart," "Pearl Harbor") was hired to pen the script, with a director being sought for a 2009 start. Obviously that didn't happen, but if Heigl were to join, we would imagine the pieces would come together quickly.  However, judging by her comments, it doesn't seem likely to shoot until 2012.

>>> Katherine Heigl Considering Lead Role In Adaptation Of Diana Gabaldon's 'Outlander' >>>