Rumor: Stephen Sommers Fired From G.I. Joe?

[GreenScar]

A number of sites today are pushing forward the story that G.I. Joe director Stephen Sommers has been locked out of the film’s editing room, based on a post from film producer Don Murphy’s message board (now removed), as noticed by Latino Review. The story is picking up steam, in part thanks to vaguely corroborative posts by people like Jeff Wells. And while I can’t verify the story, I have heard several really bad things about the film from a few informed sources. Common word is that it is a disaster for Paramount, and that a lot of unplanned post-production work was done to amp up the action and excitement factors and possibly just to make the thing watchable. Details of the original post from Murphy’s message board after the jump.

The condensed version goes like this: A disastrous test screening led production exec Brad Weston to push for Sommers’ firing. Stuart Baird was brought in to rework the edit, while producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura was also let go from the project. (di Bonaventura getting the boot seems unlikely.) There’s a lot of talk in the post about how di Bonaventura and Sommers didn’t know anything about ‘the mythology’ and how that led (somehow) to the ruin of the film. The ‘didn’t know the mythology’ argument seems like a fanboy straw man as the issue doesn’t seem to be that the movie is bad by GI Joe standards, but by any standard. Jeff Wells quotes an unnamed source that says Sommers “was given total freedom but he melted down and has made the biggest bomb in many a moon.” Again, not a bad GI Joe movie, but a bad movie, period.

If Paramount had a solid action movie on their hands that wasn’t going to please the franchise’s core base, the studio could still do fine marketing it to the mass audience that doesn’t really care, as long as things are blowing up and Sienna Miller is wearing leather. Meanwhile, I have zero concern over the film one way or the other. Despite a basket full of bad efforts, I’m still willing to hope, no matter how unlikely it seems, that the Stephen Sommers of Deep Rising will show himself once again. And there’s always Joseph Gordon-Levitt to anticipate as Cobra Commander, dumb mask and all.

Update: Refutation or damage control? Latino Review spoke to Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who had this to say:

…it’s completely untrue he was never asked to leave or been fired or any of that. That’s ridiculous. The movie tested very well…We had three test screenings, three different times and tested it and each time it just got better and better. We started off in a good place and we ended up in even in a better place, which is what you hope on a film from testing it.

And on what happened in the editing room:

Nothing that doesn’t happen on every other movie, which is that you constantly work and work and work and you make it better and better. We had a delay on visual effects so we waited a long time to finish the movie but that’s the only thing. I don’t really know why that would be interpreting it negatively but I guess it was.

[MCT]

This makes me sad. I was hoping for a decent comic book to movie translation (its possible....GI Joe was a great Marvel comic in the 80's/early 90's). To know that the film experienced a meltdown of this size is disheartening.

[tigtat77]

I can't say I blame them. The guy is a awful director. The first Mummy was o.k, the second was just a retelling of the first, except the sandstorm was now water, and Van Helsing was a piece of c**p. This does not look to be any better.

[cflames89]

Originally Posted by tigtat77

I can't say I blame them. The guy is a awful director. The first Mummy was o.k, the second was just a retelling of the first, except the sandstorm was now water, and Van Helsing was a piece of c**p. This does not look to be any better.

I love all 3 movies. Different tastes for different folks.

[sbjork]

Originally Posted by GreenScar;2000728.

Despite a basket full of bad efforts, I’m still willing to hope, no matter how unlikely it seems, that the Stephen Sommers of Deep Rising will show himself once again.

Ah, vindication! I am usually mocked mercilessly for admitting my love of Deep Rising. While I did enjoy the Mummy films, I think that he really hit the right balance of action, comedy and horror in Deep Rising. He did indeed hit the wall with Van Helsing, but I have some friends with whom Rising still forms the cornerstone of an annual film festival affectionately known as "TreatFest."

Regarding G.I. Joe, I hate to fan any fanboy flames but I have a hard time understanding how anyone would have expected it to turn out particularly well . . .

[iori]

It looks so bad in the previews. I won't even waste my time watching it.

[Aerodude73]

Update: Refutation or damage control? Latino Review spoke to Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who had this to say:

Quote:
…it’s completely untrue he was never asked to leave or been fired or any of that. That’s ridiculous. The movie tested very well…We had three test screenings, three different times and tested it and each time it just got better and better. We started off in a good place and we ended up in even in a better place, which is what you hope on a film from testing it.


And on what happened in the editing room:

Quote:
Nothing that doesn’t happen on every other movie, which is that you constantly work and work and work and you make it better and better. We had a delay on visual effects so we waited a long time to finish the movie but that’s the only thing. I don’t really know why that would be interpreting it negatively but I guess it was.

Originally Posted by MCT

This makes me sad. I was hoping for a decent comic book to movie translation (its possible....GI Joe was a great Marvel comic in the 80's/early 90's). To know that the film experienced a meltdown of this size is disheartening.

So what part of the above didn't you read? One report does not a true story make. The truth prob. lied somewhere in the middle as usual. I guess we'll have to see.

[Steve]

I kinda have mixed feelings about Sommers. I enjoyed the first 2 Mummy films, but I thought Van Helsing wasn't so great, even though it could have been. I thought Deep Rising was absolute crap. I enjoyed it up until I saw what the monster was, which was a huge disappointment to me. I remain hopeful this movie will turn out OK, but news like this doesn't inspire much confidence.

[MCT]

Originally Posted by Aerodude73

So what part of the above didn't you read? One report does not a true story make. The truth prob. lied somewhere in the middle as usual. I guess we'll have to see.

err....buddy, thats what Hollywood calls "damage control". CHUD and AintItCool for example have been hinting on their sites that this thing is a financial and artistic disaster. And after watching that trailer? Friend, I dont believe a word of what this Bonaventure guy is saying. Not one word.

[DetroitSportsFan]

The story has been allegedly debunked. The movie still doesn't look good IMO.

[MCT]

Originally Posted by DetroitSportsFan

The movie still doesn't look good IMO.

right. I might wait til it hits Youtube in 6 months or so and just watch the Snake Eyes/ Storm Shadow fight, assuming its any good.

[Kyo28]

Actually, I quite enjoyed both Mummy movies (The Mummy & Mummy Returns), even though the second one was a bit repetetive. Van Helsing is also a movie I enjoyed quite a lot and even bought on Blu-ray recently.

If GI Joe would be similar to those, I'd be happy.

[Moefiz]

I enjoyed the first 2 Mummy movies and even Van Helsing.I think stuff like this is what kill's a movie before its even release.

[jadedeath]

Originally Posted by JHM

It looks so bad in the previews. I won't even waste my time watching it.

I dunno man, seeing Snake Eyes vs Storm Shadow on the big screen could be worth it.

Logan

[jadedeath]

I'm wagering this story is bunk...

How exactly do you fire the Writer/Director/Producer...?

You *COULD* do it, but it would be next to impossible without us hearing a great deal more about this story.

Logan

[Teabaggins]

maybe he fired himself when he realized how bad it truly is.

will he Carradine himself?

[iamsparticus9]

I agree that the previews look bad. I think they should have went more w/ a gritty rainbow six(still waiting for them to make that into a movie) type story then the super hero way it seems like they did it. i'll go see it but i'm no longer expecting much of anything from it.

[raskal66]

Mutilating G.I. Joe into some eunuch PC drivel with explosions is exactly the kind of message the Hollywood establishment wants to send when source material repeats the phrase "Real American Hero" over and over again.

Unless it's a dispute between personalities with money and power in Tinseltown, there is no way Sommers would be fired over ideology. If Hollywood could produce the film they way they would really want "Real American Hero" to be portrayed, they would have G.I. Joe lose the battle. They just might too, because this film looks B-A-D with a capital PC.

When I watched G.I. Joe: Resolute on Adult Swim, I thought that a meager budgeted one hour animation project has just significantly upstaged a mega budgeted summer blockbuster.

[Teabaggins]

that picture of storm shadow wearing a bathrobe is enough for me to puke into my cereal

[Blu Titan]

I had a feeling this movie will FLOP ever since I saw the first trailer. Lets call it a "premonition". Just look at Dennis Quaid's face...makes me either or .