CONAN THE BARBARIAN is a film many of us are curious, nay, cautiously optimistic, about. There’s a natural inclination to be hesitant towards it, to resist getting too excited. We’ve been burned before – by remakes, by 3D movies, by Marcus Nispel (FRIDAY THE 13TH)… But this is flippin’ CONAN we’re talking about, made by the production team behind THE EXPENDABLES and RAMBO. It’s too damn tempting to get pumped for this.
In an informative interview with the site RamaScreen, scribe Sean Hood – who came on board last year to heavily revise the screenplay – spoke openly about the script doctoring process and what we can expect from CONAN. Here are some choice quotes:
On what his job was after being brought in: “A lot of the work I did was script doctoring – revising action sequences, simplifying and clarifying mythology and filling plot holes with original scenes. But I did make major contributions the characterizations, especially of the villains. For example, the character Marique, played by Rose McGowen, was my invention.”
On the film’s realism: “I think that audiences are hungry for this kind of action film. In this Conan the Barbarian, people don’t flip backwards through the air in gravity defying bullet time or leap across chasms as if playing Nintendo. Swords are heavy, armor is cumbersome, and when people break bones or crack skulls, the audience winces. The action feels visceral and authentic.”
On how the 3D will come into play: “The 3D elements in Conan are meant to enhance this concrete and naturalistic style. In scenes of warfare, you feel trapped between spearmen and archers. In scenes in ancient ruins you feel dizzy with vertigo. In this movie, 3D is used to enhance the effects of a barbaric world and to push the story forward. It’s more about immersing the audience in the environment than “jumping out in your face.””
There’s much, much more from Hood over at RamaScreen; hit it up HERE. CONAN THE BARBARIAN comes out on AUGUST 19th.
A photo of Rose McGowan absolutely NOT taken in my basement…
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