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Warner Bros Wins Jonathan Liebesman’s Odysseus: “300 Meets Taken”

Posted on Monday, April 27th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

odysseus

Late last week, Warner Bros won a bidding war against Paramount Pictures to gain the rights to Jonathan Liebesman’s Odysseus, a retelling of the story of the legendary Greek King and hero of Homer’s epic poem, the Odyssey. After fighting in the Trojan Wars for 20 years, Odysseus returned home to find his kingdom under the brutal occupation. He is forced to single-handedly fight a battle against an invading force, in order to take back his wife, his son and his kingdom. Producer Gianni Nunnari came up with the story in a general meeting with Liebesman, who brought in screenwriter Ann Peacock who wrote the filmmaker’s Sundance Film Festival thriller The Killing Room.

Listen, I use to call Jonathan Liebesman a hack, His early film efforts left a lot to be desired. We’re talking about the guy who made Darkness Falls and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning. However, my view of Liebesman changed completely after I screened The Killing Room at Sundance. You can tell Liebesman really tried with this film, and created a movie he wanted to see, instead of a movie the studio demanded. It was enough for me to completely forget his earlier horror efforts.

One of the reasons The Killing Room works is because of the tight minimalistic storytelling, on the screen and on the page. I haven’t read Odysseus, but I’ve talked to people who have. And they can’t say enough great things about the tight 90-page screenplay. THR says that the intent is not to make “a sleepy swords-and-sandles epic but a bloody relentless revenge movie,” like 300 meets Taken. Liebesman told FirstShowing that he wants the movie to be a very gritty, hand-held, hardcore revenge movie, comparing it to Rambo, “where one guy just kicks a lot of ass.”

Up next for Liebesman is the sci-fi action film Battle: Los Angeles, which is getting a fix up from Scott Silver before it goes into production. I heard the earlier draft was actually pretty bad, but offered some nice cinematic visuals.

Comments

Happy_Evil_Dude

So since it's for Warner will they cast Sean Bean and market it as a sequel to Troy? Cause that would be pretty cool.

ajt8503

Thats what I thought was the original idea to do after Troy came out, was to continue on into the Odyssey with Sean Bean. I think it would be cool too.

Isaiah Everin

This isn't based off of the Odyssey. It's vaguely based off of the end of the Odyssey, and exaggerating the details into a joke. The Odyssey doesn't end in a brutal one-man battle for Odysseus's lands whatsoever. He does kill some suitors who want to marry his wife, but not an occupying forces of his land.

I wish you guys would do your research and point out stuff like that. It's really disappointing when films abandon the source material entirely but market it as being based on it, furthering ignorance about classical literature and turning it into a joke. They could easily sell a movie that was actually based on the Odyssey if they were intelligent enough to even try. I wouldn't be surprised if anyone in this production hadn't even read the original.

Tyler J

I don't think you understand the meaning of the phrase "based upon".

Yes, this film IS indeed based on the story of The Odyssey (as you've said - the last bit, but only loosely). It is also a fictional movie, not a documentary. Frequently in movies and fiction literature, people use old stories and re-imagine them or make them more entertaining for the masses. This is no doubt what the people who made the story of odysseus wanted to do.

shadow

Well, the article phrases it as if that was how the event played out and this is based on that event, not that it's a modified version of events.

Antony_Kinsey

how does the article phrase it "as if that was how the event played out?" it rather clearly states that this is a 'retelling of the story' and then goes onto to give a synopsis of what that retelling involves. the article is about the script for the movie, not the poem itself.

Isaiah Everin

"Retelling" is a pretty vague term. Technically making a film out of any novel is a "retelling." Re: again. Telling: to tell. The story is being told. Again. By a different person. If I "retell" a story in a trial, and then make up shit that wasn't in the original story, then I am no longer telling the story. I am telling a different story.

Isaiah Everin

The poem is a fictional poem. No a documentary. It took the idea of Odysseus returning and made up a story. In no way was it enough of a story to base a film off of.

What they should do is not mention the words "Homer" and "epic poem," because none of that synopsis is based off of Homer's epic poem besides the existence of Odysseus and the fact that he went home.

They should say "based off of the legend of Odysseus," because there is no real relation to Homer here, and it just makes anyone that reads "the story of the legendary Greek King and hero of Homer’s epic poem, the Odyssey" think that they are now going to learn about a book they've never read in their lives, and in their mind link "Odyssey" and this crappy movie together.

I did the same thing when I was a kid and saw Troy. I assumed that it was "based off of the Iliad," and that meant something about the Iliad. It is NOT based off of the Iliad, it is based off of the characters of the Iliad and the legend of the Trojan War, which HAPPENS to be contained in the Iliad, but was also well known in all other ways in Ancient Greek times, and The Iliad is in no way what a story ABOUT the Trojan War should be based off of. That is not the purpose of the Iliad.

Settle Down

For fuck's sake IT'S A MOVIE.

I wish everyone who every whined about how something didn't resemble the book would just relax. If you want the novel, read the novel.

Isaiah Everin

I am perfectly relaxed. The doesn't really change the objective fact that Hollywood bastardizes classical art because some film-makers are ignorant twats who don't know or care about doing anything of any intellectual or aesthetic worth.

My point was a wish that Peter was educated enough to know that this isn't actually retelling of "The Odyssey." It's a pretty trivial fact, because no one really cares. "It's a movie. Who care if a movie is actually good?" I only care because suggesting that this is "The Odyssey" in any way is pretty damned ignorant. It's really simple to know that this is not the case. Now millions of ignorant audiences will assume this is what The Odyssey is. But who cares? No one.

Ugh, America. Ugh, ignorance. Whatever.

Mr. D

IN the original text, Odysseus, aided by his son Telemakhos & some trusted servants wages a pretty epic battle (Book 22 of the Odyssey) against over 100 men...and kills all but a handful. While it isn't a one-man show, it is prety intense. The deaths are bloddy, the action fast-paced and the dialogue witty and fairly contemporary, considering the context. The only negatvioe would be that the original epic has this scene take place all in one room...wouldn't be very exciting visually...

Craigasorusrex

Odysseus killing spree on a quest of revenge set in a mythological Greece.

Sounds like fun. Warner Brothers has been doing pretty well lately so hopefully they keep that streak by putting a lot of effort in making this one work.

The story of Odysseus can be amazing to watch on screen if done right. I'm sure anyone who's ready the Odyssey can attest to this. (Imagine seeing the encounter with Poseidon play out)

yer

Stop being a douche Isaish.

vadmspartan

'300 meets Taken,' a movie exec's dream pitch.

AntoBlueberry

There's been a script with the same premise for some years now, that gained the interest of several name people, like David Cronemberg, Stephen Frears and Denzel Washington. But Nunnari still glows of the success of 300, so it must have been easy for him to sell the project with a lesser director atached.

superozy

OH CRAP O NA STICk, i mean faacck, i was dreaming to make this as a movie, and already started to write the script,

Happy_Evil_Dude

Don't worry, I'm sure The Asylum will be interested in your version

MovieMikey

Great source material. The Odyssey is one of the greatest adventures in literature. I have not seen The Killing Room so I suppose I have no right to comment on Johnathan Liebesman's current abilities to direct an epic film such as this. However, a resume that includes Darkness Falls and Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning does make me a bit weary. Yet as I said I have not yet seen The Killing Room, so I guess I will just have to wait until I see that to give my final verdict on Liebesman.

Isaiah Everin

"Great source material. The Odyssey is one of the greatest adventures in literature."

Here's the point I'm making above. No. Not great source material, because they aren't USING the source material. They are not referencing Homer's "Odyssey." That is not how the Odyssey ends. This is not what happens in the Odyssey. The Odyssey has very little action. In fact, the Odyssey is pretty boring in terms of film. Not very much actually happens that is exciting. People just assume it's "one of the greatest adventures in literature." I assumed that until I read it. I don't know if you have "MovieMikey," but I wouldn't say it has much film potential if you are using the actual source.

But again, film makers don't care. Everything should be a film! A horrible, pointless film. Entertainment. There was a day when The Odyssey WAS entertainment. Now people are ignorant, so puke on a screen is entertainment.

jerry seinfeld

i'll just watch 'the natural' again, thank you.

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