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Dolan's Cadillac
September 7: Director talks King's unmade DOLAN’S CADILLAC
Four years ago, Stephen King gave up-and-coming writer/director Stacy Title the rights to make the movie out of DOLAN’S CADILLAC, one of the tales in the anthology NIGHTMARES AND DREAMSCAPES. Six months ago, after a lengthy and ultimately fruitless development period, King took the rights back.
“He was incredible and very generous about the whole thing," says Title, who recently wrapped the hiphop horror film SNOOP DOGG’S HOOD OF HORROR (see previous item here). “He loved the script when he first read it and then, all of a sudden, he changed his mind. I did a lot of drafts for free, so it was disappointing.”
While Title had the rights, with the now-defunct Franchise Pictures and producers Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner also attached to the project, a number of high-profile actors drifted in and out of the adaptation of King’s story, in which a man seeks vengeance against the Las Vegas mobster who has murdered his wife. “First, Sylvester Stallone was supposed to do it,” Title recalls. “Then Cuba Gooding Jr., then Val Kilmer, then Freddie Prinze Jr. and then Gabriel Byrne. A lot of people were interested in doing this picture.”
Title does not hold a grudge against the horror author. “He waited a long time for this to happen,” she says. “It wasn’t his fault. I thanked him for the rights when I had them. All I can say is that I tried.” —Marc Shapiro
Four years ago, Stephen King gave up-and-coming writer/director Stacy Title the rights to make the movie out of DOLAN’S CADILLAC, one of the tales in the anthology NIGHTMARES AND DREAMSCAPES. Six months ago, after a lengthy and ultimately fruitless development period, King took the rights back.
“He was incredible and very generous about the whole thing," says Title, who recently wrapped the hiphop horror film SNOOP DOGG’S HOOD OF HORROR (see previous item here). “He loved the script when he first read it and then, all of a sudden, he changed his mind. I did a lot of drafts for free, so it was disappointing.”
While Title had the rights, with the now-defunct Franchise Pictures and producers Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner also attached to the project, a number of high-profile actors drifted in and out of the adaptation of King’s story, in which a man seeks vengeance against the Las Vegas mobster who has murdered his wife. “First, Sylvester Stallone was supposed to do it,” Title recalls. “Then Cuba Gooding Jr., then Val Kilmer, then Freddie Prinze Jr. and then Gabriel Byrne. A lot of people were interested in doing this picture.”
Title does not hold a grudge against the horror author. “He waited a long time for this to happen,” she says. “It wasn’t his fault. I thanked him for the rights when I had them. All I can say is that I tried.” —Marc Shapiro
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The thriller follows a young man (Bentley) who seeks to avenge his wife's murder by the untouchable Las Vegas mobster Jimmy Dolan (Slater).
Emmanuelle Vaugier rounds out the key cast on the project, which is scheduled to begin shooting in the Canadian regions of Saskatchewan and Quebec on May 14. Erik Canuel will direct from Richard Dooling's adapted screenplay.
Ellen Wander of Santa Monica-based Film Bridge International chief will serve as executive producer and the company is overseeing financing and will handle worldwide sales.
Slater's credits include True Romance, The Contender, Bobby and Very Bad Things.
Bentley performed a breakout role in Sam Mendes' 1999 Oscar winner American Beauty and his roles since then have included The Four Feathers opposite Heath Ledger, Ghost Rider and the recent thriller P2.
(Richard Dooling, as you may recall, was King's collaborator on Kingdom Hospital -- bv)
The new movie is called "Dolan's Cadillac" and it stars Christian Slater, Wes Bentley and Emmanuelle Vaugier. Mind's Eye Entertainment out of Regina is making the movie and the director is Moose Jaw's own Jeff Beesley.
It's based on a Stephen King story about a young man who attempts to avenge his wife's death after she is murdered by a Las Vegas mobster.
The movie will also film on location in Quebec and Las Vegas.
Mind's Eye isn't saying much about their Moose Jaw work but, they will tell us more later this week.
Contrary to an initial report that Erik Canuel at the wheel of this psychological thriller, director Jeff Beesley is now directing from a script by Richard Dooling.
"The audience is in for a treat," says executive producer Kevin DeWalt. "We've assembled an incredibly talented cast and a highly skilled crew and are ready to deliver a quality film that will exceed audience expectations." Ellen Wander, executive producer, adds, "The transition from page to screen will not disappoint. This story is one of vengeance, Stephen King style."
Here's an official synopsis provided to Shock by production entity Minds Eye Entertainment: Tom Robinson (Wes Bentley) is a peaceful, law-abiding schoolteacher until his wife Elizabeth (Emmanuelle Vaugier) accidentally witnesses a murder. Jimmy Dolan (Christian Slater), Las Vegas¹ most ruthless and untouchable mob boss, never leaves behind a witness. Haunted by the ghost of his wife, Robinson transforms himself into an obsessed vengeance machine, pushing himself beyond the breaking point of mind, body and spirit. When the two men finally meet deep in the heart of the desert, Dolan's Cadillac climaxes with an amazing test of wills the ultimate duel. The Cadillac, which has been Dolan's armor, may just as easily become his tomb.
If you have been walking or running around Wascana Lake recently and thought, "Was that Christian Slater that just ran by?" chances are you were right.
Slater is in Regina shooting Dolan's Cadillac, a thriller based on a short story by Stephen King. The film started shooting in Regina, Moose Jaw and Bethune on May 26 and although the tight 26-day shooting schedule is keeping Slater busy, he has had some opportunities to take in the local surroundings.
"I love it, it's beautiful, it's very nice," Slater said of Regina during a brief interview Thursday on the set at the Canada Saskatchewan Production studios. "I've been pretty inundated here, pretty busy, but I did take a few nice laps around the lake, so that was good. The sun has been co-operating, the weather has been great. The people, the crew have been incredibly friendly. Really first-class, I must say. First-class."
When approached about joining the cast, Slater felt he couldn't pass up a Stephen King movie.
"I've always been a huge fan of his and the types of things that he writes -- very scary, very edgy, very dark, very twisted, very intense and that's what this really presented itself as," said Slater. "And since I've come here (director) Jeff Beasley's been great. Working with him has been fantastic. The script has been really good.
"(Screenwriter) Richard Dooling has done a great job. When we sat down and did the read-through I was blown away. I couldn't believe it. I was like, 'Wow, this is pretty exciting.' I was on the edge of my seat through the whole read-through so that was good.
"The character has some really wild, funny, crazy dialogue and I love doing that stuff."
Dolan's Cadillac tells the story of school teacher Tom Robinson who is seeking justice after his wife is killed after accidentally witnessing a murder ordered by mob boss Jimmy Dolan. Robinson, portrayed by Wes Bentley (American Beauty, Ghost Rider), is haunted by the ghost of his wife and becomes obsessed with gaining revenge on Dolan.
A major plot twist is Robinson trapping Dolan in his Cadillac which could possibly become the mobster's tomb. The role is physically and emotionally taxing for the 38-year-old Slater.
"It's been challenging -- it's hot in that Caddy and it's brutal and it's emotional," explained Slater. "It's painful at times but at the same time I'm not digging ditches. Of course Wes Bentley is, that's what he's doing. Everybody's been very accommodating and really, my job is just to show up.
"With any particular project you get involved in, you just want to be as prepared as you possibly can be. I think that makes the job go a lot easier, not only for myself but for everybody else around. We can start thinking and be prepared. That's really it. It's all about preparation."
As much as it's amazing that Slater is in Regina filming a movie, it's even more amazing that Dolan's Cadillac is actually being filmed. The story has been a hot commodity in Hollywood for the past seven or eight years with a number of stars attached to the project at different times. Sylvester Stallone and Kevin Bacon were initially on board as Dolan and Robinson, only to walk away from the project. More recently, Gabriel Byrne, Dennis Hopper, Cuba Gooding Jr., Val Kilmer and Freddie Prinze Jr. have all been rumoured to be involved at various stages with the film.
Christian Slater, Wes Bentley and Jeff Beesley all have something in common. All of them have however, had a hand in filming the movie Dolan's Cadillac in recent weeks. The movie, which has been filmed in Moose Jaw, Las Vegas and other areas of southern Saskatchewan is just finishing filming near Bethune.
Moose Jaw's Jeff Beesley is directing the film. He says it's been an honour to work with such a talented cast and crew including Wes Bentley and Christian Slater, who play the lead roles. “He (Christian Slater) came in for the first 12 days of production and you know there's a reason he Christian Slater, he's fantastic. There was a long history to this project, a lot of actors wanted to play his part Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dennis Hopper and none of them for one reason or another could do it. So to actually see it happen and see someone like Slater do it I think audiences are really going to be satisfied with what he does”.
We caught up with Beesley during filming north of Bethune yesterday. He says while most of his colleagues have moved to places they consider "greener pastures" ... he says he's really blessed to be able to stay in Moose Jaw, make films and be with friends and family. “It's my hometown and the place I still live and I have long said how great it is for the economy and for the fabric of the community to shoot films in Moose Jaw. Everyone welcomed us with open arms... and I mean the Montreal crew that came and the producers and everyone from all over the world were blown away with the locations we got in Moose Jaw”.
Beesley admits it can be a challenge filming a movie in Saskatchewan that's supposed to be set in Las Vegas, Nevada. “We have to be very strategic about how we do it and we have to work very closely with the art department and the director of photography to make sure it's shot appropriately. There's going to be some CGI in the movie obviously sometimes when we're getting into areas that are too flat we'll be putting in some mountains and there is 4 days of shooting in Las Vegas so we will be getting a lot of authentic locations spun throughout”.
Dolan's Cadillac is based on a Stephen King short story. It's about a man who seeks to avenge his wife's murder We asked Wes Bentley, who plays the lead role what he thinks about working with Beesley. “Jeff's terrible, I hate working with him. He makes everyday so hard”, Bentley laughed. “No, Jeff's a great guy, he's a hidden talent. He took a script that could have been a typical generic revenge movie but Jeff is not a generic man. He's got a beautiful mind and he made this a real joy to work on as well”.
In the film, Wes Bentley plays a man looking to avenge his wife's murder. That means killing a well-protected mob boss played by Christian Slater. No word when Dolan's Cadillac will be ready for theatrical release, but the hope is that it might appear at a film festival as early as next spring.
The big-screen Stephen King adaptation -- about a teacher (Wes Bentley) obsessed with avenging his wife's murder at the hands of the title mobster (Christian Slater) -- is scheduled to wrap a three-day shoot Tuesday at locations ranging from the Strip to the Fremont Street Experience to the desert.
The tale (featured in King's 1993 "Nightmares and Dreamscapes") takes place in Las Vegas, but most of the shoot took place far north of Glitter City, in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.