Wednesday, March 25, 2015

INSERT COIN TO CONTINUE: Steven Spielberg is now attached to the film version of cult novel Ready Player One.  The novel certainly touches on several common Spielberg themes, including the longing for family, feeling like an "other," and the role of technology, but I'm fascinated both by how Spielberg and the script will choose to depict the OASIS (the virtual world in which most of the story takes place) and whether they'll be able to clear all the rights that appear in the book as an important part of the story, which include D&D modules, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, WarGames, and a long list of 80s video games.
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4 comments:

  1. Joseph Finn5:16 PM

    OK, let's do a hyptothetical. Let's say they can't clear the rights to WarGames through United Artists but still want to use that excellent subplot. What other movie from the 1980's do you think has the eight combination of popularity and geekiness (i.e., no Manhattan Project)? My initial guesses:


    Weird Science
    Tron
    Ghostbusters (not a chance in hell, probably)
    Real Genius
    Short Circuit (but does any one really remember what happens in that movie?)
    The Last Starfighter

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  2. Matt6:39 PM

    Tron and Ghostbusters, given that they're active franchises, no way in hell will they clear. Notably, in some of the press, they've cited The Lego Movie as their goal in terms of the IP that had to get cleared, Given that had to clear DC Comics, Star Wars, Tolkien, Ninja Turtles, and others, they're headed in the right direction.

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  3. The Pathetic Earthling7:41 PM

    Would those have needed separate clearances, or was that built in to the licenses granted to Lego in the first place?

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  4. Matt10:05 PM

    Would assume they're separate (otherwise, there are other properties we might have seen, including Marvel, Disney, Harry Potter, Simpsons, and the like).

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