Gilles Villeneuve Film

[TedN]

According to this article in today's Journal de Montréal, JV will be Montreal next week to announce new film on Gilles.

Here is very rough translation (Bablefish):

17/02/2005 - 07h44
Gilles Villeneuve will live again with the cinema
by Maxime Demers and Dany Bouchard
Journal de Montréal


Nearly 23 years after its death, the legend Gilles Villeneuve will live again with the large screen.

"It is a question of a film about the life of Gilles Villeneuve", yesterday confirmed with the Newspaper of Montreal the spokesman of the racing driver Jacques Villeneuve, Yann Lefort.

Jacques Villeneuve will be besides in Montreal next Wednesday to announce the details of the production, at the time of a press conference having to take place at his restaurant, Newtown, street Crescent, in the presence of many cultural and sporting journalists.

"what one said to us, it is that it will be a Hollywood production and that the producers apparently have at the head a large size of the realization and very known actors", specifies Yann Lefort.

"Jacques will announce the details of his implication in the project the next week", concluded the spokesman.

The cinematographic project will be apparently controlled by the house of Toronto-native production Capri Films.

It is besides the latter which yesterday launched the invitation to the journalists for the press conference.

The producers of Capri Films currently work on next film of Terry Gilliam (Brazil, Twelve Monkeys) and are at the origin of documentary on Metallica, Some Kind of Monster, left last year.

Yesterday, the house of production did not want to comment on the advertisement of next Wednesday.

An old project
The owner of the museum Gilles-Villeneuve, joint yesterday by the Newspaper of Montreal with Berthierville, was not surprised of such an advertisement.

"Its life is a true film scenario. The only problem, it is that that finishes badly ", begins Alain Belhumeur, recalling that a film on the legend of the motor race had failed to be born at the beginning of the Nineties.

"They was about ten after its death, remembers it. I have even newspaper cuttings announcing that the role of Gilles Villeneuve would be given to Michael J Fox ", tells it.

Until the year spent, the project of film was always in the air.

"the last with me to have spoken is Gaston Parent, his former manager. It is deceased last year."

Ted

[Inigo Montoya]

I wonder who would play Gilles? Any suggestions?

[foreversideways]

Glad to hear it.

[Peter Mallett]

Hmm,

Not sure I see any point in this.

The guy was/is a legend (sadly not in his lifetime) but that's what makes this a bit iffy to me. He achieved nothing of note (I'm talking racing success here not brilliance) so what's the hook?

Do well and die? Not a good moral is it?

We'll wait and see but I feel this is a cynical attempt to profit from a great name who is no longer with us.

I could add that nobody made a film about Mike Hawthorn or Graham Hill or Jim Clark (all champions). Kind of puts this into perspective don't you think?

[Rich R]

the way i see it, the only good way to portray motorsport on the big screen is through an autobiographical piece. grand prix is widely recognised as the best racing film made, and if you took away the racing set pieces of that film you wouldn't be left with much. if there's going to be a film about gilles i hope it includes a fair account of didier pironi, and doesn't just portray him as the villain of the piece(not that he wasn't without fault).

[Dixie Flatline]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Hmm,
The guy was/is a legend (sadly not in his lifetime) but that's what makes this a bit iffy to me. He achieved nothing of note (I'm talking racing success here not brilliance) so what's the hook?

Didn't Gilles win more races than Jody Schekter did in 1979, when Schekter won the World Championship?

[Raglanparade]

I think Johnny Depp could play Gilles. The scruffy way he looked in Pirates of the Caribean with shorter hair.

Failing this, there is always Ayrton Senna look alike, Sylvester Stallone :P

[djb]

shall try to remember to watch out for this next week. In any case, how the storyline is scripted, casted, etc etc etc will make the difference between something potentionally interesting about an interesting character, or more what I fear, a mediocre film using a famous name. Lets face it, a film can be about any sort of subject, but how it is told and visualized can make something special, or hack directors, producers can still throw loads of money at a project and it can be still very forgettable. (gee, makes me think of BAR's first years, all the hype, all the money.......)

ps, bloody insomnia . Fell dead asleep reading stories tothe kids, got woken up round 9:30 or 10, and here I am still awake at 3am, on 10/10ths, which I rarely have time to do anymore. Don't get me wrong, nice to read some of you again, but blimey, I'm going to feel crappy tomorrow doing retouching in front of a monitor. Nighty night.

[Peter Mallett]

Originally Posted by Dixie Flatline

Didn't Gilles win more races than Jody Schekter did in 1979, when Schekter won the World Championship?

Agreed but that was really my point. Is it going to be a sympathy piece?

[ss_collins]

It could be made very good with the right cinematographer, scriptwriter and director... think vanashing point, speed tribe, the credits from Michel Vailliante, the new book Autodrome. Think an Icarus story...

what? ok so I've always wanted to be a low budget independent film maker

[Anuauto]

Originally Posted by ss_collins

think the new book Autodrome

I'm still thinking....

The idea of "Brooklands the Movie" and the potential revival of "Mon Ami Mate" as a film (both recently discussed extensively on other fora) would be difficult enough but seem far better subjects?
I watched a lengthy documentary on Gilles on a flight to Toronto in 1999 the same weekend the Canadian GP was in Montreal. It was good - but when it restarted again, in French, I was the only one in the entire 747 that didnt groan - and the Canadians were groaning most. Not a good omen?

Also, as he lived in more recent times, would his reputation survive the portrayl of his domestic conduct that is reflected in the Donaldson biography?

[TedN]

More info here

Pics here

Ted

[raul_iulian]

it's all about how G was

[Jordi]

As long as the film is:
a) not Hollywoodish
b) true to life
c) accurate and detailed

it should be fine.

It should neither be making Gilles and Jacques saints, nor sinners. Just true to what they are.

[marcel82]

Originally Posted by Jordi

As long as the film is:
a) not Hollywoodish
b) true to life
c) accurate and detailed

it should be fine.

It should neither be making Gilles and Jacques saints, nor sinners. Just true to what they are.

yes, what we don't need is Driven 2

[Jordi]

Exactly. It must be more similar to Grand Prix than to Driven.

[ASCII Man]

Well, maybe not even similar to Grand Prix, I'd rather see a sort of documentary type of movie about their lives with a couple of Grand Prix elements for maybe Gilles relation to Mr Ferrari and the Pironi fued, the vast majority of us already know about their careers in F1 so just let the movie be about their lives and such...

Dumdiedum...

[Bellof]

yeah, something like the muhammed ali docu (when we were kings) would be great...

[ss_collins]

you really should all see michel valliante - there are real lessons there as to how a motor racing film should be shot from a visual point of view - its incredible.