Not sure how we could have grown tired of a film that will not be released for another six months, but it happened. “Green Hornet,” has consistently evoked controversy since the project’s inception; the unknown final product has sparked such a great deal of coverage that we can’t even fathom what will occur when it is finally released early next year. First, we learned the movie’s release date was being pushed back so that the necessary changes and filming could be made to turn this into a 3D vehicle. This was not the greatest news, since there were various rumors that had already floated around of the studio’s lack of enthusiasm for the movie and Seth Rogen’s portrayal of their lead character. And while Rogen stepped up to declare the change to a 3D film a pleasing one, which the principals behind the film had discussed since the very beginning, it didn’t seem to quiet the noise.
And now the film’s director, Michel Gondry, has ‘formally’ weighed in — both agreeing with Rogen’s assertion that the move to 3D is exciting to all involved, as well as confirming that the rumors of an unhappy studio are just that, rumors. Gondry sat down with George ‘El Guapo’ Goush from LatinoReview to discuss his recently released documentary “Thorn In The Heart”, which we reviewed back in March, and ended up squashing some of the chatter surrounding “Green Hornet”.
He spoke about the crew’s overall excitement about the transformation to 3D and said (once again) how they wanted this film to be released in the format all along, saying it was something that they’re not “passively accepting” but that was “actively demanded” from the studio by himself and Rogen. He also explains that he has a credit sequence in mind which is apparently going to be quite impressive in 3D.
As for the rumors that Sony is using 3D as a shield to hide a troubled production, Gondry rebuffs those claims saying, “If the film is not good, the studio will stop paying any money….Believe me, if they did not think the movie would be great they would stop spending any money on it. It’s how big corporations work. They don’t [spend] money to save a project, they spend money when they think they’re going to get more money [back].” Of course, his reasoning is a bit simplistic — it would probably cost Sony more money (in lost profits) to shut down the film than try and help it become profitable — but we see the point that he’s driving at.
Gondry also talked briefly about Green Hornet’s relationship with Lone Ranger and said they “wanted to [bring it into the story] but there was a rights issue.” Gondry went on to confirm that he will be unveiling 3D footage of the film at ComicCon; whose attendees are always known to put aside the excitement and take things at face value. Regardless, maybe this will finally put an end to the flack this film has received so far or — if it’s really egregious — could continue to add fuel to the fire. You can watch the full interview below.
