Spoke to Barry Rosenbush yesterday. Here's the way things look:

The film will be shot in Shanghai. Because of the great temple locations available to them for the flashback, they wanted to know if they could switch from Indian mythology to Chinese. (They don't have to ask -- they own the rights -- but they did.)

I said it was okay with me -- as long as Jack stays Jack.

Yes, Jack will be Jack and the setting will be NYC. (Shanghai has excellent NYC street sets.) But Kusum and Kolabati will be Chinese, and the rakosh will be changed to something drawn from Chinese mythology.

This is all window dressing as far as I'm concerned, and irrelevant to the story.

So, they met this week, decided the elements they needed to change, and gave it to the scripter.

One problem: Chris Morgan, who's been rewriting Repairman Jack for two years now, has signed on to write the third Fast & Furious. Because of that commitment, he won't be able to turn in the Jack rewrite until June.

They tell me this will be the last major rewite. But I've heard that before.

The film will be shot in Shanghai. Because of the great temple locations available to them for the flashback, they wanted to know if they could switch from Indian mythology to Chinese. (They don't have to ask -- they own the rights -- but they did.)

I said it was okay with me -- as long as Jack stays Jack.

Yes, Jack will be Jack and the setting will be NYC. (Shanghai has excellent NYC street sets.) But Kusum and Kolabati will be Chinese, and the rakosh will be changed to something drawn from Chinese mythology.

This is all window dressing as far as I'm concerned, and irrelevant to the story.

So Kusum and Kolabati become what? Lin and Wu?

I understand their desire to keep costs down, but what is Sir Albert doing in China? Trying to keep the opium market open? Or are they going to turn him into a "gentleman adventurer?"

There are a lot of intriguing possibilities, but it just . . . doesn't . . . have . . . the . . . same . . . flavor.

Ken V.

but what is Sir Albert doing in China? .

Boxer Rebellion?

Boxer Rebellion?

I just hope this doesn't turn into "The Keep II". And what about the tie-in with "Rakoshi"? If they change the mythology, are your creatures still Rakoshi? If Hollywood does to your books what they did to Dean Koontz' "Watchers" (twice), I may be driven to drink (a very short drive).

what about the tie-in with "Rakoshi"? If they change the mythology, are your creatures still Rakoshi?

The Borderlands Rakoshi edition will be geared toward the core readership and collectors; the movie tie-in paperback will be the source novel (The Tomb) but will be retitled (for obvious reasons) Repairman Jack. I have confidence in Beacon and Disney making a good film -- IF AND WHEN they finally get down to it.

I have confidence in Beacon and Disney making a good film -- IF AND WHEN they finally get down to it.

Well, I'm turning my son into an FPW fan, so if I don't live to see the day, at least he will.

Passing down repairman jack from generation to generation..lol. So it's going to be chinese mythology instead? Well, i t doesn't seem quite right. I mean... well you see...

Boxer Rebellion?

. . . was started by a sexy French Poodle . . .

IIRC, the Boxer Rebellion was right on the turn of the century, and was part of an anti-foreigner movement. Extremely dangerous for an Englishman. How about the mid 1860's, after the Emperor gave up on banning opium? Again, if I remember correctly, in 1857 the Emperor, in desperation, decreed that any Chinese caught with opium would be beheaded, and his family enslaved. Like the drug laws in this country, it didn't work. So, about 1863-64 he gave up and made it legal. This would probably be a good time for an English adventurer to go to China to seek his fortune . . . right about the end of our civil war.

That would still make the Chinese version of the Bakti's about one hundred fifty years old.

I still think linking it with Kali and the Thugee is the best way to go, as many people are at least peripherally aware of that part of history. And it gives it a more realistic flavor . . . a little more plausable. I also understand the savings in both money and time that would be gained by not having to film part of the movie in China, part in New York, and part in India. (That doesn't mean I have to be enthusiastic about it.)

Ken V.



Ken V.

[QUOTE=fpw][SIZE=3]Spoke to Barry Rosenbush yesterday. Here's the way things look:

The film will be shot in Shanghai. Because of the great temple locations available to them for the flashback, they wanted to know if they could switch from Indian mythology to Chinese. (They don't have to ask -- they own the rights -- but they did.)

I said it was okay with me -- as long as Jack stays Jack.

Yes, Jack will be Jack and the setting will be NYC. (Shanghai has excellent NYC street sets.) But Kusum and Kolabati will be Chinese, and the rakosh will be changed to something drawn from Chinese mythology.

This is all window dressing as far as I'm concerned, and irrelevant to the story.

Steve D
Jack could still be Jack in a musical version of The Tomb, but it wouldn't be The Tomb. I'm not buying it. The dressing is just as important as the turkey on Thanksgiving. Sniff. I already miss the Rakoshi.

Spoke to Barry Rosenbush yesterday. Here's the way things look:

The film will be shot in Shanghai. Because of the great temple locations available to them for the flashback, they wanted to know if they could switch from Indian mythology to Chinese. (They don't have to ask -- they own the rights -- but they did.)

I said it was okay with me -- as long as Jack stays Jack.

Yes, Jack will be Jack and the setting will be NYC. (Shanghai has excellent NYC street sets.) But Kusum and Kolabati will be Chinese, and the rakosh will be changed to something drawn from Chinese mythology.

This is all window dressing as far as I'm concerned, and irrelevant to the story.

So, they met this week, decided the elements they needed to change, and gave it to the scripter.

One problem: Chris Morgan, who's been rewriting Repairman Jack for two years now, has signed on to write the third Fast & Furious. Because of that commitment, he won't be able to turn in the Jack rewrite until June.

They tell me this will be the last major rewite. But I've heard that before.

All missgivings aside (and so far, there seem to be a few...) at the end of the day, this is FPWs puppy, not ours, and if he says the Indian mythology is window dressing, then that's that. He is the author, after all.

If The Tomb had always been centred around Chinese mythology then it would still have been The Tomb because no-one would have known any different. And like The Man says, Jack will still be Jack.

If I may stick my two penny worth in though... ( no-one in the room raises an objection, so I forge ahead.) Books will always be better than films, in my opinion. And The Tomb in always going to lose something going to the big screen. That said though, I don't think a film version is a bad thing, it's just that it's a different thing and should, therefore, be judged as such. That the Rakoshi become something else is sad but not the end of the world.

And let's not forget, they own the rights, they didn't have to ask.

One thing though, just don't let it turn out anything like Big Trouble In Little China. It was a good film in many ways, but Kurt Russel just isn't Repairman Jack...