I guess I’ve been living under a rock, because…

Roman Polanski was a wanted child predator for the last 30 years?

Apparently Roman Polanski had sex with a thirteen year old girl at Jack Nicholson’s house in 1977.

“He has argued that the sex was consensual, saying the girl was “not unresponsive”, though Gailey said he drugged her with painkillers and champagne before carrying out a ‘very scary’ assault.”

Not unresponsive? Does he really think that constitutes consent?

He pleaded guilty to the crime and was set to receive a reduced sentence, but he fled the US in ‘78 when it became clear that he was going to do some time. He had been on the run until this past Saturday, when he was finally arrested in Zurich.

Clearly none of this is news (it was even the subject of a 2008 documentary called Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired.) I somehow failed pick up on this over the years, but I am never the less shocked to learn about it.

Polanski’s Chinatown is a certified classic and is one of my favorite films, and although I can not question his talent as a filmmaker, this revelation has definitely tainted my opinion of the man as a human being.

Maybe I shouldn’t be so shocked. This isn’t the first time in my life that I have been disturbed by the details of my heroes personal lives. It’s always difficult to come to terms with the fact that the people we idolize are indeed human and sometimes do some very nasty things — Michael Richards’ on-stage meltdown a couple years back is an example that comes to mind right away.

But it seems the world has forgotten, if not forgiven, Mr. Polanski’s crimes. I can’t help but feel disgusted when I recall the standing ovation he received after winning the Best Director Oscar back in 2002. Did the audience think of him as a political prisoner or something? It seems to me that he refused to attend because he would have been arrested the minute he set foot in the States, not for anything the least bit honourable or dignified.

Also, the majority of the reaction I’ve come across since his arrest has painted him as a victim. Granted, this all happened thirty years ago, but was what he did not wrong?  Does he not deserve to be held accountable for his actions?

Samantha Geimer, the woman he assaulted all those years ago, doesn’t think so. She sued Polanski and they settled out of court, and she has gone on to publicly forgive him. She has also filed to have the charges against him dismissed.

So  where does this leave us, the fans? Although I will always respect Roman Polanski as a filmmaker, I can’t help but think of him as a selfish man who violated a child and refused to be held accountable.

I believe in redemption, but I don’t think he’s done anything to redeem himself yet.

Today I learned, as the rest of us did, that Patrick Swayze has died after a brave battle with pancreatic cancer.

Swayze is a screen legend with an extensive resume, perhaps best known for his work in Dirty Dancing and Ghost, roles that cultivated his status as a heartthrob and helped him win People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive in 1991.

Just last week I had the pleasure of watching him kick ass and take names as James Dalton in the action-romp Road House, one of the most entertaining B-movies the 80’s had to offer.

In his memory, here is just one classic moment from that film.

Swingers (1996)

Written by Jon Favreau

Every now and again I take a look through my DVD collection and pick out a film that reminds me exactly why I fell in love with the movies, and why I chose to pursue a career as a screenwriter. This time it was the 1996 classic Swingers, the film that launched the careers of Doug Liman, Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Ron Livingston, and more.

This is without a doubt one of my favorite comedies of all time. Favreau stars as Mike Peters, a struggling bit actor and stand up comedian chasing his dream in Hollywood while trying to move past the life he left behind in New York. His group of friends, including Vince Vaughn in a career-making performance as Trent, take him on a string of adventures from parties in the Hollywood hills to the casinos of Las Vegas all in an attempt to help him get over his ex-girlfriend and back into the dating scene.

The lingo is ‘niche’, the clothes are a throwback to a throwback, and the music is a pastiche of swing, guitar rock, and lounge, but the characters are so rich and the story so felt that you can’t help but be drawn into their world.

I really truly love this movie. And I was reminded of it when I saw a trailer for a new Comedy written by and starring Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn called Couples Retreat. They might be my favorite comedic pairing out there. From Swingers, to Made, and even The Breakup, these two have a great chemistry and a hilarious dynamic.

But Couples Retreat is getting some pretty harsh reviews, at least on its message board at IMDB, and is being compared heavily to Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I hadn’t heard anything about this pic until this past weekend, but the cast they put together is fantastic, and the premise is good. Favreau and Vaughn have always written funny, dynamic Comedies, and I’m optimistic that their latest collaboration won’t disappoint.

Couples Retreat hits theatres October 9th.

Swingers

Overall Score: 9/10

So, I caught the latest episode of the new Fox series Glee tonight. Last week’s premiere got off to somewhat of a rough start, but after getting settled I found myself curious to see more.

After tonight’s episode, I’m not sure I’ll be tuning in again.

The elements I thought were the pilot’s strongest points, the musical numbers, have here become awkwardly drawn out and cringe-worthy (the rendition of Kanye West’s Gold Digger with the rapping teacher was particularly hard to watch.) When a song was chosen for comedic effect, it ran too long and spoiled what could have been a good gag. I can’t help but think that Glee would be better as a half-hour, with these sequences cut down heavily.

Despite these issues, there are some good moments – Principal Figgins, played by veteran actor Iqbal Theba, is a fun character with some great lines, and there are some funny “Cut-To’s” throughout.

At this point,  it just doesn’t seem like Glee is living up to the hype.

We have finished a rough draft of our latest project Lost Case! We are in the process of re-working some things and getting to a comfortable “First Draft” in time for a script-exchange we are doing in a couple of weeks with some other local writers.

Early in the process we had some concerns about the page count, but it came in at right around 90 and with the revisions we’re making it seems that it will grow to around 100 even.

We are excited to be at this stage with the project, and can’t wait to get some coverage and keep on going!