The Fraggle Rock Movie Isn’t “Edgy” Enough
The Kidd would really prefer that, if movie studios cannot figure out exactly how to make a movie based off a beloved and successful TV show, then they should just turn around and walk away before making their attempts to inevitably destroy people’s childhoods. After seeing so many cartoons and shows done so poorly over the years, with creative teams in place that couldn’t have gotten the essence of what made the originals great even if you came right out and told them, it shouldn’t surprise me that yet another looks to be on the path of disappointment.
A FRAGGLE ROCK movie has been in development for some time, with The Weinstein Company finally getting the shot to make it happen… except they apparently have no idea how to make a FRAGGLE ROCK movie. Writer/director Cory Edwards has taken to his own personal blog in order to call out the Weinsteins for their lack of passion or knowledge of the material, but also for their shenanigans in going behind his back to find someone who’ll help transform the current script into something more “edgy.”
I don’t even know how you turn FRAGGLE ROCK “edgy.”
The lyrics to the theme song are:
Dance your cares away,
Worry’s for another day.
Let the music play,
Down at Fraggle Rock.”
How does one go ahead and make that enjoy…? Unless the Fraggles are just a bunch of crackheads bumming around with no jobs, sitting around listening to music, not worrying or carrying about what happens to them. Wow… that would have been a fucked-up show for me to watch as a kid.
Granted, there are two sides to every story, but Cory Edwards’ isn’t painting a pretty picture as to what’s going on with the Fraggles. Here’s his take, and it doesn’t look good:
Fraggle fans, I am trying to keep the torch lit for all of you. But we are going to have to weather a few more storms. There are some dark days ahead, my friends. Not to be too alarmist, but I am struggling to stay in control of my own movie at this point. The Weinstein Company gives me no confidence these days. Why?
For starters, they have begun the search for a new writer, presumably to rewrite my entire script from scratch. Now I’m a big boy — I can take the blow if my skills are not up to the high, high standards of the Weinstein Company (he said with too much sarcasm in his voice). But this is happening behind my back, without consulting me or even asking my opinion. I enjoy working with other writers and have no doubt that the RIGHT person could help make any script better. But to not even ask me? Adding insult to injury, the search is basically an open assignment. This means the net has been cast wide, virtually posting in the “classifieds” of the movie business. The Fraggles do not deserve such treatment.
Rest assured, I still have a deal to direct. Which means my hands WILL be on this script. That makes this move by the studio all the more baffling. Hey guys, you know what would be easier? Asking the director to help you get the script in shape, instead of running in your own circles and then showing me something later that I’ll probably hate.
“Oh, Cory, ‘hate’ is a strong word. How do you know you’re going to hate it?” I’ll tell you why.
The only overall note coming from the studio is this: “Not edgy enough.”
“EDGY.” That’s the note. That’s what they are trying to do to the Fraggle Rock movie. EDGE it up! Let me say right now that “edgy” is one of my least favorite words. Since my earliest days in the client video business, “edgy has been a sign of someone who doesn’t know what they want. Not only is “edgy” a nebulous, abstract word that means something different to everyone, but it chases the immediate whims of pop culture. WHAT is edgy?? Faster edits? Rock music for the score? Boober wearing some gangsta bling? I have no idea. What I DO know is that the word “edgy” should not be anywhere near this movie.
What if “Toy Story” was edgy? ”Toy Story” can be relevant, sharply written, and fast paced, but it has a genuine heart and sincere characters. Like “Toy Story,” Fraggle Rock’s success is not only due to it’s anti-edginess, but in its absolute DEFIANCE of all that is edgy and trendy and pop in this world.
I have said repeatedly that I will do my very best to make this Fraggle movie relevant and modern, to compete with everything else out there. But what I will NOT do is sabotage what made the property beloved in the first place.
“Wild Wild West” anyone?
I thought this was all worth reporting, and to let you know that I, too, am concerned. Perhaps this will get the studio to pick up the phone and actually engage me again.
Keep the Fraggle fire burning! And while it’s burning, throw that frakking word “edgy” into the fire, will ya?
So… who’s looking forward to a FRAGGLE ROCK movie now…?
