If Rob Marshall Had Directed.....

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/23/10 at 6:40pm

Titanic

The sinking would be cut as it slowed things down

[JP2]

Posted: 7/23/10 at 7:00pm

X-Men

The mutant powers would be figments of each characters imagination because having superhuman abilities is unrealistic.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 7/23/10 at 7:13pm

That's not entirely fair to Mr. Marshall his handling of CHICAGO was spot on and he only really flubbed his take on NINE. That's really only one. He did a really good job with ANNIE and he also did an impressive job with his 1997 Encores! staging of PROMISES, PROMISES which in my opinion exceeds Rob Ashford's take on the material.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 7/23/10 at 10:42pm

Can you imagine what he would have done with Sound Of Music?

[byebyebaby12]

Posted: 7/23/10 at 11:51pm

I agree Carlos.
Nine was terrible. Then again the material was very hard to turn into a movie.

But anyway, it is not like he has directed dozens of musical movies and they were all like that. He has done three. Two of which was the "musical inside their head."

His Annie was semi decent except the STUPID choice of having Ms. Hannigan play Annie's "Mom."

Also, most of the people here don't seem to understand that some songs HAVE to be cut. Some songs just don't work on film. Updated On: 7/23/10 at 11:51 PM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 12:09am

I enjoyed Nine for the performances, the cinematography and what few musical numbers were kept...other than that, the pace was slower than molasses.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 2:15am

Bye Bye

Cutting 2/3 of the score is not "some songs". He eviscerated the score.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 2:38am

Well....this started out as a fun thread. Thanks for killing it by the need to defend Marshall. He's a big boy, he could take some ribbing. He'd probably laugh along with it.

[JP2]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 2:43am

Man, who let the wet blankets in?

[byebyebaby12]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 3:07am

I just checked, Rob Marshell did not write the screenplay. So, he really can't take all the blame for what songs were cut. I also think the prospect of an Oscar was behind them adding new songs instead of putting in the original ones.

But, like I said before Nine is hard material to turn into a film. You need an amazing screenwriter, director and production staff.

I was not referring just to Nine when I said that. It was more of a general statement. I just got out of a long dicussion with someone about the cut songs from musical movies and I could not get through to them that sometimes it has to be done.

They also did not get why in Chicago, Mary Sunshine was not a man.

[B3TA07]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 3:11am

If he had directed The Sound of Music, the entire show would be based inside a marionette puppet show concept.

[Biff AKA Levi]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 3:45am

As the director, he and the production companies approve the script. It's not like the screenwriter has the only say in the script.

[sabrelady]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 4:39am

Not a musical but Memoirs of a Geisha also sucked/tanked.

Directors can have a lot of input into a screenplay (dependant on their status/contract) so Mr Marshall has to have at least some of the shadow fall on his garden.

[willrogers2008]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 9:21am

CHICAGO is already a classic musical movie.One of the greatest of the Motion Pictures History. Even Bob Fosse and Michael Bennett and other genius had their mistakes. Mr. Marshall is a great artist, for sure. Let's wait for the future.

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 10:59am

Jesus Christ Superstar

...actually, I shudder to think of how he could do this, but I know he'd do something wrong.

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 11:06am

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 11:53am

The horse isn't dead yet. They allegedly want him to direct Wicked, and while I don't particularly care that Wicked is the show getting sacrificed on the altar of Hollywood, which has never hidden its animosity for Broadway, whatever he does with the film (should he accept) will likely continue his ****ty trend of "songs don't happen in real life" and continue to set a precedent for how other musicals should be filmed. Call me cuckoo, but I'd rather see less of this concept.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 12:45pm

I remember when Nine opened & people on the board wanted to burn him at the stake. Now everyone wants to cut him slack. Speaking of Chicago, it had its detractors. I liked it much more than Nine but still lamented over cutting several key songs.

[byebyebaby12]

Posted: 7/24/10 at 1:21pm

I don't get how using it in two movies is "tired." I am not saying it was a good idea to do it again but there are several directors who repeat themselves far more often. Just look at Tim Burton, almost all of his movies have the same "stylized" look and everyone seems to think he is a genius.

Obviously, Chicago was not perfect but no movie is. But I don't see how "key" songs were cut.

Songs Cut From Chicago were
"A Little Bit of Good"- Mary Sunshine was not a man so it would lost whatever novelty it had in the show.
"My Own Best Friend"- Nice song, but not nessesary to the plot. It is also very slow moving which is hard to make work on film
"I Know a Girl"- It was a breaking the fourth wall which does not work on film and also would not make sence to the concept of the film. Why would Roxie imagine Velma saying things like that about her?
"Me and My Baby"- Is the only one I could have seen possibly working.
"When Velma Takes the Stand"- It is very impressive in the show because of it's difficult choreography. Not sure how it would have looked on film or how they could have fit it in.
"Class"- Was filmed but cut. It also does not make sence to the concept. Roxie is not there and her trial is going on. The test audiences did not seem to like it much either.