Posted by Neuman at ac9b8360.ipt.aol.com on August 03, 2000 at 22:59:57:
In Reply to: Having seen the flick... posted by Kevin on August 03, 2000 at 16:41:55:
The sonuvabitch hasn't risen in value since I got it.
-Mike Neuman
: : A while back Kevin did a rewrite of the script. I guess they kept only a few of his jokes, not even enough to actually give him credit.
: ...they didn't even do that.
: From what I saw and can recall (mind you, this WAS a while ago), the only true line of mine that made it into the flick was "I'm not a lesbian. I played in the minors, but never went pro." There's a context which would do it a bit more justice, but if you're really curious, you'll go see the flick.
: When I'm hired to do rewrites, I always imagine it's for dialogue. Oddly enough, on this flick, they kept scenes, scenarios, and set-pieces I wrote, but used someone else's dialogue. The big things that stick out which I contributed to the script...
: 1) Mostly all the names of the characters.
: 2) The father, as written in the first draft, was very old-country Italian. I made him John Goodman, more or less, and gave him a job working the Garden State Parkway.
: 3) Many scenes where - as mentioned above - characters meet and talk who hadn't met or spoke in the prior draft. But again - none of my dialogue's in there (which - while I may be biased - is a darn shame).
: For the record, a major plot-point which I had NOTHING TO DO WITH is something that most people are going to assume I wrote. The love interest of the main character is into comics, and 'Amazing Spiderman' #109 figures prominently (first appearance of the 'Punisher'). I didn't write any of that in; a writer who came after me did (I believe there were - total - eight writers on the flick, with only one being credited; in true Writer's Guild fashion, it was the first writer, even though the film little-resembles the first draft, in my opinion).
: I think the flick will play huge to sixteen year old and under little girls. I'm sure it'll be the number one flick at the box office this weekend. If you like watching girls dance to Charlie Daniels Band tunes atop bars, you might want to check it out yourself.
: But if you're looking for my brand of slime all over the picture, don't get your hopes up. Outside of the fact that it's set in Jersey, there isn't much Askew in the movie.