"Bigger Than The Beatles" Dennis/Manson Film Feb 2015 (on IMDB & Facebook)

[guitarfool2002]

Maybe I was asleep while it happened, but has anyone here discussed this upcoming film project? Release is scheduled for Feb. 2015.  Here is the IMDB entry: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2786524/


The story of Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys and how he found an intense singer/songwriter who he introduced to Hollywood. This musician was sure that one day he's be a household name. That musician did find fame, but not for his music... because that musician was Charles Manson. This project stems from our short film, "LIE" which was done for the Atlanta History Center and Minnesota Historical Society.

Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/BiggerThanTheBeatles

Many still photos from the production are on the Facebook page if anyone would like to see the actors playing Dennis, Mike, Brian, Al, Manson, etc.

[Ed Roach]

Interesting...  NBC is also producing a 13 part series, Aquarius, about The Family, which I've been told will delve heavily into Dennis' connection

Set in the late 1960s, Aquarius stars Duchovny as a Los Angeles police sergeant with a complicated personal life who starts tracking a small-time criminal and budding cult leader seeking out vulnerable women to join his "cause".  The man’s name is Charles Manson. The twists and turns of a complicated undercover operation will lead Duchovny’s character and his young partner to the brink of Manson’s crimes that eventually will lead to the Tate-LaBianca murders in subsequent seasons. “Event series are a big priority for us, and the combination of a show that charts the lead-up to the Manson murders, along with a television star of the magnitude of David Duchovny, is the very definition of an event,” said NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke. Added Greenblatt, “After being involved in the production of both The X-Files and Californication, it gives me great pleasure to work with David Duchovny for the third time on this compelling drama.” Aquarius joins another Charles Manson project, a limited series is in development at Fox with writer Bret Easton Ellis and director Rob Zombie.

http://www.deadline.com/2014/03/nbc-orders-charles-manson-drama-series-starring-david-duchovny-from-marty-adelstein-itv-studios-who-eye-alliance/

[Lowbacca]

My man Duchovny in a film about Dennis & Manson? Cool.

[smilethebeachboysloveyou]

They have the short film LIE upon which the Dennis film is based up on IMDB if anyone is interested in watching it.  It looks like they got most of the info right (as far as my comparatively limited knowledge of these events go, anyway).  I have to say that I find the delivery of the voice-over to be irritating.  Still, this looks like a much more promising project than either the earlier planned Dennis biopic that fizzled out, or the upcoming Brian biopic.

http://www.imdb.com/video/withoutabox/vi844300825?ref_=tt_pv_vi_1

[Peadar 'Big Dinner' O'Driscoll]

Film looks god awful but the TV show seems promising

[guitarfool2002]

Just curious, what about the film looks "God-awful"? All that has been posted are the stills on the Facebook page, that doesn't seem to be much to judge at this point.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Now, I was expecting that to be pretty shitty, but I was most pleasantly surprised. No major factual errors (OK, maybe Charlie wasn't ever that clean...) and the two leads not only looked more than marginally like who they were portraying but also had a fair handle on their character. If, and it's a big if, they can sustain and expand that for a full movie, I think we may be on to something.

[Peadar 'Big Dinner' O'Driscoll]

Just curious, what about the film looks "God-awful"? All that has been posted are the stills on the Facebook page, that doesn't seem to be much to judge at this point.

Thats what Im judging it on - are we back in fake beard territory? - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=563981947026169&set=pb.377784525645913.-2207520000.1398703307.&type=3&theater

Look at this one! - Looks like a crappy B Movie to me - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=511843572240007&set=pb.377784525645913.-2207520000.1398703307.&type=3&theater

I haven't watched the 10 minute thing from 2009 though so maybe thats good?

[Andrew G. Doe]

That is truly the fakest fake beard ever faked in the history of fakedom.  

However, most of the other stills aren't that shoddy:

[guitarfool2002]

From the stills, I was also surprised at both the actors' images and what little period details in the set design, costuming, staging, etc can be seen in still-frame and on-set photos. The actor playing Manson actually looks like Manson, of course when the full-length version hits and we can actually see and hear the roles, we'll be able to judge. But it doesn't look like caricature like other projects have unfortunately done.

What worries me about the NBC project with Duchovny is that it is on NBC, and the network will have to make a ton of concessions, edits, changes, and whatnot to conform to broadcast standards and possibly too be sensitive of legal issues surrounding various families and estates. But I think the biggest drawback about having something like this on NBC is again the limitations they have on content, and some of the most crucial content involved in this case which even got edited out in Bugliosi's prosecution (and subsequent book) is among the most fascinating and revealing parts of the story. There are elements that existed and possibly played a part in the whole saga that just don't get mentioned as much if at all.

And if I have to watch this NBC show being interrupted by ads for "Biggest Loser" or "The Voice", it may ruin it...  

[guitarfool2002]

No, no, no...perspective, please! The worst fake beards I've ever seen were in that "Summer Dreams" tv movie travesty from the late 80's, specifically the 'Brian' character in 1967 clutching a copy of Sgt Pepper, wearing headphones, and Jimi Hendrix at Monterey playing on TV behind him.

Now *those* were horrible beards.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Best Manson ever was Steve Railsback in "Helter Skelter".

[guitarfool2002]

Unless it's already been done, I'd like to see at least one Manson-themed movie depict a paranoid and panic-stricken David Crosby going around to his friends in the LA scene carrying a gun and yelling "they're coming after the millionaires!", which is apparently what he did after word of the murders started getting out. 

[SMiLE Brian]

The Croz

[filledeplage]

Just curious, what about the film looks "God-awful"? All that has been posted are the stills on the Facebook page, that doesn't seem to be much to judge at this point.

Thats what Im judging it on - are we back in fake beard territory? - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=563981947026169&set=pb.377784525645913.-2207520000.1398703307.&type=3&theater

Look at this one! - Looks like a crappy B Movie to me - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=511843572240007&set=pb.377784525645913.-2207520000.1398703307.&type=3&theater

I haven't watched the 10 minute thing from 2009 though so maybe thats good?

Did Dennis even have a beard 1969-ish? I'm thinking no. I don't think he wore one until late 1971 - 1972-ish? Concert photos I have, and concert promos/YouTube show him clean-shaven, even in early 1971.

Never Learn Not To Love and I Can Hear Music on Mike Douglas - no beard, 1969. Only Mike has a beard.

December, 1969 - Paris, Olympia, Dennis has no beard.

 Gaumont Palace - December, 1970 - no beard on Dennis.

Mike Douglas again - March, 1971 - Dennis has no beard; Carl and Mike have beards.

Even Central Park, 1971 - no beard on Dennis. Carl has one.

Andrew?

[bgas]

From the stills, I was also surprised at both the actors' images and what little period details in the set design, costuming, staging, etc can be seen in still-frame and on-set photos. The actor playing Manson actually looks like Manson, of course when the full-length version hits and we can actually see and hear the roles, we'll be able to judge. But it doesn't look like caricature like other projects have unfortunately done.

clue me in here; are you saying the details look good, or bad? 
Cuz the one thing that jumped out at me was the lousy representation of Dennis' Gold Record awards. To mess up something so easy to present correctly, seems odd. 

[guitarfool2002]

I'm saying based on the stills it doesn't look "god-awful", or that such a judgement can be made based on the stills until we can see and hear the film itself. If anything, I think the Manson character does resemble Manson in still photos, and anytime a lower-budget film production has to cast actors in the roles of very familiar personalities, it can be very touchy to say the least, especially among fans of those personalities. And some of the props and set designs look pretty good, again they're not working with a "Mad Men" budget to get this stuff together.

The gold records - I had not noticed that but will take a look.

And keep in mind there are millions of fans who love the scene in "Back To The Future" where Marty plays guitar at the school dance, and have no idea nor could they care that he's playing a Gibson guitar which didn't exist until several years after that dance scene was set.   

[Andrew G. Doe]

Concerning the appalling fake beard pic - I assume that's what we're discussing - it's clearly labelled as from being from Dennis' last day, i.e. 12/28/83, and not any other time. That said, as he was pretty clean shaven in early September (dear God, i wrote that without concious thought...) it's questionable.

Those judging the project from the stills might want to take ten minutes to watch the short on the IMDB site.

[joshferrell]

Charlie saying that his shadow killed Dennis is pretty creepy.. 

[bgas]

And keep in mind there are millions of fans who love the scene in "Back To The Future" where Marty plays guitar at the school dance, and have no idea nor could they care that he's playing a Gibson guitar which didn't exist until several years after that dance scene was set.   

As with me, evidently. That's why it was back to the future!

[Shady]

Bizarre how this creped up on us, we should be all ashamed for not finding this earlier.

The stills looks pretty cool, should be worth a watch.

[smilethebeachboysloveyou]

A thought: does anyone know who Vaughn Juares or Joseph Andrew Schneider are?  It looks like they've gone to considerable personal expense to make this movie, so I assume they must be pretty big fans.  Has anyone crossed paths with them before?

[Orange Crate Art]

No, no, no...perspective, please! The worst fake beards I've ever seen were in that "Summer Dreams" tv movie travesty from the late 80's, specifically the 'Brian' character in 1967 clutching a copy of Sgt Pepper, wearing headphones, and Jimi Hendrix at Monterey playing on TV behind him.

Now *those* were horrible beards.

The worst!

[Ed Roach]

Now, I was expecting that to be pretty shitty, but I was most pleasantly surprised. No major factual errors (OK, maybe Charlie wasn't ever that clean...) and the two leads not only looked more than marginally like who they were portraying but also had a fair handle on their character. If, and it's a big if, they can sustain and expand that for a full movie, I think we may be on to something.

They also got it wrong about Tex; Dennis introduced him to Charlie, not the other way around

[Shady]

Now, I was expecting that to be pretty shitty, but I was most pleasantly surprised. No major factual errors (OK, maybe Charlie wasn't ever that clean...) and the two leads not only looked more than marginally like who they were portraying but also had a fair handle on their character. If, and it's a big if, they can sustain and expand that for a full movie, I think we may be on to something.

They also got it wrong about Tex; Dennis introduced him to Charlie, not the other way around

I didn't know that. Pretty incredible how Dennis was right in the middle of all that.

Did Dennis ever speak about the murders etc