Spielberg and a cast of notables combine on new film version of Hemingway's The Old Man And The Sea
by John Urban & the staff at Write On The Water
Word out of Hollywood is Ernest Hemingway's Noble Prize-winning book The Old Man And The Sea will make it to the big screen again, this time as a musical.
The project, which was initially shopped as an independent film, reportedly found a circuitous route to Stephen Spielberg's desk. The news wire out of LA quotes Spielberg saying, "I was a skeptic at first, but a family friend insisted on taking me to a small off-Broadway showing of the musical and things clicked for me right away. I had a team in my office the next morning."
The Old Man And The Sea was initially published in 1952. Featured in Life magazine, over five-million copies were sold in two days. The book became a best seller upon publication. The story features an old fisherman, Santiago, who is down on his luck. He eventually catches an enormous marlin, but the fish is devoured by sharks before he can land the catch.
Spielberg told reporters: "To pull this off we knew we would need a substantial score, strong acting, and realistic effects. When we made Jaws in the mid-70s, we didn't even dream about the kind of technology that's out now. The mechanical sharks and the marlin in The Old Man may well redefine how these types of movies are made."
Early on, Spielberg put a call in to his friend and Academy Award winning composer John Williams, who also worked with Spielberg on Jaws early in their careers. Williams said, "This was a return to the water for me. I suppose it's the same for Stephen."
Several songwriters were approached to write the lyrics to the John Williams score, but insiders say that from the very beginning they knew Jimmy Buffett was the right choice. A publicist for the project said, "Jimmy, like Hemingway, lived in Key West and he's also a fisherman. Plus, Jimmy helps at the box office since he was able to modify some existing songs, including Come Monday and Fins, which will likely make the movie a draw for his substantial fan base."
A senior member of the production team told reporters that casting was the hardest challenge. "We had Hemingway's story, the score, lyrics, and a commitment from the Spielberg special effects people for the marlin and the shark. Still, the movie centers on one character and we needed a mega-star who could carry the show."
(Jimmy Buffett, photo courtesy of CMT)
Apparently, the breakthrough came when a member of the production team lamented that Hemingway's appeal may be stronger with men than women. The source said, "That gave us the brainchild to cast Santiago as a woman. It was bold. We knew it was bold. We immediately saw the implications. At that point the call went to Lady Gaga. We knew we had something special – the gender thing, the age thing, the sunglasses. It modernized the story, expanded the story. It's relevance became instantly apparent. Getting Gaga wasn't easy because of her existing commitments, but after several phone calls and a trip to Hemingway's home in Cuba, Gaga agreed." Look, too, for Scotty McCreery of American Idol fame, to appear as Santiago's young friend, Manolin.
Filming, which will take place under an agreement with the Cuban government, will begin in Havana this summer. Expect to see The Old Man And The Sea – The Musical! in 3D coming to theaters next spring.
The World Premier is scheduled for April Fool's Day, 2013.
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