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Post by nucleusofswarm on Mar 25, 2017 0:30:34 GMT
So we all more or less know the story (at the minimum, from the Tim Burton biopic): the crossdressing movie nerd who fought in WW2, then came to Hollywod and made some of the most infamous movies in history. They bomb, he is degraded to making porn and dies in 1978 a broken shell.
However, in the 80s, his work builds up a cult following and more mainstream discussion, which went to another level with the Burton film. If he had held on, could Wood have made a comeback as the 'so bad it's good' king? Would he have just settled to make more of the same, now with an actual fanbase, or would he have fought to change that perception?
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Post by charlesuirdhein on Mar 25, 2017 0:38:56 GMT
Hmm, interesting. Trouble is...he WAS terrible. So very good at getting it all together and finding funding and persuading people to do his movies but still bloody awful, though in a charming way.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2017 0:50:22 GMT
The fascinating proespect would be that the 80s is the first time, thanks to VHS and video being cheap, filmakers could make a splash with low budget films - the entre slasher genre was built round that in the 80s. Everyone with a half decent camera fancied their chances at being the next Sam Raimi. In that era I can imagine Wood being held up as a figure who pinoeered the somewhat guerilla style of frenetic shooting schedules. The only issue would be, and I'm not sure the Burton movie touches on this enough but The Haunted World of Edward D. Wood Jr does, is that he was very sensitive about the idea of his work being a joke. I'm not sure he would have taken to the idea of being held up as kitsch and camp even though his infamy has brought him more fame than more successful directors could dream of.
I said recently when Charles and I discussed Wood that while, yes, he's a bad director, he's got more heart and passion in his early works than most of the multi-million dollar film directors working today. I always think interesting failures beat mediocrity any day of the week so I would be loathe to ever refer to him as the worst director ever when souless hacks like McG are around.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2017 7:36:46 GMT
'If he had held on', to quote from the OP - well, he was pretty much in the grip of severe alcoholism towards the end. If he had managed to have shaken that off, then possibly he would have been able to pull himself out of the porn-movie 'abyss' and make a name for himself, possibly as has Jess Franco and - at a stretch, but not in the same league as - Jean Rollin. Problem is, as charlesuirdhein says, he was terrible and recognised as being so. To pull himself away from that reputation, and from the reputation of someone who made porn flicks, would have been a huge undertaking. As also has been stated, he had a huge passion for his projects, and that passion overtook lack of talent and budget and it is hard to knock him for that. There's a director at the moment called Richard Driscoll, who has been called the 'new' Ed Wood. His personal story is fascinating, and makes more sense than his few films. Richard Driscoll Wiki There are similarities between his work and Wood's. His latest project 'Blade Hunter' - which may or may not bear an uncanny resemblance to the Harrison Ford film - is currently seeking financial backing. |
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Post by nucleusofswarm on Mar 25, 2017 9:23:57 GMT
The fascinating proespect would be that the 80s is the first time, thanks to VHS and video being cheap, filmakers could make a splash with low budget films - the entre slasher genre was built round that in the 80s. Everyone with a half decent camera fancied their chances at being the next Sam Raimi. In that era I can imagine Wood being held up as a figure who pinoeered the somewhat guerilla style of frenetic shooting schedules. The only issue would be, and I'm not sure the Burton movie touches on this enough but The Haunted World of Edward D. Wood Jr does, is that he was very sensitive about the idea of his work being a joke. I'm not sure he would have taken to the idea of being held up as kitsch and camp even though his infamy has brought him more fame than more successful directors could dream of. So you don't think he would've gone the Tommy Wiseau route and just swallow his pride for the sake of creative and financial security? |
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Post by dalekbuster523finish on Mar 25, 2017 15:28:40 GMT
I think Ed Wood could have potentially taken over Doctor Who from John Nathan Turner. He clearly had very ambitious ideas, just poorly executed. TV may have been his calling - with more people working around him, his ideas may have been more successful.
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Post by charlesuirdhein on Mar 25, 2017 20:05:11 GMT
I think Ed Wood could have potentially taken over Doctor Who from John Nathan Turner. He clearly had very ambitious ideas, just poorly executed. TV may have been his calling - with more people working around him, his ideas may have been more successful. ROFLcopter. Oh my. Oh dear, I'm going to have a lie down now. |
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Post by nucleusofswarm on Apr 21, 2017 23:09:08 GMT
'If he had held on', to quote from the OP - well, he was pretty much in the grip of severe alcoholism towards the end. If he had managed to have shaken that off, then possibly he would have been able to pull himself out of the porn-movie 'abyss' and make a name for himself, possibly as has Jess Franco and - at a stretch, but not in the same league as - Jean Rollin. Problem is, as charlesuirdhein says, he was terrible and recognised as being so. To pull himself away from that reputation, and from the reputation of someone who made porn flicks, would have been a huge undertaking. As also has been stated, he had a huge passion for his projects, and that passion overtook lack of talent and budget and it is hard to knock him for that. There's a director at the moment called Richard Driscoll, who has been called the 'new' Ed Wood. His personal story is fascinating, and makes more sense than his few films. Richard Driscoll Wiki There are similarities between his work and Wood's. His latest project 'Blade Hunter' - which may or may not bear an uncanny resemblance to the Harrison Ford film - is currently seeking financial backing. Sounds like an interesting fellow |
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