list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Congo on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/Congo/92112/default.aspx Title: Congo
Year: 1995
Director: Frank Marshall
Plot: Good gorillas meet bad gorillas while human beings search for treasure in this jungle advnture saga. R.B. Travis (Joe Don Baker) is the ruthless head of Travi-Com, a telecommunications firm on the cusp of a major breakthrough in laser communications technology. However, Travis needs diamonds to finish the project, so he sends a group of men to Zaire, where he's told that a large supply of the gems can be easily found. When the men go missing, Travis sends his trusted assistant Karen Ross (Laura Linney), a one-time CIA associate, into the jungle to find both his staff and the jewels. Hoping to keep her mission a secret, Karen travels to Zaire in the company of Peter (Dylan Walsh), a researcher on primate development who is hoping to return Amy, a gorilla who has been taught sign language and can "speak" English with the help of a glove-controlled computer device. Also travelling with them is Herkermer (Tim Curry), a Romanian with a secret agenda: he's convinced that Amy can guide him to the Lost City of Zinj, where he believes that King Solomon's Mines are located. Upon arrival, the group is met by Monroe Kelly (Ernie Hudson), a self-described "great white hunter who happens to be black," and they discover that the jungle holds a menace that they weren't counting on: a tribe of bloodthirsty gray gorillas. Congo was based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Michael Crichton. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 15
Number of Lists: 15
Number of blog posts: 2
Number of discussion threads: 1
SpoutRating: 2
]]>Fri, 15 May 2009 17:14:12 GMTCongo1995Frank MarshallGood gorillas meet bad gorillas while human beings search for treasure in this jungle advnture saga. R.B. Travis (<a href="/players/P_____3412/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Joe Don Baker</a>) is the ruthless head of Travi-Com, a telecommunications firm on the cusp of a major breakthrough in laser communications technology. However, Travis needs diamonds to finish the project, so he sends a group of men to Zaire, where he's told that a large supply of the gems can be easily found. When the men go missing, Travis sends his trusted assistant Karen Ross (<a href="/players/P____42589/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Laura Linney</a>), a one-time CIA associate, into the jungle to find both his staff and the jewels. Hoping to keep her mission a secret, Karen travels to Zaire in the company of Peter (<a href="/players/P____74441/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Dylan Walsh</a>), a researcher on primate development who is hoping to return Amy, a gorilla who has been taught sign language and can "speak" English with the help of a glove-controlled computer device. Also travelling with them is Herkermer (<a href="/players/P____16268/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tim Curry</a>), a Romanian with a secret agenda: he's convinced that Amy can guide him to the Lost City of Zinj, where he believes that King Solomon's Mines are located. Upon arrival, the group is met by Monroe Kelly (<a href="/players/P____33733/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Ernie Hudson</a>), a self-described "great white hunter who happens to be black," and they discover that the jungle holds a menace that they weren't counting on: a tribe of bloodthirsty gray gorillas. Congo was based on the best-selling novel of the same name by <a href="/players/P____86220/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Michael Crichton</a>. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide15Tag Target (>10)15212http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t03339soorb.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Congo/92112/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/11/5/37002.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 11/5/2008 4:01:02 PM
Body: Michael Crichton died unexpectedly of cancer yesterday at the age of 66. In his honor, I thought about posting a montage of clips from movies he wrote and/or directed and/or which were adapted from his novels. But the one I found, despite making some of the lesser adaptations (Congo; Timeline) seem better than they actually are, wasn’t quite as long or in depth as I’d hoped. And I couldn’t merely include a scene or trailer for a single film, because it’s impossible to choose one work that best exemplifies his career. No, not even Jurassic Park is worthy. So, I’m going a little indirect and showcasing this recut trailer for Twister, a movie Crichton scripted with his then wife, Anne-Marie Martin. Not only do I think Twister is underrated, but I think this is one of the better recut trailers around, mainly because the voiceover sounds more legit than most amateur efforts. The fact that Crichton had penned the screenplay to Twister was immediately a surprise to anyone watching the movie, which hardly even seemed to have a foundation of story or dialogue prior to being shot. It had seemed that director Jan De Bont went into a wide expanse of Midwest farmland with a loose synopsis to His Girl Friday and a lot of ideas for spectacular CG tornado effects to be added in during post. It doesn’t matter if Crichton had simply written the movie for an easy paycheck, though. If you’ve ever read any of his science fiction novels, you know he’s an intelligent guy with impeccable storytelling skills. Sometimes his narratives are so fluid that it seems he’s writing with the expectation of the book being later made into a movie. Actually, for The Lost World, that’s clearly what he’s doing. But then there are books like Congo, which when adapted reveal some basic truths for why certain stories are better suited to literature and aren’t so easily translated to film language. I had a love and hate relationship with Crichton’s work throughout my life, having been first introduced to him through my father’s favorite film, The Andromeda Strain, as a little kid. I’ve been afraid of science ever since, though it didn’t stop me from becoming obsessed with Jurassic Park as a teenager. I later experienced my first real disappointment with a film adaptation when Spielberg’s movie arrived (”where was the river ride? and the pterosaurs?” I cried), yet I ultimately realized how great that movie actually is after reading and then watching Congo. And then another year later, I was flabbergasted with how simple Twister is. And like a number of others, the disappointment with the script initially disrupted the enjoyment of how entertaining the movie is, as a simple disaster pic. Anyway, Crichton also gave us great films like Westworld, Coma, The Great Train Robbery, and in some ways, we can kind of thank him for George Clooney’s stardom. via TV’s ER. He will be missed. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 05 Nov 2008 21:01:02 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com11/5/2008 4:01:02 PM Michael Crichton died unexpectedly of cancer yesterday at the age of 66. In his honor, I thought about posting a montage of clips from movies he wrote and/or directed and/or which were adapted from his novels. But the one I found, despite making some of the lesser adaptations (Congo; Timeline) seem better than they actually are, wasn’t quite as long or in depth as I’d hoped. And I couldn’t merely include a scene or trailer for a single film, because it’s impossible to choose one work that best exemplifies his career. No, not even Jurassic Park is worthy. So, I’m going a little indirect and showcasing this recut trailer for Twister, a movie Crichton scripted with his then wife, Anne-Marie Martin. Not only do I think Twister is underrated, but I think this is one of the better recut trailers around, mainly because the voiceover sounds more legit than most amateur efforts. The fact that Crichton had penned the screenplay to Twister was immediately a surprise to anyone watching the movie, which hardly even seemed to have a foundation of story or dialogue prior to being shot. It had seemed that director Jan De Bont went into a wide expanse of Midwest farmland with a loose synopsis to His Girl Friday and a lot of ideas for spectacular CG tornado effects to be added in during post. It doesn’t matter if Crichton had simply written the movie for an easy paycheck, though. If you’ve ever read any of his science fiction novels, you know he’s an intelligent guy with impeccable storytelling skills. Sometimes his narratives are so fluid that it seems he’s writing with the expectation of the book being later made into a movie. Actually, for The Lost World, that’s clearly what he’s doing. But then there are books like Congo, which when adapted reveal some basic truths for why certain stories are better suited to literature and aren’t so easily translated to film language. I had a love and hate relationship with Crichton’s work throughout my life, having been first introduced to him through my father’s favorite film, The Andromeda Strain, as a little kid. I’ve been afraid of science ever since, though it didn’t stop me from becoming obsessed with Jurassic Park as a teenager. I later experienced my first real disappointment with a film adaptation when Spielberg’s movie arrived (”where was the river ride? and the pterosaurs?” I cried), yet I ultimately realized how great that movie actually is after reading and then watching Congo. And then another year later, I was flabbergasted with how simple Twister is. And like a number of others, the disappointment with the script initially disrupted the enjoyment of how entertaining the movie is, as a simple disaster pic. Anyway, Crichton also gave us great films like Westworld, Coma, The Great Train Robbery, and in some ways, we can kind of thank him for George Clooney’s stardom. via TV’s ER. He will be missed. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/groups/Movie_Games/Re_Movies_for_Animals/598/33757/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: rjsprague
Post To: Movie Games
Post Date: 8/8/2008 12:51:51 PM
Body: I bet all these gorillas really enjoy watching Congo (1995)
]]>Fri, 08 Aug 2008 16:51:51 GMTrjspragueMovie Games8/8/2008 12:51:51 PMI bet all these gorillas really enjoy watching Congo (1995) http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/4/23/27711.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 4/23/2008 5:01:36 PM
Body: Everyone is familiar with the major controversy of the 1969 Oscars, but the real problem may not be that Oliver! was named Best Picture over Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, which wasn’t even nominated in that top category. No, the bigger issue may be with Planet of the Apes receiving a special award for make-up — consider someone associated with that production may have stolen from or attempted to sabotage the ape wardrobe of Kubrick’s film. In a Vulture blog interview with 2001 ape performer and choreographer Dan Richter, the former mime implies something to that affect: We had stuff stolen. I can’t say it was Planet of the Apes, but they were the only other movie shooting at the same time and same place we were. Stanley and I even had someone steal a mask and some ape hands right out from under our noses on the backlot, where someone had hid in a drainage ditch. We were in lockdown all the time. However, Richter also mentions that he can see a lot of mistakes in the 2001 costumes, so it’s possible the Academy was right to overlook the film in the Best Costume category. And it’s a bit of a moot point, anyway, since Planet lost the costume Oscar to Romeo and Juliet. Personally, I think both films’ apes look kind of silly (I know, the Planet apes weren’t meant to necessarily look like real apes), though Hollywood hasn’t really done much better since (see Congo, Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes remake). But Richter is probably right about getting the behavior down better than anyone before or after. Just watch the clip above, and if you’re in NYC Sunday night, check out the special screening of the film at the Tribeca Film Festival. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 23 Apr 2008 21:01:36 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com4/23/2008 5:01:36 PM Everyone is familiar with the major controversy of the 1969 Oscars, but the real problem may not be that Oliver! was named Best Picture over Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, which wasn’t even nominated in that top category. No, the bigger issue may be with Planet of the Apes receiving a special award for make-up — consider someone associated with that production may have stolen from or attempted to sabotage the ape wardrobe of Kubrick’s film. In a Vulture blog interview with 2001 ape performer and choreographer Dan Richter, the former mime implies something to that affect: We had stuff stolen. I can’t say it was Planet of the Apes, but they were the only other movie shooting at the same time and same place we were. Stanley and I even had someone steal a mask and some ape hands right out from under our noses on the backlot, where someone had hid in a drainage ditch. We were in lockdown all the time. However, Richter also mentions that he can see a lot of mistakes in the 2001 costumes, so it’s possible the Academy was right to overlook the film in the Best Costume category. And it’s a bit of a moot point, anyway, since Planet lost the costume Oscar to Romeo and Juliet. Personally, I think both films’ apes look kind of silly (I know, the Planet apes weren’t meant to necessarily look like real apes), though Hollywood hasn’t really done much better since (see Congo, Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes remake). But Richter is probably right about getting the behavior down better than anyone before or after. Just watch the clip above, and if you’re in NYC Sunday night, check out the special screening of the film at the Tribeca Film Festival. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/friendship/MemberTagFilms.aspxfriendship
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