One for the Money DVD

Last week the DVD of One for the Money was released. Helene and I got our copy a couple of days ago. Finding a time to watch it was no problem. TV offerings of late have been sad at best.

Even if you saw the movie in the theater and weren’t planning to get the DVD, at least rent one and check it out. Quite a bit of footage has been edited into the DVD that, we at least, didn’t see at multiplex in January. It felt like a different movie.

For years theaters and theater chains have edited down films for a number of reasons. Usually, it’s to be able to get in an extra showing in a day to increase revenue. The most extreme case of this that comes to mind is the war epic MIDWAY that was released in the 1970’s. It felt ‘choppy’ when I first saw it at the theater in Amarillo. When HBO ran the film a year later I found out why. The movie site claims only 33 minutes were added to the film but it felt much longer. The entire Battle of Coral Sea was taken out. Should you ever get a chance to see the entire film it will make much more sense.

What happened to One for the Money didn’t feel that extreme. At the theater in College Station, Texas it was listed as running one hundred and six minutes. The DVD runs ninety one minutes. I’m guessing that means they took out around twenty minutes to get in all the between the film fillers, commercials by any other name. The slightly longer scenes and little extras in the DVD give the film a much more polished feel. It’s a pity we couldn’t have seen this version on the big screen.

Sadly, this movie didn’t set the theater world on fire. Realistically I don’t think having this version on the big screen would have made any difference. I loved the film, as did my wife and all of the Plum fans we have talked too, but for whatever reason OFTM just didn’t grab the public. I think it will live on forever as a cult classic, like FIREFLY, but I will be surprised if there are any more Stephanie Plum movies. Pleasantly to be sure, but surprised.

I really hope I’m wrong.

We Went To The Movies Last Night

We went to the movies last night, ONE FOR THE MONEY, but no one who reads this Blog will be surprised by that. Helene and I went with her friend Maggie. So I don't keep folks waiting, the movie was great!

Helene and I have read all of Janet Evanovich's books and have been looking forward to this film for years. The ladies books are so funny; we have BOTH read everything she has written, even the romances. This Movie was the first Evanovich offering Maggie has ever been exposed to. A good time was had by all of us.

I normally hate standing in lines, but was delighted to see there was a line for ONE FOR THE MONEY. There were no lines for any other films.

The great majority of the folks in line with us were women. Of the men I was in the minority, having read the books, but all of us were interested based on the trailers we had been seeing on TV.

I will not include spoilers here. For those of you that have read ONE FOR THE MONEY there is plenty about this movie to like. I am on record as having enjoyed it compeletly.

For folks looking for a reason not to like the movie, you can probably find something. There are a couple of reasons for this.

The biggest reason is the time they have to tell the story. This is true with any book. In this case the audio book is eight hours and thirty two minutes long. For a movie to include everything it would have to be about the same. A eight and a half hour movie is going to die on the vine.

The target length for both film makers and theater operators is ninety minutes. ONE FOR THE MONEY is one hundred and six minutes, which will allow for five or six showings a day.

This means the characters can not be developed as fully as they can in the book where a chapter can be devoted to introducing someone new. Sadly, a lot of favorite scenes will be shortened, combined or lost compeletly. Does the movie keep the feel, pacing and flavor of ONE FOR THE MONEY? Oh Yeah!!

There are a couple of delightful moments that aren't in the book. One I will discuss is shown in a trailer.

Stephanie is looking out the window when a car explodes. Both she and Joe hit the deck and she say's "They blew up our car!"

"Who's car?" Joe demands!

"Your car," Stephanie answers. "Do you want it back?"

Old time fans know that's not the way it happened in the book. But it's a great movie line. As for how it did happen in the book, READ IT! I'm not spoiling it either.

There are folks posting negative reviews. There were folks that didn't like Indiana Jones or Star Wars. Think what you would have missed out on if you had taken those fools seriously!

Last, I have been hearing that ONE FOR THE MONEY isn't the top box office winner so far. To that I say, hide and watch. Plum fans are not near done promoting this film. We want to see more of the books made into movies.

Katherine and Jason Plug One For The Money

Tonight at 7:00PM TV Guide Channel will be running Two If By Sea staring Sandra Bullock and Denis Leary. So what you might ask? (Meaning no disrespect to Sandra Bullock) The movie will be hosted by Katherine Heigl and Jason O'Mara.



According to the spot I watched earlier a great deal of time will be devoted to discussions about One For The Money. They are intending to run the trailers of course, but also clips from the film. The more I see of it, the better I expect it to be.

One For The Money will be released this coming Friday, January 27. Helene and I have had our plans made for months and will be there. Personally, I expect the movie to be big hit!

Of course, the results could be interesting. At the moment Stephanie Plum merchandise is only available on Janet Evanovich's web site and a handful of enlightened book stores that cater to the mystery crowd. After the movie who knows.

A line of exploding or disappearing cars would attract collectors. Who could be the first on their block to collect all of Stephanie's cars?

Action figures are another natural. Stephanie of course, but there would have to be Joe AND Ranger. Anyone who has a Stephanie action figure would need Lula as well. Who could forget Grandma Mazur?

Dare I say it, there could even be a Stephanie Plub Barbie.

There is talk of making additional films depending on the success of this one. There could be dangers in that depending on how far into the series they get.

Is the world ready for Sally Sweet Barbie?

The "One For The Money" Trailer On TV!!!

At long last, Lions Gate has starting running a version of the "ONE FOR THE MONEY" trailer on TV.

So far I have only caught it when watching late shows on Lifetime. (Cut me some slack - I like sappy Christmas movies).

After a year plus of keeping the movie "Top Secret" this is a milestone!

Now I need to find out who is running a sneak preview in Bryan or College Station.

Big Things Happening With Stephanie Plum

This is a busy time for Stephanie Plum, and her fans.

In June of this year SMOKIN' SEVETEED was released. The bond office had moved into 'The Mooners' RV temporally after...for that you need to read SIZZLING SIXTEEN. I don't want to ruin it for you.

In SMOKIN' SEVETEED Stephanie ends up with several bad guys trying to get her. Ranger and Joe Morelli are franticly trying to keep her safe, but you won't believe who finally takes the villains out. It's been a busy year and it ain't over yet.

The next book will be EXPLOSIVE EIGHTEEN. It was hinted that either Joe or Ranger would be coming to Hawaii with Stephanie, but we don't know which.
The next book opens with a grumbling Stephanie coming home after a disastrous vacation. Getting on the plane in Hawaii alone for the return trip is the highlight of the next few days.

So when is the new book coming out? I believe that depends on how you're going to get it. The release date is Novemer 22, 2011 - Tuesday of this week. Unlike the Harry Potter Novels, there are no midnight release parties for Stephanie Plum.

Or Are There?

More and more of us have started using electric media. The release for the Nook and Kendal versions are also listed as November 22, 2011 but I am guessing that will mean after midnight Monday. Its possble night owls could be reading EXPOLSIVE EIGHTEEN tomorrow night!

For years Helene and I have gotten the Plum books in audio format. It prevents fisticuffs over who will read it first. Then there is the "have you gotten to the part - DON'TTELLMEDON'TTELLME!DON'TTELLME!" With the audio books we hear it together.

So are we out of luck? I don't think so.

Audible.com has all the Stephanie Plum books available to date. I'm pretty sure EXPLOSIVE EIGHTEEN will be available at 00:01 AM Tuesday morning. We have already started gathering the pop corn, pizza, wine, cheese and crackers and enough tuna and raw meat to keep the cats off our food.

Along with EXPLOSIVE EIGHTEEN a movie tie-in edition of ONE FOR THE MONEY is being released on November 22. There is an electronic version of this as well. We may pick up a copy next time we are in town, but we won't be reading it until January.

January 27, 2012 is the long awaited release date of the Stephanie Plum Movie adaption of ONE FOR THE MONEY. You may find Plum fans a bit 'Testy' over the wait we've had. The date was changed so often the faithful were gathering torches and pitchforks. Now we have a trailer and several sites have stills from the movie. I posted some eariler in the year.

One Site I can highly recommend is STEPHANIE'S OBSESSION. Her listing for the trailer is a September 23, 2011 entry. If the link doesn't work cut and paste it into your search bar. In addition this site has lots of articles and interviews related to the movie.

http://stephaniesobsession.blogspot.com/

The tralier can be found on U-Tube as well. The pictures can be located with most search engines.

Great Stills from Stephanie Plum Movie

There is joy tonight!

I clicked on Stephanie's Obsession and discovered a series of official photos from One From The Money. Where did they come from? A movie site in Russia of course! I will never pretend to understand how the Hollywood mindset works.

This is our first look at material that will be in the movie. Some of them are easy to place. Others don't seem to be sticking exactly to the book. Not really a surprise, but nothing negative I can see so far.

Being a gun fancier I was especially interested in the firearms releated views. The first one up was worth the wait!

In the book Eddie Gazarra takes Stephanie to the range. I don't really know whats going on with Ranger and the Desert Eagle, but I love it! I mean, the look on Stephanie's face is priceless. This one appears to be the .44 magnum, so wait until she hears it go of off!

Why do the nickel Desert Eagles always look so much bigger than the blued ones?






Debbie Reynolds is going to make a great Grandma Mazur. Of course, if you talking about Grandma Mazur and guns, you have to talk about shooting the chicken in the 'Gumphy'. They did not disappoint.

"Think about this for a moment Steff. Your gun and ammunition in your purse - next to your Grandmother! What were you thinking?"

This last photo puzzles me. The obvious explanation is Stephanie shooting Jimmy Alpha. If that's the case they are changing the scene quite a bit from the book. Again, big surprise.

Perhaps they didn't think Stephanie could actually hit Alpha with her gun still in her purse.

I did!

Follow the Stephanie Plum link in my sidebar to a post titled Could They...?

If any of you have never visited Stephanie's Obsession, by all means check it out. For what ever reason I can't cut and paste a link at the moment, but the site is worth goggling.

So, what's next? Helene and I are going to see the last Harry Potter movie tomorrow. Wouldn't it be great if there was a trailer for One for the Money!

A Suggested release date for One For The Money

Not long age I posted a joyful article that the Stepanie Plum movie, One For The Money, was scheduled to be released July 08, 2011. There was a great rejoicing among the masses of fans that will flock to theathers across the country.

A couple of weeks later I heard Lionsgate had decided to move the date up to June 03 of this year. Before I got around to posting an update One For The Money was taken off the release list. I have a suggestion for what I think will be the perfect release date, but more on that later.

Before I could post the idea there was a new release date - January 27, 2012. I won't say I screamed myself horse, or threw and kicked things around the house, but the cats were hiding under the bed for hours. The problem is I have seen this before.

Some years back two movies , Capote and Infamous, were in production at the same time. Both were concerning the grizzly murders that inspired Truman Capote's best seller, In Cold Blood. They were filmed in a blizzard of publicity. I have no idea where Capote was shot but part of Infamous was filmed in Marlin, Texas - about 26 miles from HomePlace. To date it's the only time I was ever on screen with Sandra Bullock.

Other than bragging (Look at me - I'm in a movie!) the point is the race to finish the filming and post production was won by Capote. Infamous didn't want to go head to head or in Capote's recent wake. They delayed until the next year and may as well have gone straite to DVD, if they didn't. I never saw it in a theater.

Truth be told, I expect Stephanie Plum fans will come out in droves no matter when the movie is released. Delaying, for what ever reason, is pointless. Pallets of the new Stephanie Plum book are shipped to book stores all over the world each year for the release of the new adventure, serval per city. They not only fly off the shelves the day of release, but all the books sell well the rest of the year.

Helene and I always make a point of getting the Audio book. It cuts down on fisty cuffs over who reads the book first and elimates exchanges like "Have you got to the part ... DONTTELLMEDONTTELLMEDONTTELLME!"

So what could go wrong? Lionsgate could have dropped the ball and made a pitiful excuse of a movie. It has happened before with movies and TV shows.

In the 1980's fans of the comic series Jon Sable - Freelance were thrilled to hear a TV series based on those stories was planned. By the end of the first episode we knew the only requirement to work on the show was to have never read any of the comics. Imagine a politically correct mercenary who defends the weak and helpless - but doesn't want to shoot anybody. The comic book Jon Sable wasn't laughing I'm sure.

More recently the Dresden Files had a stab at being a TV show. While this series was certainly handled better there were departures from the books, both good and bad. The casting of Paul Blackthornne as Harry Dresden and Valerie Cruz as Murphy was not what many of us expected, but the actors did their parts well.

Bob the Skull became Terrance Mann whenever he spoke. At first I was livid, but being a person rather than a talking skull actually worked better for TV. I didn't recall Morgan being black in the books, but Conrad Coats made the part his own. I personally got a kick out of the Blue Beatle being replaced by the M-38 Willys Jeep.

On the other hand they had Harry living in a storefront that was also his office. This didn't have the feel of the basement apartment in the books. The story lines either went completly off the reservation or were crammed into a TV show time frame. Storm Front, one attempt to follow a book, suffered from the time allotted to tell the story. Harry's staff and blasting rod were replaced by a hockey stick and a drum stick? That's what you get when you cheap out and film in Canada. Hey - American who works in the film industry from time to time and doesn't have a sag card. I have issues!

I feel both Jon Sable and the Dresden Files would have transfered better to a movie formate. Saddly I don't think that is going to happen since the TV shows didn't work, either from poor execution or not being given a chance. Someone tell the genius that cancelled Firefly about Star Trek.

Well, climbing down from my soapbox, I will close by saying I don't think Lionsgate dropped the ball and made a pitiful movie. Even with the poor judgement refected in delaying the release date of One For The Money they have a good record. The cast they assembled are pros.

When One For The Money is finally released into movie theaters Stephanie Plum fans will come for miles. I expect there will be numerious repeat viewings, not unlike Star Wars, - if a touch less fanatic and with less body paint. Those sad souls who don't know who Stephanie Plum is will come alone if only to find out what all the ruckus is about. I am always shocked to see how many rabid Harry Potter fans have never read even one of the books.

In the beginning I said I had a suggested release date for Lionsgate. How about One For The Money coming to theaters on June 21, 2011? This is the same day Stephanie Plum's new adventure, Smokin' Seventeen, hits the bookstores.

So how about it Lionsgate? Ask your PR department if they could make anything out of that.

Stephanie Plum Comes To A Theater Near You...

I have just learned that the long awaited Stephanie Plum movie, One For The Money, is scheduled to be released this summer.

Expect to see ONE FOR THE MONEY in a theater near you starting July 08, 2011. Helene and I will be there.

Fans of Janet Evanovich have been waiting since the 1990's for her improbable bounty hunter, Stephanie Plum, to come to the big screen. Over the years a parade of talented actresses have been suggested for the part, but Katherine Heigl has landed the role. There has been a lot of heated controversy over this choice, but I would advise folks to have some faith.

I screamed bloody murder years back when I learned my childhood hero, Batman, was to be played by "Mr. Mom". I was wrong to doubt Michale Keaton's ability. Based on Katherine's past performances I am expecting a great movie.

No less controversal choice to many fans was the casting of Grandma Mazur. A lot of folks have wanted to see Betty White in the role. At first I was shocked to learn Debbie Reynolds got the nod.

In my case it was the mind's eye not keeping up with current day. I still think of Debbie Reynolds as the stunning actress I had a serious crush on growing up. She doesn't look bad today, but is no longer a 'spring chicken' as Grandma Mazur would say. To those with reservations I have one question?

Have you ever seen Debbie Reynolds turn in a bad performance in anything?

This is going to be a great movie.

Note

Back in 2009 I addressed one of the frequently debated question about ONE FOR THE MONEY. For more click on the "Stephanie Plum" lable in the sidebar and scroll down to COULD THEY...

The Stephanie Plum Movie is a GO!

Wake up the kids and call the neighbors! There's finally going to be a Stephanie Plum movie, we hope, we hope, we hope

As exciting as this news is, it's been a long time coming. For as long as I have been reading Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series there has been talk of a movie. Janet sold the movie rights years ago but nothing happened. At one point she even tried to buy the movie rights back but the studio wouldn't let them go.

A few days ago Columbia Pictures and Lakeshore Entertainment announced they had cast Katherine Heigl in the movie version of ONE FOR THE MONEY based on the first book of the series. If the film is successful there is lots of material for follow ups.

Readers have love/hate relationships with their favorite books being make into films and I was one of the worst. There is no actor or actress in the world that will fill everyones expectations of what Stephanie, or Ranger, or Lula will look like. Then there is all the neat stuff not filmed. I personally think we have a winner in Katherine Heigl. As for the neat stuff not filmed...

Ten plus years ago I started working background in historic films and learned the ugly truth. Movies are in a constant battle for time. The time it takes to film a movie can make or break a project. And then, if the film is too long it suffers. The question should be dose the film respect the book it's based on? I have high hopes for this project

One of my earlier post, titled Could They... delt with the problem of Stephanie shooting a would be killer while her gun still in her purse. I will be curious to see how this part of the story is handled

For the Stephanie fans the next book, SIZZELING SIXTEEN will be released on June 22, 2010. Helene and I will be at the Barnes and Noble in College Station, Texas that day to get ours.

I will post more information about the ONE FOR THE MONEY movie as it comes available.

Could They...

When other writers discover I’m a “gun buff” there are a number of questions I expect.

The Old West fans want to know if Billy Dixon could really have made that mile long shot at Adobe Walls. The incredible answer is yes, I know of two modern marksmen who have duplicated it. Incredible because in Dixon’s words, the only person more surprised than me was the Indian.

The nervous ask, “Are you armed now?” TV has led to the unrealistic expectation that concealing a firearm is easy no matter what you’re wearing.

Mystery hounds want to know what kind of guns Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson use. The most popular choice in TV and Movies is Webley Mk. VI revolver. It would be my preference, but not accurate to the original stories or the time period. In Arthur Conan Doyle’s, writings Holmes and Watson employed a range of weapons depending on the story. Film added to the collage.

By far the most common question is “Could Stephanie Plum really have shot Jimmy Alpha with her gun still in her purse. Would she even have hit him?”

In fairness one reason this question comes up so often is because it’s a favorite example in my programs. Even with that I’m only responsible for about half the time it’s asked.
I’ve always said yes, but the question demanded an answer. So what did I need?

First was something to shoot with. Stephanie has a five shot S&W. From my Step-dad by way of my Mom, I have a six shot Colt Detective Special. Other than the manufacture and extra cartridge they are the same. Both weapons are small, ultra short barrel, double action revolvers. Both are designed for cancel carry.

A place to do this experiment is its own challenge. Most ranges don’t want folks lying on the ground shooting up at a sharp angle with the weapons sights unusable. At HomePlace we have two ranges and lots of empty country side. I’ll be careful.

Next up was a purse. Strange as it may seem Helene wouldn’t even discuss my borrowing her purse for this experiment. We were off to the Salvation Army Thrift Store in Marlin. A guy digging through large black purses raises questions. The fact the staff knows me doesn’t help oddly enough. I explained what I wanted the purse for, several times as additional people were called over. Finally I was given my choice of purses with the understanding that I would return after the experiment and report the results.

A life size silhouette target stood in for Jimmy Alpha. Helene agreed to assist and observe from a safe distance. She would time the experiment and shout “GO!”

I leaned three sheets of plywood against a target stand and stapled “Jimmy” to the top sheet. I did this for the same reason some of the targets are backed by old washing machines, refrigerators and freezers. They don’t always stop the bullets but the energy expended punching through them bleeds off a lot of momentum.
It was time.

As the story goes Jimmy, is distracted when Stephanie head butted him. Stephanie is shot in the hip as she runs to her purse and drags it off the counter as she falls. Jimmy is standing over her as she jams both hands into her purse rolls and fires.

I took my spot standing in front of the target waiting. From her hiding place I heard Helene shout “GO!” I hit the ground and grabbed the .38 with both hands and pointed my purse at Jimmy Alpha’s chest.

In less than four seconds I was frantically pulling the trigger on spent chambers. I had gone through the all six chambers at least one extra time. Adrenaline rules! Examining the purse reviled something I should have expected but didn’t. I knew the bullets would punch through the leather (plastic?) but the muzzle blast did more damage than they did. By the second shot all but the handle of the weapon was protruding through the hole in the corner nearest the barrel.

Did I hit Jimmy? Oh yeah! Not knowing the order the shots struck in the damages were as follows. One bullet cut the lung and kidney on the left side. One shot hit near the top of each lung. One bullet cut the large blood vessel on the left side near the collar bone. One struck the neck and cut through the spine. One missed completely. Perhaps not as good as Stephanie’s five shots to the heart but I got him.


Postscript, when I read this to our writers group I had two comments. The first was that I was not being fair to Stephanie. My purse only contained the Colt. Hers had the S&W, hair brush, pepper spray, tissues, lip stick, wallet, pen, handcuffs, address book, mints, hand lotion and gum. Helene pointed out that my shoes did not match my purse. It looks like I need to repeat the experiment after correcting both problems.