TBF, Mags, you have been doing a lot of the heavylifting for the quest, so this will be in good hands.
To be clear to everyone, this is just me burning out on imagination of the quest, since my muse has been hitting me over the head a lot with so many different ideas that I just can't find myself too interested in this.
I'll still hang out here, though, since this still does have a sepcial place in my heart.
I'd like to thank you all for making this a wonderful experience while it lasted.
I'd also like to thank @Magoose, @Fluffy_serpent, and @Martin Noctis for doing so much to help prepare and write this quest. I couldn't have done it without you all.
Cult of the Preacher Directed by: Sam Raimi
Written by: Dave Allistair, Mike Pondsmith, Ed Greenwood and Gary Gygax
Produced by: Jerry Bruckheimer
Production and Distribution Studio: Lucasfilms Unlimited
Starring: Jason Bateman (Jason Walker), Bruce Campbell (Evan Walker), Molly Ringwald (Lisa), Sean Astin (Kevin), Alan Rickman (Father Dominic), Richard Griffiths (Jimmy Baker), Christopher Lee (Doctor Smith) and Jodie Foster (Vanessa Smith)
Budget: $5,000,000 Domestic: $67,747,173 international: $90,970,371
Total Box Office: $158,717,544
VHS: $6,781,197
Back when you thought to have Cult of the Preacher done, the main thought was not how it would stick it to the so called "Moral Guardians", or how it was supposed to be a revenge plot against televangelists, and all those who would try to use the Bible or the word of the lord to try and discriminate and attack anything and everything that they dislike. After all, you knew pretty well how much of the coverage and news about it was just overblown hype, and many of the parents were just worried about their children and doing what they could to protect them, even if their attempts were just misguided at best.
No, the reason why you greenlit the movie was twofold; it was the first script where you saw Dave and Mike collaborate with the newcomers to the Lucasfilms Family, Ed Greenwood and Gary Gygax, and you felt that such attempts should be encouraged... even if some of the script felt a bit too much like one of those PSA's that were usually shown in the form of a movie.
The second reason however, was Sam Raimi and his desire to once more jump into the fray, not letting the debacle that was Sisu put him down, and instead channeling all his energies into proving how his first film was not a fluke (like many of his detractors were now trying to argue). Sam specifically asked for the script, perhaps hoping that the horror genre would help somewhat in the transition, perhaps because he wanted to challenge himself this time with a script that did not have the same amount of gore as his two previous films... or perhaps he just saw that it was a script written by designers of DnD and he could just not help himself.
A good thing too, considering the message that the entire film has.
It was not bad overall, since it mostly dealt with both family matters as well as the influence that the church and religion would have on them, but it also tried to put in the effects of DnD and try for a deconstruction of the entire idea that it leads to satanism. The entire story follows Jason Walker, a young teen who loves playing DnD with his friends, yet it's also feeling the pressure from both parents and his older brother to perhaps, if not abandon it altogether, at least try to find a different hobby or try to get more involved in the new Megachurch being led by Pastor Jimmy Baker, as both his parent and older brother, Evan Walker, have done.
What follows however is an interesting exploration of both the community and the effects the Megachurch has on it; at first everything looks fine, better than ever even. The different families are getting together to meet and talk more, the children and teens are more polite and involved in religion, more wholesome entertainment is being shown, and is also fun instead of just bland copies of old literature. All in all, the entire idea of Televangelism, Megachurches, and the new approach to religion seems to be in the up and up, and something that it clearly can be beneficial.
Yet all the brightness hides a dark side, one that can be seen through the entire story through small yet obvious signs when you know what to look for; like the fact that Jason and Evan's parents tend to speak overall about the need to be seen donating, the conversation between adults that while cordial on the surface have a touch of negativity when gossiping, almost like trying to compare themselves in order to see who is the better in the hierarchy. How Pastor Jimmy seems like such a nice guy, yet his interactions with those who donate the most always seem to be longer and more cordial than those who gave less, thus making the entire meeting almost seem like a cult.
Fitting for the title then.
Jason and his friends are framed against this supposedly perfect picturesque community life as the odd ones out; Jason with his love for DnD, Lisa and her love of books and fantasy, and Kevin, a fellow DnD and HEMA enthusiast who feel they don't belong in this community, with Evan once being like them but now trying so hard to fit in, yet also feeling like there is something wrong in the entire new Megachurch, along with the way Pastor Jimmy acts.
The mystery of the community then begins to unravel when during one of their usual meets at the Megachurch, they happen to run unto Father Dominic, a catholic priest that leads the congregation on the old Parish, which has been lately coming under heavy criticism by all members of Pastor Jimmy's group, along with the many members who still prefer going to Father Dominic's services instead. Though looking sever, gloomy, and almost a picture-perfect villain, Father Dominic soon proves himself to the kids when they find that he enjoys nearly as many as their hobbies, thereby meeting to discuss them at the library, which also being heaping more suspicion unto him, with the groups of friends being warned by their parents not to meet him.
While this is going on, there's also mentions of a spate of disappearances and killings that have the police on high alert. Many see Father Dominic with suspicion, as he always seems to be skulking around and trying to get into the Megachurch without being noticed, only to be thrown away by Pastor Jimmy and being given a restraining order as well. Kevin is about to have a new sibling, which is not something he's that excited about. And Evan, though now a part of the Church's helpers and youth group finds himself isolated as he soon finds he has nothing in common with the rest of them, only able to make friends with Vanessa Smith, the daughter of Dr. Smith, who is also a friend of Pastor Jimmy and the doctor who is in charge of helping Kevin's mother give birth.
From there the story threads begin connecting as Jason and friends begin investigating the sudden disappearances when during one of their meetings at the Megachurch they happen to find a hidden room containing a book that looks outright satanic. Meeting with Father Dominic and from there connecting the dots as they manage to hide near the ending in Pastor Jimmy's office and hear his voice along with Dr. Smith discussing about "the coming age" and "Hiding the bodies". Evan also helps during the investigation as he begins seeing how everything is just too weird, even with Vanessa who begins acting bipolar in many occasions until he manages to find the truth just as Dr. Smith helps Kevin's mother give birth... and then proclaims the child to be stillborn.
And it all begins spiraling down to the big climax.
Father Dominic moves to confront Pastor Jimmy, Jason and his friends find about Pastor Jimmy's parents and grandparents, as well as their connections to crimes and murders. Both sides end up going to the Megachurch, where Father Dominic confronts Pastor Jimmy about his misdeeds, where both sides end up fighting. Jason, his brother and friends follow into the secret room of the Megachurch, where they find a satanic ritual, with Dr. Smith preparing to sacrifice Kevin's newborn sibling, having lied to the mother.
The climactic confrontation ends with both sides being victorious over the satanists, the police being called, and Pastor Jimmy seeing his long legacy finally being uprooted from the community. And though the parents seem to be glad that it's all over, there is no disguising the fact of their actions, nor that they are trying to hide all they did before where in thrall to the now "Satanic Cult" that had been living under their noses all this time without them noticing.
But it's with the children where true hope is seen, where thanks to Father Dominic they understand that perhaps religion is not so bad, but there are always going to be those that try to use it for their own ends. The teens are given a chance to work things out by themselves after having seen the dark side of the world, and then going back to play some DnD together, this time inviting their parents, trying to create a new activity that they can all share together.
And for all that you can read said story, in the end it just doesn't scream horror to you. You can understand that this is what Dave, Ed, Mike and Gary might be trying to make, and form what you've read of their previous works in both scripts and adventures in their different fields, they have a great wealth of imagination and creativity to bring into the fray. It just seems that this is a classic example of too many cooks spoiling the broth here. On their own, all these different elements should bring about some element of horror, altogether they clash against each other.
Not to mention that while trying to bring about a story to counter the narrative of many of the "moral guardians" or the Televangelists, have made the story a bit too obvious in hindsight. You don't want to say it, but overall, this sounds too much like a coming-of-age story, and one that leans a bit too much into the sentimentality of it all...or at least it would have had it not been for Sam to agree with all of your points and go about it in a way that turned the movie less into pushing a message, and more into just having fun with the entire idea.
And boy did he have fun with it.
To start with, he made the movie less serious than what it would originally been, making sure to have the actors practice behind cameras again and again in order to get just the right frames when in camera and during shooting, making their acting seem real but exaggerated, an over-the-top aesthetic that can complement it, along with a degree of slapstick comedy that makes many of the scenes not be taken as seriously, but it imbues them with a degree of humanity within.
The element of horror was also reworked so that instead of trying to push into outright slasher or mystery, it would instead push into atmospheric horror, the feeling that for all that everything seems normal there is just something overly wrong with the picture being shown at you, the idea that in the mundane alone there is something to fear and be wary of, where the authorities that you were supposed to trust in are now the ones that you have to fear and avoid. Even the later subversion of showing how Father Dominic can be trusted does nothing to remove much of the distrust and outright tension of the movie.
Another element that Raimi made excellent use for the film was the actors, taking a mix of both well-known and newcomers to bring in the chaotic mix that he usually delights with his movies; Burce Campbell was of course a given, and he was given the role of Evan. Jason Bateman, thanks to recommendations from Are You Afraid Of The Dark? was given the role of the main character of Jason Walker, both him and Bruce clicking into the sibling relationship from the start of the film. Sean Astin, giving his first live role in Lucasfilms after Sword of the Stranger, along with Molly Ringwald, one of the most acclaimed newcomers into the big screen, managed to imbue their characters with both the innocence and tempestuousness that comes when you're moving from being a child to a teenager, confused, angry, and with no idea what to do, but still moving ahead and trying to make sense of it all. To this ensemble, Jodie Foster is added as Vanessa Smith, the daughter of Dr. Smith, a teen who has it all and does not seem to care about who it hurts so long as she gets to keep her lifestyle.
An odd role for Jodie, but one that you have to admit she plays to perfection. She is just that good it seems.
But it's the trio from across the pond that nearly steal the show with their own performance; Alan Rickman, Richard Griffiths and Christopher Lee seemed to have gotten together and spoke with Sam about the script, both sides coming to an agreement that let the three work around their character in order to bring them into just what they should be without the script becoming a hindrance; Rickman's Father Dominic is a true figure of authority and fear, yet one with a soft spot for children who does all he can to keep them away from danger, only relenting when knowing that not saying anything would harm them. Griffiths Pastor Jimmy revels in his feeling of superiority in every scene without a need to outright say it, a small mocking smile whenever no one looks at him, and a bluster that tries to hide it all at the end, even when cornered. A true fanatic through and through.
And Christopher Lee, you don't know how he does it, but he keeps on making sure every role he takes is another work of art; unique, beautiful, irreplaceable, being able to play both into both the horror and slapstick aspect alike, turning what could have been just a generic henchman role into a look inside the dark side of the medical profession, turning the ideals it's supposed to hold into perversions of it, while also adding a touch of goofiness whenever interacting with Griffiths or in the final confrontation with the children.
Overall, it was a near reconstruction of the script by keeping to their themes, but also not completely to the letter of it, and in that Sam made sure to put his signature in as much as he could through the entire films. not that Dave and the rest minded either, they were just glad to see their film being made, and even if not told outright, the criticisms they levied were still there for all to see; the overemphasis on wealth and donations that much of the supposed Televangelists" claimed would help Christians, the sheer hypocrisy of pointing the finger at DnD for the degradation of the moral fiber and yet having their own hidden skeletons and vices within, the near cultish mentality of the members of said Pastors and leaders while trying to profess their individuality and tolerance.
It would have been an attack on the overall church had it not been for the excellent portrayal of Father Dominic as true and faithful man of God, yet one that did not try to push in the message of Catholicism being the true path (no matter how much you may have wanted to) but instead admitting that though the Church was not perfect, in the end no one but the lord was. Alan Rickman truly made an excellent work with this character, and impressed many of the other directors for perhaps more roles in the upcoming movies. Personally, you could see him making an impression in one of the adaptations for Tolkien's Legendarium, though you'll leave that to the directors.
Oh shit, you really should get to work on them, right?
In the end, the movie was released in April, a bit too far from Halloween, but fitting for the film. Initial screenings did not seem to favor it that much, but it was on the premiere that the real strength of the film was shown. Though At first Mike wanted to market it as a horror film, it was Sam and Dave who convinced him to keep that element down to serve as a surprise for first time viewers and leaving the rest to word of mouth, believing that the teens to which this was marketed to would be able to immediately detect just what kind of movie this was just from the reviews alone.
And what do you know, it seemed to have worked.
At first much of the audience was of the current "Moral Guardians" the groups that would try to talk a lot about things they did not know about, perhaps thinking, just like Dave and the others had expected, that this was some sort of "peace offering" or "throwing in the towel" as they expected from much of their campaigns and attempts at regulating both books and films regarding the topics they did not want children to watch. Well, many of them left in the middle of the film, outrage in their faces and anger in their veins as they once more stood in their soap box and began yelling for all and sundry about the wickedness of the film and how it clearly made light of the very real problem of having to deal with DnD.
You know, the usual drivel they engage in.
And like the very well true and tried strategy used before, all kinds of attacks by the Moral Guardians became useful when it came to promote the film once more to the rest of the country, which after an initial burst that seemed to make up for the initial numbers, it started to go down as they saw what the entire furor is all about. Frankly, you think that most of the ones that still remained afterwards to see the film did so out of both, a true appreciation of the story, but also because they enjoyed mocking the Moral Guardians who tried to protest outside of the cinema.
It made for a good $60 million on the domestic market alone, and though it did not reach the heights of horror one would have expected, in the end many would admit that it was a very good film, a good story about family and the dangers of being too naive, while at the same time avoiding the true and tried trap of just blaming religion for everything. It made for a good palate cleanser for all the different "slasher" films that are being made lately, with some parents even bringing their children in as the movie avoids gore, and it's something they can be sure that they can talk with them afterwards.
Heck, even the critics are on your side this time around. Nearly all of them feel that the movie is somehow one of the best stories focusing on family, friendship, as well as an excellent message for both teens and children growing up currently. At some point you thin one of them mentioning how this seemed to be better than The Outsiders, which makes you wonder just what the heck are they drinking?!
On the other hand, this movie exploded in popularity in the most unlikely of places; Latin America. You don't know how they interpreted, or if perhaps it was the subtitles or dubbing, but the entire continent seems to see the movie as made just for them; the tale of a Catholic Priest who despite being mocked and turned against, rises and nonetheless manages to uncover the truth behind a Satanic Ritual hiding under the eyes of those who claim to believe in God, yet in the end are exposed.
You don't know who the hell began making such wild claims, or how can they get that after seeing the movie, but it somehow stuck.
The result however went beyond your expectations; on a movie that you expected to get at best some $20 million overseas, it exploded into $90 million thanks to the then sudden popularity in Spain, Italy, France, and the rest of the Catholic Countries, even those like Poland on the other side of the Curtain which have managed to sneak in. Heck, the Philippines have somehow become one of the biggest contributors, and every cinema there has at least two rooms for them to see it.
Unfortunately, there is always a dark cloud with the silver lining, and that would be the VHS sales which sunk way below what one would expect them to see. You don't know if it was because they suddenly got smart, but the rest of the Moral Guardians seemed to have noticed how sales went up when they went on the attack, so their sudden silence could have been nothing short of premeditated. And without their attention, the entire debacle seemed to have died down, not to mention that while the film was good enough to grab the attention of the audience, it was not to the point that they needed to own physically. Europe however had the bad luck of being in the middle of Mary Whitehouse's new campaign, which she launched to great success to try and make films like yours be rated R, and to have as little as possible distribution for VHS systems.
Sam took it like a champ though, feeling glad for the positive reception, while preparing to go back to work after taking a few months off and recharge his batteries. he's been talking about making a sequel to his original film, perhaps something a bit grander than before, and from there he wants to try and experiment a bit more with the different genres available. He's mentioned that after seeing all the superhero films from Columbia, he's gotten the idea of perhaps trying to bring about some comics characters to the big screen himself. Perhaps Marvel or any other of the properties you currently own.
Well, you're sure he'll do great with whatever he's given, as he's just proved to you and the entire country.
Now, how do you get that duo to sell that turtle comic? You know there has to be a way there.
On the other hand, this movie exploded in popularity in the most unlikely of places; Latin America. You don't know how they interpreted, or if perhaps it was the subtitles or dubbing, but the entire continent seems to see the movie as made just for them; the tale of a Catholic Priest who despite being mocked and turned against, rises and nonetheless manages to uncover the truth behind a Satanic Ritual hiding under the eyes of those who claim to believe in God, yet in the end are exposed.
You don't know who the hell began making such wild claims, or how can they get that after seeing the movie, but it somehow stuck.
The result however went beyond your expectations; on a movie that you expected to get at best some $20 million overseas, it exploded into $90 million thanks to the then sudden popularity in Spain, Italy, France, and the rest of the Catholic Countries, even those like Poland on the other side of the Curtain which have managed to sneak in. Heck, the Philippines have somehow become one of the biggest contributors, and every cinema there has at least two rooms for them to see it.
More then 150 million on a 5 million dollar budget's nothing to sneeze at. Shame about VHS sales but it's fine. We can always show it on our tv channel whenever we want to annoy the moral guardians.
The side story does make a point though, when are we planning to start the Hobbit trilogy?
Honestly, you should have expected this, because, despite the playing time that all the kids enjoyed, you had been focused on making sure George found his way to make sure he could be able to play with Mary and the twins.
And you think you were missing something. Mary and the twins hated the fact you were making George the focus of playtime while they wanted to be the focus, or you could equally spend the round, as you usually did.
But your reasoning was simple, even if they hated it. George hadn't been with the costumed clashes that they were normally there, having mostly been in the background and too young to really be part of it.
Now that he was, he was trying to battle for all the attention and stories that he still didn't fully understand, but wanted to be a part of.
And he hated not acting like he was the most important.
"Georgie is no dragon." Mary said. "I'm dragon."
"Dwagon!' George babbled. "Me be weevil dragon! Roar!"
He then started crawling his way down the room to pull on the tail of Mary's costume to take it.
You took a breath an picked him up. "George we talked about this, no grabby. It's not your turn."
"But Daddy!" Sarah protested. "Can we-"
You were surrounded by your children where were all pulling and trying to get you to listen to the cacophony of voices that were bombarding you. And you were going to have to play the stern father if you didn't control their outbursts. Because they all looked ready to cry and make things more difficult.
And you sighed. The breath you took was enough to make them all go quiet because they thought you were about to be angry. Well not angry, but very forceful in your tone.
"Kids, you know what I said about playing. You have to make sacrifices for making the story work. If you want me to give you the story to play out, you have to be able to willing to be the part, even if you don't like it."
"But you always get the part you want?" Mary said.
Mary, you were not supposed to be telling them about your business. "Yes, because i put in the effort by being good at all the parts that I have done before." You smiled. "So are we going to complain, or are we going to play?"
"YAY!" the moment they heard play, everything else didn't matter. They probably didn't even listen to you at all and were just waiting for you to give them the freedom.
Wonderful.
Carrie than laughed from the door. "Oh don't be laughing now Carebear, this was you last night." You muttered.
"Oh I know." She said. "Mom brought some steaks and she's trying to cook them herself this time with the instructions your father left."
Thats nice- Wait. "Where?" You asked.
"At the oven?" Carrie then realized what was happening. "Oh shit."
Dad's recipes called for a flat grill… not oven cooking, that was moms!
She then took off running as you started to smell smoke. "Mommy said a bad word." Joseph said.
You were going to protest, but he was right, but you had more important things to worry about. "Alright kids, out of the house, Grandma Debbie smoked the oven again following the wrong recipie."
"Aww." They all grumbled as you sighed.
"You should have been in charge of dinner." Mary proclaimed. "Grandma can't cook."
"She tries her best." You replied.
But she was right, you should have cooked. Looks like you were going to be asking Cat for help again with dinner.
Reward: You have a good time.
Though Debbie can't cook the O'Brian Recipies because she keeps mixing up mom and dad's recipes.
Hmm, I'm more partial to the EarthSea Cycle and The Dragonriders of Pern as well.
FASA has been on my sights for a while now, so I would not mind taking it as well.
And of course we need to have the novels from Asimov and Clarke if we want to give them the adaptation they deserve.
And aside from that (and perhaps Corto Maltese) I don't see why we should get the rest.
I also want to ge the reights to "Lord of Light" since that novel is amazing! I just recently found it when i was reading about the "Chronicles of Amber" and then found Roger Zelazny's previous novel. THis one could make for an amazing TV Series if we manage to get the rights for it.
Some anime to dub and distribute would be nice. Or more Manga for Marvel.
If we can find some good videogames that come out in the next year or two we can try and get them to be Sega exclusive.
Getting some Super Sentai stuff and starting power rangers early could be fun.
Can we acquire companies with the autopass? Because I don't know if it's the right time for it yet* But an autosucess on acquiring Atari and turn them into Lucas games arcade division would be good.
*Last time I asked Magoose said we should probably wait.
Well, regarding Konami and Capcom, we want to have them develop video games and arcade machines for us. Every major video game studio acquires other subsidiaries, and these two studios are pretty great.
And Asterix, Lucky Luke, Corto Maltese, and the series from 2000 AD (Judge Dredd, Rogue Trooper, etc) are some of the most successful European comic series of all time, great for animated and live-action adaptations
Another series that we may want to acquire the distribution and merchandising/book right is Once Upon a Time... The educational series of Albert Barillé
Can we acquire companies with the autopass? Because I don't know if it's the right time for it yet* But an autosucess on acquiring Atari and turn them into Lucas games arcade division would be good.
Hmmm.... so for Atari, the response is "We already have that with Sega," but for Konami and Capcom, it's all good? I'm curious what your reasoning is for them being different.
Hmmm.... so for Atari, the response is "We already have that with Sega," but for Konami and Capcom, it's all good? I'm curious what your reasoning is for them being different.
Capcom and Konami are studios that worked very well in the 80s, with their own successful franchises (Castlevania, Street Fighter, Megaman...) and a lot of talent working on them, so purchasing them as subsidiaries works because we get them to develop those great games exclusively for our console...
Atari is a bankrupt mess of a company that lost everything due to its own hubris and every bit of talent that once worked there is long gone, purchasing and handling them any task would require literally rebuilding the company from the ground up (and in the case of the Arcade Machines as I said sega is already handling that)... That is why I said that the only reason we may want to buy Atari is because it has a pretty iconic logo.
It is literally like comparing buying a dilapidated building in Detroit for $1, and a new house in a nice neighborhood with a good commute to your job...
It'll kinda be a miracle if it's only half-dead. Between how it treated its workers, product quality, and the fact that, like OTL, they lit the powder keg everyone was setting up, except it was much larger this time. The most value might be any IPs and patents they hadn't sold.
Capcom and Konami are studios that worked very well in the 80s, with their own successful franchises and a lot of talent working on them, so purchasing them as subsidiaries works because we get them to develop those great games exclusively for our console...
Atari is a bankrupt mess of a company that lost everything due to its own hubris and every bit of talent that once worked there is long gone, purchasing and handling them any task would require literally rebuilding the company from the ground up (and in the case of the Arcade Machines as I said sega is already handling that)... That is why I said that the only reason we may want to buy Atari is because it has a pretty iconic logo.
I had to cut out pretty much everything that I had to say here because I'm realizing that I am WAY too tired right now to be civil, but to be frank, I don't believe you for a second. You'd absolutely push for trying to acquire Disney or Nintendo themselves if you thought Magoose would let us get away with it.
I'm just gonna leave things here since, like I said before, I'm too tired to be civil right now, and as much as this stuff from you annoys the hell out of me, it's not fair for me to get aggressive with you when you haven't done anything to deserve that, so I'm just gonna drop this line of discussion and try to get to bed.
I seem to remember @Magoose saying we can start adapting Super Sentai with Changeman which would you know was the 1985 series! so we only have to wait a little
It'll kinda be a miracle if it's only half-dead. Between how it treated its workers, product quality, and the fact that, like OTL, they lit the powder keg everyone was setting up, except it was much larger this time. The most value might be any IPs and patents they hadn't sold.
