A Rumor, A Whisper, and Some Speculation: Is Josh Brolin the New Snake Plissken?

Give this man an eye patch.

Slashfilm is reporting the rumor (and yes, we are reporting rumors today. It’s that kind of slow news day) that Josh Brolin may don the eyepatch and attitude of the immortal Snake Plissken in a remake of Escape From New York.

The rumor comes from the site Spielberg News, which is a French site. My French kind of sucks–I can understand enough to paraphrase, but a solid word by word translation is beyond my skills–but fortunately Slashfilm translated the actual quote (or used a translator):

“It is our scoop of the week. A source close to the production (if so) has assured us that it is now Josh Brolin to be in the running to take over the role of Snake Plissken in the remake currently in draft New York 1997.”

 Gerard Butler was previously mentioned for the role, but no word now on what else better he has to do (more likely, if this is true, they would just rather have the currently more prestigious Brolin). Brett Ratner and Len Wisemen were previously rumored to direct but they’re now both embroiled in other projects. No word on who else might be stepping in to lead this thing.

Again–I am not totally against remakes. If you can make it better or new or different, go ahead, knock yourself out. This one is such a product of its time, though, that I’m not sure what they’re going to do. Remember, this movie was made in 1981, when you really wanted to escape from New York, if you were stupid enough to go there in the first place. The city was in financial trouble, there was a lot of crime, and there weren’t many jobs. Buildings were abandoned and left to rot because no one could afford to keep them up and no one wanted to live there. The movie was set in 1997, but obviously the film envisioned a worse future for the city because the present was so bleak and hopeless. Then what happened–lots of people got rich, lots of crime disappeared, money flowed into the city and provided all kinds of services that had been long gone and suddenly it’s tourist heaven with so many chain stores in midtown that you might as well be in the Mall of America. The rest of Manhattan is a playground for the rich (and those lately would be Europeans taking advantage of the weak dollar) and those who cater to them. It doesn’t resemble at all the New York envisioned in the 1981 film. So when is this new movie going to be set? Way in the future, or way in the past?

Another remake problem, which is typically suffered by horror and sci-fi films, is death by money. Most of the best, most admired horror and sci-fi films were low-budget affairs that succeeded more on grit and imagination than sleek production and impressive effects. Anyone in any entertainment medium will tell you that sometimes having no money can be a benefit because you have to be more creative. Having too much money, on the other hand, can be a detriment, because sometimes when you can do everything and have everything, you end up with a product that is glossy and sleek, but soulless. So while a remake of Escape to New York might look better and might have cooler set pieces, will it have that same sense of anarchic, making it up as we go along sense of fun? I doubt it.

If this story is true, it will be a welcome change of pace for Brolin. He’s just finishing up two films where he played a) a San Francisco politician with a grudge and a taste for assassination (Milk) and b) a President who is better known for his mistakes than his successes (there are some, aren’t there…?). He probably needs an Escape From Politics.