Cameron Diaz Offered Role in Violent Puppet Film, R-Rating Guaranteed?
It sounds like Jim Henson Studios is actually moving forward with the demented puppet-film-noir, The Happytime Murders. Cameron Diaz has now been offered a role in the film, which honestly sounds interesting only if she plays a puppet version of herself. More interesting though are the script details that have been released, which promise a film that will push the limits of bad taste and almost certainly receive an R-rating.
According to a spy at Vulture, "This is definitely not a PG-13 movie. They're not f*cking around with this: It's 'Go big or go home.'" The site backs this up by describing a scene from the script:
One scene has a character opening the wrong door at the "Puppet Pleasureland," and finding a cow puppet on a massage table having all of its teats milked by an octopus puppet. Reads the stage direction: "The cow MOOS in ecstasy. MILK is just SQUIRTING EVERYWHERE."
Go big or go home indeed. Except, as a number of comments astutely pointed out when the news first broke, Hobbit-savant Peter Jackson already made a puppet movie filled with drugs, violence and sex called Meet the Feebles (Not to mention the more recent marionette raunch-fest Team America: World Police). To be fair, this new project ups the ante a bit by throwing humans into the mix. But still, check out the NSFW trailer for Jackson's film below and let us know whether you think there's room for another R-rated puppet movie based on the information so far.
·Cameron Diaz Offered a Role in Dark Puppet Movie The Happytime Murders [Vulture]
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Comments
Ok, that was just wrong!! I grew up with jim hensons muppets and if they make a movie that's half as raunchy as that trailer for "Meet the feebles" was, then I think my son will be growing up with some thing else.
It's not wrong, it's just something different. They've already made it clear that this isn't for kids, so what's the harm? Avenue Q has been on Broadway for years, and our children haven't been permanently scarred. Give 'em some credit - our kids are pretty resilient!
If people are going to get upset about what the folks in children's entertainment do when they're not entertaining kids, then they better start boycotting the Disney company - old Walt was a racist jerk who was also a ruthless, cutthroat businessman. He's closer to a lot of the Disney villains than anything else!
Well, I don't personally care for that sort of stuff but I'm sure there are a lot of people who will think it's hilarious and great so whatever, let them have their fun. It's not like this is being marketed toward kids after all. If it's done wrong then it will be a big blight on the company but if they can pull it off it'll probably get a cult following
Please, let’s remember that Canadians often lead in many styles of edgy humour. See: http://www.puppetswhokill.com
I think (and this is only my personal opinion) that going raunchy is one certain way of making sure puppets are NEVER taken seriously as an adult mode of entertainment.
I've been working this angle for three years now. And I've found that the puppets work best away from f-bombs and raunch. I've even steered my web show away from that type of material simply because other types of humor are much better received.
I've ranted on this before, but lets see... take one part Roger Rabbit, add several parts of Avenue Q, and then fill the rest with memes and themes created for the FOX Greg The Bunny show...
I really do think its time we graduate past the "I-refuse-to-believe-in-puppets-as-meaningful-characters" phase of our adult puppet viewing. Jeebus, its like we (as a nation) can't be caught dead willfully suspending our disbelief for fear of being perceived as simpletons. Or worse, gullible.
The more we take the snide tack of absolutely having to point out they're puppets, the more we disservice the puppets and their puppeteers. And the art. Are we THAT uptight in this country? Are we so freaking egotistically paranoid that we can't just let go for a moment and "buy in" without insisting the performers constantly remind us that we aren't being fooled? Pathetic.
And the "hand up the ass" joke is so freaking old that I cringe every time I hear it. But then again, Benny Hill did well for years on sophomoric fare, so maybe I shouldn't be too surprised. But is that what it takes to get Americans to sit down and watch puppets? A raft of supposedly "too hip for the medium" ham-handedly clever self-reference?
Sure... sit down with a kid and it becomes perfectly alright. You can watch and be involved as long as you have that kid with you like an emotional shield to protect your adult demeanor from cracking. But do it on your own? Heaven forbid!
That sucks.
And what really sucks about it is that its all due to execs second-guessing their audience and the audience second-guessing themselves. Its all unnecessary.
Diaz can't act andis hyped up and overated and her demand is a pity fest for brain dead