Since Proposition 8 passed in California, much of Hollywood has been up in arms. Now, they are singing and dancing, too, in a new Web video called “Prop 8: The Musical.”
The video was posted Wednesday on www.FunnyOrDie.com, the video site co-founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. The site has found a niche in getting professional talent to quickly create topical comedy videos.
“Prop 8: The Musical” may be a 3-minute Internet video, but it has a blockbuster cast — including Jack Black (who plays Jesus), Neil Patrick Harris, John C. Reilly, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, Margaret Cho, Rashida Jones and others.
Though Jesus doesn’t bring the two sides together, Harris has better luck. He argues gay marriage could save the economy: “Every time a gay or lesbian finds love at the parade, there’s money to be made.”
The video was conceived and written by Marc Shaiman, the Tony-winning composer of “Hairspray” and “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.” McKay, who had previously collaborated with Shaiman on the song-and-dance routine Ferrell, Black and Reilly did at the Oscars earlier this year, sent him an e-mail floating the idea of a video.
As of Thursday, the clip had clearly ascended to viral status, with more than 1.1 million views on FunnyOrDie.com. Given the sensitivity of the issue, comments also have been flying, with well over a thousand posted.
Shaiman had been involved in a more serious debate over Proposition 8.
After voters approved Proposition 8, which changed the state’s constitution to ban same-sex marriage, it was revealed that Scott Eckern, artistic director of the California Musical Theater in Sacramento (the state’s largest nonprofit musical theater company) had donated $1,000 to the “Yes on 8” campaign.
Shaiman’s “Hairspray” had played at the theater and he said he would never allow anything he wrote to play there because of Eckern’s donation. Others protested and Eckern resigned in November.
In an interview Wednesday, Shaiman regretted that it came to Eckern losing his job and said: “It’s a tragedy for everyone involved. You’ll certainly see that no one called for him to resign.”
The video for Funny or Die was a lighter-hearted protest.
Shaiman wrote the piece in a day, recorded it the next and shot it in a single day last week.
“It was like, ‘Eureka! That’s right, that’s what I do!” said Shaiman of the mini-musical. “If I’m going to stand on the soap box, at least let me sing and dance.”
“Se7en” Turns 30, Gets A Special Restoration From David Fincher For Its Re-Release
For David Fincher, seeing “Se7en” in 4K was an experience he can only describe as harrowing. That or a high school reunion.
“There are definitely moments that you go, ‘What was I thinking?’ Or ‘Why did I let this person have that hairdo’?” Fincher said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
He’s OK with the film being a product of its time in most respects. But some things just could not stand in high-definition resolution.
“It was a little decrepit, to be honest,” said Fincher. “We needed to resuscitate it. There are things you can see in 4K HDR that you cannot see on a film print.”
Ever the perfectionist, he and a team got to work on a new restoration of the film for its 30th anniversary re-release. This weekend the restored “Se7en” will play on IMAX screens for the first time in the U.S. and Canada, and on Jan. 7, the 4K UHD home video version will be available as well.
The dark crime thriller written by Andrew Kevin Walker and starring Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman as a pair of detectives looking for a serial killer was somewhat of a career-reviver for Fincher, whose directorial debut “Alien 3” had not gone well. “Se7en” was not a sure thing: It was made for only $34 million (and only got that when Fincher managed to persuade studio execs to give up $3 million more). But it went on to earn more than $327 million, not accounting for inflation, and continues to influence the genre.
Fincher has over the years overseen several restorations of the film (including one for laser disc) but decided this needed to be the last. It’s why he insisted on an 8K scan that they could derive the 4K from. He wanted to ensure that it wouldn’t have to be repeated when screens get more... Read More