So like every other depiction of Parker on film, this fellow isn’t Parker. “dedicated to the memory of Donald E. Westlake”. You’ve read Flashfire, but you have not seen this movie, so there’s no point saying it follows the story well–the trailer indicates otherwise to me, but there’s really no way of knowing without seeing the film. It Came From YouTube: New, Improved Parker Movie Trailer 2 Submitted by RD Reynolds on Sat, 26 January 2013, 10:26 For sure this film would have been better had I directed it. Moved Permanently. Starring Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez, the film is adapted from Flashfire, the 19th Parker novel, written by Donald Westlake under the pen name Richard Stark.. United States Hypocrisy A critical analysis of the American empire's high-minded rhetoric, and the ways in which it fails to square with reality. Coming Soon. Tony, your comments make sense to me, especially the marketing of the trailer to Statham’s core fans. Tony Soprano became a sex symbol, and David Chase never once tried to pretend he was justified in anything he did–a much more reprehensible and dishonest person than Parker, but people loved him. What, he’s Clark Kent now? Get the freshest reviews, news, and more delivered right to your inbox! The Parker budget is more like 45 million, Chris, so strike one. And hardly anyone has seen it–it was a miserable flop, and guess what? I’d gladly overlook the obvious fact the actor is British and not American if they would just spend the multimillion dollars on something worth paying to go see. But when you look at the Harry Potter films (and I’m not a fan of that franchise), or the Lord of the Rings movies, or a host of other things, what you see is that Hollywood usually gets a lot more out of the exchange than the books do. What the hell? This is not a faithful adaptation of Flashfire, eloise. Just another pretty good Jason Statham movie lol. Which for all I know is horribly maligned, since I have never seen it, and probably never will. Get your trailer serviced or repaired by one of our factory-trained expert technicians. And even more by Nick Nolte playing her dad. But then it devolves into uninspired plotting, an undeveloped romance between the Statham and Lopez characters and a finale that's not as disappointing as it is unbelievably dumb. 2001? ;). And full of fond and respectful references to the genuinely creative and entertaining films Hollywood has made in the past–and so rarely makes now. Well, folks, here it is. ;-) lol. Watch the Parker movie trailer, starring Jason Statham, Jennifer Lopez and Michael Chiklis. I’ve heard a lot of attacks on Jim Brown’s Parker, but you know what? When they make all these changes to Westlake’s stories, what they’re really saying is “Not that many people read these books, so we can do what we like with them, and only a handful of obsessives will even notice.” Ahem! All Critics (109) As a very low budget thing, they could have been more faithful–it’s not like Statham hasn’t made some lower-budgeted films, and a faithful adaptation wouldn’t need to cost more than a few mil (like nobody’s jumping out a skyscraper window in a faithful adaptation). Somehow that fits. I understand wanting to be fair, but what was so fair about people connected to the film prevaricating about how that ‘code of ethics’ thing wasn’t really in the movie? We here, at least most of us, are the hardcore. My only comment to Mr. Alexander is if you are going to take a literary character, change key elements about him/her, and make a film, then what is the point of using that character? And thanks for not calling me an idiot, Chris;-) lol Although for someone to not consider all of the above and revise a fixed opinion may give some cause to think that person is a… never mind. Sidney Poitier’s 7 Most Memorable Performances, All Harry Potter Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer. You can’t judge a nearly two-hour film based on a 2 minute trailer. That “personal code” stuff is kind of deplorable, but again, it’s Hollywood, they have to make the main character palatable for the mass audience. Parker Critics Consensus. Posted by Trent on October 3rd, 2012 | Tags: Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Nailing down the Westlake sleaze catalog, part I: The Midwood books (part I), Hard Case Crime to release Donald Westlake’s, Trent goes off-topic (Trent's other site), 50 Years of Parker and Character Guide (U of C), University of Chicago Press (current home of the Parker novels), Darwyn Cooke's Parker comics (IDW Publishing). :[. And Statham does carry the day playing the eponymous thief with a unique code of honor, meant to guard against both stupidity and greed, both of which can be deadly in his line of work. I mean, really. The crooks turn on Parker and leave him for dead. At this point I say: go looking for some unknowns to cast the thing and get things off to a bang with a authentic version of The Hunter on the smaller screen. Whether it’ll be any good remains to be seen, unless you count being a psychic among your career skills. ;-) lol. I don’t believe fans of the Parker novels will make or break this movie–I think it’ll make or break itself, and probably the latter, but that remains to be seen. The whole FEEL of it is wrong–it’s a Statham vehicle, which we all knew going in, but he’s made movies that were more serious–this isn’t one of them. Works well enough to prove [Statham] has more than physically demanding stunts in him. Well, first of all, none of the previous failures have stopped Parker from coming back to the movies, under many an alias, again and again. I am not going to the theaters and see it. Firebreak? Coming Soon, Regal And of course, as I said months ago, they were looking for a story where Parker only steals from other thieves (or from ‘people who can afford it’). We always knew we weren’t going to get the perfect Parker. That’s why Parker just doesn’t think much of us–or our ‘ethics’. My honest opinion will be posted after the weekend of JAN 25th! Your Ticket Confirmation # is located under the header in your email that reads "Your Ticket Reservation Details". I’ll save my cash, because A) it’s not Westlake’s Parker (again, why even call it that), and B) I’m not a Jason Statham fan. I know what the budget is supposed to be–of course, early budget estimates are often revised upwards, so none of us can say for sure it isn’t much higher than what we’re being told now. His Parker will not be as anyone imagined him. We are always going to be disappointed in some aspect of any adaptation with the possible exception of Darwyn Cooke’s. I hope not. In many ways, the most interesting part of the book, and the only part where we see any sustained descriptions of his methodical work methods. drama, Watch Parker movie trailer and get the latest cast info, photos, movie review and more on TVGuide.com. |, December 4, 2020 That moral code is total BS and a real sell out. For all I know the film’s weakest selling point could be an amazing 15 minute heist sequence which, if they tried to show it in the trailer, would be nothing but clips of people standing around looking worried and an explosion. Cinemark Parker is a professional thief who lives by a personal code of ethics: Don't steal from people who can't afford it and don't hurt people who don't deserve it. I didn’t feel so bad about this until I watched the actual trailer today. We shouldn’t feel any sense of awe in the presence of people who work in Hollywood, and we shouldn’t feel any particular reverence for what they do, UNLESS they’re among the chosen few who somehow manage to make something of their own–as opposed to glomming onto somebody else’s ideas, old or new, which face it, describes 99% of the movies out there, and it describes this movie. But this won’t sell either, because it’s too damned wishy-washy. Your AMC Ticket Confirmation# can be found in your order confirmation email. Watch. Movie times, buy movie tickets online, watch trailers and get directions to AMC Twenty Mile 10 in Parker, CO. Find everything you need for your local movie theater near you. John McLaughlin (BLACK SWAN) did a great adaptation of FLASHFIRE which involved much pruning and many hard choices – and yes PARKER’s crime spree is still there as is a line from PARKER to Hardwicke that real pros don’t like killing civilians because it brings out the police in greater numbers. | Top Critics (36) So odds are DEW would probably have given the Statham film permission, considering they intend to make sequels. That’s not dealing with release expenses, prints (millions of dollars to strike prints), percentage deals the actors may have that go against profits–it’s a tough biz. It's not about the money, It's about the principle. We like you, Jason. and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and Fandango. Westlake’s story was far from his best effort, but it worked–it was a functional whole, that knew what it was attempting. Jason Statham keeps the Parker name in his film, which portrays the titular anti-hero as an honorable thief who doesn't steal from the underprivileged and refuses to harm the innocent. Dishonest, you say? By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy Parker’s fellow-heisters try to kill him, whereas in the novel they let him go–not without misgivings, but killing a guy you just worked with who did his job to perfection is not professional, and in the book these guys are pros, albeit cutting a few pretty significant corners to get to their big heist, which is Parker’s only beef with them. He’s an antihero born of a different time and the kinds of guys who diercted movies like this: Don Seigel, Sidney Lumet, Jean Pierre Melville, Jules Dassin, John Huston are all dead and gone. that the film is good. Jason Statham is game as usual, but Parker is a thoroughly generic and convoluted heist movie. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. And they didn’t call him Parker, so what harm did it do? Coming Soon. I’m going to remain optimistic until I see the flick or altleast try to. When I say I'll going to do something I always follow through... always. We can’t know from the trailer whether it sticks to the general plotline of Flashfire, but say it does–it’s Flashfire–not one of the classics. BTW, does anyone know what TV script DEW is referring to when he says “it’s a wonderful script!”. I think that’s the only realistic hope we have for a solid adaptation. And they don’t care about the details. Regal RELATED: New The Informer Trailer Debuts Ahead of November PVOD Release. Check out the first official movie trailer of Parker, the upcoming crime thriller movie directed by Taylor Hackford and starring Jason Statham, Jennifer Lopez, Michael Chiklis, Wendell Pierce, and Nick Nolte: Parker Movie – In theaters: January 25, 2013. The first trailer for director Taylor Hackford's crime thriller Parker, starring Jason Statham, Jennifer Lopez, and Nick Nolte. Estreno 1 de Marzo 2013. You predicted this fiasco from the first. That’s not to say this movie won’t make many of us wince. It looks like a fun action flick. | Fresh (44) He meets an attractive real estate agent who becomes his ally. But we’ve seen those before as well. Parker is one of those films that look great on paper, but when it was put to celluloid, it simply didn't deliver. And here is the Facebook page for the flick. These types of movies are a dime a dozen. We chose FLASHFIRE as a way of introducing people to the character without doing yet another copycat of the two previous movies. The Parker Novels by Richard Stark (AKA Donald E. Westlake), other works by DEW, and crime fiction and film in general. It averages out to roughly 55% across a film’s run, and overseas (where Statham films often make the most money) it’s usually a bit less than that. And as of this date, Cooke’s work comes second. He might be fun to watch, he might kick a lot of ass, but he won’t be Parker. Sign up. Now my Dad, at age 79, is a Batman fan. Mix that with an undeveloped script and the result is a pointless action film that fails. |, November 27, 2019 For some strange reason, theater chains around the world don’t simply take all the money they make from ticket sales and send it to Hollywood (or Parker). Parker survives and vows vengeance, tracing the gang to Palm Beach. We know they’ll never be as good. Incentive Filmed Entertainment, But opening weekends matter and we’re the only people other than diehard Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez fans who are likely to be at all interested in seeing this film, so this is damage control, in its classic form. The instant you’ve named the character and stated this is the character from such-and-such, you’ve already allowed the readers and fans of that character to assume it will BE that character. Looking over the trailer again, I see MANY deviations from the novel. Not here, where we know who Parker IS. Parker Movie Trailer. And he would not have let them call it (or its hero) “Parker”. It may not even please me. The troubled life and career of jazz musician Charlie "Bird" Parker (Forest Whitaker). Submissions should come only from the actors themselves, their parent/legal guardian or casting agency. Directed by Scott Coffey. RELATED: New The Informer Trailer Debuts Ahead of November PVOD Release. And then Melander(Michael Chiklis) double crosses Parker, taking all the loot and leaving Parker for dead by the side of the road. Check out the first official movie trailer of Parker, the upcoming crime thriller movie directed by Taylor Hackford and starring Jason Statham, Jennifer Lopez, Michael Chiklis, Wendell Pierce, and Nick Nolte: Parker Movie – In theaters: January 25, 2013 If it’s okay to slam the people who make trailers, it’s just as okay to slam the people who make the movies those trailers promote. The wire strip-search scene was but a flashback in the book, illustrating that Parker’s only interest in seeing her unclothed was to see if she was wired and that was it. New post: A review of the 87th Precinct entry, Killer's Payoff. If your film’s best moments are, say, long dialogue scenes or tense stand-offs or complex character moments (and I’m not saying Parker has them), then that’s not going to come across in the trailer. The story maintains many of the big beats that define Parker. Mr. Diddums, I am so freaking frustrated with the Hollywood machine, it’s ridiculous. See the official website, movie poster, photos, synopsis and release date. But trailers are sales tools, not accurate representations of the finished product. But I just don’t see Lopez standing still for the leading man not even feeling TEMPTED to sleep with her. And I will just bet you that the producers of EACH AND EVERY ONE of those films would defend them in exactly the same way Les Alexander does–I mean, if you went by producers, there’s never been a bad movie in the history of movies. Whether that reflects the actual experience of watching the film or not is almost always beside the point. These guys are just attempting to sew a lot of worn-out action movie cliches onto the mangled skeletal remains of another man’s story. I’m not washing my hands of the movie but I know what happened to Conan after the Schwartznegger movies came out. | Rating: 3/10 Westlake established long ago that the only reason Parker didn’t mug people or go after smaller businesses is that it just wasn’t worth all the trouble. Wouldn’t have to be all unknowns, but thing about HBO is, they make a lot more stars than they borrow. And the recent adaptation of Miller’s Dark Knight rocked me AND my father’s world. |, November 1, 2018 Things get off to a flying start, but you just know your luck isn't going to hold. Even if Tarantino wrote and directed it, Parker would end up way to chatty. ;), You have my sincere apologies and my respect, Chris. But it could have been something even better, and yes, different. Oscars Best Picture Winners Best Picture Winners Golden Globes Emmys STARmeter Awards San Diego Comic-Con New York Comic-Con Sundance Film Festival Toronto Int'l Film Festival Awards Central Festival Central All Events Discuss on our WP Forum. Sorry for my ranting, but hopefully my points have been made. Yes Parker is a bit softer – as are the post hiatus final novels. Could he not just be reassuring them they won’t get hurt? Cinemark The Claire character doesn’t even seem to be in the trailer–I think the actress is blonde, and I don’t see blonde hair in that shower scene. Parker Critics Consensus. Not because the film looks bad. All Parker(Jason Statham) wants to do is rob the Ohio State Fair with no hiccups and nobody getting hurt and then go home to his girlfriend Claire(Emma Booth) and have hot passionate sex. Parker Trailer Drops: Jason Statham Plays Dirty. Parker. I may have to publish it in two different volumes, for brevity’s sake! Let’s just acknowledge that studios don’t generally open movies they have a high opinion of in January. With Michael Beach, Penny Johnson Jerald, Chris Marquette, Brandon Keener. Maybe the trailer makes it look worse than it is–but seriously, doesn’t the trailer almost always make a movie look BETTER than it really is? If it did well enough for a sequel, where would they go next? What really is a shame is that, if given the write director, and a few rewrites, the film might have had a chance. There will be not set of hitmen that put Parker in the hospital, but rather the people he works with at the beginning rough him up, so that subplot’s out. There’s some confusion about it, but it’s possible. That’s why opening week is so important–the studio gets the largest share of the gross in the first week, but still not all of it. I am encouraged by it. Which is exactly what I’d expect at this stage – whatever you think of Statham (I’m still a fan, though it’s been a while since he did anything really decent) his name and his movie persona is a much bigger box office draw than Parker. His tough guys are all big softies under the surface. It really bothers him that people are like that. With Eleanor Parker, Agnes Moorehead, Ellen Corby, Hope Emerson. But luckily for Parker, not completely so, as with help from Hurley(Nick Nolte), he tracks Melander down to Palm Beach and a much bigger score. HOWEVER, that’s no excuse for filmmakers re-introducing this character to the world to take such an atypical and ultimately unsatisfactory effort, and making it their entry point. FREE Movie Newsletter. Best Netflix Shows and Series To Binge (January 2021), The 100 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now (January 2021), 100 Best Movies on Amazon Prime To Watch (January 2021). Every film finds its audience, but that audience often turns out to be too small. They’re not professionals the way Donald E. Westlake was. 'The Stath' gets to don a couple of silly costumes in the trailer for Parker, including a disguise as a grey-haired priest and a Texan playboy with a ten-gallon hat. As for myself, despite misgivings about certain aspects of what I’ve seen, I won’t know for sure until the movie is over. But if you don’t have that level of talent, style, and commitment to your idea–then yeah–you have to sell out–bigtime. He would have rolled his eyes at the movie, but polite about it in public, until many years had passed (and if only they had). Trent, if this is the first you’ve seen of Les’ email, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind you placing it’s contents into a post of it’s own, so all the VWOP regulars can see it, especially members who may miss it here in the comments section. I think the poster strongly hints at a relationship between Parker and Leslie that will be quite different from the one in the book. Didn’t the first Parker adaptation where he was called Parker deserve better than this? But of course, none of those movies were CALLED “Parker”. I consider that bad form. Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez star in the crime thriller. R (Brief Sexual Content|Brief Nudity|Language Throughout|Strong Violence), mystery and thriller, We are discussing a guy who steals for a living, you know. It's an overlong, arduous caper, drawn from the work of thriller writer Donald E. Westlake much as a patient's tooth might be extracted with much banter and minimal anaesthesia. Parker movie trailer revealed. crime, A hilarious comic portrait of a young woman's struggle for integrity, happiness and … Movie Details Where to Watch Full Cast & Crew News Buy DVD Parker - Trailer No. I mean, you could use the same arguments for ANY adaptation, no matter how putrid. . Assuming a new disguise and forming an unlikely alliance with a woman on the inside, he looks to hijack the score of the crew's latest heist. John J. McLaughlin's script is laughably bad. With Naomi Watts, Jennifer Syme, Greg Freitas, Gaye Pope. If they want to pair her and Statham in another movie after this, playing entirely different characters, where they just go at it nonstop in the bedroom between fight scenes, I’ll happily OnDemand it once it’s on HBO. It’s not only in the movie, it’s in THE TRAILER. To the filmmakers, this was the essential stuff, and everything else was disposable–too offputting, too different, too hard to explain in the context of the type of film they were making. |, February 9, 2019 I think he’ll survive, but I’m disappointed in UofC for doing movie tie-ins. Parker Trailer (2013) Fresh Movie Trailers. Submissions without photos may not be accepted. A naive nineteen-year-old widow becomes coarsened and cynical when she is sent to a woman's prison and is exposed to hardened criminals and sadistic guards. I think even ‘amoral’ doesn’t really describe him. And let's not forget an entire sequence that's shamelessly devoted to showcasing the homes in the Palm Beach area. I do hope it’s a hit and that they make sequels. She’s the female lead, and in this context, that makes her the love interest, even if they don’t have sex–there’s going to be a ‘will they or won’t they?’ vibe. The film is poorly constructed and the result is a mediocre movie that ends up being tiresome instead of entertaining and memorable. To this day, the only Parker adaptation that doesn’t feel the need to justify or explain him is “Point Blank.” Which we should remember was a flop at the time. You’re kind of cool, in your own way. No Country for Old Men? Okay, that was never going to happen, but they didn’t have to tell us ANYTHING. But I’m not seeing a love story between Leslie and Parker which is what I feared that they would do. If it really DOES rock, I want more. So go see it if you must, but pay for some other film, then sneak in to see this one. He ALSO could have told you that you never take the word of a Hollywood producer, unless it’s in the form of a contract signed in human blood, and sometimes not even then. Comments were that Don would have been delighted with the way the movie turned out and that by the end Jason had truly earned the right to be called Parker. Sex appeal was always her strongest selling point, and the actress playing Claire (or whatever they call her) is a near-unknown. I will say ONE positive thing–Lopez got back into shape, and her body looks amazing. My guess is this film will find its audience, as most films like this do, regardless of whether they call it “Parker” or something else. Via Dave, here’s a fellow who saw a rough cut of the film and reviews it (spoilers). For all of Westlake’s subtle changes to the character over the years, some things never changed. ;). Some online commenters are pointing out Spider-Man star Tom Holland bears a resemblance to his predecessor Tobey Maguire's bespectacled Peter Parker in the first trailer … I love a good, mindless action yarn, but Parker tries far too hard at exceeding its limitations, and it comes up empty handed due to the lacking material that is given to the actors. They like to lower expectations, so there won’t be a lot of stories about the movie being a flop on its opening weekend, which will tend to hurt it further down the line. Edit Delete. Patric, I think that’s all Les wants: for us to give it a chance. And because the stars just don’t sell a lot of tickets anymore (well, Statham never did, really). I think it would be really hard to make a straight film adaptation work, but there’s a hit cable series about a heroic serial killer. Lopez peaked with her music videos. Where do you think I like it? But it’s also one of the adaptations that was least concerned with making him into a nice guy. So the question becomes, can you live with it? And it’s pretty insulting, seeing as we were already told “Oh that stuff about the code of ethics isn’t in the movie, that’s just a misunderstanding”, and now it’s in the goddam TRAILER. A great point–the originals do NOT necessarily benefit from film adaptations, and a successful adaptation can sometimes be worse–it depends on a lot of factors. Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez team up to get their cut in the crime thriller, PARKER, based on the series of bestselling novels by Donald E. Westlake. I doubt this will be one of Statham’s stronger films of the past decade or so, and none of them were particularly strong to begin with. Um, did somebody not notice where I said the studio gets around half the worldwide gross? That’s also about stealing stolen valuables. They don’t show Claire in the trailer, or if they did it was so brief I missed it–I’m not saying “Parker” and Leslie become a couple, but the film is clearly going to show an attraction between them. Nate Parker (born November 18, 1979) is an American actor and musical performer who has appeared in The Secret Life of Bees, The Great Debaters, and Pride. Not once. Actually, we have a right to be pissed for any reason we damned well choose to be pissed. I agree with you on this point, Chris–the books will always stand alone in terms of quality. Merry Christmas from VWOP! Just below that it reads "Ticket Confirmation#:" followed by a 10-digit number. I never saw him as shaven-headed, either. A lot of you are going to be disappointed. If they had given us a more authentic Parker, THAT might have been different and interesting enough to invest money in a movie ticket. He peaked with “The Transporter”, and it’s been downhill ever since. And Parker will far and away recoup it’s financing and then some. Why insult the hardworking studio professionals who slaved over a hot editing table to try and make this thing look halfway palatable to the moviegoing public while they’re waiting for some movie they actually care about to start? According to the January 15, 2002 issue of Daily Variety: “The Parker novel series, which Westlake wrote under the pen name Richard Stark, has been acquired for series treatment by FX net entertainment prexy Kevin Reilly….” Alexander Ignon adapted The Green Eagle Score for the pilot. He wouldn’t take that risk just for money–but he’d take it to balance out a scale in his head. The percentage of users who rated this 3.5 stars or higher. And from every interview I’ve read with DEW where he discusses film, he would have been fine with the project. Let’s just consider the wild possibility that if they thought they have to make the trailer look like a Statham vehicle to sell tickets, they also thought they had to make the actual movie look that way. Not because the film looks bad. He remains true to Claire. Yes, it’s hard to sell a character like Parker, but that doesn’t mean watering him down will sell–IT NEVER HAS. I will still see the movie. WE STILL HAVE JIMMY THE KID. Chris is right; cable TV is full of amoral characters that audiences love. In an industry full of ruthless, amoral Sharks (or Wolves) you would think they could represent one of their own on screen. It looks like they got the elements from Flashfire and shuffled them about like a deck of cards. And at least it looks like a good time at the movies. | Rotten (65). However, that was not to be, and the finished film is just a boring action film with poor performances and in the long run, it's a forgettable affair that isn't worth your time. The first trailer for the action movie Parker. (Taxes are due, house hit the market today, major stuff going on at work, &c.). By that guy’s review, sounded like they didn’t think going after the crew to get his cut of the heist money was enough motivation, they had to add in some innocent guy getting killed to “motivate” Parker too. Look as a fan of Comics I have to say that Movies always never do a true adaptation of a source material. News Now clips, interviews, movie premiers, exclusives, and more! I’ll watch it once it comes out on DVD unless I just can’t stand the wait. Jason Statham is game as usual, but Parker is a thoroughly generic and convoluted heist movie. Don’t worry, it won’t take long. Westlake would have been fine with the money. By Trent. They didn’t have to treat us like hysterics who needed to be calmed down, which of course is the best possible way to transform human beings into hysterics who need to be calmed down, as that student of human nature Donald E Westlake could have told you.