Friday, January 26, 2007

Q&A Answers

Well I don't think any questions from our bloggers were answered (correct me if I'm wrong!), but JG's answers to the People.com questions are now posted. Here's one that I'm sure many of us were wondering:

Do you think there's any hope of an Alias movie?–Tina Manco, Centerville, Ohio
I don't think so. I haven't heard anything about it. You guys would have to go crazy and demand it!

Any ideas how we can go crazy folks?!? :)

33 comments:

Page48 said...

We could plant a bomb in JJ's head!

SRM said...

LOL nice one :)

uncle111 said...

Or somewhere else.

Girlscout said...

HAHAHAHA!

Page48 said...

I see JG just signed on to do another fluff piece, a remake of "Christmas in Connecticut". Personally, I would rather see "Christmas at APO" or "Christmas With the Covenant" or "Christmas: Phase One", something along those lines.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know what happened to the Alias Anonymous blog? I've tried to connect twice this week and it's not coming up.

Also, Super Bowl this weekend. Always makes me think of Phase One - my favorite episode of all time. Sigh...

Go Bears!

blah said...

good question bonkers. i was woundering the same thing

blah said...

hey, what's up with the princess primetime blog? it's been down for a couple of days.

SRM said...

I think GS took it down, last time I saw it there was a post about it ending.

eddiie said...

aahh!! can you iamgine i have forgotten what iwa s about to comment about?

Anonymous said...

oh no! Are we loosing our last link to Alias? No new articles. one blog down and very little chatter....

It's enough to send me over the edge without one of those cook back pack parachuttes Syd used after talking with the clock maker in season one(?).

Anyone find anything fun in Season 5 discs or the extra disc in the Rambaldi cube? I have yet to watch all of the extras as I can't bear to see the last minute of Alias.

Anyone see Catch and Release? I saw a blurb about The Kingdom in Entertainment Weekly where the wondered if JG's fans would follow her to such an action based role. Are they kidding? personally, I love when she's kicking a$$! The girly roles are cute but don't compare as far as I'm concerned.

Thoughts?

Page48 said...

Holy smokes, Bonkers, Entertainment Weekly wonders if JG's fans would follow her to such an action based role??????

Where the hell does Entertainment Weekly think JG got her fans from in the first place, Mr. Magoo??

Entertainment Weekly, it's time to give your head a shake!

uncle111 said...

Well,
The Scriptapalooza contest deadline is in April. If I get my Alias screenplay done in time to enter it I will have some Alias news then.

I keep finding things in The Pretender that they used in Alias.

Here's is an updated list with even more similarities:
1- A young boy is at a center where he's being studied and his special abilities are being groomed for use by some secret group (Alias tie- Project Christmas),
2-he builds a tall building out of an erector set(Project Christmas wooden block puzzle)demonstrating his abilities.
3-The man who is directing this use of the boy is a Dr. named Sydney(Alias main character name), 4-who is played by the actor who playedDr. DeSantis in Alias.
5-The boy grows up in the center and eventually escapes. He goes into hiding from this powerful organization, taking on a new alias each week and using his abilities to right wrongs (like
Sydney in Alias- see #24).
6-He is a combination of the Sydney Bristow and Marshall Flinkman Character on Alias.
7-The main character is
trying to find out who he really is and what happened to his real
parents(Alias-Sydney and her mother,Irina). 8-Familiar Alias type phrases, one of which is "decide whether you are going to be a scientist (spy) or a mommy- you can't be both," the female lead says to Dr. Sydney"(very similar to what Irina told Sydney about being a spy and a mother in the last season of Alias).
9-Jarod speaks many languages (Sydney does too).
10-He flies airplanes(Sydney does too).
11-Jennifer Garner (Sydney in Alias) once guest starred in The
Pretender(2 years before Alias aired), playing a character whose name was changed by her father at a very young age to Billie Vaughn to protect her. Jennifer Garner's boyfriend in Alias was named Michael VAUGHN, his father's name was BILL VAUGHN. Both Bill Vaughn and Michael Vaughn were false names that Bill Vaughn gave himself and his son to protect them.
12-The actor playing Jarod is MICHAEL WEISS(as in Alias characters MICHAEL Vaughn and another main character, ERIC
WEISS), while the name of the actor who plays the creepy bad guy at the Centre trying to hunt down Jarod is named Richard MARCUS (as in Alias character MARCUS Dixon).
13-The female lead, Miss Parker, who is teamed up with Dr. Sydney is a hard, driven, ruthless Alias character Irina Derevko.
14-Some of the graphics in The Pretender are Rambaldi(mysterious 15th century Alias character)-esc. 15-There is a black female director at the Centre(Alias tie- Director Chase at CIA).
16-Sydney Bristow's mother, Irina, was unquestionably the power behind much of the evil in Alias- Miss Parker's father is the head of the Centre.
17-When Miss Parker was young her mother supposedly killed
herself, but as the show progresses Parker discovers that her father may have killed her, or that she may actually still be alive (Alias- very like Irina).
18-In one episode the bad guy boss of a law firm is named Mr. Sloane(name of main Alias bad guy for 5 seasons).
19-In the same episode a guy wrongly accused of a murder has the first name Marcus (again, Alias- Marcus Dixon).
20-Sloane goes to jail (also in
Alias).
21- Last line spoken to Mr. Sloane in that episode at the end
of that episode of The Pretender-"Now you have all the time in the
world." (Same last line said to Mr.Sloane in Alias).
22- A recurring number holds the key to a mystery behind the Centre- SL-27 (Alias-#47).
23- Dr. Sydney, who feels responsible for his brother's death,speaks to his brother, who appears to him from beyond the grave(Alias-Nadia, Sloane's daughter whose death he is responsible for, appears to
him from beyond the grave).
24- They start each episode of The
Pretender explaining that the main character is a Pretender- a genius
with the ability to become anyone he wishes. That is the essence of
creating an effective alias- something Sydney Bristow did every week. In fact, she explained to another Alias character that to pull off an alias you have to become that person. So, the essence of being a Pretender is the same as creating an Alias.
25-In the 4th season of
the Pretender the bad guys clone Jarod. In Alias, cloning people
became a regular technique for the bad guys.
26-Female lead's boyfriend is murdered while staying in her house (seemingly on the orders of her Sloane-like father). She finds him with blood running down his head. She gets his blood on her when she holds him. Similar to what happens to Sydney in the first episode of Alias.
27- mystical elements introduced in S4
28- Siblings of main characters appear that they didn't now they had (Nadia)
29- People who are supposed to be dead turn out to not be (Alias, too numerous to list)
30- Marshall guest stars in S4
31- Mirage7677- name of a project that involves a child and which
began at the child's conception- (SAB 47 Project, anyone?)

uncle111 said...

Here's what's called the "logline" for my Alias screenplay:

Sydney Bristow, CIA Agent, is fighting to save the world from being destroyed by a 500 year old madman, while on the run from her own government who has evidence she is working for terrorists. Can her dead father, a former CIA Agent, save her?

Page48 said...

Uncle:

Short answer...YES!

Page48 said...

The real question is not whether Jack can recover from his injuries long enough to save Syd (a no-brainer considering some other things I've seen with my very own eyes on Alias), but whether or not VG can recuscitate his TV career.

With the mercy-rule having been invoked on that steaming pile known as "Justice" after an embarrassing 13 episodes, VG finds himself coming home to the folks at ABC to take a crack at a new show called "Eli Stone" premiering whenever ABC feels inclined.

This is another lawyer show (wake me when it's over), this time with a psychic twist. Might be good for 14 eppies, who knows.

So let's review, ABC has a good chunk of the Alias team working on Brothers & Sisters (I gave it a chance but it's sadly lacking in international intrigue and contains not a trace of testosterone) and now they're bringing VG back for another lawyer show (is there no Justice?). Since they have most of the APO crew under contract and hard at work producing tedious drivel, why not just scrap the crap and revive Alias? If they don't want to go at it full-time, they have my permission to do a string of timely TV movies, a gameplan which kept the cigar sucking Lt. Columbo on TV for decades.

Decades of Alias? Bring it on.

Scrap the Crap!

Anonymous said...

uncle, I love the Pretender/Alias connection.

Am I the only one that is not in favor of an Alias movie?

Anonymous said...

Alias movie.

Hmmmmmm....

I would have strong hesitations. I think it would very hard to pull off a 2 hour movie with all the quality we would expect having had 5 seasons of storyline. It would require an extremely condensed plot and focus only on the important characters. I would hate to see them throw in beloved characters just to please us and not have them instrumental to the plot (see the appearance of Weiss in late Season 5).

I don't see it succeeding. But I would be there on opening night regardless. Gotta support my JG!

Page48 said...

I think an Alias movie has almost zero chance of materializing, certainly not without being recast sometime down the road (see "Dallas" or any number of other nostalgia movies that return 20 years after the original series). Last year at this time, the producers were tripping over themselves to end the show (not to mention trying to spin the ending as being a satisfying conclusion), so I don't look for a change of heart anytime soon.

As far as a condensed plot is concerned, I guess it's fair to say that all movies have condensed plots, "Mission Impossible 3" has a run time of 126 minutes according to IMDB, but still found time for plenty of mayhem.

If you want to see how successfully a plot can be condensed, wait for the movie version of "24" to come out. The following takes place between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., don't blink or you'll miss it. Or maybe they will just shorten the title to "2".

Anonymous said...

Good one, Page48! I was actually thinking about the 24 movie when I was writing about an Alias movie. There are some tv shows that should not go to the big screen.


In fact, there are no tv shows that should go to the big screen. :) Has there been a good one made? All I can think of is Dukes of Hazzard, Scooby Doo, Starsky and Hutch...

I guess Mission Impossible could be an exception. That was a tv show, wasn't it.


By the way, what happened to GirlScout?

Page48 said...

Girlscout was last seen purchasing astronaut diapers and uttering profanities about Will Tippin's fiancee. I think she was gearing up for a road trip.

Anonymous said...

Page48, you never fail to crack me up. Which is a good thing since it seems like you and I are keeping this blog alive through sheer will.

How's the weather where you are? We are getting hit with a nasty snow storm today. Best part? They say it's just gonna get worse as the day progresses.

Anonymous said...

Gosh you two crack me up. lol.

So I take it we don't want our beloved show on the big screen. I'm so dead set against it.

I don't see it happening. Leave it alone. Let it stand as a great tv show and I don't want to see a tv movie either.

uncle111 said...

One possibility for an Alias movie to materialize is if JG keeps having dissappointing box office. Since she actually produced some of the TV episodes she might be open to making an Alias movie happen. I'm at least going to try to get my screenplay to her once it is finished and see if she will read it.

You never know. It could even end up as a 4 hour miniseries.

Anonymous said...

Uncle,
you are going to have to let us know about this screenplay! I am dieing (is that how you spell it? it doesn't look right) to know more!

SKlaft said...

There is one show featuring an Alias star that offers any entertainment value. Our well beloved Agent Weise plays a well-meaning, albeit somewhat naive police officer who develops the ability to hear other people's thoughts in the new NBC real-world comic book drama, "Heroes." While it is a little slow for the adrenalin soaked fans of Alias, it still maintains an excellent mystery storyline that will keep us looking forward to the next episode. I recommend it.

I still maintain that, in the Alias vacuum, Battlestar Galactica is THE best show on TV, and Carl Lumbly made a guest appearance recently. You might feel like a total nerd at the counter in the local Blockbuster, but everyone who loves action/ drama with deeper social relevance (decidedly taking neither leftist nor right wing ideology) will never regret having spent the time with this work of genius.

I have not seen anything recent with JG or VG, but I agree that Sloane is entirely out of place on that primetime soap. I never saw Justice, which, I suppose is part of the reason it is no longer on the air. I cannot think of any other stolen-Alias-talent. Well, Terry O'Quin, as we all well know, could not have a better reason for being Lost from his rightful position in Alias, but I'm not sure that counts.

To be completely honest, after season 5, I am not sure any series of Alias-movies could repair my broken heart. I still have not been able to return to my DVDs. I even bought the S-5 box set and never watched them. Knowing the horrifying inconsistencies taints the best of the best in Alias for me. There is nothing that would prevent me from tuning in for TV-movies, but I doubt if I will ever have the same enthusiasm I had from the beginning. Many people picked up on the show in the middle of the series, but I was there for the premier of the pilot episode. I was there every Sunday night through season 3, and I hung-in-there through the awful explanation of the secret papers Syd found in season 4, but I did not flinch, even through the wildly sci-fi season closer. I defended the writers for "killing" Vaughn, and I saw huge potential in the Prophet 5 development. I now feel as betrayed and disappointed as I could possibly be about a TV show that received my emotional investment.

Wow. I did not intend to rant. I hope I did not discourage anyone else. Alias is a beautiful piece of art. Just because it did not turn out to be the priceless masterpiece I had anticipated is no reason not to bask in its illuminating beauty.

-R.

uncle111 said...

Someday, one way or another, you will see the contents of the screenplay. It deftly repairs Alias, hopefully to the satisfaction of all (he said with mock humility).

Anonymous said...

Robetro,
I think you speak for all us. Just with much more grace and eloquence than many of us could. You have put our passion, hope and loss into words and I see myself in every sentence.
The saving grace I see is that through Alias we were introduced to smart writing and tv worth our intelligence as well as amazing and complex characters. We now know good tv when we see it and can have hope that producers and networks will recognize that and create shows that entertain without settling for the lowest common denominator. I know that money is king and Alias was never a big ratings hit, but somewhere out there perhaps a seed has been planted.

On a lighter note: think of all the cool vernacular we've learned by watching Alias. Who among us wouldn't love to go by Phoenix or Boyscout and be on comms? :)

Anonymous said...

robetron, I'm glad you said it because I agree with bristow, I don't think I could have been so eloquent.

uncle, I'm looking forward to it.

So we all believe that we were certainly not satisfied with how the Alias world came to an end. I can live with the imperfection. But I rather it stay that way then resurrect it for a movie.

Anonymous said...

hey, guys. I'm going to drop an email to girlscount and see if she can open a new topic as this comment section is getting long. I don't think we need a new topic since we seems to be doing fine just chatting. I think it'll be asier to continue if we don't have to scroll down so far. Later!

Page48 said...

Like robetron, I have been keeping an eye on "Heroes", and yes, it definitely moves at a slower pace than "Alias", reminds me more of the plodding nature of "Lost". Watchable, but doesn't hold a candle to "Alias".

Uncle makes note of JG's lagging box office performance. Recent press releases announcing JG's future projects suggest to me that she is attempting to transition her brand from kickass action hero to romantic touchy-feely comedy star, which leads me to believe that box office disappointment will dog her. "Catch and Release" is not on my to-do list. Whether or not sufficient box office disappointment would lead her to look at an "Alias" project down the road remains to be seen.

If "The Kingdom" does well for her, maybe she will get the hint that action thrillers are what she was put on this earth for. I much prefer the idea of JG in a "Bourne Identity" role or an "Indiana Jen" role. In fact, when I watched Angelina as "Lara Croft", all I could think of was how well JG would have fit that role.

JG, leave the sentimental girly rubbish to someone else, I just want to see you get all hormonal again and kick somebody through a window. That's the Jen that gets me all hot and bothered.

uncle111 said...

page48-
Yep!

sidewinder said...

Okay I haven't posted in a long time I had such a cool idea about an Alias movie I'm currently writing two movies about the Apocalypse and a young boy who's destiny will forever change the world.

What i thought about the Alias movie was doing the back stories for Sloane, Jack and Irina and the establishment of the Alliance I want to start writing it.