I absolutely loved From Hell and were impressed with their earlier efforts, are they working on anything new?
Quote from: Duck SauceI absolutely loved From Hell and were impressed with their earlier efforts, are they working on anything new?
I like them too. Menace II Society and Dead Presidents were watched alot when I was a kid, I don't think they are working on anything lately. Although I do remember waking up from a half sleep and seeing their names on some documentary about pimping or something. I may have been half asleep and just dreaming about pimping though.
Albert was gonna go at it alone, but dropped out:
No Hide and Seek for Albert Hughes
Source: Variety Thursday, August 28, 2003
Albert Hughes (From Hell) has walked away from 20th Century Fox's Hide and Seek. The director had spent three weeks preparing for the Robert De Niro film but left because of "creative differences".
De Niro is still attached to the story which centers on a young girl who loses her mother at an early age. Her father discovers that she's coping with the death of his spouse and her mother in an unusual and ultimately terrifying way.
The script was written by Ari Schlossberg, who is penning a remake of MGM's Witness to Murder.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Their next project is this:
USA Network Greenlights "Touching Evil," an Original Series Executive Produced By The Hughes Brothers, Arnold Rifkin and Bruce Willis
LOS ANGELES, July 8th, 2003 -- Allen and Albert Hughes (Menace II Society, From Hell) make their television debut as executive producers of Touching Evil, a USA Network original series based on the hit series by British Granada Television. Cheyenne Enterprise principals Arnold Rifkin (Tears of the Sun, Crocodile Hunter) and Bruce Willis (Armageddon, Die Hard) also executive produce the series. The series pilot is directed by Allen Hughes and penned by Bruno Heller (The Expendables, The Huntress).
Jeffrey Donovan (Storyteller, Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2) stars as Detective David Creegan, who after surviving a near fatal gunshot wound to the head, takes a 12-month psychological leave of absence. He returns to work for the FBI's new Organized and Serial Crime Unit, a rapid-response, elite crime squad. His brush with death renders him fearless in his relentless pursuit of justice as he and his partner Vera Farminga (UC: Undercover) specialize in solving shocking, high profile crimes.
"The work that Allen Hughes, Arnold Rifkin and Bruno Heller did on this pilot is both brilliant and unique. It is a pleasure and an honor to be working with artists performing at this level," says executive vice president, original programming, USA Network, Jeff Wachtel. "Now we just need to do it every week."
"Working with USA provided me with more latitude than I expected in television. It was important for me to bring a style, feel and vibe to the series that doesn't currently exist in TV," says executive producer and director Allen Hughes. "The script was one of the best I had seen, and once the casting came together with Jeffrey Donovan and Vera Farminga and we had Arnold Rifkin and Bruce Willis on board, I was confident that the series would exude the energy I was looking for."
"It's an absolute dream for me to see what I've believed in finally come to the screen. What makes this project even more extraordinary is the addition of the talented film director Allen Hughes doing his first TV project for Cheyenne Enterprises," says executive producer Arnold Rifkin.
I love macguffin
So, is his brother sill on it?
Quote from: Duck SauceI love macguffin
Don't tease me.
Quote from: Duck SauceSo, is his brother sill on it?
No, Albert was to direct it solo. No word why Allen wasn't involved. John Polson is now the director of "Hide And Seek".
Quote from: j_scott_stroup04I heard that the Hughes Brothers were doing "the Jimi Hendrix Story", possibly starring Andre 3000. Could this theory be a fact? If none of you guys know, then could you at least tell me a website that I could go to to find out.
Outkast goes hollywood LOS ANGELES (Outksat Fans Website) - Outkast's "Speakerboxx/The Love Below" looks set to go Platinum in the U.S., but the critically acclaimed hip hop duo aren't stopping there. The pair begin shooting a feature-length Outkast film in January.
Meanwhile, Andre 3000 has a couple of other film roles coming up. He'll star as Jimi Hendrix in the Hughes Brothers' upcoming "The Jimi Hendrix Story" and he will have a part in a sequel to "Get Shorty" as a character named "Be Cool".
The Outkast film, entitled "The Love Haters", is a musical in which Andre plays a classical musician who falls in love with a punk rocker while living in Memphis in the 1970's.
http://www.sixshot.com/articles/2680/
On the heels of their critically acclaim and commercially successful sixth LP, Outkast's, Andre "Ice Cold" 3000 now plans to take over Hollywood. In January, Kast will start shooting the HBO flick, "The Love Below" directed by long time Outast video director Brian Barber and will star Rosario Dawson. In addition, "Ice Cold" will act in two forthcoming films. First, he's set to play Jimi Hendrix in the Hughes Brothers directed "The Jimi Hendrix Story" and then he'll incarnate a character dubbed "Be Cool" in the sequel to "Get Shorty."
Albert Hughes Directing MGM's Art Con
Source: Variety
Albert Hughes will direct Art Con, a MGM film being developed by Michael Douglas' Furthur Films as a potential star vehicle for the actor in which he'd play a charming con man who masterminds ambitious art fraud scandals.
Variety reports that the latest draft of the script was written by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, who scripted Die Another Day and are writing the script for the next installment of the James Bond franchise for MGM.
Hughes is coming aboard a project based on "Art Con of the Century," an investigative article in the New York Times Magazine written by Peter Landesman about John Drewe, a charismatic con man who in 1986 engaged a free-spirited painter-songwriter named John Myatt to forge paintings by master artists.
Myatt was so good that he routinely fooled respected art experts with his bogus canvases, and Drewe made a fortune brokering 200 fake masterpieces over a nine-year period.
'Kung Fu' has brotherly love
Goodman rewriting script for Hughes brothers
Source: Variety
Directors Allen and Albert Hughes will square off in "Kung Fu," the bigscreen adaptation of the 1970s classic TV series for Warner Bros.-based Legendary Pictures.
Cory Goodman ("Priest") is rewriting the script. Legendary's Thomas Tull, Scott Mednick and Jon Jashni are producing; series creator Ed Spielman exec produces.
The Hughes brothers, who blazed onto the scene with "Menace 2 Society," haven't helmed a feature since the 2002 Johnny Depp drama "From Hell."
Since then, they've become prolific blurb directors, doing spots with the likes of Kobe Bryant and Vince Carter for such brands as Pepsi, Coke, Reebok, Heineken, Adidas, Nike and Sprite. They also directed videos for such bands as Korn.
The brothers were among several hip directors who coveted the "Kung Fu" job, and it was an assignment they sought for two years. WB production prexy Jeff Robinov, who gave them the job, agented them before he became a studio exec.
Goodman will rewrite a script by Howard Friedlander -- a writer on the original series -- and Spielman. The Zen spirit of that David Carradine skein will be preserved in the film, which is on course for a production start next year.
Legendary and WB will co-finance. Goal is a 2008 release that will help foster WB's expansion into China and wrap nicely into promotion at the Beijing Olympics.
The producers have already reached out to the Shaolin Temple outside Beijing, where nonviolent monks train in martial arts and were the inspiration for the series protag, Caine.
I will bet one gazillion dollars that RZA does the score for this movie.
Hugheses bring hitman tale to bigscreen
Di Bonaventura, Blum to produce 'Ice'
Source: Variety
Allen and Albert Hughes will direct a feature about Mafia hitman Richard "Ice Man" Kuklinski.
Producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Jason Blum have acquired screen rights to Philip Carlo book "The Ice Man: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer."
Both producers have first-look deals with Paramount, but they will wait until they assemble a full package before setting it up at a studio. They are seeking a writer to work with the Hughes brothers, who tackled serial killer turf in their last pic, the Johnny Depp starrer "From Hell."
At a hulking six-foot-four and 300 pounds, Kuklinski managed to become a prolific contract killer for the Gambino family while keeping his occupation a secret from his wife and three children in New Jersey. By his own account, Kuklinski killed as many as 200 people.
Before dying in prison while serving two life sentences, Kuklinski gave interviews to Carlo and others and bragged about his misdeeds."He is one of the darkest, most brutal and complicated killers in contemporary organized crime," said Blum. "He was a serial killer who found the perfect calling, carrying out hits for the Mafia."
Steven Schneider, who brought the project to Blum under a first-look deal he has with Blumhouse, will be co-producer.
Blum and di Bonaventura are also collaborating on "The Shop," a Paramount drama based on a Vanity Fair article by David Wise.
The WMA-repped Hughes brothers are expected to next helm "Kung Fu," a feature version of the TV series classic for Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures. They are waiting on a rewrite by Cory Goodman.
Hughes brothers set for 'Book of Eli'
Duo to direct post-apocalyptic drama for WB
Source: Variety
Warner Bros. has set Allen and Albert Hughes to direct the post-apocalyptic drama "Book of Eli." Pic is expected to be the brothers' first feature to go into production since the 2001 thriller "From Hell."
Joel Silver is producing with Susan Downey and Erik Olsen.
Scripted by Gary Whitta, the drama revolves around a lone hero who fights his way across the wasteland of post-apocalyptic America. He's the protector of a sacred book that may hold the key to saving humanity.
After several years of turning down features, the Hughes brothers have gotten busy on the development front. They are attached to direct "The Ice Man," a fact-based film about Richard Kuklinski, a serial killer who found his calling as a Mafia hitman, with Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Jason Blum producing and Terry Winter scripting. They're also directing a screen version of the classic TV series "Kung Fu" for Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures based on Cory Goodman's script.
The studio and Silver are already out to cast on "Eli," and if they hook a star to play the lead, the film could go into production before year's end.
The Hughes brothers are repped by WMA.
Whitta scripted "The Reaper" for Media 8 and is currently writing "Diablo" for Legendary and Blizzard Entertainment.
they're the black wachowski brothers.
Quote from: mogwai on May 22, 2007, 10:29:59 AM
they're the black wachowski brothers.
if of course the wachowskis are still brothers..
oh yes, you're right about that. but are we sure one of the w brothers actually... um you know zipped off his thing?
Albert and Allen Hughes revisit 'Pimp'
HBO drama 'Gentlemen' reexamines 'American Pimp'
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Albert and Allen Hughes are revisiting the settings and themes of their 1999 documentary "American Pimp" with "Gentlemen of Leisure," a drama series project for HBO.
Set in Oakland, Calif., "Leisure," which will be written by "Rescue Me" co-executive producer Evan Reilly, explores the world of prostitution through the eyes of a legendary pimp contemplating retirement.
"It's about a guy who wants to get out but keeps getting sucked back in by the allure of the game and by extraneous circumstances that have to do with his family," Reilly said.
"Leisure" will explore the generational conflict of old-school pimps living by honor codes and creeds who are being pushed aside by violent upstarts who are coming "with their guns blazing," mixing prostitution with drugs and thievery, Allen Hughes said.
"These are some of the themes from 'The Godfather' but in the world of pimping," he said.
The brothers are set to direct the potential pilot as well as exec produce with Reilly and Interscope's Jimmy Iovine and Polly Anthony.
Allen Hughes said the idea for the show came after several of their friends suggested they should make "American Pimp" into a drama series for HBO. The two were resistant at first until they realized that there haven't been shows about that subculture.
"This is the last island that has not been reached in television or film," Allen Hughes said.
He approached Iovine, who had been looking to an urban mob drama set in the world of hip-hop, and he and Anthony came on board.
"I was captivated by it," Anthony said.
Like other Interscope-produced projects, "Leisure" will have a strong music component, she said.
The Hughes, who most recently shepherded the USA Network series "Touching Evil," are looking to push the envelope with "Leisure."
"We haven't done a movie in eight years, and we're really interested in trying do something new," Allen Hughes said. "You're not going to see a bunch of colorful, goofy '70's pimps. This is a film noir-style urban drama based in rich characters that will explore the human conditions across the board."
Denzel Washington picks up 'Book'
Hughes bros. to direct post-apocalyptic drama
Source: Variety
Denzel Washington will star in "Book of Eli," a post-apocalyptic drama that will be directed by Allen and Albert Hughes.
Alcon Entertainment is financing the film and Warner Bros. will distribute.
Washington will portray a lone hero in a not-too-distant apocalyptic future who must fight across America to bring society the knowledge that could be the key to its redemption.
Gary Whitta wrote the script, and Anthony Peckham did the rewrite.
Joel Silver is producing with Washington, Susan Downey and Alcon co-founders Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson. Shooting begins in January.
Washington most recently starred with John Travolta in the Tony Scott-directed "The Taking of Pelham 123."
The Hughes sibs are making the project their first drama since 2001's "From Hell."
Whitta adapted the Katsuhiro Otomo graphic novel "Akira" into two films for Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures. Peckham scripted "The Human Factor," which Clint Eastwood will direct and also rewrote "Sherlock Holmes" for WB.
Gary Oldman joins 'Book of Eli'
Hughes Brothers film stars Denzel Washington
Source: Variety
Gary Oldman will co-star with Denzel Washington in "Book of Eli," a post-apocalyptic actioner to be directed by Allen and Albert Hughes.
Alcon Entertainment is financing the film and co-producing with Silver Pictures. Warner Bros. will distribute domestically through its output deal with Alcon, while Summit will handle international sales.
"Eli" revolves around a lone warrior (Washington) who must fight to bring society the knowledge that could be the key to its redemption. Oldman has been set to portray the despot of a small makeshift town who's determined to take possession of the book Eli's guarding.
Alcon toppers Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson will produce, along with Joel Silver and Washington. Lensing begins in February in New Mexico, with the pic set for a U.S. release on Jan. 15, 2010.
Oldman most recently starred in "The Dark Knight."
Jennifer Beals set for 'Eli'
Denzel Washington stars in the action thriller
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Jennifer Beals is returning to the feature film world with a turn in "The Book of Eli," the Denzel Washington action thriller from Warner Bros. and Alcon Entertainment. Albert and Allen Hughes are directing.
The script, by Gary Whitta with a rewrite by Anthony Peckham, centers on a lone hero named Eli (Washington) who must fight his way across the wasteland of a near-future America to protect a sacred book that might hold the key to saving humanity. Gary Oldman and Mila Kunis are also in the cast.
Beals is playing Oldman's sexual prize and Kunis' mother, a blind woman doing anything she can to protect her child.
Alcon is financing and co-producing with Silver Pictures. Warners will distribute domestically, and Summit Entertainment will handle international sales.
Principal photography begins in February in New Mexico.
While Beals made her splashy debut with the iconic 1983 movie "Flashdance," she has spent the past several years making her mark in TV, starring on Showtime's "The L Word." The drama just entered its final season.
"Eli" reunites Beals with Washington, with whom she starred in 1995's "Devil in a Blue Dress."
Albert and Allen Hughes return with 'Book of Eli'
The twins, who burst on the scene with 'Menace II Society,' direct Denzel Washington in a post-apocalyptic epic.
By Charles Koppelman; Los Angeles Times
Their last big feature was "From Hell," a gory and gothic period piece that starred a pre-"Pirates" Johnny Depp as an eccentric and slightly unbalanced investigator chasing Jack the Ripper through the rain-slick cobblestone streets of 19th century London. The 2001 film met mixed reviews and middling box office, and not long after that, Albert and Allen Hughes, once considered two of the more urgent and authentic voices in Hollywood, seemed to disappear.
What happened?
"We took a twin sabbatical," Allen Hughes says, laughing deeply. He sits in his second floor office at Albuquerque Studios. Behind him the January sun sets on low hills , casting lovely pastels. Allen's twin brother, Albert, is downstairs poring over a shot list.
The Hughes Brothers are five days from starting principal photography on "The Book of Eli," a $70-million post-apocalyptic western they are directing. The movie, scheduled to hit theaters in early 2010, stars Denzel Washington as the lone hero walking westward, carrying with him a book with the secrets for saving humanity. The film is being shot in New Mexico for its ethereal desert landscapes.
But before he gets into the new film, Allen wants to set the record straight about where they've been. "It got blown out of proportion," he says, a little annoyed. "Someone told me that [my brother and I] got in a fistfight. I heard all these crazy rumors, and it just got worse and worse and worse."
Though there was no single blowout, issues over girlfriends temporarily fractured their fraternal bond. Albert and Allen Hughes simply needed to grow up and apart, as they tell it. From 2004 to 2007, the inseparable brothers carved out separate lives -- Allen in a suburb east of Los Angeles, Albert in Prague, Czech Republic, where they shot "From Hell." They would come together to do television projects or commercials for Nike, Heineken, Ford and other high-end clients. But trying to find work on another big-budget feature would have to wait.
It was a matter of finding the right script, getting over their personal and creative tensions, and then reselling themselves to Hollywood -- no small tasks. After all, it's hard getting back into the warm embrace of studio executives when you've been mysteriously off the radar, even if you did come out of the gate at 20 years old with the success that was 1993's "Menace II Society."
A production assistant knocks on Allen's door requesting that he come to wardrobe to see costume choices for actress Jennifer Beals, who just arrived on set.
"Yeah, yeah. In a minute," he says, waving a hand.
The PA goes away and Allen finishes his thoughts. "You have two guys who are fiscally responsible and conscious and find creative ways to get things done. We come from the independent film world, and we've never stopped, not since we were 12 years old."
Allen stands up. "This business is a great business, but it needs an enema."
With that he hurries down the hall to wardrobe.
Bursting onto the scene
The Hughes brothers, now 37, grew up in Detroit. They moved to Los Angeles with their mother in 1981. When they enrolled at Los Angeles City College, they found a home in the communications department. Soon Albert and Allen were making short films and then music videos for Tone Loc and Tupac Shakur. That led to their first feature, "Menace II Society," produced by New Line. Made for $3 million, it grossed $30 million, and along with Spike Lee, John Singleton and Charles Burnett before all of them, the Hughes brothers were helping to write a new chapter in African American cinema.
"Menace" follows Caine (Tyrin Turner), O-Dog (Larenz Tate) and their circle of friends and family in Watts around the temptations of guns, violence and drugs -- an unflinching portrayal of survival at the urban margins. The brilliance of "Menace" is its realistic portrait of time and place and its care in avoiding clichés. or easy outs. As critic Roger Ebert wrote at the time, "The Hughes twins, given a chance, reveal here that they are natural filmmakers. 'Menace II Society' is as well-directed a film as you'll see from America this year."
"These guys are the most underrated filmmakers in the business," says director Brett Ratner, a longtime friend of the directors. "They never thought of themselves as just urban directors. They have taste, and they understand what's special."
After the success of "Menace," the pair were offered lots of scripts. They chose to make "Dead Presidents" with Tate and Keith David -- an urbanized version of the classic heist movie. The brothers admit it's uneven. They went out too soon with an inadequately vetted screenplay.
Then came their documentary "American Pimp" (1999), followed by "From Hell" (2001), and episodes for the TV series "Touching Evil," on which Albert and Allen were executive producers. But they never quite fulfilled the promise of their first film.
"The Book of Eli," from an original script by Gary Whitta with a rewrite by Anthony Peckham, offers another chance to make good on that potential. Sharing themes with Cormac McCarthy's "The Road," the film, set in the not-so-distant future, takes place after a tremendous calamity befalls human civilization. Traveling west through the barren landscape, Eli needs to reach San Francisco to keep his special cargo from falling into the wrong hands. There is an underlying gravity to what is in essence an action/adventure story. In addition to Washington, also serving as a producer, the cast includes Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson, Michael Gambon and Tom Waits.
When making a movie, the Hughes brothers divide directing duties along specific lines just as Joel and Ethan Coen or Andy and Larry Wachowski. Allen handles the script, actors, performance and producing. Albert takes the lead on the visuals, special effects, camera and editing. But what if they disagree?
"We each have complete veto rights in our departments," Albert said. "If I come to the set and I don't like a performance, and he doesn't agree with me, I have no control over that. If he has a problem with a camera move, we'll talk about it. But if I disagree, I prevail."
Laying the groundwork
Being with Albert and Allen Hughes is like being inside the brain of a single creative force -- each brother being the hemisphere of one mind. Hearing them talk together is like eavesdropping on someone's internal conversation. The dialogue can get passionate, heated and profane. Then, in a millisecond, it's full of love.
The brothers are not sure if they are fraternal or identical twins. Albert is thinner than his brother and usually keeps a toothpick parked behind his ear. In a spacious corner office on the first floor he shares with his visual effects coordinator and storyboard artist, there's a computer monitor to his left streaming old TV shows via Slingbox and a flat-screen TV on the other side of the room playing DVDs -- both with the sound off. House music plays quietly from his iPod. Pre-production on the film started in October. What many civilians and even some film professionals don't realize is that before the camera is ever turned on the majority of creative decisions have been made, and they are often irrevocable. The choices may seem trivial, but accumulated they define a movie -- its tone, personality and soul.
Fight coordinator Jeff Imada enters the office and explains that the actress hired to play the head biker chick took a spill and needs to be replaced. Will the character kiss one of the other women? If so, this needs to be divulged to prospective actresses before one is selected.
Albert thinks for a moment and says no kissing will be required. "We grew up on that, man. I don't need to see any more."
When the Hughes brothers were kids their biological African American father left home. When they were 12 they discovered their mother, who is of Armenian extraction, was a lesbian. Albert describes a dominant memory -- he was at his girlfriend's house when his brother knocked on the door, crying. "Since he didn't say, 'Mom's dead,' there was only one other thing: He caught her kissing another woman. I said, 'Go home, I already know.' "
But being a visual guy, Albert also recalls the motorcycle one of the women in his mother's circle rode -- it was purple, like Prince's in "Purple Rain."
Faith in the brothers
On any given day, there are several movies playing inside Albert's head -- not just the one he's working on at the moment. Amid all his other pre-production activities, Albert walks over to the TV that's playing "Casino" and deconstructs a complex tracking shot in the film. A few moments later, observing camera tests out behind the sound stages in New Mexico, Allen asks Don Burgess, the director of photography on "Eli," to explain a sequence in "Cast Away," another film Burgess shot.
"The Book of Eli" is financed in its entirety by Alcon Entertainment, which is co-producing with Joel Silver. Silver remarked by phone that he's used to working with brothers, having produced the Coens' "Hudsucker Proxy" and the Wachowskis' "Matrix" movies. Silver says Albert and Allen are "smart and very prepared. ["The Book of Eli"] is a complicated movie with a lot of visual effects. Also it's a character piece, so it's important for them to get the characters to work together. They have their hands full to make it look good and get everybody focused and do a good movie."
Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson, partners in Alcon Entertainment ("The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants"), an L.A.-based production company that has a distribution deal with Warner Bros., said that "The Book of Eli" is their biggest film in terms of budget, production challenges and star power. Before they came into the picture with the financing, as Kosove explains, there had been concerns at Warners about the brothers and their film. Not so with Alcon. "We were blown away by their vision for the movie," Kosove said. "And we pushed the green button."
Despite their time away from the spotlight, Johnson says the brothers were still a draw for Alcon. "They offer a unique combination of visual hipness with a real creative passion. I was a fan of their earlier movies. They know what's been done before, what hasn't been done before, what conventions they want to try to avoid and which ones still work."
Or as Ratner puts it: "Any schmuck can watch films. But Albert and Allen have taste, and they understand what's special."
A journey begins
Allen got an early peek at the spec script for "The Book of Eli," not long after Silver and Warners optioned it. "Our agent called me and said, 'You gotta read this.' Around Page 42, the hair on the back of my neck stood up."
The next day he phoned Albert in Prague. "I read it and called Allen and said, 'I don't know, man,' " Albert recalls. "I heard the wind go out of him -- whoosh. He told me to just go to sleep, think about it, and call him the next day. I had an eight-hour dream about the movie. I woke up and called Allen: 'I get it, man. I'm in.' "
Three weeks later, Albert finished a 60-page visual book that expressed the brothers' vision of the movie using photographs pulled from the Internet, drawings, stills from other films and a written "dogma" that describes their shooting style.
They knew they would have one shot at pitching themselves for the project. "We weren't hot" around Hollywood, Allen admits. But armed with passion and Albert's book, they went in to Warner Bros. Twenty minutes after that meeting was over, according to Allen, the studio was in active discussion with their agents. An hour and half later the deal was closed.
Little did Albert and Allen know, but the yearlong struggle to get the movie set up had just begun. First there were money issues. The studio was reluctant to give the project the kind of budget the brothers felt they needed. Then the writers strike happened. Energy and interest waned. Albert went back to Prague. Allen was getting depressed.
"I felt something come over me and oppress me. I was at the lowest. Then a spirit -- something I can't define -- said for me to take a knee, as they say in boxing."
Washington had been attached to play Eli, his price was set, and he was ready to go if all the details could be hammered out. Allen brushed aside any pride or embarrassment. "I called his cell and left a message. I said: 'I need your help now. I need to see you. I think this is an important project with you as a producer and you as an actor. I'd like to sit down and tell you what I need.' He called back a few hours later . . . and I missed him!"
When they did finally connect, according to Allen, the actor asked him to his house the next day and said to bring that visual book Albert had made. "The man can talk," Allen says, "but above all, he's a man of action."
In the end, Washington, who was on vacation and couldn't be reached for this story, offered to produce the picture and help make it all happen. "I felt him reach his hand out and take me and my brother out of the sea that we were cast out in," Allen says.
Days later, as ash and smoke fill the air on the set of a monochromatic burnt-out forest, Albert and Allen take their places sitting in directors' chairs next to Burgess in front of a high-definition monitor.
If there is any worry about this being their comeback movie, it doesn't show on their faces. Washington, looking much thinner (he reportedly shed more than 50 pounds for the role) and wearing a gas mask, finds his mark. The brothers look over at J.P. Wetzel, the first assistant director, and nod. It's the first take on the first day of a 65-day shoot.
"Roll camera," Wetzel says.
"Speed," answers the assistant camera.
"Action."
Post-script: The Hugheses are now busy editing the results of their production work, which they say finished on time and on budget. The brothers are back in the action.