Though I loved Oliver Stone‘s latest film Savages, I seem to be in the minority. Critics aren’t taking too kindly to it and neither is the box office. For those who don’t know, the movie is based on the novel by Don Winslow which, unlike the film, actually did quite well and has received a fair amount of praise.
Despite Savages not really taking off, Winslow will be getting another shot in Hollywood with his novel California Fire and Life, which has just been optioned. Deadline is reporting that the novel has been picked up by Hutch Parker Entertainment and Shane Salerno, who was an executive producer and co-writer on Savages.
For those unfamiliar with California Fire and Life, it follows Jack Wade, “a former Orange County cop whose past mistakes have exempted him from the line of duty — but whose unparalleled knowledge of fire makes him a valuable arson investigator. Despite his simple motto of “don’t get involved,” a case involving the charred home of a millionaire’s home — as well as the charred corpse of the man’s wife — Wade becomes immersed in one of Los Angeles’ seedier sides as he tries to find the truth behind this event.”
While the novel sounds great and would likely make a pretty good movie, I’d much rather see Winslow’s Savages prequel, The Kings of Cool, hit the big screen first. As I mentioned before, I really enjoyed Stone’s take on Winslow’s novel and I would love to see the prequel come together. Though considering that Savages didn’t do too well, I don’t think that’s going to happen. At least not anytime soon.
No word on writers or any other talent for California Fire and Life but Hutch Parker Entertainment does have a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox, so expect things to get rolling on the project very shortly.
What do you think? Would you rather see The Kings of Cool or California Fire and Life hit the big screen?