The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: the disaster that put Sean Connery off cinema

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is tonight at 9:05 p.m. on 6ter.

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Stephen Norrington with Sean Connery was meant to be a thunderous blockbuster. But only his failure resounds with a crash.

As often in Hollywood, it all starts with a comic book by Alan Moore. Skillful play on Victorian mythologies and great popular myths, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is as much a tribute to the figure of the superheroes who have occupied the author for a long time, as a desire to go beyond them and offer them first-rate substitutes. And as often in Hollywood, who says adaptation, says betrayal.

The League of Smiling Gentlemen

THE LOSERS CLUB

One of the great achievements of the original graphic novel was the balance between its many characters, namely a troupe of adventurers from the imagination of Conan Doyle, Robert Louis StevensonBram StokerHG Wells or Jules Verne. Gathered to stop a plot to start a world conflict, Mina Harker, Captain Nemo, Alan Quatermain, Dr. Jekyll and The Invisible Man form an explosive team united against James Moriarty and Fu Manchu.

photo, Peta WilsonMina, from head woman to vampirette

So much for the starting point, which the Fox will passably mistreat. Not all of the characters have fallen into the public domain yet, and the studio is unable to acquire the rights to Fu Manchu, or The Invisible Man, as his character becomes “an invisible man.” But the studio does not stop there. Impossible to have such a beautiful league led by a woman, like at Moore. Mina Harker therefore goes from chef to sexy vampire, to give way to Sean Connery’s Alan Quatermain.

An initial imbalance which modifies the work in depth, but will be far from being the only mutilation inflicted on the basic narrative. The production fears that the American public will not be able to identify with non-American heroes, and decides to graft to this bad troupe Tom Sawyer, kind of over-armed baby nagwhich contrasts radically with the spirit of Moore’s mythology.

Never mind, Sean Connery, who refused blow after blow Matrix and The Lord of the Rings, has given his consent, which in itself is an event, and Fox has on hand a director who could make sparks. When filming started in Prague in 2002, all the lights are still greenand nothing can let foresee the catastrophe which is announced.

photo, Naseeruddin ShahCaptain Nemo in his works

DEATH IN VENICE

Stephen Norrington’s name is almost forgotten today, but the director was seen as one of the most promising of his generation when he shattered audiences’ brains with Blade. An extremely violent superhero film that nevertheless managed to attract a large number of spectators, its success was instantaneous. Norrington had managed to bring a then relatively unknown character out of the shadows of the general public, while offering a resolutely adult treatment, fundamentally classy and technically impressive.

The filmmaker succeeded in transcending his modest budget, offering an intensely spectacular film, with special effects that were almost never faulted, thanks to a sense of space, timing and editing that ensured it an unfailing dynamism. Suffice to say that this good Stephen Norrington had just won a pass for the highway of the gleaming blockbuster.

Sadly, he’s never had to manage such a large team, or stars the stature of Sean Connery. And as the DailyMirror then Entertainment Weekly months later, the director has a hard time finding his place on the massive set of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and manages to maneuver this ship only at the cost of permanent conflicts, in particular with the studio. Fox’s interventions disconcert him, and he wastes precious energy in scrapping with the executives.

photo, Peta Wilson, Naseeruddin Shah, Sean Connery“And where is the driver?”

Another major problem: the filmmaker is in open conflict with Sean Connery, who does not hide from not understanding much about the world of the film and assumes to be often in disagreement with the director. Interviewed by Empireactor Jason Flemyng will talk about it openly, remembering very violent spats.

“At the end of the take, Sean yelled at Norrington, ‘What? Do you want us to do it again?!?” The other replied “You got paid 18 million dollars, I think that’s not too much to ask”. But I don’t think you can post what Sean said to him after that. »

Things will not stop there, since the director and the interpreter of 007 will fail to come to blows, after which Norrington refused to attend the preview of the film and the evening that followed. On this occasion, when the press will ask Sean Connery where the director may be, the actor will answer: “probably locked up in the nearest asylum”.

At the same time, the first company hired to manage the special effects gave so little satisfaction that the footage had to change providers in the middle of shooting. A berezina which is not for nothing in the hideous dimension of several scenesthe rough conception of spectacular sequences such as the pursuit in the heart of Venice.

PhotoDr. Jekyll and Mr. Playstation 2

THIS IS THE END

The stormy relationship between director and actors is an integral part of the mythology of many films. But to fully understand the extent of the tensions and chaos that reigned over The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, it is enough to note its consequences on the career of its two main craftsmen. 72 years old, Connery emerges washed out of the ordealand no longer wants to hear about cinema, as he explained to Times.

“It was a nightmare. This experience had a terrible effect on me and made me re-evaluate show business. I can’t stand working with idiots anymore.”

Stephen Norrington is also traumatized. The director is only 38 years old and still remembers Blade in his bag, but swear to the great gods thathe’s done with staging. He will keep his word and will not make any more films after the release of the blockbuster in 2003. A not dishonorable exit, the film amassing 180 million dollars worldwide for a non-marketing budget of 78 million. It will nevertheless be in below the expectations and will be beaten at the post by Pirates of the Caribbean.

photo, Peta WilsonNo but afterwards, the car is pretty huh

The critical reception, it will be all the more ruthless as the rumors of apocalyptic filming are rife. I have to say that The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen has nothing for him. More than uneven special effects, a gaggle of sequences that try to make up for their technical insufficiencies via an inconsistent editing, when rough accelerated speeds don’t spoil the rare successes of the whole.

The chase aboard the Nemomobile is a disastrous example. Despite a grandiose Venetian decor, a real vehicle of about twenty meters long capable of performing real stunts, the catastrophic management of this large complex results in a sequence as ugly as it is unreadable, sprinkled with absurd digital inserts.

photo, Jason Flemyng“White is messy”

As for the story, without even trying to digest the formidable mythological heritage thought up by Moore, abandoning many of its concepts steampunk and finally all that made the salt of the alternative Europe in which the action takes place, it can only offer the spectator a warmed up and terribly agreed intrigue.

Decried and mocked, the film, which was intended to be a backfiring adventure, will remain as the one that took Sean Connery away from the big screen, deposed a director of the most promising, and completes the mistrust of the immense Alan Moore with regard to Hollywood. All in all, a complete failure.

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The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: the disaster that put Sean Connery off cinema