William Friedkin's The Winter of Frankie Machine

[Tom Clark Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Tom Clark]

http://collider.com/winter-of-franki..._medium=social

Deadline reports that Friedkin wants to make Frankie Machine “down and dirty, on a low budget, like he did with his 2011 Matthew McConaughey vehicle Killer Joe. The previous paramount incarnations were set for somewhere in the $70 million range, but Friedkin wants to knock out the project for under $15 million.

[The Silly Swede Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close The Silly Swede]

Sounds like a great idea!

[Dark Horse 77 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dark Horse 77]

I believe about five years ago Scorsese and DeNiro were set to reunite on this one. Hopefully Friedkin can get it done.

[Tom Clark Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Tom Clark]

I believe about five years ago Scorsese and DeNiro were set to reunite on this one. Hopefully Friedkin can get it done.

Yeah, Michael Mann was also attached at some point. Here's a more detailed plotline from Indiewire:

Frankie Machianno, a hard-working entrepreneur, passionate lover, part-time surf bum, and full-time dad, is a widely recognized pillar of his waterfront community. He is also a retired hit man. Once better known as Frankie Machine, he was a brutally efficient killer. Now someone from his past wants him dead, and after a botched attempt on his life, Frankie sets out to find his potential killers. However, the list of suspects is longer than the California coastline. With the mob on his heels and the cops on his tail, Frankie hatches a plan to protect his family, save his life, and escape the mob forever. Then things get really complicated.

That gives me a kind of History of Violence vibe. With Freidkin at the helm, this promises to be both psychological and visceral.

[Dark Horse 77 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dark Horse 77]

Any news on possible casting? I have faith that Friedkin has hit a late career stride and will continue to make good films like Bug (which I loved) and Killer Joe (which I liked a lot).

[Tom Clark Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Tom Clark]

Any news on possible casting? I have faith that Friedkin has hit a late career stride and will continue to make good films like Bug (which I loved) and Killer Joe (which I liked a lot).

http://www.joblo.com/movie-news/will...ie-machine-259

Friedkin views either Matthew McConaughey or Justified's Walton Goggins as ideal leads for the film but no discussions have taken place with either actor. The 79-year-old Friedkin is not prepared to pursue actors until he and Winslow have locked down a finished script.

And yeah, Bug and Killer Joe are amazing. He may take his sweet time in between films these days but the results more than make up for the waiting.

[Dark Horse 77 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dark Horse 77]

McConaughey seems a little young to play this part; I'm not sure exactly who would be right.

[Paul L Scholar of Sleaze Find all posts View Profile Close Paul L]

This, like many of Don Winslow's books, is very 'cinematic', and I'm surprised that the previous attempts to adapt it have always fallen through: I wonder what the hurdle has been with some of those planned adaptations. Come to think of it, the previous film adaptations of Winslow's books have struggled - though I have to say I preferred THE DEATH AND LIFE OF BOBBY Z, which was pulpy and self-mocking, to Oliver Stone's SAVAGES.

Friedkin's a good fit for the material, I reckon.

Winslow's CALIFORNIA FIRE AND LIFE would make an interesting film, I think.