Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Paradise Lost: the Movie



The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, or a hell of heaven.
John Milton (1608 - 1674)
Source: Paradise Lost (Penguin

Rev. 12:
7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.
9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

Scott Derrickson is a
screenwriter, producer, and director. He has written and directed the film The Exorcism Of Emily Rose, which was loosely based on a true story about Anneliese Michel, a college freshman who was at one point recognized by the Roman Catholic Church for her demonic possession.[citation needed]
He is currently working with
Legendary Pictures to direct a big screen adaptation of John Milton's Paradise Lost from a script by Stuart Hazeldine. He is also currently writing and directing the adaptation of "Devil's Knot" by Mara Leveritt for Dimension Films.
Derrickson graduated from
Biola University La Mirada, CA with a degree in humanities, a degree in communications, and a degree in theological studies. He earned his masters in film production from USC Film School.[1]
Derrickson got his first break into the film industry directing the fifth installment of the Hellraiser series, Hellraiser: Inferno (2000) and writing the screenplay for Urban Legends: Final Cut (2000)

Variety reports that Scott Derrickson, director and co-writer of The Exorcism of Emily Rose, is attached to direct (and co-write?) a big-screen adaptation of John Milton's Paradise Lost! The film is being developed by Legendary Pictures, the outfit behind Batman Begins and last year's Superman Returns.

Variety also says: "Paradise Lost," published in 1667, tells the story of Lucifer's failed rebellion in heaven and subsequent role in Adam and Eve's fall from grace.

Scott Derrickson may not be a household name, but you may be familiar with his next project: "Paradise Lost." Yes, that "Paradise Lost," John Milton's epic poem. And he's reportedly got a budget of around $100 million to make it. Not bad for a guy who's best known for the horror films "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" and "Hellraiser: Inferno." If horror may seem like an unlikely genre for a Christian filmmaker, Derrickson--raised a fundamentalist, now a self-described "orthodox Christian"--sees it as part and parcel of his faith. "By approaching spiritual issues and religious questions through the window of the horrific or the dark side of life, you suddenly had free reign to deal with spirituality in a way that was not going to be preachy or come off as propaganda," he told Beliefnet in 2005.

My comment: How interesting that we have a Christian making top-notch horror flicks and about to produce a blockbuster movie based on John Milton's masterpiece about the war in heaven. What an opportunity with today's digital possibilities: demons, angels, Adam and Eve, Paradise. I'll be in line to see this. And what is next? Dante's Inferno?

1 comment:

Dante's Inferno said...

Great news!

Dante's Inferno is also being produced in several ways by Master Films Producions, www.masterfilmsproductions.com

Cheers!