Diablo Cody is in it for the long haul, or so she hopes. She’s got Jennifer’s Body upcoming, and now Showtime is fast-tracking the Diablo Cody/Steven Spielberg joint The United States of Tara. Toni Collette will star as the multi-personality Tara who tries to parent while she “copes with the various identities that may appear on any given day and range in age, temperament and even gender,” said the network.
Showtime makes its thumb print:
“Showtime is known as the home of several shows featuring flawed main characters, and we welcome Tara — and all her alternate personalities — to the fold,” said Robert Greenblatt, president of entertainment for Showtime.
My question about Cody remains — will she be able to get out of the way of her own work? She kind of eclipses everything so far, up to and including Juno (directed by the invisible man Jason Reitman). Megan Fox may eclipse her when Jennifer’s Body opens but will United States of Tara ever be anything other than something Diablo Cody wrote? I don’t know the answer but I’m kind of digging it that there’s a girl person out there whose name (as a writer) precedes her.
No Response for "United States of Diablo"
Showtime is also known for Red Shoe Diaries. It’s hard to shake off a reputation like that.
To answer your question: it’s up to us whether we enable Diablo Cody.
Let’s not.
I haven’t made up my mind about Diablo yet. Whenever I’ve seen her in interviews she comes off as “an ex-stripper.” She doesn’t present as an intelligent thought-provoking writer-and perhaps that’s what is so refreshing about her, who knows! I loved Juno, and I will definitely tune in to see her series and go to see the new movie before I’ve given my final judgement. It would be nice to see a woman atop the writers relm for awhile.
Speaking of, has anyone noticed that SITC has made over 5 million a day since the weekend and is already at 73M! Crazy. So much for a “one-weekend” movie.
Perhaps Diablo will prove us wrong and not be a “one-movie” writer!
I think the question remains: will we be able to see Diablo Cody’s work as what it is or will we constantly be putting the spotlight on the person who also happened to be a stripper…It’s really up to us, isn’t it?
Thoughtful observation, filmboymichael.
More generous and gentlemanly than I can be.
Not sure if it’s a matter of people shining a spotlight on Diablo, or if she just carries around a handy Klieg light in her hobo tote.
(yep, can you tell I just read the first 12 pages of Jennifer’s Body? It’s Codytagious, and my vaccine didn’t take.)
Not fair to judge on the basis of a dozen pages, but life’s not famous for being fair.
First impression: Larry Clark does Juno. Does her hardcore. Scribbled gonzo dialogue cribbed off the walls of bathroom stalls. Fun for fans of slashed “tits” and “front butts.” Maybe it’ll get better, but so far it’s trending Superbad, Superworse, Superworst.
Post-it-note to Diablo: Don’t quit your night job.
I loved Juno, but I have to reserve judgment on Cody until there is more of her work out there, and I mean more than this coming film and show. But remember after these next two project she will only have 3 scripts to her name and that is not enough to base any real discussion on. Furthermore, few writers have great story one after another so this will be something to look at in a few years to really see if she is a name or if she is a great screenwriter. Oh and I hope she is because I too would love to see a woman at the top of this field.
“I too would love to see a woman at the top of this field.”
Daren, Look no further. Tina Fey, Tamara Jenkins, Nancy Oliver.
Jennifer’s Body makes Juno look like Billy Wilder. It’s Diabo Cody cashing in with pocket change. Like a Cinemax sit-com, it’s a very special episode of Blossom the Vampire Slayer.
I’d like to see more women at every level of the field, and there’s nothing wrong with being the female Kevin Williamson.
But “great”? I had the same high hopes, but nope. Not on the basis of what I’m seeing.
What’s frustrating is that some of the narrative descriptions in Jennifer’s Body are better than the grating quip-machine dialogue. No way to tell if Diablo feels like the filthy-cutesy stuff is what’s expected of her, or if that’s really all she knows how to do.
Impatient with a friend’s grief, Jennifer gives her this advice:
“Move-on dot org, Needy.”
No kidding. There are four or five of those gems on every page.
Cody sounds like a parody of herself already.
Megan Fox eclipse Diablo Cody??? In what universe? Have you seen the girl act? She has looks but limited talent and is no superstar by any means.
Look at m. night shyamalan, created a genuis script in the sixth sense, and everything that followed has become more and more watered down, now he is just horrible. Cody hasn’t even come close the shyamalan’s script, sixth sense made AFI’s top 100 movies. The reason I compare is because look at his stuff now, and people think Cody will have staying power? No way
Dr. Obvious reminds us:
Name the screenwriter who this year bridged the gap between the Oscars and the distinguished MTV Movie Awards.
In another year, it’s Tarantino.
In another year, it’s Ben Affleck/ Matt Damon.
In that company, it’s not that bad.
I’ll give you that, RichardA.
But I guess the point I forgot to make is this. Did Diablo Cody look more at home at the Oscars or on MTV?
Cody’s achieved something really impressive. Maybe someday people will put it in perspective, stop dreaming that she’s destined for the Pantheon of Great American Screenwriters, and focus on several more likely female candidates.
Remember the agonizing first hour of Juno before some warmth and genuine emotion began to soften things up? The first half of Jennifer’s Body is groaningly bad in the same way. Then the second half gets much worse.
I’m in no hurry for Cody’s party to wind down. But I’m not gonna pretend that I think she’s a phenomenon for any other reasons than those we’ve already discussed to death.
If she’d never written another movie after Juno, Diablo Cody’s place in movie history would be secure. Nothing wrong with cashing in. I’m just trying to tamp down the hype a little. Lower expectations; less disappointment.
I’ll be happy to eat my words if her third of forth script prove me wrong.
Best part of Jennifer’s Body? It’ll be fun seeing the conservative audiences who embraced the ostensible family values and anti-abortion stance of Juno flock to see this follow-up.
Phrases like “fundie bible bangers” and scenes of highschool anal sex so painful it can only be soothed by “sitting on a package of frozen peas” are sure to go over big with the Sunday matinee church groups.
Or how about this:
===============
GOTH GIRL:
(popping balloon)
This is my heart.
GOTH GIRL: (cont’d)
(popping balloon)
This is my soul.
GOTH GIRL: (cont’d)
(popping balloon)
Everything I once believed in.
Another GOTH GIRL, looking exasperated, grabs a balloon, shoves it under her babydoll dress and pops it.
GOTH GIRL #2:
(mockingly)
Your abortion.
She rapidly shoves it up under her dress and pops it again, smirking.
GOTH GIRL #2: (cont’d)
Your other abortion.
GOTH GIRL:
I hate your guts, Madison.
===============
This isn’t just a callous disregard for the expectations of Juno fans looking forward to more quirky cuteness. More than that, it seems to reveal the mean-spirited side of Diablo Cody she did such a good job disguising in the second half of Juno. (or, hmm, could it be that Jason Reitman is the real master of disguise?)
Maybe I’m wrong. It’s only one movie. Maybe the third outing will be better — or the fourth or fifteenth. But it kinda puts a tarnish on that “Best Screenplay” Oscar if this is as good as it ever gets.
In order for Diablo Cody to be the second coming of Elaine May next year, Megan Fox will have to be the second coming of Ellen Page. Any wagers on that eventuality?
The show revolves around a woman with multiple personalities? Is there a single more cliched topic in TV and film than multiple personality disorder? I really can’t find any excitement for this project at all.
too true, S.T. Stevens,
When women in movies have multiple personalities, one of them is always a touch-me-not, prim and uptight. One’s a touch-me-NOW!, Southern Belle (that honey-baked southern accent is a sure sign of guaranteed sluttiness). And then the obligatory little bitty girl with huge eyes and falsetto voice. But don’t kid yourself — it’s the slutty slice who wins the Oscars and Emmys.
Always that male friend or neighbor who’s constantly fending off a barrage of mixed-message advances and perplexing shuns by the various personalities. He’s taken aback but learns to deal with it, ’cause heck, who can figure out women anyway, right? That’s just how they are. Hilarity ensues. (relax, I said HiLARity.)
When guys in movies have multiple personalities, without a doubt it means they’re gay — or wish they were. One (or more) of the personalities sporadically cavorting around in drag (invariably as his own mother), and oh yeah — they’re very reliable serial killers. (And by “they,” I mean “we,” so don’t fuck with us.)
Straight guys always have one thick stubborn-ass personality… often the same actor carries that big dumb personality from movie to movie, plot to plot, year to year. So like if he’s got a chip on his shoulder at 20, he’s still got his bony old fists up at 90. If he’s an unbalanced hot-head when he’s a P.O.W., 50 years later he’s still an unbalanced hot-head when he runs for office, like President or whatnot.
yuck, I hate being so negative.
On a positive note, I’ll go out on a limb right now and say that Youth in Revolt might the teen-oriented film to beat in 2008.
Insane novel? check.
Insane screenplay? check.
Temporarily insane director, legally insane cast? check, check.
There’s more authenticity and wit in 2 pages of Youth in Revolt than you’ll find in 114 pages of Diabloesque Codyisms.
To mis-quote Pauline Kael, Youth in Revolt will make Juno look like something you hold up on the end of a toothpick.
[argh! stepped into the trap again! Damn you Diablo Cody and your wicked sexist-baiting ta-tas!!]
I could not agree more wholeheartedly with the predictions of Diablo Cody’s career ending soon. I could only make it through about half of Jennifer’s Body. It was as if Diablo Cody thought “hey, it worked once, why not do it again!?”
Only this time its been so used up that it seems she’s made a parody of herself (a lot like this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=y9xBZ9Mpqn0).
Is that all she is capable of? I hope not, because I found the writing in Juno to be amazingly original. Unfortunately it has been done already…by the same person who is trying to do it again.
tori spelling..?
Her name precedes her only because she was a stripper. She has no talent in the writing department. One only has to watch that steaming pile known as Juno to understand that. Name dropping hip, quirky indie movies and bands does not make you a good writer. Cody has set women writers back 20 years.
Sasha, as I writer myself, I also like the fact that a screenwriter – male or female – can reach the status when they are effectively the main drawcard for a project. But I think Cody is just an anomaly with a cute backstory.
I don’t agree with the people saying her fame has nothing to do with her actual writing. Her writerly voice, after all, is pretty distinctive, whether you like it or not. (I don’t.) But I kind of wish she would avoid marketing herself so extensively on her image, and let her work represent itself. (In that regard, she’s still behind someone like Charlie Kaufman in the screenwriter-as-star stakes – everyone can recognize his writing, but how many people know what he looks like?)
For my part, I’d be more excited if an ordinary-looking woman with no sexy backstory reached Cody’s status solely on the strength of a dynamite script. But I’m not holding my breath, and there lies the problem.
Part of the reason why I do not like Diablo Cody is that she’s a voice that I CAN have, except that I’m not a stripper. I’m NOT! I’m not!
Her quirkiness was something that I would have written as an insecure high school student. And I’m sure anyone who has a talent for writing blogs could just as easily have written the fake-y dialogue of Juno. Fo’ shiz.
But it’s also unfair to chastize her for working the system (not the pole!). Also unfair is to expect Diablo Cody to be a faceless dowdy person. I mean: is that the only way a woman can be successful?
Which reminds me: Hooray for all the positive responses for bringing back Karen Allen in Indy4. She brought some realness to the storyline.
Lesson here: down load a free software for screenwriting and START writing. Here’s a tip: save all the Google chat with your friends and turn that to a dialogue.
“…save all the Google chat with your friends and turn that to a dialogue.”
ha! Brilliant advice RichardA. You make some excellent points. I hope I didn’t come across as “chastizing.” I sincerely mean it when I say Cody’s entitled to cash in while she’s hot, and that wasn’t sarcasm when I said, “there’s nothing wrong with being the female Kevin Williamson.”
heck, I’d be thrilled to have Kevin Williamson’s success. No doubt all those millions would help me forget how mediocre I am. Again, I say that without the slightest sarcasm. I keep trying to sell my soul, but can’t find the damned eBay category where souls are listed.
Very astute observation about “working the system” too. Well played indeed. But as Sasha wrote months ago in one of the very first posts about Diablo Cody — once Pandora opens her box it’s hard to close it, so to speak.
(Not that I see Diablo trying to close the box and leave it behind. Why are we supposed to try ignore her stripper background when she keeps reminding us?)
Diablo Cody created a classic and I don’t begrudge the Oscar (though she would’ve been my 4th choice among the nominees.) Lots of people eagerly anticipated her follow-up to see if Juno was the birth of genius, or just a neat trick.
I suspected the latter, and yeah, based on her second effort, I’m not above feeling vindicated that I might be right. This doesn’t look like a sophomore slump so much as scraping the bottom of a shallow barrel.
So true what you say in the beginning of your comment, RichardA. I’ve mentioned before, there are a couple of dozen regular commenters here at AD who write impressively smart and witty stuff. I laugh out loud at things our readers contribute — so much funnier to me than anything in Juno.
It’s been said that everybody has a great novel or a great screenplay in them, and it’s an extraordinary accomplishment to get that screenplay on paper.
But true as that might be, there’s no guarantee than anybody has more than one great screenplay in them.
Why the hate at the chick? OK, she was a stripper who won an Oscar. Don’t blame her because while on your spare time, you’re bullshitting in the comments of an Oscar prognostication website.
….
I need to get my shit together.
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