One for the Money

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I usually try to avoid high anticipation for upcoming movies because they so often do not or cannot fulfill the hopefulness their publicity generates. In fact, I am happiest when I know the bare minimum about a movie; that way I am unencumbered by hype and able to judge a film on its merits rather than my own expectations. However, it is often difficult to remain blissfully unaware of what a film is offering, especially when you’ve seen the preview half a dozen times (as so often occurs).

But every now and then I do find myself really looking forward to one movie or another, for various reasons. And the movie that I am most looking forward to at the moment is One for the Money, which opens January 27, 2012. Yes, believe it or not, a Katherine Heigl movie!

I am anticipating One for the Money for several reasons. One is the very nice movie poster, seen at left.  While I am not as of yet a Katherine Heigl fan, I don’t think there can be any argument that she looks fantastic on this poster. It’s a sexy pose, what with the tight jeans, the cowboy boots, the handcuffs, the clever tagline, her windblown brunette hair and highly polished face. It’s the sexiest poster I’ve seen in some time, actually, and it makes me want to see the film.

Another factor in my desire to see this movie is because it’s about a woman.  Far too few films these days are centered on female characters — especially action films –and this one is not only about a woman, but a woman bounty hunter!

Last month I read my first Janet Evanovich novel, and I started at the beginning — One for the Money. It is the first in what are (so far) eighteen adventures of New Jersey girl Stephanie Plum, who takes a job as a bounty hunter out of desperation and necessity. The book is excellent; smart and funny, sassy and self-deprecating, lively and charming. I believe that Stephanie Plum is a role that Heigl can actually play pretty convincingly, and if the film is half as entertaining as the book, it will be well worth the price of admission.
And that brings me to the final reason why I am looking forward to seeing it. Four years ago in the print version of Filmbobbery I discussed the approaches I would take if I were to create and operate a (small) movie studio. Adapting a successful crime / mystery series is something I postulated in the article (9:1): “One area we would definitely explore is the idea of creating a detective franchise. Mystery series have been a literary staple for generations, so we would try to find a modern mystery series to produce. We wouldn’t and couldn’t try to reincarnate Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple for obvious reasons, yet there are plenty of memorable characters such as V. I. Warshawski (Sara Peretsky), Jim Quilleran (Lillian Jackson Braun), Kay Scarpetta (Patricia Cornwell), Frank Bennett (S. W. Hubbard) and Stephanie Plum (Janet Evanovich), whose adventures might please audiences for years to come if a series is constructed appropriately.”

Lionsgate and Lakeshore Entertainment must feel the same way, because here’s a Stephanie Plum movie that has the potential to ignite a franchise that could last for a long, long time. I want to see if they can pull it off. I am hoping that they can pull it off, because if I were in a position to produce movies, this is the type of movie that I would attempt. With a terrific novel as a basis, this movie could launch a clever, sexy franchise that, if produced with care, could legitimize Heigl’s movie career and really translate the Plum adventures for a new generation of fans.

There’s always the chance that this could be another V. I. Warshawski, a bad movie which effectively killed any chance of popularizing that character cinematically. But I am hopeful. It looks as if Katherine Heigl is well cast. It looks funny. The story is a good one, and there is amazing upside if it all works out. So I am hopeful. We’ll find out how good it is in just a couple of months.  30 Nov. 2011.

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  1. Well, I’ve seen the film — the review is in the Recent Releases section. And while I was not blown away, I did enjoy the movie. It still has the potential to ignite a decent series, although, given the slate of terrible reviews it received, it will be an uphill battle. I feel that Katherine Heigl was pretty good, but that she was let down by the pedestrian direction of Julie Anne Robinson. Stephanie Plum deserves better, and hopefully she will get it in subsequent adventures.

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