Booze News: Remake of ARTHUR in the works

Wasn't Arthur 2: On the Rocks (1988) bad enough?

Now, Warner Brothers plans to remake the cocktail-charged 1981 Dudley Moore comedy, Arthur, and have hired Russell Brand (the womanizing musician of Forgetting Sarah Marshall) to star. I found Brand's work in Sarah Marshall quite good, but let's face it, he's no Dudley Moore. By the time Moore was hired to lead Arthur, his comic chops were tops from years of stage, television, and film experience as part of a comedy team with the even more brilliant Peter Cook. His performance in Arthur was a career-topper, and I can't see how Brand can hope to match it.

Moore also had excellent support from actors Liza Minnelli and Sir John Gielgud and especially from writer/director Steve Gordon. The screenplay of Arthur was an absolute gem that captured the fizziness of the screwball comedies of the 1930's, while telling a completely original story. The worst news about the proposed remake is that Peter Baynham, a co-writer on Borat, has been hired to write the film. Blurrgh!

The 1981 original is rightfully considered a modern comedy classic, and it was included in the AFI's list of the 100 funniest American films (at #53). Let's hope the powers that be at Warner Brothers come to their senses and leave Arthur alone.

Here's a link to the news about the film from Variety's Website: Arthur Remake

Cheers,
garv

Arthur (DVD)
Arthur/Arthur 2: On the Rocks