Years of campaigning by the Utah Film Commission have resulted in a long string of recent movies that show off Utah's landscapes as other than merely Western.
For 2 1/2 decades, the late '30s to the mid-'60s, the state was primarily thought of by moviemakers as Southern Utah's "John Ford Country," thanks to classic Westerns ranging from "Stagecoach" (1939) to "Cheyenne Autumn" (1964). These days, however, Utah is finally being recognized by Hollywood as a place that can provide other, more flexible "looks."- You want suburban? We got it ("Fletch," "The Sandlot").
- Rural? Right here ("Footloose").
- We can also be passed off as several other states ("Thelma & Louise").
- Your picture is set in the recent past? Look no farther ("This Boy's Life").
- The more distant past? OK ("Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade").
- Even more distant? No problem ("Back to the Future, Part III").
- How about the 3-D future? We've got that, too ("Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone").
Once the point was made, Utah didn't have to worry about the dearth of Westerns over the past couple of decades. A booming movie industry has been maintained - with everything from low-budget, independent productions to major studio efforts.
And now that the Western has again gained favor, why not return to Utah's cinematic roots?
"Geronimo," a big-budget Hollywood Western, is scheduled to begin filming in Moab on May 3.
How big is that budget? Leigh von der Esch, director of the Utah Film Commission, says it's the biggest ever for a movie made here.
Estimates range from $25 million to $40 million but Variety, the show biz trade paper, says it falls in the middle, $35 million. In other words, less than "Jurassic Park" but more than "Dances With Wolves."
Walter Hill, perhaps best known for his two Eddie Murphy-Nick Nolte outings, "48 HRS." and "Another 48HRS.," is directing, his first Western since "The Long Riders" back in 1980 (unless you count the contemporary "Extreme Prejudice").
And because he's a student of history, von der Esch says, Hill isintent on making "Geronimo" as historically accurate as possible.
To begin with, the casting will be politically correct. There won't be a Chuck Connors equivalent here. (Connors played "Geronimo" in the 1962 version and there was an equally unforgettable "Geronimo" in 1939; neither is on video.)
Hill has cast Wes Studi in the title role, the Cherokee actor who made such a startling impression as the villainous Magua in "Last of the Mohicans." (In fact, many critics, including this one, feel Studi was robbed by not getting a supporting actor Oscar nomination.)
Among his co-stars, as cavalry officers, will be Robert Duvall, Jason Patric and, rumor has it, Gene Hackman, though that has not yet been officially announced.
The film will be shooting in Moab and Little Sahara Sand Dunes Recreation Area in Southern Utah beginning May 3. This is a three-month shoot, time enough to funnel a huge bundle of money into the local economy. "At least $5 million," says von der Esch. " `Thelma & Louise' was just a 30-day shoot and they left behind $3 million. This is a 74-day shoot."
Having read the script, she is impressed with the story Hill wants to tell. "It's a fairly comprehensive story, about the people involved in Geronimo's resettlement. He (Hill) wants to bring an accurate historical perspective to it and as a big fan of John Ford he wanted to use that landscape."
Meanwhile, the Stephen King-scripted adaptation of his most ambitious novel, "The Stand," continues to film here for a television miniseries, scheduled to air in the fall. "They'll be here until June and they're shooting all around," von der Esch said. "They've been in Midvale and Magna, and they're going to Green River and Ogden. It's fairly concentrated on desert things, with Pittsburgh being used for the big city and Las Vegas for Las Vegas. But a lot of it needs that small town look."
There are also two locally produced movies in production - Craig Clyde's "Wind Dancer" in St. George and an unrelated film with a similar title due to start up in Kanab, "Wind Runner."
If that's not enough, von der Esch says she's doing a lot of scouting, searching out potential locations for future films. "I'm doing more studio scouting than any time in the history of the commission, at least since I've been director for the past eight years." One movie that is seriously considering Utah is "City Slickers 2," with Billy Crystal.
- QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Burt Reynolds, star of the current hit "Cop 1/2," on violence and sex in movies:
"I've choreographed movie fights for 30-odd years. I always say the anticipation of a fight is twice as exciting as the fight itself; it's that circling of each other and the knife going back and forth and all that.
"And there's nothing more boring than watching two people nude lying on top of each other. In fact, it's kind of funny in a way. It's the anticipation that's sexy."