In the pantheon of bearded, nerd-loving filmmakers, Guillermo del Toro is still a lesser lord. A Duke to Prince Peter Jackson and King (or is it Emperor?) George Lucas, if you will. His power has been on the rise these past ten years, as his mainstream Hollywood history shows. From monster-movie-by-numbers fare like “Mimic” to the fantasia of bad-assery that is “Hellboy II,” del Toro is on track to be one of the greats.
While “The Hobbit” seems primed to be del Toro’s crown jewel, I’m personally more psyched about this “D”-related announcement he is teasing. “The Hobbit” will be good but the potential for greatness here is limitless. Here are five possible projects that could put del Toro over the top.
“District 10”
TriStar and Sony have already said they want to turn Neill Blomkamp’s sci-fi parable into a franchise. Obviously, Blomkamp and writer Terri Thatchell should remain the driving minds behind "District 9"'s world, but if “The Empire Strikes Back” proved anything, it’s that letting other artists take a crack at your world can yield great results. Del Toro’s penchant for the ethereal would be a stark contrast to the gritty realism of Blomkamp’s original. Good, I say. I want the prawn home world to be crazy, scary and alien.
“The Dirty Pair”
Hollywood keeps skating around live action adaptations of anime. They don’t want to be so authentic that they alienate the masses – hence the weirdness of “Dragonball: Evolution” – but they don’t want to miss out on all that potential nerd money. So they keep optioning things like “Akira” and “Ghost in the Shell.” Here’s a tip, studio executives: don’t go for the big serious anime first. Start with the boobs-and-violence anime. People like that combo. A classic like “The Dirty Pair,” a franchise defined by bare skin and bloody action, is a perfect start. An adaptation helmed by del Toro would let the man flex those comedy-fantasy skills that made “Hellboy” and “Blade II” so entertaining.
“Dynasty Warriors”
Like anime, the video game adaptation has proven to be a sticky problem for the movie world. Sam Raimi directing a “World of Warcraft” adaptation is a big first step on the road to making quality game adaptations. Letting del Toro make a “Dynasty Warriors” movie would be another. He’s already demonstrated his skill at crafting ferocious action on a small scale. I want his take on massive conflict. “Dynasty Warriors,” a fantastic take on “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” is a perfect fit. Thousands-strong armies being cut down by over-powered warriors and their odd weapons.
“Death: The High Cost of Living”
This one is actually already rumored to be related to del Toro’s big announcement, but it bears repeating here just how great it would be. Neil Gaiman’s story about the personification of Death living as a mortal for a single day in New York has been in development hell for over a decade now. Any news about it moving forward would be welcome. Confirmation that del Toro will direct it would be a dream come true. The story requires a delicate hand, a capacity for poetic understatement and an ability to make the supernatural seem mundane. Del Toro’s got all of those skills. I want him to now pay the bills with them.
"Doom Patrol"
“Hellboy II” had epic action, great monsters, an ensemble cast, cool characters, and killer humor. That is to say, it was perfect training wheels for what would be one of the most difficult and awesome comic book adaptations imaginable. “Doom Patrol,” specifically Grant Morrison’s “Doom Patrol” from the early ‘90s, is cerebral, scary, weird and amazing. It was also clearly influenced by Jorge Luis Borges, just like del Toro’s “Pan’s Labyrinth”. Make a “Doom Patrol,” Guillermo. Make a movie about robots with human brains, schizophrenics with powerful psychokinetic powers and Dadaist terrorists. I’m begging you.
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