Fraggles Under Fire: A Call To Action
June 19, 2010 | Posted by Chris Hello all,
As some of you may know, I have recently been watching the entire series of Fraggle Rock. This wonderful show is tons of fun and has great, solid moral messages embedded within the enchanting characters and songs that populate the Fraggle world. I have laughed, cried and smiled watching this series, and that is as a father and adult!
Imagine my shock and amazement to discover that there is a Fraggle Rock film planned and currently in the works. At first, I was very speculative about this idea. We all know what has happened with TV remakes and story remakes in movies recently. All one has to do is take a look at films such as “The Grinch”, “Alvin and the Chipmunks” and “Cat in the Hat” to see how Hollywood insists on turning a wonderful family story and experience into a money-grubbing, shallow and barely entertaining bland piece of work. We have also seen what has happened with existing movie franchises such as “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” when they were “re-envisioned”.
Upon doing research on the film, I found something very refreshing. The effort is being spearheaded by Cory Edwards. Cory is the writer/director who brought us Hoodwinked, a wonderful modern take on Red Riding Hood with a twist. Upon reading his blog, I found that he is just as passionate about Fraggle Rock as I am. He said in his posts that he has been consulting the special features on the DVD sets to be able to gauge the true vision that Jim Henson and Jerry Juhl had when creating Fraggle Rock. He has also consulted with Karen Prell, muppeteer for Red Fraggle and writer, as well as David Golez, who was muppeteer for Boober and Uncle Matt Fraggles.
Cory truly seems to have a sense of what Fraggle Rock was truly about and has tried to make his script as true to the original vision of the show as possible. His goal is that over the years Fraggle Rock hasn’t changed, only us, the silly creatures, have. The Fraggles are then in a perfect position to point out the silliness and errors in some of the things that we do, including our massive reliance on technology. I can see Uncle Matt getting stepped on by someone texting on their iPhone now…LOL. He has also stated that the script that he has written touches on topics such as death, pollution and greed, addressing these issues in a way a child would understand, just as the original show did.
So, if Cory seems to have such a great handle on things and my upmost confidence, why am I calling this “Fraggles Under Fire”. Well, here is why. The Weinstein Company, which will be “footing the bill” or producing the Fraggle Movie, does not like Cory’s script. They still want him to direct the film but. their notes are indicating that the script isn’t “edgy” enough. Now remember, the Weinstein Company is currently working on such visionary pieces such as “Scream 4″ so, I am sure that they have the best intentions in trying to make the script more controversial and “accessible” to adult audiences. Basically, they are ditching Cory’s script and hiring someone else to re-write it the way they want.
Cory is obviously upset about this, as he should be. However, we should all be upset as well. As a parent, I can’t recommend Fraggle Rock enough as a great piece of FAMILY entertainment. Why do I emphasize the word family there? This is because that while Fraggle Rock was a kid’s show, its themes and vision were also very accessible to the parents of those children. For me, the show helps to regain a childhood innocence and look at the world. It helps to reinforce the moral goals I have in raising my son, and isn’t hammering them over a child’s head, nor “dumbing” the ideas down. It is just a great overall experience for children of all ages.
Cory’s goal is to re-capture Jim Henson’s goals of showing how all of us are dependent upon one another in this world and by doing so, also furthers Jim’s goals of preventing war with the show. He doesn’t want to dumb the message down or make the project “more accessible” for adults. He wants to be a purist to the ideals of the original show, and this can be seen in the research he has done. Cory is fighting for the families out there, looking for something that helps to build the family up, rather than the sappy, superficial garbage that is packaged and sold in family movies to push products, sex and the idea of “me” being the most important person in the world.
So, what can we do about it? If you are anything like me, you do not want to stand by and let one of the best family shows ever, be turned into another superficial, meaningless remake, lacking vision and moral stability. So here are some ways that we can help.
1: Pray for Cory and his vision for this project. He has stated that prayers are more than welcome, and I feel that they are needed.
2. Leave messages of support in comments on Cory’s blog. It is hard to fight for your vision in Hollywood, and the more support someone is given, the harder they will be able to fight. It’s like saying that if someone knows they have an entire army behind them when marching into a board meeting, it will help then to drive their point home.
3. Write letters or contact The Weinstein Company, expressing your confidence in Cory’s vision and the disagreement/disgust in the idea of making Fraggle Rock “edgy”.
The Weinstein Company LLC
345 Hudson St., 13th Fl.
New York, NY 10014
NY Tel. 646-862-3400
Fax 917-368-7000
Fraggle Rock is a magical wonderful place. It is the place where we all become children again and see the world through an un-jaded and un-biased lens. Don’t allow the movie for our children to experience Fraggle Rock become jaded and twisted like so many other family films today. Support Cory Edwards and his vision, because I can truly say that I believe he cares and is the best person to do this project.
On an additional note, I have never met Cory, and do not know him personally. While it does seem that he would be the type of person I could be great friends with, I have only known him from his work and through his blog. However, I truly love and support his vision on this project and think we should do the same.
Keep Fraggle Rock the way it has always been, don’t let it become broken in the Hollywood money machine. Let’s keep Fraggle Rock a place where we can “Dance our Cares Away” and allow us to leave our “Worries for Another Day”, even if only for 90 minutes on the big screen.
God Bless,
Chris
Categories: Media | 
Tags: Acitivism, Cory Edwards, Fraggel Rock Movie, Fraggle Rock, Hoodwinked, Jim Henson, Karen Prell, movies, Muppets, Reviews | 
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