How about "polygamy fantasy" erotic literature featuring Joseph and his harem of many women? (I have NO experience with this--but if you do, please feel free to get creative!)

I think that popular media interpretations of the Church will help it become more honest...

Any other ideas?

I used to own an adult shop and I believe that some of the producers of adult film would find this a great idea for a series of movies. I would suggest you rough out a first episode and then find a producer / distributer on line. The opening trailer could alternate between the first vision and the young lad abusing his little factory while the angel watches.

Problem is, how many people are going to be interested in a fringe religion's origins?

That, and in the end it's just not an exciting Hollywood story.

Look at the Book of Mormon Musical--surely it can be done... I think taking cues from the South Park creators is the way to go.

Well that's not exactly an effort in historically accurate drama.

squeebee Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Problem is, how many people are going to be
> interested in a fringe religion's origins?
>
> That, and in the end it's just not an exciting
> Hollywood story.


I think that such a movie could be made and could be
successful, if it had a compelling historical setting
and centered on characters other than Smith himself.

One possibility would be to frame the origin of
Mormonism within a larger movie plot. The producers
of September Dawn tried to do that, but the Smith
portion of that show was not put together very well.

The plot element in September Dawn, of portraying a
romance between a Mormon and a Gentile was a fairly
good one, but the dark atmosphere of the film did
not allow for a good viewer identification with the
protagonist couple.

A workable Mormon origins film plot would have to
learn from September Dawn and other previous attempts,
in order to produce a media product that was interesting
and attractive to filmgoers.

In such a production the Mormon origins portion might
be subtle, under-played, and yet devastating to the
LDS mythology.

I'd donate half of my meager savings, just to get such
a project up and running... but probably it will not
happen within my lifetime.

UD

Also I think there is enough sex and murder to sell a major movie. It would be a pretty interesting plot line regardless of what a persons interest level in modern day Moism is.

Just like I don't think everybody who went to see Lincoln was a Civil War buff

Northern_Lights Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Also I think there is enough sex and murder to
> sell a major movie. It would be a pretty
> interesting plot line regardless of what a persons
> interest level in modern day Moism is.
>
> Just like I don't think everybody who went to see
> Lincoln was a Civil War buff

One possibility would be to shoot a movie with a plot
based upon the murder of sexual seducer P.P. Pratt, that
included lengthy flashbacks to the time of Pratt's
Mormon conversion.

If Craig Criddle's explanation of Mormon origins is a
valid one, Pratt was one of the major co-conspirators
in the founding of the gold bible cult.

Such a movie need not spend much time portraying
Joseph Smith -- but the origin of the Book of Mormon
and secretive pre-Mormon scheming and conspiring
could be effectively worked into the storyline.

UD

Three-night miniseries:

Night one (two hours) Palmyra.

The leg operation, money digging, the angel Nephi claim
(changed to "Moroni" later), the 1826 trial, eloping with
Emma, getting the plates, rock in a hat, lost 116 pages,
founding the Church.

Night two (two hours) Ohio and Missouri

Fanny Alger, Missouri war, Kirtland Temple, Egyptian Papyri,
Kirtland "anti-banking safety society," his inner circle
apostatizes, First vision finally dictated, He takes it on the
lam to . . .

Night three (three-hour conclusion) Nauvoo

Polygamy with a vengeance. Bennett, Nauvoo Legion, Masonry,
anointed quorum, Council of Ytfif, polygamy and more
polygamy, polygamy begins to unravel, Nauvoo house,
Expositor, final gunfight at Carthage jail.


Working title: "Joseph Smith: Lust for Glory"


This would be a miniseries about the origin of Mormonism--the
religion that was just in the news as one of its members was
the republican candidate for president and an award-winning
Broadway musical was based on it.

It would be HUGE in the ratings.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 02/10/2013 06:45PM by baura.

It could be done - but it would have to be done in a way that people would be willing to invest money in to produce it.

What Hollywood executives green light and pass on is as difficult to determine as what manuscripts get published vs. passed on.

From an outsiders perspective it would be a matter of luck.

The Book of Mormon musical was passed on by a lot of people and Matt and Trey had a hard time getting financing for some time because everyone said, "No one would care."

But the show turned out great and people cared because they thought it was great.

A movie about the origins of Mormonism could do very well if it was done "correctly."

What defines that though is simply what people want to see.

And THAT can be quite maddening to try to define.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/10/2013 06:56PM by Raptor Jesus.

Raptor Jesus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It could be done - but it would have to be done in
> a way that people would be willing to invest money
> in to produce it.
>
...

Either in that, or in the computer software and expertise
necessary to create Hollywood-quality CGI animation.

Perhaps, given a few years' technology advancement, and
and the development of a creative genius or two, the
hoped-for production will be put together in some garage
in California next decade.

UD

I have a couple of videos of old silent movies probably made before the 1920s. One is called "Escape from the Mormons" a I forget the title of the other one but it is about polygamy in the pioneer days. Both of them are somewhat exagerated but if they were re-issued or re-made they would be fun to watch. I will have to dig through my boxes of old videos to find them. It has been 25 years or so since I watched them. Of course "Plan 10 from Outer Space" was a fun movie too with Karen Black at her weirdest and all the missionary distress signals!!

spintobear Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have a couple of videos of old silent movies
> probably made before the 1920s...

There was one from that era which depicted Elder
Sidney Rigdon ripping off Solomon Spalding's Nephite
manuscript. I'd love to have a digitized copy.

But, perhaps all that remains are the old advertising
posters, and that film has long since rotted away.

UD

Dustin Lance Black is our best hope. He won an oscar for his screenplay of 'Milk', he produced 'Prop 8', and he just did the movie on Hoover. He is working on a screenplay for 'Under the Banner of Heaven', and I can't believe he hasn't put a lot of thought into a JS movie. He's exmo.

That would be so cool. The mormons would go nuts trying to refute it though. Would have to be real events in mormon history. The TRUE story. Not all hollyWood made up or exaggerated up..The true facts would make a great story that Mormons can only blink at.

I'm sure the true origins of mormonism are stranger than any fiction we've been taught. There's the psychedlic first vision, the captain Cook dime novels, a hillbilly P.T. Barnum, the likely use of datura in ceremonies, mountain meadows and polygamy.

Yes, I think the world is ready for an over the top charlatan story. You've got sex, drugs, violence, treachery for a good cause, everything you need for a great movie.

Bradley Wrote:
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> ...everything you need for a great movie.

No Rock & Roll. And an Osmonds soundtrack won't help.

UD

The world is ready! I think if done right they could totally make a hit movie. I think the history of Mormonism if fascinating and could make very exciting and interesting movie. Obviously you'd have to leave out the boring, cleaned up version taught by the modern church, but add in the all crazy stuff. Think about it. How fascinating would a true story about an American prophet which includes stuff like:

1) Folk magic
2) buried treasure & seer stones & guardian spirits
3) Tales of ancient Americans
4) Vision of God
5) Persecutions and gun fights
6) Polgyamy, wife swapping, adultery
7) Egyptian mummies and Book of Abraham
8) Zelph the Lamanite
9) Danites
10) The Secret Council of 50
11) A prophet secretly being ordained a king in America
12) Secret temple ceremonies, Masonic initiations
13) The Nauvoo Militia, General Smith
14) Prophesies & visions,
15) 12 apostles
16) Anti-Mormons & conflicts

Sadly, the Scientology origin movie bombed at the box office, so that may make producers less interested in pursuing a serious project on the founding of Mormonism. That said, satirical looks into modern Mormonism, especially as a subplot line, may become more common with the success of "The Book of Mormon" musical.