Danny Boyle’s Next Project

By our guest blogger, Spencer Morton

Is there a more dynamic filmmaker these days than Danny Boyle?

Boyle, who finally received mainstream recognition for 2008’s “Slumdog Millionaire,” has his next film planned. Variety reports that Boyle will direct “127 Hours,” the story of Arom Ralston, a mountain climber who gets pinned under a boulder and has to amputate his own arm to escape.

Originally, Boyle was rumored to take the helm for the next James Bond installment. Instead, he once again will take the low-budget, indie route. Ralston’s story is a miraculous one. In 2003, he was trapped for five days in a mountain range in Utah with sparing amounts of food and water. He took drastic measures to survive. No actors have been confirmed for the role, but Ryan Gosling is rumored.

An actor I’d like to see get the nod is Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He is 28-years-old, the same age as Ralston at the time of the accident. Gordon-Levitt has some great acting chops and this would be a good opportunity for him to put himself a step ahead of the rest of the “under-30” crowd of actors. Look at his work in “Brick” or “Stop-Loss.” The guy has talent.

Boyle will team with familiar faces including Simon Beaufoy, who penned “Slumdog”; Christian Colson, who produced “Slumdog”; and distribution will be handled by Fox Searchlight.

Boyle is a genre-hopping machine. It’s about time he gets the recognition he deserves. He directed “28 Days Later,” one of the best zombie/infection movies ever. 2007 gave us on of the slickest sci-fi films of late, “Sunshine.” Everyone knows what last year’s “Slumdog Millionaire” was able to achieve.

The man can tackle any genre, seamlessly. It will be intriguing to see what he does with this material. “127 Hours” will be “Cast Away”-esque in that one actor will dominate the screen mostly by himself. Early word is that the first hour of the film will contain absolutely no dialogue. Since Ralston was by himself the whole time, this would make sense. I’m not sure how marketable that idea is, but it will surely give Boyle and the yet-to-be-named actor a unique opportunity to showcase their talents.

The film is still in its early stages, but Boyle is hoping for a release date of late 2010. If he continues to produce the quality of work he’s been doing, Boyle could find himself back at the Academy Awards in 2011

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