Sylvestor Stallone Wants to Remake 40 Days of Musa Dagh

[phantom]

OH MY GOD! HAS ANYONE READ THIS INTERVIEW!

http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_4841925

If he makes this movie, I think we should erect a statue of Rocky Balboa in Yerevan next to the Genocide Monument!

[Khoren]

OH MY GOD! HAS ANYONE READ THIS INTERVIEW!

http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_4841925

If he makes this movie, I think we should erect a statue of Rocky Balboa in Yerevan next to the Genocide Monument!

Wow! I hope he does get the financing for that movie. That would be incredible. Thanks for the link phantom

[Joseph]

Rocky's Next Battle: Making "Musa Dagh"?

by Chris Zakian (special to the "Armenian Reporter")

PARAMUS, N.J.--With the theatrical release this week of "Rocky
Balboa," the sixth installment in the inspiring series about the
perpetual-underdog Philadelphia boxer, it was hardly surprising to see
filmmaker Sylvester Stallone spotlighted in newspapers across the
country.

What WAS surprising was an announcement elicited from Stallone by
"Denver Post" writer Michael Booth, regarding the star's dream
project.

Acknowledging that his action-hero days are likely behind him, the
60-year-old Stallone said that he would like to devote more of his
career to writing and directing: "less in the public eye, but
providing something for the public," is the way he put it.

Then Booth writes: "So what is the Stallone Surprise, the project he's
always wanted to write or direct?"

Here's the answer he got--which is certain to set Armenian hearts aflutter.

"For years Stallone's wanted to create an epic, and the book that
intrigues him is Franz Werfel's 'The Forty Days of Musa Dagh,'
detailing the Turkish genocide of its Armenian community in 1915.
(After futile attempts to turn the novel into a movie, filmmakers
finally succeeded in 1982, but it was a low-profile production.)

"French ships eventually rescued some Armenians, and Stallone has his
favorite scene memorized: 'The French ships come, and they've dropped
the ladders and everybody has climbed up the side. The ships sail. The
hero, the one who set up the rescue, has fallen asleep, exhausted,
behind a rock on the slope above. The camera pulls back, and the ships
and the sea are on one side, and there's one lonely figure at the top
of the mountain, and the Turks are coming up the mountain by the
thousands on the far side.'"

Fittingly for Rocky Balboa, the interview ends with a punch.

"The movie would be 'an epic about the complete destruction of a
civilization,' Stallone said. Then he laughed at the ambition. 'Talk
about a political hot potato. The Turks have been killing that subject
for 85 years.'"

It's a small irony, appreciated only by Armenians, that this news has
come to light in the same week that newspapers ran obituaries for
music impresario Ahmet Ertegun, whose father, Turkey's ambassador to
the U.S. in the 1930s, is credited with using his influence to have
the plug pulled on an earlier motion picture treatment of "Musa Dagh."

Of course, there's a long road separating a filmmaker's quip about a
dream project, on the one hand, from an actual theatrical release, on
the other. Who knows whether Stallone's ambition will ever see the
light of day?

But Armenians--like Rocky--are used to the underdog role. They suffer
setbacks, but always come back swinging. If not Stallone, then surely
someone else will fulfill the long-held Armenian dream of putting
"Musa Dagh" on film in the way it deserves.

Regrettably, there will be no "Hollywood ending" to lift our spirits
at the story's conclusion.

[Joseph]

This is funny. Something like this will probably give Stallone more of an incentive to produce this film.


Turkish Organizations to Send Protests to Sylvester Stallone


Turkish organizations are going to send protest letters to American movie actor Sylvester Stallone who intends to screen Franz Werfel’s ‘The 40 Days of Musa Dagh’. As Turkish Milliyet reports, Sava? E?ilmez, the chairman of the so-called ‘Association on struggle against Armenian Genocide ackowledgement’ stated that “movies are often used for propagandistic goals and this time the Armenians also are going to use such an opportunity. Austrian writer, a Jew by descent Franz Werfel has written this novel in 1933. It is full of lie since the author wrote it after talking to the Armenians with nationalistic and radical views,” E?ilmez claims. In his words, “it is necessary to take appropriate measures till the start of shoots, since after everything has already began it will be more difficult. “We have already sent appropriate documents about the events of those days to the producers of the film. Our compatriots will assist us to urge the producers not to shoot the film,” he underlined. It’s worth reminding that Sylvester Stallone declared about his intentions to shoot a film about heroic defense of Musa Dagh in 1915 in Ottoman Empire on the bases of ‘The 40 Days of Musa Dagh’ book. Alongside, he stated that Ankara near 85 years carries out a denial policy of the Armenian Genocide, reports the Armenian Public Television.

[Joseph]

Hilarity

Ermenilerin soykIrIm iddialarInI konu edinecek ''Musa DaGI'nda 40 gun'' filminde rol almak istediGini aCIklayan unlu ABD'li aktor Sylvester Stallone'yi bu fikrinden caydIrmak ve gerCekleri anlatmak iCin elektronik postalar gonderilmeye ba$landI.
AsIlsIz SoykIrIm iddialarIyla Mucadele DerneGi (ASiMED) Ba$kanI Yrd. DoC. Sava$ EGilmez,
Stallone'yi bu fikrinden caydIrmak iCin ''[email protected]' ' elektronik adresine tarihi gerCekleri anlatan ingilizce elektronik postalar gondermeye ba$ladIklarInI ifade etti.
Stallone'yi protesto etemk isteyenler iCin hazIr ingilizce metin veriyoruz. isteyen bu mesajI Stallone'nin adresine gonderebilir.
-----------------------------
"Mr. Sylvester Stallone.
We, Turkish people became very sad about your participation in this movie.
There is not* any statement about genocide of Armenians even in Wilson reports after the 1. World War. These statements of genocide are only using by Armenian lobby for their own benefit.
Please don't close your eyes to the true History and dont be an instrument of Armenian lobbies. We, Turkish people call you to think again and again about participating in this movie in spite of real facts."
-----------------
(SayIn Sylvester Stallone
Bu filmde rol alacaGInIzI soylemeniz biz Turkler'i Cok derinden uzdu.. Ülkenizin 1. Dunya Sava$I sonrasI yayInlanan Wilson raporlarInda bile Ermeni soykIrImI ifadesi geCmemi$tir. Tarihi gerCekler Ermeni lobileri tarafIndan kendi CIkarlarI uGruna kullanIlmaktadIr.
Luften doGru tarihe gozunuzu kapatmayIn ve Ermeni lobisine alet olmayIn. Sizi bu filmde rol alma kararInIzI bir kez daha du$unmeye CaGIrIyoruz )
Tayfun Cilingir

[Joseph]

TURKISH ORGANIZATIONS PROTEST AGAINST FILM STAR SYLVESTER STALLONE

Assyria Times, CA
Jan 11 2007

EasternStar News Agency

Turkish lobby groups protest against the American film star Sylvester
Stallone, who will take part in and produce a film based on Franz
Werfel's "The 40 days at Musa Dagh".

The Turkish lobby group "Association on struggle against Armenian
Genocide acknowledgement" with its leader Egilmez emphasizes that:

"Films are often used in propaganda and Armenians use this opportunity
for their propaganda. The Austrian-Jewish author Franz Werfel wrote
this novel in 1933. It is full of lies, since the author got his
information from nationalist and radical Armenians... We have already
sent necessary documents about the mentioned days to the producer of
the film. Our allies will urge and pursue the producer to not produce
this film".

Despite the threats and accusations against Sylvester Stallone, he
has emphasized that his intentions are to direct a film based on the
heroic defence of Musa Dagh in 1915. The film is based on the book
"The 40 days at Musa Dagh".

The producers were surprised by the strong reactions from Turkish
interests. They say that the film is based on a well documented true
event. Above all it is a pity about the Turkish people, that it isn't
able to elect a modern government that can stop 85 years of denial
of genocide.