Keanu Reeves on live-action ‘Cowboy Bebop’

In talking to MTV, actor Keanu Reeves has confirmed his involvement in the development of a live-action feature film based on director Shinichiro Watanabe’s hit anime TV series, COWBOY BEBOP. The MATRIX star presumably would portray series hero Spike Spiegel, a laid back bounty hunter who is expert in Jeet Kune Do and operates out of a spaceship with four unusual companions 62 years in the future.

Erwin Stoff, who has worked with Reeves since BILL & TED’S BOGUS JOURNEY in 1991 is assembling the project. One of their challenges is adapting a non-linear and episodic series into a two-hour movie.

“We’re trying to figure out what pieces to put together to tell one story,” Reeves explained. “Because it’s such a short form, to make a 2 hour version [will be tough]. And it’s got so much of an origin-story obligation; you’ve got to get people up to speed, but you don’t want to do much of that. There are a lot of things to take into consideration, but we think we can do something good.”

COWBOY BEBOP is a fantastic anime series that masterfully juggles action, humor and familiar genre conventions as diverse as film noir and Westerns, often set to modern jazz. Like a lot of quality anime it also contains a darker underbelly that is more complex and cerebral than it appears initially on the surface.

One aspect that may interest martial arts movie fans unfamiliar with the series is Spike’s frequent use of martial arts. He is constantly seen practicing forms or katas while traveling through space and often puts his expertise to use in rounding up criminals. It could also be argued that underneath the cool demeanor and frazzled hair, Spike exhibits a moral and martial code of conduct not unlike Bushido.

I would like to see Reeves doing fight work again. He put a tremendous amount of effort into his screen fighting performances in the MATRIX trilogy. Anyone who gets a chance to work under Yuen Woo-ping as extensively as Reeves ought to build on that foundation while they still can, rather than discard it. Shortly after completing the MATRIX films, there was talk of Reeves taking on a remake of BILLY JACK but nothing came of that.

On one point I agree strongly with Reeves. He emphasizes the need for a good production designer in order to translate the unique look of the series to the big screen. With the right production designer, this film could at least be a visual feast. Part of the series’ charm is its phenomenal production design. To get it right, we would have to see a cross between THE PHANTOM MENACE, SERENITY, SIN CITY, and BLADE RUNNER just to name a few. There’s also a dry British level of humor, almost as absurd as something like RED DWARF or THE HITCHERHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY that would need to find its way into the design and tone of the film.

Thanks to HyperDrive, a sharp-eyed forum member who spotted this news for us.

Source: MTV (by way of FirstShowing.net)

Discuss this topic in the comments section below or in our related forum thread.

Tags: anime, Keanu Reeves, upcoming