It's not hyperbole when people call Jeff Smith's epic indie comic, Bone, the greatest small publisher series of all-time. Running for 13 years and 55 issues, Bone has the scope and fantasy elements of The Lord of the Rings, but with the humor and style of a traditional comic strip. It's an amazing piece of work, and Hollywood has been wanting to make a film out of it for years.
Back in 2008, Warner Brothers picked up the film rights, and ever since it's been pretty slow going. Now the ball is definitely rolling as P.J. Hogan(Confessions of a Shopaholic) has been brought in to direct. In addition, Patrick Sean Smith, creator of the awful ABC Family series, Greek, will move into the world of movies by banging out the script. Animal Logic, the company behind Happy Feet and Legend of the Guardians, is on board to produce. It's expected that filming will take place on their home turf in Australia.
The story follows the three Bone cousins: Phoney Bone, Smiley Bone, and Fone Bone. They're small, white, bald, and look like altered versions of Casper the Friendly Ghost. After being kicked out of Boneville, they arrive in a mysterious valley and are separated. Chased by strange rat monsters, they reunite and are taken in by a girl named Thorn, and discover that the people of the land are threatened by an evil being known as the Lord of the Locusts. The three take it upon themselves to save the world.
Hogan is a choice I never would have expected, but it's definitely an inspired one. He's shown a savvy hand at handling broad fantasy adaptations before with his great 2003 version of Peter Pan. It's still unclear just what form this film will take. Based on the simple, hand drawn look of the comics, it would look great either in a traditional animated style or in CGI. With Animal Logic producing, my hope is that they'll shoot for a format similar to that of the Happy Feet movies. [THR]
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