Ridley Scott And Cormac McCarthy

Its Alien Day in El Paso, TX and the rest of the world so lets celebrate that big ole nerd, director of the Alien franchise and MANY other films, Ridley Scott!!

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - OCTOBER 03: Ridley Scott attends a special screening of "The Counselor" at Odeon West End on October 3, 2013 in London, England. (Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)

"The Counselor" - Special Screening - Red Carpet Arrivals

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Well kind of. I love the Alien movies but one of the facts about Ridley Scott that I forget, OFTEN, is that he had the opportunity to direct a movie written by one of the most prolific and widely respected authors in American history!!

Yeah, Cormac McCarthy, the guy who wrote books like The Road, No Country for Old Men, and Blood Meridian actually wrote 3 movies in his lifetime too!

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 01: Writer Cormac McCarthy attends the HBO Films & The Cinema Society screening of "Sunset Limited" at Porter House on February 1, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)

attachment-HBO Films & The Cinema Society Host A Screening Of "Sunset Limited" - After Party

Cormac wrote the screenplays for a 1977 TV movie called The Gardeners Son, an HBO movie from 2011 called The Sunset Limited, and Ridley Scotts 2013 film entitled The Counselor. Unfortunately, despite McCarthy's critical acclaim in the literary world, his track record for screenplays is a little rough.

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THE GARDENER'S SON

His first film, The Gardener's Son, was very split when it came out. People were on both sides, some arguing it was too long and filled with too much obscene language. One reviewer even called for the movie to be banned because it had too many curse words for the time. Some reviewers praised it and loved its thick historical references. Ultimately, it didnt do much to stick in the minds of viewers and really hasnt garnered much attention since its TV release.

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THE SUNSET LIMITED

The Sunset Limited actually did fairly well! The writing was praised as well as the performances by the two main actors, Samuel L. Jackson and Tommy Lee Jones. The script was hefty and filled with lots of philosophy about life and death however, so it didnt do as well with mainstream audiences.

THE COUNSELOR

Then we arrive at what is probably considered a flop. The Counselor, Ridley Scotts crime thriller that really didnt thrill many people. It actually wound up boring quite a few folks and was considered more of a drama than a crime thriller. Cormacs writing was called out for being clunky and wordy, and aside from performances from some incredible actors like Michael Fassbender and Benicio Del Toro, the movie really didnt garner much attention past the big names connected to it.

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Interestingly enough, some of The Counselor actually takes place here in El Paso! Which makes sense, because Cormac McCarthy is from Texas and has included El Paso in many of his other works too! Honestly, Id recommend McCarthys books over his movies but thats just my preference!

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40 Movies Turning 40 in 2024

There were ghosts, nerds, karate and a whole lot of dancing (especially breakdancing). The list of movies released in 1984 is dotted with classics that have been remade many times over. Some of the franchises that started that year are still going today. Here is a look at 40 movies that will turn 40 years old in 2024.

Gallery Credit: Rob Carroll