Joe Dante: An artist entrapped in Hollywood’s shadow
If you were to ask, “Who are the most famous icons of cinema that came from the teachings of legendary ‘B’ movie producer Roger Corman?” You might get answers such as Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, or James Cameron, but one you’ll hear less is that of Joe Dante. Dante is a filmmaker whose story echoes that of many of his peers, beginning with promise and a few hits under their belts, but ultimately getting spat out by the system.
One of Dante’s earlier films under Roger Corman—a Jaws rip-off titled Piranha (1978)—got the attention of Steven Spielberg, leading to Dante directing Chris Columbus’s script: Gremlins (1984). Following this film’s monumental success, the man eagerly accepted the offer to direct a sci-fi film about an adventurous group of media-obsessed teens discovering alien technology and attempting to find alien life: Explorers (1985). Initially, this film’s production went smoothly, but disaster struck when the third act was nearly finalized. At Paramount Pictures—the film’s studio—there was an unforeseen power shift, and the newly instituted heads of the company instructed Dante and his crew to stop shooting entirely. This act forced an unfinished film to go to theaters.
Explorers (1985) evaluates the role pop culture has in our lives, telling a story of aliens and humans who are all equally obsessed with pop culture, expressed through a series of mundane scenes where our protagonists talk with aliens, watch some TV, and then go home. This leads to a somewhat unsatisfying climax to a film that tries to tackle escapism from one’s mundane reality. While that may have been the film’s point: to explain that the “big moments” in our lives are never as big as they seem—the studios’ meddling with the project put unnecessary constraints on Dante to complete the film he truly wanted to make; a prelude to what was to come.
Following this film, Dante found himself in a position of power he had never anticipated. The studio behind Gremlins (1984), Warner Brothers, came to Dante pleading to get a sequel off the ground—having tried and failed for years—offering $50 million and complete creative control over the film in exchange for a summer 1990 box office hit. The result is a beautiful, unrestrained representation of Joe Dante at his peak: Gremlins 2 (1990).
Gremlins 2 (1990) goes against everything established in Hollywood studios since the early 1980s. It is a sequel to a mega-hit driven by one man’s sheer commitment ‘to the bit’ while serving as a pungent socio-political satire of consumer culture. Dante throws everything he can into this film, being allowed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that filmmakers of his caliber rarely get, and exploits it.
This film included gems such as Hulk Hogan, a massive chorus line of Gremlins singing, mutated Gremlins with freakish abilities—like growing vegetables on their skin, giant spider legs, bat wings, and becoming a living bolt of lightning—and a cameo from film critic Leonard Maltin (who publicly wrote about not liking Gremlins (1984)) getting mauled by Gremlins. This film is the only thing you need to watch to understand Joe Dante’s aesthetic: it’s wild, goofy, zany, and a little bit scary, but a fun watch.
Does it matter that the film didn’t do as well as the first at the box office? No. Though it may sound conceited, Gremlins 2 (1990) is a valuable piece of art that can’t be quantified through monetary calculations. Some have even said it is the closest thing to a perfect live-action Looney Tunes franchise movie that could ever be made; this exact comparison would lead to Dante’s low point.
After a fairly mundane decade in the 1990s, directing films such as Matinee (1993) and Small Soldiers (1998), Joe Dante found himself with a newfound purpose coinciding with the century. One of the films that Dante had vehemently despised was Space Jam (1996), which he believed went against everything legendary Looney Tunes animators like Chuck Jones and Friz Freleng had established about their beloved characters. So when Dante was hired to direct a follow-up to Space Jam, he tried his best to live up to the examples his heroes had set for him. The result was Looney Tunes: Back In Action (2003)—a film with clear directorial restraints.
In the wake of Space Jam (1996), Warner Brothers could not agree on the future of additional Looney Tunes movies, leading to a film that no one was happy with and no one except Joe Dante wanted to make. Not only that, but the production suffered from major studio interference, forcing the animated characters—who are the film’s namesake—to play second banana to the top-billed celebrity leads. Celebrities, however, aren’t nearly as interesting to watch as animated characters.
The result, Looney Tunes: Back In Action (2003) was a box-office bomb, which Joe Dante received the blame for, causing the man to be relegated and never to direct a major studio motion picture again; only independent horror films, TV episodes, and short films for amusement parks.
Joe Dante, a director who has shown massive promise in his craft, implementing a distinct vision in all of his works, has not been able to direct anything for nearly eight years. His story is sadly that of many filmmakers in the current era of studio filmmaking: One of promise or glimmer of glory, and then setback after setback.
Dante has been developing one project since 2011—titled “The Man With Kaleidoscope Eyes,” a psychedelic biopic tribute to his mentor, Roger Corman, set in the late 1960s. Until any studio decides to give him another chance, his passion project will never see the light of day, and Dante, with all of his true potential, will never be fulfilled as he so deserves.
Thumbnail photo of Joe Dante courtesy of Wikimedia Commons