Wednesday was a great day for all you Kossacks who are also fans of the diminutive sleuth. Thanks to crowd funding through Kickstarter.com the feature movie will now be a reality. The project was initiated by Rob Thomas the producer of the series with the enthusiastic support of Kristen Bell who, for the edification of those not familiar with the edgy series, is the actor cast in the title role for its all-too-short run of 3 years. Thomas initially committed to producing the feature movie if the total on Kickstarter reached $2 million by the end of the 30 day pledge period. Turns out the goal was reached on the first day, Wednesday the 13th. As Friday morning 50,000 backers have committed just over $3,300,000. Of course the more money pledged the better the final product so any Veronica fans reading this should hasten over to Kickstarter to check it out.
This was supposed to be a last ditch effort to make the feature film a reality. Anyone following the saga knows that in spite of numerous attempts and in spite of a groundswell of fan support over the seven years since cancellation of the series, no projects have come to fruition, mainly because Warner Brothers hold the rights to the characters and have been been dragging their heels. They do not see it as a good commercial prospect. That has all changed and it looks like things will happen pretty quickly now with a summer 2013 shooting schedule and an early 2014 projected release date.
On a personal note I would like to recommend the series to anyone who prefers their dialogue crisp and intelligent and their heroines liberated and in-your-face. The series starts with Veronica showing up at her high school one morning to find Wallace, her future sidekick, naked and duct-taped to the flagpole. Since she had been herself badly victimized in the past by the brutalities of secondary school social interaction they become friends and partners in following her central philosophy of getting even rather than getting mad. In the process they find themselves taking on the academic administration, the school cliques, motorcycle gangs, society at large and especially local law enforcement personified by the bumbling sheriff who quickly mounts a vendetta against Veronica because her perspicacity is a constant embarrassment to his unfailing incompetence. The action is mostly upbeat and fun although the continuing thread holding the episodes of the first year together is her determination to solve the murder of her best friend, a character seen only in flashback and played by the actress Amanda Seyfried who is becoming a star in her own right. But it's mostly just a lot of fun to watch. It is a case of an actress (Kristen Bell) being cast in a perfectly conceived role she was born to play. This is truly a rare combination. It should also be noted that the casting of the supporting roles is almost universally inspired with an especially amazing chemistry emerging between Veronica and her Father (Enrico Colantoni) the former local Sheriff who is now himself a private investigator.
Anyone who is already a fan should seriously check out the Kickstarter.com campaign. They offer various rewards at different levels of support starting with a pdf of the shooting script and proceeding through a DVD or digital download of the final product. These are at the lower end of the support levels. At the highest level an actual speaking part in the production is offered. Keep in mind that the more money raised, the better the final product so, if you are like me, a die-hard fan, give some thought to becoming a backer. Many of the regulars, of course including Kristen B. herself have committed to the project so it should be a lot of fun.