Sergeant 'betrayed' over movie exploits
Source: Agencies |
March 5, 2010, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A UNITED States Army sergeant who is suing the makers of Oscar-nominated film "The Hurt Locker" says that he felt betrayed because they stole his story.
Master Sergeant Jeffrey S. Sarver, 38, has filed a lawsuit claiming that the film makers turned an account of his tense experiences defusing bombs in Iraq into the highly regarded action-thriller without his consent.
Wearing blue jeans and a blue pullover sweatshirt with wrap-around sunglasses, Sarver told a news conference he would have been happy to serve as a consultant to scriptwriter Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow but was never asked.
"I felt a little bit left out," Sarver said. "I didn't know my rights."
Just after Sarver filed his suit, the film's distributor, Summit Entertainment, issued a statement reiterating the movie's claim that it is a "fictional account" about soldiers in the battlefield.
Sarver was the subject of a 2005 article in Playboy magazine under the title "The Man in the Bomb Suit."
The article was written by Boal, screenwriter for "The Hurt Locker," based on his observations as an embedded reporter with Sarver's bomb-defusing squad in Iraq in 2004.
Sarver's lawyer, Geoffrey Fieger, said the main character in the film, Will James, was clearly a representation of his client, down to his personal call signal "Blaster One."
"If anyone tells you that Sergeant Sarver isn't Will James, that's a laughable statement," said Fieger.
"The Hurt Locker" has been nominated for nine Oscars. It got high marks from critics and has been considered a front-runner for best film when the Academy Awards are given out on Sunday.
Fieger declined to say how much Sarver is seeking. He said Summit Entertainment, US distributor for "The Hurt Locker" and the film's producers could have avoided the lawsuit if they had attributed the story to Sarver's exploits in Iraq.
"It's common practice," said Fieger. "Now, having been caught, we see the type of things that these movie producers are willing to do to get out of having to pay for their mistakes."
E-mail denial
"The Hurt Locker," released last June, has grossed about US$19 million worldwide and had a production budget of about US$15 million.
Fieger said he had been in contact for months with Summit Entertainment and producer Nicholas Chartier.
He gave reporters what he said was a copy of an e-mail from Chartier from late December saying he had never heard of Sarver.
"Everyone says it's one of the best movies of the year, did he just not like the popcorn when he watched the movie?" Chartier wrote. "I haven't taken any grossly unfair action against him. I've never heard of him. ... Did I steal his girlfriend? Never heard of him."
Other e-mails this week caused trouble for Chartier, who has been banned from attending the awards ceremony after asking Oscar voters for their support.
Master Sergeant Jeffrey S. Sarver, 38, has filed a lawsuit claiming that the film makers turned an account of his tense experiences defusing bombs in Iraq into the highly regarded action-thriller without his consent.
Wearing blue jeans and a blue pullover sweatshirt with wrap-around sunglasses, Sarver told a news conference he would have been happy to serve as a consultant to scriptwriter Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow but was never asked.
"I felt a little bit left out," Sarver said. "I didn't know my rights."
Just after Sarver filed his suit, the film's distributor, Summit Entertainment, issued a statement reiterating the movie's claim that it is a "fictional account" about soldiers in the battlefield.
Sarver was the subject of a 2005 article in Playboy magazine under the title "The Man in the Bomb Suit."
The article was written by Boal, screenwriter for "The Hurt Locker," based on his observations as an embedded reporter with Sarver's bomb-defusing squad in Iraq in 2004.
Sarver's lawyer, Geoffrey Fieger, said the main character in the film, Will James, was clearly a representation of his client, down to his personal call signal "Blaster One."
"If anyone tells you that Sergeant Sarver isn't Will James, that's a laughable statement," said Fieger.
"The Hurt Locker" has been nominated for nine Oscars. It got high marks from critics and has been considered a front-runner for best film when the Academy Awards are given out on Sunday.
Fieger declined to say how much Sarver is seeking. He said Summit Entertainment, US distributor for "The Hurt Locker" and the film's producers could have avoided the lawsuit if they had attributed the story to Sarver's exploits in Iraq.
"It's common practice," said Fieger. "Now, having been caught, we see the type of things that these movie producers are willing to do to get out of having to pay for their mistakes."
E-mail denial
"The Hurt Locker," released last June, has grossed about US$19 million worldwide and had a production budget of about US$15 million.
Fieger said he had been in contact for months with Summit Entertainment and producer Nicholas Chartier.
He gave reporters what he said was a copy of an e-mail from Chartier from late December saying he had never heard of Sarver.
"Everyone says it's one of the best movies of the year, did he just not like the popcorn when he watched the movie?" Chartier wrote. "I haven't taken any grossly unfair action against him. I've never heard of him. ... Did I steal his girlfriend? Never heard of him."
Other e-mails this week caused trouble for Chartier, who has been banned from attending the awards ceremony after asking Oscar voters for their support.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
