
Infinity Media, the production company behind some
movie
about
Truman
Capote, have lined up their next project, which is also based on a real-life figure. Entitled
Mike the Bike
(not to be confused with Eddie the Eagle), the movie is about a British motorcycle deity named
Mike Hailwood, who "won the World Championship 10 times in
the 1960s and '70s" and even drove some Formula 1 before a crippling accident forced him into retirement. During
his career, he earned England's highest medal for civilian bravery when he rescued a fellow driver from "a fiery
crash." (Just an aside here: Europe loves them some motor sports, particularly motorcycle racing and Formula 1. I
think we're missing something.) Writer
Paul
Pender, who just recently acquired Hailwood's life rights from his widow, was responsible for bringing the project
to Infinity.
Though it's too early to even guess how successful they will be, Infinity should be applauded
for their stated goal of finding intelligent projects with "broad international appeal." It's very easy to
make crap with big stars that you know will sell overseas because of the names involved, but there's something of an
art to choose films of quality that will actually interest people on both sides of the Atlantic. Of course, when Mike
the Bike bombs over here, Infinity's best intentions might quickly go by the wayside in favor of
Bruce
Willis action flicks.