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The sci-fi action thriller A Sound of Thunder is based on the short story of the same name by noted science fiction author Ray Bradbury which was published in Colliers magazine in 1952. The story, which was one of the first pieces to consider ecological effects, has also appeared in 80 anthologies and was dramatized on the South African SF68 radio network, The Twilight Zone, and the Ray Bradbury Theatre TV series, and inspired six sequel novels by Stephen Leigh, published from 1992-1995: "Dinosaur World," "Dinosaur Planet," "Dinosaur Samurai," "Dinosaur Warriors," "Dinosaur Empire" and "Dinosaur Conquest." The story features a company, Time Safari Inc., operated by Charles Hatton (Ben Kingsley), which takes big game hunters back in time to hunt the "Tyrannosaurus rex. The Tyrant Lizard, the most incredible monster in history." Before they go, each hunter signs a release because "those dinosaurs are hungry." In order to prevent the course of time from being altered, scouts carefully select dinosaurs to be shot seconds before they are due to die from other causes. But one time while on their safari, one of the hunters, Eckels, wanders off the trail and steps on a butterfly. When the hunters return to the present day, they find that the world has been changed in unpleasant ways because of the effect of the butterfly's untimely demise compounded over millions of years. Bradbury's tale stops there, but in the movie Travis Ryer (Edward Burns), the lead dinosaur hunter, joins the time machine inventor (Catherine McCormack) in a frantic effort to stop the "time waves" that were caused by this event, which threaten to wipe out humanity. Also, in the film the butterfly is not stomped on, but is instead brought to the present day by "one of the self-indulgent billionaires" who was on the hunting expedition. While New York City turns into a thick jungle rife with dangerous predators, Travis and his associate try to track down the stolen butterfly and return it to the past.
Pierce Brosnan was initially attached to this project as lead dinosaur hunter Travis Ryer, but that part has since gone to Edward Burns (Saving Private Ryan). Renny Harlin (Driven, Die Hard 2, Deep Blue Sea) was originally asked to direct, but was reportedly fired after he stubbornly insisted on taking out the part about the butterfly, clearly the most crucial element of the plot (Oops!). Said Bradbury of Harlin's strange, new plans: "When I heard it, I whooped with laughter... I think that's hilarious, don't you? It's the center of the story. It's been published in 80 anthologies. It's in every school in the country. And if you took out the butterfly, you wouldn't have a film." Helming duties have since gone to Peter Hyams (2010, End of Days, The Musketeer, The Relic, Outland). Filming started on a budget of $70-80 million in Prague on July 15, 2002 before moving to Luxembourg, where principle photography wrapped by the end of September. The production companies are Crusader Entertainment and Franchise Pictures, while the distributor is Warner Bros.
The timeless, constant appeal of Ray Bradbury's literature has made him one of the classic writers of the 20th century. He has more than five hundred published works, including novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, television scripts, and even verse, with his best-known books being "The Martian Chronicles," "The Illustrated Man," "Fahrenheit 451" and "Something Wicked This Way Comes." Ray Douglas Bradbury, the third son of Leonard Spaulding Bradbury and Esther Marie Moberg Bradbury, was born in Waukegan, Illinois, on August 22, 1920. His middle name, Douglas, was in honor of the actor Douglas Fairbanks. Bradbury's early childhood home of Waukegan is often portrayed in his literature as Greentown, Illinois, a haven of safety. In 1934, his family moved to Los Angeles, and Bradbury spent his teenage years roller-skating through Hollywood and befriending talented and creative people such as special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen and radio star George Burns. Under the encouragement of two of his high school teachers, Snow Longley Housh and Jeannet Johnson, Bradbury opted for the life of a writer and his first published short story was "Hollerbochen's Dilemma," printed in 1938 in Imagination. He initially supported himself by selling newspapers, but became a full time writer in 1943 and married Marguerite "Maggie" McClure in 1947. In 1950, Bradbury secured his reputation as a leading science fiction writer with the publication of "The Martian Chronicles," which features efforts to colonize Mars and a massive nuclear war on Earth. Success continued in 1953, with the publication of "Fahrenheit 451," set in a future in which a totalitarian government has banned books. Bradbury's writings have won innumerable honors and awards, including the O. Henry Memorial Award, the Benjamin Franklin Award (1954), the Aviation-Space Writer's Association Award for Best Space Article in an American Magazine (1967), the World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the Grand Master Award from the Science Fiction Writers of America. His animated film about the history of flight, Icarus Montgolfier Wright, was nominated for an Academy Award, but his most unusual honor came from an Apollo astronaut who named Dandelion Crater after Bradbury's novel, "Dandelion Wine."
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