Universal is going to bring out a classic horror film, and they’re putting Ron Howard at the helm. The news, which comes from Total Film, leave a bit to the imagination. The story admittedly does as well. The film will be based on the same-titled “The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft” which is a comic mini-series penned by Mac Carter, who co-created the comic with Jeff Blitz. The comic is quite a complex examination of H.P. Lovecraft, his work and his life, and a somewhat unique blend where nightmare becomes reality, and reality becomes nightmares. Considering the subject matter that HP Lovecraft wrote about, that’s quite the nightmare to find oneself in.

I don’t feel exceptionally proud when I say that I don’t think I’ve read a Lovecraft novel or story, and that I am only aware of his amazing ability by reputation, rather than experience. The man was an out and out horror legend, just about every famous horror writer cites him as an influence. He’s only short of Edgar Allan Poe in terms of notoriety. Most notably, Bentley Little, Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman and Stephen King. Lovecraft, born in 1890, wrote a diversity of novels and short stories. His stories themselves were called, at that time, weird fiction. These days we talk about his work more in terms of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. The cosmic aspect and the interchange of nightmares and Wdreams and the nightmare of reality are juxtaposed flawlessly in his work. He is also the creator of such ideas as the Necronomicon, now often more of Evil Dead fame, and of the Cthulu Mythos. The outstanding point here, however, is that his work was amazing, terrifying, and quite capable of being considered macabre all at once. This is all synthesized into his life, family, a dealing with mental illness, and writer’s block.

The core substance of the comic, and thus presumably the film, is a bit harder to explain in great detail. The writer, Mac Carter, had this to say:

“[F]irst and foremost, the book is about a deeply complicated and conflicted man: a brilliant thinker, an innovative writer, a neurotic, an introvert, and a very, very lonely guy. Poor old Howard.  Seventy-odd years after his death, we’ve dragged him from the grave and plunked him down in the middle of a story that reads, on its surface, like a classic men’s adventure magazine.  Such an ignoble circumstance for such a cerebral fellow.  He certainly deserves a more highbrow setting than that.  Alas…. There.  He.  Is”

Cover artist Adam Byrne had a smilar story to tell:

“It’s really about taking H.P. Lovecraft, the writer and his troubled history, and asking the question: what if the inspiration for his unique fiction came from some irrational, unexplainable horror mixed up in his real life?  We’ve tried to take Lovecraft’s biography–he’s such a compelling character–and blend it with his bizarre mythology, which is vast and mind-bending.  You might think of the story like ‘Shakespeare in Love,’ but instead of Shakespeare it’s Lovecraft, and instead of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ it’s the cosmic horror of Cthulhu.”

For a greater summary of the comic (and the source of the abovementioned quotes) all you need to do is go to the Comic Book Resources. It sounds intrigueing to say the least. As for the film, it is understandable that Universal has picked this up, they own a fair few classic horror films and characters. The screenplay will be penned by Mac Carter as well, who will also serve as Executive Producer along with Jeff Blitz, who helped created the story. The film will be produced by Ron Howard, among several producers. With its emphasis on the return to classic horror more along the vein of Dracula and Frankenstein and less along the veins of Saw or Hostel, this could prove to be a thoroughly intrigueing and interesting project. With a bit of luck, more details will emerge soon.