Starring Samuel L. Jackson..

It seems there are three big stories that have everyone tweeting, lately: the Valentine’s Day tragedy of Oscar Pistorius, the Russian meteor, and the constantly developing story of Christopher Dorner. While I would like to talk about a story that puts all other bad Valentine’s Day stories to shame or a YouTube video that isn’t the (still confusing) “Harlem Shake,” I can’t seem to get away from Christopher Dorner.


I have a professor who talked about how people in Hollywood are jumping at the rights to produce a movie that covers this story. I laughed in my typical “good one, professor” tone but the more I think about it, the more I enjoy the idea of this movie. This could be the perfect “hero turned villain through an obsession over self-pride” story, which happens to be my favorite genre.

Hear me out.


The movie could start out with Dorner being represented as this respectable officer in the LAPD. Maybe he can bust a few high profile crimes to really win over our admiration, early on. However, because cops can get a sense of pride by power, corruption begins to make its way through the force. Dorner sees this and maybe even dips his hand in the sweet nectar of adrenaline, but he is immediately ridden with shame and regret. He tells his colleagues that he won’t turn them in, but he can’t justify doing that kind of thing any longer. They pretend to be cool with it, like any cool cop would. They can’t take it, though. Maybe they are offended that Dorner sees himself as better than them. It could just be that the walls of corruption are closing in on them and they need somebody to throw under the bus. They decide to work together and begin building a story against Dorner. Since he was involved at one point, they have evidence linked to them that could make his counter argument pointless. Then comes the dramatic trial scenes. There are headlines that read his name everywhere. Dorner tries to move on with his life, but he can’t. He is a man of pride. He can’t stand to carry such a shameful label throughout his life. His friends, family, and even loved ones leave him because of the negativity that surrounds him. He has to make a statement that can really get his message out to the world. He changes from a man of good conscience to a man of anger, with a desire for revenge. Through careful planning (with occasional scenes of him sitting at a desk writing something), he begins to take out the officers that put him in this place, he even takes out their loved ones in hopes of causing a larger impact. The headlines begin making their way around the nation, there is a huge build-up to the moment he is in the cabin and surrounded. The audience begins to hear a voice-over from Dorner himself. He is reading his manifesto that he wrote while he was planning out his rampage. The scene ends with shots of tear gas into the cabin and footage of the cabin engulfed in flames. The movie closes out with actual footage from the news conference and the final words uttered by the captain, “This is not a cause for celebration..”

I think we have a hit on our hands. However, there is controversy with adapting such a tragic story for Hollywood, and even more controversy in portraying his character as a hero, at points. What do you all think? Should Hollywood be allowed to cover a story with such tragic consequences? If so, how should they portray Dorner’s character? Do you have any changes that would put my brief plot to shame?