Highland Park native Brian Levant has never been a critics’ darling. The director of “Beethoven,” the “Flintstones” films and “Snow Dogs,” among others, gets it. When it is mentioned that “Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins,” his live-action franchise reboot that set a ratings record on Cartoon Network, received some of the best reviews of his career, he joked, “That wouldn’t be hard.”
Levant, 57, can afford to laugh off critical snipes and Razzie nominations. His films have grossed more than $453 million domestically, according to the Box Office Mojo Web site. He makes no apologies for his snark-free, slapstick-packed family comedies. “I’m making movies for the audience that I was when I was sitting home watching Garfield Goose and the Three Stooges on WGN,” he said in a phone interview. His latest, “The Spy Next Door,” starring Jackie Chan as a CIA superspy-turned-baby-sitter, opens Friday.
Q. You joke about critics, but do you read reviews?
A. To read those reviews is an act of self-flagellation (laughs). But reviews be damned when you’re at Blockbuster and you’re seeing family after family grab one of your movies off the shelf on a Friday night. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen that.
Q. What was it like to direct Jackie Chan?
A. We had a wonderful collaborative relationship. There’s a scene where he beats up a bunch of guys using a bicycle. I came up with the (scenario). Then we went in on a Saturday to brainstorm and choreograph everything. He is the most humble and generous man I have ever met. I can’t say enough about him. It was a thrill for me.
Q. Did he teach you any martial arts moves?
A. No. Once in a while, if I got too close, he’d say back up, so I wouldn’t get hurt. But I taught him to play volleyball.
Q. You successfully re-launched “Leave it to Beaver” (with the award-winning cable series “Still the Beaver”) and now “Scooby-Doo.” What is the secret to a successful reboot?
A. It’s rooted in affection for the characters and reinforcing the bond audiences feel with them. They came to me when they did the “Scooby-Doo” feature films. The script was very cynical, and the characters didn’t get along. I said I didn’t know if that’s what people really want to see.
Q. Do you have any desire to do a serious drama?
A. It’s not like I haven’t had those opportunities. I haven’t related to them. I was involved with (the feature film) “Friday Night Lights.” I spent a lot of time in Odessa, Texas, with Buzz Bissinger, who wrote the book, and met all those people. I wrote a script, but it was very difficult. It basically told me who I wasn’t.
Q. Your movies are very optimistic and upbeat.
A. Yes, that’s very true. I make my films for everybody. When I became a parent, I found there was no greater enjoyment than to see my kids lose themselves in a movie. That is the feeling I’ve been trying to create ever since I got into the business. Most of my work has been about forming new families or rebuilding existing ones.
I guess I had a very happy childhood in Highland Park, and I’ve tried to make the rest of the world pay for it (laughs).
