Entertainment News
Entries from May 2010
The BBC recently broadcast a radio program called JFK: The First Pop President. It's part of the network's look at 60s culture and history. Robert Vaughn narrates the fascinating program which can be heard until May 31 by clicking here
Although audiences didn't flock to Peter Jackson's 2005 remake of King Kong in the numbers that Universal had hoped, it isn't stopping the studio from launching a major new attraction based on the film. Universal Studios has enlisted Jackson to promote the opening of the King Kong 360 3D ride which opens this summer. Click here to view video of Jackson discussing the new ride.
 The independent Western The Scarlet Worm is about to go into production, with 1960s leading man Brett Halsey returning to the screen in a lead role. Halsey was a popular presence in European films of the era. As with most grass-roots films, funding always poses a challenge and the producers have set up a site with details on the movie for anyone interesting in donating to the project. Click here for details.
The annual San Diego Comic-Con is at least as much about publicizing major motion pictures as it is about comic books. Consequently, it's become a Mecca for studios and fans alike as the madcap get-together becomes one of the most significant entertainment events of the year. Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, in conjunction with producer Joss Whedon and mega-fan Harry Knowles, will collaborate to make a new film chronicling the adventures of attendees to this year's convention. For more click here
A new documentary, Beautiful Darling, chronicles the life and challenges encountered by Candy Darling, who became a fixture on the 1960s social scene thanks to her status as a high profile transsexual who was one of Andy Warhol's entourage. Born James L. Slattery, Candy Darling died from cancer at age 30 in 1974. The new film sheds light on the controversies and personal anguish she endured, even as she basked in the media spotlight. Click here for more
The Huffington Post provides a slide show of the screen's hottest female action stars. There is only one nod to the past: the inclusion of Raquel Welch in One Million Years B.C. Although this can be attributed to the usual tendency of writers to ignore Hollywood's past, in reality the advent of female action stars has been a relatively recent phenomenon. To view click here
Work is proceeding on Fox's Planet of the Apes prequel, titled Rise of the Apes. James Franco is in negotiations to star. Empire magazine reports, "Rupert Wyatt is directing Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa’s current draft
of the script, which follows human scientists performing genetic
experiments on apes in modern-day San Francisco. Naturally, things go
badly wrong and aggressive, intelligent simians are the result, which
sparks a conflict between the two species. One that will eventually
drive Charlton Heston to exclaim, “You Maniacs! You blew it up! Ah, damn
you! God damn you all to hell!†Contrary to early reports, this isn't a remake of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, but a whole new story that leads up to the simian take-over of earth. For more click here
Bray Studios, where so many of the classic British Hammer horror films were shot, is in disrepair and in danger of being demolished. A grass roots effort is underway to rally support to preserve the key buildings. Cinebeats provides an excellent report. Click here to read
America has outsourced just about everything else, so it shouldn't be a surprise that legendary superheroes would follow suit. Marvel is about to begin production on their first movie about Captain America, but plans to film it in the USA have fallen through. The movie will be shot in England instead. Marvel is actually getting a bit of a bad wrap on this, however. The studio has delivered on its promise to shoot several other movies state side. However, as most of the Captain America flick takes place in and around London, it was deemed financially unfeasible to shoot part of the movie on location and part of it in the USA. For more click here
Woody Allen, the man who married the adopted daughter of his lover, may not be the best character witness you could call upon if you were defending yourself in a sex scandal. Nevertheless, Roman Polanski has an ally in Allen, who says that prosecutors should dismiss the sex-with-a-minor charges that have plagued Polanski since 1977. "He's an artist, he's a nice person, he did something wrong and he paid
for it. They [his critics] are not happy unless he pays the rest of his
life. They would be happy if they could execute him in a firing squad,"
Allen added. “Enough is enough.†For more click here
By Lee Pfeiffer
Director Robert Rodriguez' forthcoming film Machete is causing considerable controversy. The film concerns an illegal alien from Mexico who is recruited to assassinate a U.S. senator (Robert DeNiro) who is a leading advocate for cracking down on immigration violations. The timing of the film is especially incendiary, with Arizona the focal point of controversy regarding recent laws that are designed to stem the flood of illegals into the state. Advocates for the aliens say the laws will allow police to unjustly stop anyone of Hispanic descent and harass them by demanding to show proof of legal residency. The laws have prompted costly boycotts of Arizona by those sympathetic with the plight of the illegal aliens. Those who advocate the new laws point out that Arizona is a magnet for a tidal wave of illegal immigrants, some of whom are members of violent drug cartels that have brought Mexico's on-going drug war into the state and that both the Bush and Obama administrations have failed to adequately protect the border. As the real-life controversy plays out, the "reel-life" controversy is also heating up with some critics saying that Rodriguez' film is a dangerous plea for illegal aliens to take up violence as a method of protest, especially since one of the film's tag lines is "They Just F--ed With the Wrong Mexican". Others say that the film is simply a thriller in the style of old grind house action movies. For more click here
Film critic Roger Friedman says Oliver Stone's Wall Street:Money Never Sleeps is great entertainment. The movie premiered at Cannes, but won't go into general release until the fall. Friedman says Michael Douglas is terrific, reprising his role as disgraced finance executive Gordon Gekko - who finds that his rip-offs of hapless investors pale in the era of Bernie Madoff. Friedman also predicts that, among the outstanding cast members, Frank Langella will nab an Oscar nomination. Click here to read
It might come as a shock to most people that Little Orphan Annie is still a contemporary comic strip character, as the cartoon is now featured in only 20 newspapers across the United States. Now even those publications loyal to the iconic heroine will not be able to showcase her adventures, as the strip is coming to an end this summer. There will be a "Tomorrow" for Annie, however, as the rights holders plan to introduce her to younger audiences through new media. The strip had run for 85 years and spawned the smash hit play Annie. For more click here
As the proceedings drag on to see whether prosecutors can successfully extradite Roman Polanski from Switzerland to face justice in the USA for sexually abusing a minor in 1977, another actress has come forward to say she was a victim of Polanski, as well. Charlotte Lewis, now 42, made her screen debut in Polanski's Pirates in 1986. She says that when she was 16, Polanski forced himself upon her sexually when she visited his Paris apartment. Lewis wasn't a minor at the time because the age of consent in France was 15, but she said she is haunted by the memory of the incident. She says she is coming forward to prove that Polanski's 1977 scandal was not an instance of isolated behavior. For more click here
In Cannes to preview his new dark comedy You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, Woody Allen spoke to Sharon Waxman of The Wrap web site and confirmed what his fans had hoped: "I'm a very grim and pessimistic person." Allen laments growing older, which has precluded him from playing romantic leads in his own movies. For more click here
For decades, Superman creators Joe Siegel and Jerry Shuster received virtually nothing for the financial boom their legendary hero brought to D.C. Comics and film and TV studios that capitalized on the Superman phenomenon. In the autumn of their years, the ailing collaborators were finally given a financial stake in their creation. However, it wasn't until recent years that their heirs were awarded ownership of the full copyright to the Superman character. Those rights revert entirely to the estates of Siegel and Shuster in 2013 - and Warner Brothers is not happy about losing control over future Superman film projects. This has resulted in the studio's high profile attempt to get the family's lawyer, who has won significant rights for the heirs, tossed off the case. At stake is nothing less than the future of Superman as a screen hero. For full details click here
The family that has owned the Iowa site where Kevin Costner's classic 1989 baseball film Field of Dreams is putting the property up for sale. The site has become a major attraction for baseball and movie fans since the film's release. For more click here
Iron Man 2 handily out-grossed Robin Hood at the weekend North American box-office. Although Iron Man 2 was in its second week, it had a weekend gross of $53 million compared to Robin Hood's opening weekend gross of $37 million. Both movies were critically lambasted,but audiences seem to be motivated by a desire for big budget action films. Iron Man 2 has already grossed over $200 million. Ridley Scott's Robin Hood was derided by critics for bearing little resemblance to the legendary hero generations have grown up with. The film also had a massive budget that will impede the studio from recouping its investment. Still, the movie is expected to be a money maker in the long term, as star Russell Crowe has a wide international following. In fact, while the movie opened somewhat soft in North America, its international grosses exceeded expectations. For more click here
James Cameron knows a thing or two about 3-D film technology - and he says we are well on the path to a revolution in the industry that rivals the introduction of sound and color to motion pictures. Cameron predicts that within 25 years, 2-D technology will be all but dead. Click here to read
Jerry Bruckheimer has signed Johnny Depp to star as Tonto in The Lone Ranger. Screenwriter Justin Haythe, who penned the script for Revolutionary Road, is also on the project. No date has been set for filming. The project would seem to be a risky one, despite Depp's fanatical fan base. The Lone Ranger is probably the most dated Western concept imaginable and the effort to revive the hero in the 1970s with The Legend of the Lone Ranger became a notorious box-office flop. For more click here
We recently reported on the astonishing debt woes of Kate Jackson and Nicholas Cage. If misery loves company, they can take solace that a wealth (pardon the pun) of other mainstream and D- list celebrities also have enormous finance problems. From Sinbad to Pamela Anderson, they have all blown through fortunes, with some seeking refuge in bankruptcy. For more click here
He's at it again. Perpetual bad boy Russell Crowe added another notch to his tally of abused interviewers when he walked out of a BBC interview in Cannes relating to his new film, Robin Hood. Crowe generally rails against intrusive paparazzi but in this case, the questions were seemingly innocent. The interviewer asked if he detected a hint of an Irish accent in Crowe's portrayal of the legendary hero. This innocuous inquiry offended Crowe, as did a follow-up question about a line of dialogue he memorably spoke in Gladiator. Crowe got up and abruptly left - though the interviewer didn't have a telephone flung at him, as did a hapless New York hotel clerk who incurred Crowe's wrath some years ago. Crowe is not only one of the best actors on screen today, but he's virtually alone in recalling the kind of macho leading men that once prevailed in the film industry. He's worth mega millions, has received international awards and has enjoyed the professional respect of his colleagues. Exactly what he is constantly mad about remains to be seen.
Author and Cinema Retro columnist Raymond Benson and his fellow critic Dann Gire have debuted a monthly movie debate column in the Daily Herald newspaper web site for suburban Chicago. The first topic is the James Bond franchise. Click here to read.
By Lee Pfeiffer
Add former Charlie's Angels star Kate Jackson to the ever-growing list of celebrities who have spent above their means, then sued a financial adviser for their woes. Jackson claims that her adviser, Richard B. Francis, persuaded her that she was worth far more than she actually was. She says Francis convinced her to buy a house she couldn't afford with the guarantee that the property could never go down in value - despite the fact that Jackson concedes she was aware she didn't have the resources to afford the home. She is now suing Francis for millions, claiming he is responsible for her financial woes. Jackson also claims that Francis convinced her she was worth far more than her actual net worth and could live off the interest alone. Apparently, she is not suing him for convincing her there is also a pot of gold in her name at the end of a rainbow. We don't know who is the guilty party in this case, but there is no doubt that many celebrities have indeed been misled by their financial advisers. Nicholas Cage is the most high-profile celeb to make this claim in recent years, even as he continues to sell off over-valued assets. Still, celebrities have got to take some responsibility for their own finances. How about asking to see some bank statements once in a while? For more click here
Director Robert Zemeckis has been finalizing casting for his 3-D remake of The Beatles' 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine. Zemeckis will employ his now customary performance-capture technology that he has used on previous films. Original Beatles songs will be heard on the soundtrack, as Zemeckis has licensed the official rights from Sony. For more click here
MGM continues to struggle to find a buyer for the cash-strapped studio. Time Warner appears to be the last company left with any serious intentions of possibly acquiring the company - however, its initial bids were about $500 million less than MGM's minimum requirements. For more click here
In an illuminating interview for The New York Times, director Ridley Scott discusses his motivation for bringing Robin Hood back to the screen and how his version gives insights into the origins of the legendary hero. Click here to read
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!
After an absence from the screen for eight years, Columbia Pictures is reviving the Men in Black franchise with the creatively-titled Men in Black III. The inspiration for the decision is to capitalize on the enthusiasm for 3-D technology. Will Smith has been signed and Tommy Lee Jones is expected to come on board as well. For more click here
In a shocking new book, Elvis Presley's personal physician Dr. George Nichopoulos claims that the King did not die of a drug overdose, but probably passed away from problems relating to chronic constipation. While Nichopoulos provides cringe-inducing revelations about his "friend's" bowel problems, his insights might be viewed with skepticism, as it was he who took the brunt of criticism for allegedly prescribing an abundance of drugs to Presley. For more click here
Fox has confirmed rumors that the studio plans to relaunch the legendary Planet of the Apes series with an all-new origins story set in contemporary San Francisco. Temporary title is Rise of the Apes but other details are scarce, indicating the project is still in its early stages. For more click here
The Huffington Post has assembled a slide show based on the worst movies adapted from ridiculous inspirations...If you think it's absurd that the board games Monopoly and Battleship are coming to the screen, consider that a movie based on the old Viewmaster toy is also in the works. It won't be long before we are expected to see Grudge Match: Viagra vs. Cialis. Click here to read
Fox is moving forward with production on Caesar, a reworking of Conquest of the Planet of the Apes that tells how the simians took over human society. Filming is scheduled to begin in Canada in July. For more click here
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