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| BOB THOMPSON
As many of you know, science-fiction lost a dedicated fan. Club member Bob Thompson passed away after our April meeting. Bob was a dedicated fan of our favorite movies. I often saw him at conventions, his wheel chair parked near the stage, long before he became a member of the Imaginative Cinema Society. If there is a convention of great writers, directors, and personalities associated with science-fiction books, film and television in the next world, I'm sure Bob is there now, getting an autograph or asking a question. The Board of the Imaginative Cinema Society join our entire club in expressing our condloences to Bob's family. Condolences also go to Barry Walker, who was a true friend to Bob for several years. |
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| THE APRIL MEETING WAS SENSATIONAL
It's tough to find a better adjective for our April meeting other than "sensational." Mitch Klein gave us an amazing power-point presentation (complete with a voluminous hand-out) on CGI ("Computer Generated Imagery"). He guided all of us neophytes through the complex world of rotoscoping, compositing and matte painting. Thanks Mitch. You obviously spent a lot of time in preparation. It showed! Unfortunately Barry Murphy was called away at the last minute for a family emergency. He left behind a dynamite buffet of films to pick through. We watched chapter two of THE CRIMSON GHOST and IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE. We followed up with a lively business meeting. It was, well, sensational! |
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| NEWS OF OUR NEXT MEETING
Our May meeting will be held on Saturday May 19th at 6:00 P.M. at the church hall behind the Perry Hall Presbyterian Church located at 8848 BelAir Road. Take Baltimore Beltway exit 32 north on Belair Road. Turn left onto Joppa Road. Immediately past the miniature golf course turn left into the parking lot. If you miss it there are ample turn-around opportunities. If you get stuck call 410-598-8005. That's Dave Henderson's cell phone. He'll talk you in. |
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| MAY IS LITERARY MONTH
May is the month for the literary luminaries in our club to glow! You'll have your chance to share your genius with your fellow club members. This is not the time to pick a piece apart and talk about what's wrong with it and how it can be improved. This is meant as a light-hearted jaunt through the intersection of movies and words. Bring in fiction and poetry (preferably movie-related) and dazzle us with your brilliance. If there are several people who'd like to share their work with us (or if the pieces run long) we'll carry this over to our June meeting. If you're stuck for ideas, try any of these on for size: Have a Dracula convention where all the Count's many incarnations (Max Shrek, Bela Lugosi, Christopher Lee, etc.) gather. Write a BATTLESTAR GALACTICA story where we discover the King of the Cylons is Marvin, the depressed robot from HITCHHIKKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY. Write about the Invisible Man's escapades cavorting around a mall when his invisibility wears out and he finds himself a plainly visible naked, pudgy middle-aged man trying to figure out what to do next. Let your muse run wild! It should be a blast |
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| CHARLIE WITTIG'S MAY MOVIE MADNESS
Charlie Wittig is bringing in movies for May. We don't have titles yet but Charlie always pulls some excellent selections from his extensive film holdings. It should be fun. |
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| IN THE MONTHS AHEAD
We have some special things planned for the months ahead. Below is a peek (but remember these are early plans and subject to change). JULY: We'll have our table at SHORE LEAVE 23 on the 13-15 of July (more about that below). At our meeting on July 28 we'll have pizza night. It'll be all the slices you can gag down. SEPTEMBER: At our meeting on September 29 we'll try for round 2 of "ICS Academic." That's the game show that we did in March. We hope to have all of the kinks and bugs worked out by then. OCTOBER: We'll have our third annual Halloween blow-out at our October 27 meeting. We're still formulating ideas for that but I'm sure it'll be fun. We're also starting work on our calendar for 2002. We should have them available in the early fall. We're going with a Universal monsters theme this year. |
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| SHORE LEAVE IS COMING: WE NEED STUFF TO SELL!
We have two meetings before our table at SHORE LEAVE 23. That's two chance for you to free up space for those old tapes, books, DVD's and other stuff of potential fan interest. Once you've cleared it up you can go to SHORE LEAVE 23, buy more stuff, and park it in that newly liberated space. Ah the cycle of life! SHORE LEAVE IS COMING: WE NEED YOU!
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| A WARM WELCOME TO OUR NEWEST MEMBERS
At our May meeting we were fortunate to have two new members join us. Welcome to Andrew Kent. Andrew first visited us in March and was nice enough to play "ICS Academic." He came as a guest of John Clayton's. Welcome to the club Andrew. It's a pleasure to have you along. Welcome also to Mike Henry. Mike was introduced to the club by Rick Rieve. He joined at the first meeting that he attended. The two of them are active in the Washington area's Old Time Radio club. Maybe the two of them can give us a presentation some time about classic Imaginative Radio! Thanks for joining Mike. Glad to have you. |
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| A PROPOSED CODE OF CONDUCT
We'll soon have a table at our first convention. In the future we hope to increase our standing in the public and let it be known that our doors are opened to visitors and new members. As we approach this status it has occurred to our Board that its more important than ever that we have meetings that are fun and welcoming to everyone. The result is this draft of a proposed "Code of Conduct." The intent is not to restrict behavior (although that may sometimes be necessary). Our desire was to safeguard our meetings, as we get more new members, to try and assure that everyone can have a good time. We'll discuss this proposed code at our May meeting.
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THINGS TO COME BALTICON 35 is being held on a new date this year. Normally they go on during Easter Weekend. This year it will take place on Memorial Day Weekend, May 25-8. Their guest of honor is author Hal Clement. Other author-guests include Nina Boal, Jack L. Chalker, Dan Cragg, John G. Hemry, Peter Knapp, Eric Kotani, Steve Lubs, Wendie Old, Darrell Schweitzer, David Sherman, Bud Sparhawk, Louise Titchener, Shane Tourellotte, Mark Wheatley, John C. Wright, Jagi Lamplighter Wright, author and editor of "Anotherealm" Jean Goldstrum, editor and Heinlein scholar Yoji Kondo and editor and author Susan Schwartz. As usual they'll have a group of guests who are scientists. That includes NASA scientist Dave Kratz, pioneer of the Klingon Language Dr. Lawrence M. Schoen, SETI executive director Dr. H. Paul Shuch, Muriel Hykes (a.k.a. the Internet's Dr. Mom), Bill Linthicum, MD, Perrianne Lurie, MD, Physicist and Juggler Extraordinaire Andrew Love and Dr. Robert D. Shull who's with the Magnetic Materials Group, NIST, and is a leading nano-technology expert. The artist-guest-of-honor is Halla Fleischer. The filk-guest-of-honor is Frank Hayes. The 2000 Compton Crook Award Winner, Stephen L. Burns, will be there (the 2001 winner will be announced at the show. Special Anime guests will be Kara Dennison and Shawn the Touched of White Radish. There'll be panels, a dealers room, poetry readings, a writers workshop, science programming, an art show, filking, a live fantasy combat demo, dances on both Friday and Saturday nights, a masquerade and costume show, a sci-fi trivia contest, live theater, a live radio play, a computer room, a gaming room, L.A.R.P. (if you don't know what that means you probably wouldn't be interested), anime' and video shown, a young writer's contest and special children's programming. Full weekend membership, if paid by 3/15, is $35. If paid by 4/30 it's $40. At the door it's $45. For more information either click on the above link, write to BALTICON 35/ P.O. Box 686/ Baltimore, MD., 21203-0686, phone Phone(410)JOE-BSFS [410-563-2737] or e-mail: BSFS@balticon.org ASIAN FANTASY FILM FILM
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| SCIENCE FICTION BOOK SIGNING TO CO-INCIDE WITH
THE NEBULA AWARDS
The Science Fiction Writers of America will be promoting the Nebula Awards with several regional book signings starting on the weekend that the awards are handed out. Here in this area they'll be a group signing in Bowie, Maryland at Borders bookstore near the intersection of Route 50 and Route 3/301. It will be on Sunday May 21, at 2 pm. The roster of writers includes Catherine Asaro, Nina Boal, Michael Capobianco, Jack Chalker, A. C. Crispin, Dennis Danvers, Jane Frank, John Hemry, Eric Kotani (Yoji Kondo), Mark McGarry, Nancy Jane Moore, Severna Park and Bud Sparhawk. You'll be able to see many of these same authors a few days later at BALTICON 35. |
| LOOK FOR DEEP SPACE NINE TO RESUME ITS ADVENTURE
IN PRINT
The publishers of the new series of STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE novels about to publish this month want you to think of the seven seasons of the show as "Act One" of a magnificent adventure. The next act unfolds in print. It begins with the publication of Avatar, books one and two, on sale May 20th. The story picks up shortly after the final episode, "What You Leave Behind," has taken place. The Alpha Quadrant is licking its wounds from the bruising that it took from the Dominion. Several new officers have come aboard DS9 to replace those who'd left. A surprise attack kills hundreds on the station and threatens the fragile new peace. The attacks have been tied to the unborn child of Captain Sisko. Elsewhere, Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the Starship Enterprise make a startling discovery - one that will affect the destiny of an entire civilization and forever change the lives of those aboard Deep Space Nine. Look for coming novels that center on a revolt on the Trill homeworld, Dr. Bashir being drawn back into Section 31 and Martok and Worf on the Klingon homeworld. It sounds like fun! |
| A NOVEL APPROACH TO THE FINALE OF STAR TREK: VOYAGER
The upcoming novelization of the VOYAGER finale will expand the story and stand as a lead-in to future VOYAGER novels. The book by Diane Carey, with extra material is by Chris Golden, will come out a month after the May 23 finale airs on UPN. |
| AWARDS NEWS: THE STOKER NOMINEES ANNOUNCED
The Horror Writers Association has announced this year's nominees for the Stoker Awards for best horror. The Stokers will be awarded on May 25-8 at the World Horror Convention in Seattle. Below are a list of nominees for Best Screenplay. THE CELL by Mark Protosevich
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| AWARDS NEWS: THE PROMETHEUS AWARDS
The Libertarian Futurist Society announced the finalists for its Prometheus Award for Best Novel. The winner will be announced over the Labor Day weekend in Philadelphia at the World Science Fiction Convention. The award honors outstanding science fiction or fantasy that explores the possibilities of a free future, champions human rights (including personal and economic liberty), dramatizes the perennial conflict between individuals and coercive governments or critiques the tragic consequences of abuse of power, especially by the state, the society announced. A list of finalists follows. Lodestar by Michael Flynn The Sky Road by Ken MacLeod The Truth by Terry Pratchett Forge of the Elders by L. Neil Smith Eagle Against the Stars by Steve White |
| AWARDS NEWS: NEBULA WINNERS ANNOUNCED
The 2000 Nebula Awards were announced April 28 at a ceremony at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. The awards are voted on by members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, who honor their peers in the categories of best novel, best novelette, best novella, best short story and best script. The Nebulas are presented annually for works published in the previous calendar year. A complete list of this year's winners and categories follows. Best
Novel
Also at the ceremony, Philip José Farmer received the previously announced Grand Master award, Robert Sheckley received the Author Emeritus award, and Yuri Rasovsky and Harlan Ellison earned the Bradbury Award for 2000X. |
| AWARDS NEWS: THE HUGO FINALISTS ANNOUNCED
The Millennium Philcon announced the nominees for the 2001 Hugo Awards, recognizing achievement in science fiction. The awards are named in honor of Hugo Gernsback, the magazine editor credited as "the father of science fiction." The awards will be presented at the 59th World Science Fiction Convention, or The Millennium Philcon, in Philadelphia, Aug. 30-Sept. 3. A partial list of nominees follows. Those of you reading this on your computer can go to here for a complete list.
Novel
The electronic book retailer Fictionwise.com announced that it will release three 2001 Hugo-nominated short stories free on its Web site. The stories will be offered free only for a limited time. To obtain the free stories, visitors must register at the site. For those of you reading this on a links-capable computer, the stories are linked in the above list. |
| AWARDS NEWS: "RETRO" HUGOS
The Millennium Philcon announced nominees for the "retro" Hugo Awards, honoring works published before the modern awards were instituted. This year, awards will recognize works published in 1950. Winners will be announced at the 59th World Science Fiction Convention (Philcon) in Philadelphia, Aug. 30-Sept. 3. A partial list of nominees follows. Novel •The Dying Earth by Jack Vance •Farmer in the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein •First Lensman by Edward E. Smith •Pebble in the Sky by Isaac Asimov •The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis Novella •"... And Now You Don't" by Isaac Asimov •"The Dreaming Jewels" by Theodore Sturgeon •"The Last Enemy" by H. Beam Piper •"The Man Who Sold the Moon" by Robert A. Heinlein •"To the Stars" by L. Ron Hubbard Novellette •"Dear Devil" by Eric Frank Russell •"Okie" by James Blish •"Scanners Live in Vain" by Cordwainer Smith •"The Helping Hand" by Poul Anderson •"The Little Black Bag" by C.M. Kornbluth Short Story •"A Subway Named Mobius" by A.J. Deutsch •"Born of Man and Woman" by Richard Matheson •"Coming Attractions" by Fritz Leiber •"The Gnurrs Come from the VoodVork Out" by Reginald Bretnor •"To Serve Man" by Damon Knight Dramatic Presentation •CINDERELLA •DESTINATION MOON •HARVEY •RABBIT OF SEVILLE •ROCKETSHIP X-M |
| AWARDS NEWS: THE CORDWAINER SMITH AWARD CREATED
The Cordwainer Smith Foundation announced the establishment of the Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award, an annual literary award for forgotten sci-fi classics, named after the classic sci-fi writer. The award will honor a science fiction or fantasy writer whose work deserves renewed attention or rediscovery and whose work displays unusual originality and embodies the spirit of Cordwainer Smith's fiction, the foundation announced. Jurors also have the option each year of awarding a Cordwainer Smith Discovery Award for contemporary writers who achieve high literary standards and create a sense of wonder, as Smith did. "Science Fiction Weekly" columnist John Clute, "Science Fiction Weekly" editor Scott Edelman and authors Gardner Dozois and Robert Silverberg will be founding jurors for the award. No date has been set for the first awards. Smith, the pseudonym for Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger, was a U.S. writer, political scientist and military adviser in Korea and Malaya who died in 1966. If you look at the names of nominees for "Retro" Hugos, you'll see Smith's 1950 novelette, "Scanners Live in Vain," is on the list. |
| BLADE 2 TAKES A FRESH CUT
David Goyer, the writer and producer of the upcoming sequel BLADE 2 has said that the movie will veer off from its 1998 predecessor. "We wanted to try to tell a new story that wasn't just the same one rehashed again," Goyer said. "With this movie, we went in just a completely different direction. We have a very large cast, a lot of vampires and more villains than in the first one." BLADE 2, which again stars Wesley Snipes, is currently in production in Prague under director Guillermo del Toro (the director of CRONOS from 1993 and MIMIC from 1997). Something this version has in common with the first film is that it won't pull any punches. "Just because it's a sequel, we didn't tone anything down, let's put it that way. . . . It looks great. There were a lot of blues in the first film. This has more greens and yellows and sodium. It kind of looks like SEVEN - THE ACTION MOVIE in a way." Goyer said production on BLADE 2 could go into July, with second-unit work. He said that New Line will probably release the film in either spring or summer 2002. |
| THE MUMMY - SEVENTY YEARS AND ITS STILL GOT IT
An anonymous telephone bidder recently paid 80,750 pounds ($115,000) during a London auction for a poster of Boris Karloff's 1932 version of THE MUMMY. The Karoly Grosz-designed poster is one of only three copies known to still exist and sold for twice pre-sale estimates despite extensive restoration. The sale, held at Christie's auction house, was part of a collection of 65 vintage film posters from Jerome, Arizona. The owner discovered that his father, who used to manage a movie theater, could not bring himself to throw the posters away and had stored them in his garage. Among the other rarities for sale was a one-sheet poster for the 1933 Paramount film SUPERNATURAL starring Carole Lombard. I wonder. In the year 2070 will there be a bidding war for copies of posters for DUDE, WHERE'S MY CAR? Thankfully, if there is I won't be around to witness it. |
| BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF IS AN ARTHOUSE WEREWOLF
PERIOD PIECE
Universal Pictures has picked up U.S. distribution rights to the French supernatural hit movie LE PACTE DES LOUPS (BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF), which is due out in the fall. The French-language film was released in France in January and broke the domestic box-office record in its opening weekend, with 1.4 million admissions, besting TITANIC. Set during the reign of Louis XV, the film is based in part on the French legend of the Beast of Gevaudan, a giant wolf-like creature that supposedly killed more than 100 people in the 1760s. Desperate to end the growing unrest among the population, the king sends in a scientist and his brother to bring down the beast. So what's next? How about Merchant & Ivory doing the next FRIDAY THE 13TH movie? |
| ROGER MOORE MOUTHS OFF ON BOND
Roger Moore has had some interesting things to say about his old screen persona, "Bond - James Bond." After racking up an impressive body count on screen he's announced that, after making six Bond films between 1973 and 1985, he hates guns. As a result the British actor hates the 007 image. He says, "Today I am completely opposed to small arms and what they can do to children. I made a few bad movies." Moore adds that he now has terrible misgivings about the persona which made him famous around the world in the 70s and 80s, and is especially repulsed by "that awful pose" with a Walther PPK gun. As well as admitting to regretting the way many of his films romanticize violence, the 73-year-old stud is also candid about criticism of his acting ability. He says, "I played every role tongue-in-cheek because I don't really believe in that sort of hero. I was only a hero because I had a script that said I was going to win. I don't like guns." As for Bond's future, he'd like to see a different kind of Bond - very different. He'd like to see Cuba Gooding Jr. take over from Pierce Brosnan as the smooth-talking spy. Roger says he thinks it's about time there was a black 007 and that Cuba would be perfect to fill Pierce's shoes after his final Bond appearance next year. Moore said that it was about time there was a black James Bond. |
| THE NEXT BOND MAY BE AN UNKNOWN
Roger Moore isn't the only one speculating on the Bond successor. There's a blizzard of rumors are flying about the next 007. One of the favorite targets is Russell Crowe. British casting agent Debbie McWilliams, who cast THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH, has expressed doubt that Russell Crowe might succeed Pierce Brosnan. "I think it will be somebody less well known," McWilliams said. At the moment a little-known Scottish actor, Gerald Butler, may have the inside track on the Bond role.) McWilliams also expressed dissatisfaction with the casting of Denise Richards as Brosnan's female interest in THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH. "I wouldn't want to be held responsible for that piece of casting. She wasn't my idea of a nuclear scientist. There are lots of reasons why she was cast. Mostly they have to have a girl who they think will appeal to 13-to-18 year-old boys in America and Denise was the girl who was chosen. She's actually a very nice girl, but for my money she wasn't right for that part." |
| ELVIRA'S POPULARITY, UH, SAGS
Cassandra Peterson; aka Elvira, Mistress of the Dark; announced that her next movie, ELVIRA'S HAUNTED HILLS, will be her last. "If it doesn't do well, I'll be living in my car," she joked. She hasn't said if it has anything to do with her 50th birthday rolling around this fall. HAUNTED HILLS is a parody of Roger Corman horror movies, Peterson said. "The sort of gothic creature feature that would have starred Vincent Price," she said. To save money, the movie was shot in Romania. "It's cheap, cheap, cheap, incredibly cheap. And they have pretty good working conditions. What they lacked in equipment, they made up for in enthusiasm." HAUNTED HILLS comes out around Halloween. |
| JURASSIC PARK III, THE BEST ONE YET?
Sam Neill, who reprises the role of Dr. Alan Grant in the upcoming sequel JURASSIC PARK III, said that he was amazed at how far special effects have evolved since the 1993 original. "I didn't realize how things had progressed. The creatures are so much more sophisticated," according to Neill. "I think I can safely say this will be the best JURASSIC PARK." Best yet? Well maybe, but the script seems to have been a tad murky through the production. According to director Joe Johnston, "We had to go back to Hawaii in January. It wasn't planned. We didn't have an ending that we liked the first time we were there." Co-star Téa Leoni countered, "We just had the ending missing? Joe is being graceful. We started in Hawaii with no ending, the middle a little up in the air, and the beginning, uh, pretty solid." She added with a laugh, "If the thing bombs, I'm going to blame it on the dinosaurs. I've got plausible deniability, man." We'll be able to see for ourselves in a couple of months. JURASSIC PARK III is due to open July 18. |
| THE NEXT TWO MATRIX MOVIES - WILL THEY BEAT THE
ORIGINAL?
Will the two MATRIX sequels now being shot be better than the original? We won't really know until we see them but there's some encouraging signs from people connected to various levels of production. Joel Silver, who returns as the producer of the upcoming MATRIX sequels, has said that the martial-arts sequences will surpass those in last year's CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON. "THE MATRIX sequel is so beyond anything you could ever imagine, it is really staggering what we are going to do on that movie. People are not going to believe it, but that's what we have to do, because a lot has happened since the first MATRIX movie, and now we have to be ahead of the wave." Woo-Ping Yuen returns to choreograph the fight sequences, as he did for CROUCHING TIGER and the first MATRIX. "I think we're all working with the same people, in the same arena, but we're using it in different ways, which is good," Silver said. "Ang Lee used Woo-Ping in CROUCHING TIGER, but it's a very different kind of movie, it's a very artistic, very aesthetic picture. These [MATRIX] movies are far harder, more action-packed." Steve Skroce and Geof Darrow are comics artists working on the two MATRIX movie sequels. They're confident that the next two movies could outdo the first. "I've seen some footage and it's fantastic," Skroce, who is doing storyboards, said. "The little they've shot so far, over the last month or so, is so sweet. I would be very surprised if any of the MATRIX fans aren't satisfied with the new ones." Darrow, who is doing design work, added, "It's an incredibly coherent piece of work. It's going to be an amazing story. I'm pretty lucky to be working on it, this goofy comic book guy from Iowa." Skroce said that the production, once again directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, seems to be unwinding slowly. "They said it would be five-six months, and I'm going on eight. When I get done in June, it will be more like 12-13 months. They don't want anything to be hacked out. It's gotta be right before it's done quickly. I'll keep doing sketches until the shot is exactly the way [the Wachowskis] want. The movie really does come out of their brains. I'm the translator; that's how I would describe it. We go through an immense amount of detail doing the boards correctly." |
| AHNOLD TURNS HIS BACK ON CALIFORNIA'S STATEHOUSE
FOR NOW
Ahnold Schwarzenegger has stepped out of the 2002 race for California governor, citing his film career and family as higher priorities. The 53-year-old Austrian-born star had earlier expressed a wish to do more to help his adopted country, America. He was even quoted as saying he'd quit movies for the political role. But the actor will now focus on completing the film TRUE LIES 2, before beginning work on TERMINATOR 3 around September. He says, "I feel great doing the movies, and I would have felt great doing the governor's race. I'm in a most wonderful position. The movie projects came together, so I have to keep up my end of the deal. It's not like it could have gone this way or that." But the actor has vowed his break from politics is merely temporary, and plans to plunge back into the arena "some other time" once his four children, aged between three and 11, are older. Schwarzenegger's withdrawal from the race will mean that Ronald Reagan remains as the last celebrity seeking state-wide office in Sacramento, California - which he achieved 35 years ago. |
| M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN TRAVELS IN NEW CIRCLES
SIXTH SENSE director M. Night Shyamalan is reported to have signed an eight-figure deal with Disney for his next film. Shyamalan has already written the thriller SIGNS, which is thought to be about crop circles. He will also direct it when production begins this autumn. Shyamalan is said to have handed over the script to Disney bosses, who immediately contacted his agent to secure a deal. The official figures have not been revealed, but Shyamalan did get $10 million upfront for his last film, UNBREAKABLE. The plot of SIGNS is being closely guarded but, like his previous two films, it is a thriller set in Shyamalan's home state of Pennsylvania. |
| BRITISH AUDIENCES STUNNED WITH THE VIOLENCE IN
THE NEW MICHAEL CAINE MOVIE
Movie legend Sir Michael Caine stars in the most shocking film of his career - when he threatens to shoot a pregnant woman. Queasy cinema-goers are already dubbing Sir Michael New's film SHINER as Britain's answer to RESERVOIR DOGS. A preview audience was left dumb-founded after Sir Michael's thuggish character held a gun against a pregnant woman's stomach and threatened to kill her. Viewers also see a hitman's brains hanging from the back of his head after being blown away by the film's villain Gibson, played by Kenneth Cranham. Caine, who plays a small-time East End gangster and boxing promoter Billy "Shiner" Simpson, admits, "It gets more and more serious and vicious as time goes on." He adds, "Billy is a real low-life Cockney East End gangster. He has a lot of power, a big fish in a very small pond. He is typical of gangsters who control a small area who are idolized, but he wouldn't make it in the West End or among the big guys." But pressure group Mediawatch-uk, which monitors UK films for taste, blasted the violence in SHINER as "unforgivable". John Beyer, director of mediawatch-uk, says, "I think this is scandalous. Any violence or threat of violence against a pregnant woman is simply unforgivable." |
| SO ARE YOU AN ORTHODOX OR REFORMED JEDI?
British STAR WARS fans are organizing to list "Jedi" as their official religion on U.K. census forms. The fans hope to win formal recognition for their "faith" by responding to the Office for National Statistics' decennial survey of the population. For the first time in Britain, the census, will ask people about their religion, offering various options and a box marked "other." STAR WARS fans have seized on the opportunity, and an e-mail is urging them to fill the box by declaring their religion as "Jedi." "If there are enough people who put down a religion that isn't mentioned on the census form, it becomes a fully recognized and legal religion," the e-mail said. "It usually takes about 10,000 people to nominate the same religion." The e-mail reportedly originated in New Zealand, which held a census on March 6. Its effect there will not be properly known for up to 18 months, but some reports have estimated that 5 percent of the population decided they were Jedi knights. But a spokesman for the Office of National Statistics said that the e-mail erred. "Regardless of how many people put down Jedi as their religion, they cannot win. It is not up to us to recognize or not recognize religions." Australian STAR WARS fans have been ordered not to list their religion as Jedi on census forms. The Australian Bureau Of Statistics has issued the warning after the launch of an e-mail campaign to have the ideology from the cult series recognized as an official religion. Enraged representatives for the government body says anyone providing false information on their census form can face a fine equivalent to $525. An e-mail widely circulated earlier claimed the Australian government would have to officially acknowledge Jedi as a 'religion' if more than 10,000 listed it on their census forms. |
| KEVIN COSTNER GETS AN UNUSUAL AUDIENCE FOR THIRTEEN
DAYS
Kevin Costner and Cuban dictator Fidel Castro watched Costner's film THIRTEEN DAYS and got along famously. The two men chatted until 2 a.m. discussing over dinner the star's cinematic version and the Cuban president's real-life role in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Costner had just checked into his Havana hotel on Monday when he and members of the cast and crew were invited to Revolution Palace for a special screening in front of Cuba's political hierarchy. Costner's spokesman, Stephen Rivers, said, "I shouldn't be speaking for the president, but he responded to the film very favorably, and we had a very interesting discussion afterward." |
| ANGELINA JOLIE GIVES CAMBODIA A SPECIAL GIFT
Angelina Jolie has spoken about how taken she was with Cambodia when she was there filming TOMB RAIDER. Now the nation is receiving a token of her affection. She's giving them a new school. The Oscar winner felt compelled to help the children after seeing their plight first hand. The director of the movie, Simon West, said that, "They're so desperate for education and they have very few schools You can't help going to a place like that and getting involved in the more serious side of it". The new school will be in the town of Ankor Wat, where the $85 million film was shot. |
| NEW CHARACTERS SET TO APPEAR IN THE NEXT X-MEN
Three exciting new characters will be featured in the X-MEN sequel. Writer-director Bryan Singer has revealed that Gambit, Beast and Jubilee will be introduced in X-MEN 2. Filming is tentatively scheduled for early autumn, with the movie due for release in July 2002. The first film was shot in Canada, and X-MEN 2 could also be filmed there. The Fox studio in Australia is also being considered. A budget of about $100 million is expected to be granted, compared to $70 million for the first movie. |
| YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN MIGHT MAKE IT TO BROADWAY
Mel Brooks is electrifying Broadway with the opening of a stage-version of his 1967 film, THE PRODUCERS. It's been so successful that he's considering launching another adaptation on the Great White Way - YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN. It might undergo a transformation into a musical. Peter Boyle, who appeared as the monster in the movie, remarked: "All of Mel's movies are musicals. He always has singing, big production numbers and an audience. The ingredients to turn his films into Broadway shows are already in place." |
| A FESTIVAL FOR THE FORGOTTEN
Film critic Roger Ebert has organized a festival to celebrate the most underrated films of all time - as decided by him. The list of maligned movies includes Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, Woody Allen's 1996 musical, EVERYONE SAYS I LOVE YOU, and the 1922 NOSFERATU. It also featured more recent flicks with several European entries such as THE GIRL ON THE BRIDGE (France, 1999), SONGS FROM THE SECOND FLOOR (Sweden, 2000) and A SIMPLE PLAN (America, 1998). Ebert introduced all the films alongside actors Bill Paxton and 2001 star Keir Dullea, and 2001 author Arthur C. Clark, in a live link-up. A festival spokesman says the project "focused on films, genres and formats that Ebert believes deserve wider attention." So, if you were organizing a film festival like this, what would you show? What's on your list of overlooked gems? |
| THE WGA STRIKE: HOLLYWOOD DODGES A BULLET
For months Hollywood execs have been crying themselves to sleep every night dreading a possible strike. Mayor Richard Riordan of L.A. warned that a prolonged strike "could plunge our city and county into recession." President Bush's staff indicated that the White House might get involved with negotiations if there was a prolonged work stoppage. Well, as far as a Writers' Guild of America strike is concerned, their fears seemed to have been assuaged. At this writing a tentative settlement has been between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). The contract, representing over 11,500 theatrical and television writers, is expected to pass. The final results won't be known until June. Negotiators for both sides gathered around a forest of microphones, before a gaggle of over sixty reporters on May 4th, to make the announcement. Just at the moment that the press conference was to begin all of the lights went dim. Sherry Lansing from Paramount joked, "It's a rolling blackout." John McLean, the writers' chief negotiator, quipped, "It was a message from Gov. Davis." Another negotiator offered, "Is that Mayor Riordan?" As it turns out it wasn't a power failure, just some television cameraman who kicked out a plug. It offered a light moment that capped months of uncertainty and hundreds of hours of bruising negotiations, signaling the end to a week of intense anticipation. There were several times when negotiations nearly broke down, but they somehow got back on track and made it through. Rather than providing the sweeping redefinition of residuals and creative formulas sought by writers and companies alike at the outset, the agreement represented a classic ''meeting in the middle,'' with concessions by both sides. The companies dropped their controversial ''double-burst'' residuals formula, which would have allowed multiple airings of shows on in-house services at a reduced price, even as the writers gave ground on a demand for higher cassette and DVD payments and stiff contractual rules governing relations with film directors. Production companies are out of the frying pan, but not away from the fire. Negotiations for the 135,000 performers represented by the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists starts May 10. Their contract ends July 1st. |
| THE WGA STRIKE : WHAT WAS SETTLED
FINANCIAL ISSUES Numerous financial issues were settled. Many of these demands were among the most expensive and contentious proposals debated during bargaining sessions. The economic package gave writers a gain of $41 million over the three-year term of this contract. Concerning VHS and DVD movies, companies will pay the credited screenwriters of both originals and adaptations a mandatory script publication fee of $5,000 per movie. Fox will now be considered a full-fledged network and will pay the same residuals as the other majors pay (they'd been paying half up to now). Writers will be able to collect on foreign residuals now instead of a small flat-sum buyout. Writers will receive a piece of video-on-demand revenue. They've negotiated a greatly improved residuals formula for Made-For-Pay-TV (like HBO and Showtime original series). They'll get a more generous payout for Made-For-Basic-Cable programs (like original Sci-Fi Channel programming). Initial compensation minimums for screenplays and teleplays will increase by 3.5% in each year of the contract. RESPECT Writers have made some headway in getting the recognition that they feel has been denied them. For the first time, the companies have agreed the industry standard will be that writers will be present at cast readings and have the right to visit the set of the motion picture they have written. Shortly after a director is assigned to a project, he or she will meet with the writer to discuss creative issues. This meeting will take place prior to any decision to hire a new writer. A joint WGA/DGA Creative Rights Committee will be established to discuss creative issues of mutual concern. The Writers Guild and the Directors Guild have agreed to foster writer-director collaboration in both film and television, including: hosting joint seminars in which collaborators discuss their working relationships and highlighting collaboration in our respective publications. The companies have acknowledged that the writer is part of the production indicated by the fact that the writer will be listed on call sheets, staff directories or crew lists; will attend premieres, press junkets, festivals and cast and crew events. Writers will have enhanced presence in press kits, electronic press kits and DVDs. |
| THE WGA STRIKE: WHAT REMAINS
The guild agreed to drop its objection to the so-called possessory film credit - often given to directors in the form of "A film by . . . ." To avoid a strike in which the entire film industry would have suffered, it was agreed that the writers would address this issue, as well as the proliferation of producer credits and other credits issues, in industry-wide discussions. The tentative agreement does not offer a guarantee regarding the set visits and some other issues, saying instead that they will become a non-binding "preferred practice." The writers also want to continue talking about Internet rights. The guild and the companies have also agreed to continue negotiations to cover the evolving markets for all other types of exhibition over the Internet, such as when the viewer can download a movie or TV program to watch it an unlimited number of times. At this point the WGA and the companies will cover, on a project-by-project basis, the employment of writers to write material for the Internet, with guaranteed pension and health benefits. It's been confirmed that writers whose work first appears on the Internet will be eligible for separated rights if their material is later used as the basis for a television series or motion picture. In the field of animation writing, the WGA has successfully organized prime time animation writers for all episodic TV programs. They had hoped to codify this in the new contract. The companies refused to resolve these issues in this negotiation. |
| IMAGINATIVE CINEMA FOR THE MONTH OF MAY
MAY 4TH: THE MUMMY RETURNS, the sequel to the recently remade THE MUMMY, releases today. The remains of Imhotep and Anck-su-Numam are brought back to London for a museum (bright move!). This movie's story takes place 10 years later, and centers around the 9-year-old son (Freddie Boath) of the characters played by Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz. Why? Well, this time around the villain isn't Imhotep, but Anck-su-Numam (Patricia Velazquez) and she's after the boy because she believes he's the key to the reincarnation of the Egyptian Goddess, Isis. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson plays a new villain, The Scorpion King, who is half-scorpion, half-man, and the "ruler of all evil, who is brought forth from the Undead". MAY 11TH: A KNIGHT'S TALE is supposed to be "inspired by" The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, who is a character in the film as well. When his master meets an untimely demise, a young squire (Heath Ledger) in 14th century France takes his identity, working his way up the jousting circuit, earning nobility that should be impossible for someone not nobly born. Why does he do it? He needs to take down an evil-doer, of course. Mark Addy plays Ledger's assistant, best friend, and occasional "muscle". Another supporting character is scribe Geoffrey Chaucer (Paul Bettany), who will go on to write The Canterbury Tales. Shannyn Sossamon plays Ledger's romantic interest, Jocelyn. MAY 18TH: SHREK
is perfect for the film fan that likes their fantasies sharp and funny.
Shrek (voiced by Mike Myers) is a cynical, no-nonsense ogre whose swamp
has been overrun by annoying fairy tale creatures. He sets out to save
his home and along the way, is befriended by a wise-cracking donkey (with
the voice of Eddie Murphy), sent to slay a fire-breathing dragon and save
a beautiful princess (Cameron Diaz's voice) with a deep, dark secret. In
the end, Shrek learns to love and be loved. This computer-animated feature
has been struggling its way along the cycle of development to pre-production
to production to post-production to distribution since 1997. Let's hope
that it's worth the wait!
MAY 25TH: PEARL HARBOR is this spring's 2,000 pound gorilla. Set against the setting of the raid on Pearl Harbor, this is the tale of two friends; one an aviator in the U.S. Army Air Corps (Josh Hartnett), and the other (Ben Affleck) in the British Royal Air Force (American pilots were recruited by them before the U.S. entered WWII); who find themselves in love with the same woman (Kate Beckinsale). It's worth stating that the emphasis on the film is said to really be on the love stories; with history the amazing and tragic backdrop. |
| BRAVE NEW WORLD: THE ONLINE MOVIE BUSTS HAVE ALREADY
BEGUN
In a case initiated by the Department of Justice and supported by the MPAA, the Interactive Digital Software Assn. and Electronic Arts, the FBI has shut down an Internet site allegedly selling new movies for online downloading, the online. Agents also arrested the operator of the site, Jillann Reeves of Aberdeen, Wash. The MPAA, which has its own team of investigators checking for online bootlegging of motion pictures, said that it had assisted in the investigation, including having members of its staff place orders for films through the site. Recent estimates indicate 350,000 illegal TV show episodes and movies are available for downloading each day. About 1.5 million illegal downloads occur daily in the United States. |
| LORD OF THE RINGS IS NOW LORD OF THE NET
Since it was relaunched in January, New Line Cinema's LORD OF THE RINGS Web site has recorded 357 million hits. When the trailer was released on the Internet, it was downloaded 1.6 million times in the first 24 hours. The site can be accessed in 10 foreign languages and includes interviews and videos of nearly every crew and cast member. The official worldwide media launch for the film is set to take place at the Cannes Film Festival when footage from the movie will be previewed. |
| WHOSE MOVING MOVIES ONLINE?
Everyone knows that 2000 was "crash&burn" time for many Online businesses. Many . . . but not all. Some folks are doing quite well, thank-you very much. Below is a list of the current top ten video retailers. The list combines both VHS and DVD numbers, as well as Online renters and sellers. But, if you're of a mind to acquire movies Online, you may want to check some of these boys out. The list is in numeric order, from biggest to tenth biggest. All of these companies are based in the U.S. of A. Express.com Buy.com NetFlix CDNow DVD Empire 800.com Kozmo.com BigStar Ent. 800BuyMovies.com |