Archive for the ‘Deals’ Category
Filed under: Awards, Deals, Celebrities and Controversy, Movie Marketing, Oscar Watch
Gawker
never could get a response from Variety, but the LA Times did. Variety put Robert Koehler’s review of Iron Cross back up, and claimed they had taken it down in order to investigate “factual inaccuracies” after Newton complained. This investigation included Variety’s editor Tim Gray actually sitting and watching the film, and deciding that the trade could stand by Koehler’s review. Gray declined to give his own opinion on the film to the Times.But Iron Cross’ Newton isn’t satisfied. According to the New York Times, Newton has now filed a lawsuit against Variety accusing the paper of “contractual breach, negligence, fraud and deceit, and unfair business practices.” He believes he was betrayed by the paper that suggested the film as a potential awards contender and approached him two months later with the advertising package. They formed an “exclusive media partnership” which included print and online ads, 40,000 DVDs, and inclusion in an awards screening series sponsored by the paper. Newton spent an additional $800,000 to finish the film for its brief theatrical run in Los Angeles that would allow it to qualify for the Oscars. The producer claims this partnership and Oscar campaign was undermined when Koehler ran a negative review of the film. He’s asking for “general damages, punitive damages, restitution of funds paid and an injunction to prevent Variety from further comment on the movie” but has not specified a monetary amount.
Continue reading It Continues! ‘Iron Cross’ Filmmaker Sues Variety For Negative Review
Filed under: Action, Deals, Noir, Mystery & Suspense, Sony, Celebrities and Controversy, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Politics, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels
Once Sam Raimi was unceremoniously booted from Spider-Man 4 along with the cast and crew, speculation was rampant as to what he would direct next. World of Warcraft? What about The Shadow? He’s wanted to do that for a long, long time and as of last January, it was chugging along quite nicely. Whatever he picked, we were rooting for him. But now The Shadow has vanished into the darkness, as Variety reports that Sony has let the rights lapse. It’s hard not to read into this and see it as evidence of bad blood between Sony and Raimi. I don’t want to jump to gossipy conclusions, but if things were good, wouldn’t you at least agree to be friends and make The Shadow together?
Raimi’s reps at CAA are now shopping The Shadow rights around town, and Raimi is still attached as a producer. So at least he gets to keep his pet pulp, even if it’s standing on shaky ground. Not only does it delay a possible film, but it could all land in some uncompromising hands. One of the interested parties is 20th Century Fox. Latino Review says they’ve already purchased The Shadow and may have set David Slade to direct, while Variety is merely reporting Fox as “interested.”
Slade and Raimi go way back (30 Days of Night) so it makes sense that Raimi would offer the chair to an old friend. But I was hoping he’d step into the director’s chair for a little noir before heading into Warcraft. At least we know that’s likely to be his next director’s outing by sheer default. Start casting your Night Elves now!
Filed under: Drama, Independent, Casting, Deals
There’s a lot to chastise about that whole Twilight Saga. In fact, just yesterday we were giggling over Sesame Street’s Count knocking Edward’s lights out. But there’s one thing I’ve really dug, and that’s just how much this mega-blockbuster teen sensation is intermingled and entrenched in the indie — the small, notable, and wide-ranging projects that I can only hope get more love and success from the sparkly vamp and werewolf crowd. First step: over-wrought romance, second step, cinephiles? Okay, maybe there are a few more steps in between those two, but there’s definitely a different mentality emanating from most of the Twilight crowd (one Taylor Lautner excepted). Heck, even the pre-Twilight biggy is getting in on it.
According to Deadline Hollywood, Chris Weitz, the biggest name to circle the franchise, is now focusing on a small, independent feature — one he’s supposedly paying for part of out of his own pocket (with help from Summit and Jami Gertz’s Lime Orchard). The Gardener focuses on a Mexican landscaper (to be played by Che’s Demian Bichir) who lives in East L.A. but drives to the posh areas to manicure lawns, while trying to keep his son (newcomer Jose Julian) safe from gangs and immigration. Weitz says: “It’s about an undocumented immigrant who gets the chance to buy a truck and equipment to raise his family out of poverty, and how things go right and wrong from there. It is an Italian neo-realist movie with a contemporary feel. I wanted to return to making films with no green screen required, not that there’s anything wrong with those.”
No green screen and really silly wolves jumping into horribly fake-looking CG waters? With an indie mentality to boot? I’m in. The film will start shooting this April.
Filed under: Thrillers, Deals, Scripts, Comic/Superhero/Geek
You know who Deepak Chopra is, right? He’s the author who’s into mind-body medicine, who publishes tons of self-help books, and who used to be a leader of the Transcendental Meditation movement. He also wrote a graphic novel a few years ago called Beyond, and now Variety reports that he will adapt the piece into a screenplay for Suri Krishnamma (Being Othello) to direct.
It’s not just a graphic treatment of his teachings, but rather a supernatural thriller about a man whose wife disappears while on holiday in India. “His search for her is guided only by the sound of her cries for help from the ether.” Chopra says: “Beyond is a story about reality being multi-dimensional and how we can take journeys to realms we never dreamed of by separating the veils that partition our minds.”
Whether you’re into it, or you think it’s a farce, this is the sort of stuff that gets explored in fantasy films and SciFi. The question is: Can a man who really believes that make a thriller that relays his teachings and appeals to the graphic novel fiends and fantasy fans out there? Have you read Beyond? How do you think it’ll play as a feature film?
Filed under: Comedy, Deals, Warner Brothers, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
I would say that we’re in the midst of a retro television revival, but the truth is that this trend has been ongoing since the 1990s. It never dies. We’d have to behead it and hang it from a church rooftop so it’s burned by the rays of the dawn sun, and even then, it’s not soon enough to stop Father Knows Best or Gilligan’s Island. Yep, that’s right: Variety reports that Warner Bros and Atlas Entertainment plain to bring Gilligan’s Island to the big screen. Brad Copeland is penning the screenplay.
Variety notes that “the logline is being kept under wraps” but let me try to take a guess. Seven individuals set out on a three hour tour on a wee little ship called the Minnow. The winds start to get rough. Their tiny ship is tossed, and if not for the courage of the fearless crew, the Minnow would be lost. It sets aground on a stranded desert isle and well, I’m stumped beyond that point. (Not really.) Except that I know they’ll never be able to build a raft, but they will be able to make radios and glow-in-the-dark paint out of coconuts.
I guess it’s possible the studio is planning to give this a LOST makeover (Stranded castaways! They’re the hot thing!) and give it some supernatural twist that will actually prevent them from building a raft. Who knows, though Copeland certainly has funny points to spare from Arrested Development. I just know I’d like to see something new.
Filed under: Documentary, Foreign Language, Independent, Thrillers, Deals, SXSW, Box Office, Distribution, Home Entertainment, Cinematical Indie
Indie Roundup is your weekly guide to what’s new and upcoming in the world of independent film. Pictured clockwise, from upper left: Dr. Portnoy: Provacateur, Erasing David, Crying With Laughter, Centurion.
Online / On Demand Viewing. Have you had your fill of Jay Leno and late night TV programming fiascos? Me too! Still, the premise of Dr. Portnoy: Provacateur sounds refreshing. Debuting exclusively on Hulu, the new web series revolves around artist Michael Portnoy, who, as a talk show host, promises to ‘get down to the bottom of what makes his guests tick.’ Actor Alan Cumming, musician Melissa Auf Der Maur (Smashing Pumpkins), and John Cooper (Director of the Sundance Film Festival) are among the guests who subject themselves to scrutiny in the six-episode series.
Austin, Texas will become the center of the independent film world when South by Southwest (SXSW) gets underway next week, and you can share in the festivities without leaving the comfort of your own home. Two SXSW titles, David Bond’s documentary Erasing David (a man tries to disappear and is hounded by private investigators) and Justin Molotnikov’s thriller Crying With Laughter, will be available via iTunes and Amazon VOD during SXSW, according to indieWIRE, and will then be available on demand via multiple cable systems on April 1.
Deals. Our friends at indieWIRE also reported on two acquisitions this week. Heading for the big screen is Neil Marshall’s sword and sandal thriller Centurion, courtesy of Magnet (read further observations by Elisabeth Rappe and watch the exciting trailer right here at Cinematical), while Leon Gast’s celebrity photog doc Smash His Camera heads to the small screen on HBO.
After the jump: a ghost, a prophet, and a steal at the box office.
Continue reading Indie Roundup: ‘Dr. Portnoy,’ SXSW On Demand
Filed under: Comedy, Romance, Deals, Scripts
We live in a world with wickedly high divorce rates, so what does that mean for Hollywood’s love of romantic comedy? Well, according to Variety, the answer is starter marriages. The trade reports that Universal has finally tapped Sascha Rothchild to adapt her L.A. Weekly cover story “How to Get Divorced by 30″ — an article the studio grabbed almost two years ago.
Universal had “launched an exhaustive search” to find someone to adapt the tale, but after two years, they finally came to the conclusion that no one could do it better than Rothchild herself. (With all the writers out there, I wonder if no one was good enough, or simply no one was interested?) This is her story — she got married young, and watched her marriage dissolve as well as the marriages of five friends. As a feature film, it will focus on a woman “who road-tests the ’starter marriage’ premise and then finds her perceptions redrawn by reality and relationships.”
Gotta love it — there’s nothing like the lesson of stupidity in romcom form. Lots of people are getting divorced, so let’s do starter marriages! (Isn’t that counter-productive?) At least Rothchild has been able to turn a bad situation into a decent career — she’s turned her article into a book, and now is adapting the story for a feature film. However, she might have to pick up a few more dud husbands for follow-up efforts. All in the name of research, right?
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Deals, 20th Century Fox
Sometimes I wish I was a kid again. I grew up in a cinematic climate that was decidedly lacking in fantasy film franchises. Sure, we had a few great singular films to fall back on from time to time, but Hollywood wasn’t throwing money hand over fist at every popular young-adult literary franchise that came along in the hopes of finding the next big thing. Us adults might not be fans of all the Percy Jacksons that come our way, but kids who love the multiplex should be in heaven these days.
In particular, kids (and kids at heart willing to forgive the lately lackluster films of this ilk) who love the Incarceron series of books should be on an even higher cloud with news that Fox 2000 has triumphed in a bidding war for Catherine Fisher’s fantasy series about a dystopian prison future ruled by computers. I haven’t read the series myself, but it certainly sounds interesting enough. From Variety:
“”Incarceron” tells the story of a young boy who lives in a prison that is a complete society; outside the prison, the world is stuck in the 17th century and run by computers. The boy comes into contact with the warden’s daughter, who lives in her own sort of jail, and they find a key that can change everything.”
No talents have been attached yet, but Variety tells us that Fox 2000 and Seed Productions (co-owned by Hugh Jackman) have made development a new priority. There are currently only two books in the series, with the second entry a year away from US publication, but by the time Incarceron starts to roll, Fisher should have more installments on shelves. In the mean time, hop below to check out a book trailer for Incarceron and if you’ve read either it or its sequel, Sapphique, do tell if you think it’ll make a fine film.
Continue reading The Next Harry Potter? Fox Options Fantasy Series ‘Incarceron’
Filed under: Drama, Deals, RumorMonger
After delighting the masses with stories of his Rolling Stone youth in Almost Famous, Cameron Crowe hasn’t had the easiest go of things. Vanilla Sky offered a stranger spin on Alejandro Amenabar’s Abre los ojos, but that didn’t go over too well, even with Jerry Maguire’s Tom Cruise in the driver’s seat. Then there was Elizabethtown, which barely made back its production budget. Now, five years later, Crowe seems to be gearing up for his next narrative, and the big question is: Can wild animals bring him back to the same of Say Anything, Singles, Jerry Maguire, and Almost Famous?
According to Vulture, Crowe is interested in a script based on the bestseller We Bought a Zoo. Scribe Benjamin Mee had been a DIY writer for the Guardian when he moved to a run-down mansion in the countryside, one that included a 30-acre wildlife park with 200 wild animals. Run-down palaces and a horde of wild animals sounds like prime silly fare a la Hotel for Dogs or Night at the Museum, and not really on Crowe’s interpersonal wavelength, but there’s a twist — the experience was “juxtaposed with the steady decline of Mee’s wife, Katherine, who received a terminal-cancer diagnosis.”
Aline Brosh McKenna, who scored an Oscar nod for The Devil Wears Prada, has adapted the book, which has been getting good feedback, so now it all depends on what Crowe can do. I’m rooting for him. It’s rough to see a filmmaker move from four classic and loved features to a steady decline of interest. How about you?
Filed under: Drama, Romance, Casting, Deals, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
Remember Me writer Will Fetters was in New York this weekend to promote his romantic drama, which stars Pierce Brosnan, Chris Cooper, Lost’s Emilie de Ravin, and Robert Pattinson, but he also chatted about the remake of A Star is Born, which is on his list of upcoming projects. Seems demand for the young writer is growing; he’s also adapting the Nicholas Sparks novel The Lucky One for the screen, in what seems an appropriate follow-up to Remember Me.
He inadvertently confirmed that Nick Cassavetes is doing the Star remake, although the rumors about Beyoncé and Russell Crowe are still just that. Fetters said, “I am doing A Star is Born remake with Nick Cassavetes, also for Warner Brothers… I was with Nick on Thursday. As far as I know, there’s no contracts or anything, but Nick wants [Beyoncé] and I think Russell Crowe is another name that’s starting to circle, but there’s no contracts, there’s just talks so far.”
As opposed to making it in the same vibe as the earlier films, Fetters said, “We’re going to try and make our own statement on that. The one thing about it is it’s been made three other times, so you know, my draft of it was much more about trying to reconcile [the] modern music industry and how this, what is an iconic tale of a star’s rising and a star falling, can be kind of told in the modern day. And it’s really how much – not necessarily how much people change, it’s how much the industry’s changed and how much trying to make it [has changed]… It’s disconcerting how similar it is to get to the top as it was before, but there’s a lot of new in this story. It’s not just going to be a derivative kind of remake.”
He also said, “If it’s not Beyoncé and Russell, it will be that age range, I would imagine. That’s who it’s written for… It’s not going to end up having Zac Efron and someone… It’s going to be that age range [as before].”
