VENICE (Reuters) – The Venice film festival on Friday honored Hong Kong director John Woo, one of the few Asian filmmakers to enjoy box office success in Hollywood as well as at home. The 64-year-old was awarded a lifetime achievement Golden Lion at the world’s oldest film festival on the same day it showcased his latest film “Reign of Assassins,” which he co-directed with Su Chao-Pin and also produced. Woo, best known for his choreographed action sequences, was active in Hong Kong during the 1970s and 1980s, and in 1989 he released “The Killer,” which drew the attention of U.S. filmmakers and helped him make the jump to Hollywood. He moved there in 1993, and directed Jean-Claude Van Damme in “Hard Target” the same year. Three years later he made “Broken Arrow” starring John Travolta, and teamed up with the actor again in 1997 in “Face/Off,” a financial and critical hit. In 2000, Woo directed Tom Cruise in “Mission: Impossible II,” which was the world’s biggest earner that year, but his next two U.S. projects failed to match that success. He has since returned to China to direct. “Since I’d been working in Hollywood for over 16 years and learned a lot … I think it is about time to bring what I have learned in Hollywood into Asia,” Woo told reporters in Venice. “On the other hand, I find we have so many good stories from our culture. “I work in quite a few foreign countries and I find people in general don’t know much about our culture and history. Some people are only familiar with our kung fu films. “That’s why I made a decision to make a movie like ‘Red Cliff’ and produce a movie like of Reign of Assassins,” he added. “It doesn’t mean I’ve given up Hollywood. I still have several projects in Hollywood and I would love to work both in China and the United States.” Red Cliff is a two-part period epic that is billed as the most expensive ever Asian-financed movie. It also broke box office records in the region. Asked how he felt about being officially recognized by the Venice festival, Woo replied: “When (festival director) Marco Mueller mentioned he was giving me this lifetime achievement award, my first reaction was of shock. The second reaction was I thought he was kidding.” Reign of Assassins, set in ancient China, stars Michelle Yeoh as a skilled assassin who is on a mission to return the remains of a mystical Buddhist monk, believed to hold special powers, to their resting place. Along the way, she falls in love with a man named Jiang, whose father was killed by her gang. Unaware that he also is a trained martial artist, love blossoms but tensions arise as the truth of her past unfolds. (Editing by Steve Addison) [...]
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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “Social media” is among today’s most popular catch phrases thanks to the success of, among other things, networking website Facebook — the favored way for today’s youth to communicate on a global level. Now Facebook is the subject of what’s expected to be the fall’s most anticipated movie, “The Social Network,” which is among a slew of titles including “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” and the Clint Eastwood-directed “Hereafter” that Hollywood will usher into theaters this fall movie season. With the summer season coming to an official close over this weekend’s Labor Day holiday in the United States, it’s back to school for kids, back to work for adults, back to dramas in movies, and onto Oscar season for Hollywood. “It’s a heavy, early fall,” said Entertainment Weekly movie writer Dave Karger. “Once Labor Day hits, things get pretty heavy, pretty quickly.” There is the Ben Affleck-directed bank heist film “The Town,” which opens September 17 with an all-star cast that includes Affleck himself, “Mad Men’s” Jon Hamm and “The Hurt Locker” Oscar nominee, Jeremy Renner. One week later on September 24, Michael Douglas is back as shifty financier Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone’s “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.” Douglas, who won an Oscar with Gekko in the original 1987 “Wall Street,” reprises his role alongside a young cast that also includes Shia LaBoeuf and Carey Mulligan. “The movie is a hell of a ride and you don’t know what’s going to happen in the end,” Stone told Reuters. “Gekko is a charming devil. You never know what he’s going to do next.” That same weekend, Ryan Reynolds plays a man trapped inside a coffin with only a cell phone and a lighter in “Buried,” a breakout success at his past Sundance Film Festival. SOCIAL-MINDED MOVIE “Social Network,” starring Jessie Eisenberg and Justin Timberlake, opens October 1 and recounts the story of how the website was founded by a college student in his dorm room. Of course, just who came up with the idea for Facebook depends on which kid you talk to. That’s why filmmaker David Fincher tells the story from multiple viewpoints to find out how a young techie named Mark Zuckerberg became a visionary while gaining friends, enemies and lawsuits. Just like Facebook can be a place for drama and betrayal, expect plenty of that in “Social Network.” “It’s an exciting movie because it tells a complicated story in a very entertaining way,” says the film’s star, Jesse Eisenberg. “There are several characters claiming to be right. In a way, they all are.” Joining “Social Network” on October 1 is “Let Me In,” about a viciously bullied kid who teams up with another outcast that happens to be a vampire. On October 8, Robert De Niro and Edward Norton test each other as a parole officer and murderer, respectively, in “Stone,” and that same weekend, “Secretariat,” about the famed Triple Crown-winning racehorse gallops into theaters. Ben Affleck appears on-screen again October 22 as a man whose world crumbles when he gets laid off in “The Company Men,” another past Sundance flick. That same weekend, Clint Eastwood shows people dealing with tragedy in “Hereafter” with a cast that includes Matt Damon and Bryce Dallas Howard. Whereas the summer brought animated family fare like “Toy Story 3,” silly comedies such as Will Ferrell’s “The Other Guys” and mindless action like “The Expendables,” Hollywood tends to put on a more serious face in the fall. Instead of movies for kids, there is a documentary about kids — more to the point, about the sad state of the U.S. public education system and what might be done to fix it in the documentary “Waiting for Superman.” Realism gets a dramatic make-over with “127 Hours” on November 5. Filmmaker Danny Boyle, who last directed Oscar winner “Slumdog Millionaire,” takes on the true story of mountain climber Aron Ralston (James Franco) who is trapped in a Utah canyon for five days when a boulder falls on his arm. His choice is to die — or to free himself by cutting off his… [...] LONDON – Singer Cheryl Cole and her footballer husband Ashley Cole have been granted a divorce. The celebrity couple did not attend the London court hearing Friday where a judge approved the split. The divorce becomes final after six weeks and a day, with the granting of a second decree. The glittery pair are British tabloid favorites. They married in 2006 and announced their separation in February. The case was listed only by initials — CAC v. AC. But a clerk read out “Cole v. Cole” to a courtroom empty except for media. Cheryl Cole is a member of the pop group “Girls Aloud” and a judge on the TV talent show “The X Factor.” Ashley Cole plays for Chelsea and England’s national football (soccer) team. [...] LONDON (AFP) – The four-year marriage of pop star Cheryl Cole and England footballer Ashley Cole is officially over after the High Court granted the singer a divorce on Friday. The Girls Aloud performer, 27, brought an end to the troubled relationship on grounds of unreasonable behaviour following tabloid rumours concerning Chelsea defender Ashley’s infidelities. Earlier in proceedings the X Factor judge had maintained that she would only seek her share of the couple’s 22 million pound fortune and wanted the process to be “quick and painless.” Ashley, 29, was part of England’s dismal World Cup showing in South Africa over the summer while Cheryl has been spending time with dancer friend Derek Hough as she recovers from malaria, picked up while on holiday in Africa. It is still to be resolved who will keep the six million pound marital home in Surrey or who will keep the couple’s chihuahuas, Coco and Buster. The High Court issued the decree nisi on Friday morning but neither Ashley or Cheryl were present in court for the verdict. [...] NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The first song Brooks & Dunn ever sang together has become their last. The country music duo closed out a 20-year career at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Thursday night with their 1991 debut single, “Brand New Man,” during the encore. The sold-out show was the final stop on their Last Rodeo Tour and doubled as a fundraiser for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Kix Brooks said early in the night, “This isn’t a funeral. We did show up to party.” They ran through many of their 23 No. 1 hits, including “Neon Moon,” “My Maria,” “Red Dirt Road” and “Boot Scootin’ Boogie.” Reba McEntire made the only guest appearance, singing a few lines during “Cowgirls Don’t Cry.” Both Brooks and Ronnie Dunn joked about the reasons for their split. Brooks blamed it on his crazy concert ideas, like picking old songs and hoping the crowd would help if he forgot the words. Dunn said he was jealous of the cowboy hats Brooks got to wear all these years. Dunn explained that it was the reason he got a tattoo of the word “Cowboy” on his right forearm. Brooks acknowledged those in the audience who played a part in the duo’s success, including songwriters and people behind the scenes. In a nod to the fans, he said, “Most importantly, to the people who paid our rent for the last twenty years, all I can say is, ‘Thanks.’” Walking off stage for the final time, Brooks gave Dunn a playful push. The duo has sold more than 30 million albums and won more than 80 major industry awards. __ Online: http://www.brooks-dunn.com/ [...] LOS ANGELES – Twentieth Century Fox’s “Machete” is set to slice up the competition as director Robert Rodriguez’s star-studded extravaganza will likely dominate the weekend with a Friday through Monday total of around $16 million. With co-star Lindsay Lohan all over the news lately and the film’s theme of illegal immigration at the forefront of a national debate, this decidedly over-the-top and very nonpolitically correct action-comedy hybrid should give the summer a proper and bloody send off as we move into the more subdued fall movie season. Second place will likely go to Focus Features’ “The American,” starring George Clooney. The film opened on Wednesday with around $1.7 million and this portends a Friday through Monday total in the mid-$15 million range and a first six-day gross of around $18 million. Clooney is one of the most popular actors working today and is a true movie star. Director Anton Corbijn is a Dutch photographer and director well known for shooting highly stylized music videos for U2, Depeche Mode, Coldplay and Nirvana. With an expected four-day gross of around $12 million to $13 million, Warner Bros.’ “Going the Distance” pairs the real life couple of Drew Barrymore and Justin Long in a romantic comedy that will be embraced by the date crowd while giving general audiences something light and fun to enjoy in a marketplace loaded with intense fare. In fourth place with $11 million to $12 million will likely be Sony’s “Takers.” The PG-13 bank-heist thriller, which won last weekend’s box office derby by a nose, is doing well mid-week and has enjoyed solid word-of-mouth since its debut last Friday. Paul Walker and Chris Brown lead a young ensemble cast that is successfully hitting all the key demographics. This sets the stage for the sophomore weekend of Lionsgate’s “The Last Exorcism” to possess a typical-for-the-genre second weekend drop in the 60 percent-plus range and a four-day gross of just under $10 million, thus rounding out the top five. ___ Paul Dergarabedian is president of the Box Office Division of Hollywood.com. and has been providing box office information to The Associated Press for nearly two decades. ___ Online: http://www.Hollywood.com/boxoffice [...] NEW YORK – Brendan Fraser and Denis O’Hare will star in the comedy “Elling.” Producers announced Thursday the casting for “Elling,” which will arrive on Broadway in November. It will begin performances at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on Nov. 2 and open Nov. 21. “Elling,” adapted for the English stage by Simon Bent, is based on the Norwegian novels of Ingvar Ambjornsen. The books, about a pair of roommates, were previously made into the 2001 Oscar-nominated movie by the same name. O’Hare will play the compulsive title character and Fraser will play the enthusiastic Kjell. It will be Fraser’s Broadway debut, though the actor has performed on the stage in London. Producers say Jennifer Coolidge and Richard Easton will co-star. The production premiered in London. [...] MIAMI – Paris Hilton may owe investors in her 2006 movie “Pledge This!” about $160,000 for failing to do enough promotion. U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno in Miami ruled Thursday that the 29-year-old celebrity socialite didn’t live up to her contract when refusing interviews with publications in Russia and the United Kingdom. Hilton’s spokeswoman had no immediate comment. Moreno preliminarily valued those lost opportunities at $160,000. But the judge wants more information about Hilton’s contract before finalizing the amount. The investors initially wanted $8.3 million. The judge’s decision follows Hilton’s arrest last weekend in Las Vegas on cocaine possession charges. Hilton told police the small amount of cocaine was not hers. [...] NEW YORK – Rap and rock will collide once again — this time in a video game. Fans of the hit game “Rock Band” will get a chance to jam to some hip-hop, thanks to Snoop Dogg. He’s the first rap artist to be featured in the video game, which already has songs from top artists like Jimi Hendrix, The Who, AC/DC and Green Day. Eight Snoop Dogg tracks will appear in the “Rock Band” music store. The game will be released Tuesday. Some of Snoop Doggs’s songs were reproduced for the game. They will include such popular hits as “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” “Who Am I (What’s My Name)?” and “Sensual Seduction.” ___ Online: http://www.rockband.com http://www.snoopdogg.com [...] |
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