When word hit that Kevin Smith was aiming for the Oscars with a qualifying theatrical run for his divisive film, Red State , critics split over his perceived goals and, more specifically, the financial terms of his week-long engagement at L.A.’ s beloved, family-run New Beverly Cinema . Reached for comment, Smith explained his award season intent and why he’s charging $20 for a screening and Q&A at a theater where you can get a double feature for $7 every night, often with an amazing Q&A for free.
Relativity Media sends word today that it has acquired Machine Gun Preacher , the Marc Forster-directed, Gerard Butler-starring biopic about a drug dealer-turned-man of God who becomes a crusader for refugee children in East Africa. And thus did the studio — with its Sept. 23 limited release date (and presumed Toronto Film Festival debut) — and its partners at Lionsgate enter the awards hunt. Full details about the film and its rollout are below.
It may seem like some cruel joke, but this past weekend marked the midway point of 2011. Where has the time gone!? Actually, don’t answer that rhetorical question — there will be plenty of time for looking back on the first six months of the year in the coming days here at Movieline. Instead, click open your Google Calendars and mark off the nine most important dates to remember for the rest of the year.
The film world awoke this morning to news that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had reformulated its Best Picture Oscar rules for the second time in as many years, allowing for anywhere from five to 10 nominees depending on a film’s percentage of first-place votes. This is brilliant. It will also fail to fix what’s fundamentally wrong with the Oscars.
Last summer, Ridley Scott and Last King of Scotland director Kevin McDonald teamed up with YouTube for a “historic global experiment” that would work like this: You send them some video of your activities on July 24, 2010 (a Saturday) and they would edit the best footage into a documentary film about the world’s events that day, credit you as a co-director and premiere it at the Sundance Film Festival under the title Life in a Day . Finally, the trailer has arrived. Let’s take a look!
A day after Tim Hetherington was tragically killed while covering the ongoing conflict in Libya, a final interview with the acclaimed war photographer and documentarian has surfaced. Conducted a few weeks ago, Hetherington discussed the difficulty and uncertainty of making a documentary in a war-torn country.
A day after Tim Hetherington was tragically killed while covering the ongoing conflict in Libya, a final interview with the acclaimed war photographer and documentarian has surfaced. Conducted a few weeks ago, Hetherington discussed the difficulty and uncertainty of making a documentary in a war-torn country.
Alexandra Lenas has officially changed Sean Parker’s relationship status. Parker, the co-founder of Napster and the founding president of Facebook portrayed by Justin Timberlake in The Social Network , is engaged, according to his rep. He recently popped the question to Lenas, a New York-based singer/songwriter. Here’s a photo of them from the Oscars earlier this winter. Congratulations! Who doesn’t LIKE a nice story such as this?
Coming Soon is reporting that Sam Raimi has officially cast James Franco as the titular, fast-talking conman in Oz, The Great and Powerful, his adult-tinged prequel to the Wizard of Oz . And errant ballerina Mila Kunis is also coming aboard at the witch Glendora; no word as to whether she is a good witch or a bad witch. It’s long been rumored but I think Franco is great choice for a silver-tongued scamster — after all, didn’t he con us all into thinking he’d be able to host the Oscars? [ ComingSoon ]
RPattz will debut exclusive ‘Water for Elephants’ clip and answer fan questions live Friday at 8:56 p.m. ET on MTV.com. By Eric Ditzian Robert Pattinson Photo: MTV News What else can we say about Robert Pattinson’s #2 MTV moment other than “glitter lube”? All week, we’ve been ticking off our favorite RPattz moments as we count down the hours until “MTV First: Robert Pattinson,” a 30-minute conversation in which the 24-year-old actor will be answering your Twitter questions, goes live Friday at 8:56 p.m. ET. We’ve touched on our initial visit to talk to him on set in 2008 and his first trip to the Oscars the next year. Momentous occasions, all. And now, here we are: glitter lube. Allow us to explain: As “Twilight” shape-shifted from a wildly popular book series into a global box-office juggernaut, the franchise has branched out into all sorts of ancillary gear: clothing and jewelry lines, board games, bed sets, Halloween costumes, makeup, posters, dolls, lunch boxes and, well, the list goes on. And on. As in: Pillows? Really?! So when we caught up with Pattinson in the spring of 2010, while he was promoting “Eclipse,” we wanted to know if there was a piece of merchandise that truly perplexed and entertained him. “I like the glitter lube stuff. I thought that was really funny,” he said, laughing. “I was just like, ‘I did not sign that! Where is the paper?’ I think, yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s glitter — I think it’s lube.” Ever the goofball, Rob didn’t leave it there. “I’ve got a dispenser,” he joked. “I just have it on my hands. ‘Yeah, it’s nice to meet you!’ and it’s like, ‘Wow! It works!’ ” Don’t miss “MTV First: Robert Pattinson” this Friday at 8:56 p.m. ET on MTV and MTV.com. Tune in to see RPattz introduce a new “Water for Elephants” clip, followed by a live 30-minute interview on MTV.com. Tweet questions using the hashtag #askrob to get in the conversation! Related Videos Get Ready For ‘MTV First: Robert Pattinson’ RPattz Being RPattz: Our Favorite Pattinson Quotes
