Polanski 'Deeply Touched' by Best Director Oscar

PARIS (Reuters) - Film director Roman Polanski said on Tuesday he was deeply touched by winning an Oscar for best director for his Holocaust drama "The Pianist" because the film drew on his personal experiences.

"I am deeply touched to have received the Oscar for best director for a film which recounts events which are so close to my personal experience, events which helped me to understand that art can transcend pain," he said in a brief statement.

"I thank the members of the academy with all my heart for this magnificent reward," Polanski said.

Polanski, who fled the United States for France in 1978 as he was about to be sentenced to prison for having sex with a 13-year-old girl, faces arrest if he sets foot in the United States and could not attend the Oscar ceremony on Sunday night.

His statement did not mention his legal troubles or raise the prospect of working in Hollywood once again.

"The Pianist" is based on the memoirs of Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish Jewish musician who survived Nazi-occupied Warsaw, but it also draws heavily on Polanski's own childhood Holocaust experiences.

The 69-year-old director was born in France to Jewish parents but returned to Poland before World War II, during which time his mother died in a concentration camp.

"The Pianist," which won the Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival, also earned its star, Adrien Brody, an Oscar for best actor.

Polanski was previously nominated for directing the 1974 film "Chinatown" and the 1979 drama "Tess" and received a screenwriting nomination for "Rosemary's Baby."

Today's New Releases

There is some great rock and roll coming down the pike today. New discs from Linkin Park, The Exies and The Cardigans are very much worth your time.

Oh, and there is a new Celine Dion CD out today too! (Like I give a rat's ass!)

:)

Anyway, here are the new CD releases for Tuesday March 25, 2003:

* 702 Star (Motown)
* ADRIAN SHERWOOD Never Trust A Hippy (Real World/Narada)
* AFRO CELTS Seed (Real World/Narada)
* AIR City Reading: The Western Story (Virgin)
* AMANDA PEREZ Angel (Virgin)
* AMY SKY With This Kiss: A Romance Collection (Cafe Records)
* BLUE One Love (Virgin)
* BRIAN MCKNIGHT U-Turn (Motown)
* CARDIGANS Long Gone Before Daylight (Stockholm)
* CELINE DION One Heart (Sony)
* EVERCLEAR Volvo Driving Soccer Mom (CD Single) (Capitol)
* F-MINUS Wake Up Screaming (Hellcat)
* IDLEWILD The Remote Part (Capitol)
* IGBY GOES DOWN OST Igby Goes Down OST (Navarre)
* JAH CURE Ghetto Life (VP)
* JAMES LAST A World Of Music (Eagle Records/EMI Canada)
* JOHN DIGWEED Stark Raving Mad (Red Distribution)
* JOHN MCDERMOTT My Forever Friend (EMI)
* LES NUBIANS One Step Forward (Virgin)
* LINKIN PARK Meteora (Warner)
* LISA MARIE PRESLEY Lights Out (CD Single) (Capitol)
* LMS Straight From The Root (VP)
* MICHELLE CHAMBERS BAND One Kiss (Sextant Records)
* NATARAJXT Ocean Birds (Nutone)
* NO COMMENT Candles In The Air (Sextant Records)
* NOAM CHOMSKY Distorted Morality (DVD Video) (Epitaph)
* NOFX Regaining Unconsciousness (EP) (Epitaph)
* PINK FLOYD Dark Side Of The Moon (30th Anniversary Reissue) (EMI)
* PLACEBO Sleeping With Ghosts (Virgin)
* PLUMB Beautiful Lumps Of Coal (Curb)
* RINGO STARR Ringorama (Koch)
* ROBBIE ROBERTSON Classic Masters (Capitol)
* ROLLER Impossibly Real (Linus Entertainment)
* ROSANNE CASH Rules Of Travel (Capitol/EMI)
* STACIE ORRICO Stacie Orrico (Virgin)
* STEVE WARINER Greatest Hits (Capitol)
* THE EXIES Inertia (Virgin)
* TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS The Last DJ (CD/DVD) (Warner)
* UNCLE TUPELO Anodyne (Remastered) (Rhino)
* VANESSA-MAE The Best Of Vanessa Mae (EMI)
* VIEW FROM THE TOP OST View From The Top OST (Curb)

War delays Meg Ryan film release

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Paramount Pictures said it has postponed the upcoming release of the Meg Ryan boxing comedy "Against the Ropes" because TV coverage of the war in Iraq could make it difficult to publicize the film.

"Our campaign was poised to go on air and we became concerned that our message would be lost amidst the current war coverage," studio spokeswoman Nancy Kirkpatrick said Friday in a statement.

The movie, about a woman boxing manager trying to succeed in the male-dominated sport, was originally set for release April 25. No future release date was set.

"We will reschedule the release once there is a return to normalcy in the media," Kirkpatrick said.

Cherry's War Rant Not A Hit With Hockey Night In Canada Viewers

TORONTO (CP) -- Don Cherry's pro-American rant on the war in Iraq wasn't a hit with Hockey Night In Canada viewers nor apparently with the CBC itself.

"The CBC does not feel Hockey Night In Canada is the appropriate place for discussion on the war in Iraq," CBC spokeswoman Ruth-Ellen Soles said Monday.

Soles says CBC Sports executive director Nancy Lee and Hockey Night In Canada executive producer Joel Darling spoke to Cherry, the star of Coach's Corner, and co-host Ron MacLean on Monday.

As of Monday morning, the CBC says it had received about 1,000 e-mails reacting to Saturday night's Coach's Corner, with about 60 per cent going against Cherry and 40 per cent favouring him.

MacLean could be in more hot water than Cherry, who at first refused to get into the subject of war, saying "I don't want to go anywhere (with that subject)." But MacLean persisted, saying: "Everybody wants to know what you think."

It started with Cherry commenting on Montreal Canadiens fans booing the American national anthem last Thursday before a game against the New York Islanders.

Cherry, wearing a tie emblazoned with U.S. colours, apologized on behalf of Canadians, saying that "years of pride went down the drain" with Habs fans' behaviour.

Cherry also went at it with MacLean over the war in Iraq, chiding the Canadian government for its "lack of support to our American friends."

"I hate to see them go it alone. We have a country that comes to our rescue, and we're just riding their coattails," Cherry said.

MacLean stood firm that it was Canada's right not to go.

"Why attack Iraq if they haven't attacked you?" MacLean said.

Calls to MacLean's home and Cherry's agent weren't immediately returned Monday.

Both Lee and Darling were said to be out of the office Monday and not available for comment.

"I know they were going to address it but I don't know what form that discussion took," Soles said.

DVD Features:
* Contains all 8 original video programs on 4 DVDs
* Bonus disc of rare and never-before-seen footage, including:
* Recollections (June 1994): Paul, George, and Ringo spend a summer's day together singing, playing and warmly remembering the early days
* Back at Abbey Road (May 1995): Paul, George, and Ringo at Abbey Road Studios with George Martin, play back the multi-tracks of some of their classic recordings and reveal the inventive techniques used during the original sessions
* Recording "Free as a Bird" & "Real Love": Paul, George, and Ringo, along with Jeff Lynne discuss the story behind these recordings - includes intimate footage of them at work in the studio
* Real Love Video: The video not screened as part of the original Anthology series, now in glorious 5.1 surround sound
* Compiling the Anthology Albums: Paul, George, Ringo, and George Martin talk about how the three Anthology double albums were compiled
* Making the "Free as a Bird" video: An intriguing insight from director Joe Pytka into how the Grammy Award winning video was created
* Production Team: The team behind the Anthology series discuss how the programmes were made
* Newly mixed in 5.1 surround sound with picture restoration
* Number of discs: 5

Enjoy!

Also Out Today!

The second best new release out today is:

Futurama Volume One- The show's first 13 episodes plus several bonus features. (Katey Sagal (voice), Billy West (voice), John Di Maggio (voice))

And then there is this stuff too:

Maid In Manhattan- Cinderella tale of maid who catches the eye of a politician. (Jennifer Lopez, Ralph Fiennes, Natasha Richardson)

Jackass: The Movie- MTV dangerous stunt show stretched out to feature length. (Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O , Jason "Wee-Man" Acuna)

Friday After Next- Craig and Day Day's new crib gets robbed. (Ice Cube, Mike Epps, Don "DC" Curry)

Ghost Ship- Salvage crew must pull in a haunted ship. (Julianna Margulies, Gabriel Byrne, Ron Eldard)

Femme Fatale- Jewel thief double-crosses team. (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, Antonio Banderas, Sandrine Bonnaire)

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: First Season- Entire first season of CSI, 23 first run-episodes. (William Peterson, Marg Helgenberger, George Eads)

I'm With Lucy- A newly single woman is set up for a series of blind dates. (Monica Potter, Julianne Nicholson, John Hannah)

Killing Me Softly- A scientist takes a deadly risk with a new love. (Heather Graham, Joseph Fiennes, Natascha McElhone)

Lady Jayne Killer- A female assassin runs from the mob and the LAPD. (Erika Eleniak, James Remar, Adam Baldwin)

Porn Star: The Legend Of Ron Jeremy-A look inside the world of the unlikely porn star. (Ron Jeremy, Seymore Butts, Larry Flynt)

Paul Simon Kind Of An Eminem Fan

Paul Simon may have lost to Eminem at the Oscars, but he's not holding any grudges. Simon and Eminem were both nominated for best original song at Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony--Simon for "Father And Daughter" from The Wild Thornberrys Movie, and Eminem for "Lose Yourself" from 8 Mile, in which he also starred. Eminem won.

Simon is only somewhat familiar with Eminem's music, but he likes what he's heard. "I didn't hear this album (the 8 Mile soundtrack), but I heard the one before this (The Marshall Mathers LP)," Simon said. "He was up for a Grammy at the same time I was--you know, it was the year that Steely Dan won a Grammy. He was up for best album and I was up, so I listened to that album, and I thought it was good."

Simon, who attended and performed at the Oscars, is currently recording his next studio album in New York City.

TOON TIME

Oscar winner William Goldman (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) adapting DC Comics' Shazam! for New Line for a possible Christmas 2004 release, reports Variety. Shazam was the wizard who transformed mild-mannered Billy Batson into Captain Marvel.

The Right Stuff: Special Edition Is On The Way!

The 2-disc set streets on June 10th (SRP $26.99). The film will be presented in anamorphic widescreen video (1.85:1), with Dolby Digital 5.0 audio. There will be audio commentary (with director Philip Kaufman, producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff, cinematographer Caleb Deschanel and cast members Jeff Goldblum, Veronica Cartwright, Scott Glenn, Ed Harris, Dennis Quaid and Barbara Hershey), 13 deleted scenes (including Trudy's Dream, Chimp and Center Fuse, Milkshake Connecting, Second Convolution, Specimen Request, Glen Gets Out of Centerfuge, Astronauts Walk Down Hall, Gus and Trudy at Motel, Dayroom Liaison Man Speech, Blood/Mission Control, New Congress Lift, NASA Man "Socks" and Trudy Wakes), and some 50 minutes worth of documentary material introduced by author Thomas Wolfe, including interviews with Ed Harris, Scott Glenn, Barbara Hershey and Dennis Quaid, three of the real Mercury Seven astronauts (Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper and Wally Schirra) and test pilot Chuck Yeager. VERY cool!

Coming Soon To A Store Near Us All

Two days after the Oscars and a Best Actress trophy for Nicole Kidman, Paramount Home Entertainment has announced a June 24th street date for "The Hours."

Available in separate anamorphic widescreen and full screen releases, each includes a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track, an introduction by the filmmakers, audio commentary by director Stephen Daldry and novelist Michael Cunningham, a second audio commentary by stars Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman (their first!), the featurettes "Three Women," "The Mind And Times Of Virginia Woolf," "The Music Of The Hours" and "The Lives Of Mrs. Dalloway" and the theatrical trailer. Retail is $29.95.

Debuting a week earlier is the cop drama Narc, which didn't quite gain the Oscar momentum generated by The Hours. This one will hit shelves on June 17th also in separate anamorphic widescreen and full screen versions, plus a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track, audio commentary by writer and director Joe Carnahan and editor John Gilroy, the featurettes "Narc: Making The Deal," "Narc: Shooting Up" and "Narc: The Visual Trip" featurettes, and the trailer. Retail is also $29.95.

Big Blue Marble

What happened to Dark Blue? It starred Kurt Russell and seemed to have a marketing campaign fit for a king, but only last a couple of weeks in theaters. Now you can make up your own mind on June 29th when MGM Home Entertainment will release a special edition DVD with plenty of extras. The release includes 2.35;1 anamorphic widescreen and full screen transfers, English and French 5.1 Dolby surround tracks, an audio commentary by director Ron Shelton, the "Internal Affairs" featurette and a still gallery. Retail is $26.95.

MGM has also announced their July catalog lineup, which includes many foreign favorites. On July 1st comes a new version of Luc Besson's favorite La Femme Nikita. Featuring a new 2.35;1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and French and English 5.1 Dolby surround tracks, extras include the featurettes "Revealed: The Making of La Femme Nikita" and "The Music of Nikita" featurettes, the "Programming Nikita" interactive map, a still gallery, and trailers. Retail is $24.95. MGM will also finally release that special edition of Wim Wenders' Wings of Desire on July 1st. Featuring a new 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and German and English 5.1 Dolby surround tracks, extras include an audio commentary with Wenders and Peter Falk, the "Angels Among Us" documentary, deleted scenes with optional commentary, an interactive map and trailers. Retail is also $24.95.

Wonder Woman Gets a Makeover

NEW YORK - Her bullet-deflecting bracelets are gone, her golden tiara has disappeared and her long, flowing locks have been shorn.

After 60 years of fighting evil, Wonder Woman has a new, edgy look, complete with short, spiky hair and a camouflage bustier. The new Wonder Woman will appear in this Wednesday's DC Comics issue.

With characteristic finesse, a somewhat shocked Wonder Woman looks in the mirror and takes her new 'do in stride: "It's hair. It will grow back."

The makeover is part of Wonder Woman's latest six-part adventure, a harrowing scenario in which she gets amnesia and must fight demons without her superpower strength. Luckily, her brains out-muscle the brawn.

In Issue 190, Wonder Woman decides she must go undercover if she is to survive her ordeal and reclaim her identity.

"She's bright and when she realizes she's getting attacked she thinks she probably ought not to look like herself," said Wonder Woman writer Walter Simonson of DC Comics. Simonson expects readers to have mixed reactions to the new look.

To foil her enemies, a slight trim won't do. So, Wonder Woman chops her hair, dons a pair of glasses (a nod to Clark Kent and his superhero alter ego Superman) and trades in her star-spangled leotard for the camouflage bustier.

The look is more boot camp than beauty queen.

"In this series, she has plenty of battles and she looks like a soldier," said illustrator Jerry Ordway. "Here we have someone who is a fighting machine. She's suddenly put in a situation and she can handle herself."

An identity crisis — the short hair, the military garb? Could Wonder Woman be a metaphor for our post-Sept. 11 selves?

Although the creative minds behind Wonder Woman don't want to make too much out of the similarities between their heroine's struggles and the current global crisis, they do acknowledge the parallels.

"After 9-11 a lot of people went back to think about who we are and to do some soul-searching," Simonson said. "But remember, Wonder Woman's specific mission is to bring peace; she's a heroine who fights for peace."

Wartime Oscar Ratings Hit Record Low

NEW YORK - The wartime Academy Awards telecast on ABC Sunday night was the least-watched Oscar ceremony since Nielsen Media Research began keeping records in 1974.

An estimated 33.1 million people watched "Chicago" win best picture, Nielsen said on Monday, down sharply from the 41.8 million who watched the Oscars last year.

The Oscars toned down the glitz Sunday night at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood because of the war with Iraq, and going into the weekend, there had been some question whether the ceremony would be held. That took its toll, said Larry Hyams, ABC's chief researcher.

"It was such a special instance, it's hard to speculate what it was beyond the war coverage," Hyams said Monday. He noted that viewership has been sharply up for cable news networks covering the war full time.

The Academy Awards is often the most popular entertainment program of the year, but even last month's finale of "Joe Millionaire," with 40 million viewers, beat it this year.

The previous Oscar lows came in 1987, when 37.2 million people watched "Platoon" win best picture, and 37.8 million in 1986, when "Out of Africa" won.

Oscar's record was the 55.2 million viewers in 1998, when "Titanic" won.