Prince CD Sparks Debate
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - Instead of "Musicology," Prince should have gone back into his catalog and named his new album "Controversy."
That is what he is once again stirring up as he distributes "Musicology" free to fans at his shows. Nielsen SoundScan is counting those copies as sales.
Of the 191,000 copies of "Musicology" Nielsen SoundScan tracked for the week ending April 18, 12,600 -- 6% -- were counted from his April 21 concert in Columbia, S.C.
The album hit No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Even without the concert CDs, Prince would have achieved that chart position.
While Nielsen SoundScan traditionally has captured sales at concerts, it usually does so by counting albums sold at merchandising tables. This is the first time it has counted sales where a concert attendee gets an album as part of the ticket price.
Every show on the Prince tour, which opened in March and is expected to last until August, likely will see copies of "Musicology" distributed to attendees. To date, 250,000 copies have been distributed during the tour, reports L. Londell McMillan, Prince's attorney.
CHALLENGING THE STATUS QUO
From McMillan's point of view, Nielsen SoundScan's first-week sales should have included all the albums distributed through the tour so far.
With this distribution method, Prince "is challenging the status quo," McMillan says.
While Prince is applauded for using that unique channel, label sales and distribution executives appear split on whether the sales should be included in Nielsen SoundScan totals.
"I am violently against this," one senior distribution executive says. "This is worse than 49 cent singles. The charts are supposed to represent what consumers are spending money on. With the Prince album, there is no choice."
Another distribution executive says, "It's opening Pandora's box. It will be one more way for record companies to have to spend too much money in an attempt to influence a chart, and you can imagine that everyone will dive in and have a CD with a purchase of everything, let alone concert tickets."
But Phil Quartararo, executive VP of EMI Recorded Music North America, disagrees, saying Prince's concert sales should absolutely be counted.
"A sale is a sale," he says. "Our job is to put music in the consumers' hands, when, where and how they want it. The music company of the future has to be able to sell through conventional means as well as nontraditional ways."
Sony Music Entertainment distributes the new album. In a statement, the company said, "To ensure that SoundScan numbers accurately reflect the realities of the marketplace, it makes sense that sales of 'Musicology' generated through ticket buys are included in their tally."
Nielsen SoundScan CEO Rob Sisco wonders what all the fuss is about.
He asks how the company could not count the concert sales. "The manufacturer was paid by the promoter, who is reselling the merchandise to the consumer," he says. "Given that there is a sale ... with the album ending up in the hands of the consumer, and we can confirm this, we feel we should count the sales."
Sisco notes that Prince's approach is new and carries a certain degree of controversy.
"This is an ongoing process," he says. "Our goal is to count every possible legitimate music sale but at the same time to engage in an open dialogue with the music industry on how best to accomplish that."
PRINCE SETS PACE
Meanwhile, Prince's "Musicology" move already is being duplicated.
According to a press release, Virgin Records, Clear Channel Entertainment and PromoWest will allow fans in select markets on the band Gomez's tour to "opt in" and buy the band's new album.
Fans can either buy a ticket to the show or pay $10 more to purchase a package that includes its "Split the Difference" album and exclusive downloads from the concert they attend.
Label executives mainly see heritage acts as being able to afford to duplicate the Prince strategy. In fact, some label executives already report that managers of such bands are fascinated by the concept.
"Take this to its logical conclusion: A dinosaur act that no longer sells records but does great live business can do a stadium tour over the summer and dominate the Billboard 200," one label executive says.
The debut week for "Musicology" represents Prince's largest sales week -- 191,000 copies -- since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991. His previous best SoundScan week was set in that same year, when his album with the New Power Generation, "Diamonds and Pearls," bowed at No. 5 with 172,000 copies.
Weekend Movies: a Crowded Field Ahead of 'Helsing'
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hollywood's major studios and one independent debut five films nationwide on Friday ahead of next week's big-budget vampire flick "Van Helsing," which will mark the unofficial start of 2004's summer movie season.
The summer is pivotal for filmmakers because it accounts for 30 percent to 40 percent of the annual box office tally, and this summer season is setting up to be crucial with talk of several movies in the mix costing $200 million or more.
Earlier this week, News Corp. Chief Operating Officer Peter Chernin called the $200 million films a "dirty secret" and said there are probably three or four movies debuting in the next six months that cost that much to make.
If one flops, "it will rock the industry to its foundation," he said at a Milken Institute conference.
None of the movies this week have budgets that big. "Van Helsing" may be another story. The new movies range from "Mean Girls," a dark comedy about high school social status aimed at young women, opening in 2,800 theaters, to family friendly "Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius" playing at just over 1,300 locations.
Tucked in between are romantic comedy "Laws of Attraction" and human cloning thriller "Godsend," both aimed at older audiences, as well as comedy "Envy," with stars Jack Black and Ben Stiller who find many fans among young men.
OPPOSITES ATTRACT
"Attraction," from Time Warner Inc. unit New Line Cinema, stars Pierce Brosnan and Julianne Moore, as a pair of mismatched attorneys -- opposites who attract -- both inside and outside the courtroom.
Brosnan sheds his action adventure armor as Bond and gets to play an ordinary man, while Moore, known mostly for work in indie films, takes on a role in a mainstream Hollywood comedy.
"A lot of us don't get to be superheroes like James Bond," she told Reuters in a recent interview. "But we do generally meet someone, fall in love with them and possibly marry them. That's something we all come into contact with."
"Attraction" is rated PG-13 for sexual content and language. Debuting in about 2500 theaters, it will likely face competition for older movie fans from "Godsend," which stars Robert De Niro, as well as last week's box office champ, "Man on Fire," starring Denzel Washington.
In Lions Gate-backed, "Godsend" -- rated PG-13 for violence and frightening images, sexuality and themes -- De Niro portrays a doctor and genetics specialist who has perfected a technique to clone humans. It is opening at 2300 locations.
Greg Kinnear and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos play a couple who have lost their young son and hire De Niro's Dr. Wells to make a clone in what turns out to be a pact with the devil.
Like "Attraction" and "Godsend," Paramount Pictures "Mean Girls" faces stiff competition from one of last week's debuts, "13 Going on 30." It, too, was aimed at young women and debuted at No. 2, close behind "Man on Fire."
EVIL AND GOOD
While "13 Going on 30" prompts a tear or two for sweetness, "Mean Girls" shows that teenage girls also can have a mean streak that can cause a few tears when feelings get hurt.
The movie stars Lindsay Lohan as a young woman named Cady who, after having been schooled in the wilds of Africa, enters the jungle of an American high school. There, she has to tame the beasts that roam the hallways in order to fit in.
With a screenplay by "Saturday Night Live" star Tina Fey and based on bestselling book "Queen Bees and Wannabees," "Mean Girls" has a solid pedigree behind it. It is rated PG-13 for sexual content, language and some teen partying.
In DreamWorks' "Envy," also rated PG-13 for language and sexual/crude humor, two neighbors are best friends until one strikes it rich with an invention that vaporizes dog poop. The inventor, Nick (Black), builds a mansion next to his jealous, poor buddy, Tim (Stiller). It debuts in about 2500 locations.
Finally, Film Foundry's "Bobby Jones" covers the early years of the golfer who is considered one of the game's best players as well as a caring man. "He was given a great talent, but he also embraced the responsibility of being a decent human," said Jim Caviezel.
Caviezel (Jesus in "The Passion of the Christ) plays the golfer as he battles a personal demon, his temper, as well as illness, to become a champion on and off the links.
"Bobby Jones" is rated PG for language.
'Spidey,' 'Potter' top summer films
LOS ANGELES -- A boy wizard, a student superhero and a newlywed ogre walk into a movie theater ...
No matter the punch line, Hollywood studios hope to laugh all the way to the ticket counter on the strength of those characters, lead players in the summer movie season's big three: "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," "Spider-Man 2" and "Shrek 2."
The computer-animated follow-up to 2001's blockbuster "Shrek" reunites the voice talents of Mike Myers as the lovable ogre, Cameron Diaz as his newly "ogrified" bride and Eddie Murphy as their motormouth donkey pal. The sequel debuts just before Memorial Day.
Arriving a couple of weeks later is the third "Harry Potter" flick, with Daniel Radcliffe returning as the young sorcerer, this time sought by a murderous wizard who escapes from a prison for conjurers.
And for Fourth of July weekend comes "Spider-Man 2," the film that has the best chance of catching "The Passion of the Christ" as 2004's biggest moneymaker.
"Spider-Man" shattered box-office records with a $114.8 million opening weekend in 2002 and went to become the year's top movie with $404 million.
The sequel pits Spider-Man against villain Doc Ock (Alfred Molina). Complicating matters, while moonlighting as a superhero, Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker is coping with life as a frazzled college kid, working two jobs and pining over girl-next-door Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst).
"He's a relatable superhero. He's a normal kid or human being who happens to be bitten by a spider," said Maguire of the gawky teen whose encounter with an irradiated arachnid gives him awesome powers. "He's a kid who goes through the usual stuff. Girl problems. ... His own selfish desires versus a greater responsibility. Questions we might all ask ourselves if we were in his position."
The summer season gets rolling in early May with "Van Helsing," the latest from writer-director Stephen Sommers, who scored hits in the same release date with 1999's "The Mummy" and its 2001 sequel "The Mummy Returns."
Sommers again borrows from the classic Universal horror tales of the 1930s, this time setting Bram Stoker's vampire hunter Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman) and a beautiful ally (Kate Beckinsale) against Dracula, the Wolf Man and Frankenstein's monster.
While sticking to movie-monster iconography (Frankenstein's creation still has a flat head and bolts in his neck, for example), Sommers sought to add human dimensions to each creature.
So Dracula's an immortal longing to father a true heir, Frankenstein's monster is a brutish outcast akin to Lenny from "Of Mice and Men," and the Wolf Man's "very much like an alcoholic or drug addict. He could be your best friend or neighbor, very noble and upright during the day, but at night ...," Sommers said.
"Anybody could make a movie about Van Helsing taking on the three monsters and killing them one at a time," Sommers said. "But I think we came up with a really fun story going beyond that and interweaving all the characters."
"Shrek 2" interweaves some new fairy-tale characters, including Puss-in-Boots (voiced by Antonio Banderas) and the ogre's disapproving in-laws (Julie Andrews and John Cleese) -- parents to Diaz's Princess Fiona.
"The parents' expectation is that Fiona would have met a handsome prince and stayed beautiful and lived happily ever after, so they are understandably a bit shocked when they meet Shrek," said Andrew Adamson, a director on both "Shrek" movies. "It's almost like a Shakespearean farce."
The third "Harry Potter" reunites key cast members, including Radcliffe as the title wizard and Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as his chums at Hogwarts School. Michael Gambon signs on as school patriarch Dumbledore, inheriting the role from the late Richard Harris, while Gary Oldman plays the escaped wizard.
Alfonso Cuaron took over as director from Chris Columbus, who oversaw the first two movies and remained a producer on the third. At two hours and 15 minutes, "Prisoner of Azkaban" is by far the shortest yet in the series, troubling news to young fans who want every stitch of action from J.K. Rowling's books translated to the screen.
With the first two films setting the stage, though, Cuaron was able to leap right into the action for the third, Columbus said.
"It's always a double-edged sword. Every kid who saw the movies wanted them to be longer and almost every adult wanted them shorter," Columbus said. "But I think this movie is so good that I don't think you'll get a lot of gripes."
Other action adventures for summer include "Troy," a tale of the ancient siege starring Brad Pitt as Greek warrior Achilles; the global-disaster flick "The Day After Tomorrow," with Dennis Quaid; Halle Berry's "Catwoman," featuring the DC Comics' character; an update of "The Manchurian Candidate," starring Denzel Washington; "Collateral," with Tom Cruise in the story of a hit man on a killing spree; Jackie Chan's "Around the World in 80 Days," a reprise of the Jules Verne classic, featuring a bit part by Arnold Schwarzenegger; and "I, Robot," with Will Smith in an adaptation of Isaac Asimov's tales.
Smith plays a detective in 2035, when robots have taken over trash-collecting, working mines and other grunt jobs to free humanity for higher pursuits. A man who mistrusts technology, Smith's character is on the trail of a robot he thinks committed a murder, an impossibility under Asimov's robot rules.
"We took the basic gist of the stories, that there are three laws of behavior that prevent robots from injuring human beings or allowing human beings to be injured," Smith said. "Because my character's had a bad experience with robots, he doesn't trust the three laws. Something intuitively in his mind tells him that the three laws don't work."
While "I, Robot" depicts a world moving toward technological perfection, "The Day After Tomorrow" presents a planet wracked by global warming, which causes cyclones, deep freezes, squalls and other catastrophes.
"This is the ultimate disaster movie," said Quaid, who plays a climatologist trying to save the world. "It's got everything. Tornadoes, floods, tidal waves, blizzards, hail storms with hail the size of bowling balls."
Also coming this summer: "King Arthur," starring Clive Owen as the legendary English ruler and Keira Knightley as Guinevere; "The Village," the latest creepfest from M. Night Shyamalan ("The Sixth Sense," "Signs"), starring Joaquin Phoenix, Sigourney Weaver, Adrien Brody and William Hurt; the monster smackdown "Alien Vs. Predator," featuring the two extraterrestrial beasts; "The Chronicles of Riddick," with Vin Diesel back as the sci-fi anti-hero from "Pitch Black"; "Thunderbirds," starring Bill Paxton in a live-action update of the cult TV puppet series about future rescue pilots; and "The Bourne Supremacy," with Matt Damon returning as the amnesiac spy from "The Bourne Identity."
Damon's Jason Bourne this time is framed for murder and on the run, and though his memories remain cloudy, he continues to find he possesses just the right skills to get out of any scrape.
"One of the hurdles we had on the first one was just the way I look. I don't look like your classic action guy," Damon said. "What we decided is, the more things I could do, the more believable and credible the character would be and the better the ride would be for the audience. So we just wanted to put me in as many situations as possible."
Lighthearted summer films include: "Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement," starring Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews in a follow-up to their 2001 summer hit; "The Stepford Wives," with Nicole Kidman, Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler and Christopher Walken in a black-comedy remake of the 1970s hit; "Garfield," a live-action and computer-animated adaptation of the comic strip, with Bill Murray providing the fat cat's voice; "Shall We Dance?" starring Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez and Susan Sarandon in a remake of the Japanese film about a businessman who falls in love with formal dancing; "A Cinderella Story," with Hilary Duff giving a contemporary spin to the fairy-tale romance; and "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy," featuring Will Ferrell as a '70s newsman facing off against a feminist colleague (Christina Applegate).
Still, summer is not all action and laughs.
A few classy films will be mixed in among the popcorn flicks.
Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg reunite for "The Terminal," the story of an Eastern European visitor who becomes a man without a country, stuck in the arrivals area at Kennedy airport after a coup in his home land leaves him without a valid passport. Catherine Zeta-Jones co-stars.
Robert Redford plays a kidnapped tycoon engaged in a socio-economic debate with his abductor (Willem Dafoe) in "The Clearing," which co-stars Helen Mirren.
Kevin Kline and Ashley Judd star in "De-Lovely," an elegant portrait of Cole Porter's hedonistic life. The film features a superstar musical lineup, with cameos by Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow, Alanis Morissette, Diana Krall and Natalie Cole singing Porter tunes.
"De-Lovely" opens on Porter as a dying old man suddenly transported to a theater where long-gone loved ones are the cast in a stage musical of his life.
The action then flits from more conventional film biography to fanciful musical sequences, including one in which Kline's Porter and legendary studio boss Louis B. Mayer break out in song on the MGM lot.
"It's sort of like that split second before you die," Kline said. "Only Cole Porter would have his life flash before him as a musical. The sheer theatricality of that.
How better for his life story to play out?"
Here are the highlights of Hollywood's summer film slate (Release dates are tentative, and some films play in limited release).
Late April:
BOBBY JONES: STROKE OF GENIUS: Jim Caviezel follows up "The Passion of the Christ" with a film biography of golf legend Bobby Jones.
ENVY: Buddies (Ben Stiller and Jack Black) wind up at odds after one strikes it rich on a crackpot invention. Barry Levinson directs.
GODSEND: A couple (Greg Kinnear and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos) clone their dead son, with harrowing results. Co-starring Robert De Niro.
LAWS OF ATTRACTION: Julianne Moore and Pierce Brosnan are rival divorce attorneys who fall for each other.
MEAN GIRLS: A teen (Lindsay Lohan) raised in Africa copes with high school culture clash when her family moves stateside.
THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD: A Depression-era beer baroness (Isabella Rossellini) stages an absurdist contest to find the world's saddest tunes.
May:
BAADASSSSS!: Mario Van Peebles stars as his dad, Melvin, in the story behind the black-power classic "Sweet Sweetback's Baad Asssss Song."
BREAKIN' ALL THE RULES: Dumped by his girlfriend, a man (Jamie Foxx) becomes a best-selling author on the art of breaking up.
COFFEE AND CIGARETTES: Jim Jarmusch spins a strange series of encounters over caffeine and nicotine. With Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, Tom Waits and Iggy Pop.
THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW: Global warming turns Earth's climate haywire. Directed by Roland Emmerich ("Independence Day") and starring Dennis Quaid.
A DAY WITHOUT A MEXICAN: California's economy crumbles after the state's Latino population -- a huge portion of the work force -- mysteriously vanishes.
LOVE ME IF YOU DARE: A whimsical French romance traces a lifelong game of wicked tease between best pals who can't quite acknowledge their love.
THE MOTHER: A widowed London grandma falls for a man half her age. With Anne Reid and Daniel Craig.
NEW YORK MINUTE: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen play bickering sisters who must unite to survive a chaotic day trip to New York City.
RAISING HELEN: A fashion hotshot (Kate Hudson) finds her fast-lane life derailed when she's named caretaker to her sister's three children. Garry Marshall directs.
SAVED!: A good girl (Jena Malone) at a Christian high school falls out of favor when she becomes pregnant. With Mandy Moore.
SHREK 2: The ogre's in-laws aren't in happy-ever-after mode about their daughter's new hubby. Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy reprise their voice roles.
A SLIPPING-DOWN LIFE: Lili Taylor and Guy Pearce in a romance about a shy woman obsessed with a musician. Based on Anne Tyler's novel.
SOUL PLANE: A black man wins a cash settlement from an airline and launches his own funky air service.
SUPER SIZE ME: Director Morgan Spurlock chows down on a McDonald's-only diet for a month in an examination of American obesity.
TROY: Legendary warrior Achilles (Brad Pitt) champions the Greeks in their siege of Troy. Wolfgang Petersen directs.
VAN HELSING: Bram Stoker's vampire hunter takes on Dracula, Frankenstein's monster and the Wolf Man. With Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale, directed by Stephen Sommers ("The Mummy").
June:
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS: Jackie Chan and Steve Coogan reinvent Jules Verne's globe-trotting adventure. With a cameo by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
THE BLIND SWORDSMAN: ZATOICHI: The legend of the blind Japanese swordsman comes to the big screen.
THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK: Vin Diesel revives his "Pitch Black" role in a sci-fi battle against an interstellar tyrant.
DEAR FRANKIE: A mother concocts exotic fantasies to explain to her deaf son about his father's absence. With Emily Mortimer.
DE-LOVELY: Kevin Kline and Ashley Judd in a Cole Porter film biography packed with performances by Elvis Costello, Diana Krall, Sheryl Crow and Alanis Morissette.
DODGEBALL: A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY: Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn square off in a grudge match of dodgeball.
THE DOOR IN THE FLOOR: Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger are a couple racked by tragedy. Based on John Irving's "A Widow for One Year."
GARFIELD: The comic-strip fat cat sounds suspiciously like Bill Murray in this live-action and computer-animation combo.
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN: The teen wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) and his pals face an inmate escaped from a sorcerer's prison.
NAPOLEON DYNAMITE: Geeks rule in a Sundance festival favorite about teenage outsiders who find their place in the world.
THE NOTEBOOK: A tale of fiery romance stretching from World War II to the present. With James Garner, Gena Rowlands, Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.
SEDUCING DOCTOR LEWIS: A remote French-Canadian village connives to lure a big-city doctor so a company will open a factory there.
THE STEPFORD WIVES: Nicole Kidman's a suspicious newbie in a town of bizarrely ideal wives in this update of the '70s flick. With Matthew Broderick and Bette Midler.
THE TERMINAL: Steven Spielberg directs Tom Hanks as an Eastern European in limbo at Kennedy Airport after a coup back home invalidates his passport. Catherine Zeta-Jones co-stars.
TWO BROTHERS: A family adventure about tiger cubs separated in youth and reunited as opponents as adults. With Guy Pearce.
WHITE CHICKS: FBI agents (Shawn and Marlon Wayans) go undercover as society gals in a kidnapping investigation. Keenen Ivory Wayans directs.
July:
AMERICA'S HEART AND SOUL: Documentary filmmaker Louis Schwartzberg travels the land to find the pulse of ordinary Americans.
ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY: Will Ferrell's a hot-dog '70s news anchor challenged by a feminist colleague (Christina Applegate).
BEFORE SUNSET: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy and director Richard Linklater team for a follow-up to 1995's "Before Sunrise."
THE BOURNE SUPREMACY: Matt Damon returns as Robert Ludlum's amnesiac agent in a follow-up to "The Bourne Identity."
CATWOMAN: A wallflower artist (Halle Berry) gains feline powers in this spinoff of DC Comics' "Batman."
A CINDERELLA STORY: Hilary Duff's a put-upon stepdaughter whose prince charming tries to track her down with a cell phone she leaves behind.
THE CLEARING: Robert Redford plays a kidnapped rich guy tussling with his abductor (Willem Dafoe). With Helen Mirren.
DANNY DECKCHAIR: Rhys Ifans and Miranda Otto star in a fanciful romance about a man who takes a voyage in a chair flown by helium balloons.
GARDEN STATE: Zach Braff writes, directs and stars in a romance about a depressive man who finds love on a trip home for his mom's funeral. With Natalie Portman.
HAROLD & KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE: A quest for hamburgers turns into a consciousness-expanding road trip for two stoned buddies.
A HOME AT THE END OF THE WORLD: Colin Farrell, Robin Wright-Penn and Sissy Spacek star in a drama based on the book by Michael Cunningham ("The Hours").
I, ROBOT: Will Smith's a future detective investigating a crime that may have been committed by a robot. Based on Isaac Asimov's story collection.
KING ARTHUR: Clive Owen's the legendary English leader in his battle to unite the land. With Keira Knightley as Guinevere.
THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE: Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep and Liev Schreiber update the 1960s assassination thriller. Jonathan Demme directs.
MARIA FULL OF GRACE: A young Colombian woman (Catalina Sandino Moreno) finds danger when she signs on to carry drugs to New York.
METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER: The heavy-metal band opens its heart -- and its group-therapy sessions -- in this behind-the-scenes documentary.
RIDING GIANTS: A rousing documentary examining the development of American surfing as sport and culture.
SHE HATE ME: Spike Lee's latest centers on a fired biotech exec (Anthony Mackie) with a new career: Impregnating lesbians who want babies.
SLEEPOVER: Alexa Vega ("Spy Kids") leads a pack of pals on an all-night scavenger hunt during a slumber party.
SPIDER-MAN 2: The web-slinging hero (Tobey Maguire) returns to battle villainous Doc Ock (Alfred Molina). Sam Raimi again directs.
THUNDERBIRDS: Bill Paxton leads a fleet of sleek aircraft against bad guy Ben Kingsley in a live-action version of the cult TV puppet series.
TOUCH OF PINK: An Asian-Canadian man (Jimi Mistry) thinks he's living with the spirit of Cary Grant (Kyle McLachlan).
THE VILLAGE: A town lives amid evil in a surrounding forest. With Joaquin Phoenix, Sigourney Weaver, Adrien Brody and William Hurt. Directed by M. Night Shyamalan ("The Sixth Sense").
August:
ALIEN VS. PREDATOR: In this corner, a scary beast. In that corner, another scary beast. The sci-fi monsters duke it out in Antarctica.
ANACONDAS: THE HUNT FOR THE BLOOD ORCHID: Adventurers face a giant predator in this follow-up to the 1997 action flick.
BRIGHT YOUNG THINGS: Actor Stephen Fry directs a story of the last gasp of British hedonism before World War II. With Emily Mortimer, Dan Aykroyd and Peter O'Toole.
CELLULAR: A wrong number on his cell phone is a man's only clue to saving a kidnapped stranger (Kim Basinger).
CODE 46: Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton find forbidden romance in a future world where travel is severely restricted. Michael Winterbottom directs.
COLLATERAL: Tom Cruise stars in a thriller about a hit man who hijacks a taxi for a one-night round of killings. Michael Mann directs.
EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING: Stellan Skarsgard stars as "The Exorcist" priest in his first satanic encounter in Africa.
HEAD IN THE CLOUDS: Charlize Theron follows up her best-actress Academy Award win as a French socialite living it up on the eve of World War II.
HERO: Jet Li stars in an epic set in ancient China, where a lone warrior stands in the way of assassins out to kill the future emperor.
I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD: "Croupier" star Clive Owen and director Mike Hodges reunite for the tale of a former London hoodlum drawn back to gangster life.
OPEN WATER: A scuba-diving outing turns terrifying for a couple mistakenly left behind in shark-infested waters. Based on a true story.
PRINCESS DIARIES 2: ROYAL ENGAGEMENT: The princess-in-waiting (Anne Hathaway) must find a hubby in a month or forfeit the throne. Julie Andrews again co-stars.
SHALL WE DANCE?: Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez and Susan Sarandon star in a remake of the Japanese hit about a businessman entranced by formal dancing.
SWIMMING UPSTREAM: An Australian rises above his harsh upbringing to become a champion swimmer. With Geoffrey Rush and Judy Davis.
TWIN SISTERS: Nominated for the foreign-language Academy Award, the Dutch film follows orphaned siblings raised in wildly different upbringings.
WE DON'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE: Laura Dern, Naomi Watts, Mark Ruffalo and Peter Krause team for a drama of infidelity among two couples.
WITHOUT A PADDLE: Three pals take a misguided canoe trip in search of treasure. With Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Burt Reynolds.
YU-GI-OH!: The TV cartoon comes to the big screen as heroic Yugi takes on the Egyptian god Anubis.
ZELARY: An Academy Award nominee for foreign-language film, the Czech tale centers on a nurse caught up in the resistance during World War II.
Enjoy!
Beastie Book
The Beastie Boys are planning to write an anthology book. To be released in October, "Beastie Boys Anthology: The Sounds of Science" chronicles the creation of "Fight for Your Right," "Hey Ladies," "So What'cha Want," "Sure Shot," "Intergalactic" and more, with photographs taken by Spike Jonze, Danny Clinch and others. The book comes with two CDs of their hits and B-sides.
Duran Duran Eyes Epic Deal
Duran Duran is close to signing to Epic Records, sources tell Billboard.com. For several months, reports have surfaced that Epic parent Sony Music was a leading contender in signing the band, whose original lineup reunited in 2001 and embarked on a world tour last year.
Duran Duran spent most of its career on EMI/Capitol Records, with which it recorded until 1997. The band's 2000 album, "Pop Trash," was issued by Hollywood Records " in the U.S. and various other labels internationally.
The act recorded several new songs in 2002 with producer Nile Rodgers, but sources say producer and band had creative differences and that those songs will probably not be released. Last year, lead singer Simon LeBon told Billboard.com that Duran Duran was self-producing the new material.
A Duran Duran spokesperson denies the band has signed with Epic, but hinted a major announcement was coming in the weeks ahead. Epic representatives had no comment.
As previously reported, EMI/Capitol will on Tuesday (May 4) reissue on DVD Duran Duran's 1984 tour documentary "Sing Blue Silver" and 1985 concert film "Arena." The label will also release a CD version of "Arena," with bonus tracks.
Duran Duran is in the midst of a world tour that will play London's Wembley Arena tomorrow (April 30) and Saturday (May 1). According to the group's official Web site, these two concerts will be filmed for an upcoming TV special and DVD, with details to be announced.
Mom Hard
Bonnie Bedelia, aka Mrs. John McClane, talked to TV Times about DIE HARD 4. "It's being written right now," says Bedelia. "I'm definitely doing this one. It's going to feature John and Holly's kids too, I believe. It's taken a while to do another one because Bruce wasn't sure whether he really needed to do one and the studio wasn't so sure that it was the best time to do a Die hard film with all that's going on in the world right now. So they've waited a few years, worked on a story that doesn't necessarily concentrate on the whole terrorist theme, and everyone feels it's time to make it happen." Bedelia also says she doesn't know anything about popstress Britney Spears dancing her way into the film as her daughter.
May Sweeps Big on Farewells
In TV's May sweeps, we'll lose our friends, our shrink and our favorite Boston law firm. But we'll gain a brand-new homemaking diva.
Don't know if that's an even swap, but it's the best we can do in a somewhat underwhelming month of extra-special prime-time programming.
Owing to a spate of super-sized series and season finales by the likes of Friends, Frasier, The Practice, American Idol and Survivor: All Stars, the number of gratuitous dog pageants and Three's Company docudramas has dwindled considerably from sweeps periods past.
All is not lost, though. Lest you think the networks have gone all classy on us, may we direct your attention to Cops: Resisting Arrest.
Here's a look at that, and other highlights of the May sweeps, running Thursday night through May 26:
FINAL FAREWELLS
* Friends (May 6, NBC): A mere 10 years after they started hanging out, Monica, Rachel, Phoebe, Ross, Chandler and Joey decide to get on with what's left of their adult lives. "We leave these characters in a really good place," series cocreator David Crane told reporters this month. Crane wouldn't spoil his own ending, but allowed that "a really good place" didn't necessarily mean anyone (read: Rachel) was going to get married. Milking its $2 million commercial cash cow for all its worth, NBC will precede the show's hourlong finale with an hourlong clip fest.
* Frasier (May 13, NBC): A mere 20 years after he began portraying fussy Dr. Frasier Crane on Cheers, Kelsey Grammer is ready to move on with what's left of his career. He and the Frasier cast and crew take 31 Emmy Awards with them. The hourlong sendoff, featuring guest appearances by Jason Biggs, Laura Linney, Jennifer Beals and more, will be--stop, if you've heard this before--preceded by an hourlong clip fest.
* The Practice (May 16, ABC): After eight seasons, David E. Kelley shutters the law firm of Young, Frutt & Berluti en route to spinning off shark Alan Shore (James Spader) to his own show next fall. Original series star Dylan McDermott returns for the finale. (He also appears in the episode to air Sunday.)
* Angel (May 19, WB): Mourn the undead. After five seasons, David Boreanaz's vampire with a heart of gold faces his final battle--but not before one of his "closest friends" meets a "violent death."
* Law & Order (May 19, NBC): Don't worry. This series goes on (and on and on...), but Jerry Orbach, a fixture since Year Three, works his last case before being farmed out to producer Dick Wolf's latest franchise operation, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, premiering next fall.
CLIFFHANGERS
* The O.C. (Wednesday, Fox): "Sparks fly, emotions run high and lives are forever changed." Who knew Orange County was so close to Dallas?
* That '70s Show (May 19, Fox): Eric (Topher Grace) and Donna (Laura Prepon) walk down the aisle...or do they?
* Everybody Loves Raymond (May 24, CBS): Technically, this is the season closer, and a fairly standard one at that: Ray (Ray Romano) and Robert (Brad Garrett) get into a fight. But for CBS, this show presents the biggest cliffhanger of all: Will Romano reup for a ninth season? (Will Welcome to Mooseport end up in Comedy Central rerun hell?)
* 24 (May 25, Fox): "Jack [Keifer Sutherland] is faced with a horrible dilemma." You know, unlike all those other wussy problems he deals with.
REALITY SHOWDOWNS
* Survivor: All-Stars (May 9, CBS): Jeff Probst gathers the last contestants standing for a live, two-hour finale at New York's Madison Square Garden. An hourlong reunion show and we-hate-Jerri venting session follows.
* The WB's Superstar USA (premiering May 17, WB): What has William Hung wrought? Music greats Vitamin C and Tone-Loc make fun of people who can't sing. Barring FCC intervention, this short-run series is to be broadcast on Monday and Tuesday nights for three consecutive weeks.
* The Bachelor (May 19, ABC): Jesse Palmer presents the final rose to the love of his life prior to returning to his chick-magnet job with the New York Giants.
* The Swan (May 24, Fox): A beauty-pageant winner is crowned. Plastic surgeons rejoice.
* American Idol (May 26, Fox): One night after LaToya and George (or Fantasia and Jasmine, or...) engage in a grueling, two-hour sing-off at Hollywood's Kodak Theater, the two finalists (whoever they may be) return to the stage to endure an excruciating, two-hour reveal of the final vote tallies.
VERY SPECIAL EPISODES
* Will & Grace (Thursday, NBC): In a rare bit of stunt casting for this little, unassuming comedy, a really big star (Jennifer Lopez) just so happens to bump into Karen (Megan Mullally).
* Grounded for Life (Friday, WB): O.C. star Adam Brody slums.
* Cops: Resisting Arrest (Saturday, Fox): Rocket scientists fail to heed the request of authorities.
* King of the Hill (Sunday, Fox): The late John Ritter did voice work on this episode, which finds Bobby Hill testing his mental acuity at a quiz competition.
* Yes, Dear (Monday, CBS): A piano falls on Jimmy (Mike O'Malley). Fabio guest stars. We did not, and could not, make this up.
* Less Than Perfect (Tuesday, ABC): Tori Spelling earns mad money for her upcoming honeymoon by guesting here as a ditzy personal assistant.
* Eve (May 10, UPN): "Shelly [Eve] refuses to design a suit for a pimp [Morris Day]."
* Las Vegas (May 10, NBC): "Delinda (Molly Sims) attempts to make her kitchen demonstration a success."
* Joan of Arcadia (May 14, CBS): Joan (Amber Tamblyn) thinks God is telling her to have sex. Way to go, God!
* Hope & Faith (May 14, ABC): In the hourlong season finale, Kelly Ripa's former soap-opera colleagues descend on her demi-hit sitcom. Numerous back-from-the-dead-evil-twin jokes are told.
* Fear Factor (May 17, NBC): Children are locked in boxes filled with Madagascar hissing cockroaches. Parents are told to remove said cockroaches with their mouths in order to free their beloved offspring. Good times!
* George Lopez (Friday, ABC): Apparently George Lopez never got to go to Disneyland as a kid. Hence, the inspiration for this episode wherein his character finally visits the Magic Kingdom as an adult and gets all depressed because he never went as a kid. Amidst all this Sturm and Drang, the Mouse House-owned network will award a family vacation to the Happiest Place on Earth, so that you, the viewer at home, can get all depressed just like George Lopez.
VERY SPECIAL SPECIALS
* The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited (May 11, CBS): Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore and other surviving cast members from the 1960s classic sitcom step back into their former roles. Ray Romano is on hand to host and witness what may turn out to be a very good idea, or a very sad one.
* The Carol Burnett Show: Let's Bump Up the Lights (May 12, CBS): Never-before-seen clips of Tim Conway cracking up Harvey Korman!
* The Mentalist (May 12, NBC): Mind-reader Gerry McCambridge "demonstrates sensory deprivation on American Dreams star Brittany Snow." The revelations, we are promised, are both "intriguing and dumbfounding."
* America's Next Top Model: The Runway Ahead (May 12, UPN): Tyra Banks catches up with second-season champ Yoanna House and her 11 defeated comrades.
* Super Millionaire (May 16-18, May 20, May 23, ABC): Regis Philbin is back, and he's got $10 million burning a hole in his pocket. Have your final answers ready.
* Motown 45 (May 17, ABC): How the mighty record labels have fallen. Twenty-one years ago, on Motown 25, Michael Jackson moonwalked his way to solo superstardom. This time around, Jermaine Jackson duets with Nick Lachey.
* 60 Minutes: Salute to Don Hewitt (May 18, CBS): On the eve of his retirement, the newsmag's ultra-longtime executive producer recalls the time he hired Mike Wallace to cover the Peloponnesian War.
* The Great Domestic Showdown (May 25-26, ABC): With Martha Stewart otherwise engaged, Loveline's Adam Carolla hosts this search for the next lifestyle guru. The winner gets a book deal, and a shot at his or her own TV show. Federal charges not included.
AWARD SHOWS
* 31st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards (May 21, NBC): Soap stars present. Hairdressers are thanked.
* 39th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards (May 26, NBC): Reba McEntire hosts. God is thanked.
TV MOVIES
* The Book of Ruth (Sunday, CBS): Christine Lahti and The Nanny's Nicholle Tom work on mother-daughter issues in this based-on-an-Oprah-Book-Club-selection weepy.
* A Wrinkle in Time (May 10, ABC): Madeleine L'Engle's children's classic gets the Wonderful World of Disney treatment. Alfre Woodard stars.
* 10.5 (May 2-3, NBC): In this four-hour miniseries, a really big earthquake hits the West Coast, threatening Kim Delaney, John Schneider and Beau Bridges, though fortunately none of the good stars.
NEWSMAKERS
* Nightline (Friday, ABC): Ted Koppel reads off the names of the U.S. soldiers killed in action in Iraq since March 2003. All 500-plus of them.
* 20/20 (May 7, ABC): Hobbit Sean Astin talks to Barbara Walters about bi-polar mom Patty Duke.
* 20/20 (May 21, ABC): Hilary Duff addresses the issues of the day.
Prince on new CD, love of T.O.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- It might make some sense if Prince, the cooler-than-cool funk/rock superstar whose career is suddenly in serious revival mode, had found happiness at 45 settling down in Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Paris or London.
But Toronto?
"I love Toronto," Prince said late Tuesday in an exclusive interview with The Canadian Press after a wild two-hour concert in this north Florida city. It was the 21st stop of a tour he's loathe to call a comeback -- because, he insists, he's never truly been gone.
"It's cosmopolitan," he said. "There's all sorts of different kinds of people everywhere you go in Toronto, there's all sorts of great music, great restaurants, great night spots that don't respond to a lot of American playlists and have playlists which I really dig. It's a real melting pot in every sense of the word."
Prince is married to Toronto-born Manuela Testolini. The couple spends "a lot of time" in Toronto, where they own a home in an upscale north-end neighbourhood and where he recorded his recently released album, the critically acclaimed Musicology.
The CD jacket features the diminutive Prince in front of the gleaming Toronto skyline at night, and includes at least one veiled reference to the street where he lives that he asked not be pointed out "in case any crazies show up at my door."
But it's not simply romantic love that attracts Prince to his wife's hometown. The Minnesota native likes the frigid winters -- "it's worse in Minneapolis," he laughs -- he likes Canadian songstress Nelly Furtado, and most of all he likes Canada's tendency to ignore the American recording industry, obviously an alluring quality to a man who famously scrawled the word "slave" across his cheek in the 1990s in a protracted dispute with his record company over creative and financial control of his music.
"Musicology is the first record I've recorded in Toronto and I can really feel the difference. It has a completely unique sound that came from the total disregard for what's happening in American music, and for the workings of the American music industry. It doesn't sound like anything else that's out there right now," Prince said.
He's also a fan of the Toronto institution known as Speaker's Corner, a City-TV show that features everyday citizens in a tiny video booth opining on everything from politics to lost love.
"I love Speaker's Corner!" says Prince, dressed in black and sporting shaded spectacles in his candlelit dressing room. "I just love the idea of it. I am so tempted when I go by to stop the car and go into the booth and say what I have to say."
Relaxed and charming even after a frenetic show that saw him writhing on the stage during some of his guitar solos, the recent Jehovah's Witness convert seems serene these days. That's in stark contrast to the apparently angry man referred to simply as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince until four years ago.
He acknowledges he's at peace now that he's got complete control over his music, but points out he's never stopped churning out his brand of exuberant, rock 'n' roll-tinged funk.
He doesn't deny, however, that his phenomenal opening number at this year's Grammy Awards with R and B superstar Beyonce seems to have the masses clamouring for a full-fledged Prince resurrection.
That hasn't been by design on his part, he insists -- it's just been all about the timing.
"I get asked every year to play at the Grammys," he says. "This year I did it because I have an album out that I want to promote and a concert tour that I want to promote. My fans have always come out."
The tour comes to Toronto in July for two shows, and tickets have sold out rapidly in every city where they've gone on sale.
Prince is amused. But he adds he's delighted if he's now introducing young music fans to some quality funk and R and B.
"To us, this doesn't feel like anything new -- we've been playing the same show for awhile. It's me -- I'm just doing what I always do and what I love to do. But someone has to do this, because no one else is. The music is such a treasure, so celebratory and joyous, and no one's doing it anymore -- I'm happy to keep it going."
Johanssen added to 'M:I 3' cast
"Lost in Translation" star Scarlett Johanssen has won a coveted role in "Mission: Impossible 3," Variety reports.
Johanssen will play an ally of Tom Cruise's character, secret agent Ethan Hunt.
According to Variety, there had been quite a battle for the part, with many unnamed Hollywood female stars vying for the spot in the film.
As JAM! reported yesterday, British actor Kenneth Branagh added to the cast of the action franchise. The cast also includes "Matrix" star Carrie-Anne Moss and Ving Rhames, who will be back as Hunt's sidekick Luther Stickel.
Joe Carnahan ("Narc") will direct "Mission: Impossible 3", which is set to start filming this summer for a May 2005 release.
Brosnan Sheds Bond Image in 'Laws of Attraction'
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Irish-born actor Pierce Brosnan has tangled with a lot of diabolical villains as super agent 007, but the James Bond star finally meets his match in Julianne Moore in the romantic comedy "Laws of Attraction."
In the New Line Cinema release that opens on Friday, they play rival high-powered divorce lawyers who reluctantly, awkwardly fall for each other amid the messy, matrimonial carnage of their opposing clients.
The film, a light-hearted confection from director Peter Howitt ("Sliding Doors"), marks a change of pace for both performers. Moore is best known for her dramatic roles, receiving two Oscar nominations last year for her work in "Far From Heaven" and "The Hours."
But it's an even bigger leap for Brosnan, who sprang to fame as the cool, charming sleuth in the 1980s TV drama "Remington Steele" and has built on that persona in such films as "The Thomas Crown Affair," "The Tailor of Panama" and the last four Bond films.
Perhaps sensing he can't play the tuxedo-wearing spy with a license to kill forever, Brosnan said he has been looking to shift gears.
"I've wanted to do this kind of movie for a long time, I've wanted to make a romantic comedy," he told Reuters in a recent interview. "As an actor, it allows you to show a certain vulnerability to yourself because to play a comedy I think you have to be able to laugh at yourself."
He then confides, with mock earnestness, "I wish I were James Bond, but I'm not. I'm an actor."
Moore, feigning surprise seated next to Brosnan on a sofa, chimes in with a laugh, "What a horrible shock! Too bad."
Seemingly embarrassed now, Brosnan trails off, "Anyway, I don't know how to explain it. I had a great time. It was a wonderful summer."
TRADING IN GUN FOR BRIEFCASE
In "Laws of Attraction," Brosnan trades in his gun for a briefcase to assume the role of Daniel Rafferty, a high-priced Manhattan divorce lawyer who is as clever as he is casual -- a study of contrasts with his leading rival, the brilliant but reserved legal beagle Audrey Miller (Moore).
The pair find themselves on opposite sides of several cases as their mutual attraction gradually, grudgingly grows before they are thrown together in the Irish countryside to obtain depositions in a high-profile divorce between two famous clients (Parker Posey and Michael Sheen).
After a night of heavy drinking, they wake up married and must return to New York City to face each other in court as opposing counsels who happen to be man and wife.
"I love that this fellow is like an unmade bed and didn't work out ... and for me hopefully there is something there the audience hasn't seen before," Brosnan said.
But like Cary Grant, who managed to remain debonair even when running through a corn field chased by a low-flying plane, Brosnan's trademark elegance shines through the rumpled sport coat and shaggy hair.
"I can't wait to grow up and become a character actor. Enough of this leading-man role stuff," he said half-jokingly. "Oh, what performances I shall give then."
Brosnan, who served as an executive producer on the film, said he was inspired by the sharp, dialogue-driven comedies of yore, especially "Adam's Rib," the 1949 film starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn as married lawyers on opposite sides of an attempted murder case in which a woman is accused of trying to killer her philandering husband.
For Moore, a major appeal of doing a romantic comedy is the universality of the experience. "A lot of us don't get to be superheroes like James Bond. We don't necessarily bore into the center of the Earth or go into space," she said.
"But we do generally meet someone, fall in love with them and possibly marry them. That's something we all come into contact with."
Branagh Takes on 'Mission: Impossible 3'
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - Kenneth Branagh has chosen to accept his next mission.
The 43-year-old Brit will join Tom Cruise and Carrie-Anne Moss for "Mission: Impossible 3," according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Cruise will reprise his role as the buff agent Ethan Hunt. It isn't known what role Branagh will play, but it's expected he will be a bad guy.
Joe Carnahan ("Narc") will direct from a script by Frank Darabont. Production will begin in late summer.
Branagh last appeared as the narcissistic Gilderoy Lockhart in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" and will next appear in another adaptation of a children's novel, "Five Children and It."
'Frasier' Finale Packs in Guest Stars
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - There may be a wedding in store for the series finale of "Frasier" -- but not necessarily for its title character.
NBC, which is keeping mum on details of the "Friends" finale Thursday, May 6, is less circumspect about "Frasier's" final episode a week later. The hour-long episode will feature a number of guest stars and revolve around the pending marriage of Frasier's (Kelsey Grammer) dad, Martin.
Frasier and brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce) offer to take over planning for Martin's wedding to Ronee (Wendie Malick) after their dad mistakenly books a reception hall for the wrong day. The brothers only have a few days to do the job, however.
Mom-to-be Daphne (Jane Leeves), meanwhile, gets a visit from her prankster brothers. Anthony LaPaglia reprises his Emmy-winning role as Simon Moon, who returns to Seattle with previously unseen brothers Michael (Robbie Coltrane, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban") and Stephen (Richard E. Grant, "Gosford Park," "Spice World").
Laura Linney will continue her role as Frasier's star-crossed love, Charlotte. Jason Biggs ("American Wedding") and Jennifer Beals ("The L Word") also appear in the finale.
The Beasties Are Now Digital Files
The Beastie Boys catalog is now available for paid digital download for the first time at Apple's iTunes Music Store. Seven of the group's studio and compilation releases, including such classics as "Paul's Boutique" and "Check Your Head" but omitting its 1986 Def Jam debut "License To Ill," are augmented with 21 exclusive non-LP mixes. In all, more than 120 tracks will be available for sale.
As previously reported, the rap trio's new single, "Ch-Check It Out," arrives for sale on iTunes tomorrow. It is drawn from the Beasties' upcoming new album, "To the 5 Boroughs," due this summer via Capitol.
Russell Crowe Offers Aid to Montreal Jewish School
TORONTO (Reuters) - Tough guy actor Russell Crowe was so upset by a fire-bombing at a Jewish elementary school in Montreal, he called the school to offer a donation to help rebuild its library, a school spokeswoman said on Tuesday.
Crowe is in Toronto to film "Cinderella Man," a film directed by Ron Howard about the life of boxer James J. Braddock, who defeated world champion Max Baer in an upset match in 1935.
"It was a huge morale boost for the school community," said Shelley Paris from Montreal.
United Talmud Torahs elementary school was fire-bombed earlier this month and police said a note with anti-Semitic comments was found on the outside wall of the gutted library.
"He said he was very upset about what had happened that a place of learning should be attacked that way," Paris said.
"He wanted to make sure that our students knew that he was thinking about them and that he was very upset about the fire-bombing," Paris said.
The Academy Award-winning actor, who captured an Oscar for "Gladiator" four years ago, offered to make a donation to help rebuild the library, Paris said. The figure was not available.
Paris said the school hopes to reopen the library by August, the start of the new school year, and has received donations and support from across the country.
The arson attack sparked outrage in Canada and prompted a fierce condemnation from Prime Minister Paul Martin. The incident was one of a series of attacks on Jewish targets in Canada and raised concerns about a rise in anti-Semitism.
In March, vandals knocked over dozens of tombstones in a Jewish cemetery in Toronto while someone sprayed swastikas on a synagogue in a separate incident.
The Couch Potato Report - April 27th, 2004
In The Couch Potato Report this week there's love, actually, a big fish and The
Statement.
I just want to say this boldly and honestly so you don't misunderstand me. I adored the movie LOVE ACTUALLY. Just adored it. It was so charming and entertaining, I just adored it!
That said, let me say more.
LOVE ACTUALLY is the latest British romantic comedy from the folks who gave us FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL, NOTTING HILL and BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY.
Written and directed by Richard Curtis LOVE ACTUALLY is an ensemble comedy that tells ten separate - but intertwining - stories of love.
Love lost, love found, love taken for granted, love missed and potential love. LOVE ACTUALLY is about love, actually.
In other recent movies that attempted to tell more than one story, and failed miserably, every single story and every character in the film is interesting and engaging.
You'd be friends with them if you knew them, so it's easy to feel their pain, pleasure and passion.
The personable cast includes Hugh Grant as the British Prime Minister, Emma Thompson plays a mother and wife who loves Joni Mitchell, Colin Firth is a wronged husband who finds a new love, Liam Neeson is a recent widow with a stepson who's fallen in love, BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM's Kiera Knightly portrays a new bride, Laura Linney is a woman with a crush and Alan Rickman is a husband and father with a very attractive secretary. Topping it all off is a hilarious appearance from Rowan Atkinson as a jewelry salesman.
LOVE ACTUALLY is smart, sappy, funny, touching and heartwarming, but the main word I would use to describe it is charming.
LOVE ACTUALLY is charming, and I adored it.
I also adored the new film from director Tim Burton.
BIG FISH is the story of a son trying to get to know his Dad as his father is dying.
The son just wants to know which of his Dad's stories are real and which ones
aren't.
Neither the son, nor you as a viewer, will actually know until the very end of the movie where the truth lies.
The first time I saw BIG FISH I wasn't able to fully let myself go and grasp the
fantasy element. I just thought the dad was just full of sh..., well, full of himself is
perhaps a better way to put it.
Once it unfolded I was overwhelmed, and that is why it has my adoration.
The superb cast of BIG FISH includes Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Danny DeVito, Helena Bonham Carter, Alison Lohman and Steve Buscemi.
BIG FISH combines your imagination with motion picture fantasy and I hope when you're done watching it you're moved as much as I was.
Yes, I was bored during my initial viewing, but I hope you do what I did and give it a chance because BIG FISH is an enchanting film.
Canadian Director Norman Jewison's film THE STATEMENT isn't enchanting and I didn't adore it. It was just okay.
Michael Caine stars in this based on a true stroy as a French Policeman who is a Nazi collaborator who is being pursued by a passionate French judge and an army colonel.
Caine's Pierre Brossard is also being hunted by another group who don't want to bring him to justice, they just want him dead.
THE STATEMENT isn't a bad film, but once it reaches it's conclusion, I assure you that you'll want more.
After two hours THE STATEMENT just ends. It concludes, but there's no conclusion.
STUCK ON YOU concludes, but you'll wish it ended much earlier.
Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear are conjoined twins who pursue a career in acting in the "comedy" STUCK ON YOU.
This film comes from the Farrelly Brothers, who gave us the very film flicks THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY, SHALLOW HAL and DUMB AND DUMBER. Apparently they've forgotten how to be funny, as this "comedy" has no laughs at all.
None!
If it wasn't for the scrumptious Eva Mendez' skimpy wardrobe I wouldn't know how it ended. I've never said this about a movie before, but thank god for that bikini!
The bikini, and the woman inside were great. STUCK ON YOU wasn't.
LOVE ACTUALLY, BIG FISH, STUCK ON YOU and THE STATEMENT are all available right now on video and DVD at your favourite local video store.
COMING NEXT WEEK IN THE COUCH POTATO REPORT
Tom Cruise stars as Tom Cruise playing an American soldier who trains a Japanese army in THE LAST SAMURAI. The only reason to see the film is for the amazing performance of the Oscar nominated Ken Watanabe.
J.M. Barrie's classic children's fantasy PETER PAN is a less than classic live action movie. If you're in the mood to spend time with the boys of Never Neverland, just watch the classic animated version. Better yet, read the book.
CALENDAR GILRS in the true story of a group of women, all over the age of 50, pose provocatively for a calendar to raise money for Leukemia research. The film doesn't go for cheap laughs, but it has a few anyway.
In CHASING LIBERTY pop-tart Mandy Moore is the teen daughter of the President who ditches her bodyguards. Want me to make it sound worse? Well, the boy she falls for turns out to be her Secret Service agent!
If you've ever wondered what a movie would be like if it were based on a Vermeer painting, you're answer comes in the form of THE GIRL WITH THE PEARL EARRING. The movie stars Scarlett Johansson and Colin Firth and somehow evokes the Dutch artist's masterworks.
And,
Words cannot explain the thoroughly enjoyable, animated Oscar nominated THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE, but that's okay as there are only a few spoken sentences in the entire film.
I'll have more on those releases in seven days.
For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!
Get Saved
USA Today has announced the results of their annual Save Our Show Survey. With around 43,000 people responding, the top three choices for saving were ENTERPRISE, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT and TRU CALLING, while viewers urged NBC to dump the awful show WHOOPI and UPN to dump ROCK ME BABY.
From the Batcave to Your Shelf
A four-disc set of BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES will be released on DVD on July 6. The set, retailing for $49.98, will feature 28 episodes plus a commentary from Bruce Timm, Paul Dini and Eric Rodomski and the featurette BATMAN: THE LEGACY CONTINUES.
OFF THE MARKET
Ali Landry, the actress best known for turning guy's heads in a 1998 Super Bowl Doritos ad, tying the knot Saturday with Mario Lopez in Mexico.
New Tunage
Here are teh new CD releases for Tuesday, April 27, 2004:
* BLACK SABBATH Black Box: Complete Original Black Sabbath (Rhino)
* DIANA KRALL The Girl In The Other Room (Universal)
* FLEETWOOD MAC Fleetwood Mac (CD+DVD) - TBA (Warner)
* FLEETWOOD MAC Fleetwood Mac (DVD) (Rhino)
* FLEETWOOD MAC Tusk (DVD) (Rhino)
* GORDON LIGHTFOOT Harmony (Linus Entertainment)
* JULIE HOLLAND Escondida (Anti/Epitaph)
* NEKROMANTIX Dead Girls Don't Cry (Hellcat)
* ROYAL JELLY ORCHESTRA Seriously Happy (Linus Entertainment)
Mona Lisa's Deterioration Causes Concern
PARIS - The Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci's portrait of the unknown woman with the enigmatic smile, is sparking a new kind of mystery: What is causing the Renaissance masterpiece to deteriorate so quickly?
The thin, poplar panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since conservation experts last evaluated it, the Louvre Museum said. Leonardo's masterwork — now nearly 500 years old — is inspected every one to two years.
The Louvre said the "state of conservation" of the most famous artwork in France's most famous museum "has aroused some worry."
The state-run Center for Research and Restoration of Museums of France will conduct a study to better determine what materials the painting is made of and evaluate its vulnerability to temperature changes.
Some seasoned visitors say they have noticed changes.
"We lived in Paris in 1962 and 1963 — she seemed brighter back then," said Enid Kushner, 74, a retired lawyer from Cleveland.
First-time visitor Kristy Vander Ploeg, 23, of Toronto, said: "I didn't expect it to look like that — it's a lot more faded than I thought it would be."
The painting has yellowed from layers of varnish applied over the centuries, but the Louvre has resisted pressure to touch it up. The last real work on the Mona Lisa dates to the mid 1950s, when experts removed several age spots.
The Louvre says the most recent analysis can be done without taking the painting out of the public eye. The Mona Lisa now has its own wall; next year it will get its own room.
For the museum's crown jewel, little is left to chance: The painting is housed in an air-conditioned glass case, and visitors are held back by a waist-high barrier.
The Mona Lisa is seen each year by nearly all the 6 million people who visit the Louvre. Just last year, it was on the cover of Dan Brown's best seller, "The Da Vinci Code," and figured in the plot.
On Monday, as usual, rubbernecking tourists peered at the painting, and camera flashes went off with the speed and frequency of a Paris fashion show.
Louvre spokeswoman Aggy Lerolle said the flash photography — which is "theoretically forbidden" at the museum — is not believed to be the cause of the painting's deterioration.
But some visitors, after hearing about the Mona Lisa's woes, felt a little guilty for using their flashes.
"It's our fault, I know," said Mikhail Kouzmenko, a Moscow executive, after a friend snapped him, smiling, in front of the painting. "It's bad for the picture, I know."
Most days, security guards and ushers keep the flow of tourists to a regular pace. Often lines to see the Mona Lisa stretch for dozens of yards.
Experts believe Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa in Italy over a long period beginning about 1505. The identity of the model is not known.
The work is clearly a survivor. During World War II, French authorities hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces. In 1911, an Italian house painter stole the masterpiece, saying he planned to return it to Italy; it was recovered two years later in Florence and sent back to France.
The admiration that the painting has evoked has been attributed to fascination with Leonardo's genius; the painting's stunning realism and technique; the mystery of the Mona Lisa's identity; and the twists and turns in its history.
Some tourists say the Mona Lisa now is simply feeding off its own fame. And nearly everyone seems to have an opinion about it.
"Her popularity is just based on what has happened over the years," said Joanne Rosini, 40, an animal trainer from Brooklyn. "It's really a boring painting, she's just sitting there."
Her father-in-law, retired police officer Eugene Rosini, said he finds meaning in the Mona Lisa's smile.
"It's a smile to tempt her lover," he said with a wry grin — acknowledging that the come-hither look might have worked on him.
Five Music Channels to Air Prince Special
NEW YORK - Get ready for five channels of Prince. MTV, MTV2, BET, VH1 and VH1 Classic will simultaneously broadcast a 30-minute Prince concert special on Wednesday at 9 p.m. EDT, network executives told The Associated Press.
The concert, recorded live last week before an audience at New York's Webster Hall, includes performances of material from Prince's new album, "Musicology," plus some of his classics. The telecast also includes interviews, with certain segments reserved for the individual stations.
"The networks have never done this before," said Will Botwin, president of Prince's record label, Columbia.
"We wanted to do something unprecedented," said Judy McGrath, MTV Networks group president.
McGrath, who was at the taping, said the show was "like a party" with a few hundred audience members at the small club. Prince wanted an intimate feel to the show, she said.
Although Prince has been out of the spotlight for a few years, Botwin said he wasn't concerned that the teen audience won't want to watch him. Kids have learned about Prince through their brothers and sisters, he said.
"There's another generation getting turned on to Prince," Botwin said.
'Man on Fire' Burns Box Office Rivals
LOS ANGELES - Denzel Washington, who sets out to rescue a little girl in "Man on Fire," pushed aside another little girl in the comedy "13 Going on 30" to claim the top spot at the weekend box office.
The violent revenge thriller "Man on Fire" debuted with $23 million, while Jennifer Garner's lighthearted child-in-an-adult-body movie "13 Going on 30" came in at No. 2 with $22 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The difference is close enough that the films could switch places when final figures are released Monday.
This marks Washington's strongest opening since his Oscar-winning role in "Training Day," which opened in October 2001 with $22.5 million. He has lately had a lukewarm spell with the drama "Antwone Fisher" and the thriller "Out of Time."
"This is a harder-edged Denzel. People seem to like that and he can pull it off," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.
In "Man on Fire," Washington stars as a security guard who goes on a vicious spree to save 10-year-old Dakota Fanning from kidnappers. It's the latest in a line of successful vengeance films to score well with moviegoers, following last week's No. 1 debut for "Kill Bill — Vol. 2" and successful runs for "The Punisher" and "Walking Tall."
The audience for "Man on Fire" was about 55 percent female, said Bruce Snyder, the head of distribution for 20th Century Fox, which is unusual for an action-adventure movie.
Garner, despite her fame from the "Alias" TV spy show, remains a relatively untested commodity among movie audiences, but her film's close second-place finish points to a star on the rise.
"This is a stepping stone to stardom," said Tom Sherak, a partner in Revolution Studios, which produced the movie for distributor Sony. "The camera loves her, you can see it, you can feel it."
The key to her success, Dergarabedian said, is that the super-fit actress appeals to both genders. The tough-as-nails star is not an overt sexpot, nor a willowy sweetheart.
"What she brings to the table is a sexiness to her, but a down-to-earth likeability," Dergarabedian said. "The premise of '13 going on 30' has been used numerous times, but the marketing campaign has been very effective."
Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill — Vol. 2" ranked third in its second week with $10.4 million. Rick Sands, chief operating officer of Miramax, said the simultaneous DVD debut of the first "Kill Bill" installment helped feed interest in the followup.
After an Easter surge to No. 1, "The Passion of the Christ" fell out of the top 10 this weekend to No. 11 with $2.1 million. Since opening on Ash Wednesday, the movie has taken in a spectacular $364.3 million domestically.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "Man on Fire," $23 million.
2. "13 Going on 30," $22 million.
3. "Kill Bill — Vol. 2," $10.4 million.
4. "The Punisher," $6.1 million,
5. "Home on the Range," $3.4 million.
6. "Johnson Family Vacation," $3.15 million.
7. "Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed," $3.13 million.
8. "Hellboy," $3 million.
9. "Ella Enchanted," $2.7 million.
10. "Walking Tall," $2.6 million.
Estee Lauder Dead at 97
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Estee Lauder, who took a family recipe for skin cream and a passion for female beauty and turned them into a $10 billion cosmetics empire, died on Saturday at her home in Manhattan, a spokeswoman for the company that bears her name said on Sunday.
Estee Lauder company spokeswoman Sally Susman said she was 97 and died of cardiopulmonary failure, but gave no further details of the cause of death.
Lauder, who founded her company in 1946, prospered by offering women the promise of eternal youth and beauty with an aura of cool, upper-class refinement.
She had not been actively involved for 10 years in the management of the company, which markets its products in 130 countries, Susman said. Lauder's son Leonard Lauder is currently chairman of the company.
Fox bolsters lineup
24 will live to see another day.
The Kiefer Sutherland real-time thriller has been renewed for a fourth season, the Fox network announced yesterday.
24 wasn't the only show to get the greenlight for another year from the network. Also picked up for another season were Malcolm in the Middle, the Bernie Mac Show and the hit teen soap opera The O.C.
"We are delighted," Fox entertainment president Gail Berman told media yesterday.
"These celebrated and groundbreaking shows are the backbone of Fox's scripted programming and we're pleased that these outstanding series will remain a vital part of our year-round programming mix."
The four shows join That '70s Show, The Simpsons and King of the Hill, which were previously renewed for another season. MADtv has been picked up until 2008.
Of the renewed series, 24 is the highest rated, attracting about 11 million viewers.
Bernie Mac averages about seven million watchers weekly. Malcolm, which celebrated its 100th episode this year, garners almost nine million weekly viewers.
The O.C., which debuted last summer as a 21st-century Beverly Hills 90210, has an average weekly audience of about 10 million and, given its subject matter, predictably attracts the much-coveted teen and young adult demographic.
The bad news? No renewal yet for Arrested Development, the sensationally-funny comedy starring Jason Bateman that, despite critical acclaim, remains on the bubble. The fate of Tru Calling, starring Eliza Dushku, is also as yet undetermined.
Bond, Generic Bond
According to Variety, MGM is writing the next James Bond film with a generic Bond in the lead and not Pierce Brosnan.
Indiana Jones Back on Shelf
Indiana Jones can hang up his hat and put the whip back in storage because it doesn't look like he's making a return to the big screen any time soon.
The Indiana Jones triumvirate of Harrison Ford, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas all have other commitments on their rosters that rank above the long anticipated Indy 4.
While the fourth installment in the franchise was initially targeted for release by Paramount on July 4, 2005, the script was sent back for a rewrite after Lucas decided he was displeased with the material. Production is now slated to begin in 2005, with a release date in 2006.
All three men are keeping themselves busy in the interim.
Ford has signed on to star in The Wrong Element, an action film in which the graying actor will play the earnest hero-type he's well known for--a security guard whose family is kidnapped.
As the story unfolds, the kidnappers order Ford's rent-a-cop to steal $37 million from the bank where he works in exchange for the return of his brood. Meanwhile, the conniving kidnappers set things up to make the hapless security guard appear guilty of embezzlement. Many furled brows of concentration and impassioned claims of innocence à la Fugitive are sure to ensue.
Spielberg's Indy interval oeuvre will be a feature film focusing on the aftermath of the 1972 Munich Olympics, where 11 Israeli athletes were killed by Palestinian extremists. Schindler's List star, Ben Kingsley is attached to a lead role.
The film's title remains a secret, but Spielberg and his production crew have reportedly already traveled to Europe to begin locking down locations. The new film will mark Spielberg's first European shoot since Saving Private Ryan.
After the Munich film, Spielberg will direct the DreamWorks drama, The Rivals, about the legendary rivalry between 19th-century stage divas Sarah Bernhardt and Eleonora Duse. He'll then move on to team with Tom Cruise in the Paramount/DreamWorks venture, The War of the Worlds, an adaptation of the classic H.G. Wells alien invasion tale.
Spielberg's most recent film, Terminal, starring Tom Hanks, opens in June.
Lucas, meanwhile, has been keeping himself occupied with another pet project--Star Wars: Episode III, which is slated for release in May 2005.
The Indiana Jones postponement may actually be a boon for Lucas, as its original projected release date came just a scant five weeks after the final Star Wars installation is due to hit screens--meaning that the two films could have wound up competing for box office dollars.
Though the title of the latest Indy flick has yet to be unveiled, one thing's for certain: Ford's not getting any younger. Unless they're planning to call it Indiana Jones and the Quest for Trifocals, they better get a move on.
Star Wars DVD Specs
Lucasfilm has finally provided more details on their Star Wars Trilogy 4-disc set.
The set will include more than 10 hours of bonus content in all, in addition to the films. Each film will be presented in anamorphic widescreen video and a full frame version, both certified by THX and lovingly restored and remastered by the folks at Lowry Digital. Audio for all three films will be Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX.
Each film will also include audio commentary with the likes of creator George Lucas, director Irvin Kershner, actress Carrie Fisher, sound designer Ben Burtt and ILM's Dennis Muren.
Disc Four will feature all new and exclusive bonus material. The centerpiece of the disc Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy. According to Lucasfilm: "This two-and-a-half hour documentary traces the evolution of the saga, from a low-budget labor-of-love space saga to the movie phenomenon that defied the odds and reinvented the rules.
This comprehensive documentary features all new interviews with George Lucas and more than 40 members of the cast and crew from the original trilogy, as well as a host of filmmakers and mediapersonalities.
Empire of Dreams includes some never-before-seen behind-the-scenes footage from the making of the three films."
When you're done with that, you can check out the Episode III behind-the-scenes preview featurette, The Return of Darth Vader, in which Lucas discusses how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader. We also get a first look at the new Vader costume for Episode III, and see how actors Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor prepared for the epic lightsaber battle between Anakin and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Next up, The Birth of the Lightsaber featurette takes a look at the origins and creation of "this elegant weapon from a more civilized age." The Characters of Star Wars featurette takes an in-depth look at how all the classic characters developed, from original concept art to interviews with Lucas and the cast. The Force Is With Them: The Legacy of Star Wars featurette looks at the influence of the Star Wars films on filmmaking and entertainment as a whole, and includes interviews with "the most notable filmmakers of our time."
Rounding out the film content on this disc, are the original theatrical teaser, launch and re-release trailers for each film, plus TV spots, a gallery of hundreds of rare production art images and photos, and a gallery of poster and print campaign artwork.
Then there's "the rest of the disc", which will be of less interest to film fans. This includes preview trailers for the Star Wars: Battlefront and Star Wars: Episode III videogames, an Xbox playable demo of Battlefront, and DVD-ROM access to a special online site with additional exclusive content.
All in all, not too bad. Certainly not the definitive special edition treatment of these films on disc, but you know that'll happen later on Blu-ray Disc or HD-DVD, so not bad for now.
Washington, Garner Fire Up Weekend Box Office
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Some genuine suspense appears to surround this weekend's box office matchup.
The two new wide releases couldn't be more different: the hard-edged revenge thriller "Man on Fire" faces off against the lighthearted comedy "13 Going on 30." But because each film has several drawing points as well as a couple of drawbacks, it could make for a close race.
Vengeance has ruled at the box office in recent weeks. Last weekend, "Kill Bill-Vol. 2" reigned with a $25.1 million haul, with "The Punisher" scoring the second spot. Three weekends ago, "Hellboy" held sway with $23.2 million, and "Walking Tall" claimed the runner-up position. And even though it runs the risk of courting moviegoers whose death wish might be satiated, "Man on Fire" should continue what Uma Thurman's "Kill Bill" character called the "roaring rampage of revenge."
Certainly, "Man on Fire," from 20th Century Fox/New Regency Enterprises, boasts top-notch credentials to guarantee that attention will be paid. Oscar winner Denzel Washington plays a military vet serving as a bodyguard to little Dakota Fanning in Mexico City. When she is abducted despite his best efforts, Washington is forced to shift into righteous action, choreographed by director Tony Scott, whose credits range from "Top Gun" to "Spy Game."
The movie's tony collaborators lend the film a note of gravitas that could well pull in moviegoers older than the young-male demographic that is the core audience for action pics. Washington's presence should attract a wide range of moviegoers -- among them blacks. And by putting Fanning in jeopardy, the filmmakers are even courting an older female audience. Fox added one more element to its marketing arsenal by opening the film Wednesday in single theaters in Los Angeles and New York to ignite the buzz. (It picked up $19,825 for the day in its two engagements.)
At the same time, the film also must contend with the restrictions of its R rating, a running time of almost 2-1/2 hours, and the fact that some thrill-seekers will be siphoned away by the second weekend of "Bill 2" and "The Punisher." Arriving in 2,979 theaters, "Man" could be looking at an opening weekend that registers in the high-teen millions -- possibly even flirting with the $20 million mark.
Although it packs a softer punch and is aiming for a very different audience -- primarily females in their teens and 20s as well as any older women it can corral -- "13 Going on 30" could give "Man" a run for its money. Directed by Gary Winick, the Sony Pictures/Revolution Studios release stars Jennifer Garner as a 13-year-old who suddenly finds herself inhabiting the body of a 30-year-old.
When they work, body-transfer comedies can be catnip for moviegoers. "Big" (1988) proved to be one of Tom Hanks' earliest successes. And just last year, the remake of "Freaky Friday," starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, was a surprise success, pulling in $110 million. With a couple of national sneak previews under its belt, "13," with its audience-friendly PG-13 rating, hopes to prove that it's just as appealing.
But it also has a few hurdles to overcome. Although Revolution is positioning Garner as the next Julia Roberts (news), this is the first film that the star of ABC's cult hit "Alias" has been asked to carry by herself. And in recent months, younger females have proved fickle, mostly ignoring a string of romantic concoctions like "The Prince & Me" and "Chasing Liberty." Making a stand in 3,438 theaters, a wider opening than "Man's," "13" is also tracking in the high-teen millions.
Meanwhile, setting up shop in 417 theaters, Warner Bros. Pictures is continuing its rollout of the animated kids movie "Clifford's Really Big Movie," directed by Robert C. Ramirez. And Imax is beginning its rollout of "Sacred Planet," a documentary narrated by Robert Redford about Earth's few remaining unspoiled locales.
On the specialty film scene, ThinkFilm unveils "The Agronomist," Jonathan Demme's documentary about the late Haitian radio journalist and human rights activist Jean Dominique.
Porn Company to Release Paris Hilton Video
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The notorious home video circulated on the Internet showing reality TV star Paris Hilton having sex with her former boyfriend is coming to an adult film store near you.
Red Light District Video, a suburban Los Angeles porn production company, said on Thursday it has acquired rights from Hilton's ex-beau, Rick Salomon, to distribute the full 45-minute video in June under the title "One Night In Paris."
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. A spokeswoman for the company said the homemade tape, parts of which surfaced last year on Internet porn sites, will be released commercially in adult video stores on June 15.
She said the retail price has not been set. In February, Salomon posted a 38-minute version of the night-vision video on his own Web site, where it sold for $50 per copy.
The 23-year-old socialite, whose grandfather founded the Hilton hotel chain, has sued a Panama-based Internet firm for $30 million, claiming the company violated her privacy and engaged in illegal business practices by distributing the video.
Best known for starring on the Fox television reality hit "The Simple Life," Hilton claimed in the lawsuit that the videotape was "intended only for personal use" and that she never consented for it to be distributed to the public.
There was no immediate comment from Hilton's representatives in Los Angeles or New York about Red Light District's plans. And Salomon's lawyer, Martin Singer, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Red Light District said its video will include never-before-seen scenes from the tape Salomon and Hilton made in May 2001, including footage of the hotel heiress "partying in a nightclub."
Here are the new music releases for Tuesday April 20, 2004:
* A PERFECT DAY All Over Everything (ISBA)
* AUDREY DE MONTIGNY Audrey (BMG/Vik)
* BARRY MANILOW 2 Nights Live (BMG Heritage)
* BARRY MANILOW Ultimate Barry Manilow Live (DVD) (BMG Heritage)
* BLACK LABEL SOCIETY Hangover Music Vol. VI (Spitfire)
* ERIC CLAPTON Me and Mr. Johnson (DVD) (Warner)
* FATS WALLER The Fats Waller Centennial Collection (Arista Associated Labels)
* FEAR FACTORY Archetype (Liquid 8)
* GENE SIMMONS Asshole (Sanctuary Records)
* GLEN MILLER The Glen Miller Centennial Collection (Arista Associated Labels)
* GRANDMASTER FLASH Grandmaster Flash (DVD) (Rhino)
* JACKSON BROWNE The Naked Ride Home (DVD Audio) (Rhino)
* JACKSON BROWNE Running On Empty (DVD Audio) (Rhino)
* JOHN MICHAEL MONTGOMERY Letters From Home (Warner)
* KELLIE COFFEY A Little More Me (RCA Country)
* LUDOVICO EINAUDI Echoes (Windham Hill)
* NORTHSTAR Pollyanna (Razor & Tie)
* PATTY GRIFFIN Impossible Dream (ATO Records)
* QUEENSRYCHE The Art of Live (DVD Video) (Sanctuary Records)
* ROGER WHITTAKER Moments in My Life (Ariola)
* RON SEXSMITH Retriever (Warner)
* SEAL Seal IV (DVD AUDIO) (Warner)
* SHAWN DESMAN TBA Shawn Desman (BMG Canada/Vik)
* SKYE SWEETNAM Noise From The Basement (Capitol/EMI)
* VARIOUS ARTISTS Rock Against Bush (Fat Wreck Chords)
* VARIOUS ARTISTS Country Heat All Stars (BMG Canada)
* WAND GUNTER NDR Sinfoni- Orchestra/ Schuman: Symphony Nos. 3 & 4 (Arista Associated Labels)
* WARREN HAYNES TBA Warren Haynes (ATO Records)
New Darth Vader Costume Shown on DVD
LOS ANGELES - Fans can get a first look at the new Darth Vader costume from the 2005 "Star Wars: Episode III" prequel on the upcoming DVD collection of the original trilogy, Lucasfilm announced Monday.
The first three "Star Wars" films debut for the first time in digital format on Sept. 21.
The Darth Vader featurette promises an interview with creator George Lucas discussing how Jedi warrior Anakin Skywalker became the fearsome space villain.
It also will show behind-the-scenes footage of actors Hayden Christensen, who plays Anakin, and Ewan McGregor, who plays Obi-Wan Kenobi, engaged in the forthcoming film's climactic lightsaber duel.
"We're going to see the evolution of this character and go places with Darth Vader we've never gone before," said Jim Ward, a Lucasfilm marketer and DVD executive producer. "Our fans have been eagerly awaiting every morsel of `Episode III' as we divulge it. We're giving it to them piece by piece."
He said the DVD would hold back, however, on most of the details, which are being saved for the final installment in the prequel trilogy, set for release in theaters on May 19, 2005.
Besides the three movies, subtitled "A New Hope," "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi," the DVD collection also will include documentaries about the history of the laser-sword lightsabers, an exploration of how some of the famous alien creatures were inspired and created, and a playable Xbox videogame demo for the upcoming game Star Wars: Battlefront.
The Couch Potato Report - April 20th, 2004
In The Couch Potato Report this week there’s an office that’s fun to go to, a master and a commander and a funny man whose funny no more.
Comedy is subjective.
What I find funny, you might think is stupid, and vice versa.
I find a lot of things funny and have no problems stating that my favourite movie of all time is THE ADVENTURES OF BOB & DOUG McKENZIE IN STRANGE BREW.
I’ve seen the film at least a hundred times and still laugh out loud every time.
I haven’t seen every episode of the British Sitcom THE OFFICE a hundred times, but I suspect that once I have I’ll still be laughing.
On the other hand, you might not think the show is funny at all.
After all, there are no punch lines, no jokes, no laugh tracks, and no smile inducing happy endings.
But what makes it better than almost everything else on TV is how it’s funny, because it isn’t funny. At times it’s actually painful because the situations are so real, but once you sidestep the pain, you’ll enjoy a good laugh.
THE OFFICE takes place in the offices of a fictional British paper merchant.
The writing is subtle and deft, yet broad and daft at the same time. The ensemble cast are so perfect together that the documentary feel of the show sometimes feel very real.
That cast is led by co-director and co-writer Ricky Gervais who plays David Brent, the office manager. Gervais steals every scene he’s in as he is so letcherous and idiotic that you can’t help but laugh at what he does, and how funny HE thinks he is.
Some day David Brent will become a name as symbolic as Basil Fawlty in the history of British Humour.
That all said, you still might not find this show funny. I do, and it is with great pleasure that I sat and watched the DVD set that is THE OFFICE – THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES.
This SECOND SERIES picks up where the FIRST SERIES left off and we see the continuation of the fall of David Brent. That fall allows for some darker comedic moments, which like the rest of the series, have to be seen to be believed.
But the best part of THE OFFICE are the moments that come out of nowhere, for instance in a moment prior to the opening credits when the entire cast sings along to the Muppet classic Mahna Mahna.
THE OFFICE – THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES far surpasses the sky-high standards set in THE FIRST SERIES of the show and I find it laugh out loud funny stuff.
You might find it boring and unfunny.
And that’s okay. We don’t have to agree on everything.
I suspect another area that we’ll disagree on is how good MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD is.
Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany from A BEAUTIFUL MIND star with Billy Boyd from THE LORD OF THE RINGS in the Oscar Nominated MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD.
Based on Patrick O'Brian's enormously popular novels about British naval hero Capt. Jack Aubrey, and directed by Peter Weir, some think MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD to be a seafaring adventure like no other. I’ve also heard that people thought it was impeccably authentic, dynamically cast, and thrilling enough to give any classic swashbuckler a run for its money.
Unfortunately I didn’t think any of that. It's unfortunate as I love movies about the sea. If you put a boat or the sea in your movie I'm almost certain to love it.
MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD has both boats and the sea, but it didn't entertain me.
The film is about the HMS Surprise, an English warship sailing around South America during the Napoleonic era. Russell Crowe is superb as the ship's captain as he engages in a battle of wits, wills, and firepower with a rival captain during the perilous sea trek.
There are also great moments of humour and camaraderie.
But the action, the plot, the characters and the entire film just stopped and re-started too often to keep me interested. I understand that the story has to stop at one point so we can see that the captian is human after all, but once it stops it stops.
Then it takes too long to get started again. I would argue that it never actually gets started again.
I respected MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD, and I will watch it again some day to see if I am way off base.
Upon my initial two viewings I have to say that I didn’t think the movie was very good, and I’m prepared to hear that you liked it.
Just as prepared to hear that you don’t think THE OFFICE is funny, but like I said we don’t have to agree on everything.
What I think we can agree on is that fact that Eddie Murphy used to be one of the funniest people in the world.
On SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, in his stand up routines RAW and DELIRIOUS and in films like 48 HOURS, BEVERLY HILLS COP and TRADING PLACES he started the eighties off on a huge role.
With the notable exception of SHREK his recent work in THE ADVENTURES OF PLUTO NASH, SHOWTIME, I SPY and DADDY DAY CARE has been unwatchable. It’s almost as if he can’t be funny anymore.
Eddie Murphy’s downward role continues in the very unfunny THE HAUNTED MANSION. Like THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN it too was based on a ride at Disneyland. Unlike THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, this movie is dreadful!
Murphy plays a workaholic who visits a haunted house with his family during a job interview. He meets a ghost that teaches him a lesson about the importance of the family that he has neglected and nothing interesting happens.
If you have very young kids they might, and this is a very remote possibility, they might get a kick out of some of the special effects and things that happen when a family moves into a haunted mansion, but I doubt it.
Plus, why did Murphy even make this movie?!?!?
In his concert film DELIRIOUS he talks about how only white people are stupid to stay in a haunted place:
Says Eddie as a Black Male Householder: “Aw baby this is beautiful, we got a chandelier hanging up here, kids playing outside, it's a beautiful neighborhood. Ain't got nothing to worry about... I really like this place...”
Demonic Voice: Get out!
Black Male Householder : Too bad we can't stay...
If you ignore THE HAUNTED MANSION maybe it will just go away. As for Eddie Murphy, with SHREK 2 due in theatres in less than a month, I’m sure he’ll be fine. I only hope that SHREK 2 is vintage Murphy.
Good luck to us all!
THE OFFICE – THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES, MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD and THE HAUNTED MANSION are available right now on video and DVD at your favourite local video store.
COMING NEXT WEEK IN THE COUCH POTATO REPORT
Tim Burton’s luscious BIG FISH is an enchanting film about a son who is reunited with his estranged, tale-telling father.
In the wonderful LOVE ACTUALLY ten couples look for love during Christmas. From the same people who made FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL and NOTTING HILL the movie features a personable and talented large ensemble cast that includes Hugh Grant, Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson and Keira Knightly.
The latest film from the comedic Farrelly Brothers is called STUCK ON YOU. Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear are conjoined twins who pursue a career in acting. Sadly, the funniest thing about the movie is the premise.
TITANIC collaborators James Cameron and Bill Paxton lead an expedition to the Titanic wreckage in the documentary GHOSTS OF THE ABYSS.
In THE COOLER William H. Macy is the unluckiest sap on the planet. He is employed as a "cooler" at a casino; his very presence can chill the hot streak of any patron on a roll. The film is a little offbeat, but the cast that also includes Mario Bello and Alec Baldwin is full of great characters.
And finally,
Norman Jewison’s THE STATEMENT is a thriller that stars Michael Caine as an escaped Nazi collaborator who is being pursued by a French judge and an army colonel so he can answer for his crimes.
I'll have more on those releases in seven days.
For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!
Fade To Yellow?
USA Today outlined Fox's options since the vocal cast behind THE SIMPSONS are holding out for more money. The net has enough episodes in the can to last them to January next season, but they are looking at either canceling the show, recasting the main roles, or replacing it with AMERICAN IDOL, which will start its next season in January.
SETTING A DEADLINE
NBC announcing that Dec. 1 will be Tom Brokaw's last day anchoring NBC Nightly News. Brian Williams will take over the following day.
...go here and buy them right now. This way they will be shipped within three weeks.
The difference between these discs that are available right now and the ones coming out on June 8th isn't much.
These DVDs will have the same content as the retail box set, but don't include the 24 page booklet and nicer packaging of the box set.
As a comedian in all seriousness, if you are impatient - like I am - you'll want them now.
SCTV DVD Set 1 - What's Changed
While it appears the company releasing SCTV on DVD has done a pretty good job securing music for the new set, there have been some things taken out of the upcoming box set.
Here is what's different show by show:
* Episode 1: The end credits music has been changed to a generic theme; the original had a recording of "Thanks for the Memories."
* Episode 2: Part 1 of Polynesiantown has been moved forward, swapped with Brenda Vaccaro commercial and Sammy Maudlin. Again, the end credits music has been changed to a generic theme.
* Episode 3: The Star Wars music in Empires Are A Girl's Best Friend has been changed to a similar-sounding theme.
* Episode 4: No changes!
* Episode 5: No changes!
* Episode 6: The repeat of Indira has been removed. The Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young music (Gerry Todd Show) has been changed, though the "White Christmas" vocals remain.
* Episode 7: The bumper for The Nobel has been moved from the first break to the very last piece in the show. The Kovak Expert commercial has been moved from segment 2 to segment 5. The bumper for The Tubes on Scuttlebutt Lodge has been removed. A seemingly new (?) bumper for Roy Orbison has been inserted before his performance of "Working for the Man." Bumpers for The Silly Bastard and One On the Town have been reshuffled throughout the show.
* Episode 8: No changes!
* Episode 9: Max Lax and Shakespeare in the park have been swapped in the running order. The Mckenzie Brothers National Anthem music has been replaced with the GWN theme. Fantasy Island has been moved to the end of the show and its SCTV Afternoon Movie identifier has been removed. Finally, many bumpers have been shuffled.
Puzzling breakups and peace deals
We've all been there. We've all gone through terrible break-ups.
You know the kind -- where both parties scream and yell and say the most bilious, hate-filled things to one another before finally vowing to never, ever speak with one another again.
But then, usually, two or three years later, at a bar or, say, a barbecue at the house of a mutual friend who, for no reason, we'll call Gary, you see each other again from across the yard, and several gin and tonics, raspberry coolers and vodka Jell-O shots later, all of those bad things once said are forgotten and you wind up slurring apologies in the kitchen, before ultimately winding up embarrassing yourselves on the basement couch together in a sweaty, passionate ...
Um, you get the idea.
It's the same kind of thing in the world of music.
The only real difference being that in most cases you need to replace those alcoholic beverages with the promise of gobs and gobs of cash fed by a public hunger for nostalgia, and the basement couch with a tour of (hopefully) sold-out arenas and stadiums.
As for the embarrassment, well, that's a case-by-case scenario, with the best case being a great show that captures the essence of the band during its original run and the worst case usually being a new studio album.
Over the years, the scenarios have been put to fans of such acts as the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Motley Crue, Led Zeppelin, The Who, KISS and even lesser lights such as Soft Cell, Duran Duran and (gak!) Hall & Oates.
Even a Beatles reunion was speculated on and drooled over until it was eventually put to rest with the body of John Lennon.
One of the most recent examples of the rock 'n' roll reunion is '80s alternative legends the Pixies, who announced earlier this year they were putting past differences aside to hit the road for one more kick at the cat (or maybe taco, would be more appropriate).
The band -- featuring Frank Black (a.k.a. Black Francis), Kim Deal, Joey Santiago and David Lovering -- formed in the mid-'80s in Boston and went on to have a career that paved the way for the alternative revolution of the '90s.
Unfortunately, before they finally split in 1993 -- Black informed the rest of the members via a faxed statement after already announcing it during an interview -- the relationships were so sour they curdled.
Most of that tension was between frontman Black and Deal over his refusal to record her material, and her refusal to accept that.
In the years since the split, any mention of a reunion has been rebuffed by all parties -- if they acknowledged the existence of the Pixies at all -- with Black only warming to it slightly in the most recent past, even playing old Pixies tunes during his solo shows.
The questions were finally put to rest when it was announced that yes, indeed, the four were holed up in L.A. to rehearse for a tour that would, after a brief round of warm-up dates, begin with a headlining appearance at the Coachella Festival May 1 before heading overseas.
As to how embarrassing the patched-up Pixies are, Calgarians will get their opportunity to decide for themselves tomorrow night when the quartet plays a sold-out warm-up show at the U of C's MacEwan Hall.
The following are some other reunions from over the years and how they fared:
EAGLES -- Country soft-rock kings split up in 1982 after a not-so long run of a decade, with member Don Henley stating they would reunite when "hell freezes over."
Jump to 1994, when that phrase is used as an "ironic" and "clever" name for a reunion album and tour, which had lumpy middle-aged music lovers everywhere leaping -- figuratively speaking, of course -- at the chance to pay an exorbitant sum to see barely mobile musicians robotically deliver the hits of their wasted -- literally speaking, of course -- youth.
Ten years later, they're still going, having somehow evaded the cynicism radar of most of their fans and having siphoned not quite enough money out of the economy yet.
How embarrassing: It's hard to be embarrassed for anyone when they're billionaires and you're fast asleep.
THE GUESS WHO
Canadian classic rock icons conquered the world with their hit American Woman, before principals Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings parted company in 1970.
It was a timeless story: Bachman was a Mormon from Winnipeg who shunned the rock 'n' roll lifestyle; Cummings was a moustachioed party machine who embraced it to its fullest -- however could it succeed?
In 1983, they got back together to see if it could work again. It didn't.
It took the 1999 Pan Am Games in their hometown -- and a hefty paycheck -- to finally get them back for a lengthy period of time, with a cross-Canada tour that won over even the most hardened of critics.
Subsequent tours and appearances, including a much ballyhooed set at Sars-stock, have gone over just as well.
How embarrassing: Surprisingly not at all.
SIMON & GARFUNKEL
Forever known as the talented little fella and that other guy what'shisname, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel have been an on-again, off-again duo for most of their lives.
Their two biggest splits came in the early '70s, when Simon went onto a popular solo career and Garfunkel ... um, didn't.
A brief reunion did occur halfway through the decade and then a full-blown one came about in 1981 with their famous concert in Central Park.
A planned new studio album never materialized due to artistic differences -- presumably due to Simon being an artist and Garfunkel being not.
Finally, they were brought back one more time for 2003's Grammy Awards, looking and sounding like two people who hadn't spoken in more than 20 years.
Still, Art oddly had enough free time to fit in a full tour late last year.
How embarrassing: Charity, especially among friends or acquaintances, is never embarrassing.
KISS
The original KISS lineup -- Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss -- was responsible for some of the most memorable theatrical arena rock of the '70s.
Criss left in 1980 and Frehley left soon after, with the band going downhill steadily from there and Simmons and Stanley pretty much bad mouthing the departed pair as merely hired hands.
However, those hired hands were more than helpful in refilling the KISS coffers when they put the makeup back on and reunited in 1996.
Since then, the band has embarked on a farewell tour that has lasted longer than most childhoods, with Frehley and Criss alternately quitting or being punted from the band at regular intervals.
How embarrassing: They're 50 years old, wearing wigs, makeup, moon boots and spandex -- what could possibly be embarrassing about that?
SEX PISTOLS
They burned brief and bright for a couple of years in the '70s, but it was enough to push punk rock into the frightened mainstream.
A reunion seemed like an entirely unlikely thing considering the death of bassist Sid Vicious, but completely likely considering they were a well marketed and better managed cash grab from the beginning.
With frontman Johnny Rotten's (a.k.a. John Lydon) career in the dumper -- even after producing several superb albums with his new band Public Image Limited -- it didn't take much to get him to agree to a 1996 reunion with the other members and original bassist Glen Matlock to celebrate the Pistols' 20th anniversary.
What followed was the Filthy Lucre Tour and, since then, a few less successful dates and tours.
How embarrassing: Punk's not dead, it's hiding.
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND
More than a decade apart proved to be just the tonic for The Boss and his legendary backup band.
In 1999, they put all differences aside for a successful reunion tour, which paved the way for a studio reunion with the 9/11-inspired The Rising.
That then gave way to a full world tour which, for many, captured the essence of their shows together in the '70s that are the stuff of rock legend.
Here's hoping more is on the way.
How embarrassing: How brilliant.
BANDS ON THE RUN
STILL WAITING:
* Pink Floyd
* Cream
* ABBA
* The Smiths
Suppose They Had a Reunion and No One Cared:
* Men Without Hats
* Wham!
* Extreme
* Bootsauce
* Guns N' Roses
Corrs In 'Heaven' On New Album
Irish pop act the Coors will return next month with its fourth album, "Borrowed Heaven." The set will arrive May 25 in North America via Atlantic and a day earlier internationally. First single "Summer Sunshine" can be streamed from the group's official Web site.
The set is the follow-up to 2000's "In Blue," which peaked at No. 21 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 1.1 million units in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The Irish band came off the road in 2001 after six years of almost continual touring and recording. "We needed to get our lives back," lead singer Andrea Corr admits. After a break, the family quartet spent 18 months writing and recording "Borrowed Heaven" in Dublin and Los Angeles.
"It's our strongest songwriting to date," Sharon Corr says. "We had more time, and all four of us contributed." The album features the song "Time Enough for Tears," co-written by U2 frontman Bono and Gavin Friday. Andrea Corr previously sung the track in the 2003 film "In America." It was produced by Olle Romo, who has previously worked with Pulp, Shania Twain and Backstreet Boys
The Corrs have European tour dates on tap beginning June 19 in Bonn, Germany, through July 21 in Mallorca, Spain. The group's first-ever North American tour is in the planning stages for August and September.
Here is the "Borrowed Heaven" track list:
"Summer Sunshine"
"Angel"
"Hideaway"
"Long Night"
"Goodbye"
"Time Enough for Tears"
"Humdrum"
"Even If"
"Borrowed Heaven"
"Confidence"
"Baby Be Brave"
"Silver Strand"
'We Built This City' ranks as the worst record ever
We Built This City is the single worst single ever constructed, according to Blender's ranking of reeking tunes.
Not so hip to be square: Huey Lewis' The Heart of Rock & Roll rates as one of the worst songs ever, according to Blender magazine.
The magazine's list of "The 50 Worst Songs Ever," which hits newsstands Tuesday in New York and Los Angeles and April 27 nationwide, distills the lamest popular rock-era records into one sonic landfill.
Starship's 1985 anthem, the runaway No. 1 stinker, "seems to inspire the most virulent feelings of outrage," editor Craig Marks says. "It purports to be anti-commercial but reeks of '80s corporate-rock commercialism. It's a real reflection of what practically killed rock music in the '80s."
Also sealing the song's fate were Starship's steep fall from grace as the admired Jefferson Airplane and "the sheer dumbness of the lyrics," Marks says.
BOTTOM OF THE BARREL
1. We Built This City Starship 1985
2. Achy Breaky Heart Billy Ray Cyrus 1992
3. Everybody Have Fun Tonight Wang Chung 1986
4. Rollin' Limpbizkit 2000
5. Ice Ice Baby Vanilla Ice 1990
6. The Heart of Rock & Roll Huey Lewis & The News 1984
7. Don't Worry, Be Happy Bobby McFerrin 1988
8. Party All the Time Eddie Murphy 1985
9. American Life Madonna 2003
10. Ebony and Ivory Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder 1982
The May issue, a sequel to the 2003 roundup of history's worst bands, coincides with a Blender/VH1 special, The 50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs Ever, which airs May 12.
Harvesting clunkers that range from The Doors' The End to Aqua's Barbie Girl entailed more digging than expected.
Each dud had to be a hit to make the hit list. Though Right Said Fred's I'm Too Sexy got in, such novelties as Macarena and Who Let the Dogs Out, which by design are cheesy, were nixed. The jury also whittled down the bulk of "rotten, excruciatingly bad low-hanging fruit from the '70s," Marks says.
Blender had no qualms about riding herd on sacred cows, inducting The Beatles' Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, R.E.M.'s Shiny Happy People and John Mayer's Your Body Is a Wonderland. The entry most likely to peeve fans is Simon & Garfunkel's The Sounds of Silence.
"It's the freshman-poetry meaningfulness that got our goat," Marks says. "With self-important lyrics like, 'Hear my words that I might teach you,' it's almost a parody of pretentious '60s folk-rock.
"If Frasier Crane wrote a song, this would be it."
To accommodate coming horrors, the list can't be considered definitive. Noting that Clay Aiken's Invisible landed at No. 11, Marks predicts that "as soon as the American Idol season is finished, there will be a new entry."
"If you can't beat them, arrange to have them beaten."
— George Carlin
THERE ARE SPOILERS CONTAINED IN THIS STORY
High Noon School: A Pistol-Packin' Lesson on Westerns, Love, Flutes and Spit
Okay, so Bill hasn't died yet.
He's going to, though. Just as the title of Quentin Tarantino's two-movie bloodbath/love story promises. But before biting the dust, the title character gets plenty of action in Kill Bill: Volume 2, after missing Volume 1 entirely. As played by leathery badass David Carradine (remember him from the '70s TV series Kung Fu, young grasshopper?), he's the former boss, spurned love and revenge target for Uma Thurman's left-for-dead Bride.
While resurrecting long-forgotten TV studs is a Tarantino specialty, he also tosses plenty of pop-culture potpourri into his megaplex blender. We pin him down--along with Thurman, Carradine and bad guys Daryl Hannah and Michael Madsen--to decode Kill Bill: Volume 2's influences, twists and carnage.
1. Uma Is Now a Verb: After slicing and knifing her way through piles of foes last time, Thurman has caught on as a role model. She says she has heard of young girls acting tough, claiming they're "getting Uma" or "getting Uma'd up." She urges caution, though: "Not that I want people to fight. There is that thin line between self-confidence and aggression."
2. Great Scenes Can Be Afterthoughts: A dirty, show-stopping throw-down in Volume 2 between the Bride and Hannah's eye-patched baddie Elle Driver was supposed to happen in the open desert. One day before filming, Tarantino instead crammed the catfight--samurai swords and all--into a cramped trailer home. "He just kept making it longer and more funny and more stupid," says Hannah. Stupid in a good way, right?
3. David's Not Just Coasting on Reruns: At 67, Carradine still has deadly moves, and he wasn't too old to learn new tricks from Japanese sword masters and "wire fu" master Yuen Woo-ping. "I've always been in pretty good shape, but you can always get better," he says. "The martial art they use in Chinese movies is a little different from kung fu. I had to get into that."
4. Zamfir, No; Wind Instruments, Yes: When Bill's finally introduced in Volume 2, he's playing a bamboo flute, much like the one Carradine's character Caine carried throughout his journeys on Kung Fu. "I sneaked it in," he says. "Every day, when we were stretching, I would do some meditation and flute. I knew that if I did enough of that, maybe Quentin would put it in the picture. And he did."
5. Not So Many Lopped-Off Ankles: Bad news for The Passion of the Christ fans: Kill Bill: Volume 2 is far less blood-soaked and cringe-inducing than the first installment--both here and in Japan, where they saw a gorier, more graphic Volume 1.
6. The Pussy Wagon Has Been Stolen: