Fall Flicks
The Toronto Sun rakes through the pile to pick the top 10 movies of the coming season.
Feeling dissatisfied, uncomfortable, irritated and -- let's face it -- a little gassy after this summer's slate of weak flicks? Sure, we had Spider-Man 2 and Shrek 2, and surprisingly good fare like Collateral, Napoleon Dynamite and The Bourne Supremacy.
But make no mistake: The summer movie season sucked. Suckity-suck-sucked. Virtually all of the big-buzz flicks were colossal disappointments while most of the other films were exercises in mediocrity.
Sadly, we're the bearers of more bad news: The fall movie season doesn't seem a whole lot better, and appears to have even fewer surefire hits than the summer. What it does have, though, are lots of cartoons -- and plenty of sex goddess Angelina Jolie, who appears in three of our top 10 flicks.
Hmm, maybe this fall's not so bad after all ...
10. BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON
Opens Nov. 19
- WHAT: In this sequel to the 2001 hit Bridget Jones's Diary, plump and opinionated Bridget (Renee Zellweger) is now happily married to her dream man, lawyer Mark Darcy (Colin Firth). Or is she? Many, many conflicts arise, in the form of Mark's hot new intern, the worst vacation of Bridget's life, the return of her ex-boss Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant) and Bridget's discovery that Mark is -- gasp! -- a Conservative voter.
- HOT: Thankfully, most of the talent arrayed for the first flick has returned, including crack screenwriters Andrew Davies and Richard Curtis. And any excuse to add some meat to Zellweger's sinewy frame is okay by us.
- COLD: It's been years since Bridget-mania swept the nation -- and the critical reaction to this film's literary incarnation was less-than-stellar.
- WE SAY: A second helping of Miss Jones should please adult audiences -- especially all those lonely, desperate singletons. But we doubt it will be nearly as good as the original.
9. LADDER 49
Opens Oct. 1
- WHAT: When firefighter Jack Morrison (Joaquin Phoenix) gets trapped inside a burning building, he reflects on his life and marriage. Meanwhile, the other brave men from his firehall -- including father figure Chief Kennedy (John Travolta) -- try desperately to rescue him.
- HOT: With all its pyrotechnics and macho-man bonding, Ladder 49 is like a summer movie transplanted to the fall -- only, it seems, with more brains and heart; it has been a long time since we've had an honest-to-goodness firefighter flick (Backdraft, 1991).
- COLD: And it seems almost as long since Travolta has had a bona fide hit. Can we finally disassociate him from the cinematic steaming piles Battlefield Earth and The General's Daughter?
- WE SAY: Ladder 49 looks entirely predictable, but Phoenix is great in everything he does -- and that includes his summer dud The Village.
8. THE POLAR EXPRESS
Opens Nov. 10
- WHAT: In one of several high-profile animated flicks of the season, Tom Hanks lends his dulcet tones -- and body movements -- to the role of The Conductor, who's in charge of a magical train that takes kids to the North Pole. The movie uses technology called "performance capture," which computer-animates the movements of actors on bare soundstages.
- HOT: When Hanks and director Robert Zemeckis team up (Cast Away, Forrest Gump), the result usually means a big pile o' cash the two probably use to light cigars while laughing uncontrollably; Peter Scolari -- a.k.a. the less successful guy from Bosom Buddies -- is finally reunited with Hanks, playing a character likely too aptly named "Lonely Boy."
- COLD: Former Hollywood golden boy Hanks has stumbled recently -- The Ladykillers and The Terminal failed to impress audiences and critics.
- WE SAY: All aboard! But kids only -- aside from the impressive visuals, there doesn't seem to be much to appeal at an adult level, unless you still believe Santa Claus is real. And believe us, he ain't: All we got last year was a "best of" Dan Aykroyd DVD.
7. RAY
Opens Oct. 29
- WHAT: Suddenly hot actor Jamie Foxx stars as legendary soul singer Ray Charles in this biopic that covers his life from an impoverished youth to his rise to the top of the charts.
- HOT: Foxx's career is set to blast off, what with his terrific turn in this summer's Collateral and now this big, showy role as a larger-than-life icon; the lavish trailer practically screamed "For Your Oscar Consideration," as it featured great music and scenes with Charles facing his drug addiction and battling racism, etc.
- COLD: Is Foxx going to be the next Denzel Washington or the next -- dare we speaketh his unclean name -- Cuba Gooding Jr.? And is it too early to be releasing a picture based on the life of somebody who died so recently (June)? That seems so TV-movie-of-the-week.
- WE SAY: We're betting this will be a Ray of sunshine through the murk of the fall releases -- and that Foxx's stock continues to rise.
6. WIMBLEDON
Opens Sept. 17
- WHAT: In this romantic comedy/ sports movie, down-on-his-luck tennis player Peter Colt (Paul Bettany), seeded at the bottom of the rankings, somehow makes the cut at Wimbledon. There he meets hot young American tennis sensation Lizzie Bradbury (Kirsten Dunst) -- and, naturally, falls in love with her. Suddenly, Peter starts playing great again -- but how long can that last?
- HOT: Wimbledon is served up to us from the fine people who made Notting Hill and Bridget Jones's Diary, which bodes very well for the quality of this flick; both Bettany and Dunst seem on the verge of big things -- so why not break out at the same time?
- COLD: Sure, it looks predictable, but what romantic comedy isn't? But tennis flicks aren't easy sells -- we're still trying to recover from Carling Bassett's 1982 grunt-a-thon, Spring Fever.
- WE SAY: Wimbledon looks like it has the potential to ace the competition -- oddly enough, experts say it's already more successful than Anna Kournikova's tennis career.
5. FINDING NEVERLAND
Opens Oct. 22
- WHAT: This is the story of eccentric Scottish playwright J.M. Barrie (Johnny Depp) and his relationship with widowed mother Sylvia Llewelyn Davies (Kate Winslet) and her three young boys. Their experiences would ultimately influence Barrie's creation of Peter Pan.
- HOT: Not only is this is a Prestige movie with a capital "P," this is also a Miramax flick, meaning it's prime Oscar bait. It has an excellent pedigree, including Depp, Winslet and director Marc Forster, whose last acclaimed effort was Monster's Ball, featuring Halle Berry doing the dirty deed with Billy Bob Thornton. As Beyonce wouldn't say: Boobylicious!
- COLD: The last Peter Pan flick tanked at the box office at Christmas, leaving us wondering whether the moviegoing public gives a fig about a little boy in tights who flies around the air.
- WE SAY: Too bad this flick wasn't called Finding Neverland: The Violently Grisly Takedown Of Michael Jackson, because that's definitely something we'd be excited about. Still, if you want to see what will likely be one of the most prominent Oscar-worthy films of the year, you could do worse than check this out.
4. ALEXANDER
Opens Nov. 5
- WHAT: Oliver Stone directs this historical epic documenting the life of the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great, who ruled most of the known world by the time he turned 30. Whereas by the time he turns 30, star Colin Farrell will have gotten drunk and passed out in most of the known world.
- HOT: His bad-boy image aside, we're anxious to see what the talented Farrell can really achieve if he actually applied himself -- and Stone may be the right director to push his buttons; the lovely Angelina Jolie stars as Olympias, Alexander's jealous mother and, we must declare, the hottest MILF in movie history.
- COLD: Anybody remember Troy, that other sword-and-sandal epic that was supposed to hack up the box office? Didn't think so.
- WE SAY: Stone seems to be the right man to make the material seem fresh -- let's just keep the conspiracy theories about the cause of Alexander's death out of it, okay?
3. SKY CAPTAIN & THE WORLD OF TOMORROW
Opens Sept. 17
- WHAT: In this fantastical sci-fi adventure set in 1930s New York, ace fighter pilot Joe "Sky Captain" Sullivan (Jude Law) and sassy reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) must rescue his sidekick Dex (Giovanni Ribisi) and missing scientists from the clutches of the evil Dr. Totenkopf (played, apparently, by long-deceased actor Laurence Olivier through archival footage). Help comes in the very curvaceous form of Capt. Frankie Cook, played by Angelina Jolie in tight outfit and eyepatch: Please put yourself in the upright position, if you know what we mean.
- HOT: The visuals are spectacularly retro-animation. Everything about this film -- from the giant robots attacking New York City to the melodramatic dialogue and music -- is like an homage to the 1930s and those old Max Fleischer Superman cartoons.
- COLD: Sure, geeks will dig it, but is this going to be another movie where it's all looks, no story? And will the idea of using Olivier -- albeit with a different actor dubbing his lines -- prove to be more offputting than inspired?
- WE SAY: This looks like the movie cheesy-serial lover George Lucas has been wanting to make all his life -- but is still incapable of even imagining. Sky Captain's visuals and cast of terrific actors make it look too good to pass up.
2. SHARK TALE
Opens Oct. 1
- WHAT: After little fish Oscar (the voice of Will Smith) takes credit for killing a great white shark, the consequences of his great white lie come catching up to him. Soon he's in trouble with the shark mafia, led by Don Lino (Robert De Niro), who's fretting about his meek, vegetarian son Lenny (Jack Black).
- HOT: In case you haven't noticed, family cartoons are all the rage these days. And while having a star cast is no guarantee of box-office success (Sinbad: Legend Of The Seven Seas, anyone?), this kiddie flick is loaded with top-end talent, including Renee Zellweger, Martin Scorsese and -- you guessed it -- Angelina Jolie, who might as well have the word Fall '04 tattooed on her ass. Actually, it probably already is.
- COLD: Let's see ... a computer-animated movie set under the sea and featuring fish protagonists? Wasn't that called Finding Nemo? The story -- which sounds like it would probably star Matthew Perry if this were a live-action flick -- doesn't sound especially original, nor does it seem as though it would resonate emotionally like Nemo and other animated films of its ilk.
- WE SAY: Even if it isn't caviar, we're sure this fish story will be a big hit with audiences. But come on, De Niro -- get back to cursing at people and swatting them over the head with a baseball bat. Please?
1. THE INCREDIBLES
- WHAT: A family of superheroes led by Bob Parr -- a.k.a. Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) -- is called out of their self-imposed retirement in suburbia when the patriarch is summoned to a mysterious island for a top-secret mission. Too bad Mr. Incredible's Spandex tights no longer fit him the way they used to. Also too bad: Angelina Jolie doesn't make an appearance here.
- HOT: Why did this movie shoot to the top of our list faster than a speeding bullet? Because computer-animation company Pixar can do no wrong. Plus, this marks animation whiz Brad Bird's first collaboration with Pixar -- and judging by his track record (The Iron Giant, The Simpsons), we should expect something really good. And check out that cast, which also includes Holly Hunter and Samuel L. Jackson. Nelson is, fortunately, the only Coach alumnus on the roster.
- COLD: Then again, expectations may exceed what ultimately gets onto the big screen. And this is Pixar's first foray into rendering mostly human characters instead of loveable fish, wisecracking toys or fuzzy monsters, so there's an element of risk here.
- WE SAY: This flick will rule the fall season. Because if you want a movie to make a gazillion dollars, you have to make something that will appeal to families -- kids AND adults -- and get them to return to the theatre over and over again. We're certain this is one of those movies that has got that special alchemy just right.
The Who, XTC "Freak" Out
"Freaks and Geeks" finally has a soundtrack
The long-overdue soundtrack to the cancelled cult-favorite TV show Freaks and Geeks is due September 14th. Like the show, the twenty-five-track compilation is a celebration of all things late Seventies and early Eighties, featuring tracks by Rush, Styx, Joe Jackson, Joan Jett and XTC.
During its eighteen-episode run from 1999 to 2000, Freaks and Geeks (now available on DVD) frequently integrated music into scenes, most memorably when a school guidance counselor gives a captive audience of students an unwanted acoustic performance of Alice Cooper's "Eighteen" and when the parents of characters Lindsay and Sam discuss the meaning of the Who's "Squeezebox."
"We always tried to put in songs that seemed honest to what our experience was," says executive producer Judd Apatow. "One of my favorite uses of music is when Bill is home after school and his parents aren't around, and you get the sense he's a latchkey kid. He makes a grilled cheese sandwich and gets a piece of cake and a glass of milk and he watches The Dinah Shore Show and you hear the Who playing 'I'm One' as he watches Garry Shandling do stand-up comedy. He's laughing his ass off, and you realize that TV is his best friend. It's his companion."
Apatow's life was not much different. "I used to go home, watch The Mike Douglas show and eat grilled cheese sandwiches," he says. "It was an important part of my childhood, so I would try to tell those stories using the music I listened to. I would have been listening to Quadrophenia back then, so it felt right."
For the original songs performed by the characters, Apatow and Freaks and Geeks creator Paul Feig would often have the actors write them themselves -- as was the case with Jason Segal (Nick) and the cringe-inducing "Lady L."
"It is one of the worst songs ever written," says Apatow. "He barely knows how to play an instrument, but he's so talented that he could write something that funny and that bad. It was perfect, because that's what a kid would write."
Freaks and Geeks: Original Soundtrack track listing:
"Bad Reputation," Joan Jett
"Geek Hallway," Michael Andrews
"Poor Poor Pitiful Me," Warren Zevon
"Lindsay's Theme," Michael Andrews
"Keg Party Music," Michael Andrews
"Look Sharp!," Joe Jackson
"Clem's Theme," Michael Andrews
"No Language in Our Lungs," XTC
"Lindsay Disturbed Theme," Michael Andrews
"Bill Gets Funky (a.k.a. Spacefunk)," Paul Feig
"USA Rock," Michael Andrews
"The Spirit of Radio," Rush
"Daniel's Theme 2," Michael Andrews
"I'm One," The Who
"Porno Music," Michael Andrews
"Neal's Lament," Michael Andrews
"The Groove Line," Heatwave
"Ken's Ode to Joy," Michael Andrews
"Come Sail Away," Styx
"End Title Theme," Michael Andrews
"Lady L," Jason Segal
"Eighteen," Dave Gruber Allen
"Jesus Is Just Alright," Jason Segal and Sara Hagen
"Up on Cripple Creek," Dave Gruber Allen
"Dumb as a Crayon," The Leaving Trains
Coming Soon!
"The Making of Nevermind" will be released on DVD later this year. The film, part of Eagle Vision Entertainment's "Classic Albums" series, details the recording of Nirvana's breakthrough 1991 album via interviews with bandmembers and producers.
Sequel to cult classic Clerks in works
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kevin Smith is making another convenience store run.
The writer-director of Dogma, Chasing Amy and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back told the Associated Press on Friday that he has begun work on a sequel to Clerks, his homemade indie classic from 1994.
That $27,000 movie, shot at night in a store where Smith worked, chronicled the adventures of Dante and Randal, two guys who talk about life, death, sex and movies while working at neighbouring stores.
The sequel picks up 10 years later.
"It's about what happens when that lazy, 20-something malaise lasts into your 30s. Those dudes are kind of still mired, not in that same exact situation, but in a place where it's time to actually grow up and do something more than just sit around and dissect pop culture and talk about sex," Smith said during an interview at his Hollywood office. "It's: What happened to these dudes?''
A new 10th anniversary DVD of Clerks debuts Sept. 7, and Smith said working on that three-disc set inspired him to write about what became of those characters.
The sequel — titled The Passion of the Clerks — is set to begin shooting in January. Miramax Films, which turned the original into a cult-hit after buying it at the Sundance Film Festival, plans to distribute the follow-up.
"It's funny, it's very raw, insanely foul-mouthed. In many ways it's the antithesis of Jersey Girl," Smith said, referring to his recent PG-13 comedy with Ben Affleck as the widowed father of a little girl.
Smith is also writing the screenplay for a movie version of The Green Hornet, but no longer thinks he will direct it. The Clerks movie has moved to the top of his to-do list.
He said he called Jeff Anderson, who played the combative video-store worker Randal, and Brian O'Halloran, who was the besieged-by-strangeness convenience store employee Dante, to run the idea by them first.
"Jeff was actually very protective of 'Clerks,'" Smith said. ``Jeff was like, 'Are you sure you want to do this? That movie means a lot to people and do you want to go back?' I thought about it honestly, and it would seem chicken to not give it a shot just because I'm afraid of (messing) with the first film.''
So far, he said he has gotten only positive responses from the people who have read the script, so he decided to move forward with it. Both O'Halloran and Anderson are signed on, and Jason Mewes, will return as stoner Jay, the "hetero life-mate" of Smith's stoic Silent Bob.
"I'm sure there will be naysayers who say, 'Oh my God, it's an opportunistic grab at a buck,' but it's not. We're doing it for nothing," Smith said. "We're going to do it insanely inexpensively. The budget will be somewhere between 250 grand and $5 million.''
The original was shot pre-dawn, and most of the actors worked for free and then went straight to their day-jobs with little or no sleep.
"This time around we'll afford ourselves the luxury of nice 12-hour days," Smith said. "And people can get paid.''
Graham Picks Up the Pace on 'Scrubs'
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Heather Graham is putting the wraps on her first project as a producer, an independent film called "Cake." She worked on the movie, which she also stars in, for a couple of years and knows the material "backwards and forwards."
Now, she's filming a recurring part on NBC's "Scrubs," where relationships with scripts last a week, if that.
"It's a lot crazier," the "Boogie Nights" and "Bowfinger" star says of her first extended TV work since a stint on "Twin Peaks" in 1991. "The longest [ahead of time] I've ever gotten a script is a week before, whereas with a movie, you can get it few months before. ...
"It's a little more seat of your pants. You have to trust that you know what you're doing and just go for it -- which is kind of fun."
Graham is signed to appear in eight episodes of "Scrubs." She plays a psychiatrist who joins the staff of Sacred Heart Hospital and shakes up the lives of its staff, notably Drs. J.D. Dorian (Zach Braff) and Elliot Reid (Sarah Chalke, her "Cake" co-star).
"I'm this person who understands human behavior so well, and I'm on top of it in most situations," she says of her character. "But basically my love life is really screwed up. I think I date a lot of losers who kind of torture me."
Despite that sad romantic backstory, though, Graham says she probably won't end up J.D.'s, or anyone else's, girlfriend. "When I first talked to [creator] Bill Lawrence, he said 'We really don't want to bring you on just to be a love interest. We want you to have your own full character.'"
Although Graham hadn't seen "Scrubs" prior to being offered the part, she knew of its reputation as one of the funnier shows on television. A guest appearance on FOX's "Arrested Development," which like "Scrubs" is a single-camera show with an absurdist streak, also opened her eyes to the possibilities of television.
"I just think that there are certain really great TV shows -- some of them are better than a lot of movies," she says. "I'd rather be in something where there's good material."
Graham says she's having a lot of fun on the set of "Scrubs," and she sounds as if she might be open to sticking around for more episodes if she's asked. Then again, she's found that she really enjoys being a producer as well.
"They've been very nice to me [on set], saying 'You should stay,'" she says. "It's tempting because it's so great, but I've been getting really excited about developing and producing my own things. So that's the only thing that could tear me away."
"Scrubs" begins its fourth season at 9:25 p.m. ET Tuesday, Aug. 31.
Weezer Gets Busy On Fifth Album
Weezer is more than a month into recording sessions for its long-gestating fifth studio album. After a 10-day break, the band will resume work on the set in hopes of finishing it in time for frontman Rivers Cuomo to start the fall semester at Harvard, which he last attended in 1997.
In yet another new development, producer Rick Rubin, who Cuomo credited with helping him turn a corner in his personal and professional life, has bowed out of the day-to-day work process, according to Weezer's official Web site. Work behind the boards is being handled by engineer Chad Bramford, who has worked with the band for the past several years in various capacities.
"The sessions with Rick started back in [December 2003] have been shelved in favor of the fresh start that commenced three weeks ago in the current sessions," the site says. "This was done mainly in response to Rivers regaining his sense of momentum with his songwriting, and not feeling right about continuing with the incomplete recordings from December. In effect, the band is now producing itself, as it did on [the prior albums] 'Pinkerton' and 'Maladroit,' but this time they have a wise shoulder to lean on if and when need be. So far, it's working out pretty excellently."
The site stresses the 12 "songs being recorded now are not 'brand new,' they have been worked up since early this year as demos, over the entire spring time, by Rivers. In some cases, they were developed from songs being worked on in '03, but underwent such changes as to now be totally distinct from their origins. Basically, these 12 songs are 'new', but 'new' means early and spring 2004 (not last week or whatever). Also, there is the possibility of trying some additional songs if there is time, and such material could be '04 or '03 stuff."
The as-yet-untitled set will be released by the end of the year or early 2005 via Geffen. It will be the follow-up to 2002's "Maladroit," which debuted at No. 3 on The Billboard 200.
'Scotty' Making Final Public Appearances
LOS ANGELES - James Doohan beamed his way through the first of a series of events honoring him in what are expected to be his final public appearances.
The 84-year-old actor who played "Scotty" on "Star Trek" laughed and smiled throughout a Hollywood tribute Saturday night featuring fellow cast members and about 600 guests.
Doohan was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease several months ago and the event at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel served as a fund-raiser for an Alzheimer's research foundation.
Doohan, whose character was Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott of "Beam me up, Scotty" fame, was to appear Sunday on a stage with the entire surviving cast of the original sci-fi series, including William Shatner (Capt. Kirk) and Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock). He is getting a star Tuesday on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The events are expected to be the final public appearances for Doohan, who also suffers from Parkinson's disease (news - web sites) and diabetes.
On Saturday, Doohan was heralded by a bagpipe player and speakers included Walter Koenig, who played Pavel Chekov on "Star Trek."
'Gloria' Singer Laura Branigan Dies at 47
NEW YORK - Laura Branigan, a Grammy-nominated pop singer best known for her 1982 platinum hit "Gloria," has died. She was 47.
Branigan died of a brain aneurysm Thursday in her sleep at her home in East Quogue, said her brother Mark Branigan. He said she had complained to a friend of a headache for about two weeks before she died, but had not sought medical attention.
"Gloria," a signature song from her debut album "Branigan," stayed atop the pop charts for 36 weeks and earned her a Grammy nomination for best female pop vocalist, the first of four nominations in her career.
She also made television appearances, including guest spots on "CHiPs," and in the films "Mugsy's Girls" and "Backstage."
Branigan released seven albums after her debut "Branigan," including "Solitaire," "Self Control," and "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You," which was co-written with Michael Bolton. Her songs also appeared on soundtracks for the films "Flashdance" and "Ghostbusters."
Branigan was born July 3, 1957, and grew up in Brewster, N.Y. She attended the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Manhattan. During the late 1970s, she toured Europe as a backing vocalist for Canadian singer and songwriter Leonard Cohen. She signed as a solo artist with Atlantic Records in 1982.
After her run of success in the 1980s, her releases in the early 1990s attracted little attention. In 1994, she sang a duet with David Hasselhoff called "I Believe" for the soundtrack of the television show "Baywatch." She released a 13-track "Best of Branigan" LP the next year.
After the death of her husband, Lawrence Kruteck, in 1996, Branigan stopped performing but returned to the stage in 2001. In 2002 she starred as Janis Joplin in the off-Broadway musical "Love, Janis," which earned her rave reviews.
Branigan recently had been working on material for a new release.
She is survived by her mother, two brothers and a sister. Funeral services were scheduled for Monday.
Jet Li's 'Hero' Tops Box Office in Debut
LOS ANGELES - "Hero," Jet Li's acclaimed martial-arts epic, vanquished giant snakes, serial killers and a gang of superbabies to debut as the top weekend film with $17.8 million.
"Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid," a sequel to 1997's monster-serpent flick, opened in second place with $13.2 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The weekend's other new movies debuted weakly. The serial-killer tale "Suspect Zero," starring Aaron Eckhart, Ben Kingsley and Carrie-Anne Moss, came in at No. 10 with $3.4 million.
"Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2," a follow-up to the 1999 kid flick, finished at No. 11 with $3.3 million.
The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, "Exorcist: The Beginning," tumbled to fifth-place with $6.7 million, a steep 63 percent drop from its $18.1 million debut.
Overall, the top 12 movies grossed $84.7 million, virtually unchanged over the same weekend a year ago.
With Hollywood's summer season wrapping up over Labor Day weekend, the industry will finish slightly ahead of summer 2003's revenue record of $3.9 billion. But factoring in higher admission prices, the number of tickets sold will lag a bit behind last summer's.
"Hero," nominated for the foreign-language Academy Award for 2002, is director Zhang Yimou's saga of China some 2,000 years ago. The film stars Li, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, Chen Dao Ming, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai and Donnie Yen, a lineup of Asian superstars that distributor Miramax calls the "`Ocean's Eleven' of Chinese films."
"It obviously hit a nerve and certainly bodes well for Chinese films and foreign-language films," said Rick Sands, chief operating officer at Miramax, which opened "Hero" in 2,031 theaters, unusually wide for a foreign-language movie. "We believed in the movie and went for it."
Presented in Mandarin with English subtitles, "Hero" twists through several retellings of an assassination plot against the ruthless leader of Qin, who seeks to subjugate China's other six kingdoms and became the land's first emperor. The stories, character motivations and even color schemes change with each retelling as the film weaves toward the ultimate truth of events.
Critics raved over the cinematography, romance, lush imagery and glorious fight sequences, whose balletic grace rivals that of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," the 2000 martial-arts hit.
"We talk about the dog days of August, but maybe these are the days of opportunity for certain types of films to do well after the blockbuster onslaught of early summer," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "This is a time when competition is a lot less fierce, and a movie like 'Hero' can take advantage of that."
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. "Hero," $17.8 million.
2. "Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid," $13.2 million.
3. "Without a Paddle," $8.7 million.
4. "Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement," $8.1 million.
5. "Exorcist: The Beginning," $6.7 million.
6. "Collateral," $6.3 million.
7. "Open Water," $5 million.
8. "Alien vs. Predator," $4.8 million.
9. "The Bourne Supremacy," $4.6 million.
10. "Suspect Zero," $3.4 million.
Video Music Awards Sizzling but Shock Free
MIAMI - Holding its festivities for the first time in the city of skin, Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards was sizzling, energetic and colorful — yet tame, by MTV standards.
There were no wardrobe malfunctions. Britney didn't kiss Madonna like last year — or anyone else, for that matter (neither were at the blowout affair).
The most skin shown was from Usher, who preened in front of the camera barechested as simulated raindrops fell on his chiseled body during the opening performance.
Even the Christina Aguilera was classy, dressed sexy yet demurely as she debuted a jazzy number, "Tilt Ya Head" with rapper Nelly. And the sometimes raunchy comedian Dave Chappelle even kept it relatively clean — despite teasing that he wouldn't.
"It's the biggest mistake you made since Janet Jackson at the Super Bowl," he joked, alluding to the MTV-produced Super Bowl halftime flesh show that created a firestorm earlier this year.
There may have been plenty of sex appeal, but little shock appeal on hand, even though MTV was ready, using a several-second tape delay for the first time. (The audio delay, used for years, was in heavy use during the hip-hop medley, which featured Lil Jon, Petey Pablo and Fat Joe.)
Still, MTV provided the already broiling Miami with even more sizzle Sunday night as MTV brought its annual party known to the city for the first time in the awards' 21-year history.
The change of scenery for the awards, typically held in New York or Los Angeles, helped raise the decadence level at the already raucous, celebrity-soaked affair, held at the downtown AmericanAirlines Arena.
OutKast's vivid "Hey Ya!" — perhaps best described as the old Ed Sullivan show on acid — won four awards, including video of the year. Jay-Z's "99 Problems," the most nominated video with six, also won four. The gritty black-and-white "99 Problems," depicts his own killing as a metaphor for his much-ballyhooed retirement, which has yet to happen.
"I felt like I was trying to push the envelope," Jay-Z, dressed in a dapper white suit and hat, said as he accepted a moonman for best rap video. "That was my punishment and this is my reward."
Usher won his first moonman as he took best male video for "Yeah!"
"This is my first time coming up here — let me take my time with this," a beaming Usher said. "I'm so damned happy right now I don't wanna leave."
Later, he took a dig at Justin Timberlake, who has been touted as his rival.
"I guess there ain't really any competition between me and Justin no more, right?" he said as he picked up his second award of the night for best dance video.
As usual, the awards were an afterthought to explosive performances and surprise cameos.
Alicia Keys gave a dramatic, soulful appearance, of her hit "If I Ain't Got You," and was buoyed by Stevie Wonder on harmonica. Moments later, she joined Wonder and Lenny Kravitz as they sang a classic Wonder hit, "Higher Ground."
The daughters of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry and President Bush made an appearance — the Bush daughters on videotape — to urge people to vote. Even the Rev. Al Sharpton made an appearance connected to voting — not for the election, though, but for the viewer's choice award.
Acclaimed rap newcomer Kanye West staged a dramatic version of "Jesus Walks," then instead of using a Chaka Khan sample for his hit "Through the Wire," brought the R&B veteran onstage to sing the real thing.
Perhaps the most surreal, and bizarre, performance came from the Polyphonic Spree, the twenty-something member rock choir that performed in multicolored, choirlike robes. They looked like members of a lost cult from the 1970s.
There was also an appearance by uber-twins Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen. Mary Kate, who recently was treated for an eating disorder, alluded to her ordeal before introducing Jessica Simpson.
"Thank you to everyone — you have been very supportive for the last couple of months," said Mary Kate.
It was one of the few subdued moments during the lavish night.
Usher and Simpson arrived on the red carpet not by car, but by luxury yacht. Simpson, glamorously attired in a white dress with a silver bodice, arrived with husband and "Newlyweds" co-star Nick Lachey in a 68-foot boat.
The biggest entrance, of course, came from P. Diddy. Dressed in a white suit and with a Mohawk haircut, he arrived in a towering yacht along with Ma$e, Naomi Campbell and Bruce Willis.
The scene outside the arena was frenzied before the show. Performers such as Ashlee Simpson and Jadakiss rocked an energetic crowd while stars walked the red carpet, showing off their fashions — or lack thereof. Lil' Kim looked anything but, as she almost busted out of the skimpy top of her flowing dress.
The awards capped what has already been a weeklong celebration in the city, as celebrities such as P. Diddy, Paris Hilton and R. Kelly held competing star-studded parties leading up to Sunday's festivities.
The show, held a day before the Republican convention was to kick off in New York City, ended on a patriotic note, as red, white and blue balloons fell from the rafters and fans held "vote" signs during OutKast's closing performance.
New Ray Charles Album Keeps His Legacy Alive
LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - It's one of those situations no label would wish for.
Concord Records is about to release a star-studded duets album by Ray Charles. While the project was highly anticipated in its own right, the legendary performer's June 10 death is expected to propel the title to even greater heights.
In fact, Concord general manager Gene Rumsey believes that Charles' final album, "Genius Loves Company," could become the label's all-time best-seller.
Still, Concord resisted suggestions that it move up the release date to take advantage of the artist's passing.
"We wanted to treat this with the utmost respect," Rumsey says. "While we wanted it to be commercially successful, we agreed unanimously that we were not going to exploit anything that happened along the way."
So Concord stuck to its original Aug. 31 release date. The label is shipping 1 million units -- 700,000 domestically, with the rest going to international territories.
"We're spending millions of dollars in marketing and advertising," Rumsey says. "The $300,000 we're doing for television initially is a drop in the bucket compared to what we're going to be doing through the holidays."
CROSSING MUSICAL BORDERS
The project, distributed under Concord's new deal with Universal Music & Video Distribution, comprises duets by Charles and a host of luminaries from a cross-section of musical genres.
Concord executive VP/senior VP of A&R John Burk co-produced the album with Phil Ramone. Burk says the idea of cutting a duet set arose after Charles signed up for a Concord album last year.
"Here's a guy who had an amazingly far-reaching influence and impact on American popular music," Burk says. "He's influenced so many vocalists in so many different genres ... That segued into, 'Wow, he's a natural for a duets project."'
He adds, "Some of were really important to Ray, because they were some of the best friends that he had in life -- B.B. King and Willie Nelson and Gladys Knight fall into that category. Then there are artists on the other end of the spectrum, like Norah Jones. That came about because I was reading one of her articles early on in her career, and she cited Ray as a major influence."
Other singers appearing on the set include James Taylor, Diana Krall, Elton John, Natalie Cole, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald, Johnny Mathis and Van Morrison.
STILL ON TOP
Keyboardist Billy Preston, who first performed with Charles as a teenager, plays on three of the duets. He says that though the singer/pianist was in failing health during some of the sessions, he stayed on top of the music.
"Ray was very weak at the time," Preston recalls, "but he would come back and listen to the track and see if he liked it or not. We would make adjustments to the track as he wished. He was very much actively involved."
King, one of Charles' closest friends, says the musician remained as exacting and good-humored in the studio as he was when the two cut their first session together in 1988.
King says, "The first time I recorded with him, he wanted me to do 'Save the Bones for Henry Jones.' Ray wanted to change it; he didn't want to do it the way it was written ... I couldn't ever get it right. And he said to me, 'God damn, Brother B, I thought you was a musician!"'
Sessions for "Genius Loves Company" took place at Charles' Los Angeles studio and at the Eastwood Scoring Stage on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, Calif. They lasted from July 2003 through this spring.
TEARS FROM ELTON
The last session, for the John duet "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word," came in March, as Charles' health was declining.
"It was pretty awesome, and we were all deeply moved," Burk says. "People were actually crying in the control room ... Elton came back in to listen, and he started crying."
The marketplace is awaiting the release with similar emotions.
Charles' death has made his Rhino catalog releases a fixture on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog chart. This week, "The Very Best of Ray Charles" stands at No. 17 on the list with 6,000 units sold for the week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Charles' "Anthology" is at No. 34 with 5,000 units sold.
DVD Cut
After many years of waiting by Robert Altman fans, the director's last remaining epic not to get the DVD treatment is finally here.
Just announced from The Criterion Collection is a November 12th release for Short Cuts, which will get the full two-disc treatment.
Presented in a new 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and Dolby Digital 5.1 track, extras include a new "Reflections on Short Cuts" 25-minute interview with Robert Altman and Tim Robbins, the "Luck, Trust, and Ketchup: Robert Altman in Carver Country" 90-minute documentary, an isolated music score, deleted scenes, BBC TV's Moving Pictures 50-minute audio interview with Raymond Carver, an advertising gallery, theatrical trailers and a booklet reprint of Vintage Books' "Short Cuts" companion collection of short stories.
The only thing not included? The original audio commentary from the previous Criterion laserdisc.
Oh well!