Category: media

“Mr. TV” Milton Berle has sued NBC for more than $30 million, accusing the network of losing 130 original copies of his popular 1950s comedy shows. – Times of India (Reuters) 05/24/00

A new study of movie violence published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that a “G” rating doesn’t guarantee no violence. “G”-rated movies “averaged 9.5 minutes of violence, with the 1998 King Arthur tale ‘Quest for Camelot’ topping the list with 24 minutes of violence, or almost 30% of the movie.” – Los Angeles Times 05/24/00

“The amount of cinematic violence–ranging from body blows to swordplay to gunshots–so alarmed researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health that they recommended that the Motion Picture Association of America consider changing its age-based rating system to one that provides specific warnings about a movie’s content.” – Washington Post 05/24/00

French Canadian circus/performance troupe Cirque du Soleil released its first IMAX film, “Journey of Man,” a collage of acts drawn from the company’s popular shows “O” and “Mystere.” – Backstage 05/23/00 

“Digital filmmaking might be the solution to spiraling production costs that plague all the major studios, where the average cost of producing a film has soared above $50 million. ‘On a film like ‘Godzilla,’ we shipped $13 million worth of prints. There will certainly come a day that that won’t be the protocol any longer. We will be sending our signals to theaters through satellites or other means.'” – The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) (LA Times) 05/23/00

Now that the prizes have been given out, the post-mortem bitching about what Cannes is and isn’t begins in earnest. “The always tetchy on-off, love-hate relationship has reached an all-time low between the ‘majors’ (as Hollywood’s studios are known in industry parlance) and Gilles Jacob, the famously self-important sovereign of Cannes, now serving his last year as director – or rather dictator – of the festival.” – The Straits Times (Singapore) 05/23/00

Australia hosts its first festival devoted to dance movies. Just one question though – how do you define what’s a dance movie? – Sydney Morning Herald 05/23/00

Why do so few British films make it to Cannes? “You always dream of a British discovery but you know in your heart that the offering from Liechtenstein or Albania is probably a better bet.” – New Statesman 05/22/00

Controversial director Lars von Trier wins the Palm d’Or in Cannes, then insults the head of the festival and “assured his leading lady – whom he called a ‘mad woman’ only a fortnight ago – that he ‘loved her very much’.” – The Guardian 05/22/00

• A DISSENTING VOICE: “Daft as a brush, and about as visually interesting, for most of its extended duration, Lars von Trier’s ‘Dancer in the Dark’ arrived in Cannes on a wave of anticipation and to prolonged applause, with some viewers reduced to tears. There were others who, like me, found the entire exercise self-indulgent, pointless and even unintentionally funny.” – Irish Times 05/22/00
  
  
• MIXED CONSENSUS: “The bad news for Trier-watchers, who since ‘Europa’ and ‘Breaking the Waves’ have included most intelligent cinephiles on the planet, is that dozens walked out – noisily – on this Death Row musical about a Czech-American worker condemned for killing a cop who stole the savings earmarked for her child’s eye operation. The good news is that it is a daring, fascinating, boldly unorthodox film.” – Financial Times 05/22/00

Australia’s main film funding agency has built up a $26 million cash reserve, leading the government to investigate why more of it isn’t being spent on funding movies. – Sydney Morning Herald 05/22/00