Will the Weinsteins still push Madonna's W.E. for Oscar consideration after it bombed in Venice?

Deadline has the news:

The signs are always the same when any studio knows it has a bomb. Executives won’t commit any opinion to email. Instead, phone calls from them pledging to “explain everything” are promised but never come. The suits deny up and down any truth to the inevitable leaks about a troubled shoot or creative friction or bad buzz. But when the studio is financially on-the-fence The Weinstein Co, and the film is Madonna’s first feature-length directorial effort W.E. about Walllis Simpson, and its debut is at the unforgiving Venice Film festival which has panned far bigger and more influential big names in filmdom, then not even the PR maestro Harvey Weinstein can downplay crushingly lousy reaction and reviews.

Fact is that the international press and its U.S. counterparts are having a field day killing Madonna’s movie in what can only be seen as the latest “Death In Venice”. Or maybe the more accurate way of saying this is “Death By Venice”. The Times of London claimed madonna had made an inadvertent comedy “screamingly, inadverdently funny in parts [that] had ‘em rolling in the aisles at Venice” The Guardian review was truly vicious under the headline, “Madonna’s jaw-dropping take on the story of Wallis Simpson is a primped and simpering folly, preening and fatally mishandled”. Only the Daily Mail gave it a thumbs-up. But my guess that probably has more to do with that newspaper’s long and troubled history with Madonna who in 2009 won a multimillion dollar lawsuit again the Daily Mail and whose legal reps have been threatening the paper repeatedly of more to come because of its nearly always negative coverage of her.

The 38th Annual Telluride Film Festival announces its lineup...

...and you can read all about it in this press release:

Telluride, CO (September 1, 2011) – Telluride Film Festival (September 2-5, 2011), presented by the National Film Preserve, announces its program for the 38^th Telluride Film Festival. Featuring diverse programming from around the globe, TFF once again sets the stage for some of the year’s most highly anticipated films.

TFF opens its 38^th year with over twenty-five new feature films plus special artist tributes, Guest Director programs selected by Caetano Veloso, Backlot programs, classics and restorations, shorts, student films, seminars and conversations, each introduced or proceeded with a Q&A by its filmmaker, actors, writer or producer. Telluride Film Festival opens Friday, September 2 and runs through Labor Day, Monday, September 5.

The slate is after the cut...

Want to see Kevin Smith's Red State early? Now's your chance!

Indeed, the controversial filmmaker is bringing his latest work to the On Demand spectrum for a limited run following its Oscar qualifying run recently in L.A., all in advance of its slightly more standard theatrical debut and DVD/Blu-Ray release in October. It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of this movie, and it's not everyday that you can essentially watch a film before it hits theaters. Check it out and join in on the conversation about one of my very favorite pieces of cinema in 2011!

-Thoughts on the film if/when you see it?

Christian Bale could be back in the Oscar race again this year?

Maybe so, according to The Film Stage:

After a few rumored titles, we can now officially call it Heroes of Nanking, as Hero and House of Flying Daggers director Yimou Zhang has made “the most expensive movie ever made in China” with this epic. The drama, costing $94 million, stars Christian Bale as an American priest named John who takes refuge in a church with 13 prostitutes and a group of innocent schoolgirls during the fighting between Chinese and Japanese troops in 1937.
Variety now reports when we can expect the film in theaters here stateside, after it bows on December 16th in China. Zhang tells us that he will “make a decision at the Toronto Film Festival about the North American distribution,” after studios have already drummed up interest, including Universal and Fox. The director hopes it will see a Christmas release here in the US, which would make it eligible for awards consideration.

Ghostbusters 3 could go forward without Bill Murray?

Apparently so, according to Coming Soon:

After years of rumors, it appears that Ghostbuster 3 is finally moving forward and will likely do so with or without Bill Murray's involvement. Dan Aykroyd appeared on The Dennis Miller Show to discuss the project, dropping specific details about the sequel, hinting that the plan is to film in Spring of 2012 no matter what happens casting-wise.

"Yes, we will be doing the movie and hopefully with Mr. Murray," he says, "That is our hope. We have an excellent script. What we have to remember is that 'Ghostbusters' is bigger than any one component, although Billy was absolutely the lead and contributive to it in a massive way, as was the director and Harold [Ramis], myself and Sigourney [Weaver]. The concept is much larger than any individual role and the promise of 'Ghostbusters 3' is that we get to hand the equipment and the franchise down to new blood."

So just how bad a hit will the box office take due to Hurricane Irene?

About as bad as can be expected (with many theaters near me in New York closing shop this weekend), according to The Hollywood Reporter:

Hurricane Irene could result in box office losses of as much as $30 million for the weekend as movie-going comes to a standstill up and down the East Coast.

Domestic box office revenues for the frame were on track to reach $120 million, but the massive storm could reduce that number by as much as 25%. By Friday afternoon, the news was grim. “Its horrendous,” one distribution executive noted.

Across the board, films were posting lower than expected results, including three new titles—the Luc Besson-produced action pic Colombiana, starring Zoe Saldana and distributed by TriStar, the Weinstein Co.’s R-rated ensemble comedy Our Idiot Brother headlining Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel and Emily Mortimer, and the Guillermo del Toro-produced horror movie Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, distributed by FilmDistrict and starring Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce.

Ben Affleck casts Kyle Chandler in Argo!

Via The Playlist:

Kyle Chandler is one of those actors who is a journeyman, logging time on a number of television shows—“Homefront” and “Early Edition” among them—and appearing in small roles in a number of films before finally landing what would be his star-making turn in “Friday Night Lights.” The critically acclaimed show struggled for survival throughout its five seasons, but it was a launchpad for folks like Taylor Kitsch, Adrianne Palicki and Minka Kelly and for Chandler as well, it put him firmly on the radar thanks to his turn as Eric Taylor. J.J. Abrams made a great choice in slotting him in “Super 8” and now Chandler will see his stock rise with a role in another highly touted pic.

Robert Zemeckis drops out of directing the time-travel drama Replay...

...which I honestly was really hoping he'd do. Here's the article from /Film:

With the amount rumor running around Hollywood, it’s hard to believe a movie is actually getting made until a filmmaker calls “Action” on set. That said, it seems after considering a number of projects, Oscar-winning director Robert Zemeckis has settled on his next film and it’ll be one of the many he was previously attached to. That film is called Flight and stars Denzel Washington as a pilot who saves his plane after a malfunction and is labeled a hero (Think Sully Sullenberger). However, as the investigation moves on, it becomes apparently that he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol and he must then deal with keeping the secret and the guilt of being an undeserving hero.

As a result of choosing to direct Flight next, Zemeckis has dropped out of the Groundhog Day/Back to the Future influenced Replay.

Deadline broke all this Zemeckis news. Their article says the producers of Replay, which once had Ben Affleck attached, are trying sell the Jason Smilovic scripted project to another filmmaker. It shouldn’t be a problem with a premise that’s as great as this. I can’t be the only one bummed that Zemeckis is NOT doing this film:

Could Ryan Gosling be in Terrence Malick's new film, thus delaying Logan's Run?

Well, The Playlist seems to believe it's a possibility:

Is Nicolas Winding Refn and Ryan Gosling‘s upcoming modern adaptation of classic sci-fi “Logan’s Run” set to be delayed by a teaming between the latter and renowned auteur Terrence Malick? Apparently so, according to Film School Rejects, who were on hand at a Q&A with the director for his latest effort “Drive.”

Refn and Gosling are already set to reunite later this year for the Bangkok-set noir “Only God Forgives” and had planned to directly follow that up with “Logan’s Run.” Refn, however, now reveals that his love affair with Gosling will be set aside for the actor to squeeze in a film with Malick between his two projects.

What Malick project might Refn be referring to? The short answer is: we’re not sure. Earlier this week, it was reported that Christian Bale will himself be reuniting with Malick for a new, mysterious project that is said to feature a cast smaller than even his untitled next effort aka “The Burial.” It was noted at the time, though, that the film would “center around two leads, one male (Bale) and one female.” Whether this is the same project Gosling is being linked to now is anyone’s guess really but it’s definitely safe to say the once-dormant director is well and truly back in the game.

5 ways that Steve Jobs changed movies and the industry forever...

...courtesy of The Moveable Fest:

When it was announced Wednesday that Steve Jobs would step down from his post as CEO of Apple, Peter Sciretta at SlashFilm prefaced his report by suggesting the news might be outside the scope of the movie site. It's understandable since there are those who only know of Jobs as an innovative executive always wearing those turtlenecks at tech conferences or even if they were aware, he once owned Pixar, they might only think his role was crunching numbers. But his impact on our experience as moviegoers has been profound well beyond his role as a savvy businessman, even if it’s not immediately recognized (nor should it, considering his gift for making the complex simple). Here are five ways that Jobs has and will continue to shape the production, the distribution and our enjoyment of movies.

The First Annual Hell's Kitchen Film Festival will offer a rare chance to see Ken Park...

...if that's something you're into. Well, here's the press release if you're interested:

Producers’ Club owners and New York Hell’s Kitchen Film Festival (NYHKFF) co-founders Alfred and Ernest Tollja proudly announce the full lineup for the Manhattan neighborhood’s first film foray. NYHKFF will host over 140 features and shorts during the 10 days, including a special 10th Anniversary Retrospective Gala of Larry Clark’s rarely screened film Ken Park. The famed director will be in attendance with actress Tiffany Limos for a Q&A following the screening on Friday, Sept. 2 at 7:30pm.

Ben Affleck is planning his next directorial endeavor already?

So it seems, according to The Hollywood Reporter:

Just as Ben Affleck gears up to begin production on his thriller Argo, the filmmaker-actor is already targeting his follow-up.

Affleck is in negotiations to star in, direct and produce Line of Sight, an action project at Warner Bros. that is being produced by Joel Silver and Andrew Rona.

The idea, conceived by Silver Pictures'Alex Heineman (who also exec produces), centers on an elite commando squad transporting cargo while dealing with a global threat. One of the conceits of the movie is that it tells the tale from a point-of-view akin to a first-person shooter game. The script was recently worked on by Peter O’Brien, the man who wrote the game Halo: Reach for Xbox 360.

The "other" Jeff Buckley biopic has gotten its lead actor?

Apparently so, according to Deadline:

Spider-Man: Turn Off The Darkstar Reeve Carney has signed on to play Jeff Buckley in the untitled film about the late musician that Welcome to the Rileyshelmer Jake Scott is putting together for a November shoot. Carney, who performed the Bono/The Edge-pennedSpider-Man single Rise Above 1 at the American Idol finale, will do all the singing to bring to life the music of Buckley, who was just getting started as a solo artist when he drowned at age 30.

Considering that Buckley had only released a single album when he died in 1997 after getting caught in the wake of a passing boat in Tennessee’s Wolf River, it seems amazing that there are not one but three feature films about him. The first one to start production will be Greetings From Tim Buckley, the Dan Algrant-directed indie film that starts a four-week shoot Monday in Brooklyn. Conventional wisdom that the first film out of the gate wins doesn’t necessarily apply here; these two projects tell very different stories about Buckley. Scott is making a biopic, while Greetings From Tim Buckley stars Gossip Girl’s Penn Badgley as a pre-fame Jeff Buckley who reconnects with his estranged father Tim by singing at a tribute concert for his folk-singer dad. In Algrant’s film, that short adventure forged Jeff Buckley’s own solo aspirations. The other Buckley film is called A Pure Drop and it is being mounted by Mad Bastards director Brendan Fletcher. The title comes from the book A Pure Drop: The Life of Jeff Buckley.

Carney will star in what Scott hopes will be a definitive film about Jeff Buckley’s life, and WME is raising funding. They have exclusive rights to Buckley’s music and personal archives, including the nod from Sony to use Leonard Cohen’sHallelujah, which is perhaps Buckley’s best-known tune from his first albumGrace. A second album, Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk, was released after Buckley died. Buckley’s mother, Mary Guibert, has also thrown in with Scott’s project and is executive producer. The script by Ryan Jaffe (The Rocker) was informed by the David Browne book Dream Brother: The Lives and Music of Jeff and Tim Buckley.

A sequel to 'The Last Exorcism' is in the works?

It apparently is, according to The Hollywood Reporter:

The producers of The Last Exorcism are moving ahead with a sequel, tapping writer Damien Chazelle to write the follow-up to the surprise summer 2010 hit.

The PG-13 Exorcism, from production company Strike Entertainment (Children of Men) and directed by Daniel Stamm, grossed $62.5 million worldwide on a budget of $1.6 million. The found-footage Lionsgate release was written by Andrew Gurland and Huck Botko. A sequel was probably a given considering the profitability of the first film.

Studio Canal is financing the follow-up and production is slated to begin this fall.

Exorcism centered on an Evangelical preacher, played by Patrick Fabian, who, after years of performing exorcisms, decides to allow a documentary crew to film the last exorcism he plans to perform, in order to show his work is a fraud.

Woody Allen's next film is going to be set in Munich?

The Hollywood Reporter says that it just might:

Woody Allen is doing his version of the grand European tour.

His Midnight in Paris is still in theaters, the director is still shooting The Bop Decameron, set in Rome, but Allen is already making plans to head to Germany for his next project.

Bavaria studios in Munich is in negotiations with Allen to play the backdrop for his next, still-untitled project, which would shoot next summer.

Bavaria is set to come on board as a co-financier for the film, said to be budgeted at around $25 million.

As is always the case with a Woody Allen film at this stage in pre-production, plot and potential cast are top secret.

Allen's Midnight in Paris opened this year's Festival de Cannes to rave reviews and has gone on to become the director's most commercially successful film, earning more than $50 million in North America alone.

The Bop Decameron boasts an even-more impressive cast than Midnight headliners Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams, featuring Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page, Penelope Cruz and Alec Baldwin among its ensemble cast.

-Joey's Two Cents: It's no secret how much I enjoy Allen's work, so seeing where this newfound resurgence takes him is very intriguing to someone like me who finds even the least regarded Woody work to be worth my time...thoughts?

Jason Segel will be in Judd Apatow's This Is Forty?

Apparently so, courtesy of Collider and Megan Fox, actually:

It looks like the Knocked Up spin-off This Is Forty will get getting another cast member from the original. Megan Fox posted a picture of her on the set in a swimming pool with co-stars Chris O’Dowd (Bridesmaids) and Jason Segel. As you’ll recall, Segel played one of the friends of Seth Rogen’s character in Knocked Up. He’ll be joining stars Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann who are reprising their roles as married couple Pete and Debbie in the Judd Apatow comedy, which Rudd recently said is a “companion piece” to Knocked Up and not a sequel.

Segel will also be starring alongside returning cast member Charlene Yi as well as Albert Brooks, Megan Fox, Chris O’Dowd, Lena Dunham, Melissa McCarthy, Ryan Lee, and Wyatt Russell. This Is Forty is set to open in December 2012. [Update: Apparently there have been set photos of Segel on set with Mann. I never saw those, hence this story.]

-Joey's Two Cents: I had always figured he'd pop up in this flick, but now that I know for sure, this is pleasing news...thoughts?

Here are some details on the Toy Story short that will be attached to The Muppets...

...coming to us via Collider:

In February, we reported that Disney and Pixar would be attaching a new Toy Story short to The Muppets. At this weekend’s D23 Expo, the film’s director, Angus MacLane (“BURN-E”), announced that the short will be titled “Small Fry” and like “Toy Story: Hawaiian Vacation”, the whole gang will be back. According to The Pixar Times, “attendees were treated to the short but substantial clip, which gave away a few plot points. Looks like Buzz Lightyear is left behind at a fast-food restaurant and must find his way back home. In doing so he encounters some less popular, happy meal-like toys. One of those toys, a Mermaid of sorts, will be voiced by Glee‘s Jane Lynch.”

Since I skipped Cars 2, I haven’t seen “Hawaiian Vacation”, but it’s tough to go wrong with the Toy Story crew, this premise sounds fun, and “BURN-E” is a quality short. You can check out “Toy Story: Small Fry” when The Muppets opens on November 23rd.

-Joey's Two Cents: As if I needed another reason to want to see some hot Muppet action...thoughts?

Atom Egoyan is going to be making a film about the West Memphis Three...

...and The Playlist has the full details:

Well, that was fast. No sooner were the West Memphis Three freed on Friday that Hollywood struck while the iron was hot. Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan (”Chloe,” “The Sweet Hereafter”) revealed his intentions to direct a feature-length drama called “The Devil’s Knot,” based on the true-life story of three teenagers, known collectively as the West Memphis Three, who were convicted of the murder and sexual mutilation of three 8-year-old boys in 1993. As the teenagers were fans of heavy metal music (and especially Metallica), the prosecution in the case suggested the motive behind the slayings was part of a Satanic ritual. Even with incredibly questionable police work—which many felt to be outrageous—sensationalized media, fear and panic from the satanism angle in the trial led to the teens’ conviction and sentence of life imprisonment.

This decades-long story took a dramatic and triumphant turn on Friday when, under a plea bargain, the three individuals, Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley were freed immediately after 18 years in prison.

Tom Cruise is going to be a cowboy?

Perhaps, according to Collider:

What do you do when you’re offered the chance to direct Thor 2? You agree to direct a cowboy movie. At least that’s the vibe I’m getting from this latest news, courtesy of Variety, who claim Game of Thrones director Brian Kirk is circling Paper Wings, a rodeo drama about a rootin’ tootin’ bull riding champ who falls in love with a country singer. Think 8 Seconds meets Pure Country meets Top Gun. And speaking of Top Gun, word is Maverick himself has stepped in and offered his services on the project, going so far as to select Kirk for the gig. He may even star in the film. More after the jump.

Christian Bale set to team up again with Terrence Malick on his newest project?

The Playlist says yes:

For much of Terrence Malick‘s career, his workflow has been defined by single projects taking years at a time to take shape and finish before he moves on to the next one. Now, it seems the guy is making up for lost time. With “The Tree Of Life” hitting theaters this spring, the director currently has his untitled film—aka “The Burial”—in post-production and is also at some stage of development with his “Voyage Of Time” documentary which recently added Emma Thompson as a narrator alongsideBrad Pitt. Earlier this year word cropped up that Malick was starting another film, one that would be small in nature, that would potentially shoot late summer/early fall. Not much has been heard since, but it looks like that film is now moving full steam ahead with an early 2012 start being eyed.

Twitch reports that Christian Bale—who starred in “The New World” and was set for “The Burial” but was replaced by Ben Affleck—is set to reteam with the director on the new project. Of course, details are unknown other than it will apparently feature an even smaller cast than “The Burial” (which features Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Rachel Weisz, Olga Kurylenko, Javier Bardem, Barry Pepper and Jessica Chastain) which certainly falls in line with earlier reports that Malick intends “to be finished with this one in a matter of months.” The story will center around two leads, one male (Bale) and one female, with Rooney Mara, Haley Bennet (”Marley & Me,” “Kaboom”),Clemence Poesy and Mia Wasikowska all said to be in contention for the part. And well, that’s it.

Of course, when we’ll get to see these pics is anybody’s guess. The U.K. rights to “The Burial” recently sold to Optimum and we would guess that if indeed it’s coming next year, another trip to Cannes will be in the works. As for “Voyage Of Time” and this new project, whose to say. But with early word that Malick expects to get it done sooner rather than later, that certainly bodes well though anything can happen when the mercurial director gets behind the camera. Hell, his whole vision for the project could change between now and the New Year. But clearly, the 67 year-old director is newly inspired and we couldn’t be more excited. Let’s hope more details arrive soon.

-Joey's Two Cents: While it's no secret I'm not in love with much of Malick's work, I'm always eager to see his projects, and his upcoming ones are no exceptions...thoughts?