Francis Ford Coppola's miraculous 1970s run of "The Godfather," "The Conversation," "The Godfather Part II" and "Apocalypse Now" came crashing to a hubristic halt in 1982 when his backlot musical "One from the Heart," produced at his recently purchased Zoetrope Studios in the heart of Hollywood, bombed upon release. Poor reviews and audience indifference resulted in a paltry $637,000 gross against a $26 million budget, thus killing his dream of an artist-driven mini-community.
The magnitude of the film's failure meant Coppola would have to lower his sights for the time being, and make films with more straightforward commercial appeal as a means of paying off his debts. It was a shockingly precipitous fall, one that left his many admirers worried that he'd become more of a paycheck-to-paycheck director. This happened eventually, but for a time he was able to stoke his creative fire even if he was making movies that weren't as...
The magnitude of the film's failure meant Coppola would have to lower his sights for the time being, and make films with more straightforward commercial appeal as a means of paying off his debts. It was a shockingly precipitous fall, one that left his many admirers worried that he'd become more of a paycheck-to-paycheck director. This happened eventually, but for a time he was able to stoke his creative fire even if he was making movies that weren't as...
- 4/28/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
The franchise could have been totally different had Jim Carrey been a part of Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park. The ever-talented actor initially garnered the spotlight with his work in the 1990 TV series, In Living Color. He had been active in the industry for years, majorly portraying supporting roles, before rising to prominence in 1994 with a string of hit films, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Mask, and Dumb and Dumber.
A still from Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park
However, Carrey would have gained the limelight much earlier than 1994 had he been cast as Ian Malcolm, a role that eventually went to Jeff Goldblum.
Jim Carrey Got Nearly Cast as Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park
Janet Hirshenson, the casting director for 1993’s hit movie, Jurassic Park, gave an insight on how they came up with an ensemble cast, which highly contributed to the success of the blockbuster film.
SUGGESTEDWhen Jim Carrey...
A still from Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park
However, Carrey would have gained the limelight much earlier than 1994 had he been cast as Ian Malcolm, a role that eventually went to Jeff Goldblum.
Jim Carrey Got Nearly Cast as Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park
Janet Hirshenson, the casting director for 1993’s hit movie, Jurassic Park, gave an insight on how they came up with an ensemble cast, which highly contributed to the success of the blockbuster film.
SUGGESTEDWhen Jim Carrey...
- 4/21/2024
- by Priya Sharma
- FandomWire
It is absolutely wild to think that Robin Williams got passed over for the part of Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter series because he wasn’t British! Now, while David Thewlis undoubtedly did justice to the character, one can’t help but wonder what kind of magic Williams could have brought to the role. Because one can never accept Williams to be a wrong choice for anything! The Harry Potter crew really missed out on something special with that one silly rule.
Robin Williams in Jumanji (1995) Robin Williams Was Denied the Role of Remus Lupin Because He Wasn’t British
Robin Williams, known for his extensive Hollywood career and a string of iconic roles, is often regarded as one of the few actors universally loved in the industry. Many would assume that Williams could land any role he desires.
However, that wasn’t the case when he wanted to enter the Harry Potter series.
Robin Williams in Jumanji (1995) Robin Williams Was Denied the Role of Remus Lupin Because He Wasn’t British
Robin Williams, known for his extensive Hollywood career and a string of iconic roles, is often regarded as one of the few actors universally loved in the industry. Many would assume that Williams could land any role he desires.
However, that wasn’t the case when he wanted to enter the Harry Potter series.
- 4/5/2024
- by Sampurna Banerjee
- FandomWire
Daniel Radcliffe initially worked with filmmaker Chris Columbus in the first couple of Harry Potter films. The wizard franchise would soon be entrusted in the hands of other directors, which Radcliffe believed was for the best.
Daniel Radcliffe was initially terrified of losing his original ‘Harry Potter’ director Daniel Radcliffe | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
The Harry Potter franchise has recruited several directors to tell its story. Filmmaker Chris Columbus was the first to translate J.K Rowling’s book series to the big screen. After Columbus directed Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, he left the series for Alfonso Cuaron to continue. Harry Potter would change hands again with Mike Newell directing Goblet of Fire. David Yates directed the last four Harry Potter projects.
When Radcliffe first heard about Columbus’ imminent departure, he didn’t take the news well.
“Yeah, I think it was great to be honest with you, because...
Daniel Radcliffe was initially terrified of losing his original ‘Harry Potter’ director Daniel Radcliffe | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
The Harry Potter franchise has recruited several directors to tell its story. Filmmaker Chris Columbus was the first to translate J.K Rowling’s book series to the big screen. After Columbus directed Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, he left the series for Alfonso Cuaron to continue. Harry Potter would change hands again with Mike Newell directing Goblet of Fire. David Yates directed the last four Harry Potter projects.
When Radcliffe first heard about Columbus’ imminent departure, he didn’t take the news well.
“Yeah, I think it was great to be honest with you, because...
- 11/29/2023
- by Antonio Stallings
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Harry Potter star Michael Gambon was known to be a bit less serious than his character Dumbledore. The actor’s habit of joking around on set once messed with the performance of his A-List co-star.
How Michael Gambon messed up this ‘Harry Potter’ scene Michael Gambon | Carl Court/Getty Images
Some of the older actors in the Harry Potter series could be just as much pranksters as their younger co-stars. The Dumbledore actor himself had a knack for making Daniel Radcliffe laugh. Sometimes, Gambon would come off so hysterical that Radcliffe had trouble pulling himself together to shoot a particular scene.
“Michael Gambon could do that to a frustrating degree. He learned that he could, when I was a teenager, he could make me laugh very, very easily. Making me laugh right up until the word ‘action,’ at which point I was pretty much unable to recover and he could...
How Michael Gambon messed up this ‘Harry Potter’ scene Michael Gambon | Carl Court/Getty Images
Some of the older actors in the Harry Potter series could be just as much pranksters as their younger co-stars. The Dumbledore actor himself had a knack for making Daniel Radcliffe laugh. Sometimes, Gambon would come off so hysterical that Radcliffe had trouble pulling himself together to shoot a particular scene.
“Michael Gambon could do that to a frustrating degree. He learned that he could, when I was a teenager, he could make me laugh very, very easily. Making me laugh right up until the word ‘action,’ at which point I was pretty much unable to recover and he could...
- 9/16/2023
- by Antonio Stallings
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Daniel Radcliffe Stopped Partying With His ‘Harry Potter’ Co-Stars to Be Taken Seriously as an Actor
Daniel Radcliffe didn’t mind partying with his fellow Harry Potter castmates on set. But there came a point where the actor left that lifestyle behind for the sake of his career.
Daniel Radcliffe always wanted to be a good actor Daniel Radcliffe | Dave Benett/WireImage
Radcliffe knew early on that he didn’t want the Harry Potter franchise to be the pinnacle of his career. Even while filming the wizard series, he was doing projects like Equus to further branch out his portfolio. This was in line with the actor’s idea of success, which he equated to a satisfying acting career.
“I’ve learned that the only definition of success that can matter is your own. Everyone seems to think that I’ve been completely successful and I can just stop now,” Radcliffe once said on George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight. “There’s an attitude that success equates to money...
Daniel Radcliffe always wanted to be a good actor Daniel Radcliffe | Dave Benett/WireImage
Radcliffe knew early on that he didn’t want the Harry Potter franchise to be the pinnacle of his career. Even while filming the wizard series, he was doing projects like Equus to further branch out his portfolio. This was in line with the actor’s idea of success, which he equated to a satisfying acting career.
“I’ve learned that the only definition of success that can matter is your own. Everyone seems to think that I’ve been completely successful and I can just stop now,” Radcliffe once said on George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight. “There’s an attitude that success equates to money...
- 8/4/2023
- by Antonio Stallings
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Steve Spielberg Once Shared That He’d Cast Jim Carrey as Chief Brody in ‘Jaws’ if He Remade the Film
Steven Spielberg’s 1975 horror feature Jaws is largely seen as one of the filmmaker’s greatest achievements. Roy Scheider, who played Chief Brody in the film, had a critical role in the movie’s success and longevity. But if Spielberg revisited his iconic feature today, he would’ve tapped Jim Carrey for the role.
Why Steven Spielberg would’ve cast Jim Carrey in ‘Jaws’ Steven Spielberg | Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
The closest Carrey came to a true collaboration with Spielberg was with the comedy feature Meet the Parents. According to Irish Examiner, the Ben Stiller movie was originally supposed to star Carrey and be directed by Spielberg. But the two would soon drop out of the project due to scheduling issues.
Still, Spielberg apparently kept a close eye on Carrey’s career. Carrey was not only a gifted comic, but he cemented himself as an impressive dramatic actor as well.
Why Steven Spielberg would’ve cast Jim Carrey in ‘Jaws’ Steven Spielberg | Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
The closest Carrey came to a true collaboration with Spielberg was with the comedy feature Meet the Parents. According to Irish Examiner, the Ben Stiller movie was originally supposed to star Carrey and be directed by Spielberg. But the two would soon drop out of the project due to scheduling issues.
Still, Spielberg apparently kept a close eye on Carrey’s career. Carrey was not only a gifted comic, but he cemented himself as an impressive dramatic actor as well.
- 7/22/2023
- by Antonio Stallings
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
When Chris Columbus signed on to direct “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” he agreed to adhere to J.K. Rowling’s mandate that only British actors star in the big-budget fantasy adaptation. The “Brits only” rule famously resulted in Robin Williams being rejected from the film. As casting director Janet Hirshenson once told HuffPo, “The ‘only British’ rule was so important that Robin Williams was even turned down to play Hagrid…Robin had called [Columbus] because he really wanted to be in the movie, but it was a British-only edict, and once he said no to Robin, he wasn’t going to say yes to anybody else, that’s for sure. It couldn’t be.”
One American that did happen to land a part in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was Eleanor Columbus, daughter of director Chris Columbus. Speaking to Insider this week, Columbus remembered how his daughter was allowed...
One American that did happen to land a part in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was Eleanor Columbus, daughter of director Chris Columbus. Speaking to Insider this week, Columbus remembered how his daughter was allowed...
- 11/9/2021
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
There are Christmas films and then there’s Home Alone.
Released back in 1990, no one really knew what to expect from this low-budget family comedy about a boy forced to defend his house from a pair of bungling burglars after being accidentally left behind from a family holiday.
Yet Home Alone is one of those rare examples of all the stars aligning in Hollywood to create something special. It’s a truly unique Christmas film, both feel-good and immensely funny, rivalled only in that respect by Will Ferrell’s Elf.
There are countless reasons why it remains a festive classic; John Hughes’s script, Chris Columbus’s deft direction, the work of cinematographer Kevin Macat and John Williams’s score are just a few examples.
One that often gets overlooked, however, is Devin Ratray’s Buzz McCallister.
Few actors have succeeded so well in bringing to life all the painfully...
Released back in 1990, no one really knew what to expect from this low-budget family comedy about a boy forced to defend his house from a pair of bungling burglars after being accidentally left behind from a family holiday.
Yet Home Alone is one of those rare examples of all the stars aligning in Hollywood to create something special. It’s a truly unique Christmas film, both feel-good and immensely funny, rivalled only in that respect by Will Ferrell’s Elf.
There are countless reasons why it remains a festive classic; John Hughes’s script, Chris Columbus’s deft direction, the work of cinematographer Kevin Macat and John Williams’s score are just a few examples.
One that often gets overlooked, however, is Devin Ratray’s Buzz McCallister.
Few actors have succeeded so well in bringing to life all the painfully...
- 12/22/2020
- by Rosie Fletcher
- Den of Geek
Legendary casting director Chemin Bernard has been honored by the Casting Society of America, which has awarded her with Emeritus Member Status in recognition of her “remarkable contributions to the organization, the profession, and the art of casting.” Bernard, who served as Csa president from 2006-08, was chosen for the honor by the Csa’s board of directors and by the Csa Black, Indigenous and People of Color Alliance.
“Chemin Bernard is an exemplary casting director who has built an esteemed career by championing actors and helping tell stories that make an impact on culture,” said Csa president Russell Boast. “She has been a cornerstone to our craft who continues to inspire the next generation of artists.”
“I am humbled by this honor and share it with the African American casting directors on whose shoulders I stand,” said Bernard, who is now retired. “My mission as a casting director was...
“Chemin Bernard is an exemplary casting director who has built an esteemed career by championing actors and helping tell stories that make an impact on culture,” said Csa president Russell Boast. “She has been a cornerstone to our craft who continues to inspire the next generation of artists.”
“I am humbled by this honor and share it with the African American casting directors on whose shoulders I stand,” said Bernard, who is now retired. “My mission as a casting director was...
- 9/10/2020
- by David Robb
- Deadline Film + TV
The Casting Society of America has set its 35th annual Artios Awards for January 30, 2020, with ceremonies to be held simultaneously in Los Angeles, New York and London. The awards honor the contribution of casting directors to film, TV and theater.
The Los Angeles ceremony will be held at the Beverly Hilton, with the other venues not yet locked down. Nominations in the TV and theater categories will be announced September 24, with feature film nominees to be revealed January 2 (see the full timeline below).
Timed to this year’s awards season, the society today also kicked off its inaugural archival project that features video interviews with some of the industry’s leading casting directors released each week leading up to the awards show. First up is Juliet Taylor.
Other subjects include Reuben Cannon, Mike Fenton, Jane Jenkins & Janet Hirshenson, Wallis Nicita and newly elected Motion Picture Academy president David Rubin.
“Our new archival project is the perfect way to ramp up to the 35th Artios Awards, as it allows us to further share the remarkable stories and acknowledge the lasting contributions casting directors have made to film, television and theater,” Csa VP Rich Mento said.
Here’s the full 2020 timeline:
August 28
Open 1st ballot – Television and Theatre
September 20
Close 1st ballot – Television and Theatre
September 24
Television and Theatre Nominees Announced
Open final ballot – Television and Theatre
October 7
Close final ballot – Television and Theatre
November 5
Open submissions – Features
December 6
Close submissions – Features
December 9
Open 1st ballot – Features
January 1, 2020
Close 1st ballot – Features
January 2, 2020
Feature Nominees Announced
Open final ballot – Features
January 15, 2020
Close final ballot – Features
January 30, 2020
35th Artios Awards...
The Los Angeles ceremony will be held at the Beverly Hilton, with the other venues not yet locked down. Nominations in the TV and theater categories will be announced September 24, with feature film nominees to be revealed January 2 (see the full timeline below).
Timed to this year’s awards season, the society today also kicked off its inaugural archival project that features video interviews with some of the industry’s leading casting directors released each week leading up to the awards show. First up is Juliet Taylor.
Other subjects include Reuben Cannon, Mike Fenton, Jane Jenkins & Janet Hirshenson, Wallis Nicita and newly elected Motion Picture Academy president David Rubin.
“Our new archival project is the perfect way to ramp up to the 35th Artios Awards, as it allows us to further share the remarkable stories and acknowledge the lasting contributions casting directors have made to film, television and theater,” Csa VP Rich Mento said.
Here’s the full 2020 timeline:
August 28
Open 1st ballot – Television and Theatre
September 20
Close 1st ballot – Television and Theatre
September 24
Television and Theatre Nominees Announced
Open final ballot – Television and Theatre
October 7
Close final ballot – Television and Theatre
November 5
Open submissions – Features
December 6
Close submissions – Features
December 9
Open 1st ballot – Features
January 1, 2020
Close 1st ballot – Features
January 2, 2020
Feature Nominees Announced
Open final ballot – Features
January 15, 2020
Close final ballot – Features
January 30, 2020
35th Artios Awards...
- 8/22/2019
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Almost 17 years have passed since the launch and subsequent success of Philosopher’s Stone, and still, the Harry Potter IP continues to rake in the big bucks for Warner Bros. Pictures and series author, J.K. Rowling.
Both parties are now fully focused on their successor series, Fantastic Beasts, which is poised to continue through The Crimes of Grindelwald this November. But no matter what the future holds for Rowling’s rich world of witchcraft and wizardry, Daniel Radcliffe will forever be associated with the Boy Who Lived – for better or worse.
Because two decades ago, Radcliffe landed the role of a lifetime, even if he was initially taken aback by Warner’s decision. At the time, casting director Janet Hirshenson stressed that other Potter candidates were “not going to have the balls” for it, while Radcliffe, in typically self-deprecating fashion, believed he was “not the most gifted child actor.”
The...
Both parties are now fully focused on their successor series, Fantastic Beasts, which is poised to continue through The Crimes of Grindelwald this November. But no matter what the future holds for Rowling’s rich world of witchcraft and wizardry, Daniel Radcliffe will forever be associated with the Boy Who Lived – for better or worse.
Because two decades ago, Radcliffe landed the role of a lifetime, even if he was initially taken aback by Warner’s decision. At the time, casting director Janet Hirshenson stressed that other Potter candidates were “not going to have the balls” for it, while Radcliffe, in typically self-deprecating fashion, believed he was “not the most gifted child actor.”
The...
- 1/17/2018
- by Michael Briers
- We Got This Covered
The late actor was keen to play Hagrid, but the part went to Robbie Coltrane because producers wouldn’t waive rule banning non-Brits
Robin Williams was eager to play the half-giant gamekeeper Hagrid in the Harry Potter films – but was turned down by producers on account of his nationality.
Casting director Janet Hirshenson has confirmed that Williams fell victim to the “Brits-only” rule imposed by producers on the series of films. “Robin had called because he really wanted to be in the movie,” she told the Huffington Post, “but it was a British-only edict, and once he said no to Robin, he wasn’t going to say yes to anybody else, that’s for sure. It couldn’t be.”
Continue reading...
Robin Williams was eager to play the half-giant gamekeeper Hagrid in the Harry Potter films – but was turned down by producers on account of his nationality.
Casting director Janet Hirshenson has confirmed that Williams fell victim to the “Brits-only” rule imposed by producers on the series of films. “Robin had called because he really wanted to be in the movie,” she told the Huffington Post, “but it was a British-only edict, and once he said no to Robin, he wasn’t going to say yes to anybody else, that’s for sure. It couldn’t be.”
Continue reading...
- 1/2/2017
- by Catherine Shoard
- The Guardian - Film News
Each ring of the phone can sound like a nervous beat that thunders and echoes outward until your mind pulses. Just the name of Irvine Welsh inspires nervous anticipation that is until the sound of his friendly voice calms the nervous anxiety, as one finds oneself talking with the acclaimed Scottish writer from the eye of a Pornstorm. “I think the tropical storm will be a flash flood thing that will be over in a second. The hotel next door is having a wee pornography shoot, and they are filming something around the swimming pool, and so the storm interrupted it. I look right down onto it, and so whenever I open my window there is always something weird going on, and this time it’s a porno shoot.” The susceptibility of pornography shoots to acts of God having been established, the conversation transitions onto the subject of the adaptation...
- 2/5/2014
- by Paul Risker
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
As a child, Steven Spielberg was captivated by dinosaurs. He collected cast-iron figurines of them and preferred them in starring roles on the big screen. “I was more interested in the dinosaurs in King Kong than I was in King Kong himself,” remembers the Academy Award-winning director. “I thought the T. rex was one of the most awesome dinosaurs of the fossil record! But I never knew how to parlay all my love for paleontology into a story until Michael Crichton came along and wrote his book.”
That book was Jurassic Park, which Spielberg adapted in 1993 into an exhilarating adventure...
That book was Jurassic Park, which Spielberg adapted in 1993 into an exhilarating adventure...
- 4/4/2013
- by Tim Stack and Keith Staskiewicz
- EW - Inside Movies
A planned auction of celebrity actor audition tapes scheduled to take place this week in Beverly Hills will not go forward. A representative for Jane Jenkins and Janet Hirshenson, the two casting directors who had planned to sell 54 VHS tapes of early-career auditions by actors such as Brad Pitt and Sandra Bullock, confirmed to Backstage that the tapes have been withrawn from the auction and will instead be donated to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "I got an email this morning from Janet and Jane saying that there's a big hoopla over this and that they're going to give it to the Academy," said Darryl Marshak of Marshak/Zachary management company. "The Academy now is the keeper of the tapes, and anyone in there can go in and look at them. They're for the whole world to see once they're at the Academy library." Martin Nolan, executive director of Julian's Auctions,...
- 4/2/2013
- backstage.com
A planned auction of 54 VHS tapes featuring early auditions by actors Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sandra Bullock, and many others has touched off a fit of handwringing in the casting community and endangered the age-old idea of the audition room as sacred space.On April 5–6, Julien’s Auctions of Beverly Hills will put the tapes up for sale, some with suggested values as high as $2,000–$4,000. Darren Julien and Martin Nolan appeared on NBC’s “Today” March 29 to publicize the auction and claimed that the tapes were being sold by three casting directors who wished to remain anonymous. But the tapes are widely believed to have come from CDs Jane Jenkins and Janet Hirshenson, who cast most of the projects associated with the auditions. Letterhead from their office can be seen in the catalog for the auction. Kathleen York, whose auditions for the films “Jersey Girl” and “Ransom” are included in the auction,...
- 4/2/2013
- backstage.com
Chicago – John Hughes’s creative peak in the 1980s was brought about by a great deal of writing in a very small period of time. According to legend, Hughes wrote the script for his 1986 cult classic, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” in only seven days while under the threat of a writer’s strike. He was gifted at churning out films, but his prolific nature caused him to noticeably repeat himself.
Like “Home Alone,” the box office monster that ultimately tarnished Hughes’s career, “Bueller” is an infectiously silly exercise in wish fulfillment. It lacks much of the insight that fueled his influential portraits of adolescent hell (such as his lovely debut, “Sixteen Candles”), opting for a cartoonish battle of wits between a smart-aleck student, Ferris (Matthew Broderick), and his vengeful principal (Jeffrey Jones). The film often plays like a Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner cartoon crossed with a Chicago travelogue,...
Like “Home Alone,” the box office monster that ultimately tarnished Hughes’s career, “Bueller” is an infectiously silly exercise in wish fulfillment. It lacks much of the insight that fueled his influential portraits of adolescent hell (such as his lovely debut, “Sixteen Candles”), opting for a cartoonish battle of wits between a smart-aleck student, Ferris (Matthew Broderick), and his vengeful principal (Jeffrey Jones). The film often plays like a Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner cartoon crossed with a Chicago travelogue,...
- 8/10/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Lisa Soltau was living in Seattle when her friend Bonnie Gillespie sent her a book she had written called "Casting Qs," a compilation of interviews with casting directors. "I read it and I absolutely loved all the aspects of the job," says Soltau. "I loved the entertainment industry and movies and television. The process of casting sounded wonderful."She called one of the two casting offices in Seattle and ended up working as an intern there for about six months. But the CD told her she should move to New York or Los Angeles if she really wanted to pursue a career in casting. "I picked L.A. because I had lived there once for about three years and I thought it would be easier to acclimate there," Soltau says. "Plus I wanted to work on 'Six Feet Under,' which was airing at the time.
- 10/20/2010
- backstage.com
The Talent Managers Association held its 9th Annual Seymour Heller Awards Oct. 5. The annual award ceremony, hosted by the Sheraton Hotel in Universal City, Calif., recognizes individuals who have demonstrated excellence in talent management. The Seymour Heller Award was created in 2002, and is named after one of the founders of the National Conference of Personal Managers, the first coast-to-coast personal management firm, which represented actors such as Liberace and Glenn Miller.The following is the list of the winners and the agency they represent:Talent Manager 2010Terrie Snell, TalentINKAdult Theatrical Agent 2010Denny Sevier, House of Representatives Youth Theatrical Agent 2010Melisa Berger, CESDAdult Commercial 2010Kim Bryd, Innovative Artists Talent & Literary AgencyYouth Commercial 2010Carol Lynn Sher, Cesd Television Casting Director 2010Scott David, April Webster CastingFilm Casting Director 2010Jane Jenkins & Janet Hirshenson, The Casting CompanyCommercial Casting Director 2010Ross Lacy, Ross Lacy CastingAssociate Casting Director 2010Sherie Hernandez, Greenstein/Daniels Casting2010 Heller Award for Excellence in Talent ManagementSusan Curtis,...
- 10/8/2010
- backstage.com
Casting directors came out from behind the curtain to be honored by their peers last night at the 25th Annual Artios Awards. The bi-coastal awards, which were held simultaneously at the new Times Center in New York City and the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, are presented yearly for outstanding achievement in casting in theater, film, and television categories on the criteria of originality, creativity, and contribution of casting to the overall quality of a project.Celebrity awards presenters in New York were Patrick Wilson ("Little Children," "Angels in America"), Carrie Preston ("True Blood"), Michael Shannon ("Revolutionary Road"), Jennifer Morrison ("House"), Bill Pullman ("Oleanna"), Christine Ebersole ("Grey Gardens"), Vincent Kartheiser ("Mad Men"), and Elizabeth Reaser ("Twilight"). Stanley Tucci and producer Daryl Roth presented the New York Big Apple Award to Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron, whose "Love, Loss and What I Wore" recently opened Off-Broadway to rave reviews.
- 11/3/2009
- backstage.com
Producer Laura Ziskin, writer-director Nora Ephron, writer Delia Ephron and casting director John Frank Levey will be honored at the Casting Society of America's 24th annual Artios Awards.
Simultaneous awards ceremonies will be held in at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles and the New York Times Building in New York on Nov. 2.
Ziskin is set to receive the group's Career Achievement Award. The New York Apple Award will be presented to Nora and Delia Ephron. Levy is this year's recipient of the Hoyt Bowers Award.
Representing 425 members in the United States, Canada, England and Australia, Cas also announced its nominees in film TV and theater on Thursday.
In the category of big budget feature drama, Ellen Chenoweth scored two noms for "Changeling" and "Duplicity." The category nominees are John Papsidera for "The Dark Knight"; April Webster and Alyssa Weisberg for "Star Trek" and Avy Kaufman for "State of Play.
Simultaneous awards ceremonies will be held in at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles and the New York Times Building in New York on Nov. 2.
Ziskin is set to receive the group's Career Achievement Award. The New York Apple Award will be presented to Nora and Delia Ephron. Levy is this year's recipient of the Hoyt Bowers Award.
Representing 425 members in the United States, Canada, England and Australia, Cas also announced its nominees in film TV and theater on Thursday.
In the category of big budget feature drama, Ellen Chenoweth scored two noms for "Changeling" and "Duplicity." The category nominees are John Papsidera for "The Dark Knight"; April Webster and Alyssa Weisberg for "Star Trek" and Avy Kaufman for "State of Play.
- 9/17/2009
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
8-10 p.m.
Sunday-Monday, April 20-21
USA Network
The miniseries is officially an endangered species. No more than a handful were produced during the past television year, only a couple of those more than the standard two-night, four-hour jobs.
The reason for this near-extinction? The economy, stupid! But you already knew that. Short of multipronged international co-productions, the cost has simply become prohibitive when factored with the return on investment. So with USA Network's "Helen of Troy" (as with last week's "Napoleon" on A&E), we have the last of a breed: the multipart historical epic that's too big to be contained in a single night. And like "Napoleon", "Helen" scores more or less captivatingly.
Not that the two minis have all that much in common other than that they are larger-than-life tales of love and war. (Perhaps that's enough.) This one features evocative details and great costumes from designer Van Broughton Ramsey (think "Flashdance" with armor and sandals). And while this "Helen" breaks the cardinal contemporary rule by forgetting to have a sense of humor about itself, there is nonetheless plenty to admire about it. First and foremost, scribe/co-producer Ronni Kern paints a sweeping portrait with her words that's sufficient to make you want to come back for Night 2, even if many of the performances are on the rigid side.
It doesn't hurt that relative newcomer Sienna Guillory (she was in "The Time Machine" with Guy Pearce) makes an especially alluring Helen. She's all pouty, come-hither attitude and mischievous eyes, the kind of perpetually troubled lass who would be popping Prozac like they were Tums if this were the 21st century. Of course, it isn't. It's the era of togas and breastplates and a lone woman who had a Face That Launched a Thousand Ships. Just what that line means isn't entirely clear. I mean, is a face that launches something always a good thing?
Digression aside, director John Kent Harrison brings the tale of classic literature its requisite grandeur and scope, which isn't always easy when you've got people running around looking vaguely constipated. The tale is that of the war that's fought over the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, who was born the illegitimate daughter of Zeus (who raped her mother). When your daddy is a Greek god, well, you just know things will never be completely normal. It makes you both flesh and blood but immortal, for one thing.
Helen grows up with this veil of shame surrounding her. She winds up marrying Menelaus (James Callis) against her will and then disgraces him when she has an affair with a hunky young prince, Paris (Matthew Marsden), whose reflection she once saw in a pond. The prince of Troy is Helen's destiny. And while the details always sound silly when described in a review, it flows together well enough and is even plausible in this literative context.
The length doesn't feel excessive here, and the actors all do their jobs with the proper veneer of consequence. There are no nudges and winks underneath the characterizations in this "Helen" that let us know we're watching this through the irony and cynicism of modern eyes. And in properly honoring the material, that's as it should be.
Helen of Troy
USA Network
Fuel Entertainment in association with USA Cable Entertainment
Credits:
Executive producer: Adam Shapiro
Producer: Ted Kurdyla
Co-producer/writer: Ronni Kern
Associate producer: Judith Craig Marlin
Director: John Kent Harrison
Director of photography: Edward J. Pei
Production designer: James Allen
Costume designer: Van Broughton Ramsey
Editor: Michael Ornstein
Music: Joel Goldsmith
Casting: Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins, Dan Hubbard
Cast:
Helen: Sienna Guillory
Paris: Matthew Marsden
Agamemnon: Rufus Sewell
Theseus: Stellan Skarsgard
King Priam: John Rhys-Davies
Queen Hecubs: Maryam D'Abo
Cassandra: Emilia Fox
Menelaus: James Callis
Hector: Daniel Lapaine
Odysseus: Nigel Whitmey
Achilles: Joe Montana
Clytemnestra: Katie Blake
Pollux: Craig Kelly
Paris' Father: Manuel Caushi
Iphigenia: Kristina Paris
Atreus: Edward Mercieca...
Sunday-Monday, April 20-21
USA Network
The miniseries is officially an endangered species. No more than a handful were produced during the past television year, only a couple of those more than the standard two-night, four-hour jobs.
The reason for this near-extinction? The economy, stupid! But you already knew that. Short of multipronged international co-productions, the cost has simply become prohibitive when factored with the return on investment. So with USA Network's "Helen of Troy" (as with last week's "Napoleon" on A&E), we have the last of a breed: the multipart historical epic that's too big to be contained in a single night. And like "Napoleon", "Helen" scores more or less captivatingly.
Not that the two minis have all that much in common other than that they are larger-than-life tales of love and war. (Perhaps that's enough.) This one features evocative details and great costumes from designer Van Broughton Ramsey (think "Flashdance" with armor and sandals). And while this "Helen" breaks the cardinal contemporary rule by forgetting to have a sense of humor about itself, there is nonetheless plenty to admire about it. First and foremost, scribe/co-producer Ronni Kern paints a sweeping portrait with her words that's sufficient to make you want to come back for Night 2, even if many of the performances are on the rigid side.
It doesn't hurt that relative newcomer Sienna Guillory (she was in "The Time Machine" with Guy Pearce) makes an especially alluring Helen. She's all pouty, come-hither attitude and mischievous eyes, the kind of perpetually troubled lass who would be popping Prozac like they were Tums if this were the 21st century. Of course, it isn't. It's the era of togas and breastplates and a lone woman who had a Face That Launched a Thousand Ships. Just what that line means isn't entirely clear. I mean, is a face that launches something always a good thing?
Digression aside, director John Kent Harrison brings the tale of classic literature its requisite grandeur and scope, which isn't always easy when you've got people running around looking vaguely constipated. The tale is that of the war that's fought over the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, who was born the illegitimate daughter of Zeus (who raped her mother). When your daddy is a Greek god, well, you just know things will never be completely normal. It makes you both flesh and blood but immortal, for one thing.
Helen grows up with this veil of shame surrounding her. She winds up marrying Menelaus (James Callis) against her will and then disgraces him when she has an affair with a hunky young prince, Paris (Matthew Marsden), whose reflection she once saw in a pond. The prince of Troy is Helen's destiny. And while the details always sound silly when described in a review, it flows together well enough and is even plausible in this literative context.
The length doesn't feel excessive here, and the actors all do their jobs with the proper veneer of consequence. There are no nudges and winks underneath the characterizations in this "Helen" that let us know we're watching this through the irony and cynicism of modern eyes. And in properly honoring the material, that's as it should be.
Helen of Troy
USA Network
Fuel Entertainment in association with USA Cable Entertainment
Credits:
Executive producer: Adam Shapiro
Producer: Ted Kurdyla
Co-producer/writer: Ronni Kern
Associate producer: Judith Craig Marlin
Director: John Kent Harrison
Director of photography: Edward J. Pei
Production designer: James Allen
Costume designer: Van Broughton Ramsey
Editor: Michael Ornstein
Music: Joel Goldsmith
Casting: Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins, Dan Hubbard
Cast:
Helen: Sienna Guillory
Paris: Matthew Marsden
Agamemnon: Rufus Sewell
Theseus: Stellan Skarsgard
King Priam: John Rhys-Davies
Queen Hecubs: Maryam D'Abo
Cassandra: Emilia Fox
Menelaus: James Callis
Hector: Daniel Lapaine
Odysseus: Nigel Whitmey
Achilles: Joe Montana
Clytemnestra: Katie Blake
Pollux: Craig Kelly
Paris' Father: Manuel Caushi
Iphigenia: Kristina Paris
Atreus: Edward Mercieca...
- 4/17/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Versatile filmmaker Neil Jordan is no stranger to the psychological thriller, having intelligently dabbled in the genre with 1984's "The Company of Wolves" and 1994's "Interview With the Vampire".
Of course, there was also that 1988 haunted castle misfire known as "High Spirits", which unfortunately will be more closely associated with his latest otherworldly excursion.
Loosely based on the novel "Doll's Eyes", by Bari Wood, "In Dreams" is an annoyingly overwrought affair, riddled with logic holes and more than just a little derivative, conjuring up the likes of Nicolas Roeg's "Don't Look Now" and Samuel Fuller's "Shock Corridor", not to mention "Eyes of Laura Mars" and virtually any installment of "A Nightmare on Elm Street".
Even with a commendable is-she-or-isn't-she crazy turn by Annette Bening as a mother whose disturbing, prescient dreams start hitting tragically close to home, you don't need a clairvoyant to assess this DreamWorks release's boxoffice future.
It will be considerably less than dreamy.
Bening is Claire Cooper, a children's book illustrator whose persistent, nocturnal visions of a missing girl and lots of apples prove to foretell the abduction and subsequent murder of her own child, Rebecca (Katie Sagona).
But that's just the beginning. It seems Claire has melded minds with Rebecca's psychotic, serial killer (a way-over-the-top Robert Downey Jr.), who initially manifests his presence as voices in her head and messages on her computer monitor.
Alas, to the average onlooker, including her well-meaning pilot husband, Paul (Aidan Quinn), Claire appears simply crazy, and is subsequently checked into the loony bin. As fate and the unsubtle script would have it, she finds herself in the very same ward that housed her tormentor years earlier, when, as a child he went nuts after being chained to his bed just before his quaint New England town was evacuated and immediately flooded to make way for a new reservoir.
Don't ask.
The whole concept of deliberately burying a town under water with its buildings unrazed and their contents unremoved may look cool as a ghostly opening sequence, but it immediately sets the head-scratching tone that only intensifies as co-screenwriters Jordan and Bruce Robinson pile on the implausibilities.
As a director, Jordan certainly has a commanding visual style, and the picture is not without its impressive set-pieces -- that surreal opening, however ludicrous, and a tightly choreographed traffic accident come to mind -- but the overall atmosphere is ridiculously amped-up, even by horror standards.
Bening's reasonably grounded performance aside, the acting runs the gamut from Downey's bug-eyed tribute to Norman Bates to Jordan regular Stephen Rea's miscast turn as a melancholy psychiatrist with a tentative New York accent.
Production values are similarly uneven. Cinematographer Darius Khondji ("Evita", "Seven", "Alien Resurrection") does a nicely eerie job with all that murky, metaphysical stuff; while production designer Nigel Phelps goes overboard with the apple imagery and Elliott Goldenthal's score is all shrill symphonic hysteria.
IN DREAMS
DreamWorks
Director: Neil Jordan
Screenwriters: Bruce Robinson and Neil Jordan
Based on the novel "Doll's Eyes" by: Bari Wood
Producer: Stephen Woolley
Director of photography: Darius Khondji
Production designer: Nigel Phelps
Editor: Tony Lawson
Costume designer: Jeffrey Kurland
Music: Elliot Goldenthal
Casting: Janet Hirshenson and Jane Jenkins
Color/stereo
Cast:
Claire Cooper: Annette Bening
Vivian Thompson: Robert Downey Jr.
Dr. Silverman: Stephen Rea
Paul Cooper: Aidan Quinn
Detective Jack Kay: Paul Guilfoyle
Dr. Stevens: Dennis Boutsikaris
Rebecca Cooper: Katie Sagona
Ruby: Krystal Benn
Running time -- 100 minutes
MPAA Rating: R...
Of course, there was also that 1988 haunted castle misfire known as "High Spirits", which unfortunately will be more closely associated with his latest otherworldly excursion.
Loosely based on the novel "Doll's Eyes", by Bari Wood, "In Dreams" is an annoyingly overwrought affair, riddled with logic holes and more than just a little derivative, conjuring up the likes of Nicolas Roeg's "Don't Look Now" and Samuel Fuller's "Shock Corridor", not to mention "Eyes of Laura Mars" and virtually any installment of "A Nightmare on Elm Street".
Even with a commendable is-she-or-isn't-she crazy turn by Annette Bening as a mother whose disturbing, prescient dreams start hitting tragically close to home, you don't need a clairvoyant to assess this DreamWorks release's boxoffice future.
It will be considerably less than dreamy.
Bening is Claire Cooper, a children's book illustrator whose persistent, nocturnal visions of a missing girl and lots of apples prove to foretell the abduction and subsequent murder of her own child, Rebecca (Katie Sagona).
But that's just the beginning. It seems Claire has melded minds with Rebecca's psychotic, serial killer (a way-over-the-top Robert Downey Jr.), who initially manifests his presence as voices in her head and messages on her computer monitor.
Alas, to the average onlooker, including her well-meaning pilot husband, Paul (Aidan Quinn), Claire appears simply crazy, and is subsequently checked into the loony bin. As fate and the unsubtle script would have it, she finds herself in the very same ward that housed her tormentor years earlier, when, as a child he went nuts after being chained to his bed just before his quaint New England town was evacuated and immediately flooded to make way for a new reservoir.
Don't ask.
The whole concept of deliberately burying a town under water with its buildings unrazed and their contents unremoved may look cool as a ghostly opening sequence, but it immediately sets the head-scratching tone that only intensifies as co-screenwriters Jordan and Bruce Robinson pile on the implausibilities.
As a director, Jordan certainly has a commanding visual style, and the picture is not without its impressive set-pieces -- that surreal opening, however ludicrous, and a tightly choreographed traffic accident come to mind -- but the overall atmosphere is ridiculously amped-up, even by horror standards.
Bening's reasonably grounded performance aside, the acting runs the gamut from Downey's bug-eyed tribute to Norman Bates to Jordan regular Stephen Rea's miscast turn as a melancholy psychiatrist with a tentative New York accent.
Production values are similarly uneven. Cinematographer Darius Khondji ("Evita", "Seven", "Alien Resurrection") does a nicely eerie job with all that murky, metaphysical stuff; while production designer Nigel Phelps goes overboard with the apple imagery and Elliott Goldenthal's score is all shrill symphonic hysteria.
IN DREAMS
DreamWorks
Director: Neil Jordan
Screenwriters: Bruce Robinson and Neil Jordan
Based on the novel "Doll's Eyes" by: Bari Wood
Producer: Stephen Woolley
Director of photography: Darius Khondji
Production designer: Nigel Phelps
Editor: Tony Lawson
Costume designer: Jeffrey Kurland
Music: Elliot Goldenthal
Casting: Janet Hirshenson and Jane Jenkins
Color/stereo
Cast:
Claire Cooper: Annette Bening
Vivian Thompson: Robert Downey Jr.
Dr. Silverman: Stephen Rea
Paul Cooper: Aidan Quinn
Detective Jack Kay: Paul Guilfoyle
Dr. Stevens: Dennis Boutsikaris
Rebecca Cooper: Katie Sagona
Ruby: Krystal Benn
Running time -- 100 minutes
MPAA Rating: R...
- 1/15/1999
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Harrison Ford lines up beside John Wayne and Clint Eastwood, rather than Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, as a no-nonsense president who cuts terrorists no slack in Sony's "Air Force One".
As a man-of-action commander-in-chief who follows his principles rather than public-opinion polls, Ford is inspirational and electrifying, bravely taking on a gang of terrorists who have commandeered his plane, Air Force One.
Chart a course of $100 million-plus grosses for this taut, high-flying film from director Wolfgang Petersen, and count my write-in ballot for Ford in the next presidential election. Although its carry-a-big-stick theme may cause limousine liberals to squirm, this pulsating political actioner should prove cathartic for mainstream viewers who yearn for a decisive, gutsy executive branch of government.
As seems to be tradition in recent president-centered entertainments, Ford stars as a Midwestern-bred chief executive who, like Michael Douglas in "The American President", finds that the only drawback to his job is that he can't keep track of his alma mater's gridiron conquests in a timely fashion. Undeniably, he's from jock stock and has nailed down a number of medals for his heroic service in Vietnam. In short, don't tread on this guy, and especially, don't mess with his family, namely the first lady (Wendy Crewson) and first daughter (Liesel Matthews).
Andrew W. Marlowe's scenario is crafty and well-crafted from the post-Cold War front pages, credibly emanating from the chaos in the former Soviet Union. In this narrative extension, terrorists posing as Russian journalists take over Air Force One as it heads back to Washington following the president's from-the-heart speech to Russian dignitaries promising that the USA will no longer tolerate human-rights violations and will not negotiate with terrorists.
That promise is immediately tested when Air Force One is taken over by terrorists demanding the release of the fascist general in Kazakhstan (Jurgen Prochnow) who has been captured and imprisoned as a result of joint U.S. and Russian cooperation. Although Marlowe's dialogue contains some expositional clunks, it also sizzles: An honorable mention in the "Make My Day" category of best macho one-liners for Ford's snarl -- "Get off my plane".
No director can generate more thrust in a contained space than the German-raised Petersen. He packs as much explosive wallop in the enclosed space of a jet plane as he did in the cramped confines of a submarine ("Das Boot"). Petersen's direction is kinetically charged, using every inch of space and every aesthetic to jet- propel this small-set actioner into big-screen dimension.
While there's no discounting the thermodynamic power of the technical team, it's the players who make this story-load fly. Let's start with a hail to the chief: It's hard to remember when someone acted so presidential. As the chief executive, Ford is forthright, charismatic, brave and honorable.
Similarly well-cast is Gary Oldman, who layers his role with just the right amount of megalomania and martyr-envy.
Packed and tightly wired with no narrative slack, Petersen and his expert technical team have fused an explosively powerful human drama. Highest praise to cinematographer Michael Ballhaus for the tight framings and sharp slants and editor Richard Francis-Bruce for triggering the white-knuckle cadence.
AIR FORCE ONE
Sony Pictures Releasing
Beacon Pictures and Columbia Pictures
present a Radiant production
A Wolfgang Petersen film
Producers Wolfgang Petersen, Gail Katz,
Armyan Bernstein, Jon Shestack
Director Wolfgang Petersen
Screenwriter Andrew W. Marlowe
Director of photography Michael Ballhaus
Production designer William Sandell
Editor Richard Francis-Bruce
Visual effects supervisor Richard Edlund
Costume designer Erica Edell Phillips
Music Jerry Goldsmith
Casting Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Sound mixer Keith A. Wester
Sound designers/supervisors Wylie Stateman, Peter Michael Sullivan
Color/stereo
Cast:
President James Marshall Harrison Ford
Ivan Korshunov Gary Oldman
Vice President Kathryn Bennett Glenn Close
Grace Marshall Wendy Crewson
Alice Marshall Liesel Matthews
Chief of Staff Lloyd Shepherd Paul Guilfoyle
Agent Gibbs Xander Berkeley
Maj. Caldwell William H. Macy
Defense Secretary Walter Dean Dean Stockwell
NSA adviser Jack Doherty Tom Everett
Gen. Alexander Radek Jurgen Prochnow
Press Secretary Melanie Mitchell Donna Bullock
Running time -- 118 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
As a man-of-action commander-in-chief who follows his principles rather than public-opinion polls, Ford is inspirational and electrifying, bravely taking on a gang of terrorists who have commandeered his plane, Air Force One.
Chart a course of $100 million-plus grosses for this taut, high-flying film from director Wolfgang Petersen, and count my write-in ballot for Ford in the next presidential election. Although its carry-a-big-stick theme may cause limousine liberals to squirm, this pulsating political actioner should prove cathartic for mainstream viewers who yearn for a decisive, gutsy executive branch of government.
As seems to be tradition in recent president-centered entertainments, Ford stars as a Midwestern-bred chief executive who, like Michael Douglas in "The American President", finds that the only drawback to his job is that he can't keep track of his alma mater's gridiron conquests in a timely fashion. Undeniably, he's from jock stock and has nailed down a number of medals for his heroic service in Vietnam. In short, don't tread on this guy, and especially, don't mess with his family, namely the first lady (Wendy Crewson) and first daughter (Liesel Matthews).
Andrew W. Marlowe's scenario is crafty and well-crafted from the post-Cold War front pages, credibly emanating from the chaos in the former Soviet Union. In this narrative extension, terrorists posing as Russian journalists take over Air Force One as it heads back to Washington following the president's from-the-heart speech to Russian dignitaries promising that the USA will no longer tolerate human-rights violations and will not negotiate with terrorists.
That promise is immediately tested when Air Force One is taken over by terrorists demanding the release of the fascist general in Kazakhstan (Jurgen Prochnow) who has been captured and imprisoned as a result of joint U.S. and Russian cooperation. Although Marlowe's dialogue contains some expositional clunks, it also sizzles: An honorable mention in the "Make My Day" category of best macho one-liners for Ford's snarl -- "Get off my plane".
No director can generate more thrust in a contained space than the German-raised Petersen. He packs as much explosive wallop in the enclosed space of a jet plane as he did in the cramped confines of a submarine ("Das Boot"). Petersen's direction is kinetically charged, using every inch of space and every aesthetic to jet- propel this small-set actioner into big-screen dimension.
While there's no discounting the thermodynamic power of the technical team, it's the players who make this story-load fly. Let's start with a hail to the chief: It's hard to remember when someone acted so presidential. As the chief executive, Ford is forthright, charismatic, brave and honorable.
Similarly well-cast is Gary Oldman, who layers his role with just the right amount of megalomania and martyr-envy.
Packed and tightly wired with no narrative slack, Petersen and his expert technical team have fused an explosively powerful human drama. Highest praise to cinematographer Michael Ballhaus for the tight framings and sharp slants and editor Richard Francis-Bruce for triggering the white-knuckle cadence.
AIR FORCE ONE
Sony Pictures Releasing
Beacon Pictures and Columbia Pictures
present a Radiant production
A Wolfgang Petersen film
Producers Wolfgang Petersen, Gail Katz,
Armyan Bernstein, Jon Shestack
Director Wolfgang Petersen
Screenwriter Andrew W. Marlowe
Director of photography Michael Ballhaus
Production designer William Sandell
Editor Richard Francis-Bruce
Visual effects supervisor Richard Edlund
Costume designer Erica Edell Phillips
Music Jerry Goldsmith
Casting Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Sound mixer Keith A. Wester
Sound designers/supervisors Wylie Stateman, Peter Michael Sullivan
Color/stereo
Cast:
President James Marshall Harrison Ford
Ivan Korshunov Gary Oldman
Vice President Kathryn Bennett Glenn Close
Grace Marshall Wendy Crewson
Alice Marshall Liesel Matthews
Chief of Staff Lloyd Shepherd Paul Guilfoyle
Agent Gibbs Xander Berkeley
Maj. Caldwell William H. Macy
Defense Secretary Walter Dean Dean Stockwell
NSA adviser Jack Doherty Tom Everett
Gen. Alexander Radek Jurgen Prochnow
Press Secretary Melanie Mitchell Donna Bullock
Running time -- 118 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 7/18/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A 50-year-old kid with really big toys, Steven Spielberg both enthralls and terrorizes with total success in "The Lost World: Jurassic Park". Arriving nearly four years after the super-blockbuster "Jurassic Park" and the Oscar-winning "Schindler's List", Spielberg's "Lost World" is hardly subtle in its approach or earth-shattering in its themes, but it delivers several big payoffs that will please fans of the first film and help propel the sequel into the outer limits of the boxoffice universe.
Spielberg and screenwriter David Koepp ripped up and stomped on author Michael Crichton's best-selling book, reworking characters, dropping most of the narrative and introducing a formidable human antagonist who wants to exploit the monstrous creations of the InGen company and commands a small army to hunt and trap the re-created reptiles on an island off the Costa Rican coast.
With Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough reprising their roles from the first film, "Lost World" pits an able crew of adventurers against big, ugly and obviously unreasonable tyranosaurs, but in this scenario even the cute little scavengers called "compys" are bad news. The movie makes good on its promise to feature more kinds of dinos, and it revels in dazzling monster movie thrills.
There are moments that recall the first film's amusement-park-gone-berserk gambit, but the sequel swings toward sympathy for the once-extinct creatures, particularly a T-rex family including an adult and baby that roar through the fantastic finale. Still, a furious raptor attack and other scenes where humans get munched provide the basic guilty pleasures one pays for.
After some routine character development, the film gets into the groove when the protagonists -- including Julianne Moore as a paleontologist, Goldblum as her boyfriend, Vince Vaughn as a videomaker and Richard Schiff as the nuts-and-bolts guy -- convene on "Site B" to record its denizens for InGen's beleaguered founder.
They come with the most expensive gear and only the best intentions. Goldblum's justly fearful character correctly predicts catastrophe, while even he is caught by surprise when his daughter Vanessa Lee Chester) appears as a stowaway.
The ailing creator of Jurassic Park, John Hammond (Attenborough), has lost control of his company while his odious nephew (Arliss Howard) smells big money in the zoo business. Hammond sends his group, but the upstart nephew heads his own mission to the hitherto secret, uninhabited-by-humans island where the dinosaurs of the first film were created.
Leading the larger expedition is a tireless hunter (Pete Postlethwaite), who dreams of killing a T-rex. As things go terribly wrong, after the opportunists kidnap a baby T-rex, all parties come together on the forested, fright-filled isle. There's a major treat after the primary action is through. "Lost World" improves on the original in many ways -- from the performances to the darker tone -- and it contains a few priceless moments to add to the Spielberg canon.
Taking place mainly at night, the film is superbly photographed by Janusz Kaminski ("Schindler's List"), and the murky, dripping-in-dread locations in Northern California's Redwood Forest are bully. Production designer Rick Carter and editor Michael Kahn are in top form, while the many special effects sequences create wondrous illusions that will be marveled at for some time.
Veteran composer John Williams sparingly uses the first film's stately theme and uncorks a rugged, sometimes savage score. The film's most important feature -- the best dinosaurs ever seen on the big screen, whether full-motion, live-action or CGI -- are the inspired work of Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Michael Lantieri and many other praiseworthy folks.
THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK
Universal Pictures
An Amblin Entertainment production
A Steven Spielberg film
Director Steven Spielberg
Writer David Koepp
Based on the novel by Michael Crichton
Producers Gerald R. Molen, Colin Wilson
Executive producer Kathleen Kennedy
Director of photography Janusz Kaminski
Production designer Rick Carter
Editor Michael Kahn
Music John Williams
Casting Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Color/stereo
Cast:
Ian Malcolm Jeff Goldblum
Sarah Harding Julianne Moore
Roland Pete Postlethwaite
Peter Ludlow Arliss Howard
John Hammond Richard Attenborough
Nick Van Owen Vince Vaughn
Kelly Curtis Vanessa Lee Chester
Eddie Carr Richard Schiff
Running time -- 124 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Spielberg and screenwriter David Koepp ripped up and stomped on author Michael Crichton's best-selling book, reworking characters, dropping most of the narrative and introducing a formidable human antagonist who wants to exploit the monstrous creations of the InGen company and commands a small army to hunt and trap the re-created reptiles on an island off the Costa Rican coast.
With Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough reprising their roles from the first film, "Lost World" pits an able crew of adventurers against big, ugly and obviously unreasonable tyranosaurs, but in this scenario even the cute little scavengers called "compys" are bad news. The movie makes good on its promise to feature more kinds of dinos, and it revels in dazzling monster movie thrills.
There are moments that recall the first film's amusement-park-gone-berserk gambit, but the sequel swings toward sympathy for the once-extinct creatures, particularly a T-rex family including an adult and baby that roar through the fantastic finale. Still, a furious raptor attack and other scenes where humans get munched provide the basic guilty pleasures one pays for.
After some routine character development, the film gets into the groove when the protagonists -- including Julianne Moore as a paleontologist, Goldblum as her boyfriend, Vince Vaughn as a videomaker and Richard Schiff as the nuts-and-bolts guy -- convene on "Site B" to record its denizens for InGen's beleaguered founder.
They come with the most expensive gear and only the best intentions. Goldblum's justly fearful character correctly predicts catastrophe, while even he is caught by surprise when his daughter Vanessa Lee Chester) appears as a stowaway.
The ailing creator of Jurassic Park, John Hammond (Attenborough), has lost control of his company while his odious nephew (Arliss Howard) smells big money in the zoo business. Hammond sends his group, but the upstart nephew heads his own mission to the hitherto secret, uninhabited-by-humans island where the dinosaurs of the first film were created.
Leading the larger expedition is a tireless hunter (Pete Postlethwaite), who dreams of killing a T-rex. As things go terribly wrong, after the opportunists kidnap a baby T-rex, all parties come together on the forested, fright-filled isle. There's a major treat after the primary action is through. "Lost World" improves on the original in many ways -- from the performances to the darker tone -- and it contains a few priceless moments to add to the Spielberg canon.
Taking place mainly at night, the film is superbly photographed by Janusz Kaminski ("Schindler's List"), and the murky, dripping-in-dread locations in Northern California's Redwood Forest are bully. Production designer Rick Carter and editor Michael Kahn are in top form, while the many special effects sequences create wondrous illusions that will be marveled at for some time.
Veteran composer John Williams sparingly uses the first film's stately theme and uncorks a rugged, sometimes savage score. The film's most important feature -- the best dinosaurs ever seen on the big screen, whether full-motion, live-action or CGI -- are the inspired work of Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Michael Lantieri and many other praiseworthy folks.
THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK
Universal Pictures
An Amblin Entertainment production
A Steven Spielberg film
Director Steven Spielberg
Writer David Koepp
Based on the novel by Michael Crichton
Producers Gerald R. Molen, Colin Wilson
Executive producer Kathleen Kennedy
Director of photography Janusz Kaminski
Production designer Rick Carter
Editor Michael Kahn
Music John Williams
Casting Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Color/stereo
Cast:
Ian Malcolm Jeff Goldblum
Sarah Harding Julianne Moore
Roland Pete Postlethwaite
Peter Ludlow Arliss Howard
John Hammond Richard Attenborough
Nick Van Owen Vince Vaughn
Kelly Curtis Vanessa Lee Chester
Eddie Carr Richard Schiff
Running time -- 124 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 5/19/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Fran Drescher tries the big screen on for size with "The Beautician and the Beast", and while the likable comedian is certainly up to the challenge (having tested the waters with Robin Williams in "Jack" and "Cadillac Man") the material proves to be less than form-fitting.
Directed by Ken Kwapis, who previously guided "Seinfeld"'s Jason Alexander through his feature paces with the ill-fated and similarly thin "Dunston Checks In", the fish-out-of-water romantic comedy, about an ambitious beautician who leaves Queens behind for a gig tutoring the children of a stern, Eastern European dictator (Timothy Dalton), never really clicks into gear despite obvious similarities to Drescher's hit TV series.
Although she has a loyal at-home following, "Beautician"'s boxoffice prospects don't look too pretty.
Written by Todd Graff, a longtime friend of Drescher and her husband and co-executive producer Peter Marc Jacobson, the vehicle is essentially "The Nanny Goes Abroad", with Drescher having to make few adjustments in her transition from Fran Fine to Joy Miller.
Stopped on a New York City street with an unusual job offer from a persistent emissary (Ian McNeice), Joy quickly finds herself saying goodbye to her pushy mother (Phyllis Newman) and her sympathetic father (Michael Lerner) before she's whisked off to the former Communist country of Slovetzia, to teach the four children of president-for-life Boris "The Beast" Pachenko (Dalton) Western ways.
Operating under false pretenses -- due to a misunderstanding, Joy is believed to be a science teacher -- the beautician schools the kids in matters concerning accessorizing and frequent flyer miles, while giving Boris a tip or two in transforming his less-than-benevolent image. After a rocky start, the two begin to feel the pangs of attraction, much to the displeasure of Pachenko's old school right-hand man, Kleist (Patrick Malahide).
While the vehicle would appear to be tailor-made to Drescher's effervescent talents, it seldom gets up to speed. For what purports to be a romantic comedy, there just isn't much chemistry to speak of between her and Dalton.
But while Drescher's "fine whine" is very much intact, both Kwapis' direction and Graff's script feel a couple of beats off. As a result, a number of comic set-ups and pay-offs simply don't match up. Drescher appears to be timing some of her line deliveries against a non-existent laugh track.
With a major chunk of the picture filmed on location in the Czech Republic, the production values are cost efficient. Costume designer Barbara Tfank has provided Drescher with a Day-Glo wardrobe that effectively screams "Queens chic".
THE BEAUTICIAN AND THE BEAST
Paramount
A Koch Company production
in association with High School Sweethearts
Director Ken Kwapis
Screenwriter Todd Graff
Producers Howard W. "Hawk" Koch Jr.,
Todd Graff
Executive producers Roger Birnbaum,
Fran Drescher, Peter Marc Jacobson
Director of photography Peter Lyons Collister
Production designer Rusty Smith
Editor Jon Poll
Costume designer Barbara Tfank
Music Cliff Eidelman
Casting Jane Jenkins, Janet Hirshenson
Color/stereo
Cast:
Joy Miller Fran Drescher
Boris Pachenko Timothy Dalton
Grushinsky Ian McNeice
Katrina Lisa Jakub
Kleist Patrick Malahide
Jerry Miller Michael Lerner
Karl Adam La Vorgna
Judy Miller Phyllis Newman
Running time -- 105 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
Directed by Ken Kwapis, who previously guided "Seinfeld"'s Jason Alexander through his feature paces with the ill-fated and similarly thin "Dunston Checks In", the fish-out-of-water romantic comedy, about an ambitious beautician who leaves Queens behind for a gig tutoring the children of a stern, Eastern European dictator (Timothy Dalton), never really clicks into gear despite obvious similarities to Drescher's hit TV series.
Although she has a loyal at-home following, "Beautician"'s boxoffice prospects don't look too pretty.
Written by Todd Graff, a longtime friend of Drescher and her husband and co-executive producer Peter Marc Jacobson, the vehicle is essentially "The Nanny Goes Abroad", with Drescher having to make few adjustments in her transition from Fran Fine to Joy Miller.
Stopped on a New York City street with an unusual job offer from a persistent emissary (Ian McNeice), Joy quickly finds herself saying goodbye to her pushy mother (Phyllis Newman) and her sympathetic father (Michael Lerner) before she's whisked off to the former Communist country of Slovetzia, to teach the four children of president-for-life Boris "The Beast" Pachenko (Dalton) Western ways.
Operating under false pretenses -- due to a misunderstanding, Joy is believed to be a science teacher -- the beautician schools the kids in matters concerning accessorizing and frequent flyer miles, while giving Boris a tip or two in transforming his less-than-benevolent image. After a rocky start, the two begin to feel the pangs of attraction, much to the displeasure of Pachenko's old school right-hand man, Kleist (Patrick Malahide).
While the vehicle would appear to be tailor-made to Drescher's effervescent talents, it seldom gets up to speed. For what purports to be a romantic comedy, there just isn't much chemistry to speak of between her and Dalton.
But while Drescher's "fine whine" is very much intact, both Kwapis' direction and Graff's script feel a couple of beats off. As a result, a number of comic set-ups and pay-offs simply don't match up. Drescher appears to be timing some of her line deliveries against a non-existent laugh track.
With a major chunk of the picture filmed on location in the Czech Republic, the production values are cost efficient. Costume designer Barbara Tfank has provided Drescher with a Day-Glo wardrobe that effectively screams "Queens chic".
THE BEAUTICIAN AND THE BEAST
Paramount
A Koch Company production
in association with High School Sweethearts
Director Ken Kwapis
Screenwriter Todd Graff
Producers Howard W. "Hawk" Koch Jr.,
Todd Graff
Executive producers Roger Birnbaum,
Fran Drescher, Peter Marc Jacobson
Director of photography Peter Lyons Collister
Production designer Rusty Smith
Editor Jon Poll
Costume designer Barbara Tfank
Music Cliff Eidelman
Casting Jane Jenkins, Janet Hirshenson
Color/stereo
Cast:
Joy Miller Fran Drescher
Boris Pachenko Timothy Dalton
Grushinsky Ian McNeice
Katrina Lisa Jakub
Kleist Patrick Malahide
Jerry Miller Michael Lerner
Karl Adam La Vorgna
Judy Miller Phyllis Newman
Running time -- 105 minutes
MPAA rating: PG...
Chaos Theory, a new form of mathematics, studies unpredictable systems -- weather, the stock market, rioting crowds -- any system that will eventually show unpredictable behavior, such as a theme park filled with dinosaurs or, for instance, how many people will come to a movie.
While Chaos Theory in Michael Crichton's best-selling novel correctly predicts that a modern-day system containing dinosaurs will result in unimaginable catastrophe, you don't need Chaos Theory to predict that this jaw-dropping, palm-sweating, eye-popping entertainment will become the Blockbustersaurus Rex, the king of the blockbusters. In theme park-ese, it's an EEEEEE ride.
Steven Spielberg has cloned classic strains from the highest lineage of monster/action movies, spliced them with the most resilient genes of family entertainmentand unleashed them through the most powerful forces of a technological aesthetic to create a truly colossal movie experience. With an all-star technical team, many of whom have pushed the envelope before in such juggernauts as ''Star Wars'' and ''Terminator 2: Judgment Day, '' Spielberg has wondrously implanted the highest strains of science fiction within the supple body of a very human story.
''Jurassic Park'' descends from a vaunted sci-fi narrative line: the fury that man unleashes when he tampers with the higher forces of creation. The arrogant provocateur in this case is John Hammond (Richard Attenborough), a twinkly old goat and self-made man who is kind of a dark cross between Colonel Sanders and Walt Disney. Hammond's spared no expense in creating the greatest theme park of them all: a secluded Caribbean isle that takes the theme park/animal arcade to its most unbelievable dimension.
Hammond's crack team of scientists has managed to create real-life dinosaurs by DNA cloning. He's constructed an uberpark with every conceivable convenience, extravagance and precaution built into its complex, computer-run system.
Hammond just needs to iron out some pesky permit-type safety questions, so he's invited a crack team of experts to the isle for a systems inspection, including a renowned paleontologist (Sam Neill), a paleobotanist (Laura Dern), a Chaos Theory mathematician (Jeff Goldblum) and, for the kids' POV, his grandchildren (Ariana Richards, Joseph Mazzello). The hardened scientists and the exuberant kids alike are absolutely thunderstruck when they see Jurassic Park's main creations -- the gigantic Tyrannosaurus rex, as well as the hellaciously vicious Volciraptor. But, as in most groups, there is a naysayer. The black-clad mathematician glibly predicts gloom -- ''An accident waiting to happen.''
Screenwriters Crichton and David Koepp expertly distill and present the story's complex scientific underpinnings into palatable and understandable explanations, while delicately lacing it with eruptive building blocks. Symphonically structured, with tender swells and light larks, ''Jurassic Park'' is superbly orchestrated as Spielberg masterfully works the emotional throttle, always appreciative of the human factor, and unleashes it to full ferocious power throttle . Undoubtedly, highbrow nitpickers, those insecure souls too intellectually constipated to enjoy mass entertainment, may niggle about the streamlined story line, but ''Jurassic Park'' is the highest form of its generic species, the mainstream movie.
The brightest stars in this creative constellation are the technicians: When Oscar Day rolls around, there will be no excuses for muddled acceptance speeches. Among those who should start polishing: Stan Winston for the incredible live-action dinosaurs; Industrial Light & Magic's Dennis Muren for the full-motion dinosaurs, as well as dinosaur supervisor Phil Tippett. Similarly, composer John Williams' titanic score with its peals of trumpetry and cinematographer Dean Cundey's mesmeric lensing are terrifically gripping.
The well-selected cast is winningly sympathetic and entertainingly idiosyncratic. Attenborough is terrific as the exuberant but overreaching entrepreneur, while Goldblum is deliciously vainglorious as the devil's advocate. Neill, Dern and the kids, Mazzello and Richards, win our affections and wonderfully epitomize the wondrous spirit and transcendent belief that shines through this often horrific entertainment -- ''That life will find a way.''
JURASSIC PARK
Universal Pictures
An Amblin Enterainment Production
Producers Kathleen Kennedy, Gerald R. Molen
Director Steven Spielberg
Screenwriters Michael Crichton, David Koepp
Based on the novel by Michael Crichton
Director of photography Dean Cundey
Production designer Rick Carter
Editor Michael Kahn
Music John Williams
Associate producers Lata Ryan, Colin Wilson
Sound mixer Ron Judkins
Casting Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Full-motion dinosaurs Dennis Muren
Live-action dinosaurs Stan Winston
Dinosaur supervisor Phil Tippett
Special dinosaur effects Michael Lantieri
Full-motion dinosaurs and special visual effects Industrial Light & Magic
Color/stereo
Cast:
Grant Sam Neill
Ellie Laura Dern
Malcolm Jeff Goldblum
Hammond Richard Attenborough
Muldoon Bob Peck
Gennaro Martin Ferrero
Wu B.D. Wong
Tim Joseph Mazzello
Lex Ariana Richards
Arnold Samuel L. Jackson
Runnning time -- 126 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
(c) The Hollywood Reporter
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
While Chaos Theory in Michael Crichton's best-selling novel correctly predicts that a modern-day system containing dinosaurs will result in unimaginable catastrophe, you don't need Chaos Theory to predict that this jaw-dropping, palm-sweating, eye-popping entertainment will become the Blockbustersaurus Rex, the king of the blockbusters. In theme park-ese, it's an EEEEEE ride.
Steven Spielberg has cloned classic strains from the highest lineage of monster/action movies, spliced them with the most resilient genes of family entertainmentand unleashed them through the most powerful forces of a technological aesthetic to create a truly colossal movie experience. With an all-star technical team, many of whom have pushed the envelope before in such juggernauts as ''Star Wars'' and ''Terminator 2: Judgment Day, '' Spielberg has wondrously implanted the highest strains of science fiction within the supple body of a very human story.
''Jurassic Park'' descends from a vaunted sci-fi narrative line: the fury that man unleashes when he tampers with the higher forces of creation. The arrogant provocateur in this case is John Hammond (Richard Attenborough), a twinkly old goat and self-made man who is kind of a dark cross between Colonel Sanders and Walt Disney. Hammond's spared no expense in creating the greatest theme park of them all: a secluded Caribbean isle that takes the theme park/animal arcade to its most unbelievable dimension.
Hammond's crack team of scientists has managed to create real-life dinosaurs by DNA cloning. He's constructed an uberpark with every conceivable convenience, extravagance and precaution built into its complex, computer-run system.
Hammond just needs to iron out some pesky permit-type safety questions, so he's invited a crack team of experts to the isle for a systems inspection, including a renowned paleontologist (Sam Neill), a paleobotanist (Laura Dern), a Chaos Theory mathematician (Jeff Goldblum) and, for the kids' POV, his grandchildren (Ariana Richards, Joseph Mazzello). The hardened scientists and the exuberant kids alike are absolutely thunderstruck when they see Jurassic Park's main creations -- the gigantic Tyrannosaurus rex, as well as the hellaciously vicious Volciraptor. But, as in most groups, there is a naysayer. The black-clad mathematician glibly predicts gloom -- ''An accident waiting to happen.''
Screenwriters Crichton and David Koepp expertly distill and present the story's complex scientific underpinnings into palatable and understandable explanations, while delicately lacing it with eruptive building blocks. Symphonically structured, with tender swells and light larks, ''Jurassic Park'' is superbly orchestrated as Spielberg masterfully works the emotional throttle, always appreciative of the human factor, and unleashes it to full ferocious power throttle . Undoubtedly, highbrow nitpickers, those insecure souls too intellectually constipated to enjoy mass entertainment, may niggle about the streamlined story line, but ''Jurassic Park'' is the highest form of its generic species, the mainstream movie.
The brightest stars in this creative constellation are the technicians: When Oscar Day rolls around, there will be no excuses for muddled acceptance speeches. Among those who should start polishing: Stan Winston for the incredible live-action dinosaurs; Industrial Light & Magic's Dennis Muren for the full-motion dinosaurs, as well as dinosaur supervisor Phil Tippett. Similarly, composer John Williams' titanic score with its peals of trumpetry and cinematographer Dean Cundey's mesmeric lensing are terrifically gripping.
The well-selected cast is winningly sympathetic and entertainingly idiosyncratic. Attenborough is terrific as the exuberant but overreaching entrepreneur, while Goldblum is deliciously vainglorious as the devil's advocate. Neill, Dern and the kids, Mazzello and Richards, win our affections and wonderfully epitomize the wondrous spirit and transcendent belief that shines through this often horrific entertainment -- ''That life will find a way.''
JURASSIC PARK
Universal Pictures
An Amblin Enterainment Production
Producers Kathleen Kennedy, Gerald R. Molen
Director Steven Spielberg
Screenwriters Michael Crichton, David Koepp
Based on the novel by Michael Crichton
Director of photography Dean Cundey
Production designer Rick Carter
Editor Michael Kahn
Music John Williams
Associate producers Lata Ryan, Colin Wilson
Sound mixer Ron Judkins
Casting Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Full-motion dinosaurs Dennis Muren
Live-action dinosaurs Stan Winston
Dinosaur supervisor Phil Tippett
Special dinosaur effects Michael Lantieri
Full-motion dinosaurs and special visual effects Industrial Light & Magic
Color/stereo
Cast:
Grant Sam Neill
Ellie Laura Dern
Malcolm Jeff Goldblum
Hammond Richard Attenborough
Muldoon Bob Peck
Gennaro Martin Ferrero
Wu B.D. Wong
Tim Joseph Mazzello
Lex Ariana Richards
Arnold Samuel L. Jackson
Runnning time -- 126 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
(c) The Hollywood Reporter
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
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