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WB and Fox Searchlight Team Up to Release Danny Boyle's Latest
Filed under: Drama, Deals, New Releases, Warner Brothers, Warner Independent Pictures, Distribution, Fox Searchlight, Toronto International Film Festival  It's so heartwarming to see rival studios playing nice with each other, even if it's only for purely financial reasons. It's especially good when the result of their cooperation is that a film by Danny Boyle (pictured) will get the theatrical release it deserves.
Slumdog Millionaire, about a Mumbai street kid who strikes it rich on an Indian game show before having his knowledge called into question, will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next week. And...
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Author, Director, Distributor, Academics Respond at Length to 'Towelhead' Protest
Filed under: Comedy, Drama, Warner Independent Pictures, Celebrities and Controversy  As Eric wrote yesterday, the upcoming dark comedy Towelhead is facing a protest from an Islamic group because of its title, which is perceived as derogatory and a racial slur. Not only is the film's distributor, Warner Independent, sticking by the title, but they have issued a press release containing lengthy, candid, and sometimes even moving responses to the controversy from: 1) Alicia Erian, the author of the original novel; 2) Alan Ball, the director of the film; 3) Warner Independent itself; and 4) a group of theologians.
Erian makes pretty much the same argument...
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Islamic Group Misses Point, Wants 'Towelhead' Title Changed
Filed under: Comedy, New Releases, Sundance, Warner Independent Pictures, Celebrities and Controversy, Toronto International Film Festival, Cinematical Indie  One of the more controversial and polarizing films at this year's Sundance Film Festival (and last year's Toronto fest) was Towelhead, a dark and uncomfortable comedy about a 13-year-old Lebanese-American girl living in Texas during the first Gulf War. It was directed by Alan Ball, who showed with American Beauty (which he wrote) and HBO's Six Feet Under (which he created) that he has a knack for finding humor in the sinister corners of suburbia.
The film is set for...
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Fan Rant: Truth Be Sold
Filed under: Documentary, Independent, Disney, Paramount Classics, Warner Independent Pictures, Cinematical Indie, Paramount Vantage, Fan Rant  It wasn't that long ago that documentaries carried the stigma of being educational first and entertaining second. As with foreign-language fare, an audience for them lingered on the fringe, and an industry was willing to offer them their very own awards, but they really weren't terribly high-profile box-office prospects... that is, until the '04-'05 summer successes of Fahrenheit 9/11 and March of the Penguins made it seem perfectly okay for audiences to see, and for studios to market, a film without so much...
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Indies on DVD: 'Funny Games,' 'The Grand,' 'The Signal'
Filed under: Comedy, Horror, Thrillers, Magnolia, Warner Independent Pictures, New on DVD, Cinematical Indie  This week's marquee indie release is being marketed as a twisted tie-in to the US Open golf championship. At least, that's the conclusion I draw from the DVD cover for Michael Haneke's US remake of his own Funny Games. Naomi Watts and her big tear have been relegated to the back. James Rocchi declared it "a great movie ... cruel, cold and darkly thrilling." DVD features are non-existent, unless you consider a full-screen version to be an extra.
Erik Davis called Zak Penn's poker...
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Indies on DVD: 'What Would Jesus Buy?,' 'Darfur Now'
Filed under: Documentary, Drama, Independent, ThinkFilm, Warner Independent Pictures, New on DVD, The Weinstein Co., Home Entertainment, Cinematical Indie  This week is overflowing with potentially interesting indie DVD releases. What Would Jesus Buy?, an entertaining documentary directed by Rob VanAlkemade and produced by Morgan Spurlock, asks a very serious question in comedic form. As I wrote in my review, the film follows Reverend Billy and his Church of Stop Shopping Choir on a trek across America as they deliver an anti-shopping, anti-materialism, pro-Christmas message, bolstered by the trappings of fundamentalist religion. The...
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First Look at Matt Damon as 'The Informant'
Filed under: Comedy, Drama, Thrillers, Warner Independent Pictures, Images  I have to hand it to the wardrobe people for Steven Soderbergh's The Informant since it's not easy making a guy who normally looks like this look like such a schlump. The Bad and Ugly have posted some behind-the-scenes photos for the comedic thriller, and even though there is nothing earth shattering going on, they are definitely a step up from the other pics floating around out there.
The Informant is based on the true-life novel by Kurt Eichenwald. The story revolves around Mark Whitacre (Damon), a rising star at the agriculture...
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All Hail Eva Mendes, 'Queen of the South'!
Filed under: Action, Thrillers, Casting, Warner Independent Pictures  I've been hankering for a good crime flick with a women in the lead for a long time (I can't be the only one who thinks that Catherine Zeta Jones' pregnant drug runner deserved way more screen time in Traffic). But, in the grand tradition of most crime movies, women are relegated to the sidelines as either 'the downfall of the anti-hero', or, 'sexy punching bag' -- neither of which is very flattering, but hopefully that will change with Queen of the South. Variety reports that Eva Mendes has signed to star in the big...
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Picturehouse on the Way Out?
Filed under: New Releases, Executive shifts, New Line, Warner Brothers, Warner Independent Pictures, RumorMonger, Distribution, Other Festivals  Near the end of last week, Defamerspread the rumor that Picturehouse, once the indie arm of New Line Cinema and currently dangling from the edge of the hulking entity known as Warner Bros., has its days numbered. Now that New Line is history and Warners, like many studios, has faced increasing cutbacks, it may give short shrift to the shingles responsible for handling artier fare. Along with Picturehouse, this also includes Warner Independent Pictures, whose recent release slate includes David...
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The Theatrical Trailer for 'Towelhead'
Filed under: Drama, Warner Independent Pictures, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips  You know those kinds of movies that you want to see, but you also know that it won't be a fun time at the movies? Well, that is exactly how I felt after watching the theatrical trailer for Towelhead. The film is based on Alicia Erian's novel about a young girl adjusting to her new life with her strict Lebanese father in Houston, Texas.
Summer Bishil stars as the young protagonist, Jasira, whose budding sexuality is either ignored or fetishized by the men in her life. Aaron Eckhart stars as a...
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