| Reel good news: Movie theater returns to Malibu next month | | Posted Thursday, October 26, 2006 11:06:26 AM by Blog57 Team | | Hollywood Theaters, owner of the Cross Creek Plaza movie theater, announced this week that the facility will reopen on Nov. 17. The theater has been closed since April 2005, when a fire destroyed it and several other businesses in the mall. An official from the Portland, Ore.-based Hollywood Theaters said she could not disclose anything beyond that the theater would be opening. She said she might have more information next week. John Hunter, Hollywood Theaters CEO, told The Malibu Times in June that the theater would open with a Hollywood premiere. He also promised a significant upgrade to the theater's seats, sound and food.The April 17, 2005 fire damaged or destroyed nearly a third of Malibu's Cross Creek Plaza as well as six vehicles. Nobody was injured in the blaze. Los Angeles County Fire Department officials determined it was started by an electrical malfunction in the building.... | |
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| | | Mel Gibson's Arrest Inspires Robin Williams to Seek Alcoholism Treatment | | Posted Wednesday, October 04, 2006 11:09:53 AM by Blog57 Team | | LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Mel Gibson's DUI arrest was a "big wake-up call" for Robin Williams, the funnyman tells "Access Hollywood" in an interview scheduled to air Monday. "If you're violating your standards faster than you can lower them, time to go away," he said. Williams, 55, announced that he was seeking treatment for alcoholism less than two weeks after Gibson's high-profile arrest in late July. "Well, if (rehab) was good enough for him, I'll go," Williams said. "I just think it was kind of like, well, he's in, let's go now." Williams said he had been sober for 20 years when he started drinking again. His latest film, "Man of the Year," hits theaters October 13th. Posted by PJS The Associated Press contributed to this report. .... | |
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| | | Lights, camera, evangelize! | | Posted Saturday, September 09, 2006 9:12:32 PM by Blog57 Team | | ALBANY - Before there was The Passion of the Christ, there was Flywheel, The Movie. And now Facing the Giants is coming to the silver screen with the same Christian and family values that are capturing the attention of Hollywood. While The DaVinci Code caused many to question the Christian faith, Facing the Giants will strengthen those same beliefs with an action-packed storyline that shows the value of faith and a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Giants, the newest movie from Sherwood Pictures, is a ministry tool developed by Sherwood Baptist Church. After receiving high marks from several test screenings in California, the church-sponsored movie has been picked up by Provident Films, a joint venture with Sony Pictures, which is now positioning it for a national debut Sept.... | |
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| | | On Movies | The brightest stars will descend on Toronto | | Posted Sunday, September 03, 2006 11:13:48 AM by Blog57 Team | | As of Thursday, Hollywood's latitude and longitude sidle up and over - to Toronto. That's when the 31st Toronto International Film Festival begins its nine-day, 352-films-from-61-countries marathon, and all the city's swank hotels will be aswarm with A-list stars and their entourages - minders, flacks, and makeup artists. A short list of those expected to be on hand, with their latest projects in tow, includes: Russell Crowe, of the Provençal amusement A Good Year; Kate Winslet, for the remake of All the King's Men and a new Todd Field domestic drama, Little Children; Jude Law, for All the King's Men and Anthony Minghella's Breaking and Entering; Robin Wright Penn, also forBreaking and Entering; her husband, Sean Penn, forAll the King's Men; Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Queen Latifah for the smart and trickyStranger Than Fiction; the Dixie Chicks, with their Barbara Kopple-directed documentary,Shut Up and Sing; Morgan Freeman, playing a movie star not unlike Morgan Freeman in the vérité feature10 Items or Less, and Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, of Alejandro González Iñárritu's interconnective drama,Babel.... | |
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| | | Fate of Point Dume Plaza unknown | | Posted Thursday, August 17, 2006 5:09:31 AM by Blog57 Team | | Most of the tenants say they've never met the new owner of the plaza and that it is difficult to reach the property manager as well. Many leases are set to expire soon. By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant EditorWith last week's announcement that Pavilions will be replacing Cooke's Family Market early next year at Point Dume Plaza, one rumor was finally confirmed about the mall. But many still remain about the facility where most of the tenants have no idea if their expiring leases will be renewed, and where a mysterious new landlord has almost no communication with them."They [management] don't talk to us," said one tenant who asked not to be identified. "All they tell us is not to believe any of the rumors."Last year, the plaza was purchased for $24 million by Zan Marquis, a man who almost none of the tenants have ever met.... | |
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| | | Your e-mails: Are we ready? | | Posted Saturday, August 12, 2006 7:06:36 AM by Blog57 Team | | "World Trade Center," a feature film about the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York's twin towers, opens in theaters this week. We asked our readers if movie audiences are ready for a film about that day. Here is a selection of your responses, some of which have been edited: I think it is about time for Hollywood to begin telling the emotional and heroic stories of average Americans on that fateful day in September 2001. People who say they are too emotional to see such displays of courage cause me concern. Are we too emotionally fragile, as an American society, to celebrate and embrace a resurgence of hope through immense tragedy? I certainly hope not! Branson, Gaithersburg, Maryland I do not think any one who lost a loved on in the 9/11 tragedy is ready to see it depicted on the big screen.... | |
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| | | Kelly Ripa Joins 'Fly Me To The Moon' Cast | | Posted Wednesday, July 26, 2006 1:56:30 PM by Blog57 Team | | LOS ANGELES -- Kelly Ripa joins an all-star cast for "Fly Me To The Moon," the first-ever feature-length computer generated animated film, conceived and created entirely in 3-D."Moon" is directed by nWave co-founder Ben Stassen who has created, directed and produced world-famous ride and attraction films, including "Wild Safari", "Haunted Castle" and "Alien Adventure".The announcement was made this week by Illuminata Pictures co-founder and "Moon" writer/executive producer Domonic Paris.Stassen comments, "Recent advances in computer technology make it possible to convert 2-D films to 3-D. However, with 'Fly Me To The Moon,' we are taking it a step further by producing every frame in 3-D for the maximum 3-D effect."Paris said, "With more 3-D films entering the market, such as 'Monster House' and 'Meet the Robinsons,' more theaters are adopting 3-D capabilities.... | |
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| | | CineMedia said to be on verge of IPO filing | | Posted Friday, July 21, 2006 7:10:11 PM by Blog57 Team | | National CineMedia LLC, a Centennial-based seller of on-screen ads for movie theaters, may raise more than $500 million in an initial public offering, six people with direct knowledge of the plan said. National CineMedia may file its plan to sell shares with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as early as next week, said one of the people, who declined to be identified before the proposal is made public. National CineMedia plans to sell shares as early as the fourth quarter in an IPO that would value it at at least $2 billion, three of the people said. The company, which has about 240 employees at its Centennial headquarters, is a joint venture of Phil Anschutz's Regal Entertainment Group, AMC Entertainment Inc. and Cinemark USA Inc., the three largest U.S. theater chains.... | |
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| | | `Pirates,' Smaller Films May Save Hollywood From Summer Letdown | | Posted Tuesday, July 04, 2006 1:02:55 PM by Blog57 Team | | July 3 (Bloomberg) -- Hollywood studios are looking to ``Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' and smaller films to stay ahead of last year's summer box-office slump. Walt Disney Co.'s ``Pirates,'' which opens July 7, and potential sleeper hits such as ``Snakes on a Plane'' have become more important after Warner Bros.' ``Superman Returns'' failed to meet analysts' average forecast of $100 million or more in sales for its five-day debut. Summer sales at U.S. and Canadian theaters rose about 2 percent through June 25 after taking an 8.5 percent plunge a year ago, thanks to higher ticket prices and blockbusters like ``X-Men: The Last Stand'' and ``The Da Vinci Code.'' A strong opening for ``Pirates'' will set the tone for the second half of the May-to- September season.... | |
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| | | Hollywood PrivacyWatch Special Edition: Matthew Perry Expects VIP Movie Theater Treatment | | Posted Friday, June 30, 2006 3:06:48 PM by Blog57 Team | | Following a long, steady build-up, the wide release of Superman Returns yesterday came as welcome relief to fanboys (and girls) suffering from serious cases of Superblueballs. Most of them got in the old-fashioned, opening night way: buy tickets in advance, show up early, take place in line, make girlfriend buy popcorn. But as a Defamer reader who caught a Century City screening last night can attest, the famous can always find a way to skirt inconvenience: So we were at the AMC 15 in Century City Wednesday night to see Superman Returns at 7:55pm. Nearly every seat was taken, except for four conspicuously empty ones dead center of the theater. Word was the seats were "reserved", but of course AMC has no reserve seating, so various people kept trying to sit there, only to be told by the increasingly harried staff that those seats weren't available.... | |
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