Thursday, 17 February 2000

Ah, the calm after the Oscar storm...

THE RETURN OF MARKY MARK: At the end of Boogie Nights, he was every inch a man. Now, Mark Wahlberg is showing that he has huge balls as well.  Wahlberg has been constantly willing to rip himself down for his inability to sing when asked about his Marky Mark days. In fact, it's his standard line that he wasn't in New Kids On The Block for just that reason. (That was the Donnie Wahlberg boy band, wasn't it?) So now, after working hard to be taken seriously as a movie actor, Wahlberg is probably going to star in Metal God, the story of a nobody who becomes a rock star. I'd say that qualifies for putting yourself in a dangerous spot. If the movie's great, it will be a triumph and will probably put the Marky Mark thing to rest.  But if it sucks, it's another anvil around the guy's neck. Of course, he's done pretty damn well (no small thanks to P.T. Anderson) in carrying the weight so far. (And yes, I do know that it was a prosthetic penis! Give me a little poetic license, okay?)

AND ALSO: According to Variety, there is a home-male-nipple-piercing scene in the film. Is it just me or does that sound like something that, if shot right, could end up being as intensely erotic and trend-setting as the refrigerator scene in 9 1/2 Weeks? It's not the pierce, but the intimacy of the pierce, no?

SEXY REXY LIVES!: Rex Reed, the man with eight hands, returned to the pages of The New York Observer. Well, actually, he's on the front page. We entertainment writers may have made him uncomfortable, but The Observer knows funny copy when it sees it being dragged down Broadway. In any case, you should read Rex's explanation of what happened. It is the most gracious writing I've seen out of him…maybe ever. And do I believe him? Frankly, I am as willing to believe him as not. Less strange people do more strange things every day.

BEFORE REX WROTE: When I was reading the February 7 issue of The NY Observer, a newspaper that has a longer shelf-life than any other one I read, my jaw dropped when I happened upon Reed's last pre-lift column. The lead: "The ills are alive with the sound of…new CDs!" No, I'm not making it up. Funny/scary, huh?

OSCAR: After some time to reflect (and more e-mails than one brain can handle), I have to say that I am more disappointed by Reese Witherspoon and Chris Carter being left out than any other slights. I'll let a ROTD speak to Chris C., but I was so sure that Reese would make it that I went for Eddie Murphy in Bowfinger on Ebert's Memo show. (I had forgotten that.)  Election and Rushmore…as good a double feature as you could ask for and no gold to show for it. Damn shame. (I was going to say, "As big a shame as Reese wasting her time on 'Friends'," but I understand why a new mother would like a steady couple of months work in town on a regular schedule for big bucks, so I will just close my eyes and pretend it didn't happen.)

MOVIES I NEVER WANT TO HAVE TO SEE: From The Hollywood Reporter: "Summer Catch is about a romance between a poor local boy (Freddie Prinze Jr.) and a wealthy girl (Jessica Biel) whose family summers in his Cape Cod, Mass.,  hometown. The story is set against a baseball backdrop, with Prinze playing on a minor league team and trying to impress major league scouts in order to escape small-town life.

SODERBERGH ROCKS: I couldn't be much happier for Steven Soderbergh. I'm seeing Erin Brockovich tonight, but word that Traffic has been picked up by Fox Searchlight after being dumped by Fox 2000 is today's happy event. The film marks a number of good signs. Harrison Ford is working on a tough character and is cutting his price to do it. Catherine Zeta-Jones is a great choice to be opposite him a.k.a. Connery Jr. And the $40 - $50 million range is where Soderbergh should be working. It gives him a chance to make the movies the way he wants, but doesn't make him such a gambler that $100 million gross requirements will eat him alive.

MR. MOVIEPHONE IN DANGER: Cinemark USA figured out that MovieFone costs them money, so they have launched eNowShowing.com, which will sell tickets to their Dallas theaters on the Web, direct to you, no ups and no extras.  Surely, with margins as tight as they are for movie exhibitors, MovieFone will soon be another Internet relic, just as it is already a relic from the 900-line days. Remember those? (Anyone with both hands available, you can vote now.)

AGENTS IN LOVE: It happened quietly, but the SAG board did give agents more than enough rope to lie and cheat their way in an equal position with managers. And now, the balance of powers shifts again. Look for this to be one of THE major stories over the rest of 2000, probably starting with Ovitz  & Co.'s AMG management business to, as CAA always seems to have expected, go into direct competition with the agencies as an agency. Should get pretty ugly pretty fast.

PAGE TWO: Scientology, Schaefferology & Letters You Wrote To Me