December 9, 2003

Yesterday, I had a pleasant chat with the IFP leader Dawn Hudson, one party to the screener suit. The discussion was about the letter that Gregory Curtner had sent to the studios on Monday. Dawn was charming and direct. The only intent of the letter, according to Dawn, was to clarify the position on the preliminary injunction.

I was concerned, because I thought the letter was intended as a threat. It seemed, perhaps, that attorney Gregory Curtner had lost his mind and thought he now had a right to demand that studios send out screeners.

True, both Curtner and Hudson were using the word “conspiracy” as though they had discovered communists in Hollywood. But Curtner was more than clear about his nuttiness, when talking to the New York Times’ Sharon Waxman:

"If they don't send out screeners, I'll take that as a sign that they've apparently continued their conspiracy, and I may need to add them as a party to the lawsuit and then seek an injunction against them," Mr. Curtner said. "If they continue to honor the ban, they're still conspiring as far as I'm concerned. I don't know. I'm watching."

Ooooohhhhhh!!!!!!! Greg Curtner is watching! Can’t you just hear the scrotums of studio execs everywhere shriveling?!?!?!

Some people are bad losers, but bad winners are among the most obnoxious species on earth. Cutner has quickly become a classic example of a Hollywood newbie… he got himself a small win and now, he thinks he’s gonna rule this town. Next thing you know, he’ll be litigating to get Robert Altman a higher budget for his next film.

BIRD IN THE AD: Has anyone else noticed that Miramax is selling a movie other than Cold Mountain in its new ads for Cold Mountain? Apparently, there is some sort of action movie going on with Jude Law as a Civil War action hero. Interesting… and just as I was about to revisit the movie about surface subtlety and boiling passion underneath… the exact opposite of the ads.

SPEAKING OF CM: You can look forward to a revival of the wackiness we last saw during the commercial run of The Matrix Reloaded. Remember when the National Organization for Albinism and Hypopigmentation got all upset about the ghostly and murderous albino twins? Just wait until they get a load of the albino killer in Cold Mountain.

MONDAY was the very long extension of a very long weekend… sorry about the short column… things should calm down a little today and some sanity should return…. okay… I don’t believe that… but…

READER OF THE DAY: BELL, BOOK &… writes: “Yesterday's RotD was on the right track about Mel's purpose in all this, I think. I don't think he's afraid of what critics will say, though- I think he just doesn't care. There's definitely an evangelical fervor in his screening of the film... it is, literally, his movie, and I don't think anyone can say he made it or is going about screening it the way he is because he's thinking of his career- which isn't to say that I've understood or been at ease with his choices... I wouldn't be surprised if he actually hopes that people will be changed by the film, with a kind of missionary zeal one usually only finds in filmmakers who've maxed their credit and haven't gotten their big break. If so, then critics probably aren't your first choice since so many of them would be looking, in the case of a notable and storied movie like this one has become, to poke holes... the good ones will give it a fair shake, the rest will review the hype and/or the historicity, accurate

or not, of it.

As a follower of Christ and a moviegoer, I'm looking forward to it as a movie and for its spiritual element; if it's a great movie, then those two things won't be easily separated. Christ will always be a controversial figure, whether "Passion" becomes a perennial favorite or is relegated to the previously-viewed bin of history.

Converting people to THB whenever I can…”

And this from HONG KONG STEVE: “I have to say "Mystic River" is quite interesting movie. You can see it as the story goes, or you can think about it in different points of view.

It's a movie about "blue". Yes, from the logo of Warner Bros. the whole picture is nothing but blue. Actually, It's Black and While both in Blue. I think that presents all characters in this film are not happy.

And it's a movie about "spouse". Even the focus of the whole story is about three men, you also can call their spouses watching what their men had been through. One of spouses just watch, another one is suspicion, and the other one is silent. All of them wish their men to do something or to be someone, but they never tell a word about it.

It's also a movie about African American. Just think about the detective played by Laurence Fishburne. He is the only one who keep calm in this story. He's the first one who realized something wrong. He keeps telling Kevin Bacon's character not too personal. He knew Sean Penn's character must been jailed before while he met him first time. He is the real watcher to other people, from beginning to the end, because he has no any relationship with them. Of course you can call he is Kevin Bacon's "spouse" of his career in this movie.

Until the end, every thing changed. All blue color fades out, the picture becomes really colorful. All spouses show up their real mind, to speak up what they think and you hear the truth. At this point, Laurence Fishburne's character never show up. He just stop watching these people. Everything seems to be normal as usual, everyone can live their own normal life without any sadness.

Or is it?

Or maybe everyone starts to pretend they can live happily ever after in a new way."

E ME: Are there specific films you feel like you should be hearing a lot more about by now than you are?