Boxoffice-March.2000

IE BUSINESS MAGAZINE OF THE GLOBAL MOTION PICTURE INDUS, XH2000, $3.95
Acclaimed
Kevin SpaceyH
Takes a Lighter Bow
ERIES 2001-2010:
THINGS TO COME
IN CINEMA DESIGN
^Sfc/yRCHITECTURE
BUYERS DIRECTORY ARCHITECTURE/DESIGN LISTINGS ARE ONLINE AT WWW.BOl

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The world's largest product line of cinema sound componenl
and systems just got bigger! Several new products are now
being introduced for the new year.
SMART is the only cinema sound manufacturer that can offer all your booth equipment under one
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or ( 770) 449-6698 - (FAX: (770) 449-6728 - email: info@smartdev.com
be

It's Showtime
in Lombard, Illinois
Opportunity
The Village of Lombard is donating a 2.5 acre parcel of land to
qualified developers for the restoration or redevelopment of the
DuPage Theater and Shops. The land, located in downtown
Lombard across from the Metra Commuter Rail Line, is valued
at $2.2 million.
Incentives
The Village of Lombard may also offer incentives to prospective
developers who would keep the Dupage Theater and Shops as
part of its proposal. Those incentives may include $200,000
matching grant funds through the facade improvement program;
off-site storm water detention and a reimbursement of the tax increment
created during the life of the tax increment financing district.
Growth
This generous gift will provide a great opportunity for a third party
investor/developer to redevelop this property located in the
nation's 10th wealthiest county.
To Request an RFP Contact:
David Hulseberg AICP
Director of Community Development.
Village of Lombard
255 E. Wilson Avenue
Lombard, Illinois 60148-5931
630/620-5756 Fax 630/629-2374
For more information
www.villageoflombard.org/rfp
e-mail hulsebergd@villageoflombara.org
Response No. 34

took
FADE IN...
At the recent CineAsia gathering, a top-three
circuit exec told us that, while some publications
seem to be for advertisers, our magazine is for
readers. At initial hearing, I that as a compliment
to our efforts to always put our subscribers'
knowledge needs first. Which it surely is.
But then I thought, wait a second—a publication
that is editorially driven (i.e. for the readers)
is exactly the best vehicle for advertisers,
because it's just that type of magazine that is
actually, even avidly read by the readers—and
thus the best vehicle for advertisers who want to
know their marketing messages are being seen.
Make no mistake; we appreciate our advertiser
support. In their support, and as an aid to
readers desiring rapid product information, in
this issue we launch yet another new offering: a
much-expanded Advertisers Index, giving not
only company name and ad-page number but
also mailing address, phone and fax, email and
web url, and the person to contact. This information
will also be posted each month on our
website, where a simple click will launch an
email preaddressed to reach the appropriate
party at each firm advertising in that issue.
It's just one part of our new-and-improved
www.boxoffice.com, relaunching March 1, in
time for ShoWest and our daily convention coverage.
And look for us to continue our expansion
of BOXOFFICE ONLINE, the digital desktop of
the exhibition industry. Kim Williamson
BOXOFFICE ONLINE
WEBSITE ADDRESS: www.boxoffice.com
EMAIL ADDRESS: boxoffice@earthlink.net
MARCH, 2000 VOL. 136, NO. 3 BAROMETER 2000/CINEMA DESIGN
Cover Quote: I've played men who have reached a moral internal crisis...
and these are the kind of roles I will continue to choose.—KEVIN SPACEY
DEPARTMENTS
6 MAILROOM
In our Letters bag: hyperbole and heroism. Compiled by Christine James
8 REEL DEALS (formerly Hollywood Updates)
Par Classics Totaled; USA adds London; Zeta zeal. By Annlee Ellingson
1 HOT SET (formerly Hollywood Report)
Roberts' "Street" savvy; Gere's "One for the Ages." By Christine James
1 2 RELEASE CHARTS: Studio Films
Major releases slated through June 2000. Compiled by Wade Major
14 RELEASE CHARTS: Independent Films
Specialized fare month by month into 2000. Compiled by Wade Major
16 TRAILERS: April Movies
"Head Over Heels" over the "Is" projects: Newman's "Where the
Money Is" and Portman/Judd's "Home Is Where the Heart Is." NEW:
Interviews with the month's moviemaking names. By Annlee Ellingson
MOVIEGOER ACTIVITY REPORT
AMC aces KC, SD; LCE takes CHI, DC, HOU. Compiled by MovieFone
EXHIBITION BRIEFINGS
Mann alive; Cinemastar rising; Goodrich dons Oxford; 77 Marcus Strip;
Loews and behold. NEW: NATO Regional News: Geneva goes annual.
PLUS: ShoWest Watch; Showmandiser. By Francesca Dinglasan
NEW: HILL NEWS
X-plicit movies; disability guideline proposal. By Francesca Dinglasan
NEW: TECH TALK
Supply Side: Targetti takes Tivoli. Digital Cinema: ITEA #8 foresees a
new age. Large Format: "Fantasia 2000" a boxoffice fantasy. Wired
World: AOLs Time out; BigE goes Hollywood; plus "9 on the Net"
clicks on Willis Johnson and classiccinemas.com. By Annlee Ellingson
NEW: STUDIO NEWS
'99 BX=$7.5b; Artisan goes Merrilly; Roth, Law exit. By Annlee Ellingson
NORTHERN EXPOSURE
Booth sides now; WWFamous; digital Can. By Shlomo Schwartzberg
EUROVIEWS
Odeon's ABCs; waging Warsaw; Ufamaxx. By Francesca Dinglasan
PACIFIC OVERTURES
1999 numbers draw Oz; hark the Herald. By Francesca Dinglasan
FILM REVIEWS
Late March's 3 1/2-star "Waking the Dead" (photo, left) leads our critical
analyses of 1 6 films (list also left). Compiled by Christine James
AD INDEX AND CLASSIFIEDS
NEW: Getting business done: Our expanded index to advertisers
debuting in this issue provides company names and ad-page numbers
as always, but adds mailing addresses, phone and fax numbers,
website and email addresses, plus the appropriate contact names.
CIRCULATION INQUIRIES
BOXOFFICE DATA CENTER
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ft
OFFICES
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Fax:(312)922-7209
4 BOXOIIKI

SPECIAL SERIES—2001-2010: CINEMA DESIGN AND ARCHITECTURE
The Industry Standard: In this issue, we continue and expand a new series of new-millennium reports begun in our
February number, even as we debut a new special-report topic that will now always be a standing part of our March
coverage. In this issue, we focus on the future of cinema design and architecture by interviewing a number of the
top professionals in the field, to see what the likes of Berkes, Birtcher, Dimensional Innovations, Dworkin, Glatz-
Jacobsen, Gould Evans Goodman, Mesbur & Smith, Montague and TK think the next big things are.
24 NEW CINEMA DESIGN
A return to the old. Balconies aplenty. The digital disappearance of the mezzanine and projection rooms. Food grills. The
end of the megaplex. The decline of stadium seating. The rise of high-rise theatres. Giant yes, giant no. Woods and metals.
Movable movie theatres. Motorized seats. Crying rooms. Theming and 3-D. And even clean restrooms—these and more are
the forecasts of cinema architects and designers for the industry in the coming 2001-2010 era. By Melissa Morrison
Available now: The online version of BOXOFFICE's 2000 BUYERS DIRECTORY provides searchable
access to cinema designers and architects. Just click on the Buyers button at www.boxoffice.com
MARCH FEATURES
COVER STORY:
Kevin Spacey Is...—
"The Big Kahuna"
Saying "theatre is my baby," Oscar
winner Kevin Spacey brings to the
big screen a dramedic adaptation
of the play "Hospitality Suite,"
opening wide this April via Lions
Gate. By Francesca Dinglasan
58 NEW! CLOSE FOCUS:
Tim Warner
Is it true that the
Cinemark man is
AOL's next acquisition
target? Serious and
seriocomic questions
are answered by
ShoWest 2000's
upcoming International
Exhibitor of the Year. By
Kim Williamson
SPECIAL REPORT: BAROMETER 2000
The Industry Tradition: Continuing a practice dating back nearly to our 1920 origins, we present the 2000 version of
our annual Barometer report, which highlights and analyzes the most important names and developments of 1999.
30 DATELINE: The Year's Hottest News and Quotes
Why did Warburg unman Mann? Which Vulcan melded with GCC? What landmark did Landmark reach? How did executivesuite
makeovers affect MGM, Universal and Warner? What Swedish exhibitor schussed into Aspen? Is Kinepolis for sale? All
that, and more, is in our annual big roundup. Compiled by Francesca Dinglasan, Annlee Ellingson and Kim Williamson
34 BAROMETER STAR POLL
Hey, Carrie-Anne: Moss joins Bruce, Julia and Haley Joel atop the poll
of exhibition's favorite players. Compiled by Christine James
36 REVIEW DIGEST: 1 999 by the Numbers
Total grosses and other pertinent data on the year in film. PLUS: Top 50
grossers of 1999, and the top 50 of all time. Compiled by Christine James
40 FADE00T1999
Taking wing: Faded from earth, but not from memory—remembering the
silver-screen stars that passed on last year. By Kim Williamson
EDITORIAL STAFF CONTRIBUTORS BUSINESS STAFF
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Kim Williamson kimw@boxofficex
MANAGING EDITOR
Christine James christinej@boxoffice.com
SENIOR EDITOR
Francesca Dinglasan francescad@boxoffice.com
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Annlee Ellingson annleee@boxoffice.com
EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS
Linda Andrade, Sandra Koscho
FEATURE CHARTS EDITOR
Wade Major (310) 456-2767; fax (310) 456-9750
CANADIAN CORRESPONDENT
Shlomo Schwartzberg (416) 926-2179
ARTICLE/REVIEW WRITERS
John F. Allen. Bridget Byrne, Mike Kerrigan,
Dwayne E. Leslie, Wade Major. Melissa Monison
INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTORS
Steve Gould, Lance Hool. Willis Johnson.
Paul J.
Rogers. Tim Warner, John P. Wilmers
WEBMASTER
Ken Partridge
marlinco@flash.net
PUBLISHER
Robert L. Dietmeier (773) 338-7007
NATIONAL ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Robert M. Vale (626) 396-0250: bobv@boxoffice.com
ADVERTISING CONSULTANT
Morris Schlozman (816) 942-5877
ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE
Gwen Campbell (310) 372-9832: tco@ix.netcom.com
BUSINESS MANAGER
Dan Johnson (773) 338-7007
CIRCULATION DIRECTOR
Chuck Taylor (312) 922-9326
BOXOFFICE (ISSN 0006-8527). Published monthly by RLD Communications, Inc., 203 N. Wabash Ave., Suite 800. Chicago. IL 60601.
Subscriptions: U.S. $30 per year; Canada and Mexico $50, airmail $80; overseas subscriptions (all airmail) $80. Periodical postage paid at
Chicago, IL, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Boxoffice, 725 South Wells St., 4th Floor. Chicago, IL 60607.
© 2000 RLD Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
March, 2000

MA1LR00M
HEADLINE HYPERBOLE
In an industry where hyperbole reigns
supreme, BOXOFFICE has outdone itself
with respect to covering Ballantyne of
Omaha's third-quarter financial results
(Tech Talk/Supply Side, "•Ballantyne Hits
Hard Times," January 1999).
The company's four percent and 1 6 percent
top-line growth for the third quarter
and year-to-date, respectively, and its $21
million order backlog at the end of October
hardly suggest it has hit "hard times." In
fact. Ballantyne anticipates finishing 1999
with close to 14 percent revenue growth and
earnings per share on par with 1998's
record levels—a benchmark many companies
would be thrilled to achieve.
It seems BOXOFFICE may have been
distracted by Ballantyne's decision to hire
an investment banker to investigate strategic
alternatives for the company.
Exploring "strategic alternatives" could
result in any number of outcomes. Given
Ballantyne's industry-leading position,
sterling long-term financial performance,
close ties to the exhibition community
and its manufacturing and distribution
capabilities, many options do, in fact,
exist. Ballantyne's intention in hiring an
advisor was largely to assist the board of
directors in evaluating the abundance of
opportunities available to the company at
the present time. This is the action of a
responsible board and management executing
their charge to maximize share-
Regards,
year full of frustration, your review gave
me the will to keep going. As you probably
know, after years of working to make a
film honoring the Saint Pats a reality, we
were finally able to pull it together and.
best of all, the magic worked! Everyone
involved in the project, from Tom Berenger
to the young fellow who picked up the
trash in the mornings, gave it a 100 percent
[effort] and the result was a film that we are
holder value.
all very proud of. All of us were incredibly
In the future. I would suggest BOXOF- depressed [by the film's lack of promotion]
FICE stick to the facts and not [confuse] and reading your review gave us the lift we
our customers with misleading headlines. needed. Thank you from the bottom of my
heart. Erin go braugh!
John P. Wihncrs. Chief Executive Officer Sincerely yours.
Ballantyne of Omaha Inc.
Lance Hool
Writer!Director, "One Man's Hero"
ONE DIRECTOR'S HERO
Santa Monica. Calif.
I wanted to thank you very much for
your review of "One Man's Hero." In a P.S. On a positive note, the film has
S$& 6&
thus far been very well received in the foreign
markets, and in Northern Ireland
had a small hand in bringing the
Unionists and Sein Fein together.
W
Send Letters To:
BOXOFFICE, Mailroom
155 S. El Molino Ave., Suite 100
Pasadena, CA 91101
Fax: 626-396-0248
E-Mail: editorial@boxoffice.com
Winner for Best Direction 1
Beltrac * Public Guidance Systems...
V

1 1 -if . i vr

REEL
DEALS
EHHMKia
Initials with IEG
'I'lilliWil'H'H
Radios Bigel/Mailer
Paramount Classics has
entered into distribution deal
a
with Total Film Group, a public
entertainment company that
finances and produces feature
most recently "Diamonds"
films,
starring Kirk Douglas and Dan
Aykroyd. Two pictures have
already been named in the
agreement: Bruce Beresford's
"Bride of the Wind" and tyro
Christine Lahti's "My First
Mister." Paramount Classics has
acquired all North American
rights to both films.
"We are thrilled to be working
on these two projects with such
incredible talent and look forward
to a long and prolific relationship
with everyone at Total
Film Croup," say Paramount
Classics co-presidents Ruth
Vitale and David Dinerstein.
"Our new relationship with
Paramount Classics will make for
an exciting and exceptional slate
of films," says Total Film Croup
chairman and CEO Gerald
Green. "Paramount Classics perfectly
complements the quality has signed a multi-picture writing
and style of films our company
deal with Miramax Films.
plans to produce."
The scribe's "She's All That" starring
Freddie Prinze and
MGM has inked a two-year,
Jr.
Rachael Leigh Cook grossed $63
million when it was released last
first-look production deal with
)aret Entertainment, 27-year-old year, and Dimension Films
Seth Jaret's production and man-
recently optioned Fleming's
I Hate
agement company that executive
produced "10 Things
About You" for Disney last year.
The move emulates production
pacts the studio already has with
Danjaq Ltd., headed by Michael
Wilson and Barbara Broccoli;
Tribeca Prods., led by David
Ladd, Robert De Niro and Jane
Rosenthal; and Irish Dream
Time, helmed by Daivd Wilson
and Pierce Brsonan.
"Seth stands at the forefront of
a new group of talented young
producers emerging from management,"
says MGM president
Michael Nathanson. "He has
great creative contacts, and his
instincts and taste fit perfectly
into our strategy of putting
together a diverse slate of films."
"MGM is an unmined gem,"
says Jaret. "My aim is to create
content that leverages its huge
asset base. ...I look forward to
producing cutting-edge films with
emerging talent that defy the rules
and are out of the box creatively."
DreamWorks has extended its
relationship with Bandeira
Entertainment,
adding two years
to its first-look, non-exclusive deal
with the production company
headed by Beau Flynn. Bandeira
produced last year's "The Love
Letter," directed by Peter Chan
and has eight more projects in the
pipeline at the studio, including
"Date School," starring Ben Stiller
and Cameron Diaz.
Bandeira is working with several
other studios around town as
well The company recently
wrapped Darren Arnofsky's
"Requiem for a Dream" at Artisan
and is prepping "Tigerland" for
Joel Schumacher to direct at Foxbased
New Regency.
USA Films has pacted with former
Fox executive Michael
London in a two-year, first-look
producing deal that will commence
with "Passengers," a sci-fi
drama that will likely be David
Fincher's next project.
"Passengers," about aliens who
inhabit human bodies for short
periods of time to fulfill their
wildest fantasies, follows two
indie films that London had
already set up at USA. "Side
Ways," a comedy to be written
and directed by "Election's"
Alexander Payne, and "40 Days
and 40 Nights," which Michael
Lehmann will helm for Working
Title, should both go into production
sometime this year.
Screenwriter R. Lee Fleming Jr.
"Getting Over Allison."
"We're thrilled that Lee has
joined the Miramax family," says
Miramax co-head Harvey
Weinstein. "He's a truly gifted
screenwriter."
"I'm psyched to be working
again with the incredibly creative
and talented team at
Miramax," says Fleming. "'She's
All That' was such a positive
experience, and Miramax feels
like home."
Zorro," makes her first foray into
producing, bowing her production
shingle Zeta Films and inking a
two-year, exclusive deal with
Initial Entertainment Group (IEG),
the independent finance, production
and distribution company
behind Martin Scorsese's "Gangs
of New York." IEG will finance
and co-produce two to six feature
films annually with budgets from
$5 million to $50 million and will
distribute worldwide.
Zeta-Jones, who has appointed
her brothers Lyndon and
David to positions in her company,
will develop and produce
vehicle projects for herself, but
CEO Graham King. "In coming
to know Catherine, I've learned
that she is
not only a very talented
actress, but she also possesses
the acumen and capabilities to
be a successful producer."
"I look forward to embarking
on this creative business venture
with Graham King and all at
Initial Entertainment Group,"
Zeta-Jones says. "IEG has assembled
a great work force, and I
respect them, both on a business
level and a creative level."
Screenwriter )ohn Hoffman
has inked a two-picture deal with
Warner Bros., the first of which
will be a remake of the 1973
comedy caper "The Last of
Sheila," about woman who
a
attempts to discover who killed
her Hollywood heavyweight
husband in a hit-and-run accident
years ago. Hoffman will
receive a mid-six figure salary
plus a second blind script commitment
worth about the same.
RKO's independent film arm
Radio Pictures has pacted with
Bigel/Mailer Films ("Black and
White") to produce three feature
films from RKO's library, including
"Isle of the Dead," based on
the 1945 Boris Karloff film, which
will be helmed by Burt Reynolds.
"Coming from the independent
film scene in New York City,
we are very excited to be working
with RKO and incredibly talented
directors to bring a modern
approach to these classcis,"
Bigel/Mailer principals Daniel
Bigel and Michael Mailer say.
"Daniel and Michael are the
kind of producing team that RKO
wants to work with, experienced
and committed to making quality
independent motion pictures,"
says RKO Pictures CEO and
chairman Ted Hartley. Radio
Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones,
whose credits include Pictures head Ron Gell adds,
"This is an example of our divi-
"Entrapment" and "The Mask of
sion's continuing commitment to
filmmaker-driven projects and
partnering with talented directors
and capable producers."
)erry Bruckheimer, who
recently inked with Scott Free
Prods, (see Reel Deals, January
2000), has signed an exclusive
first-look deal with Washington
Post journalist David Ignatius,
who will pen four treatments a
year for the producer. Their first
project together will be "Tandem
Couple," about a husband and
wife who continue to work
together even as their marriage
falls apart.
she will not necessarily appear in
all Zeta Films productions. She's
Ignatius writes a weekly op-ed
column for the Washington Post.
He sold his novel "A Firing
particularly interested in developing
relationships with interna-
Offense" to CruiseAVagner
tional talent.
Prods, at Paramount. He's also
"I'm extremely excited to be written "Agents of Innocence, "J
working with someone of "The Bank of Fear" and, most
Catherine's caliber," says IEG recently, "Sinking."
8 BOXOFFICE

m^m Horror Show
lathe Heater £
(Not in Your Management System)

HOLLYWOOD
HOT SET
'MM-ma
Man
Taking
Note"
msnaimaai
"Knight" In Shining Armor
"33 LIBERTY STREET" A mobster
who dreams of pulling a big heist
seduces a bank employee (Julia
Roberts) as part of a plan that
the original, Dudley Moore played
a short-order cook offered seven
wishes by the devil (Peter Cook) in
exchange for his soul. Brendan
Fraser "The Mummy" will play
Moore's role, whose profession
has been updated to that of a lowlevel
employee at a computer software
company. Also starring are
Elizabeth Hurley ("EDtv") as a
seductress and Frances O'Connor
("Mansfield Park") as Fraser's
character's love interest. (Fox)
"ANGEL EYES" A female cop
who had an abusive childhood
("Out of Sight's" Jennifer Lopez)
befriends a man who endured
the trauma of witnessing his wife
and son die in a car crash. Luis
Mandoki ("Message in a Bottle")
helms this romance/thriller.
(Warner Bros.)
UNTITLED LENI RIEFENSTAHL
PROJECT Jodie Foster ("Anna
and the King") will star in this
biopic about the controversial
1930s German filmmaker Leni "FADE TO BLACK" Kenneth
Riefenstahl, to be scripted by Branagh ("Wild Wild West") is in
"Philadelphia's" Ron Nyswaner.
(Distribution is
to be set)
"ONE FOR THE AGES" This
drama will star Richard Gere
("Runaway Bride") as a football
coach who loses his team in a
plane crash and must assemble a
new team in order to restore
hope to the community and win
the championship. (New Line)
"LAST WORD ON PARADISE"
Ethan
Hawke ("Snow Falling on
Cedars") makes his directorial
debut with this ensemble film,
inspired by Dylan Thomas'
"Under Milk Wood," which will
star his wife Uma Thurman
("Sweet and Lowdown"), Kevin
Corrigan ("Slums of Beverly Hills"),
Kris Kristofferson ("Payback"),
Robert Sean Leonard ("Last Days
of Disco"), Natasha Richardson
("The Parent Trap"), Tuesday
Weld ("Feeling Minnesota"),
Frank Whaley ("Broken Arrow")
and Steve Zahn ("Happy, Texas").
(Distribution is
to be set)
"ENIGMA" This World War ll-set
film will star Dougray Scott
("Ever After") as a man who
works to crack German military
codes when he discovers his girl-
"THE NOTEBOOK" Jim Sheridan
"BEDAZZLED" Harold Ramis
"CRIMINAL CONVERSATION"
("The Boxer") will direct Ashley
Judd ("Double Jeopardy") in this
("Analyze This") will direct, cowrite
lain Softley ("Wings of the
and co-produce this remake romance in which an elderly man
reads a diary to his Alzheimer's-
Dove") will direct Nicole
of the 1967 Faustian comedy. In
Kidman ("Eyes Wide Shut") in
afflicted wife, who enjoys the stories
without realizing that they're
about her life in 1940s North
Carolina, when she was the
object of affection of two young
men. The film is based on the
best-seller by Nicholas Sparks
("Message in a Bottle"). (New
Line)
"SAY IT
ISN'T SO" A bachelor
("Election's" Chris Klein) falls in
love with a woman ("Bowfinger's"
Heather Graham) but mistakenly
believes she's his sister in this
comedy. (Fox)
"SHALLOW HAL" A man who,
as a boy, was told by his dying
father to only pursue young, pretty
girls eventually falls for an
unattractive woman's inner
beauty. Peter and Bobby Farrelly
("Me, Myself and Irene") script;
Gwyneth Paltrow ("The Talented
Mr. Ripley") stars. (Distribution is
to be set)
talks to play Orson Welles in this
drama, in which Welles becomes
involved in a murder investigation
when a series of deaths
occur on the set of the movie
he's shooting. Oliver Parker ("An
Ideal Husband"), who directed
Branagh in 1 995's "Othello,"
will helm from a script by John
Sayles ("Limbo"). (Distribution
to be set)
"A KNIGHT'S TALE" This
medieval drama, scripted and
directed by Brian Helgeland
("Payback"), will star "The
Patriot's" Heath Ledger as a peasant
who assumes the identity of a
knight who has been killed. His
newfound status enables him to
win fame and respect on the
jousting circuit. (Columbia)
"WILDEST DREAMS" A firefighter
and a young widow ("Practical
Magic's" Sandra Bullock) find
each other after sharing each
other's dreams in this parapsychological
romance. (MGM)
is
"SILK" "Shakespeare in Love's"
John Madden will direct this
adaptation of Alessandro
Baricco's 19th century-set novel
goes awry when he falls
about the love triangle between a
for her.
(Warner Bros.)
traveling silkworm merchant, his
friend might be a Nazi spy.
(Distribution to be set)
wife and a Japanese baron's concubine.
(Miramax)
is
"BILLY TWO SUGARS" A drug
"FINDING FORRESTER" A
lord's driver ("Play It to the
Bone's" Antonio Banderas) who's
author ("Entrapment's" "TRUST ME" An FBI trainee
reclusive
Sean Connery) forms a bond with ("The Suburbans'" Jennifer Love
tired of the abuse he receives
from his boss decides to get back
at him and gain some self-respect
an underprivileged young black
writer in this drama, to be
Hewitt) botches an undercover
assignment and is kidnapped by
with the help of a rag-tag gang of helmed by Gus Van Sant a mobster who ends up falling for
("Psycho"). (Columbia)
her in this romantic comedy.
losers. "Rush Hour's" Brett
Ratner directs. (New Line)
(Warner Bros.)
this drama about an English
teacher who has an affair with a
man who, unbeknownst to her, is
the mob boss her D.A. husband
is trying to put in jail. The husband
plants surveillance cameras
in the mobster's apartment and
becomes intrigued by the fleetingly
photographed mistress,
unaware that she's his wife.
(Paramount)
"KINGDOM COME" A wealthy
landowner is confronted by the
wife and daughter he gave up for
a land claim 20 years earlier in
this Michael Winterbottom
("Wonderland")-helmed, Old
West-set romance, to star Wes
Bentley ("American Beauty"),
Nastassja Kinski ("Town and
Country"), Sarah Polley
("Guinevere"), Milla Jovovich
("The Messenger") and Peter
Mullan ("Miss Julie"). (MGM)
"UNBREAKABLE" It's deja vu all
over again. "The Sixth Sense's"
Bruce Willis and scripter M.
Night Shyamalan reteam for a
Mouse House-distributed supernatural
thriller. Willis will star as
a man who discovers something
uncanny about himself after an
accident. Samuel L. Jackson
("Shaft") and Julianne Moore
("The End of the Affair")
(Buena Vista)
co-star.
ET CETERA: Two boxers get
involved in money laundering in
Artisan's fish-out-of-water comedy
"Made," which re-teams
"Swingers" stars Jon Favreau (who
also scripts and directs) and Vince
Vaughn. ..Matthew McConaughey
is in talks to replace Brendan
Fraser in Destination's Jennifer
Lopez starrer "The Wedding
Jeff Planner," while Goldblum
takes the lead in "Auggie Rose,"
following William H. Macy's exit
from the project. ..Two children
must save their secret agent parents
from the enemy in
Dimension's comedy "Spy Kids,"
in which Alan Cumming ("Titus")
will star for writer/director Robert
Rodriguez ("The Faculty").
10 BOXOFFICE

When I
was your age we
didn't hgvePANASTEREO
cinemg sound.
Burorner!
Atlanta, Georgia and
B
Sydney; Australia .

Com,
i Stietel.
I
. Jon
il,
ICE Studio Chart:
Dreamworks S.
818-733-7000
-588-6000
212-708-0300
2-941-3800
323-951-4200
mary 2000:
itasla 2000. 1/1. Ani. G, 90 min,
D. IMAX Dir Hendel Butoy
limation), Don Hahn (Live Action),
y it to the Bone, 1 /21 . R, 1
i, DTS. SDDS. SB. SRD. Scope
onio Banders, Woody Harrelson.
rta Davidovitch Dir Ron Shelton.
aruary 2000:
n Shy, 2/4, Com, R, SRD, Flat,
idra Bullock. Liam Neeson. Oliv
ft. Dir Eric Blakeney.
; Tigger Movie (formerly untitled
JRRENT)
islon to Mars, 3/10, Dra, DTS,
DS. SR. SRD. Scope Gary Sini
tnie Nielsen, Tim Robbins, Don
3adle. Dir. Brian DePalma.
|h Fidelity, 3/31, DTS. John Cu
:k Black. Dir: Stephen Frears
eplng the Faith 4/14 Edward
1on, Ben Stiller, Jenna Elfman. Eli
llach. Dir. Edward Norton.
y 2000:
ets, 5/5 Maria Bello. Andre
lugher, Paul Giamatti. Huey Lewis,
yneth Paltrow Dir Bruce Paltrow
losaurs, 5/19, Am/Live Action, DTS,
DS, SRD, Flat Dir Ralph Zondag
January 2000:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
February 2000:
Jng Up, 2/11, Com/Dra, 101 min,
DTSySDDS, SRD, Flat Meg Ryan, Lis;
Kudrow, Diane Keaton, Walter Marthau
Dir Diane Keaton
Planet Are Vou From?, 3/3.
Com, SDDS Garry Shandling, Annette
Bening, John Goodman, Greg Kinnear,
Ben Kingsley, Linda Fiorentino, Camryn
Manheim. Nora Dunn. Dir: Mike Nichols
Whatever It Takes, 3/31, Com, SDDS
Shane West, Maria Sokoloff, Jodi Lyn
O'Keete. James Franco, Aaron Paul.
Colin Hanks. Dir. David Raynr.
April 2000:
Black and White, 4/5, SDDS, SRD Ben NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. Elijah Wood,
Gaby Hoffman. Dir: James Toback.
28 Days, 4/14, Dra/Com, SDDS. Sandra
Bullock. Dir: Betty Thomas.
Center Stage (formerly The Dance
Movie), 4/21, Dra. Amanda Schull, Zoe
Faldana, Susan May Pratt, Peter
Gallagher, Donna Murphy, Debra Monk,
Nicholas Hytn
Dir
Dreamed of Africa, 5/5, Epic Dra. PG
13, SDDS Kim Basinger. Vincent
3 erez, Eva Mane Saint, Robert Loggia,
jam Aiken Dir Hugh Hudson.
iry 2000:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
February 2000:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
The Road to El Dorado (formerly El
to: City of Gold), 3/31, Ani, DTS,
SDDS, SRD. Kevin Kline. Kenneth
Branagh, Rosie Perez, Armand
Assante, Edward James Olmos. Dir
Eric "Bibo" Bergeron, Don Paul.
Gladiator. 5/5, R. DTS. SDDS, SRD.
Scope Russell Crowe. Joaquin
Phoenix. Connie Nielsen. Oliver Reed,
Derek Jacobi Dir Ridley Scott.
i 2000:
Supernova, 1/14. SF/Thr, PG-13, DTS.
SR, Scope James Spader, Robin
Tunney, Wilson Cruz, Angela Bassett.
Lou Diamond Phillips, Peter Facinelli
Dir: Thomas Lee
3 Strikes, 2/25, Com Brian Hooks,
Bushe Wright, Saizon Love, David
an Grier, George Wallace. Phil Mori
E40. Dir D J. Pooh.
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
April 2000:
Return to Me. 4/7. Rom/Dra. PG-13.
DTS, Rat David Duchovny, Minnie Driver,
Bonnie Hunt, David Alan Grier. Robert
Loggia, Joely Richardson, Jim Belushi,
Carroll O'Connor. Dir: Bonnie Hunt.
Things You Can Tell Just by Looking
at Her, 4/28, Dra, PG-13, 109 min, SR,
SRD, Flat. Cameron Diaz, Calista
Flockhart, Glenn Close. Kathy Baker,
Amy Brenneman, Gregory Hines, Holly
Hunter. Dir: Rodrigo Garcia.
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
Holy Smoke, 1/14, 2/18 exp, R, 115
SRD. Flat Pam Gner, Harvey I
Kate Winslet.
n to You. 1/21. 90 mm. SRD, Fla
Freddie Prinze Jr, Julia Stiles, Shawn
Hatosy, Selma Blair. Dir Kris Isaacsor
February 2000:
Scream 3, 2/4, SDDS. SRD, Sec
David Arquette, Neve Campbell,
Courtney Cox Dir: Wes Craven,
Diamonds, 2/18. 91 min, SDDS. SR0
Flat Kirk Douglas, Dan Aykroyd, Laun
Bacall, Corbin Allred, Manah O'Brien,
Jenny McCarthy Dir John Asher
Reindeer Games (formerly Deception
2/25, 133 mm. DTS, SRD Ben Affleck
Gary Smise Dir John Frankenheimet
O (Othello), 3/10, 91 min, SRD, Flail
Mekhi Phifer. Elden Henson, Josh J
Hartnett, Julia Stiles, Rain Phoenix. B
Tim Blake Nelson.
East Is East. 3/31 NY/LA.
Scary Movie, 3/31 Keenan Ivory Ml
Wayans. Marlon Wayans, Shawn
Wayans Dir: Keenan Ivory Wayans.
April 2000:
Texas Rangers. April. SRD, Scope,
The Wisdom of Crocodiles, April
NY/LA, R. Timothy Spall.
The Yards, April, SRD, Scope Marl
Wahlberg, James Caan, Joaquin
Phoenix, Faye Dunaway. Charlize
Theron. Dir: James Gray.
May 2000:
ne in 60 Seconds. 6/9. Act. DTS,
DS, SRD. Scope Nicolas Cage,
gelina Jolie, Giovanni Ribisi. Delroy
do Dir: Dominic Sena.
The Patriot. 6/30, Dra/Adv. SDDS. Mel
Gibson, Heath Ledger, Joely
Richardson, Tcheky Karyo. Jason
Isaacs. Dir Roland Emmerich.
Chicken Run. 6/23, Ani, DTS, SDDS,
SRD. SRD-EX. Voices: Mel Gibson. Julia
Sawahla. Miranda Richardson, Ben
Whrtrow, Lynne Ferguson, Imelda
Staunton, Jane Horrocks, Tony Haygarth,
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
Timothy Spall Dir Nick Park & Peter Lord.
COMING:
COMING:
cess, 8/4, Am, DTS, SDDS. SRD.
yote Ugly Summer, DTS. Piper
'abo. Adam Garcia, Maria Bello.
lame Lynskey Dir David McNally
! Dalmatians. Fall/Holiday. DTS.
inn Close, loan Gruffudd, Alice
ans. Dir: Kevin Lima,
member the Titans, Fall/Holiday,
S Denzel Washington, Will Parton
Boaz Yakin.
Hoofbeats. 2nd Qtr, Dra/Adv, SDDS
Chase Moore, Arie Verveen, Lukas
Haas. Dir: Sergei Bodrov.
The Hollow Man. 7/28, Sus/Thr, SDDS.
Kevin Bacon, Elisabeth Shue, Josh
Brolm, Kim Dickens, Joey Slotnick Dir
Paul Verhoeven
Untitled "Urban Legend" sequel,
August/September, Thr Jennifer Morrison,
Joseph Lawrence, Anson Mount, Eve
Mendes, Jessica Cauffiel, Marco
Hotschneider, Matthew Davis, Loretta
Devine, Hart Bochner, Michael Bacall,
Anthony Anderson Dir: John Ottman
Loser, Summer, Com, SSDDS Jason
Biggs, Mena Suvari, Greg Kinnear, Tom
Sadiski, Zak Orth, Jimmi Simpson Dir:
The Vertical Limit, Summer, Act/Adv,
SDDS Chris O'Donnell, Scott Glenn,
Robin Tunney, Bill Paxton, Temuera
Morrison. Dir Mark Campbell.
All the Pretty Horses, 3rd Qtr, Dra,
SDDS. SR Matt Damon, Henry
Thomas. Lucas Black, Penelope Cruz.
Ruben Blades, Bruce Dern. Robert
Patrick Dir Billy Bob Thornton.
The Sixth Day (tentative title), Fall,
SF/Act Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Michael Rapaport. Tony Goldwyn,
Robert Duvall. Michael Rooker Dir:
Roger Spottiswoode.
Charlie's Angels. November, Act/Adv/
Com. SDDS Drew Barrymore. Cameron
Diaz, Lucy Liu, Bill Murray. Dir: McG
Finding Forrester. December, Dra.
Sean Conner/ Dir: Gus Van Sant.
Time Crooks. Spring, Com.
Woody Allen. Tracey Ullman, Hugh
Lovitz, Michael Rapaport,
Elaine May Dir: Woody Allen.
Untitled Cameron Crowe project.
Spring. DTS. SDDS, SRD Billy Crudup.
Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson. Dir.
Cameron Crowe
What Lies Beneath. 7/21. DTS, SDDS,
SRD, Scope. Harrison Ford, Michelle
Pteiffer Dir Robert Zemeckis.
The Legend of Bagger Vance,
Summer Will Smith. Matt Damon,
Charlize Theron Dir Robert Redford
Trip, Summer Breckin Meyer,
Amy Smart. Seann William Scott, Rachel
Blanchard. Andy Dick Dir: Todd Phillips.
An Everlasting Piece, Fall, Com, Barry
McEvoy, Brian F O'Byrne, Anna Friel,
Billy Connolly Dir Barry Levinson,
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimaron
After Man, TBD, DTS. SDDS, SRD.
Arkansas. TBD, DTS, SDDS. SRD.
Keeper, TBD, DTS. SDDS. SRD
The Man Who Came to Dinner. TBD.
DTS. SDDS, SRD Dir: Danny De Vito
Mozart and the Whale. TBD. DTS.
SDDS. SRD
Neanderthal. TBD. DTS. SDDS. SRD
The Newports. TBD. DTS. SDDS.
SRD. Dir: Steven Spielberg.
Untitled Charles Lindbergh Project.
DTS. SDDS, SRD Dir: Steven Spielberg.
Shrek, 6/22/2001, Am, DTS, SDDS. SRD
Voices Mike Myers. Cameron Diaz. Eddie
Murphy. John Lithgow, Linda Hunt. Dir
Kelly Asbury. Andrew Adamson.
Crime & Punishment in Suburbia (foi
merly Crime & Punishment in High
School), Spring. Dra, SRD. Ellen Barkir
ronside. Dir: Rob Schmic
Autumn in New York, Fall, Drama.
Richard Gere, Winona Ryder, Anthony
LaPaglia, Elaine Stntch. Sherry
Stringfield. Jill Hennessy Dir: Joan
Chen.
Antitrust. 4th Qtr Tim Robbins. Ryan
Philiippe Dir Peter He
Dancing in the Dark
.DTS
Angelina Jolie, Antonio Banderas.
Thomas Jane Dir Michael Cristofer
Mr. Accident, TBA, Com, DTS. SRD
Yahoo Serious, Helen Dallimore
Yahoo Serious.
Dir:
Birthday Girl, 2nd Qtr
Committed, 2nd Qtr He:
Casey Affleck, Luke Wilson._Goran |
Visnjic, Patricia Velasque
Daddy and Them. 2nd Qtr NY/LA, I
SRD Laura Dem. Billy Bob ThorntcB i
Kelly Preston. Ben Affleck, Diane La
Dir Billy Bob Thornton.
Love's Labour's Lost, 2nd Qtr
J
Kenneth Branagh, Alicia Silverston«
Human Traffic, 7/14.
Bounce. 7/28 Ben Affleck.
Imposter. 8/4
Boys and Girls, 8/11.
Highlander - Endgame, 8/25
About Adam, September.
Blow Dry, 3rd Qtr .
Spy Kids, 3rd Qtr.
Dracula 2000. 10/27. Dir: Patri
Hard Day's Night (restored rei
2nd Qtr 2001 NY/LA, 91 min, S
Flat The Beatles Dir: Richard

, 116
ir:
BOXOFFICE Independent Charts
FEBRUARY
Artisan
310-255-3716
host Dog: Way of the Samurai, Dra,
min. Forest Whitaker, John
irney. Cliff Gorman. Dir: Jim
irmusch. 2/18 NY. 2/25 exp
Artistic License
272-265-9779
otton Mary, Dra, 125 min. Madhur
iffrey, James Wilby, Greta Scacchi.
Ismail Merchant. 2/18 NY/LA
mporte-moi (Set Me Free), Dra, 94
in. Karine Venasse, Pascale
jssieres. Miki Manjlovic. Dir: Lea
Ml.
Fine Line
212-649-4800
impatico, R, 106 min. Nick Nolte,
haron Stone, Jeff Bridges. Dir:
atthew Warchus. 2/4
First Run
212-243-0600
endernauts, Doc, 86 min. Annie
prinkle. Dir: Monika Treut. 2/4 NY
Fox Searchlight
310-369-4402
Closer You Get (formerly
he
ntitled Irish Comedy), PG-13, 92
Niamh Cusack. Sean McGinley,
iin.
wan Stewart, Ian Hart. Dir: Aileen
itchie.
Independent Artists/Legacy
323-461-3936
nockout. Dra, PG-13, 100 min. Tony
lana, Maria Conchita Alonso, Paul
/infield, Sophia Lerrendez. Dir:
Drenzo Doumani. 2/4 NY/LA/Miami
Kino
212-629-6880
adosh (Israel), Dra, 116 min. Yael
becassis, Yoram Hattab. Dir: Amos
iitai. 2/16
Lions Gate
212-966-4670
eyond the Mat, Doc. Dir: Barry
laustein. Feb/Mar
Paramount Classics
323-956-5000 212-373-7000
leterrence, R, 101 min. Kevin
ollack, Dir: Timothy Hutton. Rod
urie. 2/25
Phaedra
323-938-9610
loft Toilet Seats. Mys/Com. R, 105
iin. Sammi Davis, David Alex Rosen,
,lexa Jago, Jonathan Aube. Dir: Tina
'alinsky. 2/1
Providence
818-728-9700
he Omega Code (reissue). Michael
'ork, Casper Van Dien, Michael
onside.
4 BOXOFFICT
Seventh Art
323-845-1455
Shooting Gallery
212-243-3042
Judy Berlin, Dra, 96 min. Barbara
Barrie, Bob Dishy, Edie Falco, Aaron
Harnick, Madeline Kahn, Julie Kavner,
Anne Meara. Dir: Eric Mendelsohn. 2/25
Sony Classics
212-833-8851
Mifune, R, 99 mm. Iben Hjejle, Anders
Berthelsen, Jesper Asholt, Emil
Tarding, Anders Hove, Sofie Grabol.
Dir: Soren Kfagh-Jacobsen. 2/25
NY/LA, 3/3 exp LA
Trimark
310-314-3040
People. Dra, Beautiful 107 min.
Charlotte Coleman, Charles Kay,
Rosalind Ayres, Roger Sloman. Dir:
Jasmin Dizdar. 2/18 NY, 3/3 exp LA
USA
310-385-4400
Pitch Black, SF, R, 107 min. Radha
Mitchell, Cole Hauser, Vin Diesel. Dir:
David Twohy. 2/25
MARCH
Artisan
The Ninth Gate, Thr, R, 132 min.
Johnny Depp, Lena Olin, Frank
Langella. Dir: Roman Polanski. 3/31
Destination
310-434-2700
Drowning Mona, Com. Danny DeVito
Bette Midler, Neve Campbell, Jamie
Lee Curtis, Casey Affleck. Dir: Nick
Gomez. 3/3
Whipped. Com. Amanda Peet, Brian Van
Holt, Jonathan Abrahams, Zorie Barber,
Judah Domke. Dir: Peter M. Cohen. 3/31
Fine Line
Baby Mother 3/17 ltd
The Filth and the Fury. Doc. The Sex
Pistols. Dir: Julian Temple. 3/29 NY,
4/21 LA
Fox Searchlight
Soft Fruit, R. Jeanie Dynan, Linal
Haft, Genevieve Lemar, Sacha Harler,
Alicia Talbot, Russell Dykstra. Dir:
Christina Andreef.
Jour de Fete
323-933-2733
Trash (reissue). Com/Dra, 110 min.
Joe Dallesandro. Holly Woodlawn. Dir:
Paul Mornssey. 3/17
New Yorker
272-247-6770
The Little Thief. Nicolas Duvauchelle.
Dir: Eric Zonca. 3/1
Palm
312-751-0020
X, Am, 98 mm. Dir: Taro Rin. 3/24
Samuel Goldwyn
212-367-9435
The Carriers Are Waiting (Les
Convoyeurs Attendent) (France). 94
min. Dir: Benoit Manage. 3/15
The Big Blue (Reissue, Director's cut),
168 mm. Rosanna Arquerte. Jean-Marc
Barr. Dir: Luc Besson. 3/24 NY/LA
Screen Gems
310-244-4000
Time Code, Dra. Xander Berkeley.
Saffron Burrows, Salma Hayek, Holly
Hunter, Kyle MacLachlan, Laurie
Metcalf, Julian Sands, Stellan
Skarsgard, Jeanne Tripplehorn,
Steven WEber. Dir: Mike Figgis. 3/31
Seventh Art
Lifestyle, Doc, 75 min. Dir: David
Schizgall. 3/16
Better Living, Doc, 90 min. Dir: Jon
Reiss. March
Shadow
207-872-57 7 7
Pants on Fire, Com/Dra, 107 min.
Christy Baron, Neil Maffin, Harry
O'Reilly, Eileen Brennan, Karen Young.
Dir: Rocky Collins. March
Shooting Gallery
Orphans, Dra, 95 min. Gary Lewis,
Douglas Henshall, Rosemarie
Stevenson, Stephen McCole, Frank
Gallagher. Dir: Peter Mullan. 3/10
Such a Long Journey. Dra. Roshan
Seth, Soni Razdan, Om Puri,
Naseeruddin Shah, Ranjit Chowdhry.
Dir: Sturla Gunnarsson. 3/24
Sony Classics
East/West (France), Dra. Sandrine
Bonnaire, Oleg Menchikov, Serguei
Bodrov Jr., Catherine Deneuve. Dir:
Regis Wargnier. 3/10 NY/LA
Color of Paradise 3/24 NY/LA
Stratosphere
272-605-7070
Jails Hospitals and Hip-Hop, 90 min.
Danny Hoch. Dir: Danny Hoch. 3/3 ltd
Goat on Fire and Smiling Fish, 94
min. Christa Miller, Derek Martini,
Steven Martini, Amy Hathaway. Dir:
Kevin Jordan. 3/15 ltd
Held Up, Com, PG-13, 91 min. Jamie
Foxx, Nia Long. Dir: Steve Rasm.
USA
Agnes Browne, Dra. Marion O'Dwyer,
Arno Chevrier. Dir: Anjelica Huston. 3/3
Condo Painting, Doc. George Condo.
William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg.
Dir: John McNaughton. 3/17 NY/LA
APRIL
Artisan
El Norte (reissue), Dra, R, 1 39 min. Zaide
Silvia Gutierrez. Dir: Gregory Nava.
Fine Line
Buddy Boy 4/7 NY/LA
Pornographic Affair 4/21 NY/LA
Independent Artists/Legacy
Family Tree, Dra, 102 min. Robert
Forster, Naomi Judd. Cliff Robertson,
Andy Lawrence, Matt Lawrence. Dir:
Duane Clark. 4/21
NY/LA/Dallas/Minneapolis
Kino
The Specialist. Doc. 128 mm. Adolf
Eichmann. Dir: Eyal Sivan. 4/12
Eva (1962 reissue). Dra, 120
Jeanne Moreau. Stanley Baker. Is
Joseph Losey. 4/14
Lions Gate
American Psycho Christian Ba
Reese Witherspoon, Chloe Sevig
Jared Leto. Dir: Mary Harron. 4/7
Big Kahuna. Kevin Spacey, Danny
Vito, Peter Facinelli. Dir: Jo
Swanbeck.
New Latin
800-538-5838
Luminarias, Dra, R, 100 min. S(l
Bakula, Evelina Fernandez, Ma
DuBois, Angela Moya, Dyana Ortf
Seidy Lopez, Robert Beltran, Ches
Marin. Dir: Jose Luis Valenzuela. 4/7
|
Palm
Third World Cop. Dra, 98 min. Pi
Campbell, Carl Bradshaw, Mi
Danvers, Audrey Reid. Dir: Ch
Browne. 4/21
Paramount Classics
The Virgin Suicides, 97 min. Jan
Woods, Kathleen Turner, Kirl
Dunst, Danny DeVito, Giovanni Rib
Josh Hartnett. Dir: Sofia Coppola.*
Rialto
323-933-2733
Discreet Charm of the Bourgeon
(reissue). Com. 100 min. FernaJ
Rey, Delphine Seyrig. Dir: Luis Bur*
4/28
Seventh Art
American Pimp, Doc. Dir:
Hughes Brothers.
Shooting Gallery
Southpaw. Dra. Francis Barrett,
Gillen. Dir: Liam McGrath. 4/7
Croupier, Thr. Clive Owen,
McKee, Alex Kingston. Dir:
Hodges. 4/21
Sony Classics
Me Myself & I, 104 min. Radl
Griffiths, David Roberts, Sandy Wirl
Yael Stone. Shaun Loseby, Tn
Sullivan. Dir: Pip Karmel. 4/7 NY/LA|
Not One Less. 106 mm. Wei Mill
Zhang Huike, Tian Zhaneda, G
Enman. Dir: Zhang Yimou. 4/28 NY?
Trimark
The Last September. Dra, R, 104m
Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon. Da
Tennant, Fiona Shaw, Keeley Haf
Dir: Deborah Warner.
USA
Joe Gould's Secret. R. Ian Hoi
Stanley Tucci. Dir: Stanley Tucci. 4
Where the Money Is, PG-13, 90
Paul Newman. Linda Fiorentino.l
Marek Kanievska. 4/14
Artistic License
Luminous Motion. Dra. 100 min.i
Lloyd. Deborah Kara Linger, Jam
Sheridan. Dir: Bette Gordon.
Fine Line
Five Senses. Mary Louise Pal^'
Daniel Maclvor. 5/19 NY/LA

i
: Mulroney.
,
Holly
,
Theo
.
j
March, 2000
Kino
Dr. Freud (1976 reissue), Dra,
i. Karlheinz Hackl. Dir: Axel
i/17
Lions Gate
Women, Dra/Sus, R, 116 min.
Standing, Matthew Delamere,
Wu, Polly Walker, Toni Collette.
la Plummer. Dir: Peter
iway.
Samuel Goldwyn
(Solas) (Spain), 98 min. Maria
a, Ana Fernandez. Dir: Benito
ano. 5/5
Shooting Gallery
jline Drive. Com. Hikari Ishida,
Dbu Ando, Jovi Jova, Yutaka
;hige. Kazue Tsunogae. Dir:
u Yaguchi. 5/5
Sony Classics
Nova (English/Portuguese),
R, 95 min. Amy Irving,
dre Borges, Antonio
Jes. Pedro Cardoso, Stephen
wsky, Deborah Bloch, Drica
3. Dir: Bruno Barreto. 5/5
o (Japan), Dra'Com, 116 min.
ii Kitano, Yusuke Sekiguchi,
Kishimoto. Dir: Takeshi Kitano.
rVLA
du Soleil - Journey of Man.
du Soleil. Dir: Keith Melton.
USA
he Villa, Dra, PG-13. 115 min.
Scott-Thomas, Sean Penn,
iancrott, Derek Jacobi, Jeremy
Dir: Philip Haas. 5/5
JUNE
Artisan
w for a Dream. Dra. Jared
larlon Wayans. Ellen Burstyn,
ir Connelly. Dir: Darren
sky.
Fine Line
le Circus. R. Cameron Diaz.
3anner.
Lions Gate
Son. Dra, R, 110 min. Billy
Hunter, Denis Leary,
lha Morton, Dennis Hopper. Dir:
ulaclean.
Sony
Emily Watson. Nick Nolte,
Brittany Murphy,
Lane, Lesley Ann Warren,
itton. Dir: Alan Rudolph. 6/9
USA
atch, 95 mm. Max Beesley,
Fraser, James Cosmo, Ian
Richard E. Grant, Bill
Tom Sizemore. Mick
>n, Dir:
6/16
et Martin. Juliette Binoche,
Loret, Carmen Maura. Dir:
rechine. 6/30
jout Mambo (formerly Perfect
, 100 min. William Ash. Keri
Fraser Steele, Joe Rea,
ox. Dir: John Forte.
Hand
Destination Film
Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
Fam. Alec Baldwin, Peter Fonda, Mara
Wilson. Russell Means, Didi Conn. Dir:
Britt Allcroft. 7/14
Sony Classics
Shower. Dra. Zhu Xu. Pu Cun Xin,
Jiang Wu. Dir: Zhang Yang. 7/7 NY/LA
USA
Whatever Happened to Harold Smith?
AUGUST
Artisan
3un, Dra. F
Beriicio Del Toro, Taye Diggs, Juliet
Lewis. Dir: Christopher McQuarrie.
Fine Line
State and Main. Alec Baldwin.
Charles Durning, Sarah Jessica
Parker, Philip Seymour Hoffman. Dir:
David Mamet.
USA
SEPTEMBER
Artisan
Soul Survivors, Thr.
Destination
Cowboy Up. Kiefer Sutherland. Daryl
Hannah, Pete Postelthwaite, Molly
Ringwald. Dir: Xavier Koller. 9/29
Lions Gate
Shadow of the Vampire, Dra. John
Malkovich, Willem Dafoe, Udo Kier.
Carey Elwes. Eddie Izzard, Catherine
McCormack. Dir: Elias Merhige.
OCTOBER
Artisan
Blair Witch Project 2, Thr
Cecil B. Demented, Com.
Fine Line
Prime Gig. Vince Vaughn.
The Ring
Samuel Goldwyn
The Faithless (Sweden). Dir: Li\
Ullmann. 10/6
UEMM
First Run
Wallowitch & Ross: This Moment.
Doc. 77 min. John Wallowitch, Bertram
Ross. Dir: Richard Morris. 12/10 NY
Sony Classics
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,
Act/Dra. Zhang Zi-Yi. Michelle Yeoh, Chow
Yun Fat, Chang Zheng, Zheng Pei-Pei.
Gao Xi-An. Dir: Ang Lee. 12/22 NY/LA
COMING
Artisan
The Lost Son, Dra, R, 102 min. Daniel
Auteuil, Nastassja Kinski. Dir: Chris
Menges.
Destination
Beautiful, Com. Minnie Driver, Hallie
Eisenberg, Joey Lauren Adams. Dir:
Sally Field. Spring
The Wedding Planner, Rom/Com.
Dir: Adam Shankman. 4th Qtr
Fine Line
But I'm a Cheerleader. Spring
Dancer in the Dark Bjork, Catherine
Deneuve. Dir: Lars Von Trier.
Fox Searchlight
Hard Men (U.K.), Dra, R. Vincent
Regan, Ross Boatman, Lee Ross. Dir:
J.K. Amalou.
Quills, Dra. Geoffrey Rush, Kate
Winslet, Joaquin Phoenix, Michael
Caine. Dir: Philip Kaufman.
Woman on Top, R. Penelope Cruz,
Murilo Benicio. Dir: Fina Torres.
IMAX
905-403-6500
American Road. Doc
Mission to Mir, Doc.
Palm
The Criminal, Dra/Thr, 98 min. Steven
Macintosh, Natasha Little, Eddie
Izzard. Dir: Julian Simpson. Spring
Lock Down, Dra. Master P, Richard T
Jones, Bill Nunn, Gabriel Casseus. Dir:
John Luessenhop. Spring
Paramount Classics
Passion of Mind. Demi Moore, Stellan
Skarsgaard. Dir: Alain Berliner. 2nd Qtr
Company Man, 86 min. Ryan Phillipe,
Douglas McGrath, Sigourney Weaver.
Dir:
Douglas McGrath. Peter Askin.
Girl on the Bridge. 92 min Daniel
Auteuil. Vanessa Paradis. Dir: Patrice
Leconte.
Phaedra
Beneath the Surface. 99 min.
Johanna Sallstrom, Mikael Persbrandt.
Dir: Daniel Fridell. 1st Qtr
Heart of Light. Rasmus Lyberth, Vivi
Nielson, Anda Kristiansen. Dir: Jacob
Gronlykke. 1st Qtr
Sweet Jane, Dra, 87 min. Samantha
Mathis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Dir: Joe
Gayton. 1st Qtr
Zone 39, SF, 93 min. Peter Phelps,
Carlolyn Bock. Dir: John Tatoulis. 1st
Qtr
On Guard! (France: aka Le Bossu).
Period Adventure. 124 mm. Daniel Auteuil,
Fabrice Luchini, Vincent Perez, Marie
Gillain. Dir: Philippe de Broca. 2nd Qtr
On the Run. Michael Imperioli. Dir:
Bruno de Almeida. 2nd Qtr
Metal Skin. 109 min. Aden Young, Tara
Motice, Ben Mendelsohn. Dir: Geoffrey
Wright.
Seventh Art
Creature. Doc. Dir: Parris Patton.
Selected cities
Karussell, Doc. Dir: Nona Ziok.
Selected cities
Shadow
Souvenir, Dra, 78 min. Stanton
Miranda. Hughes Quester, Kristin Scott
Thomas, the voice of Christina Ricci.
Dir: Michael Shamble. Summer
Shooting Gallery
Once in the Life, Dra. Laurence
Fishburne, Gregory Hines. Dir:
Laurence Fishburne. Winter/Spring
You Can Count on Me, Dra Matthew
Broderick. Rory Culkin, Laura Linney.
Mark Ruffalo, Jon Tenney. Dir: Kenneth
Lonnergan. Spring
Hill
Loving Jezebel, Rom/Com.
Harper, Laurel Holloman, Nicole An
Parker, Sandnne David Moscow.
Holt.
Elisa Donovan, Phylicia Rashad. Dir:
Kwyn Bader. 2nd Qtr
Sony Classics
The Road Home. Dra. Dir: Zhang Yimou.
Strand
310-395-5002
Stella Does Tricks, Dra. 99 min. Kelly
MacDonald. Dir: Coky Giedroyc. Spring
Stratosphere
Beautiful Joe. Sharon Stone, Billy
Connelly, Ian Holm, Gil Bellows. Dir:
Stephan Metcalfe. Summer
Skipped Parts. Com. Jennifer Jason
Leigh. Mischa Burton. Brad Renfro, Drew
Barrymore. Dir: Tamra Davis. Summer
Stalk. Dra. Matthew Settle, Tom Everett
Scott, Gretchen Mol, Samantha Mathis
Dir: Russell DeGrazier. Fall
USA
Blood Simple (re-release), Thr.
Frances McDormand. Dir: Joel Coen.
Summer
Nurse Betty, R. Renee Zellweger.
Morgan Freeman. Dir: Neil LaBute
Summer
One Night at McCool's. Liv Tyler. Matt
Dillon. John Goodman. 3rd Qtr
Bloody Angels
The Idiots, 117 min. Louise Hassing.
Anne-Grethe. Bjarup Riis. Dir: Lars
Von Trier.
The Naked Man, Com. Michael
Rapaport. Arija Bareikis, Rachael
J.
Leigh Cook, Martin Ferrero. Dir:
Todd Anderson.
Resurrection Man. Stuart Townsend,
James Nesbitt, Sean McGinley,
Brenda Fricker. Dir: Marc Evans.
Snarl Up. Dir: Michael Winterbottom.
Thomas Jane, Aaron
Thursday.
Eckhart, Mickey Rourke, Glenn
Plummer. Dir: Skip Woods.
What Rats Won't Do (U.K.).
Rom/Com. Natascha McElhone
James Frain. Charles Dance, Parkei
Posey. Dir: Alaistair Reid.
Winstar
212-686-6777
Madadayo. Dra, 134 min. Hyakker
Uchida, Tatsuo Matsumura. Dir: Akirs
Kurosawa. Spring
Book of Life Dir: Hal Hartley
Elles. Rom/Dra, 97 min. Miou-Miou
Marisa Berenson. Dir: LuisGalvao Teles
March, 2000

'/)
APRIL
TRAILERS
Spring fever
industry gets over the winter blues and is traditionally
fertile in the month of April, giving birth to a whopping
40 flicks this year, almost matching the 47 titles covered
in BOXOFFICE a year ago. The boxoffice last year at this
time was likewise lucrative, with the modest hits "Never
Been Kissed" and "Life" eventually grossing $55.5 million
and $63.8 million respectively and the breakout hit
"Entrapment'' raking in $87.7 million. The timeframe also
delivered critical hits that didn't fare so well at the boxoffice:
Both "Go" and "Election" earned right around $15 million.
And then there were the bombs that neither the critics
nor the public liked: "The Out-of-Towners" fared the best at
$28.5 million, but "Goodbye Lover," "Lost & Found,"
"Pushing Tin" and "Idle Hands" all garnered less than $10
million.
April 2000 opens with
James Toback's gritty "Black
and White," "Return to Me"
and "Head Over Heels," the
latter two romantic comedies
from MGM and Universal,
respectively. Heavy-hitting
independents Lions Gate,
Paramount Classics and USA
also bow "American
Psycho," "The Virgin
Suicides" and "Joe Gould's
Secret" respectively, this
weekend.
A week later on April 14,
Edward Norton makes his
directorial debut in "Keeping
the Faith," Sandra Bullock
stars "28 Days,"
in
Paramount does double duty
with "Bless the Child" and "Rules of Engagement" and professional
wrestling busts onto the bigscreen in "Ready to
Rumble." Lions Gate throws its hat into the ring with "The Big
Kahuna," as does USA with "Where the Money Is."
The third week of the month is a bit lighter than the previous
two. Columbia bows its dance movie "Center Stage,"
New Line scores with "Love and Basketball" and Universal
sneaks in "U-571."
Finally this month, April 28 is
ladies' night. Fox's "Home Is
Where the Heart Is" (pictured), MCM's "Things You Can Tell
Just by Looking at Her" and Miramax's "Committed" all premiere
this weekend. Other pics include New Line's
"Frequency," Universale "The Skulls" (held from February)
and Warner Bros.' long-delayed "Gossip." Also watch for
"Texas Rangers," "The Yards" and "In Crowd" this month.
^ Continuing our monthly filmmaker profiles, this month
"""(OFFICE talked to Mary Harron, who directed "American
ycho," Sophia Coppola, who directed "The Virgin Suicides'
andd Angela Bettis, who stars in "Bless the Child."
—Annlee Ellingsi
Black and White
In his follow-up to the controversial
"Two Girls and a Guy," writerdirector
James Toback has gathered
an impressive ensemble—including
Robert Downey Jr.
("Bowfinger"), Gaby Hoffman
("200 Cigarettes"), New York Nicks
star Allan Houston, Jared Leto
("Fight Club"), supermodel Claudia
Schiffer, Brooke Shields ("The
Bachelor"), Ben Stiller ("Mystery
Men"), boxer Mike Tyson and Elijah
Wood ("Deep Impact")—for his
story about privileged white teens
who have a reckless fascination
with hip-hop culture. "Two Girls
and a Guy" executive producers
Mike Mailer and Daniel Bigel produce
with Ron Rotholz ("American
Psycho"). (Columbia, 4/5)
Exploitips: Forced to edit "Two
Girls and a Guy" to receive an R
rating, Toback suffered the same
fate here, trimming his opening
scene to cut down on sexual
explicitness. "Black and White"
was nascent Palm Pictures first film
production, though the company
has already released films such as
"Six-String Samurai" and the reissue
of the Talking Heads documentary
"Stop Making Sense."
Envisioning a wider release for this
pic, the indie teamed up with
Columbia's Screen Gems in an
unusual deal that calls for both
companies to distribute and market
"Black and White, " splitting the
profits according to an undisclosed
formula. BOXOFFICE reviewed the
pic in Toronto, giving it 3.5 stars in
the November 1999 issue: "'Black
and White' is surely James
Toback's 'Nashville' wannabe. The
curious film doesn't quite work on
that level, but it does offer its own
compelling bleak vision of
America in the late 1 990s.
distances himself from the supernatural
in this romance as a veterinarian
who falls in love with the woman
who, unbeknownst to him,
received
his deceased wife's heart.
Minnie Driver ("An Ideal Husband")
co-stars. Actress Bonnie Hunt directs
a script she wrote with Samantha
Goodman, Don Lake ('The Extreme
Adventures of Super Dave") and
Andrew Stern; lennie Lew Tugend
("Free Willy") produces. (MGM, 4/7)
Exploitips: Enormously popular as
Fox Mulder on TV's "The X-Files,"
Duchovny filmography varies widely,
from the skin tiick "Rapture, " serial
killing spree "Kalifornia " and mobster
movie "Playing God," which
also starred Timothy Hutton and
Angelina lolie and grossed only a Utile
over $4 million at the lx>xoffice.
Driver's had better luck, voicing Jane
last summer's "Tarzan" and starring
in the indie hit "Good Will
Hunting." Still, though she has
romantic experience onscreen,
Driver's never carried a movie,
either. Tap into the film's plot
device by coordinating with a local
hospital to recruit organ donors and
sponsor a blood drive.
Head Over Heels
Monica Porter ("Patch Adams")
and Freddie Prinze Jr. ("She's All
That") star in this romantic comedy
about a New York art restorer
who falls in love with her neighbor,
despite the fact that she
thinks she saw him murder someone,
a la "Rear Window." China
Chow ("The Big Hit") and models
Shalom Harlow, Ivana Milicevic,
Sarah O'Hare and Tomiko Fraser
co-star. Mark Waters ("The House
of Yes") directs a script by "There's
Something About Mary's" Ed
Decter and John J. Strauss and
Ron Burch and David Kidd;
Robert Simonds ("The Waterboy")
produces. (Universal, 4/7)
Exploitips:
Potter dropped out
of Disney's "Mission to Mars" to
pick up this role after Claire
Danes amicably parted from the
project when both she and the
filmmakers determined that the
part was not suitable for her. Both
Potter and Prinze have seen success
in the romantic realm before,
and their experience will give
David Duchovny and Minnie
Driver's "Return to Me" a run for
its money this weekend, especially
among younger viewers who
will appreciate the film's associations
with "The House of Yes,"
"There's Something About Mary"
and "The Waterboy. " For a clever
double billing, consider Alfred
Hitchcock's
Buddy Boy
Return to Me
"X-Files" star David Duchovny
"Rear Window," rereleased
by Universal associate
USA Films in January.
In this thriller, Brit Aidan Gillen
("Some Mother's Son") stars as an
introvert who escapes the tedium
of caring for his slovenly invalid
mother by spying on his beautiful
neighbor, played by
Frenchwoman Emmanuelle
Seigner ("The Ninth Gate").
Writer-director Mark Hanlon
makes his debut; Cary Woods
("Copland") and Gina Mingacci
produce. (Fine Line, 4/7 NY/LA)
Exploitips: "Buddy Boy,"
which played at both the Venice
and Toronto Film Festivals, could
be another candidate for double
billing with "Rear Window"
because of its voyeuristic themes.
American Psycho
Christian Bale ("Velvet
Goldmine") stars in this controversial
satire about the '80s
yuppie lifestyle as a Wall
Streeter who leads a double life
16 boxoffice

March. 2000 17
as a serial killer at night. Willem Dafoe
("eXistenZ"), Samantha Mathis ("Broken
Arrow"), Reese Witherspoon ("Election"),
Jared Leto ("Fight Club") and Chloe Sevigny
("Boys Don't Cry") co-star. Mary Harron ("I
Shot Andy Warhol") directs a script she cowrote
with Guinevere Turner ("Co Fish")
from the novel by Bret Easton Ellis; Edward
Pressman (Two Girls and a Guy"), Chris
Hanley ("The Virgin Suicides") and
Christian Halsey Solomon ("Legionnaire")
produce. (Lions Gate, 4/7)
Exploitips: Not since "The Beach" has a
film sparked so much protest, and, ironically,
Leo's been associated with both. Harron
had been developing her script for years,
always with Bale in mind for the lead, and
had already secured a green light from
Lions Gate when the independent distributor
abruptly announced that Leonardo
DiCaprio was attached to the picture, skyrocketing
its budget and potentially pushing
Harron out of the project. Peace was
restored eventually, with Harron and Bale
reinstated, but it was not to last long.
Toronto residents objected to the filming of
the picture in their neighborhoods, citing its
grisly source material and the fact that a
copy was found on the bedside of infamous
Ontario serial killer Paul Bernardo. While
Lions Gate objected to the protests,
claiming
that the script is much less violent than
the novel, the company acknowledges that
there's no such thing as bad publicity. See
Director's Chair, page 17.
Luminarias
See our February-issue Trailers. (New
Latin, 4/7 LA)
James Woods ("Any Given Sunday"),
Kathleen Turner ("Baby Geniuses") and Kirsten
Dunst ("Dick") headline this ensemble drama
set in the '70s about the conservative Lisbon
family's five blonde daughters and their string
of inexplicable suicides. Josh Hartnett ("The
Faculty") co-stars. Sofia Coppola makes her
feature film directorial debut from a script she
adapted from Jeffrey Eugenides novel;
Coppola's dad Francis Ford produces with
Julie Costanzo, Dan Halsted ("Any Given
Sunday") and Chris Hanley ("American
Psycho"). (Paramount Classics, 4/7)
Exploitips: Paramount's specialty division
picked up "The Virgin Suicides" after its premiere
at Cannes, where BOXOFFICE gave it
two stars in the September 1 999 issue, saying,
"There are nice moments throughout,
and Coppola has done a deft job evoking the
spirit of the film's period and suburban setting.
But while performances and technical
elements are unimpeachable, the film, finally,
disappoints. Like the Lisbon girls themselves,
it is lovely to look at but doesn 't stand
up well to close inspection; it feels empty
and soulless. " See Director's Chair, page 1 9.
Southpaw
Boxer Francis Barrett is the subject of this
documentary, which profiles the athlete,
his trainers and the nomadic Irish community
from which he comes. Liam McGrath
directs; "1 Went Down's" director and producer,
Paddy Breathnach and Robert
Walpole, produce. (Shooting Gallery, 4/7)
Exploitips: Barrett boxed for Ireland in
the 1996 Olympics. Find footage of his
fights to play prior to the screening.
Rachel Griffiths ("Hilary and Jackie") stars in
this comedy as a successful single journalist
who gets a chance to see what her life would
have been like had she married her true love
when she runs across an exact double of herself.
David Roberts co-stars. Philippa Karmel, who
edited "Shine," writes and directs her debut;
Fabien Liron produces. (Sony Classics, 4/7)
Exploitips: Sony Classics made one of the
first major purchases at Cannes when it
picked this up from French seller Gaumont
for between $ 7 million and $2 million. BOX-
OFFICE reviewed it at Toronto, giving it 2.5
stars in the November 1999 issue: "Neither
as smart as 'Blind Chance' nor as gritty as
'Sliding Doors, ' 'Me Myself T does push all
the right sentimental buttons, which should
make it a hit despite its shortcomings.
Joe Gould's Secret
Stanley Tucci ("The Imposters") directs, produces
and stars in this 1940s New York-set
drama as New Yorker writer Joseph Mitchell
who met, befriended and wrote about
Greenwich Village bohemian |oe Gould,
played by Ian Holm ("The Sweet Hereafter").
Gould claimed to be cataloguing an oral history
of the Big Apple and becomes a minor
celebrity thanks to Mitchell, who eventually
discovers that his subject has a secret. Howard
A. Rodman scripts based on Mitchell's writings;
Charles Weinstock ("Where the Money
Is") and Elizabeth W. Alexander ("The
Imposters") produce. (USA, 4/7)
Exploitips: When October Film-, (latei
absorbed by USA Films) greenlighted "Joe
Gould's Secret" in October 1 998, it was the first
project that fell under Tucci and his partner

It ( man
Alexander's first-look deal with the specialty
distributor. Find a copy of Mitchell's article to
distribute among your patrons and decorate
your lobby with images of 1940s New York,
the city being an integral character in the film.
Keepiling the Faith
This romantic comedy marks the directorial
debut of "Fight Club's" Edward Norton. He and
Ben Stiller ("Mystery Men") star as a Catholic
priest and an Orthodox rabbi, respectively,
who both tall in love with the same woman,
whom they knew as children and who recently
re-entered their lives. )enna Elfman ("EDtv")
co-stars. Stuart Blumberg scripts; Howard Koch
Jr. ("Frequency"), Norton and Blumberg produce.
(Buena Vista, 4/1 4)
Exploitips: This $30 million project was
the first project greenlighted by Spyglass
Entertainment, the production and tinam inn
entity that co-produced Disney's "The Sixth
Sense" and "Instinct." College buddies
Norton and Blumberg originally set up the
picture with Koch at Columbia but bought it
back when it went into turnaround.
28 Days
Sandra Bullock ("Gun Shy") stars in this
dramedy as an urban journalist who's sentenced
to a 28-day rehabilitation program after
stealing and crashing
a limousine at her sister's
wedding.
Marianne Jean-
Baptiste ("Secrets &
Lies"), Viggo
Mortensen ("A Perfect
Murder"), Diane
Ladd ("Daddy and
Them") and Elizabeth
Perkins
("Moonlight
and Valentino") co-star. Betty Thomas ("Dr.
Dolittle") directs a script by Susannah Grant
("Erin Brockovich"); Jenno Topping ("Can't
Hardly Wait") produces. (Columbia, 4/14)
Exploitips: Thomas and Topping picked up
this pic for their Tall Trees Prods, banner under
their production deal with Columbia after studio
president Amy Pascal personally developed
the project with Grant.
Like the similarly set
"Girl, Interrupted, " released by Columbia late
last year, "28 Days" will appeal to a distaffpopulation
with its girl-powered cast and crew.
Bless the Child
In her first role since her Oscar-winning
turn in "LA. Confidential," Kim Basinger
stars in this thriller as a psychiatric nurse who
must save her niece from Satanists in a millennial
battle between good and evil. Jimmy
Smits ("My Family"), Rufus Sewell ("The Very
Thought of You") and Angela Bettis ("Girl,
Interrupted") co-star. Christina Ricci ("Sleepy
Hollow") also has a small role. Chuck
Russell ("The Mask") directs; "Three Wishes"
storywriters Clifford and Ellen Green, Don
Roos ("The Opposite of Sex") and Russell
script based on the book by Cathy Cash
Spellmann; Mace Neufeld ("The General's
Daughter") produces. (Paramount, 4/14)
Exploitips: In the vein of "The Sixth Sense,
"Stir of Echoes," "Stigmata" and "End of
Bless the Child" is pan of a recent
string of supernatural thrillers— some successful,
some not so much—fueled by millennial
hype. The film sets itself apart by
appealing to women, an aspect that also puts
it into direct competition with Columbia's
"28 Days" this weekend. Significant changes
were made to the book's original premise to
accommodate the casting of Basinger
(reportedly the character originallv was a inceived
as the child's grandmother), but consider
co-marketing with a local bookstore
nonetheless. See Actor's Studio, page 21.
Rules of Engagement
Tommy Lee Jones ("Double Jeopardy") and
Samuel L. Jackson ("Deep Blue Sea") star in
this military courtroom drama as Vietnam vets
reunited when the latter is accused of violating
the accepted rules of engagement by inciting
an incident that leaves many demonstrators
dead while trying to retake a United States
embassy. Lee plays a lawyer whose career as
a military officer was cut short in Vietnam and
who owes his life to Jackson's character. Kim
Delaney ("Mission to Mars"), Ben Kingsley
("What Planet Are You From?"), Blair
Underwood ("Deep Impact") and Anne
Archer ("Clear and Present Danger") co-star.
William Friedkin ("Jade") directs; Stephen
Gaghan scripts based on a story by former
Navy secretary James Webb; Richard Zanuck
("True Crime") and Scott Rudin ("Wonder
Boys") produce. (Paramount, 4/14)
Exploitips: While the filmmakers didn't
even bother to ask for advice from the U.S.
Marines on this pic due to its uncomplimentary
nature, they did secure cooperation from
the king of Morocco, where they were shooting,
and guaranteed accuracy by optioning
Webb's script and employing "Saving Private
Ryan's" Dale Dye to coordinate battle
scenes. Paramount also released the similarly
themed "The General's Daughter "
went on to gross over $100 million.
w hii h
Ready to Rumble
In this comedy set in the world of World
Championship Wrestling (WCW), David
Arquette ("Scream 3") stars as a wrestlingloving
loser who, devastated when the
champ loses his belt in a humiliating bout
and is ousted from the organization, journeys
to WCW headquarters in Atlanta to resurrect
his hero. Scott Caan ("Boiler Room"),
Oliver Piatt ("Gun Shy"), Rose McGowan
("Jawbreaker"), Martin Landau ("EDtv") and
several WCW wrestlers co-star. Brian
Robbins ("Varsity Blues") directs a script by
Steven Brill ("The Mighty Ducks" franchise);
"Three to Tango's" Robert Newmyer and
Jeffrey Silver produce. (Warner Bros., 4/14)
Exploitips: The potential audience tor this pic,
believe it or not, is
tremendous. The WCW, rest
assured, will be advertising heavily on itswt <
-kly
shows Monday Night Nitro and Thunder.
Coordinate with local merchants to give away
WCW action figures for the winners of a
wrestling trivia contest. (They might be glad to get
rid of them— the tovs tend to gather dust on the
shelves.) If the WCW is visiting your community
soon, try to secure tickets as giveaways as well. If
you're really resourceful, invite a WCW wrestler
to make an appearance opening weekend, autographing
movie posters for fans. Create a link on
your web site to www.wcw.com. Set up a sumo
wrestling ring in your lobby to let your patrons
get in on the action.
Eva
Jeanne Moreau stars in this re-release of
the 1 962 classic as a greedy seductress who
ensnares and then humiliates a writer, causing
his wife's death. Stanley Baker and Virna
Lisi co-star. Joseph Losey directs; Hugo Butler
and Evan Jones script based on the novel by
James Hadley Chase; Raymond Hakim and
Robert Hakim produce. (Kino, 4/14)
Exploitips: Locate original posters from
1962 to hang in your lobby for this release.
Losey and Moreau also collaborated on 1 976's
"Mr.
Klein" and 1982's "The Trout." Doublebill
with one of these or indicate at which local
video stores your patrons can find them.
The Specialist
Consisting of footage from the 1 961 trial of
Adolf Eichmann in Israel, this documentary
paints a portrait of the man known as "the
specialist"
during the Holocaust, responsible
for the deportation and eventual massacre of
Jews in European death camps. Eyal Sivan
writes, directs and produces; Rony Brauman
scripts; Armelle Laboire produces. (Kino, 4/1 2)
Exploitips: "The Specialist" owes its
structure somewhat to Hannah Arendt's
study of Eichmann called, "Eichmann in
Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of E\ il,
which argued that the fact that Eichmann
seemed so normal during the trial made his
crimes all the more horrifying. Invite a local
college history department to set up a panel
discussion about the paper and the film.
The Big Kahuna
"American Beauty's" Kevin Spacey produces
and stars in this dramedy about three
industrial lubricant salesmen stuck in a
Midwestern hotel room together on the eve of
making the biggest sale of their lives. Danny
DeVito ("Man on the Moon") and Peter
Facinelli ("Supernova") co-star. John Swanbeck
makes his directorial debut; Roger Rueff adapts
his own screenplay; "The Whole Nine Yards"
executive producers Elie Samaha and Andrew
Stevens produce. (Lions Gate, 4/14 NY/LA)
Exploitips: A labor of love for Spacey, "The Big
kahuna, " which was shot for under $2 million
ova 16 evenings while he rehearsed tor 'The
< i «* ih during the day, is the first picture
to come out of his Trigger Street Prods. BOX-
OFFICE gave it 2.5 stars at Toronto, where Lions
( iate rsecutives first saw and fell in love with it.
In i •!// / ifi ember 1999 issue, the review reads,
"The Big Kahuna' can't help but feel like a filmed
pla\... It's also traversing the same territory mined
by Death of a Salesman' and 'Glengarry Glen
Ross u ith a nod towards Waiting for Godot ' for
goodmeasure. In that regard. The Big Kahuna' is
too familiar by half, with the arguments among
the men rather pedestrian and uninspiring.
But
there's something fresh here, too. 'The Big
Kahuna' is about respect land! assumptions and
lis! unexpectedly touching." See this month's
cover story for more on Spacey.
18 BOXOMKI

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Where the Money Is
Paul Newman ("Message in a Bottle")
stars in this caper as a convicted bank robber
who scams his way out of prison by faking
a stroke and getting transferred to a
nursing home. His plans for escape are
foiled when his nurse discovers his ruse,
but she promises to keep her mouth shut if
he includes her in his last big heist. Linda
("What Planet Are You Fi
Fiorentino
and Dermot Mulroney ("Goodbye Lover")
co-star. Marek Kanievska ("Less Than
Zero") directs script by E. Max Frye
a
("Palmetto"), Topper Lilien and Carroll
Cartwright; "Clay Pigeons'" Ridley Scott
and Chris Zarpas, Charles Weinstock ("Joe
Gould's Secret") and Christopher Dorr produce.
(USA, 4/21)
Exploitips: This pic should appeal to
Newman's fans, an older demo otherwise
not tapped this weekend. Play your own
game of "Where the Money Is," attaching
faux dollar hills that can be redeemed at the
concession stand to the bottoms of auditorium
seats.
Center Stage
Peter Gallagher ("House on Haunted Hill")
stars in this drama set in the competitive
world of professional ballet about a tight-knit
group of teens who sacrifice having normal
lives to train as dancers. Nicholas Hynter
("The Object of My Affection") directs a script
by Carol Heikkinen ("Empire Records");
Laurence Mark ("Hanging Up") produces.
(Columbia, 4/21)
Exploitips: Collaborate with a local
dance troupe to sponsor (and thus advertise
at) their recitals and see if they'll perform
at your theatre in conjunction with
opening weekend. Also, hold a raffle to
give away free ballet lessons to patrons.
Love and Basketball
Omar Epps ("The Wood") and Alfre
Woodard ("Mumford") star in this hoopster
romance about college-aged basketball
players who try not to let their new-found
romances interfere with their professional
futures. Gina Prince-Blythewood writes
and directs; "The Best Man's" Spike Lee
and Sam Kitt produce. (New Line, 4/21)
Exploitips: Urban audiences will best
respond to this pic's cast and crew.
Sponsor local basketball games at the high
school, college or Y— the exposure will
U-571
Matthew McConaughey ("EDtv") stars in
this World War II movie as a lieutenant on a
United States Navy submarine involved in a
plot to swipe a coding device from a Nazi U-
Boat in the Atlantic at the height of the war.
Bill Paxton ("Mighty Joe Young"), Harvey
Keitel ("Holy Smoke") and Jon Bon Jovi ("No
Looking Back") co-star. Jonathan Mostow
("Breakdown") directs a script he wrote with
Sam Montgomery ("Breakdown") and former
U.S. Navy sonarman David Ayer;
"Breakdown's" Dino and Martha
DeLaurentiis produce. (Universal, 4/21)
Exploitips: Easily perceived as riding the
coattails of the boxoffice and critical hit "Saving
Private Ryan," "U-571 " was actually already in
production before "Ryan" was released in July
1 998, when Michael Douglas, who had been
attached to project, dropped out to pursue
"Wonder Boys." Mostow then rewrote the
script for a late-20-something actor, namely
McConaughey. Look for other World War ll-set
pics to capitalize on "Ryan's" success,
reach your core audience. Give away tickets
for local hoops franchises on opening
weekend. Set up Nerf hoops in your lobby
for low-key games of one-on-one.
including
"Proteus," a project in the pipeline at
Miramax to be directed by "Pi's" Darren
Aronofsky that has stalled production in "U-
57 1 's" wake.
A Pornographic Affair
Nathalie Baye and Sergei Lopez co-headline
this French-language mock documentary
about a couple that seeks each other
out for purely sexual liaisons, only to find
their relationship developing into much
more. Frederic Fonteyne directs a script by
Philippe Blasband; Patrick Quinet produces.
(Fine Line, 4/21 NY/LA)
Exploitips: Fine Line picked up "A
Pornographic Affair," along with next
month's "Five Senses" and "But I'm a
Cheerleader," at last year's Toronto Film
March, 2000 19

1
Festival, marking the New Line specialty
arm's first French-language acquisition
since president Mark Ordesky took it over
two years ago. Emulating the film's plot
device, have patrons compose a personal
ad seeking a no-strings-attached, purely
sexual relationship, giving out concessions
coupons for the funniest, sexiest, most original,
etc.— probably not an activity for the
kiddies.
Family Tree
Robert Forster ("Supernova") and Naomi
Judd star in this family drama about a defiant
son's fight against all odds and the lesson
that anything worth having is worth
fighting for. Matt ("Mrs. Doubtfire") and
Andy ("Jack Frost") Lawrence co-star.
Duane Clark directs a script by Paul
Canterna; Mike Curb ("Wedding Bell
Blues") produces. (Independent Artists,
4/21 NY/LA/Dallas/Miami)
Exploitips: Invite a local genealogical
society to set up a booth in your lobby as a
play on this film's name and encourage
families to attend by inviting kids to
illustrate
their own rudimentary family trees
with construction paper and crayons.
Third World Cop
See our January-issue Trailers. (Palm, 4/21
Croupier
Clive Owen ("The Rich Man's Wife")
stars in this thriller as a novelist working at
a roulette wheel who's seduced by a
woman who convinces him to join her in a
robbery scheme, an experience he writes
about in his next book. Alex Kingston (TV's
"ER") co-stars. Mike Hodges directs a script
by Paul Mayersberg; Jonathan Cavendish
and Christine Ruppert produce. (Shooting
Gallery, 4/21)
Exploitips: Set up a roulette wheel in the
lobby, giving away popcorn and soda
instead of cash to winners.
Home Is Where the Heart Is
In this dramedy, Natalie Portman
("Anywhere But Here") stars as a pregnant
teenager abandoned by her boyfriend at an
Oklahoma Wal-Mart with just over $7 in
her pocket on their way to California. She
decides to make the department store her
home. Ashley Judd ("Double Jeopardy"),
Stockard Channing ("Practical Magic") and
Joan Cusack ("Cradle Will Rock") co-star.
"Roseanne" creator Matt Williams makes
his directorial debut; "EDtv's" Lowell Ganz
and Babaloo Mandel script from the novel
by Billie Letts; Williams, Susan Cartsonis
and David McFadzean produce. (Fox, 4/28)
Exploitips: Although Portman was an
integral player in "The Phantom Menace, " a
boxoffice blowout we won't soon forget,
her last outing, "Anywhere But Here," was
a boxoffice disappointment, earning just
over $18 million on a budget of $23 million,
despite her pairing with Susan
Sarandon. Avoid a similar fate with this film
by coordinating with a local Wal-Mart for a
community sleepover at the store under the
premise that it's an experiment to see if a
person could actually live there.
Things You Can Tell
Just by Looking at Her
This romantic dramedy stars Cameron Diaz
("Any Given Sunday"), Calista Flockhart ("A
Midsummer Night's Dream"), Glenn Close
(
"Cookie's Fortune"),
Holly Hunter ("Living
Out Loud") and Kathy
Baker ("The Cider
House Rules") in
2interwoven
stories
about love and loss.
Cinematographer
Rodrigo Garcfa
("Body Shots") makes
his screenwriting and
directorial debut; Jon
Avnet, who ex produced "Inspector
Gadget," produces. (MGM, 4/28)
Exploitips: "Things You Can Tell Just by
Looking at Her" premiered at Sundance in
January, an appropriate forum considering
it originated at the Sundance Institute's
Screenwriting Lab in 1998. It also spearheaded
MCM's repositioning of United
Artists as its specialty label, which will now
produce or acquire eight films a year with
budgets of less than $20 million.
Committed
Heather Graham ("Austin Powers: The
Spy Who Shagged Me") tops this romantic
comedy as a woman who journeys 2,000
miles to retrieve her midlife crisis-suffering
husband. Casey Affleck ("Drowning Mona")
and Luke Wilson ("Blue Streak") co-star. Lisa
Krueger ("Manny & Lo") writes and directs;
"Manny & Lo's" Dean Silvers and Marlen
Hecht produce. (Miramax, 4/28)
Exploitips: Graham's character is touted
here as "the most committed woman in
America." Coordinate with a local radio
station, challenging callers to knock her off
her throne with their true-life stories of
commitment, offering them movie tickets
for their trouble.
James Caviezel ("The Thin Red Line")
stars in this sci-fi thriller as a police officer
who receives a ham radio message from a
fireman, only to realize it's his own father,
played by Dennis Quaid ("Any Given
Sunday"), calling on the day he died in
1969. Gregory Hoblit ("Fallen") directs a
script by Toby Emmerich; Howard Koch
(who executive produced Hoblit's "Primal
Fear"), Hoblit and Emmerich produce.
(New Line, 4/28)
Exploitips: Emmerich is the president of
music at New Line. This is his first screenplay.
Cooperate with a local music store to
give out copies of the soundtrack, which
Emmerich will likely have a hand in.
Gossip
See our September 1999-issue
(Warner Bros., 4/28)
Trailers.
Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Luis Buriuel ("Belle de Jour") writes and
directs this reissue about a group of upper-middle
class friends whose dinner plans are continually
interrupted by increasingly surreal events.
Jean-Claude Carriere scripts. (Rialto, 4/28)
Exploitips: Book this one as a double bill
with one of Buhuel's other films.
Not One Less
Zhang Yimou ("Shanghai Triad") directs
this comic fable about a 13-year-old girl
hired to teach the village schoolchildren in
the teacher's absence and is determined not
to allow one more student to drop out of
class. Wei Minzhi, Zhang Huike, Tian
Zhenda and Gao Enman, all non-professionals
playing the roles they have in life, star.
Shi Xiangshen scripts based on his novel;
Zhao Yu produces. (Sony Classics, 4/28)
Exploitips: "Not One Less" won the top
prize, the Golden Lion, at the 1999 Venice
Film Festival and made its North American
debut at Sundance in January.
Texas Rangers
James Van Der Beek ("Varsity Blues ") and
Dylan McDermott ("Three to Tango") lassoed
the leads in this historical Western about a
ragtag posse of cowboys who banded together
after the Civil War to clean up the West.
Ashton Kutcher (TV's "That '70s Show"),
Robert Patrick ("The Faculty"), Randy Travis
("Black Dog") and Usher Raymond ("Light It
Up") round up the cast.
Steve Miner ("Lake
Placid") directs a script by John Milius ("Clear
and Present Danger"); Alan Greisman
("Fletch Lives") and Frank Price ("Circle of
Friends") produce. (Miramax, April undated)
Exploitips: In a role for which he was paid
$200,000, Van Oer Beek led "Varsity Blues"
to an unexpected $50-plus million, and his
hot-ticket status resurrected "Texas Rangers"
from production hell. The pic had originally
been set up years ago at Columbia, where it
was expected to be the last film by director
Sam Peckinpah. It then moved to Sawy
Pictures, where it was intended to be the startup's
first big picture in 1993. Once Van Der
Beek was attached (this time for a low sevenfigure
sum), though, interest in the script
resurfaced, and Dimension Films picked it
up. A surefire hit among teens, promote this
Western to other demos by dressing your staff
up in boots, chaps and spurs and offering discounts
to patrons who do likewise.
The Wisdom of Crocodiles
See our September 1999-issue
(Miramax, April undated NY/LA)
Trailers.
The Yards
Mark Wahlberg ('Three Kings") leads a
multi-generational cast in this mystery as an
ex-con fresh out of prison whose attempts to
lead a straight life are thwarted by the corrupt
family business, loaquin Phoenix ("8MM"),
Charlize Theron ("The Cider House Rules"),
Faye Dunaway ("The Messenger"), Ellen
Burstyn ("Playing by Heart") and lames Caan
("Mickey Blue Eyes") co-star. James Gray
("Little Odessa") directs as well as scripts
with Matt Reeves ("The Pallbearer"). Nick
Wechsler ("The Player"), Paul Webster
("Gridlock'd") and Kerry Orent ("Cop Land")
produce. (Miramax, April undated)
Exploitips: This pic boasts a cast that virtually
guarantees crossover among demos:
Dunaway, Burstyn and Caan for the mature
and distaff sets and Wahlberg, Phoenix and
Theron for the young, hip crowd. This
month's "Rules of Engagement," "U-571"
and "Where the Money Is" will be formidable
opponents.
20 BOXOFHCE

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Cover
A LITTLE ZLICE
OF KEVIN
With "The Big Kahuna" and "Ordinary Decent Criminal"
Slated For Release and Odds in His Favor For Another Oscar Nod,
Kevin Spacey's Millennium is Off to a Divine Start
by.Francesca Dinglasan
hen
201

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SPECIAL SERIES: 2001-2010
NEW CINEMA DESIGN
The Future of Theatre Architecture.
Is Now.
e crystal ball
lext 10 years of
uc»ign," and you're
likely to rediscover the new-andimproveW-'pasti.
BOXOHKK surveyed some of
?
the industry's top architects and
designers and found many predicting
trends that hark back to an earlier
era. Some see the return of the
balcony, a hallmark of the days of
double features and back-row
courting. Others see the resurrection
of services such asmfl^
the downscaling i
replacing the 24- and 3JH
megaplex, not with the single
screens of old bi
less grandiose numbers.
All these visions are influenced
by the most contemporary of
advances. There's room for those
romantic balconies, they say,
because the projection room will
He obsolete with the advent of
PPPrnativc modes of projection.
Patrons will reserve their seats and
order their movie dinners over the
by Melissa Morrison
1
count is si
tested the 1
architects suggest that these theatres
building anc
will adapt the newly available
might indeed
Whatev
..ill natur*
ough,
to build
area in order to expand their services.
For example, it could be converted
into a food-service area for
upon the s
ous decade.
"Right r">
the previpresident
more elaborate preparation, or into
e room for use by parties or
ses. Some cinema operators
expecting tl
_ .mply use it for storage. But
Olson, vice of Gould the most mentioned use is the
Evans Goo'ima" n aiL which designs return of thTbalcony.
about 75 percent i5f AMC Theatres' "I remember, way back when I was
new sites. "Nowc.t iw that someone has a kid^e had big plush theaters with
sat in a big cumnfortable chair, ex pe-
rienced stadium
gotten he ..
balconies," savs Thomas Berkes,
fully J
they're going toij
next
that the future hold ere we c
lf you had to boil down most cinebe
this one: digil
revolutionize the movie theatre
industry in the same way stadium
seating did a few years ago," says
David Mesbur, partner in Toronto's
Mesbur & Smith Architects.
Digital projection will do away
with celluloid prints and thus the
machines required to show them.
Perhaps studios w'» »w«m tr
tal films via sat
which will download theu _
puters; perhaps they will deliver them
via DVD. Though no one is certain
exactly what form digital projectioi
will take ultimately, most speak as
confidently as Andy Youngquist,
president of Costa Mesa, Calif. -
based Birtcher C onsti uc4fch«as to
the physical result: \lfHf 1
"The mezzanine and pre
area that we _.
*** ;
llv can be elimi-
a box for six people, a
in, which is more private, «
.4
different pricing system and ...
food and beverage service."
'-nilds, not having a proleans
cheaper construction
costs and more desig'
freedom for architects. Says Olso.
of Gould Evans Goodman: "W
have a whole new opportunity t
create a more efficient buildi
lot less expensive
only would blueprints no longe
have to acco
ilUBBHiNM I

(here ol older people who ure much
more sophisticated in their taste
seating
u
and hells and whistles and video
games and noise," Mesbur says.
That means lobbies offering quieter
amenities such as sushi bars a«H
bookstores. He points to the st
of the Beach, a Toronto ci
built by Alliance Atlantis, that
hires both, along with evening
to nuances by a jazz combo.
»a Montague, whose I>
tague Design Group has decor
many United Artists thea,
rs, says melding ad
. with convenience will
resurgence of the movie
rybody's lifestyle is
..ho has time to eat dii
with their spouse and go
.isit
movie?" asks the Irving, Te
based designer. "But, if you ca
that in one place, you can ha,
nice night out. Movie grills are
i
initely the wave of the future."
says grills are particularly att
the as a niche for older thea
with limited screens who can't c
pete with multi- and megaplexe
terms of number of movie choic
m Lefler, senior vice presH
irtcner. would mid add beer and •
o. perhaps served
a private mezzai
And make sure? the seats are plu
and bigger, he adds, for o
patrons who expect more con
thsin do their younger counterpa
DOWNSIZll
THE MEGA PL
t
If the hj> decade of the 1
defined bv the megaplex,
s
2000s promi!
aling back. Thes
ideal l>eingMHfind one-half to t
third of those numbers.
"The perfect size right now is
probably 16 to 18 screens," Olson
iv« "It becomes sort of the perfect
..w.jry, getting the big screens in
there but not paying too much for
them.... When it got up to the 24-
and 30s, it just was too hard to tp
<
intain that type of crowd."
__Sei«ral architects and desigrci|,cU
clients who weren't able
^Bheir mcgaplcxcs at capa
^ off-peak times, which makes
ng them an expensive propo-
March. 2000 25

s^>^#
sition. "I don't know anyone building
30-plexes anymore," says
Tucker Trotter, vice president of
Dimensional Innovations in
Overland Park, Kan. "Many
exhibitors have found that a $20
million or $30 million 30-plex does
not actually create a higher profit
margin than a 14-plex."
Screen numbers are also constrained
by location. Aging existing
theatres that, however, are nestled
in desirable spots might not have the
room to expand, but they're in too
good a location to abandon. So they
turn to designers such as Birtcher's
Lefler to retrofit them with highquality
sound and seats.
yp-^m *A1

and he notes that three- and fourlevel
cinemas are already in existence
up north in San Francisco and
across the border in Canada.
And, while the nation's metropolises
become saturated with screens,
exhibitors will turn to smaller cities,
which, likewise, can accommodate
similarly scaled theatres, not 30s.
Mesbur says, "There's a big push
away from large urban centers,
which are almost overscreened right
now, and into smaller centers. The
impetus will be digital technology,
which will allow that to happen in
an economical manner, opening up a
whole new market."
Digital technology will facilitate
such builds by axing the need for
physical prints; therefore, fdms can
be beamed as easily to Albuquerque
on opening day as to Chicago.
SCREENS:
BIG AND BIGGER?
Just as cinema sound made giant
strides in the past 10 years, many
predict visuals will do likewise in the
next 10. For most, that means
screens will get bigger and presentation
more enveloping. Olson says
that the IMAX format will go mainstream,
as studios recognize its popularity
so far. "I see more theatres
with a combination of IMAX and
regular screens," he says.
Berkes is more dubious of giant
screen becoming the norm— "I know
IMAX is in, but I don't think that
would be for mass audiences"—but
he echoes the idea that theatre visuals
will evolve. "Maybe the next step
is 3-D without the glasses."
Changing projection methods and
changing screen size will ripple out
into seating configurations, which,
in turn, will change auditorium
shape, he says. It's too early to tell
how, Berkes adds.
Chris Jacobsen, president of
Glatz-Jacobsen Theatre Design
Consultants in Arvada, Colo., is
skeptical. Larger screens make for
uncomfortable viewing, in his experience.
"It's like reading a newspaper
with your nose touching the page,"
he says. "You can't focus enough."
Besides, he adds, he's seen such
claims come to nothing before.
"It seems history always repeats
itself, and certainly it does in the
motion picture industry," says
Jacobsen, whose partner, Mel
Glatz, began building cinemas
between the world wars. "Forty
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years ago, they were experimenting
with making screens that were
giants, that would fill a room wallto-wall,
floor-to-ceiling. At the
time, the technology didn't exist to
get the image there with clarity."
A similar attempt was made in
the '80s by AMC, Jacobsen recalls.
"They had all these whiz-bang
ideas—'Let's make screens real
big!'... The technology existed, but
they didn't know how to do it.
"All of a sudden, AMC had the
same problem as 40 years ago: a
huge screen, but they can't get an
image on it," he says. "So those
regressions over past history are
going to happen again."
STADIUM SEATING:
DOWNHILL INCLINE?
Stadium seating is the sport utility
vehicle of '90s cinema design;
everyone who's anyone has it. But,
just as with the SUV, complaints
about safety and expense have
begun rumbling on the horizon, and
some predict this fixture of contemporary
cinema design will go the
way of the earlier gas guzzlers.
Stadium seating is too expensive,
they say. The steps it requires present
the possibility of accidents and,
thus, lawsuits. It limits seating configurations
for optimal sightlines.
"It's such a hassle—so much money
and time and space wasted in those
buildings," Jacobsen says.
Lawrence Dworkin, whose New
York, N.Y. construction firm has
built General Cinemas' sites, says
the end of the rake is near. "It's
going to be phased out, because it's
twice as expensive to build."
The Canadian-based Mesbur and
Smith aren't quite as adamant on
the subject, but the partners do see a
relaxation of American building
codes that will give seating designers
more leeway. Mesbur says that,
outside of the United States, where
codes are more liberal, one can
achieve a stadium theatre with better
visibility, more consistent sightlines,
and a less precipitous rake of
the floor. The result is viewing that
is more comfortable for the audience,
particularly for elderly or disabled
patrons who have difficulty
negotiating stairs.
"It becomes much more audiencefriendly,"
he says.
Specifically, current building
code, Smith says, is too restrictive in
terms of tread and riser heights. "In
DESIGNER
PREDICTIONS
& PROPHECIES
In our conversations, we came
across a few especially notable
forecasts of the cinema's future.
We present four of them below.
• Portable theatres. Some
movie theatres could eventually
break from their moorings and
hit the road, according to architect
Thomas Berkes, just like
the oldtimers of the 1910s and
1920s. But this time out it would
not be a jalopy and a sheet; it
would resemble a motor home,
traveling to remote locations,
where collapsible bleachers
would be assembled on-site. "It
can go on a freeway or a highway,"
he says. "You set it up
anywhere and run a film for a
few days...and then move on."
• Internet transactions. "You
will be able to sit in your house
and decide the time you want to
go to a particular film, pick the
seat you want to sit in, and
order your menu off the web,"
says Andrew Youngquist, president
of Birtcher Construction,
who expects internet transactions
to free up cinema space in
several ways.
You won't, for example, need
as large a lobby area or as many
concession stands. "You walk in,
merely say your name, and they
know what time you're going to
be there—so your food service is
already prepared, and you just
walk into theatre," he says.
• Motorized seats. Youngquist
also pictures the theatres of the
near future being equipped with
chairs from which vibrations and
sounds will emanate. "You will
actually become a part of the cinema
itself," he says.
• Crying rooms. Youngquist
sees a resurrection of soundproof
rooms, where mothers can
watch the film with their babies
without disturbing other patrons.
"I think people want that
privacy of not having a baby
crying in their ear when they're
viewing a love story."
28 BOXOFFK I

the perfect stadium seating for optimal
sightlines, you have to have little
variation in treads and riser
heights," he says. "Actually it's
safer. You get a gentler curve."
Smith says he plans to approach
building officials to lobby for such
changes. "I think it'll happen
gradually. It's like Buckminster
Fuller, who compared himself to
the rudder on an ocean liner: He
puts his foot out a bit and the liner
turns very slowly."
THE EVOLUTION
OF LOBBIES
Although a cinema's heart is the
darkened auditorium in which a
movie flickers, its face is its lobby
the feature that patrons notice first
and the one that defines a particular
cinema's public image. Montague,
the Lone Star-based interior designer,
sees a shift from the bright colors
and flashing lights that she's been
doing for the past 14 years.
"There are more baby boomers
out there," she says. "I know a lot
of my friends who are baby
boomers don't feel comfortable in
those brightly colored, flashy theatres....
Life is getting more hectic...
Everyone's trying to get more
comfortable and relax more. I
think they can do it in more understated
interiors."
Montague predicts a return to
natural finishes and metals, and
more curving lines and subdued colors.
"A good example would be
what Cinemark is doing with their
interiors," she says. "They're taking
elements of the old movie theatres
of the '30s and '40s, and making
them grander, more Art Deco,
more Art Nouveau."
Jim Baker, president of Dimensional
Innovations, and Trotter, his
design vice president, say theatres
will need impressive lobbies even
more in the upcoming decade in
order to distinguish themselves from
the competition. Offers Trotter,
"There's a need for theatre companies
to come up with other ways to
get people in there, other than just
showing movies."
Trotter points to themed interiors
and three-dimensional attractions
that make the entertainment experience
begin the minute the patron
steps through the door. "People go
to movies so they can escape," he
says. "Disneyworld and Disneyland
and Las Vegas are really good
examples of places that have created
environments that take you away
to another world."
Trotter and Baker suggest that
Disney is more than an entertainment
inspiration; it's an economic
one as well. Says Baker, "If you
look at Disneyworld, casinos and
other themed entertainment businesses..
.they seem completely recession-proof
and bulletproof as a
company. That says to me that the
public will still pay to go into a highly
themed, sensory-overloaded environment
to be entertained."
A BIT OFHEMINGWAY:
A CLEAN
WELL-LIGHTED PLACE
"Smaller and better" seems to
be the mantra for the first decade
of this big new millennium.
Cinema designers are preparing
for the new age by taking the best
of the past and blending it with the
latest technology.
Then again, according to a veteran
of the industry, cinema success in
2010 may come down to a simple
roll of toilet paper. "The function of
the motion picture industry is the
need to entertain the public and
need to do it in a first-class way,"
says Jacobsen of Glatz-Jacobsen.
"They don't have to spend outrageous
amounts of money to build a
fancy building, because people
aren't coming to see the building;
they're coming to see what's on
inside. They need to keep clean,
well-lighted restrooms that don't
smell," he says. "That's the kind of
stuff that hampers the success of
the theatre business.
"They need to do what they do
better, and they need to get over
this latest techno-whiz stuff," says
Jacobsen. "They never want to
spend enough money to have a
good toilet paper roll, but those
are the kind of things that fail and
the kind of things that make people
unhappy."
SBM
Images in this story (in order of
appearance) are from: Loeks-Star
(exterior, Southfield, Mich.);
Showcase (neon sign. Orange,
Conn.); Cinemark (hallway);
Loews (Hollywood sign, Sony
IMAX, New York); Muvico (grill,
Pompano Beach, Fla.); Century
(exterior. Orange, Calif).
Good booth service techs I
can generate a wide
range of emotions
among managers. Most
often, ours is
CONFIDENCE.
*
Theater service from a new
perspective YOURS !
1-800-310-7940
service@ddts.com
1-877-FAX-DDTS
Ifs your money.
Response No. 530
Response No 1
March. 2000 29

j
SPECIAL REPORT: Barometer 2000
DATELINE 1999
Charting Our Year's Hottest News & Quotes
Compiled by Francesca Dinglasan, Annlee Ellingson and Kim Williamson
JANUARY ISSUE
-< -j
EXHIBITION: The:
last year of the 20th I
century began with:
Michigan-based;
Loeks-Star Theatres;
president Barrie Law- i
son Loeks replacing:
Georgia Theatre
j
Co.'s William Stem-;
bier as chairman of:
NATO. Additionally.;
Regal Cinemas, the'""""
world's largest theatre circuit, continued
its expansion by announcing new multiplex
openings in California, Ohio and
Florida.
DISTRIBUTION: When Seagram Co.
purchased Polygram NV for $10.4 billion,
*"
the conglomerate became the world's
largest music company, but it found that
Polygram's film divisions were redundant
within a company that already owned
Universal and October. The company
eventually divvied up its superfluous
assets over the course of the year, selling
PFE's film library to MGM for $250 million;
its television catalogue to Carlton Communications
for $1 50 million; and Polygram.
Gramercy and October to USA Networks
chairman Barry Diller, who lumped the
assets under his newly dubbed USA Films
banner, for another $150 million.
SUPPLIERS: In cooperation with THX.
Dolby Laboratories introduced its 6.1-
channel Dolby Digital Surround EX.
which adds a speaker directly behind the
audience. Meanwhile, Kodak announced its
new ScreenCheck Experience program,
intended to certify screens they way THX
certifies sound systems.
INTERNATIONAL: Sweden-based
media titan Bonnier's exhibition arm
reached across the Atlantic to the ski
resort town of Aspen by breaking ground
on a five-screen, 900-seat complex. The
Colorado-sited theatre was the first of a
new circuit dubbed Resort Theatres of
America, a co-venture between Bonnier's
SF Bio and Hollywood producer Brad
Krevoy. Also reaching across an ocean
this time, the Pacific—was Kansas Citybased
AMC, which revealed plans to open
more multiplexes throughout Japan.
HEARD HERE: Taking a moment to
speak of his old films during an interview
otherwise focusing on Sony Classics'
then-upcoming release of "Tango."
Spanish director Carlos Saura told
BOXOFFICE, "I don't see them and I
don't reflect on them. It's interesting
because I'm very interested in memory—but
other people's memories, not
mine. I admire some directors who are
always reflecting on their work. Charles
Chaplin, for example. When I lived with
Geraldine [Chaplin's daughter] in his
house, almost every afternoon we
watched his old films. So. when they first
stuck them on, he might not have exactly
been there but he. always at some
point, came in and watched himself. He
always felt good watching his old movies
with his family all around him.
FEBRUARY ISSUE
-<
EXHIBITION:;
The month of
j
February saw ex- i
hibition growth via :
Dallas-based!
Cinemark's foray
j
into Mexico City;
j
expansion reducj
tion
as theatre circuit
Hoyts announced
that it
would abate
growth rate in the
U.S. in an effort to cut debt; and an arthouse
circuit launch with partners Robert
Redford and GC Companies Inc. unveiling
plans for the first Sundance Cinema
center to bow in Pennsylvania.
DISTRIBUTION: Citing poor boxoffice
performance, particularly of the
pricey "Meet Joe Black" and "Babe: Pig
in the City," Universal let go of Frank
Biondi and Casey Silver, tapping Ron
Meyer to take over both men's duties.
The company had closed the Decemberending
quarter $65 million in the red,
compared with a $98 million profit the
year before. Across town. Sony Pictures
launched Screen Gems, a label expected
to produce six small- to mid-budget pictures
a year.
SUPPLIERS: Boasting a 30 percent
boost in user sessions to 1 10 million in
1998. MovieFone amplified its relationships
with Loews, United Artists and
AMC. increasing the number of the circuits'
screens for which customers can purchase
advanced tickets via the phone oi
Internet by 1,000 to 3,600 total.
INTERNATIONAL: Circuits clamored to
help fill the void in the underscreened
countries of Russia and Italy with Golden
Ring Entertainment announcing its intent
to build two new multiplexes in Moscow
and Warner Village Cinemas unveiling an
ambition plan to construct 25 multiplexes
throughout the Boot. Hong Kong,
although suffering from regional economic
difficulties, was also targeted as a site for
new cinema builds with AMC bowing an
1 1-plex and United Artists adding 30 new
screens to the city.
HEARD HERE: Even while providing a
window back onto the early 1960s. BOX-
OFFICE gave our readers what turned out
to be even more advance notice than we
usually accomplish in a story timed for the
March 1999 re-release of "A Hard Day's
Night"—the Fab Four comedy that
Miramax now plans to reissue in 2001 —
via text from the book "The Beatles: An
Oral History." Recalled director Richard
Lester of the movie"s genesis, "The deal
was that, if we got it into the cinemas
before the beginning of July [1964], then
they would make it because they, the music
department of United Artists, felt the
Beatles probably wouldn't last the summer.
We are talking about Britain, ol
course [pre-Sullivan appearance]. So we
started shooting in February. We had tc
make the film, cut it. dub it. and all of it ir
a very short period. We had to do it quickly
so that the company wasn't left with z
film about some has-beens."
MARCH ISSUE
EXHIBITION:
Landmark Theatres,
the nation's largest
art-house chain, announced
that it would
finally penetrate the i
specialty
film-friendly
city of New York
;
with a state-of-thej
art theatre on the :
Lower East Side. Al- <
so on the move was San Rafael, Calif-basecj
Century Theatres, which reported new pie:
openings in Nevada. Texas. California. Utah.
Colorado and Alaska throughout 1998.
30 BOXOFFICE

DISTRIBUTION: Following a seven-year
industry trend. 1998's boxoffice receipts
reached a new high of S6.88 billion, surpassing
1997's record gross of $6.37 billion
by 9.9 percent. Admissions, too. were up 5.5
percent to nearly 1.39 billion, marking the
highest number of tickets sold since 1959.
SUPPLIERS: Handing over S3 1 million in
stock and a seat on its board of directors.
Boca Raton. Fla. -based Big Entertainment
acquired Times Mirror's Hollywood
Online, folding all of the online vendor's
resources into hollywood.com. Also, in the
single largest purchase commitment in its
68-year history. Ballantyne of Omaha
inked a deal to supply a minimum of 2.000
complete projection systems to Regal
Cinemas over the next two years.
INTERNATIONAL: Rumors speculating
that German cinema group Kinowelt
Medien was interested in taking over
Belgium-based exhibitor Kinepolis abounded,
resulting in a six percent increase in the
Belgian circuit's stocks. Also, electronics
giant Sony Corp. announced plans to establish
a cinema operations arm in its native
Japan. The company said it would model its
new chain after Loews Cineplex
Entertainment, which handles Sony's multiplexes
tin North America.
HEARD HERE: "For Line, the look is
kind of like Lenny Kravitz: tight pants.
funky boots, browns and oranges." That's
how Omar Epps described the fashion of
his Lincoln Hayes in the 75-year-old
MGM's "The Mod Squad." Of the original
TV show, Epps said, "In '68. there was
so much going on politically, as far as
youth being active. That was the premise
of the show: a black guy, a white guy and
a while girl kicking ass together, fighting
the power. I think it's coming back now.
that youth are politically aware today."
APRIL ISSUE
EXHIBITION:
Investment firm Warburg
Pincus announced
that it would
put Mann up for sale
after just a year of
the studio. Meanwhile, producer Joel
Silver and director Robert Zemeckis
formed Dark Castle Entertainment, a
Warner Bros.-based production company
dedicated to mid-budget horror pics,
including a remake of Williams Castle's
"House on Haunted Hill."
SUPPLIERS: MovieFone surprised the
industry and Wall Street by announcing its
sudden decision to sell to Internet giant
American Online, which acquired the web
ticketer for S388 million in stock.
INTERNATIONAL: Russian film production
and exhibition industries received a
series of tax breaks designed to foster their
growth. Implemented to restore Russia's
formerly prosperous film production
industry, the tax changes, were scheduled
after three years. Meanwhile,
to end
Australia-based Hoyts announced plans to
sell its U.S. extension numbering approximately'
900 screens
HEARD HERE: Saying she "never
thought a period piece could be so sexy,"
actress Salma Hayek described how she
was "tricked" into wearing a "lingerie sort
of thing from the 1800s" in Warner's summer
popcorner "Wild Wild West." "What
happens at one point [is] I'm in some sort
of sexy outfit because the bad guy
Kenneth [Branagh] plays has all these girl's
handling him, and they're really sexy. And
at one point they capture me and put me in
a really sexy outfit, and put me in a cage
for him. But then 1 get rescued, and they
take me with them—but I don't have anything
to wear, so I'm stuck in this outfit."
MAY ISSUE
EXHIBITION: Chestnut
Hill. Mass.-based i
General Cinemas was
i
chosen to operate,
j
manage and market
j
the Seattle landmark i
Cinerama theater,
i
Paul Allen's Vulcan
j
Northwest decided to
'<
purchase the historic
>-
theatre in February 1998 and embarked on
a multimillion dollar renovation meant to
establish it as one of the premiere technologically-equipped
movie venues in the
world.
DISTRIBUTION: After having its claims
to a live-action Spider-Man movie dismissed
by a Los Angeles Superior Court
judge. MGM opted not to appeal and risk
i
ownership. Some observers
a countersuit by comic book publisher
pointed to
the recent financial
Marvel, giving up any claims to a webslinger
movie
for a reported 52 million.
losses suffered by Also, Sony bowed a family division, and
the exhibition indus- *~
whole one
BOXOFFICE reported on the death of
try as a as possibility for Stanley Kubrick ("Eves Wide Shut").
Warburg's decision while others speculated SUPPLIERS: A U.S. Court dismissed
that policies implemented by Mann CEO Dolby Laboratories' lawsuit against Smart
Jeffrey Lewine, including a change regarding
Devices alleging that Smart's CM333 mod-
the company's relationships with which decodes Dolby SR motion pic-'
ule,
Paramount and Warner Bros., impacted ture encoded soundtracks, uses noise
Warburg's sentiment toward the chain. reduction technologies covered by Dolby
DISTRIBUTION: Columbia Pictures patents. Later. Dolby accused the cinema
inked a landmark deal with Hollywood sound company of alleged false advertising
screenwriters, guaranteeing them a cut of
and trademark infringement for use of
the gross receipts on films they write for the pharse "Surround EX." a suit that was
eventually settled out of court.
INTERNATIONAL: Springtime saw
Universal Studios announce its plans to
retain international distribution with
Polygram Filmed Entertainment, while
Warner Village's flagship 18-screener in
Italy posted record admission numbers
with approximately 375.000 tickets sold in
just two months of operation. Warner also
made a splash in Japan, with its local cinema
arm. Warner Mycal Corp.. opening six
new multiple-sereeners.
HEARD HERE: BOXOFFICE was at the
Oscar ceremonies, and among our favorite
quotes were those from a barely tuxedo'd
Roberto Benigni (we think ecstasj might
have popped the other jacket button), who
said o\' his best actor award. "How can I
explain the emotion and the exuberance?
The ocean of gratitude that 1 have for this?
The wonderfulness of this happiness this
is irrepeatable." Of the tense weeks of
post-nom wailing that preceded her best
actress victory, a pretty-in-pink Gwyneth
Paltrow said. "You get a nomination, and
it's the most extraordinary thing. And then
it sort of occurs to you. "Why are they
making us go through this? They should
just stop after the nominations.'"
JUNE ISSUE
EXHIBITION:
Hollywood producer.
Brad Krevoy, former
AMC Entertainment
president Ron Leslie,
longtime theatre executive
Peter Fornstam
and law firm head
and real estate attorj
ney Richard Law- ; >-
rence finalized the establishment of Resort
Theatres of America, a circuit with plans to
open multiplexes in vacation resorts throughout
the country. Krevoy was appointed as
chairman of the new circuit, Leslie was
named company's president and CEO,
Fornstam heads international operations and
Lawrence acts Resort's eeneral counsel.
DISTRIBUTION: After nearly two years
of lawsuits. Sony and MGM settled their
battle over James Bond out of court.
Under the complicated agreement. Sony
paid MGM $5 million to stop the litigation,
but MGM paid Sony twice that to
acquire all outstanding rights to the lucrative
franchise. The dispute began in 1997
when Sony announced that it was launching
a competing 007 franchise based on
right it had purchased from Kevin
McClory. who collaborated with Ian
Fleming on the "Thunderball" script and
claims to be a co-creator of the cinematic
Bond. Across town. Barry Reardon retired
from his presidency at Warner Bros.
Domestic Theatrical Distribution.
SUPPLIERS: Shortly after its acquisition
by BigE. Hollywood Online sold 35 percent
of its company to CBS in exchange
for $100 million in promotional and content
support over the next seven years.
INTERNATIONAL: International growth
was the name of the game as Londonbased
Virgin Cinemas revealed a five-year
plan to expand into the United States.
Ireland and Japan and German-based
exhibitor Cinemaw announced that it
would construct two new multiplexes in
Denmark. Other exhibitors, however,
chose to stay close to home, especially in
the Bool, with Naples-based Stella Film
March. 2000 31

and Carlo Bernaschi forming a new multiplex
partnership as well as France-based Pathe and
domestic exhibitor VIS forming a joint venture
to develop new plexes throughout Italy.
HEARD HERE: Speaking to us two months
before the release of what became the most
successful animated film for Disney since
"The Lion King," "Tarzan" producer Bonnie
Arnold said, "At times, it's a bit daunting.
Disney is going to do the story of Tarzan,
and all of a sudden that becomes the new
interpretation of Tarzan. People knew the
Cinderella story before Disney's 'Cinderella.'
but that becomes the defining one. These
days, if you think of Aladdin, most likely you
think of Disney's Aladdin." There's sort of
the weight of having to live up to what's come
before you." The spirits were with them,
though, given that the character's creator had
long been on their side: Imagining a cartoon
version of his Jungle King, writer Edgar Rice
Burroughs in a 1936 letter opined of the project,
"The cartoon must be good. It must
approximate Disney excellence."
JULY ISSUE
EXHIBITION:
William Kartozian,
who served as the president
of NATO for
years, made the surj
i
prising announcement
that he would step i
down from his position :
at the end of 2000. He
i
described his decision
•
to leave the organiza-
'"
*"
tion as "a gut feeling" and a move he
"believe[d] is right." Another significant summer
announcement was that Dallas-based
Cinemark would be put up on the auction
block. Circuit owners Cypress Group, which
holds a 44 percent stake; company founder
and CEO Lee Roy Mitchell, who holds 51
percent; and circuit management, which
holds the remaining five percent asked for a
purported SI. 6 billion for the 2.300-screen
chain.
DISTRIBUTION: Although MGM chairman
Frank Mancuso had made no secret
about wanting to retire early and had ardently
been seeking a successor for some time, it
sill came as somewhat of a surprise when
majority owner Kirk Kerkorian suddenly
replaced him with MGM Grand president
and COO Alex Yemenidjian. Vice chairman
Robert Pisano also resigned, and Universal
Studios president and COO Chris McGurk
stepped into the post.
SUPPLIERS: Sony Electronics and Panavision
Inc. announced a joint research and
development project that will develop a filmless,
digital camera in time for Lucasfilm Ltd.
to use on the second "Star Wars" prequel.
INTERNATIONAL: After months of investigation
by the European Commission, it
appeared that antitrust allegations leveled
against distribution partnership United Intl.
Pictures were about to be dropped due to
lack of sufficient evidence. However, stronger
in his case was Down Under media mogul
Kerry Packer, who was able to successfully
acquire a controlling stake of Oz circuit
Hoyts, despite then-CEO Peter Ivany's initial
resistance.
HEARD HERE: BOXOFFICE received
unconventional—and unconventionally
short—celebrities wishing to go on record in
our pages about their Columbia films:
Gonzo the Great and Elmo. Of his "Muppets
From Space" shoot, Gonzo revealed that the
project had experienced a goodly (or would
that be piggly) amount of creative conflict.
"There was a little tension between [Miss
Piggy and Andie MacDowell]. There's always
tension off-set, but it happened that there
was tension on-set. too.... Piggy has a little
problem with beautiful women." Meanwhile.
our favorite little red hot monster was discussing
one of the locales for "The
Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland"
Grouchland itself. "[On] Sesame Street, we
always try to clean up, keep our streets clean.
In Grouchland, they do just the opposite!
They throw trash around and. when they go
in the car wash, they dirty their cars instead
of clean them. It's just their nature!"
AUGUST ISSUE
EXHIBITION:
In
reaction to recent reproach
against the
entertainment industry
and its potential
role in the outbreak
of teen violence,
NATO implemented
an initiative that
would require younger
cinemagoers to provide
photo IDs
before gaining admissions to R-rated pics.
Also noteworthy was multiplex pioneer
AMC's announcement that it would scale
down the size of future projects. The company
cited difficulty in obtaining enough product
and providing adequate parking for 30-
screen theatres as reasons for the strategy
change.
DISTRIBUTION: Jeffrey Katzenberg won a
major legal battle in his lawsuit against the
Walt Disney Co. when the presiding judge
ruled that the studio breached contract with
him, requiring the Mouse House to pay him
a two percent bonus plus interest.
Katzenberg had left the company in 1994,
two years before his contract was up, and
Disney claimed he therefore gave up a bonus
that would have given him a share of all revenue
gleaned from projects instigated under
his reign. The two parties eventually settled
out of court for an undisclosed sum, which
insiders peg at between $250 million and
$275 million, including the $117 million
Disney had already paid.
SUPPLIERS: New Line Cinema reached an
unprecedented agreement with AOL. signing
a multi-million-dollar, long-term interactive
marketing deal with the Internet provider,
which will heavily advertise 15 to 20 of the
studio's films online.
INTERNATIONAL: American exhibition
giant Loews Cineplex Entertainment Corp.
announced the formation of two new partnerships
in Europe: One with Italian producer
and distributor Aurelio De Laurentiis,
which aims to build a new multiplex chain
throughout Italy; the other with Transturk
Holding A.S., which plans to construct and
operate cinemas in Turkey. Romania and the
Turkic Republics of the CIS. Also on
move was South Africa-based cinema ope
tor Ster Kinekor's European trading bra
Ster Century, which revealed plans to bt
nearly 100 new screens throughout Spain.
HEARD HERE: Aside from elsewhere ne
ly running us out of hyphens in our effort
elide his numerous anglo-saxonis:
Australian actor Russell Crowe described
Buena Vista film, "Mystery, Alaska," ii
markedly fits-and-starts fashion: "It's
hockey movie. Well, it's not really a hoc
movie. It's actually a woman's film coucl
in a hockey movie. It's a very hard movie
pin down for people because, really, it's ab
a town and it's about a group of people
really has very little to do with sports, exc
that part of the nature of this town is ba
on who plays this particular sport." Crc
went on to receive considerable critical prc
and Oscar-nomination forecasts for his f
for Buena Vista—in "The Insider." W
much greater directness, he landed
"Insider" role when he told Michael Ma
this about the director's considering him
the role: "You know, I think you're bein
little silly."
SEPTEMBER ISSUE
-< -,
EXHIBITION: In this:
issue, BOXOFFICE rej
i
ported the news that
AMC founder and
exhibition industry
i
trailblazer Stanley Dur-
\
wood passed away at
j
the age of 78. Among
;
his numerous career I
accomplishments i
were overseeing the
i
opening of the country's
first multiplex and the installation
concession stands within theatres. Also m
ing news was United Artists president
CEO Kurt Hall, who was named Pionee
the Year by the Foundation of Mot
Picture Pioneers.
DISTRIBUTION: Warner Bros co-h
honchos Bob Daly and Terry Semel stun
Hollywood when they announced that t
would not be renewing their contracts v
the studio and would be departing at the
of the year. Exec. VP and COO Barry Ms
was later named the new chairman and C
of the company, and former Castle R1
CEO Alan Horn was tapped as his seco
in-command as president and COO.
SUPPLIERS: New Line further capitali
on the boxoffice success of "Austin Pow
The Spy Who Shagged Me" by launching
online auction site that offered goodies s
as the film's Corvette convertible, which i
mately sold for $100,000. Other New I
film memorabilia is also up for sale, an
portion of the proceeds go to charity.
INTERNATIONAL: Some new del
opened, with three of Japan's largest don
tic film companies—Toho, Toei
Shochiku -reaching an agreement to c
struct and operate a cinema in the city
Sapporo, while others closed, namely
powerhouse Golden Harvest, which
nounced that it would shut down its 1<
subsidiary in Hong Kong after nearly
years of doing business in the city.
32 BOXOFFICE

; in full swing as
i
. Pacific
j
close about 37 under-
performing theatres
j
I
suppose a 1
I
vely actress Kelly Preston showed ofT not
ly her understanding of romance and the
ference between genders, but also her editskills
during her conversation with BO\-
FICE about Universale baseball film "For
ve of the Game." She described the relanship
of the two main characters—the
/friend, played by Kevin Costner, and the
(friend she played—this way: "Ultimately
believes that they're just different kinds of
>ple. They're two different types of people,
i he's always asking, "What do you want
to say?" And she says, 'You know. I can't
you what to say. I don't want you to say
nething just because I want to hear it. I
nt you from the bottom of your soul to tell
that we're meant for each other, that I
nt you more than anything." All the things
t a woman wants to hear. And a man
nts to hear. At least some men. You would
)e.
That's a dot-dot-dot sentence."
CTOBER ISSUE
HIBITION:
The
j
tie to dominate one i
L.A.'s most high
i
file neighborhoods
j
il circuits Mann i
both di-
I
»ed plans to be part
j
separate entertain-
;
it outlets located in i
.twood Village, i
ch has played host
ountless Hollywood premiers. Meanwhile,
ral major theatre circuits, including Regal.
TC. Carmike, AMC and Cinemark, reportess-than-stellar
second quarter results.
TRIBUTION: Walt Disney Pictures prered
"Tarzan" as the first-ever all-digital
or feature release a month after its initial
The film was produced, mastered and
ibited digitally in three locations with
as Instruments' DLP Cinema prototype
jection technology.
PPLIERS: The National Association of
iionaires swore in Skip Stefansen as
iident of the organization at its annual
vention. Stefansen replaced Norman
sler. who is now chairman of the board.
'ERNATIONAL: Indie circuit Australian
Itiplex Cinemas unveiled an aggressive
insion plan targeting the highly saturated
ket of Sydney. The Brisbane-based chain
ed to finance the construction of 32 to 48
screens in the country's largest city
mgh its initial public offering of AUSS50
ion (US$33 million). Also hot-to-trot was
Priya Village Roadshow, Village
dshow's joint venture with New Delhiid
Priya Exhibitors, which announced it
id construct and operate several multies
throughout India.
\RD HERE: Prompted by discussion of
New Line rom/com "The Bachelor,"
ance and the gender question were very
h on the mind of recent husband and
dad Chris O'Donnell. "A lot of the
'ie is about what a guy goes through when
ind of crosses over from his bachelor life
'lis married life, and the decision that's
Ie when you decide you want to get marand
propose. It's a major decision in any
guy's life 1 know it's a big decision for the
girls, but in general guys are a little more
reluctant to go in that direction than women.
Il seems like the women are always read)
before the guys. [That's] probably a pretty
stereotypical thing to say, but at least that's
the way it's been with my friends. Just
because the guys think they're wild men.
They love to build up their imaginations of
the wild life they live. It was something that
was very fresh in my mind through the whole
process, proposing to m\ wife."
NOVEMBER ISSUE
-< -.
EXHIBITION: Gen-
;
eral Cinema's parent i
company GC Cos.
j
announced plans for
i
i
heavy consolidation
in order to save an i
estimate $10 million
i
by the 2001 fiscal
year. The company
\
said it would sell or :
throughout
California, the South and the Northwest.
Also in trouble was Encino. Calif.-based
Mann Theatres parent WestStar Cinemas,
which filed for Chapter 1 1
DISTRIBUTION: After breaking records in
the months of June, July and August, last
summer's boxoffice reached a scorching $3
billion, beating the previous year's record by
nearly 20 percent. "The Phantom Menace"
was the top grosser during the May 7-to-
September 6 timeframe, raking in around
$420 million. Other top grossers include
"Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shaaaed Me"
(S205 million), "The Sixth Sense" ($175 million).
"Tarzan" ($165 million). "Big Daddy"
($160 million), "The Mummy" ($155 million),
"Runaway Bride" ($135 million), "The
Blair Witch Project" ($130 million). "Notting
Hill" ($115 million) and "Wild Wild West"
($110 million).
SUPPLIERS: The Imax Corporation purchased
all outstanding shares in Digital
Projection International, and Christie Inc.
acquired Electrohome Projection Systems.
INTERNATIONAL: Down Under circuits
Village Force and Hoyts. which each own
approximately 40 percent of the Kiwi market
share, announced that they would continue
with merger plans, despite adamant protests
from the country's governmental watchdog
Commerce Commission. Upon completion
of the deal, the new company would control
nearly 67 percent of New Zealand's boxoflice
revenues.
HEARD HERE: Filmmaker Anthony
Minghella. looking back on the past that led
up to him succeeding in Hollywood and making
"The Talented Mr. Ripley" for
Paramount, offered this reflection: "I have to
pinch myself sometimes, realizing what I'm
doing. My father was an ice-cream man. I
made myself up to do the things I wanted to
do—to write, to work with other people, to
practice an art. I've found them all in one job.
It happened by a series of luckv accidents. It's
been a long journey from the island, but then
'there are fools that stay where they are and
there are fools that keep moving,
Beckett said. Though I
film director shouldn't admit Samuel Beck',
is
his hero."
DECEMBER ISSUE
EXHIBITION:
Closing off the year.
AMC announced
plans to lay off 100 of
its employees and
shut down three of its
divisional offices. The
Kansas City-based
circuit estimated that
it would save $20 million
annually by consolidating
its offices
in Los Angeles. New Jersey and Florida into
its mam corporate headquarters as well as
reduce its general and administrative expenses
by 40 percent through the mass dismissal
of several of its regional workers. The company
took a $12 million charge for the fiscal
quarter as a result of its massive modifications.
DISTRIBUTION: Universal Pictures outlined
its international strategy for film and
video distribution, renewing its commitment
to distribute its films in Europe through
United International Pictures (U IP), its longterm
partnership with Paramount, for an
additional five years. Universal Pictures
International (UPI). the former international
arm of Polygram acquired by Universal, will
continue to pursue the production and acquisition
of European-based films, functioning
as Universal's London-based production,
acquisition and video distribution operation.
The move, however, was considered a blow to
the European film industry, effectively shutting
down UPI as a distributor.
SUPPLIERS: Iwerks announced that it
would be the exclusive distributor of 8/70
film format versions of four Sony Pictures
Classics large-format films. Also. Dolby
Laboratories reported record sales for the
1999 fiscal year, selling 7.000 film processors
and 4,600 Dolby Digital Surround EX
adapters and installing digital equipment on
23,400 cinema screens.
INTERNATIONAL: Richard Branson's
Virgin Group confirmed that it would sell a 50
percent stake in its cinema holdings in order to
raise funds for expansion. Another U.K.-based
chain. Odeon Cinemas, also went up on the auction
block. Although circuit sales were estimated
at £145 million (US$240 million), industry
observers were skeptical that Odeon's parent
company Rank would be able to secure its asking
price of £290 million (US$480 million).
HEARD HERE: During a beachfront conversation
with BOXOFFICE at Cannes, international
superstar Gong Li—there along the
Croisette in part to promote her Sony
Classics release, "The Emperor and the
Assassin'' had this to say about her description
as "the Greta Garbo of China": "People
keep pushing me to be the center of attention
would prefer to be on the sidelines because
that's where you see more. When youre in the
middle of everything, you lose perspective.
would actually be content just to hide behind
someone's back and observe." HI
March. 20(C)

SPECIAL REPORT:
Barometer Star Poll Results
34 Boxoiiki

JJj'iJjruce Willis obviously doesn't have
ddjjjjpsychic powers or he probably
Si? 1 would have foregone "Breakfast of
Champions" and "The Story of Us." But he
can thank his "Sixth Sense" for his position
as Male Star of the Year, as voted by you,
the BOXOFFICE reader. Willis is currently
starring in Warner Bros.' "The Whole Nine
Yards" as a hitman who moves to suburbia.
Next up is Buena Vista's "The Kid," in
which Willis' younger self visits his current
incarnation to impart advice; MCM's
"Outlaws," about two bank robbers who
fall for their kidnapping victim; and Buena
Vista's "Unbreakable," a reteaming with
"Sixth Sense" scripter M. Night Shyamalan
for a supernatural thriller in which a man
discovers something uncanny about himself
after a devastating accident. Sounds
like a "Sense"-ible move.
"The Green Mile's" Tom Hanks narrowly
missed the top spot in our poll, but it's not
as though his mantel is wanting for trophies.
Oscar's sure to take note of Hanks'
reverse DeNiro, losing 50 pounds for Fox's
Robert Zemeckis-helmed desert island
drama "Cast Away," after which he'll steal
the stage as Dean Martin in Warner Bros.'
Martin Scorsese-directed biopic "Dino."
In third is Kevin Spacey for his knockout
portrayal of a man with the midlife crisis
of the millennium in "American Beauty."
In April, Spacey will be seen in Lions
Gate's "The Big Kahuna," and set for a
holiday release this year is "Pay it
Forward," in which Spacey plays a
teacher who incites his students to good
deeds, ultimately transforming the town.
:::
111..
ffemale Star of the Year Julia Roberts
has "Runaway" with BOXOFFICE
readers' hearts who no doubt woud
love to tie the "Nott" with the beautiful
star of two of 1 999's biggest blockbusters.
After her success in the romantic comedies
"Runaway Bride" and "Notting Hill,"
Roberts takes a dramatic turn as a secretary
who exposes her law firm's cover-up
of a toxic waste spill in Universal's "Erin
Brokovich." And exhibitors will soon be
able to tear stubs for "The Moviegoer,"
co-starring Tim Robbins and written and
directed by Terrence Malick.
There's still something about secondplace
winner Cameron Diaz, who
astounded fans with her frowzy appearance
in "Being John Malkovich"; the subsequent
acclaim for her role in the bizarre
Dlack comedy proved that she's an actress
who doesn't need to go glam to turn
leads. And in "Any Given Sunday," she
howed a tough side that's bound to
resurface in Columbia's feature version of
"Charlie's Angels," where she'll be kickbutt
and taking names along with
Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu. Also comng
up for Diaz is New Line's "Things You
Can Tell Just By Looking At Her" and
'Invisible Circus" as well as a voice role
n DreamWorks' animated "Shrek."
Julianne Moore tackled two equally emotional
but entirely divergent roles in the
downbeat wartime romance "The End of
the Affair" and Paul Thomas Anderson's
surreal epic drama "Magnolia," not to
mention acclaimed turns in "An Ideal
Husband," "A Map of the World" and
"Cookie's Fortune." Her part in the
Paramount comedy "Ladies' Man," based
on the Saturday Night Live sketch of the
same name, should be a 1 80-degree turn
from her characters Linda Partridge, Sarah
Miles or Amber Waves. Moore will also
appear with Male Star of the Year Bruce
Willis in Buena Vista's "Unbreakable."
::!
::]
jjj ittle Haley Joel Osment beat humonjjj
gous Michael Clarke Duncan? Only
Sjjon a list. The 12-year-old "Sixth
Sense" star creamed the competition in
the Male Breakout Star of the Year, receiving
more votes than the runners-up combined.
Osment moves forward with "Pay
It Forward" as a student who helps to
change his community by doing good
deeds.
While Osment stars with Male Star #3
(Kevin Spacey) in "Forward," "The Green
Mile's" Duncan headlines with Male Star
#1 (Bruce Willis) in "The Whole Nine
Yards."
And third-place winner Wes Bentley of
"American Beauty" has two projects lined
up: Artisan's "Soul Survivors," in which a
girl who's been in an accident can't discern
hallucinations from reality, and United
Artists' "Kingdom Come," about a wealthy
landowner who's confronted by the wife
and child he abandoned years earlier.
::: :::
Jjj jjj
arrie-Anne Moss, Keanu Reeves'
jjj jjipartner-in-vinyl in "The Matrix," is
Ati^ the winner of the Female Breakout
Star of the Year title. The 29-year-old
actress from Vancouver will head up
another sci-fi/action mission as
Commander Kate Bowman in Warner
Bros.' Val Kilmer starrer "Red Planet." She
also stars with Burt Reynolds and Richard
Dreyfuss in Buena Vista's "The Crew,"
and with Guy Pearce in the Christopher
Nolan-helmed "Memento."
Mena Suvari was a close second;
"American Beauty's" gorgeous but troubled
cheerleader joins the squad again in
New Line's "Sugar and Spice," in which a
pompon girl turns to crime to support the
lifestyle to which she's grown accustomed;
she'll also play the object of the
titular nerd's affections in Columbia's
"Loser."
Third-place winner Hilary Swank wowed
audiences with her performance as the
transgendered Brandon Teena in "Boys
Don't Cry"; no projects are set up for the
actress previously best known as "The
Next Karate Kid," but that's likely to
change following the buzz from this surprise
art-house hit.
MUi
I.Bruce Willis
2. Tom Hanks
3. Kevin Spacey
4. Pierce Brosnan
5. Mike Myers
6. Brendan Fraser
7. Jim Carrey
8. (tie) Matt Bamon
8. (tie) Kevin Costner
10. Richard Farnsworth
I.Julia Roberts
m Tin vm
2. Cameron Oiaz
3. Julianne Moore
4. Meryl Streep
5. Annette Bening
6. Ashley Judd
7. (tie) Brew Barrymore
7. (tie) Angelina Jolie
9. Rene Russo
10. Sigourney Weaver
mm stub
|f fill fffl| Miff
1. Haley Joel Osment
2. Michael Clarke Buncan
3. Wes Bentley
4. Freddie Prinze Jr.
5. Rhys Ifans
BURNOUT STPR
Qf T|f ym — Tffli f
1. Carrie-Anne Moss
2. Mena Suvari
3. Hilary Swank
4. (tie) Thora Birch
4. (tie) Heather Bonahue
March. 2000 35

SPECIAL REPORT: Barometer 2000
1999 BY THE NUMBERS
Grosses, Critical Performances and
Other Pertinent Data of the Year in Film
KJ3 - |
t-t£ a > U S £
I! I | | I 1 I I J
Affliction** R(LGl
American Beauty* R1DW1

I'm
^ - - -
E.v Do-Right PG
i
1
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In Dreams RcDWi
n 1
I J Z 3

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1999
was the year that exhibition
lost the father of the multiplex.
Stan Durwood; distribution lost
Al Shapiro; and filmaking lost Robert
Bresson and Stanley Kubrick, all
among many others.
Sadly, there were too many others,
as diverse as Sony co-founder Akio
Morita and film critic Gene Siskel, as
similar as HUAC names Abe Polonsky.
Frank Tarloff and Edward Dmytryk.
As is our Barometer tradition, we
honor all those that Hollywood lost by
remembering those now departed
from the silver screen. Among that
fit
^
long list are Charles "Buddy" Rogers
(see "Wings" image, p. 5). "beautiful
hunk of man" Victor Mature (also p.
5). Ian Bannen, Dirk Bogarde, Hillary
Brooke, Rory Calhoun. Marguerite
Chapman. Ellen Corby. Brion James.
Henry Jones, Madeline Kahn.
DeForest Kelley. Mabel King,
Desmond Llewelyn, Clayton Moore.
Ruth Roman and Shirley Stoler.
On this page: George C. Scott,
Oscar winner for "Pattern"; one-time
Brit boxer Oliver Reed; Huntz Hall
(the farthest right of the Bowery
Boys): chorus line dancer-turned-first
bigscreen Superman, Kirk Alyn; and
Golden Age beauty Sylvia Sidney.
40 Boxoi i

i- I'-!''.
ovieion
Moviegoer Activity Report
for the month of December 1999
Jew York
.649,566
Dallas
649,230
Miami
340.491
Philladelphia
340,296
San Fransisco
337,762
Phoenix
318,628
Toronto
253,336
Kansas City
198.274
San Dieg
189,334
MovieFone' (777-FIUvT) and its sister service, movietone, com', are now the single largest source of movie showtime information in the country,
providing information to over 100 million moviegoers each year The following information represents the most requested theatres and exhipitors on MovieFone
Most Requested Exhibitors
_
Lgst Month s
Exhibitor
Total Requests Rank
LCE
1,440,475 1
AMC
UNITED ARTISTS
914,273
REGAL/ACT III
554,969
GENERAL CINEMA
442.472
CINEMARK
270,220
CLEARVIEW
233,833
HARKINS
CENTURY
NATIONAL AMUSEMENTS
Rank
Theatre (# screens)
1 UA East 85th And 1 st Avenue (1
2 Paris (1
3 LCE Lincoln Square (13)
2 GCC Avco (3)
3 LCE Century Plaza (4)
1 The Granada Movie Grill (1)
2 UACine(2)
3 UA Galaxy (9)
1 LCE Navy Pier lmax(1)
2 LCE Webster Place (8)
3 LCE 900 North Michigan (2)
1 UA Movies At The Falls (1 2)
2 Regal Kendall (9)
3 Le Jeune (6)
1 UA Cinemagic At Penn (3)
2 UA Riverview Plaza (1 1
3 UA Samenc (4)
Top 10 Exhibitors & Theatres
Most Requested Theatres
202.640
199,689
181.866
1 AMC Kabuki (8) 2
2 UA Coronet (1) i
3 UA Metro (1) i
1 Hark Metro (12) 2
2 Hark Paradise Valley Mall Luxury (7)1
3 Hark Arcadia Luxury (8) 1
1 Famous Eglinton (1)
2 CO Promenade (6)
3 Famous Markville (4)
1 LCE Chen (4)
2 BMofSOmni(l)
3 LCE Assembly Square (1 2)
1 AMC Crown Center (6)
Rank Market
Theatre
1 NY LCE Lincoln Square
2 NY UA Union Square 14
3 LA AMC Century 14
4 NY LCE Village 7
5 NY LCE Kips Bay
6 PH UA Riverview Plaza
7 NY LCE 42nd St E-Walk
8 SF LCE Theatres Metreon
9 SD AMC Fashion Valley 18
10 DA AMC Mesquite 30
Most Requested Theatres Per Screen
Total
Requests
10.489
100,264
8.004
15.641
17,658
2,781
3,500
15,488
3,313
16.548
9,947
37.896
11.637
2,693
10,346
6,706
20.475
3,652
26,478
10,445
2 AMC Independence Commons (20) 30,221
3 AMC Oak Park Plaza (6) 7,436
1 AMC Fashion Valley (18) 33.847
2 AMCLaJolla(12) 17.411
3 AMC Mission Valley (20) 21,226
TOD 3 ACtlVfilV*
* RBOUBStBd H Th63tPBS"
'
*
"Caller specifically I
Last Month's
Rank
Cleveland
75,323
Nashville
61,247
Rank Theatre (# screens)
GCC Har-Mar 1-3 (3)
GCC Centennial Lakes (8)
LCE Westwind Plaza (3)
LCE West Oaks (7)
LCE Bay Area Sixplex (6)
LCE River Oaks Plaza (12)
GCC Merchants Walk (8)
LEF Plaza (2)
UA Midtown (8)
UA Colorado Center (9)
STC Westminster (5)
Mann Tamarac Square (6)
Landmk Neptune (1)
LCENorthgate(l)
GCC Cinerama (1)
1 LCE Uptown (1)
LCE Cinema (1)
LCE Outer (2)
Regal/Act III Bandera (6)
Regal/Act III Galaxy (14)
Regal/Act III Westlakes (9)
UA Showcase (8)
UAThe Rainbow Promenade (10)
Century Orleans (1 2)
GCC Ridge Park Square (8)
Regal Mayfield Heights (10)
GCC Westgate Mall (6)
Century Century Stadium (12)
UA Greenback (6)
Century Cinedome Sacramento (9)
Carmike Bell Forge (10)
Carmike Hickory (8)
Regal Nippers Corner (10)
Carmike Villa (1)
LCE Trolley Corners (3)
LCE Holladay Centre (6)
Last Month's
Total Requests Rank
100,264 1
71.614 3
52,351 6
47.256 5
46.077 4
37.896 8
36,507 27
36.471 2
33.847 7
32,236 31
Total
Requests
5,041
9,201
3,059
5.285
4.467
7,772
5.629
4,302
1,831
1,182
2,310
9.870
5.776
7,629
3.704
15,999
2,582
2.830
Last Month's
Rank
1AMC Independence Commons 2. LCE Lincoln Square 3. Hark Superstition Sp.
Kansas City, MO New York City, NY Phoenix, AZ
CinemaStar Luxury Cinemas
: CityCm City Cinemas Opi
Sony Cinemas

EXHIBITION
BRIEFINGS
LEAD STORY: MANN ALIVE
WF Cinema Holdings (formerly known as
Cinamerica Theatres), an affiliated partnership
between entertainment giants Viacom
Inc. and Warner Bros., has announced its
official acquisition of assets to Mann
Theatres parent company WestStar Cinemas.
Encino, Calif.-based WestStar, which recently
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (see
Exhibition Briefings, November 1999), originally
purchased the 357-screen Mann
Theatres circuit in late 1997 from
itself Cinamerica, a joint venture between
Warner Bros, and Paramount Pictures. A
Delaware bankruptcy court gave rival bidders
until
last January 4 to submit an offer of
at least $95 million for Mann. However, as
expected, no bids higher than WF Cinema
Holdings $91 million were submitted.
A RISING CINEMASTAR
San Diego,
Calif.-based
CinemaStar
Luxury Theaters
has added
another multiplex
to its
eight-strong
arsenal of cinemas
located
throughout
Southern
California and
Mexico. The
CinemaStar
20-plex in San
Bernadino,
Cal iforn ia,
CinemaStar co-CEO Paul Hobby, wh ich features
stadium
seating and LucasFilm THX stereo surround
in all auditoriums, bowed last December.
In addition to the opening of its latest
build, the circuit has also announced the
appointment of Paul W. Hobby to the company's
board of directors. Hobby, who
presently serves as CEO and chairman of
venture fund company Hobby Media
Services, has also been designated co-chief
executive officer of CinemaStar. He, along
with company CEO Jack Crosby, will head
the circuit.
GOODRICH GOES TO OXFORD
Grand Rapids, Mich. -based Goodrich
Quality Theaters has announced the opening
of its latest venue in Oxford, Michigan.
Renovated from a three-plex to a sevenscreener,
the cinema will provide stadiumstyle
seating to more than 900 patrons with
DTS 6-Track digital and Dolby digital stereo
surround sound available in all auditoriums.
The new theatre plans to run special promotions,
including the circuit-wide standard of
free drink refills and 25 cents popcorn refills
as well as complimentary matinees during
NATO REGIONAL NEWS
GENEVA CONVENTION CONFIRMED AS AN ANNUAL EVENT
NATO of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan has announced that the organization's Geneva
Convention is going to become an annual event. "We were extremely pleased with the
attendance and comments about the first convention, so it was decided to make the
Geneva Convention an annual event," Bruce J. Olson and Larry Hanson, co-chairs of
the event said.
An overwhelming success, the first annual NATO Geneva Convention held at the Grand
Geneva Resort and Spa in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin on September 28, 29 and 30, 1999
attracted over 500 attendees from across the country. In 2000, the Geneva Convention
will again be held at the Grand Geneva on September 26, 27 and 28. For 2001, the
dates will be September 11 , 12 and 13. "Events at the 2000 convention will include a
golf tournament to raise funds for Variety Club Children's Charities, screenings of major
new Hollywood releases, a trade show with more than 100 vendors, many interesting
and informative seminars as well as some exciting surprises," Hanson and Olson said.
For further information, contact NATO of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan at (262) 532-
0017 or write to: NATO Geneva Convention, P.O. Box 146, Sussex, Wl 53089.
—Contributed by Paul I. Rogers, president, NATO of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan
CATO'S PHILANTHROPY
The Connecticut Association of Theatre Owners will provide $250,000 over the next 10
years for the care of children being treated in regional pediatric specialty clinics jointly
operated by the Department of Pediatrics at the Yale University School of Medicine and
Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital.
Movie theatre owners will raise the funds through special showings and premieres of films,
a "wishing well" program and other activities at participating theatres throughout
Connecticut.
"CATO has made a long-term commitment to help the children of Connecticut through its
support of these pediatric specialty clinics," said Milt Daly, president of CATO and senior
executive VP and CEO of South Norwalk, Conn.-based Crown Theatres. "This is an
enhancement of one of our committed goals of increasing CATO's philanthropy."
The pilot activity for the efforts was the recent limited showing of "Star Wars—Episode I:
The Phantom Menace," which raised $20,000. The blockbuster "Star Wars" film was
returned to theatres early in December by LucasFilm and 20th Century Fox specifically for
the purpose of helping to raise funds for children's programs throughout the country.
— Contributed by Steve Could, Connecticut Association of Theatre Owners
Regional NATO offices, send your news clips to:
BOXOFFICE, 155 S. El Molino Ave., Suite 100
Pasadena, CA 91101
Attn: Regional News
the spring and fall for a total of 1 8 weekends
over the year. Goodrich's Matthew Johnson
notes that the free screenings are the circuit's
way of saying "'thank you' to the communities
in which we operate."
SECOND QUARTER AT MARCUS
Milwaukee, Wise-based Marcus Corporation,
parent company of Marcus
Theatres, reports that total revenue for the
second quarter of fiscal 2000 was up two
percent to $80.2 million in comparison with
last year's figure. In addition, operating
income before depreciation and amortization
was recorded at $19.7 million, down
from second quarter 1998's $21.1 million,
while net earnings tumbled slightly from last
year's $5.9 million, or 20 cents per diluted
share, to this year's $5.6 million, or 1
9 cents
per diluted share.
During the 13-week period, Marcus
Theatres announced plans to add 77 additional
screens to bring its
end of 2000.
total to 500 by the
LOEWS AND BEHOLD
Also unveiling its fiscal results is New
York City-based Loews Cineplex
Entertainment, which has reported its
results
for the quarter ending last November 30.
Revenue for the company fell slightly fron
last year's $211.4 million to $209.3 million
Earnings before taxes, depreciation anc
amortization was $26.2 million, comparer,
to $30.7 million a year ago, while net los!
totaled $23.8 million, or 41
cents per share
in comparison to $12.1 million, or 21 cent;
per share, in 1 998. According to Loews pres
ident and CEO Lawrence Ruisi, the compa
ny's less-than-stellar quarter is
attributable tc
"a decrease in attendance at our older the
atres and an unfavorable allocation in ou
theatres in Canada, which may occur fron
time-to-time based on historical exhib
itor/distributor relationships."
OBITUARY
Jack Grossman, president of Holida
Theaters Inc., died January 4 at his home
Encino, California. His career in motion pic
ture exhibition began in the 1940s at tb
Sherman Theatre in Sherman Oaks
California. Throughout his career, Grossma:
established himself as one of Souther
California's premiere independent exhifc
itors, with theatre locations in Burbank, Va
Nuys, Canoga Park, Thousand Oaks an*
Lancaster. He is survived by his wife Ester
well as his daughter, grandchildren an
grandchildren.
42 BOXOFFICE

SH0WMANDISER PROMOTION OF THE MONTH
I
I
to
who
portrays late
comedian Andy
Kaufman in the
biopic. The
award, which is
Carrey's second
ShoWest honor
(he was named
Comedy Star of
the Year in
1995), will be
bestowed at the
convention's
March 9 awards
ceremony,
s Male Star of the Year Also receiv-
Carrey. ing an award is
Oscar-winning
iirector Anthony Minghella, who has been
lamed ShoWest 2000 Director of the Year.
vlinghella, who has received a Golden Globe
lomination for his work on
aramount/Miramax's "The Talented Mr.
Ripley," will be honored by ShoWest at its
vtarch 9 awards ceremony.
3H0WMINDER CALENDAR
Remember to save these dates:
ShoWest, March 6—9, Bally's Hotel/Paris,
.as Vegas. Call (310) 657-7724...7th
nternational Urban Entertainment
Development Conference, March 13— 14,
view York City. Call (202) 624-
140...Variety/Schroders 10th Annual
vledia Conference, April 4, Grand Hyatt
Hotel, New York City. Call (212) 492-6082
..NAC/Snack Bar University, May 2—5,
fcshington DC. Call (312) 236-
!858... Large Format Cinema Association
J000 Conference and Large Format Film
:
estival, May 17—20, Los Angeles. Call
209) 951-8113...ShowCanada, May 5—10,
>000, Chateau Whistler, Whistler, British
olumbia. Call Dina Lebo at (416) 969-
14, Mariott Worldwide, Orlando, Fla. Call
212) 246-6460...CineAsia, November 14—
16, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition
"entre, Hong Kong. Call (212) 246-6460.
ennifer Ellmyer, general
manager of the
Favorite Cinemas Lake
Jowell Theatre in
Casselberry, Florida and
three-time Showmandiser,
had her cinema
indulge in a little Pokemania
to promote the
opening of the much
anticipated kid flick,
"Pokemon the First
Movie: Mewtwo Strikes
Back." Ellmyer not only
decorated the theatre
lobby with Pokemon- POKE-PARTY: A group ol kids eagerh awaiting the opening oi
related merchandise provided
"Pokemon the First Movie: Men two Strikes Back "
by the local Kay Bee toy at Favorite Cinemas Lake Howell Theatre in Casselberry,
Florida.
store, but she also painted
many ot the pocket monsters onto the lobby windows, where incoming patrons could
see what awaited them. In addition, the cinema also sponsored various activities for the
youngsters while they waited for the pic to star, including games that required working
with other team members (to emphasize the teamwork theme in the movie), a contest
to see which group could build the most creative Pokemon and card trading time,
which, as any parent knows, is serious business among Pokemon devotees. Yet, despite
the few moments of serious exchanging and collecting, Ellmyer affirms, "It
didn't matter
if you were one or 100. Everyone had a blast participating in the activities."
HILL
NEWS
Send photos and descriptions of your promotions to:
BOXOFFICE, Showmandiser, 155 S. El Molino Ave.,
Suite 100, Pasadena, CA 91101.
DEFENDING HOLLYWOOD
Speaking to the Wednesday Morning
Club (a nonpartisan group that encourages
political debate within the entertainment
industry) in Beverly Hills last December,
Representative Jim Rogan (R—Glendale)
prognosticated on proposed legislation that
would punish filmmakers if their products
were found to contain explicit violence or
sexual scenes. Although the legislation,
dubbed the Children's Defense Act of
1999, was defeated in Congress last year,
Rogan touched on the dangerous repercussions
that could result from such proposals,
adding that the likelihood of similar type of
bills being introduced in the future was
much greater than he would hope.
Among the most drastic measures
included in the Children's Defense Act was
a five-year prison sentence on individuals
who either created or exhibited entertainment
programming deemed too pornographic
or violent. Rogan, who describes
himself as a conservative, remarked that if
any legislature resembling the Children's
Defense Act should become law, it would
have "a chilling effect on the movie industry,"
and he vowed to do whatever he
could to kill future comparable bills.
ACCESS BOARD CONSIDERING
CHANGES TO ADAAG
New legislation has been proposed by
the Access Board calling for certain
changes to the Americans With Disabilities
Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG).
Among the recommendations directly
impacting exhibitors are changes in accessible
restrooms; mandatory captioning for
feature films; an increase in the number of
wheelchairs places within theatre auditoriums
holding 300 seats or less; and the
placement of braille within cinema auditoriums.
If the Access Board approves these
changes, theatre owners and operators will
have a minimum of six months to make the
needed adjustments, with pre-existing
structures exempt from making the
changes.
DO YOU HAVE A NEWS ITEM
ABOUT LEGISLATION
AFFECTING THE
EXHIBITION INDUSTRY?
PLEASE SEND CLIPS TO:
BOXOFFICE
155 S. EL MOLINO AVE.,
SUITE 100
PASADENA, CA 91101,
OR FAX (626) 396-0250
OR E-MAIL:
March, 2000 43

TECH
TALK
SUPPLY SIDE
by Ann lee Ellingson
TARGETTI DELIVERS
As predicted, Targetti Sankey has completed
the acquisition of Tivoli Industries,
which will become a wholly owned subsidiary
of Targetti called Targetti-Tivoli Inc.
(see Tech Talk, January 2000).
AND THE OSCAR GOES TO...
Among the 1 2 Academy Awards presented
for scientific and technical achievement this
year are two innovations specifically
beneficial
to exhibition. L. Ron Schmidt will receive
an Oscar for the concept, design and engineering
of Iwerks' patented Linear Loop Film
Projectors, which provide "superior print handling,
image steadiness, screen illumination
and enhanced viewer experience by means of
an extremely simple air-driven mechanical
transport system," according to the Academy
of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The Academy is also acknowledging
Marlowe A. Pichel for developing a process
for manufacturing Electro-Formed Metal
Reflectors, the worldwide standard for film
projection systems when combined with the
DC Short Arc Xenon Lamp. The Academy
says, "The impact of the Electro-Formed Metal
Reflector over the decades has completely
changed the presentation side of the motion
picture industry, allowing the replacement of
the carbon arc lightsource and the implementation
of automated projection systems."
NEW PRODUCTS
Globe Ticket and Label Co. has introduced
a new boxoffice system solution, the
Boss, offering security, convenience and
tracking capabilities for both reserved and
general admission ticket sales. The self-contained,
portable unit features an Intel
Pentium Processor with 34MB RAM and
comes network-ready to link with other Boss
units. Password-protected and activated by a
key, the Boss can track sales both numerically
and with bar graphs and archive the
results as well as sell and track coupons.
CA
Write 3435 Empire Blvd. S.W., Atlanta,
30354; call (404) 762-9711 or (800) 523-
5968; fax (404) 762-9260; or logon at
www.globeticket.com.
Big Sky has introduced two new cost- and
time-saving products. The Quick Connect
prepackages power and control interface
wiring in one plug-in unit. Console and
sound rack power connections are simplified
to a plug and receptacle, and the control
connections are commonly used DB25
cables with interface boards already included
in the system. The Remote Reporter is
instant reporting system for pertinent data on
equipment performance from any remote
location. Preprogrammed microprocessors
mount in virtually any automation and can
generate complete reports on functions such
as film breaks and equipment malfunctions.
Write 259 Center St., Phillipsburg, N) 08865;
call (908) 454-6344; or fax (909) 454-6373.
an
The Premium by Mobiliario is comfortable,
elegant and durable. At 42 inches high
and from 22.25 to 24 inches width, the chair
has a unique rocker mechanism that doesn't
utilize springs and thus is very quiet, avoiding
expensive maintenance. It's a real love seat
with flip-up armrests and cupholders. Write
Calle del Sol. No. 3; Naucalpan, Edo Mex,
53660 MEXICO; call 52 5 300 06 20; fax 52
5 300 2136; or e-mail mobissa@netra.net.
ON THE MOVE
Jack M. Kline, formerly
COO and executive VP of
Christie Inc., has been named
president of the Cypress,
Calif.-based company. Kline
ill continue to manage the
company's overall business
and new product development,
focusing on developing strategic relationships
with key industry partners and software
providers worldwide. He will also work
with film studios and distributors to provide,
guidance in
projection technologies, particularly
as Christie participates in the industry's
digital
revolution.
Technicolor has appointed Walter M.
Schonfeld as president of the company's
worldwide film group, where he will oversee
all of the group's state-of-the-art global
film processing operations. Schonfeld succeeds
Ron Jarvis, who had l
been with the company for
25 years.
Proctor Companies has
promoted veteran sales and
project manager Kurt
Connolly to the newly created
post of sales and marketing VP.
PROJECTING THE FUTURE
The ITEA Presents Its Eighth Annual Seminar Series
Held on January 10, 11 and 12 at the Universal Hilton in
ITEA president Dan
Taylor
Universal City, Calif., the eighth annual International Theatre
Equipment Association seminar concentrated on two trains of
thought: looking ahead to the digital cinema age and improving
35mm presentation in the meantime.
Following opening remarks from ITEA
president Dan Taylor on Tuesday morning,
Schneider Optics' Harry Mathias
evaluated the image quality of current
digital cinema technology in his talk
"Film Into Pixels," summarizing that the
medium has potential but still falls short
of traditional film. The day's program
then turned to cinema sound with an
introduction to audio measurement and
control software by QSC Audio's Barry
Ferrell, followed by a live demonstration
of the programs at work. Next, Dolby's
dapper loan Allen briefly reviewed the
history of surround sound and theorized
about new ways to think about it in
today's auditoriums. Sony Pictures hosted the afternoon's events,
giving attendees tours of its soundstages and digital studios.
On Wednesday morning, several theatre equipment manufacturers
introduced their exciting new products, many of which will
premiere at ShoWest. Sony Cinema Products Al Barton then hosted
a panel discussion on digital cinema, a debate that opened
with Qualcomm's Steven Morley going out on a limb and predicting
that digital cinema will co-exist with film as early as next
year and that film projectors will disappear within four to five
years.
Other panel members weren't as optimistic, but Real Image
Digital's Tim Rust did hypothesize that the technology for com-
pressing, encrypting and delivering data is
already up to par for the
digital revolution. Glenn Kennel, representing Eastman Kodak's
Cinesite Digital Mastering, encouraged the industry to prioritize the
quality of the digital cinema image, outlining Kodak's role in this
endeavor. Finally, Soundelux's Curt Behlmer outlined the SMPTE
digital cinema technology mission statement, guaranteeing that the
standards they employ will ensure interoperability, compatibility
and performance and allow for future innovation.
Afternoon sessions on the last day of the seminar temporarily
delayed future speculation, concentrating instead on how to
improve today's 35mm projected film quality instead. Cinema
Film Systems' David Stall
gave a talk on how to improve image
steadiness with electronic pulldown, followed by a spirited introduction
of the MaxiVision projector by film editor Dean
Goodhill, who has invented a format that projects twice as many
frames per second than the typical system. Goodhill's proposal
was met with speculation, but he is convinced that audiences
will appreciate his projector's superior quality and thus create
demand for the format.
Other presentations included lamp focus and alignment advice
from Strong International's Pat Moore and Christie's Joe Delgado,
who temporarily and good-naturedly put aside their competitive
spirit to educate their peers; a lens overview by Schneider Optics'
Dwight Lindsey; cinema consultant Glenn Berggren's 12 major factors
in film projections; and an overview on how to improve 35mm
projector quality by Kodak's Christopher DuMont.
Obviously, the most talked-about topic at the ITEA seminar was
digital cinema, a conversation that continued in the days following
the seminar as the SMPTE convened to discuss standards for the
new technology. The group senses the inevitability of the evolution
and is approaching it with cautious optimism, determined that convenience
will not substitute for a superb cinema experience, before
or after digital cinema replaces film.
44 BOXOFFICE

LARGE FORMAT
'FANTASIA 2000' FULFILLS
BOXOFFICE FANTASY
Disney's New Year's Day IMAX release
"Fantasia 2000" earned over $2.2 million in
two days at 75 venues, averaging $41 ,481 per
screen. The total marks the best gross ever for
an IMAX engagement and surpasses the highest
weekly total tor any previous IMAX film.
"We are enormously proud of 'Fantasia
2000' and gratified by the overwhelming
response it is getting at IMAX theatres all
over the world," says Richard Cook, chairman
of the Walt Disney Motion Pictures
Croup. "Roy Disney has led a brilliant group
of filmmakers in creating 'Fantasia 2000,'
and it represents an important new milestone
in our studio's continuing legacy as an
animation pioneer."
WIRED WORLD
TIME WARNER: YOU'VE GOT MAIL
Signaling that the new millennium will
jsher in new big-business models, America
Online Inc., the world's largest Internet
arovider, has merged with Time Warner Inc.,
one of the biggest media and entertainment
:onglomerates, creating a company worth a
whopping $350 billion. The $164 billion
deal sees AOL purchasing Time Warner with
:he issue of 1 .5 shares in the new company
:
or each Time Warner share, resulting in a
55/45 split between the companies, with
^OL having the upper hand. AOL topper
steve Case will chair the new company,
jubbed AOL Time Warner, while Time
Warner's Gerald Levin will serve as CEO,
unning day-to-day operations.
HOL M0VIEF0NE LINKS WITH
IMAX AND CHECK0UT.COM
In a deal similar to the one inked with
Jnited Artists recently (see Tech Talk,
:
ebruary 2000), AOL MovieFone has signed
in exclusive ticketing agreement with Imax
-td. Under the pact, AOL MovieFone will
Drovide information and ticketing services
or the IMAX-owned and -operated theatres
n North America through its telephones ser-
/ices and website, a service particularly
lelpful considering the recent success of
'Fantasia 2000." AOL MovieFone already
;ells tickets for Imax theatres operated by
Loews Cineplex, Edwards and UA.
In a separate agreement, AOL MovieFone
las also pacted with CheckOut.com.
Hollywood powerbroker Michael Ovitz's
inline e-tailer will become the film listing
ind ticketing service's exclusive content
Drovider, supplying reviews and celebrity
interviews. CheckOut.com will receive
Btominent placement on MovieFone.com
ind other web sites throughout AOL.
3IG E MOVES TO HOLLYWOOD
As expected, Big Entertainment has
hanged its name to Hollywood.com folowing
a vote by shareholders at the compa-
)y's annual meeting (see National News,
November 1999).
9 ON THE 'NET: Classic Cinemas' President and CEO Willis Johnson
Answers BOXOFFICE's Nine Questions About the Circuit's Website
BOXOFFICE: Your website design is
simple
and without a lot of geejaws—and thus
superbly fast. Why did you decide to favor
function over form?
Johnson: We wanted our site to be as
user-friendly as possible. This means that it
should be readable on any browser and at
any modem speed. Although we know that
most people are using a 4.0 or better version
of Netscape or Internet Explorer, there
are people with earlier versions. We also
wanted the pages to load fast, so we have
limited our graphics and optimized those
we do use for the Internet to maintain
acceptable download speeds.
BOXOFFICE: You employ Chicago-based
web outfit Unety Systems to do your site.
Was the decision to go out-of-house for
your web solution more a question of economics
or knowledge-based?
Johnson: It was a question of both economics
and knowledge. We do have one
staff member that knows html, but we
wanted a site that was more cutting-edge
than we could provide in-house. We did an
extensive review of proposals from a number
of site providers and believed that
Unety would best meet our needs.
BOXOFFICE: What so far have been the
pluses and minuses working with an outside
crew?
Johnson: The pluses have far outweighed
the minuses. Unety was able to
develop dynamic database pages so that we
can upload our information into the database
that then feeds it into the website. This
prevents us from doing the same job two or
three times and also ensures that
information
on the site is accurate. They have also
been very responsive on our weekly
updates.
BOXOFFICE: Classic monitors the Review
Forum it provides for moviegoer comments
about the movies. How do you
check for profanity, slander and such—and
how much of a problem have such postings
been?
BOXOFFICE: Given that some legal opinion
is that an unmonitored public forum
carries no legal liability, but a monitored
the eight months since
the site revision, we
have removed only
one, which speaks
highly of our customers.
We are currently
evaluating the Review Forum and
may be re-programming it to make it more
user-friendly. Another alternative would be
to replace it with other information.
BOXOFFICE: Your Theatres & Times has
the usual search-by-theatre function, but it
also has search-by-title and search-by-rating
functions. Especially regarding the latter,
why were these included. Have community
members responded to the efforts?
Johnson: We included the other two
functions to improve the user-friendliness of
the site. The search-by-title function came
from the fact that the Classic Cinemas circuit
has both first-run and sub-run theatres.
This enables our customers to find movies
more easily since they are playing on our
circuit
longer than many others. The other
search-by-rating function stems from the
family-oriented nature of our company.
Some families only take their children to G-
or PG-rated films; this function helps them
find such films in our circuit.
BOXOFFICE: Your Theatres & Times and
your Special Events offerings require frequent
updating. How is this task handled?
Johnson: These two features are handled
differently. Theatres & Times is updated
after we update our in-house database, to
which we added features such as URLs to
better synchronize it with the website. The
in-house database is uploaded directly into
the website database from which the pages
are drawn. The Special Events listings are
done from our office through a password-
one does, why did Classic take on this
protected
extra burden?
maintenance screen.
BOXOFFICE: How
BOXOFFICE: How
long has the Review
was the MovieTime
Forum
E-mail
been
developed?
running,
and
What sort of results
has it yet developed
a "community"
has this moviegoer
e-mail service produced
far?
of users?
Johnson: We started
the Review Forum
Johnson:
with
MovieTime
the revision of
the site in May 1999
EmaiISM was
developed at the
to give our customers
an opportunity to do
same time as the
their own movie
website. Since it
reviews. We do look
began the number
of
at it daily but have
people who have
not
signed
had problems with
up for the
free
people making
weekly e-mails
inappropriate
postings. In
has tripled. We are
very excited about
this new way to
communicate with
our customers and
hope to explore
additional features
in
the future.
March, 2000 45

I executive
I
and
STUDIO
NEWS
by Annlee Ellingson
REPORT REVEALS
WORLDWIDE REVENUES
As the domestic boxoffice broke records
on the home front, worldwide movie distribution
income also grew eight percent to
reach a total of $33.4 billion. According to
a report on international media and entertainment
industries compiled by Schroder
and Wilofsky Cruen Associates, films produced
by the United States garnered nearly
90 percent of worldwide revenue, earning
$29.8 billion compared. European films,
meanwhile, earned $2.25 billion, and
Japanese movies made $1.33 billion. Both
U.S. and European film income grew eight
percent, and Japanese income rose two
percent.
While the single biggest income source
for U.S. distributors was the domestic
home video market, which generated $9.7
billion in revenue, foreign theatrical
rentals ($4.2 billion) topped domestic
exhibition returns ($4 billion) for the fourth
consecutive year. Domestic theatrical
income, meanwhile, culminated at $7.5
billion (see lead story).
ARTISAN IS BULLISH
Artisan Entertainment has named investment
bank Merrill Lynch its lead underwriter
for its initial public offering. The deal allows
as much as 20 percent of the company to be
sold to the public. The fast-growing indie
distributor has been expanding its business
since the smash success of summer sleeper
"The Blair Witch Project," inking overseas
output deals (see Studio News, February)
and building its film and television library.
The company is also looking at moving into
television.
SAMUEL GOLDWYN
REACHES FOR STRATOSPHERE
Stratosphere Entertainment and Samuel
Goldwyn Films are reportedly near an
agreement that would combine the companies'
distribution arms into a single entity.
The independent distributor, which would
be backed by Seven Arts Entertainment parent
CanWest, could launch as soon as the
middle of the month with the expansion of
"Onegin," starring Ralph Fiennes and Liv
Tyler.
Samuel Goldwyn president Meyer
Gottlieb would serve
as CEO of the as-yetunnamed
company,
while Stratosphere
VP production
and acquisitions
Ronna Wallace
Samuel
Goldwyn chief of
marketing and distribution
Jeff Lipsky
would share the pres-
Lipsky idency. The move is
designed to cut down
on prohibitive P&A costs and increase the
clout of both companies.
LEAD STORY: '99 BOXOFFICE
REELS IN RECORD NUMBERS
As predicted, the industry broke boxoffice
records for the eighth year in a row,
grossing nearly $7.5 billion, an eight percent
increase over 1998's unprecedented
$6.95 billion. Admissions also rose to 1 .48
billion admissions, a four-percent increase
over last year's figures. The remaining difference,
of course, was due to higher ticket
prices, which increased an average of eight
percent.
The boxoffice champ, obviously, was
Fox's "Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom
Menace," which had earned $430 million
by the end of the year. Buena Vista's "The
Sixth Sense" and "Toy Story 2" and New
Line's "Austin Powers: The Spy Who
Shagged Me" also grossed over $200 million
each. A record 17 films released in
1999 crossed the $100 million mark—five
more than in 1998.
With its two $200 million-plus releases,
Disney once again dominated the
market share, garnering 1 7 percent of the
domestic pie in 1999. Warner Bros, came
in second with 14 percent of the market,
and Universal rebounded from ninth
place last year to third in 1999 and a 1 3-
percent market share. Without "Titanic"
in its arsenal, Paramount slid from second
to fourth place, and Fox finished in
fifth.
FILMS4SALE
In an effort to support independent filmmakers,
Films4Auction is sponsoring "The
World's First Film Auction," to be conducted
by the William Doyle Galleries in Los
Angeles on March 3. Sponsored by DeLuxe
Film Labs, lighting equipment rental firm
Cinemills and insurance broker Mesirow
Financial, the auction eliminates much of
the time and money it takes to bring independent
filmmakers and distributors together.
"Films4Auction was designed to be a filmmaker-friendly
enterprise," says managing
partner Ricardo Del Rio. "Our concept is
revolutionary, but we will succeed because
we have the best interests of filmmakers at
heart and because we are responsive to their
needs."
Submissions had to be feature-length and
not attached to a distributor to be considered
for auction. The 20 films that were ultimately
chosen will be screened from February 29
to March 2 for potential buyers before they
go on the block on March 3. For more information,
call (323) 467-4444 or (312) 726-
0110 or logon at Films4Auction.com.
ROTHS CREDITS ROLL
Walt Disney Studios chairman Joe Roth
has left the company, citing plans to return
to independent producing. Peter Schneider,
a 1 5-year Mouse House executive who most
recently headed the animation and theatrical
divisions, will fill Roth's position. Roth's
unnamed production shingle probably won't
hang in Disneyland, and he hasn't yet lined
up financing, but industry insiders predict
he'll attract A-list talent like Julia Roberts
and Bruce Willis and may even be linked
with producer Jerry Bruckheimer.
Roth's departure has led to speculatio
that other management shifts will occu
Schneider has no live-action experience
and Walt Disney Motion Picture Grou
chairman Richard Cook may, for example
take on more responsibility.
Previously a chairman at Fox, Roth als<
stepped down from that position in 1992 t
form Caravan Pictures, an independent filr
division based at Disney.
LAW DOES THE FULL MONTY
Fox Searchlight prexy Lindsay Law ha
exited the company and inked an exclusiv
production deal with Fox. The departur
comes two months after Fox's Tom Rothmar
who founded the specialty division and wa
instrumental in Law's appointment there
was promoted to president of the Fox Filr
Group.
Law's first order of business will be to tur
legit, producing a stage version of his bigge;
cinematic hit, "The Full Monty," the $3.
million indie that grossed $256.4 millio'
worldwide, making it the most profitabl
film of 1997. The production will open
April in San Diego, expanding to two oth«
cities and eventually ending up
Broadway in October. Then Law will pursu
film projects at Fox.
46 boxoffice

! Famous
INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS
NORTHERN EXPOSURE
Canadian News Notes by Shlomo Schwartzberg
THE UNION PROJECTIONIST ISSUE: BOOTH SIDES OF THE STORY
With a recent contract settlement. Ontario's projectionists face new restrictions on
the amount of hours they can work in the province's cinemas. Instead of unlimited
hours of employment, they can now only work a maximum of 40 hours in any one
house, which means they may not be there for the first show of the day. Their shift ends
when the last show of the day has started; previously they would stay till the final
screening was over. In addition, houses with six screens and under are now to be management-run
(up from three screens and under), and on Mondays and Wednesdays, the
least busy days of the week, non-union managers run the projection booths.
These developments are the fallout from the months-long lockout of projectionists
by Cineplex Odeon in late 1996 when the corporation demanded that they agree
to major cuts in their hourly salaries, citing its increased costs of operations and what
Cineplex felt were excessively high wages for automated work. The result was a
In the latest round of negotiations, entered into after the two-year contracts
expired, both Cineplex and Famous asked for further salary cuts to CSS an hour. The
projectionist's union managed to prevent that, only losing CS0.50-CS1 (US$0.35-
$0.69) an hour, but found their hours curtailed instead.
Asked about the rationale for Famous Players' and Cineplex Odeon's tactics. Rob
McPherson, acting business agent and region "A" representative of IATSE Local 173,
told Boxoffice. "they're trying to get rid of the union entirely." Replying to
McPherson's charges. Marci Davies, Cineplex Odeon's senior vice president of marketing,
told Boxoffice. 'As a publicly traded company, we're financially responsible to
our shareholders and employees to do what's in the best interests of the company." The
contract arrived at with the projectionists was "fair and responsible." she said.
Asked about reported problems with projecting films, especially "Magnolia," which
is being shown by both Famous Players and Cineplex, Davies cited the film's three-hour
VULCAN FORGES
LIONS GATE FINANCING
Lions Gate Films seems to be out of the
financial rough with the recent announcement
that it is receiving an infusion of C$33
million (US$20.4 million) though the sale of
new preferred stock and warrants. Vulcan
Ventures, run by Microsoft co-founder Paul
Allen. European broadcast group SBS
Broadcasting and German broadcaster/producer
Tele Munchen, are the investors in this
financing deal which, according to Peter
Wall, spokesperson for Lions Gate, bodes
decrease of the total number of projectionists (from 250 to about 180) and salaries well for the company. "It is a boost of confidence
slashed to an average of CS15 (US$10.37) an hour from the base rate of CS22-S33
and a validation for people [who
(USS15-S23). (Projectionists for Famous Players, facing a lockout situation as well,
agreed to the same conditions the following summer.
believe in the company]." Wall told Boxoffice.
He added that the deal also means that
Lions Gate may take its studio facility, currently
up for sale, off the market. "With an
increase in television production, it may
make sense to hold onto the studio facility."
he said. Admitting that Lions Gate went
through a "rough patch." and pointing to the
nearly simultaneous purchase of Time
Warner by AOL, he predicted a "future that
is going to contain some sort of merger
between content and delivery. That's the same
type of vision that has always been at Lions
Gate from day one." As a sign of its renewed
confidence. Lions Gate will be asking stock
length. "It puts tremendous pressure on the bulbs; it has nothing to do with the capability
of people operating the film." Managers who operate projection booths at help finance its expansion plans. The compa-
investors in Canada to pony up $30 million to
Cineplex. she pointed out. have been trained for the job and are "fully licensed". (A ny will be selling "units"—convertible preferred
shares of stock and common share pur-
spokesperson for Famous Players said that the problems with the print of "Magnolia."
which premiered at Famous Players' Paramount multiplex and broke down several chase warrants—in effect allowing those
times in the first month of its run, probably had to do with a stock problem.)
"unit" holders to buy shares in Lions Gate.
Currently, Famous Players and Cineplex Odeon are negotiating similar terms with
Quebec projectionists and have recently settled with projectionists in Alberta.
IWERKS However. GOES TO EXTREMES
British Columbia's projectionists are in the tenth month of a lockout over
Iwerks Entertainment and
equivalent issues in that province. AMC's
Showmax Inc.
projectionists are non-union.
have announced that they will install an
Iwerks Extreme Screen 3-D Large-Format
WWF(AMOUS)
Players will be showing World Wrestling Federation
pay-per-view matches in 17 theatres across Canada. It's part of
:he company's plans to maximize use of its burgeoning multiplexss
across the land.
pNE SMALL STEP FOR "MAN"...
Famous Players also recently installed two digital cinema sysone
in its Paramount theatre in Toronto, the other in a
ilverCity in Vancouver. Each of the cinemas is showing
Bicentennial Man" in the new format. They're the first Canadian
inemas dedicated to showing digital cinema presentations.
LIFE IS GOOD, ONTARIO
Film and TV production in Ontario hit record highs in 1999.
A total of C$914 million (US$566.7 million) was spent in the
province last year, a major jump from last year's record-breaking
C$750.1 million (USS465.1 million). Indigenous Canadian production
was significantly down, however, as Ontario lost out to
3ther provinces offering homegrown filmmakers belter financial
and tax incentives.
theatre system in the new Montreal Forum Entertainment Center,
formerly the old Montreal hockey palace. The Forum. The 450-
seat theatre with its 60-foot screen is the key component of the
unique entertainment venue, slated to open in August.
KISS OFF FROM A ROSE
Lewis Rose has left Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc.
after three years as the company's president. Alliance
announced his departure as part of a streamlined, more focused
approach by the company, which has seen its stocks lose almost
half their value in the past year. David Ginsburg, Los Angelesbased
president of the Alliance Atlantis Motion Picture Group,
has also left the company, and seven other positions in L.A.
were axed as well.
KNIGHTTIME
Canadian company Knightscove Entertainment has received
insurance for up to SI 00 million, allowing it
to make from 10 to
20 feature films, mostly for the family market, over the next four
years. Average budgets will range from CS4 to C$8 million
(US$2.8 to $5.5 million).
March, 2000 47

INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS
EUROVIEWS
European News Notes by Francesca Dinglasan
LEAD STORY: ODEON LEARNS ITS ABCs
LONDON—Two major theatre circuits in the U.K. are readying
to merge. Industry observers expect Odeon Cinemas, which was
put up for sale by the Rank Group (see EUROVIEWS, December
1999). to be purchased by private equity fund Cinven, owners of
the British chain ABC Cinemas. Cinven originally purchased the
300-screen ABC circuit in 1996 from Virgin, and with its acquisition
of Odeon, presently the largest exhibitor in the country, the
company's combined holdings will total nearly 770 screens.
CiNEMAXX-IMUM DEAL
COLOGNE, GERMANY—Also poised for a possible merger
are German circuits Cinemaxx and Ufa, which are currently discussing
the option of forming a partnership. The announcement
comes after a disappointing year at the Teutonic boxoffice, where
the exhibition industry has witnessed a drop in ticket sales compared
with 1998 figures. However, despite the revelation of their
plans, Joachim Flebbe, owner of Cinemaxx parent Flebbe, had
previously indicated that his circuit was interested in taking over
Ufa, rather than engaging in a joint venture.
UIP GOES NORDIC
LONDON—UIP has entered into a pact with Nordic company
Scanbox, giving the former distribution rights to the latter's
slate of Scandinavian, European and U.S. films within the countries
of Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Among the pics
covered under the agreement are Miramax's "The Cider House
Rules" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley" as well as
"Mirakel" and "Cirkeline 2."
Danish flicks
In addition, UIP has announced that Marion Pilowsky, former
head of acquisitions and development at Australia's Premier
Movie Partnership, has been tapped as head of its new Londonbased
acquisitions and development department.
UCI EXPANDS INTO ITALY
ROME—Paramount and Universal joint venture UCI has
announced the opening of its first plex in the Boot. Consisting of
nine screens and 2,400 seats, the new theatre located in the northern
city of Begamo is one of a minimum 20 venues expected to be
built by 2005. Other sites targeted by the exhibitor include the
cities of Verona, Genoa, Milan, Turin. Bologna, Mestre. Naples
and an area outside of Venice. UCI's next Italian site—a sevenscreener
in Rome— will bow this September.
MEDUSA MAKES A MULTIPLEX
ROME—Another exhibitor launching a virgin site in Italy is
local company Medusa Film, which bowed a nine-screener in the
city of Bologna, the third largest domestic moviegoer market after
Rome and Milan. The new plex is one of 20 sites to be constructed
throughout the country over the next five years. Medusa is
investing approximately 500 billion lire (US$277 million) in the
construction of its 200 new screens.
POLAND TAKES THE SILVER
WARSAW—Silver Screen Cinemas, which presently manages
multiplexes throughout Poland, has entered into an agreement with
developing company Echo Investment to operate a 10-screen, 2,000-
seat theatre in trie city of Lodz. The new cinema, which is scheduled
for a late summer bow, will anchor a multi-use complex featuring
shops, cafes, restaurants and an underground parking area. Silvei
Screen and Echo Investment are also planning a similar arrangement
with a new venue in the Polish city of Szczecin to open sometime
this year. Silver Screen, which also owns Los Angeles-based
Pacific Theatres Corporation, opened its first theatre in central
Warsaw last November and is planning sites domestically in the
cities of Gdynia. Gdansk. Krakow and Wroclaw.
KIN0WELT HEADS EAST
MUNICH—Also interested in eastern markets is German
exhibitor Kinowelt Intl., which has unveiled plans to launch
Kinowelt Hungary in conjunction with Hungarian distributoi
Budapest Film. The new arm, which is expected to be the largesl
independent outfit of its kind in Hungary, will specialize in film
distribution, home entertainment and TV licensing. Additionally.
Kinowelt Intl. is interested in establishing a film distribution company
in Poland as well as acquiring a majority stake in Lithuanian
distributor GPI.
POLISH FILM PRODUCERS WAGE WARSAW
WARSAW—While interest in the Polish market grows, a controversial
law that affects local distributors and exhibitors is being
debated within the industry. Penned by Polish film producers, the
new legislation calls for a 10 percent tax to be imposed on every
movie theatre ticket sold in order to subsidize local production. In
addition, the producers are seeking a quota that requires
exhibitors to screen a minimum number of Polish pics. The country's
Film Distributor's Association is presenting an alternative
version of the bill, which would attract investment in the film
industry through various tax incentives.
FRENCH FARE FARES WELL
PARIS—The French Centre National de Cinematographic
reports that while Gallic pics experienced an increase in its share ol
boxoffice take during first quarter 1999, overall attendance figures
at cinemas were down throughout the country. French films
accounted for 42 percent of the boxoffice, or 32 million tickets sold,
up 36 percent from the previous year. However, French exhibitors
counted only 75 million patrons in attendance during the period,
down by 18 percent in comparison to 1998 totals.
Outside of the country, French films fared similarly well, with
local product taking nearly double the boxoffice share in eighl
major territories including U.S., Canada and six continental countrie.
during January September 1999. According to French film
promotion company Unifrance, Gallic products have recorded 9.3
million admissions during the nine-month period in comparison tc
1998's 4.7 million. French pics saw its greatest number of audience
members in neighboring Germany, where their market share rose
by 250 percent. Leading the charge were feature films "Obelix vs
Caesar," "The Dinner Game" and "Autumn Tale."
GAUMONT'S THIRD QUARTER
PARIS—Feeling the Gallic pinch is French film producer anc
distributor Gaumont, which reports that its third quarter 1999
sales dropped by 30 percent to 245.6 million francs (US$38.9 million)
during the three-month period. Also not so promising were
the company's nine-month figures, which indicate that sales fell bj
25.6 percent to one billion francs (US$160 million) comparer
with the previous year.
48 BOXOFFICE

INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS
PACIFIC OVERTURES
Notes From the Pacific Rim by Franceses Dinglasan
LEAD STORY: VILLAGE SPRINGS UP IN THAILAND AND SOUTH KOREA
SYDNEY—Australian exhibition giant Village Roadshow has revealed that it
will pay approximately AUSS21 million (US$13.5 million) to Hong Kong-based
Golden Harvest Entertainment for an unspecified number of cinemas located
throughout South Korea and Thailand. The deal is part of Village's long term goal
to buy back numerous interests from partners (most notably in Asia) and consolidate
the holdings into one company. In addition to this transaction, the financially
beset Golden Harvest will sell four of its other cinemas in Hong Kong to City
Entertainment Corp., a join venture between itself and Village Roadshow.
partnership to develop into the region's largest film distribution
business, with plans to roll out over 50 films by the end of the year.
Dubbed Warner Golden Village, the new outfit will be located in the
Offices of Golden Village Pictures, another joint venture between
Australia-based Village Roadshow and Hong Kong's Golden
Harvest (see Lead Story). Golden Village Pictures general manager
Gerald Dibbayawan has been tapped to head Warner Golden
Village, while four Warner Bros, staff members, including office
manager Ken Low. will lose their positions as part of the deal.
CODE OF CONDUCT SET IN 0Z
SYDNEY—After a year of investigating charges of anti-competitive
and unfair business practices by certain members of the
film industry Down Under, the Australian Competition and
Consumer Commission has approved a voluntary Film
Distribution and Exhibition Code of Conduct. Among those
expected to benefit from the implementation of the Code are rural
theatre owners and operators, who had previously been subject to
a long wait period before they were given access to in-demand
releases. Under terms of the Code, distributors would rotate films
throughout designated regions. However, the ACCC will continue
to investigate a number of complaints, particularly the allegation
that some distributors are charging rural exhibitors inflated firstweek
rates for releases that have been on the market for several
jweeks.
AUSSIES PREFER MOVIES
SYDNEY—According to a report released by the Australian
Bureau of Statistics, moviegoing has increased in popularity as
the pastime of choice in the Land of Oz. Over the past five years,
the number of Australians attending the cinema has risen by 14
percent, with 67 percent of the country's population above the age
of 14 (equal to 10 million people) making a trip to the local movie
theatre at least once during the 1 2-month period ending last April.
Among the other activities named in the survey were visiting the
library, art galleries, museums and the opera.
TICKET SALES ON THE RISE DOWN UNDER
SYDNEY— In line with this Australian proclivity is the local
boxoffice. which recorded its 12th consecutive year of growth in
.1999. According to figures released by the Motion Picture
Distributors' Association of Australia, earnings increased by
nearly 12 percent during the period to a total of AUSS704 million
(US$455 million), largely due to the steadilj
ascending Dumber o( screens and state-of-theart
multiplexes throughout the country.
However, while cinema admissions in Oz have
continued to rise, local films have failed to
attract a larger proportion of the growing
Australian audience. Early estimates figure
Down Under product to have grossed AUSS21
million (USS13.5 million) during the period,
accounting for a mere three percent of total
boxoffice earnings. The Heath Ledger starrer "Two Hands"
proved the most popular local pic last year, garnishing AUSS5
WARNER FINDS GOLD IN SINGAPORE
SINGAPORE—Warner Bros, has announced that it will shut million (USS3.2 million).
low n its Singapore distribution office in order to enter into a joint
venture with Golden Village Pictures. Both companies expect the
BOLLYWOOD BOXOFFICE BREAKERS
NEW DELHI—Also suffering at the local boxoffice in 1999
were Bollywood flicks, which recorded their worst year ever at
Indian cinemas.
Industry observers attribute the poor results to
sky-high production costs as well as increasing entertainment dollar
competition from such sources as video, cable TV and foreign
channels. Of the 130 movies made specifically for Hindu-speaking
theatre patrons during the year, an unspecified number were
reportedly pulled by exhibitors after just one week because of
their inability to draw an audience.
HERALDING MORE MULTIPLEXES
TOKYO—Nippon Herald Group's Herald Enterprises has
announced plans to develop two multiplex projects in Japan by
the end of this year. The first complex, which consists of eight
screens and 1.500 seats, is located in the city of Tsukuba and is
scheduled for a July bow. The second theatre, which will open its
doors this November, is located in Fukuoka. the largest city on
the southern island of Kyushu, and will hold 10 screens. 2.000
seats and a parking capacity of 900 spaces. Despite the staggering
construction costs, which average one billion Japanese yen
(USS9.8 million) per site. Herald intends to build new multiplexes
at the rate of two per year.
IMAX MAKES MOVES IN JAPAN
TOKYO—Large format specialty company Imax has inked a
deal with recreation company Seibu Group that calls for three of
its trademark 3-D theatre systems to be installed throughout
Japan. The first installation in the city of Nagano is slated to open
in January 2001 . while the other two are expected to bow in Tokyo
by spring 2002.
SEVERED THAIS WITH FOX
BANGKOK—Thailand's censorship committee has officially
banned 20th Century Fox's "Anna and the King." calling it an
inaccurate portrayal of the country's history as well as insufficiently
respectful toward its monarchy. Fox. which distributed and
produced the Jodie Foster starrer, had also been denied permission
by the Thai government to film in the country and instead
conducted its shoot in Malaysia. Within days of the ban by the
Thai committee, which consists o\' academics, local press members,
the national film board and a branch of the police, pirated
versions of the film were available lor purchase inside the country.
March. 2000 4«>

l( I
'
BOXOFHCE
REVIEWS
March 2000
DAY AND DATE: MARCH 24
WAKING THE DEAD
***i/2
Starring Billy Crudup and Jennifer
Connelly. Directed and written by Keith
Gordon. Produced by Keith Cordon,
Stuart Kleinman and Linda Reisman. A
USA release. Drama. Rated R for sexuality
and language. Running time: 103
Fielding, on the other hand, is serving in
min.
A romance film relies on the charisma
the Coast Guard when they first meet,
later going to law school in an effort to
and chemistry of its leads to con-
change the system from within. He's
vince the audience that they do, indeed, willing to make sacrifices for the good of
belong together—and
will be
cause. Neither
the greater
together even after
retreats from his
death parts them.
or her position,
In this, "Waking
at times embarrassing
the Dead" writerdirector-producer
the other
when circumstances
Keith Gordon
for an
succeeds resoundingly.
ideological
eruption are less
Beginning
with a car bombing
than
But
optimal.
it's their
convictions that
that kills
Sarah
inspire
activist
their
Williams ("Dark
love and respect
City's" Jennifer
for each other.
Billy Crudup and Jennifer Connelly
Connelly),
in USA's "Waking the Dead."
Told from
"Waking the
Fielding's point
Dead" moves back and forth in time (on
occasion less fluidly than others)
of view, the film is carried
who not just portrays but
by Crudup,
inhabits a
between the early 1970s, when she character who runs the gamut of
meets and falls in love with politically extreme emotion from the cool collection
candidate to the des-
inclined Fielding Pierce ("Jesus' Son's"
of a political
Billy Crudup), and the '80s, after Sarah's
death, when Fielding is offered a chance
to run for the Senate. With his chiseled
good looks and polished background,
he's a shoo-in—until his beloved begins
to haunt him and he suspects that either
she really is alive or he's losing his mind.
The film's best moments are set in the
past as the two discover young love
despite their differences. Sarah is an
uncompromising revolutionary, going so
far as to travel to South America to help
oppressed Chilean radicals escape.
peration of trying to protect his determined
lover to the uncontrollable insanity
broiling just beneath the surface.
Gordon mirrors these emotions in his
filmmaking, using slow-motion, handheld
camerawork and elaborate pauses
to reflect the emotional resonance of a
particular scene. Annlee Ellingson
•••*• OUTSTANDING
**•• VERY GOOD
••• GOOD
•• FAIR
* POOR
(no stars) BOMB
REVIEWS
The Closer You Get
The Color of Paradise
Cotton Mary
Gendernauts
Grizzly Falls
Kestrel's Eye
Next Friday
Pitch Black
Play It to the Bone R
The Quarry
Supernova
Whipped
Wirey Spmdell R-20
DAY AND DATE: 3/24
Waking the Dead R-16
SPECIAL FORMATS
Dolphins R-19
Mysteries of Egypt R-19
FLASHBACK: 1989
Earth Girls Are Easy R-18
PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED
Coming films already reviewed R-20
REVIEW DIGEST
Our monthly release overview R-21
Hit www.boxoffice.com
every Friday for the
latest movie reviews!
Advance Sundance Film
Festival coverage
is currently online!
Ft
R
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50 (R-16) BO\OI I

•••
written by Majid Majidi. Produeed by
Mehdi Karimi. A Sony Pictures Classics
release. Drama. Not yet rated. Running
time: 95 min.
There's a startling scene in "The Color
of Paradise" in which a bitter man screams
at his mother about how God has abandoned
him and questions why he should
follow a pious path. One would be hardpressed
to think of another Iranian film
that has ever directly assailed religion—the
Mullahs must be furious—but it's not surprising
coming from the director of
"Children of Heaven." That powerfully
tough criticism of Iran's capitalist system
showed that writer-director Majid Majidi
may be the most hard-hitting of Iranian
filmmakers. Unfortunately, he's also cinematically
cruder than his talented colleagues
and "The Color of Paradise." more
than "Children of Heaven," suffers from
his technical ineptitude. His tale of a
bright blind boy (Mohsen Ramezani) and
the father who no longer wants to care for
him shares some of Francois Truffaut's
attention to childhood detail. But it lacks
lyricism and just jumps from one sloppy
scene to another. Only its fine performances
and fierce honesty save it from
med i ocri t
y.— Shlomo Sch wartzberg
WHIPPED *•
Starring Amanda Peet,
Brian Ian Holt,
Jonathan Abrahams, Zorie Barber and
Judah Domke. Directed and written by
Peter M. Cohen. Produced by Anthony
Armetta and Taylor MacCrae. A
Destination release. Comedy. Not yet rated.
Running time: 85 min.
Hostility between men and women is
Struggling to find new variations on the
overworked theme of guys and girls dissing
each other verbally, physically, in reality,
imagination and dreams, it spares few
vulgarities and makes the whole searchfor-a-mate
process seem so unappealing,
unromantic. unsatisfying and ugly as to be
pointless.
Amanda Peet, with her minor-league
Julia Roberts look, is an attractive target
for if not the affections then the distorted
desires of a trio of pretty stupid single
men a writer (Zone Barber), a money
broker (Brian Van Holt) and an actor
REVIEWS
THE COLOR OF PARADISE
(Jonathan Abrahams). Judah Domke is
stuck with the role of their even more
Starring Mohsen Ramezani, Hossein
Mahjuh and Salime Feizi. Directed and unfortunate pal who happens to be married.
Peter Cohen's script has a very harsh
viewpoint which his-in-your face direction
only heightens, and there is little
room left for any of the actors to find the
nuances which might have made the movie
more insightful despite its crass attitude.
—Bridget Byrne
THE CLOSER YOU GET ***
Starring Ian Hart, Sean McGinley,
Niamh Cusack and Ruth McCabe. Directed
by Aileen Ritchie. Written by William Ivory.
Produeed by Uberto Pasolini. A Fox
Searchlight release. Comedy. Rated PG-U
for brief language and some sexual material.
Running time: 1 15 min.
In a homely hamlet on the craggy coast
of Donegal, the menfolk are like the martians
of the old B-movie: They need
women. But they have a simple (or simpleminded)
plan: They will place an ad in a
Miami newspaper publicizing their interest
in making matrimony with American lasses.
(Although, of course, matrimony is not the
first, and barely the last, act on their agendas.)
Having thus posted their availability
with full references to their supposed
virtues and potencies,
they make preparation
for a village party a few weeks hence to
welcome the waves of womanhood they are
sure will pour onto their shores.
The local women, knowing the true
intent of the testosterone natives, and feeling
more than a bit ignored, plot their
revenge: They will invite particularly hirsute
foreign fishermen to the affair, to
which they expect will come zero femmes
from afar, leaving the Irish lads to stand
about like wallflowers at the dance while
exotic seamen carouse the night away with
full-throttle in "Whipped," yet another dark the local ladies. Which indeed, and predictably,
comedy about modern-day dating habits.
The plot's minor surprises and one major
twist and the in-the-moment acting of the
is what transpires, with the equal-
ly expected character transformations following
thereafter.
With "Waking Ned Devine" and especially
cast raise the film a tad above its overall
level, which is slung pretty low. Some of the "The Full Monty," Fox Searchlight
unpleasant moments are funny, some not, previously found success with light-hearted
visits to the lands of isle and glen, and
but it isn't realistic enough to have an
impact and not stylish enough to be seducfive
"The Closer You Get" looks to continue
even at its most amusing.
that streak— if, due to the film's
predictability,
closer to the "Devine" level of'
boxoffice. As always, Ian Hart is effective,
making his lead, the lustlorn and headstrong
butcher Kieran O'Donnagh, a focus
of audience affection, in part due to his
increasingly obvious desperation, which
includes the dying of his dark hair to
blonde. Among those playing the rest of
the burg's cutely idiosyncratic (of course)
souls are Sean McGinley (who previouslj
teamed with Hart in "The Butcher Boy"
and "Michael Collins"). Niamh Cusack
("The Playboys") and Ruth McCabe
("Talk of Angels"). Working from a story
by Herbie Wave. actor-turned-BBC comedy
writer William Ivory peoples his village
with an interesting menagerie of characters,
and director Aileen Ritchie keeps her
camera for "The Closer You Get" just distant
enough to keep audience involvement
with this war-of-the-scxes affair of the
gentle, easy-going-down variety. Kim
W iIliamson
COTTON MARY
••*
Starring Madhur Jaffrey, Greta Scacchi
and James Wilby. Directed by Ismail
Merchant. Written by Alexandra Viets.
Produced by Ismail Merchant, Gil
Donaldson and Nayeem Hafizka. An
Artistic License release. Drama. Rated R for
a scene of sexuality. Running time: 123 min.
The title character of Ismail
Merchant's movie is the symbol of a deeprooted
love-hate relationship between ruler
and ruled, pre- and post-Imperialism, culture
and heritage, truth and desire and
myriad other emotional and factual consequences
— particularly race relations—of
Britain's colonialism in India. It is also a
disturbing study of a woman whose best
qualities manifest themselves in evil ways
which cannot be so easily excused as madness
or self-delusion.
Alexandra Viets' script, set post-
Independence, centers around Mary, a
middle-aged hospital worker who insinuates
herself into a household where a
British family struggles to deal with
changed times. Mary's key to entry is her
ability to use her sister to breast-feed a
sickly new baby with whom the depressed
mother is unable to cope. But Mary's own
mixture of foolish pride and painful illease
at her mixed race heritage adds poison
to family lives (both her own and her
employers') which are already seeped in
sorrows and misunderstandings, the legacy
o\' the failure of East and West to find a
happy common meeting ground.
Madhur Jaffrey. probably best known
in recent years for her excellent cookbooks
rather than her acting, is profoundly
disturbing as Mary, stripping away all
personal vanities to reveal the character's
own in a shocking portrait which can be
viewed for both its individuality and its
larger meaning. Greta Scacchi as the
British postpartum mother is stuck with
the problem of making gloomy introspection
interesting and doesn't quite manage
it. but she fares better than James Wilby,
handed an unfaithful absentee husband
role which is more plot point than fullydeveloped
character.
Merchant's direction is not as smooth
as one might imagine after all his years as
James Ivory's producer, but the understanding
of the subject matter brings resonance
and authentic surprise to main
scenes. Bridget Byrne
March. 2000
(R-17)

PITCH BLACK
***l/2
Starring Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell,
Cole Hauser, Lewis Fitzgerald, Claudia
Blaek and Keith David. Directed by
David N. Twohy. Written by Jim Wheat,
Ken Wheat and David N. Twohy.
Produeed by Tom Engelman and Tony
Winley. A USA release. Sei-FilHorror.
Rated R for sci-fi violenee and gore, and
for language. Running time
A freak meteor
storm causes a commercial
space llight to
make an emergency
landing on an unknown
planet.
After surviving
the harrowing crash,
the passengers think
that the main threat to
their safety is an
escaped convict. Riddick
("Saving Private Ryan's"
Vin Diesel), who was
being transported to
prison on the ill-fated
flight. But Riddick
proves to be their one hope for salvation
from the indigenous human-devouring
aliens that soon make their presence
known (with the help of impressive CGI
effects used to bring the winged, bladenosed,
lizard-bodied creatures to life).
The photosensitive monsters are kept at
bay as long as the three suns shine
bright. But, as fate would have it, a total
eclipse engulfs the interstellar castaways.
As the group is stalked, their only
chance of being led to safety is by relying
on Riddick's night vision and survival
instincts.
Vin Diesel's demeanor is refreshing
and the combination of his voice and
physical build make his character memorable.
He's a one-man Eastwood,
Schwarzenegger and Snipes. The
macabre past or further adventures of
his character would be an excellent follow-up.
Not since the second coming of
the Terminator has there been an antihero
so worth cheering. Dwayne E.
Leslie
GENDERNAUTS
**l/2
Starring Sandy Stone, Texas Tomboy,
Susan Stryker, Max I alerio, Jordy Jones,
Stafford, Tornado, liida J iloria and Annie
Sprinkle. Directed and produeed by Monika
Treut. A First Run release. Documentary.
Unrated. Running time: 86 nun.
Subtitled "A Journey Through
Shifting Identities," "Gcndernauts"
focuses on the variant degrees of several
transsexuals' self-imposed gender reassignment.
Some strive for a complete
transformation while others are content
with the changes hormone therapy
REVIEWS
FLASHBACK: July, 1989
What BOXOFFICE Said About...
EARTH GIRLS ARE EASY
[March 3 sees the release of the Columbia comedy "What Planet Are You From?",
in which Carry Shandling stars as an alien whose mission is to seduce and impregnate
Earth women. Back in 1989, Jeff Goldblum, Jim Carrey and Damon Wayans
played randy extra-terrestrials who were shown
the ways of amour by Geena Davis and Julie
Brown.]
"Earth Girls Are Easy" is
a bubbly and intensely colorful
comedy which makes up for a familiar story by
being simply too funny to resist. Valerie (Geena
Davis), a good-natured but hopelessly naive beautician
in the soaringly tacky San Fernando Valley, is
suffering over the loss of her deadbeat fiance
(Charles Rocket) when a spaceship lands in her
swimming pool. Inside are Mac (Jeff Goldblum),
Wiploc (Jim Carrey) and Zeebo (Damon Wayans),
three friendly, furry and slightly horny aliens who
take an immediate liking to Valerie and her ditzy
friend Candy (Julie Brown, who also co-wrote the script).
Anxious to show their three new friends the planet Earth—or at least as it exists in
the Valley, which has precious little to do with real life—Valerie and Candy shave
the aliens, making them appear human. What follows is predictable fish-out-ofwater
business as the aliens tear up a dance club, steal a car and create traffic chaos
and, like Daryl Hannah in "Splash," absorb language from television broadcasts
(Wiploc picks up James Dean's "You're tearing me apart!" lament from "Rebel
Without a Cause" and regurgitates it at a hilarious moment). It's all time-tested comedy
fodder, handled ably here. All in all, "Earth Girls Are Easy" is a clever, mindless
hootbrings.
Most seem to have arrived at the
conclusion and come to terms with the fact
that they don't really belong to either sex,
but postulate that they are merely more
extreme examples of the gender identity
crisis within us all, as few people come
close to fitting the idealized or stereotypical
criteria of what is female or male.
Director Monika Treut. herself a drag
king, interviews a number of transgender
pioneers representing a vast spectrum of
personalities, intellects and temperaments
—some are terrifically together, others a
tad too "Boogie Nights"-caliber neurotic
for their own good. Each gives a brief personal
history and some pontifications on
how their sexual identities have affected
their lives. But as most all of the participants
are San Francisco denizens.
"Gendernauts" fails to transcend the
microcosm of one of the world's few communities
that embraces alternative sexuality.
It would have added greatly to have
such subjects as cultural theorist Sandy
Stone, a male-to-female transsexual who
teaches at the University of Texas, describe
what daily life is like, how people treat her,
in a town not quite as open-minded. (Few
of the film's subjects could pass unquestioned
in their new gender.)
The documentary could also have
dug deeper as far as the technical aspects
of the process involved in changing
sexes. The first question—though likely
a rarely articulated one—that the layperson
has on the subject is how can working
genitalia be constructed? This goes
unaddressed for the most part until a
rather unexpectedly graphic video clip
from porn star Annie Sprinkle's oeuvre
is shown in which she's trying out her
girl-to-boyfriend's brand-new appendage.
This somewhat shocking snippet briefly
shows how it works (or in this case, doesn't)—but
this is one area where perhaps
a dash of clinical professionalism would
have been more appropriate.
"Gendernauts" is populated with
interesting and colorful characters who
provide human faces to and thoughtful
ruminations on the subject at hand, but
the documentary's haphazard, conversational,
undemanding, preaching-to-theconverted
approach renders its value
more therapeutic than sociological.
— Christine James
52 (R-18) BOXOFFICE

j
;
the
|
After
••*
GRIZZLY FALLS
Starring Daniel Clark, Bryan Brown.
Richard Harris, Tom Jackson and Oliver
Tobias. Directed by Stewart Raffill.
Written by Richard Beattie. Produced by
Peter S. Hampton and Allan Scott. A
Providence Entertainment release.
Adventure. Rated PG for wilderness
adventure violence and some mild language.
Running time: 9.1 min.
This is a trip down memory lane to
those Disney and similar films where all
the kids were the heroes
and all the animals cute
when they weren't being
ferocious. It
takes a serious
suspension of reality to
enjoy them. But, hey, isn't
that what movies are all
about?
Young Harry Bankston
(newcomer Daniel Clark)
goes on an expedition to
the Canadian wilderness
with his Indiana Jones-style
dad (Bryan Brown). It's a
bonding experience to
make up for father being
absent for much of his
young life, including when
his mother died.
The purpose of the trek is to bring
back a live grizzly and, naturally, it doesn't
all go according to plan. In fact it
goes so awry that Harry gets kidnapped
by a mother grizzly whose two cubs have
been captured by the expedition. Only
fair, you might say.
Ma Grizzly is actually good at her
chosen profession and Harry's only
problem seems to be that his diet is a little
undercooked. Apart from berries it
consists of raw fish, freshly-killed animals
and purloined eggs. Quit complaining,
kid—sushi and steak tartar would
cost you a packet in Beverly Hills.
The scenes with the bears are very
convincing and whatever special effects
there may be are seamless, though the
film could have done with a few less of
human-style gestures. Do grizzlies
really do that crooked arm wave thing
when they want you to hurry up? And
some of the continuity is very sloppy.
several days of being schlepped by
a bear, Harry's shirt looks like it just
came out of the dryer.
Still, it's a pretty entertaining trip for
the whole family, except for very little
kids who might find some of the scenes
too intense. Performances are adequate,
with young Mr. Clark a standout.
Richard Harris, as the much older
Harry, bookends the story and shamelessly
sets up a potential sequel. Mike
Kerrigan
REVIEWS
SPECIAL FORMATS
MYSTERIES OF EGYPT • ••
Starring Omar Sharif and Kate Maberly. Directed by Bruce Neibaur. Written in consultation
with Dr. Mark Lehner, Dr. Zahi Hawass and Dr. Nicholas Reeves. Produced
by Scott Swofford and Lisa Truit. A National Geographic release. Documentary.
Unrated. Running time: 40 min.
Set against the wondrous backdrop of the sweeping Nile and the majestic Ciza pyramids,
"Mysteries of Egypt" takes the viewer on an engaging journey through the Land
of the Pharaohs. Meant to be educational as
well as inspirational, the large-format film
conveys pertinent information in the form of
a running conversation between a wise old
grandfather (Omar Sharif), who stresses the
importance of historic perspective as well
as respect toward the ancients, and his
inquisitive granddaughter (Kate Maberly),
who is eager to hear about the legendary
Mummy's Curse and the more titillating
tales associated with the region.
Seeking to satisfy both this thirst for knowl-
"'
^m* JS edge and the morbid curiosity about
f.\
ancient Egyptians, the film is interspersed
with reenactments of events such as the
mummification of royal family members
and the plundering of rich tombs by intrepid
grave robbers, with Sharif's voice-overs serving to explain the onscreen depictions of
the archaic traditions and their historical significance.
Despite the potentiality for contrived dialogue or distraction caused by the grandfather-granddaughter
relationship, "Mysteries of Egypt" is quite successful at communicating
basic information about the country's history as well as avoiding the pitfalls
associated with a documentary featuring real events and places, but fictional characters.
The only flaw of any note is the film's inability to delve deeper into topics it introduces,
including the short life of King Tut and the mysterious construction methods
behind the pyramids, igniting viewer curiosity only to let it down much too quickly.
However, having to cover an entire civilization in just 40 minutes is no small task,
and director Bruce Neibaur makes the most of the time he is allotted by using the
giant screen to depict Egypt's breathtaking landscape and timeless monuments on a
scale in which they deserve to be seen.
DOLPHINS
Starring Dr.
•••
Francesca Dinglasan
Kathleen Dudzinski, Alejandro Acevedo-Guitierrez and Dean Bernal.
Directed and produced by Greg MacGillivray. A MacGillivray Freeman release.
Documentary. Unrated. Running time: 40 min.
This is the first Imax release for MacGillivray Freeman since its "Everest" broke all
boxoffice records for the giant screen. This is
unlikely to scale any new financial
peaks but it is a visually pleasing and thought-provoking peek at life beneath the
waves. In short, it's just the ticket for the Imax treatment.
"Galapagos" had Dr. Carole Baldwin swimming with the sharks and this one has Dr.
Kathleen Dudzinski in Dances with Dolphins. Dr. Dudzinski sports a fetching red
bikini as she frolics without diving gear in a group of dolphins. Actually Dr. D is
doing serious and important work—trying to decipher dolphinspeak. If she ever
cracks the code, we are in for some very interesting discussions with out aquatic
cousins.
Enhancing the visual delights is a great score by Sting, whose music perfectly complements
the film's atmospherics. Mike Kerrigan
March, 2000 (R-19) 53

••
KESTREL'S EYE
Directed and produced by Mikael
Kristersson. A First Run release.
Documentary. Unrated. Running time: 85 min.
This wordless documentary which follows
the limited adventures of a pair of
in the life of a kestrel couple. The footage
predominantly depicts the birds clucking
at each other, grooming themselves and
hunting down dinner. Occasionally, they
will survey their surroundings, taking little
notice of the snow shovelers, skulking cats,
joggers, graveyard groundskeepers, wedding
attendees and other village
denizens
that pass within their ken. Precious little
seems to impress or even register with the
kestrels. They remain focused on chewing
mice, hatching eggs and erratically flying
to and fro. Which is as it should be; that's
what birds do, and to falsely anthropomorphize
them by editing the footage to
convey reactions, emotions or intentions
that don't exist would be irresponsible. But
the stark mundanity of reality is not very
endearing—and let's face it: Even Julia
Roberts had better do something interesting
over the course of 85 minutes, much
less some rather plain-looking carnivorous
birds. Christine James
WIREY SPINDELL *1/2
Starring Eric Shaeffer, Callie Thome,
Eric Mahius and Samnantha Buck.
Directed and written by Eric Shaeffer.
Produced by Eric Shaeffer, Dolly Hall,
Terence Michael and Lloyd Segan. A
Winstar Cinema release. Comedy. Unrated.
Running time 101 min.
Eric Shaeffer ("My Life's in
Turnaround," "If Lucy Fell," "Fall") has
now made the same movie four times and it
hasn't improved. His films revolve around
idiosyncratic New Yorkers, most of whom
do not speak or behave like anyone you
have ever met—or would particularly like
to. Thirtysomething Wirey (his hippie parents
gave him the middle name of Spokes)
is having a crisis because he's about to get
married. Shaeffer uses this as the vehicle to
go back all the way to babyhood and examine
his life so far. It's a viable idea and could
have made an entertaining and thoughtprovoking
film. But Shaeffer insists on
pushing the boundaries of his characters
beyond all reason. His seven-year-old incarnation
is not only having intercourse with
both sexes but well on his way to becoming
an alcoholic. By the time he gets into college—and
later rehab—Wirey is so far
removed from reality that it is impossible to
identify with him or have any sympathy for
his plight. Mike Kerrigan
REVIEWS
•*
NEXT FRIDAY
Starring lee Cube and Mike Epps.
Directed by Steve Can: Written and produced
by Ice Cube. A New Line release.
Comedy. Rated R for strong language,
drug use and sexual content. Running time:
falcons is so slow-paced and uneventful it 98 min.
would make even an ornithologist ornery. After spending two years behind bars,
Using only natural light and sound, director
Mikael Kristersson documents a year Lister Jr.) is on a vengeful quest back
neighborhood bully Debo (Tommy "Tiny"
to
the hood. The focus of his fury is Craig
(Ice Cube)—the one responsible for
Debo's two-year vacation. To escape
Debo's wrath, Craig quickly leaves town
and moves in with his uncle (Don "DC"
Curry) and his spineless wannabe player
cousin Day-Day (Mike Epps). However,
the foreign surroundings have a familiar
stench, and before the day is over Craig
and Day-Day will have to deal with the
neighbor's dog. ex-girlfriends, extreme
working conditions and a family crisis.
This watered-down sequel to 1995's
sleeper hit that set standards and broke
video rental records has been reduced to
multiple skits woven together with a hyped
soundtrack. The film seems to pause for
anticipated laughs where the original was
laced with unexpected visual and verbal
humor and running gags that got funnier
as the film progressed. Sorely missed is the
original's main star, Chris Tucker; the
many lulls in the film conjure unanswered
questions as to the whereabouts of Tucker's
character, Smokey. Another major hindrance
is a script that fails to examine its
characters' world, rendering them superficial
and stereotypical. Craig's antics soon
grow tiresome enough that even the most
ardent fans of the rogueish slacker will want
him to just go back to his old neighborhood
and finally get a job. Dwayne E. Leslie
THE QUARRY •••
Starring John Lynch, Jonny Phillips,
Serge-Henri lalcke, Oscar Petersen and Jody
Abrahams. Directed, written and produced by
Marion Hansel. A First Run release. Drama.
German- and English-language; subtitled.
Unrated. Running time: 111) min.
Its title referring to both a hunted man
("Sliding Doors'" John Lynch) and the
rocky desert locale where he's driven to
commit a horrible crime, "The Quarry" is
a well-made and excellently acted but disappointingly
detached drama. The film
opens with a 30ish, sweaty, disheveled man
running through a field, sobbing desperately
to himself, seeking shelter from a
sudden storm in a large drainpipe—all of
which instantly elicits concern and compassion
from the audience, regardless of
whatever he's done to get himself into this
predicament.
Lynch imbues his character with depth
and import in the way he intensely performs
such mundane acts as taking a
steadying swig from a flask and delicately
stroking his bedsheet in longing for physical
and psychological rest. Supporting
characters are similarly textured; everyone
from the not-wholly-altruistic
Reverend (Serge-Henri Valcke) to the
racist,
egotistical yet sometimes sensitive
police captain (Jonny Phillips) to a pair of
felonious but deeply bonded brothers
(Oscar Petersen and Jody Abrahams) is
depicted in compellingly complex shades
of gray, painting a richly layered portrait
of the murkier elements of humanity. But
while the enigmatic nature of the protagonist
is intriguing, it becomes too distancing,
disallowing insight into or connection
with what he's going through and
why. Christine James
PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED: FEBRUARY/MARCH/APRIL FILMS
The alphabetical list below notes the issue of BOXOFFICE in which our review of an
upcoming film appeared, the star rating and the distributor/release date information.
"American Pimp" *•: 7th Art, April undated; see April 1999.
"Beautiful People" ••••: Trimark, 2118; see February 2000.
"But I'm a Cheerleader" **: Fine Line, Spring undated; see November 1999.
"The Bii> Kahuna" **l/2: Lions Gate, 4114; see December 1999.
"Black and White" ***l/2: Columbia. 415; see November 1999.
"Deterrence" ***l/2: Paramount Classics, 1st Quarter undated; see Nov. 1999.
"East is East" ••••: Miramax, 3131; see July 1999.
"East West" ••: SPC, 3110; see November 1999.
"8 112 Women" **: Lions Gate, 1st Quarter undated; see September 1999.
"Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai" ••: Artisan, 2118; see September 1999.
"The Last September" *l/2: Trimark, March undated; see November 1999.
"Me Myself I" ••1/2: SPC, 417; see November 1999.
"Mifune" ••••: SPC, 2125; see December 1999.
"Sex: The Annabel Chong Story" ••: Strand, 2111; see September 1999.
"Soft Toilet Seats" •••: Phaedra, 1st Quarter undated; see November 1999.
"Sweet Jane" •••: Phaedra. 1st Quarter undated; sec April 1998.
"Third World Cop" ••: Palm, 2125; see November 1999.
"The Virgin Suicides" ••: Paramount Classics, 417; see September 1999.
"The Wisdom of Crocodiles" •••: Miramax, April undated; see Nov. 1999.
54 (R-20) BOXOFFICE

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itylnudity. Running time: 91 min.
As the audience joins what
seems like a film in progress, the
crew of a deep space emergency
rescue vessel, the Nightingale, is
found responding to a distant
S.O.S. call. The ship makes a
visually exceptional dimension
jump—but that is the film's only
meritorious moment. While
black holes of incredible density
are always a risk while navigating
the cosmos, the main danger
here are plot holes that are just
plain dense.
drifter turns out not to be what
he seems, and crew members
begin to mysteriously disappear
as they learn more about him
and his cargo. There are several
moments that feel like everyone
left alive is in a hurry to get to
the end of the film as quickly as
possible—an ending that terminates
just as abruptly as the film
began, yet couldn't come too
soon. Dwayne E. Leslie
PLAY IT TO THE BONE
• ••1/2
Starring Woody Harrelson,
Antonio Banderas and Lolita
Davidovich. Directed and written
by Ron Shelton. Produced by
Stephen Chin. A Buena Vista
release. Drama/comedy. Rated R
for brutal ring violence, strong
sexuality including dialogue,
nudity, pervasive language and
some drug content. Running
time: 123 min.
Ron Shelton wrote and
directed one of the greatest
movies about baseball ("Bull
Durham") and one of the best
about basketball ("White Guys
Can't Jump"). Now he's got the
triple crown with this hilarious
but brutal look at two over-thehill
welterweights who get an
unexpected shot at the big time.
Woody Harrelson is Vince, a
boxer who sees visions of Jesus
Review Digest
these two have in common is
Grace (Lolita Davidovich),
Vince's ex-girlfriend and Cesar's
soon-to-be ex.
When the fighters on the
Mike Tyson undercard are suddenly
unavailable—drugs in one
case, death in the other—the
promoter hires these two for
that night's bill. With Grace at
the wheel of her muscle car they
are all off to Vegas.
Shelton's dialogue sparkles
as they bicker and bond and
Like so many films before, bicker some more. They rescue
Lucy the premise is simple (and, by a stranded Liu
now, simple-minded): A lone ("Payback") from a man with a
seriously overheated $120,000
sports car. "But what about our
sexy trip to Sin City?" he wails
at spinning wheels and a cloud
of dust.
Then there is the fight. It is
very bloody and savage, with
color and multichannel sound
exceeding even the benchmark
"Raging Bull." and it seems to
go on forever. But it is the
heart of the story as the two
punch their way to redemption,
only to be suckered out of
much of their purse by the
organizers.
The casting is brilliant.
Robert Wagner as the supercilious
Vegas hotel owner and
Tom Sizemore ("Bringing Out
the Dead") as the demented,
foul-mouthed promoter are
standouts. Real boxing people
are used as atmosphere, and
celebrities (Kevin Costner,
James Woods, Tony Curtis and
many more) are added for window
dressing. Rod Stewart
winds up as Lucy Liu's date,
only to be relieved of his wallet.
The title, by the way, refers
to doing things flat-out, all the
way. Which is exactly what
Shelton does with his latest look
at the wide, and sometime
wacky, world of sports. Mike
Kerrigan

ADVERTISERS INDEX
ADVERTISER PHONE/FAX E-MAIL/WEBSITE
Automaticket/Hurley Screen
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mlo'"( inomae

Close Focus
jMPANY: Cinemark Intl., Piano, Texas
Is it true that AOL tried to hire you for $130 billion, but you said no and they had to settle for Time Warner?
An "e" at the end of my first name, and it'd be merger city. Ironically, it's the "e" in the AOL-TW
merger that is making all the difference in that deal, and in our industry as well. "E-business" is
revolutionizing exhibition, and will continue to do so in the coming years. From purchasing to
presentation, the efficiencies and quality that new technologies and the internet bring to our
companies are dynamic. As an industry, we must embrace this revolution to enhance vitality and
continue to provide the best quality for our customers. We have a fast-moving, challenging and
exciting "e-road" ahead of us. It is very important that we make the right decisions.
I've spent many a March in Las Vegas, seven as chairman of ShoWest.
iat one exact place in Las Vegas is your favorite place to be?
.e've all found that the main elevators in Bally's or the Coke display
the trade show are key crossroads of the exhibition world. In past
years, one need only wait a few moments at either site for a chance
meeting with longtime friends and to meet people from all over the
world who drive our industry's success. Certainly, we are all exr"
that "Paris" has become a new crossroad of our industry.
What is your favorite least essential item in your office?
The clock. When you operate on several continents, an accurati
is meaningless. It is always time for a movie somewhere.
Fox's Tom Sherak calls you "determined, accommodating, tenat
good-willed, even-tempered." What might be one adjective he left
Out of generosity, I suspect that Tom omitted "stubborn." I've learned
great deal from Tom Sherak, especially the importance of working together
and seeing our business as one industry.
Which one do you use most frequently: PC, pen, email, or phone?
E-Mail. It is the most ubiquitous example of how e-business is enhancing
our ability to conduct international business.
If elves were at work in exhibition, what might their best midnight mat
They would bring sanity back to exhibition and stop the overdevelopment of
the marketplace. Exhibition and distribution would work together to solve our
common problems, focusing on our customers and expanding the marketplace.
In your experience, has Lee Roy ever said anything other than exactly what he means?
If you spend time with Lee Roy [Mitchell, chairman and CEO of Cinemark USA],
you notice right away that he doesn't talk a lot. He listens. And listens. And
listens. And, when he does speak, his words are carefully chosen, often woven
into an anecdote or an insight that is right on point. Lee Roy is one of the great
innovators and visionaries of our business. It has been a honor to work with him
and to carry out his vision of building one of the premier global exhibition companies.
Of your exhibition beginnings— a lobby page boy at the age of 9 at a Fox-lntermountain theatre in
Butte, Montana—you recently recalled, "I used to sweep up the lobby after the people came in."
How would you describe, these 47 years later, what you do now?
Now, I am a builder. First, of dreams. Then, of management teams and staffs who make those dreams
a reality.
Tim Warner will be honored as International Exhibitor of the Year at this month's ShoWest 2000.
See our April 1996 issue profile for a look back on Warner's life and times—and keep an eye out lor
our upcoming ShoWest Intro 2000 publication, where our cover story on Warner provides a look forward.

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