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FADE IN...
As promised in this space last month, in
this issue we launch yet another new reader
service: our Ad Info Faxback Form. You'll find
it on page 112, snuggled between our already
relaunched Advertiser Index—which lists not
only the issue's advertisers and their placements'
page numbers but also mailing
addresses, phone and fax numbers, email
and website information, and specific contact
names—and our longstanding Classified
Advertising section. (Which classifieds, as
part of our continuing expansion this year of
www.boxoffice.com, we're considering adding
online soon. But more on that anon.)
A note of small history: A standard of good
trade publishing everywhere, the reader service
card has of course long been a staple of
BOXOFFICE. It showed advertisers that, just
as we prove our reader numbers by professional
outside audit, we also proved the
value of their advertising dollars in terms of
demonstrable reader response. But the card
approach had a built-in problem: It took time
for the post office to deliver the cards to the
data-services firm, as did the requisite processing
there. Now, with our expanded
Advertiser Index, readers can make instant
contact with an advertiser via a variety of
ways, from snail mail through email.
But, we realized, what if a reader was
reading on a plane or train, and so couldn't
make that instant contact but wanted to take
care of the business at hand right then? And
what if a reader wanted a quick and easy
method for contacting multiple companies at
one fell swoop, so to speak? Thus was born
our reincarnation of the old reader-service
card, but redesigned in the form of our new
Ad Info Faxback page. Readers can check
the boxes next to all the advertisers from
which they'd like more information, fill in their
own contact details, and fax it to us. We'll
take it from there. It's like BOXOFFICE's version
of Java: Write once, run everywhere.
We'll take advantage of that tech reference
to note also the uber-strong reader response
to our "9 on the Net" addition. In this issue,
Kinepolis exec Kris Hoet discusses how and
why the Belgian megaplexer is redesigning
its site. Given exhibitors' obvious interest in
making best use of the web, we're already at
work on expanding our editorial coverage of
the topic. Stay tuned.—Kim Williamson
WEBSITE ADDRESS: www.boxoffice.com
EMAIL ADDRESS: boxoffice@earthlink.net
JULY, 2000 VOL. 136, NO. 7 EUROPEAN EXHIBITION
Minus all the [fights, costumes and claws], we were
attempting to do a drama as intense as any other.—
DEPARTMENTS
Digital defense; butchers in
8 REEL DEALS
the booth. Compiled by Christine James
Uni reups Jersey; Warner pacts with FilmFour. By Annlee Ellingson
10 HOT SET
Arnold takes "Damage"; Travolta falls on "Sword." By Christine Jamt
12 RELEASE CHARTS: Studio Films
Major releases slated through Oct. 2000. Compiled by Wade Major
14 RELEASE CHARTS: Independent Films
Specialized fare month by month to 2001 . Compiled by Wade Major
16 TRAILERS: July Movies
Damon, Smith bag "Vance"; Eastwood, Jones, Garner ride "Cowboys";
Fraser "Bedazzled"; Reeves gets "Replacements." PLUS: Words with
John Waters; Caroline Keenan; more Sundancers. By Annlee Ellingsoi
81 NORTHERN EXPOSURE
Ticket-price hike; B.C. strike settled. By Shlomo Schwartzberg
82 EUROVIEWS
Gallic ticket tizzy; money Hungary; German moves. By Francesca Dinglas
83 PACIFIC OVERTURES
Golden outlook; LCI Seoul mate; new in Nippon. By Francesca Dinglas
Silver goes Ch. 11; GCC considers sale; R/C buyout; new sites for AM >
Cleveland, Wehrenberg. PLUS: NATO Regional News; Showmandiser
Ticker Time; Showminder; movieboss.com tip. By Francesca Dinglasai»
86 HILL NEWS
NATO re: ADA; MPAA re: the Great Wall. By Francesca Dinglasan |
87 STUDIO NEWS
Weinsteins reup; indies form IDP; corporate card. By Annlee Ellings\
Supply Side: ASC + SMPTE; Digital Cinema: Kodak has Qualcomrrr
Large Format: Imax's "Fantasia" numbers; Wired World: Ticket movi
by AOL, ETM, LCI, Disney. Also: New products. By Annlee Ellingsoi
PLUS: 9 on the Net: the new www.kinepolis.com. By Kim WilliamsOf
July's four-star "Chuck and Buck" plus our Cannes coverage lead oO
analyses of 43 films (see list, p. 90). Compiled by Christine James
|!
Including: Foreign-language filmgoing. Compiled by AOL MovieFoni"
109 HOME RELEASE CHART: July 2000
"Ninth Gate," "Nine Yards" in July. Compiled by Wade Major
110 AD INDEX AND CLASSIFIEDS
With our Ad Info Faxback Form, you can quiolf
request product information from multiple advertisers in
this issue.
BOXOFFICE DATA CENTER
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(312) 922-9326; fax: (312) 922-7209
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Chicago. IL 60607
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Fax (312) 922-7209

. nlee
'
II
SPECIAL SECTION: EUROPEAN EXHIBITION
rhe Industry Standard: In this issue, we take our annual look at European exhibition with coverage timed for the
innual Amsterdam gathering of Cinema Expo, this year being held June 26-29.
i4
SPECIAL REPORT: European Giants of Exhibition
Executive rosters, contact information, website and email addresses, plus the latest counts on corporate and theatre
staffing, screens and site locations for 27 key European exhibition companies. Compiled by Franceses Dinglasan
50 EXHIBITION EXTRA: European Cinema Associations
A baker's dozen of important exhibition organizations, listed by country. Compiled by Francesca Dinglasan
\2 EUROPEAN EXHIBITION PROFILE: Warsaw's Silver Screen
Paris-born exhibition entrepreneur Frank Stork, with backing from Pacific Theatres and longtime European cinema expert
Michael Forman, debuts his "more than a cinema" philosophy of multiplexing with Warsaw's Silver Screen, with other
Poland sites to follow this month and next in Gdynia and Lodz. How is he competing with new cinemas from Loews Cineplex
and United Cinemas Intl.? Among the elements are concierge service, leather seats and Beluga caviar. By Christine James
6 SERIES 2001 -201 0: Global Exhibition Overview
In this summary of its new "Global Film: Exhibition and Distribution, Third Edition," the analysts at Baskerville Communications
chart the current and future trends and numbers of the worldwide cinema industry. By Bob Marich and Simon Murray
SPECIAL REPORT: Cinema Expo 2000
In our annual convention overview, we provide a Schedule of Events; salute Exhibitor of the Year Guy Verrecchia of the French
circuit UGC and In'
who is this ye;
JLY FEATURES
SNEAK PREVIEW: "Save the Last Dance"
Bard vet Julia Stiles takes to the bar as a ballet dancer
gone hip-hop in Paramount's August release before doing
more Shakespeare in "O." By Francesca Dinglasan
COVER STORY: "X-Men"
X marks
t
the spot this July for
Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen,
Hugh Jackman, Anna Paquin and
Rebecca Romijn-Stamos as they
don Marvel-ous costumery for Bryan
Singer's comic-book adaptation
"X-Men." By Francesca Dinglasan
MOVERS & SHAKERS: Stephen Gilula
Landmark founder and longtime exhibitor Stephen Gilula
discusses life on the other (distribution) side as the new
co-president at Fox Searchlight. By Annlee Ellingson
SPECIAL REPORT: Lenses
A short history of the art of f. By Glenn Berggren
SPECIAL REPORT: Loudspeakers
In the final entry in
his 20th-anniversary retrospective, our
sound columnist provides a look back on his first article,
this on the art of dB and Hz. By John F. Allen
76 SPECIAL REPORT: ShowCanada 2000
The talk was of high-tech projection practices, digital cinema,
moviegoing stats, and upcoming distributor fare. Plus, there
was Night Fever, a Halda Potlach, and the Hyperdance belles
at CopaCanada Night. Text and photos by Christine James
A Q&A with the New Zealand exhibitor who's leading the
Village Force/Hoyts merger charge. By Kim Williamson
SPECIAL REPORT: DRIVE-INS 2000
Part III: In our the closing chapter of this year's traditional
summertime coverage, B0X0FFICE reports on yet another
contemporary success in the 21st-century ozoner industry.
After 50 years of ozoner effort, and despite the knowledge
that "selling it for the value of the land probably would be
the smart thing," Pamela Friend continues the "labor of
love"—the Star Drive-In—begun by her parents in the
small but scenic town of Montrose, Colo. By Jim Moore
DIT0RIAL STAFF
DITOR-IN-CHIEF
n Williamson kimw@boxoffice.com
ANAGING EDITOR
.ristine James
ENIOR EDITOR
incesca Dinglasan
3SOCIATE EDITOR
christinej@boxoffjce.com
francescad@boxoffice.com
Ellingson annleee@boxoffice.com
:=J. EDITORIAL/ADVERTISING ASST.
Iida Andrade hndaa @ boxoffice.com
IDITORIAL/ADVERTISING ASST.
indra Koscho
sandrak@boxoffice.com
CONTRIBUTORS
FEATURE CHARTS EDITOR
Wade Major (310) 456-2767; fax (310) 456-9750
CANADIAN CORRESPONDENT
Shlomo Schwartzberg (4 76) 928-2179
ARTICLE/REVIEW WRITERS
John F,
Allen, Glenn Berggren. Bridget Byrne,
Lucas Hilderbrand. Mike Kerrigan, David Lawrence.
Dwayne E. Leslie, Lael Loewenstein, Wade Major,
Bob Manch, Jim Moore, Simon Murray,
Luisa F.
Ribeiro, Michael Tunison
INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTORS
Saundra Conner, Brandon Harry, Lisa Hilbert,
Jim Tenuta
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
BUSINESS MANAGER
Dan Johnson (773) 338-7007
CIRCULATION DIRECTOR
Chuck Taylor (3 12) 922-9326
WEBMASTER
Ken Partndge marlinco@flash.net
ICE (ISSN 0006-8527). Published monthly by RLD Communications. Inc., 203 N. Wabash Ave., Suite 800, Chicago. IL 60601.
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© 2000 RLD Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is pro!

6 BOVU I
!( I
MAILROOM
D-CINEMA DEFENSE
Dear BOXOFFICE.
I would like to respond to Brad R
Richards' letter in the April issue regarding
digital projection. Like Mr. Richards.
I have no vested interest in digital projection.
As a projectionist and avid moviego
er, however, I do strongly favor replacing
current film projectors with digital projectors.
Mr. Richards lists the possibility of
theft, lesser quality, high cost, difficult
maintenance and lack of exhibitor benefits
as the reasons not to switch. I
disagree
with his position, and will make my arguments
point by point.
1. Theft. Mr. Richards claims that no
matter which format the delivery of digital
movies will take (satellite, disk, etc.),
the encryption method will easily be
defeated by a 16-year-old employee within
a day. This is simply absurd. As a projectionist
who also happens to have a
degree in computer science, I am aware of
encryption schemes that are practically
impossible to break. True, any encrypted
data can be decoded with sufficient time
and resources, but there are presently
plenty of examples of networks and
media that contain sensitive material and
are protected by strong security and
encryption (for example, 128-bit secured
sites on the Internet). Surely the motion
picture industry is capable of inventing a
solid way of protecting digital movies
from easy decryption. This will not be a
stumbling block.
2. Quality. Digital projection is equal
to 35mm projection. No doubt some will
argue this [point], but I do not make this
statement in ignorance. I had the privilege
to witness a digitally projected screening
of "Star Wars—Episode I: The Phantom
Menace" last July in Burbank, Calif, at
an AMC theatre. This screening, using a
Texas Instruments DLP projector, took
place not in a screening room but a huge
auditorium and on a very large screen.
The sharpness, color and brightness were
equal to 35mm projection, and often better.
Especially impressive was the vividness
of the colors; the light saber duel at
the end of the movie was truly excellent.
Mr. Richards based his rejection of digital
image quality on high-end consumer
equipment, such as DVD or HDTV. He
noted "skin looking like carpet" as a texture
flaw to some consumer projection
equipment. These flaws did not exist in
the presentation I saw. In fact, I noticed
that sections of ["Phantom Menace"
character] Sebulba's skin had an intentionally
purplish cast to it, something I
didn't notice during a 35mm projection of
the film but did notice in
still
high-resolution
images of the character. Simply put,
digital projection by DLP is not even in
the same ballpark as consumer equipment.
I am a very picky projectionist/
booth technician with over a decade of
experience with a major theatre chain, and
if the quality of digital projection were
inferior. I'd tell Texas Instruments to keep
trying. I don't need to.
3. Cost. Admittedly, this is a sticking
point to rapid acceptance by exhibitors.
Texas Instruments currently prices their
DLP projector at SI 00,000. However, this
equipment is in its infancy, and exhibitors
won't [necessarily] be shouldering the
cost alone. As with any equipment, once
these projectors are mass-produced they
will cost far less. Also, distributors
[might] be picking up part of the cost.
Most exhibitors say the changeover to
digital projection will occur in four to
eight years, the delay being owed not to
quality issues, but with deals to be struck
with distributors as to how much of the
tab they will pick up (the distributors, of
course, stand to gains billions in reduced
shipping, storage and "printmaking"
costs in the long run). Mr. Richards is
correct in stating that a single screen in a
small town would have a hard time
spending tens of thousands of dollars on
a projector. I
point out that these theatres
are having a hard time buying expensive
projection and sound equipment right
now, and this is why many of them are
failing or being bought out.
4. Maintenance. Who in your local theatre
can deal with the upkeep of a digital
video system, Mr. Richards asks? Well, let
me ask, who in your local theatre can deal
with the upkeep of 35mm projection
equipment? If you have somebody at your
location who can repair rectifiers, do the
A-chain on the exciter and B-chain equalizations
of the cinema processor, align
lamphouses, repair platters, payout heads
and automation, replace worn sprockets.
and so on. then your location is certainly
atypical. Nearly ever theatre relies on
expert repairpersons to handle the repair
of cinema equipment, and this process can
continue just fine with digital projectors in
place of 35mm projectors.
5. Who benefits? Everybody. The
quality of digital projection rivals today's
standard 35mm projection, and looks to
surpass it. There will be no more frame
jumps, scratches or dirty prints. This is
good for the moviegoers and the theatres.
In the short term the distributors will
benefit the most but, as addressed earlier,
[it looks as though] the distributors will
be compensating the exhibitors for some
of the transition cost. The financing wi
be worked out. Let's not forget the con
plaining exhibitors did over the cosi
involved in digital sound equipment ju:
a few years ago. Now practically evei
theatre built and nearly every older thi
atre around has digital sound.
Digital projection is coming, and it's
good thing. It will be a short-term burde
for exhibitors,
but an immediate benef
for moviegoers who can rely on ima{
quality being as good on the 16th week
on opening day. I'll miss the days of hok
ing 35mm film in my hand, splicing it ar
threading it through projectors, but tl
advantages of digital projection make tl
moviegoer in me very happy.
Sincerely.
Brandon Harry
Century Theatres Folsom 14
Folsom, Calif.
BOOTH BUTCHERS
Dear BOXOFFICE.
I am commenting on the mailroo
[item] "Bureaucratic Brouhaha" (1
OFFICE, May 2000). [The author] was ;
employee of mine at [a megaplex]
Louisville, Ky. He is 100 percent com
about first-run theatres ruining prin
We did it all the time. Sometimes the pt
jectionist will fill a reel and cut it at
where. All of the projectionists are usui
ly 16 or 17 years old. [The circuit] has
projection certification program but
usually over before it begins. When
projection trainer came to Louisville
knew more than he did. And the payr
allotted for projectionists is so low tl
only one projectionist is running all
projectors at one time.
Also, the dirt build-up is due to r
cleaning the projectors or prints. In a tv
year span, we did not clean one print.
Thanks,
A former projection booth department hi
Via e-mail
EX LIBRIS
Dear BOXOFFICE,
I have been a faithful reader for mi
years, reading your magazine at the lo
library.
[Recently], the library discont
ued subscribing. What do they knc
They even tossed out the back issue;
had to scramble to get your address i
could send in my check for a subscripti
Your publication is the only complete <
on the market as far as I'm concerned
Marie Asner
Via e-mail
Send letters to: BOXOFFICE, Mailroom
155 5. El Molino Ave., Suite 100
Pasadena, CA 91 18%fm 626-396-0248
E-mal

RmYinicr
'
REEL
DEALS
SVERBR0UI«
EZEEEmEIEBi
Pacts with FilmFour
MEHMD
Retains Universal Appeal
Keeps Dreaming
Within days of each other, two
major Hollywood studios have
made significant co-production
and foreign distribution ventures.
Warner Bros, and FilmFour's
first-look, three-year agreement
will produce six films, the first of
which is the $20-million
"Charlotte Cray," starring Cate
Blanchett and helmed by her
"Oscar and Lucinda" director
Armstrong. Warners will
Gillian
handle domestic distribution and
perhaps some foreign territories,
of which FilmFour will
oversee
the majority.
The move marks the end of a
two-year search for a United
States partner for United
Kingdom-based FilmFour. The
production company has traditionally
concentrated on lowbudgeted
projects such as
"Trainspotting" and the upcoming
"Birthday Girl" starring
Nicole Kidman but is looking to
expand into bigger-budgeted fare
with more international appeal.
"This is an amazing opportunity
for FilmFour to learn from
Warner Bros.' incredible expertise
and contribute our own fresh
take to things," says FilmFour
CEO Paul Webster.
Warners worldwide theatrical
production president Lorenzo di
Bonaventura concurs: "We are
thrilled to join forces with
FilmFour and tap into their excellent
pedigree [of] producing and
marketing distinctive, high-quality
independent films."
Meanwhile, MGM will partner
with Atlas/Gold-Miller/Third
Rail, a multimedia group whose
interests include film, television
and music production and management.
MGM will co-produce
and co-finance 1 to 12 pictures
over the course of four years
with the firm's film division,
Atlas Entertainment, whose
credits include "Twelve
Monkeys" and "Three Kings."
Their budgets will range
between $25 million and $75
million. The first project under
the deal is John McTiernan's
"Roberball" update.
The deal also includes output
deals with Germany's Helkon
Media AG, which will distribute
the films under the pact in
Germany, the U.K., Spain and
other European territories, and
Toho-Towa, which will oversee
lapan. MGM will handle
domestic.
"This agreement prime
is a
example of the significant
alliances MGM continues to
establish to advance our strategic
film production agenda," says
MGM vice chairman and COO
Chris McGurk. The studio also
has entered into co-production
agreements with Universal and
Miramax on "Hannibal" and
"Cold Mountain," respectively.
Anticipating the success of
their first venture together, "Road
Trip," DreamWorks has closed a
three-year, first-look deal with
Montecito Pictures, the production
outfit topped by Ivan
Reitman and Tom Pollock. The
agreement expands a two-picture
deal the companies already
had in place (see Hollywood
Updates, September 1999).
"We had tremendous support
from DreamWorks in getting
'Road Trip' made," says Reitman.
"It's the kind of collaboration we
hope to have on all our movies,
so we couldn't be happier than
to solidify our relationship for the
next three years."
Among Montecito's 20 projects
in development is "Wish," a
musical comedy that mixes live
action, animation and special
effects, to be helmed by Reitman.
On the heels of the critical and
financial success of "Erin
Brockovich," Universal has
renewed its contract with Jersey
Films, extending the first-look
deal for another three years.
Jersey partners Danny DeVito,
Michael Shamberg and Stacey
Sher first set up shop on the
Universal lot in 1996 after residing
at Sony for three years.
"It's great to have a home
where you feel comfortable
doing the work that you love
doing with executives you love
working with," enthuse DeVito,
Shamberg and Sher.
Universal chair Stacey Snider
says, "Danny, Michael, Stacey
and their entire staff have proven
their talent time and time again
by producing movies that are
diverse and innovative, while at
the same time having mainstream
appeal. We're looking forward to
further developing this strategic
alliance and to continue entertaining
movie audiences."
Former Village Roadshow executive
Greg Coote and his partner
Aussies/Kiwis Bruce Beresford
("Double Jeopardy"), Phillip Noyce
("The Bone Collector"), Fred
Schepisi ("Fierce Creatures") and
Roger Donaldson ("Dante's Peak").
Motivated by his work on
"Nutty 2—The Klumps,"
Universal
has asked director Pete
Segal to helm "The Incredible
Shrinking Man" and signed his
Greenhaven Films to a two-year,
first-look production deal. In
addition
to "The Incredible Shrinkii
Man," currently in the scriptii
stage, Segal and his partn
Michael Ewing will develop orij
nal material for the studio.
Literary and talent agent To*
Harris has ankled the Willia
Morris Agency to form an as-y<
unnamed management and pr
duction company that has alreaij
inked a two-year, first-look de
with USA Films. Harris' relatio
ship with the company beg
when he became instrumental
setting up Robert Duvall's "
Apostle" at the company.
While WMA president and
CEO Jim Wiatt says, "I'm sorry
see Todd go," USA chair Sc
Greenstein says, "Todd's abil
to weave together concepts,
ent and material in creat
rich and commercially satisfyi
ways is why we want to be
business with him."
Robert Sturm's Catch
Entertainment has pacted w
Universal Classics on two rele,
es, with the possibility for mo
"After Image," developed at
Sundance Screenwriters
Filmmakers Labs, and
Professor's Wife," to be w
and helmed by "Ulee's Gold
Victor Nunez, are the first on 1
slate. Universal Classics also \
have its pick of Catch 23's p
jects, which the latter will
finance, for five years.
Fine Line has secured dc
tic distribution rights for th
films by Zentropa,
Scandinavian company that p
duced Lars von Trier's "Dancei
the Dark," which Fine L
financed and will distribute
the U.S. "The Last Born," to
directed by Niels A
("Portland"); "Moments
Clarity," written by Mik
Colville-Andersen; and "Throi
a Glass Darkly," helmed by
One and Only's" Susanne
will go into production this y<
Jeffrey Hayes may ink a $400-million,
multi-picture pact with
Paramount. At press time, Former Universal Pictu
Coote/Hayes was attempting to
secure a revolving credit facility
chairman
Fishin' production
Casey Silver's Gi
banner
from Australia's Macquarie Bank, Reel Deals, January 2000)
which recently formed a filmfinancing
inked a two-picture, mid-six-
division dubbed ure deal with screenwr
Macquarie Film Corp., to pay for its Sheldon Turner. No proj«
Among the filmmakers
have yet been announced.
half of the deal.
expected to be funded
are
Terence Michael and Rich
Finney have signed a first-lc
three-picture deal with Dm
Entertainment. Michael/Finney
already worked on Michael D;
"100 Girls" for the product
financing and foreign sales con
ny, and two additional projects
already in the pipeline: "The Kit
Report," to be written and dit
by Davis, and "Capital Kids," t<
helmed by Michael Ai
("Goodbye Sunrise").

AS-*
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hallow Size, Sheer Horsepower Ar
ing Price Will Set A New Benchmark.
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ASSETS
oducing The All-New JBL ScreenArray!"
f That A Great Speaker Is Not Created
DIVIDENDS
Advantages You'll Get
Only With JBL ScreenArray.
irly three years of intensive technical develor.
y Competition. It Is Revealed By It.

"
HOLLYWOOD
HOT SET
us—
He Who Lives by the "Sword"
The Full "Monte"
The Man Who Would Be "King"
i
"SWORDFISH" A charming but "DUST" Two mercenary brothers "EDGES OF THE LORD" A fj
dangerous spy ("Battlefield ("Shakespeare in Love's" Joesph year-old Jewish boy ("The Sixt
Earth's" John Travolta) is hired by Fiennes and "The Boys'" David Sense's" Haley Joel Osment)
Wenham) who fight for opposite hidden from the Nazis by a farr
the CIA to coerce a hacker to
help steal billions in unused government
causes also battle for the affec-
ily of Catholic farmers in th
funds in this Dominic tions of the same woman World War II drama. Wilier
Sena ("Kalifornia")-helmed ("Cyrano de Bergerac's" Anne Dafoe ("American Psycho") wi
thriller. (Warner)
Brochet) in the Balkans just prior play an eccentric priest to whor
to World War The film also
"THE MONSTER" Tom Green
I.
time-jumps to the present day,
("Road Trip") will star in this following a criminal (Adrian
remake of the 1994 Roberto Lester, "Love's Labour's Lost") on
Benigni comedy about a nice the trail of a large cache of
guy who's mistaken for a notorious
(Buena
Balkan gold. Milcho Manchevski
("Before the Rain") directs and
serial killer. Vista)
scripts. (Distribution is to be set)
"THE OTHERS" Nicole Kidman
("Eyes Wide Shut") will play a "BRIDE OF THE WIND" Bruce
mother who becomes the subject Beresford ("Double Jeopardy")
of supernatural activities in this
parapsychological drama, to be
directed by Alejandro Amenabar
("Open Your Eyes"). (Miramax)
"COLLATERAL DAMAGE" This
contemporary remake of the
1956 Western "Seven Men From
Now" will star Arnold Schwarzenegger
"HARDBALL"
Matrix's" Keanu
A slacker ("The
Reeves) must
("End of Days") as feder-
pay off a debt by coaching
an
al officer Ben Stride, who battles
dark impulses after witnessing
the murder of his wife. While trying
to track down her killer, he
learns he is the target of a conspiracy.
(Universal)
"GETTING OVER ALLISON" A
teen ("Liberty Heights'" Ben
Foster) has his world shaken up
when his girlfriend Allison
dumps him. Kirsten Dunst ("The
Virgin Suicides") will play a
friend's younger sister who wins
the attention of the heartbroken
hunk. (Dimension)
"SHEARER'S BREAKFAST" A
waitress ("Pitch Black's" Radha
Mitchell) becomes entangled
with a wounded fugitive
("Teaching Mrs. Tingle's" Barry
Watson) who claims he's being
hunted by murderers in this
thriller. (Columbia)
Set in the 1920s, this drama is
about an Englishman (newcomer
Hugh Dancy) who is sent to a
jungle outpost to facilitate its
incorporation into a British
colony. Upon exposure to the
local customs and traditions, he
finds conflict in his duty. Jessica
Alba ("Never Been Kissed"),
Brenda Blethyn ("Saving Grace")
and Bob Hoskins ("Felicia's
Journey") co-star. (Fine Line)
will direct this biopic about 1 9thcentury
opera director/composer
Gustav Mahler ("Stigmata's"
Jonathan Pryce) and his wife and
muse, Alma ("Lost Souls'" Sarah
Wynter). (Paramount Classics)
inner-city Little League baseball
team, and the experience brings
meaning to his life. Brian
Robbins ("Varsity Blues") directs.
(Paramount)
UNTITLED BARBER PROJECT
This Coen Brothers ("O Brother,
Where Art Thou?") film is about a
manipulative woman ("Wonder
Boys'" Frances McDormand)
who cheats on her barber husband
("Daddy and Them's" Billy
Bob Thornton). Problems arise
when her paramour dies under
suspicious circumstances. (USA)
"OKRACOKE" Kevin Costner
("For Love of the Game") and
director Kevin Reynolds ("187")
may reteam despite their falling
out over the 1995 bomb
"Waterworld" for this historical
drama about Robert Maynard, a
of men and women enter a scientific
study of sex in this comedydrama,
to star Nick Nolte ("The
Golden Bowl"), Robin Tunney
("End of Days"), Neve Campbell
("Three to Tango"), Til
Schweiger
("SLC Punk") and Terrence
Howard ("Big Momma's House").
Alan Rudolph ("Breakfast of
Champions") helms. (Distribution
is
to be set)
the community turns for gui«
ance. (Millennium)
"|OHN Q" Denzel WashingtQ
("The Hurricane") will play a mai
who, out of frustration that a ho
pital
refuses to treat his son due I
lack of medical insurance, takd
everyone in the emergency rooij
hostage in this drama. (New Linr
"TOMCATS" A wager among
group of friends as to who wou
be the last to marry has produce
a sizable payoff for one of
last remaining two bachelors,
a bid to win the pot, one coi
trives to reintroduce the othei
his dream girl. Jake Bus<
("Home Fries"), Jerry O'Conra
("Mission to Mars") and Shannc
Elizabeth ("Scary Movie") st
(Distribution is
to be set)
"THE ANNIVERSARY PART'
Jennifer Jason Leigh ("eXister
and Alan Cumming ("Titus")
scripted and will co-direct ai
star in this film about a coup
who host an anniversary party i
themselves, but things turn
when a gift prompts a game
confessions and cajolings. Ke\
Kline ("Wild Wild West"
Kudrow ("Hanging Up
Gwyneth Paltrow ("Bounci
and John C. Reilly ("Magnolii
will
play the guests. (Fine Line
"THE FIRST KING" The first
of China ("Romeo Must Die's"
Li) and his court are brou|
back to life in this sci-fi action
(Warner Bros.)
play a transvestite in the I
ET CETERA: A convict
Britsh naval captain on a relentless
("Au:
Powers: The Spy Who Shagg
pursuit to capture the pirate
"THE DANGEROUS LIVES OF Blackbeard. The title refers to the Me's" Rob Lowe) must esc«
ALTAR BOYS" A group of scene of the nemeses' pivotal prison to avoid being murdei
Catholic school students plan a battle. (Distribution is to be set) after a felonious organizati
crime with the hope of becoming
(whose leader will be played
"THE COUNT OF MONTE "Affliction's" James Cobu
local legends in this Jodie
CRISTO" Jim Caviezel places a hit on him in the thri
Foster-produced film. Kieran
Culkin ("The Cider House Rules") ("Frequency") takes the title "Proximity"... Ashton Kutchei
role
and Jena Malone ("Stepmom")
"That '70s Show" will star ir
in this remake of Alexandre
star, with Foster playing an overbearing
Dumas' classic tale about a man "Cheech and Chong"-esque
who, upon his release from comedy "Dude, Where's
nun. (Distribution is to
be set)
Car?". ..Michael McKean
prison, seeks revenge on those
who framed him. (Buena Vista)
"THE SLEEPING DICTIONARY"
Schaeffer-helmed "Never Agai
"INVESTIGATING SEX" A group which co-stars Jeffrey Tam
and Jill Clayburgh... Heath Led
will star in Miramax i
Paramount's co-product
"Four Feathers," lude Law h
ing flown the coop. ..Hugh Gi
and Colin Firth have joii
Renee Zellweger in Univers
comedy "Bridget Jones' Dia
about a neurotic 30-sometl'
British woman seeking love
the perfect weight.
ki

V APPEARING!
*********
Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc.
7401 S. Cicero Avenue • Chicago, IL 60629
www.tootsie.com

: Haas.
I
212-593-8900 212-833-8500 212-588-6000 212-708-0300
Dinosaur 5 '19. Ani; Live Action, 82 mm,
DTS. SDDS. SRD, Flat. Voices: Allre
Woodard, Ossie Davis. Max Casella.
D.B Sweeney, Hayden Panettiere,
Samuel E Wright. Dir: Ralph Zondag &
Eric Leighton.
Shanghai Noon, 5 26. Com/Western,
PG-13. 104 mm. DTS. SDDS. SR. SRD,
Scope. Jackie Chan. Owen Wilson,
Lucy Liu, Roger Yuan Dir: Tom Dey.
Gone in 60 Seconds. 6 9. Act, 110 mir
DTS. SDDS, SRD. Scope Nicolas
Cage, Angelina Jolie, Giovanni Ribisi,
Delroy Lindo Dir: Dominic Sena.
sia 2000 (non-IMAX version),
6/16. Ani. Steve Martin. Quincy Jones.
Itzhak Perlman. Bette Midler. James
Earl Jones. Penn S Teller Dir: Hendel
Dreamed of Africa, 5/5, Epic Dra. PG
3. 114 min, SDDS, SR, SRD, Scope
lim Basinger. Vincent Perez, Eva Mane
Saint, Robert Loggia, Liam Aiken. Dir:
Hugh Hudson.
Center Stage (tormerly The Dance
Movie). 5/12, Dra, 116 min, DTS.
SDDS. SR. SRD, Scope Amanda
Schull, Zoe Faldana. Susan May Pratt,
Peter Gallagher, Donna Murphy. Debra
Monk, Sascha Radetsky, Ethan Sliefel.
icholas Hytner.
! 2000:
Running Free (tormerly Hoofbeats). 6/2,
Dra/Adv, G, -82 mm, SDDS, SR, SRD.
Scope Chase Moore, Ane Verveen,
Dir: Sergei Bodrov.
The Patriot 6 30. Dra Adv. -161 mm,
SDDS, SR, SRD, Scope Mel Gibfeath
Ledger. Dir: Roland Emmerich.
5/5. Act/Epic. R. DTS. SDDS.
SRD. Scope. Russell Crowe, Joaquin
Phoenix, Connie Nielsen. Oliver Reed.
Derek Jacobi Dir: Ridley Scott.
Road Trip. 5/19. Rom. R. DTS. SRD.
Breckin Meyer, Amy Smart, Seann
m Scott, Rachel Blanchard, Andy
Dir, Todd Phillips.
Time Crooks, 5/19. Com. Woody
Allen, Tracey Ullman. Hugh Grant. Jon
Michael Rapaport, Elaine May.
Dir: Woody Allen.
i 2000:
Chicken Run. 6/23. Ani, DTS, SDDS.
SRD, SRD-EX, Voices Mel Gibson, Julia
Sawalha, Miranda Richardson. Ben
Whitrow, Lynne Ferguson, Imelda
Staunton, Jane Horrocks. Tony Hayganh.
Timothy Spall Dir- Nick Park 8 Peter Lore
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
(CURRENT)
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
-.
The Kid (tormerly Untitled Bruce
7/21. Com, -100 min. DTS, SDDS
s John Turteltaub), 7/12, Com, DTS SR. SRD. Flat. Jason Biggs, Mena Suvari,
;e Willis. Spencer Breslin. Emily Greg Kinnear, Dir: Amy Heckerling,
Mortimer. Jean Smart. Lily Tomlin, Chi
August 2000:
McBride. Richard Jenkins. Dir: John
Turteltaub.
Hollow Man, 8'4, SusThr, DTS, SDDS,
August 2000:
SRD, Flat, Kevin Bacon, Elisabeth
Shue, Josh Brolin, Dir- Paul Verhoeven.
Coyote Ugly. 8.4, Com, PG-13, DTS. Godzilla 2000, 8'1 1 . Act. SDDS. Takehirc
Piper Perabo, Adam Garcia, Maria Bello Murata. Hiroshi Abe. Naomi Nishida,
Melanie Lynskey. Dir: David McNally. Shiro Sano Dir: Takao Okawara.
The Crew. 8/25. Com. Richard
Urban Legend 2, August/September,
Thr. SDDS. Jennifer Morrison, Joseph
Lawrence. Dir: John Ottman.
What Lies Beneath. 7/21 , Sup Thr,
DTS. SDDS. SRD, Scope Harrison
Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dir: Robed
Zemeckis.
August 2000:
The Legend of Bagger Vance. 8/4,
Dra, DTS, SRD. Will Smith, Matt
Damon, Charlize Theron, L. Michael
Moncrief, Joel Gretsch, Bruce McGill
Dir: Robert Redford.
st 2000:
Tin in New York, 8/18. Dra/Rom.
Richard Gere. Winona Ryder. Anthony
LaPaglia, Elaine Stritch, Sherry
Stringfield. Jill Hennessy. Dir: Joan
Chen,
September 2000:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
September 2000:
imber the Titans, 9'29. Dra, DTS. NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
SRD. Denzel Washington. Will Patton.
Dir: Boaz Yakin.
jer 2000:
The 6th Day (tentative title). 10/6,
>er 2000:
SF/Act, DTS, SDDS. Arnold
Schwarzenegger, Michael Rapaport.
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
Tony Goldwyn. Robert Duvall, Michael
Rooker. Dir: Roger Spottiswoode.
COMING:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
October 2000:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
October 2000:
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
COMING:
Emperor's New Groove (formerly
Kingdom in the Sun), Fall/Holiday. Ani
Voices: David Spade. John Goodman,
Eartha Km, Patrick Warburton. Dir: Mark
Dindal.
O Brother. Where Art Thou?.
Fall/Holiday. Com. John Turturro. Tim
Blake Nelson, George Clooney. Dir:
Coen
Unbreakable, Fall/Holiday. Sus/Thr.
Bruce Willis, Samuel L, Jackson,
Julianne Moore. Dir: M. Night
Shyamalan
lalmatians. 11 '22. Fam/Com,
DTS. SRD. Glenn Close. Gerard
rdieu. loan Grufludd, Alice Evans
All the Pretty Horses, 3rd Qtr,
Dra/Westem. SDDS. SR. Matt Damon,
Henry Thomas, Lucas Black, Penelope
Cruz, Ruben Blades, Bruce Dern,
Robert Patrick, Dir, Billy Bob Thornton.
Charlie's Angels, 11/3, Act/Adv/Com.
SDDS Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz
Lucy Liu, Bill Murray. Sam Rockwell
Dir: McG.
Vertical Limit. 12'8, Act/Adv, DTS.
SDDS. Flat. Chris O'Donnell, Scott
Glenn. Robin Tunney, Bill Paxton,
Ha Scorupco. Temuera Morrison.
lartin Campbell
Finding Forrester, December. Dra,
SDDS Sean Connery, Dir: Gus Van
Sant.
The Tailor of Panama, December,
Sus/Thr. SDDS. Pierce Brosnan,
Geoffrey Rush. Dir: John Boorman.
An Everlasting Piece, Fall, Com, DTS.
Barry McEvoy. Brian F. O'Byrne. Anna
Fuel, Billy Connolly, Dir: Barry Levinson
After Man, DTS. SDDS. SRD.
Arkansas, DTS, SDDS. SRD.
Keeper, DTS, SDDS. SRD.
The Man Who Came to Dinner, DTS.
SDDS. SRD Dir: Danny De Vito.
Mozart and the Whale. DTS. SDDS.
DTS. SDDS, SRD
The Newports, DTS, SDDS, SRD Dir:
: ieiberg.
Untitled Cameron Crowe project.
Dra/Com. DTS. SDDS. SRD Billy
Crudup, Frances McDormand. Kate
Untitled Charles Lindbergh Project.
DTS. SDDS, SRD. Dir: Steven
Spielberg.
Shrek. 5 18.2001. Ani, DTS, SDDS,
SRD Voices: Mike Myers. Cameron
Diaz. Eddie Murphy, John Lithgow,
Linda Hunt, Dir Kelly Asbury, Andrew
Adamson.
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimaron.
Thanksgiving 2001, DTS Dir Kelly
Asbury and Lorna Cook.
Mr. Accident, Spring, Com, PG-13, 8:
DTS. SRD. Flat. Yahoo Serious,
n Dallimore Dir: Yahoo Serious
Crime + Punishment in Suburbia (Ic
merly Crime & Punishment in High
School). Summer. Dra. R, SRD, Flat
Ellen Barkin, Monica Keena. Vincent
Kartheiser, James De Bello, Jeffrey
Wright. Michael Ironside. Dir: Rob
Schmidt.
Things You Can Tell Just by Looking
at Her. Summer. 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.
Antitrust, 4th Otr. Thr, Tim Robbms.
Ryan Phillippe, Rachael Leigh Cook,
Claire Forlani. Dir: Peter Howitt.
Dancing in the Dark. 4th Qtr. Dra,
DTS Angelina Jolie, Antonio Banderas,
Thomas Jane, Jack Thompson. Dir:
Michael Cristofer
Kingdom Come. 4th Qtr. Dra. Wes
Bentley, Sarah Polley. Milla Jovavich,
Peter Mullan. Nastassia Kinski. Dir:
Michael Winterbottom.

:te.
. R,
I
; nell
, Dir:
. Dominique
I
Sus/Thr,
Paramount 20th Century Fox Universal Warner Bros.
10-854-5811
323-956-5000
310-369-1000
12-649-4900
212-373-7000
212-556-2400
kSES SCHEDULED
Mission: Impossible II. 5/24, ActSus.
DTS. SRD. Scope. Tom Cruise, Ving
Rhames. Dougray Scott, Thandie
Newton, Steve Zahn. Dir: John Woo.
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED Screwed, 5 12, Com, DTS, SR. SRD
Norm Macdonald. Dave Chappelle.
Elaine Stntch Dir Scott Alexander &
Larry Karaszewski.
Battlefield Earth, 5,12, SF, DTS.
SDDS, SRD John Travolta. Barry
Pepper, Forest Whitaker, Kim Coates,
Sabine Karsenall. Dir: Roger Christian.
June 2000:
: 2000:
iSES SCHEDULED
.SES SCHEDULED
18, SF.Thr. DTS. SDDS.
3 Jennifer Lopez. Vince
icent D'Onofrio. Marianne
Dir: Tarsem.
Shaft (formerly Shaft Returns), 6'16,
Act, DTS. SRD Samuel L. Jackson.
Vanessa Williams, Richard Roundtree.
Christian Bale, Geoffrey Wright. Dir:
John Singleton.
7/14. Com. SRD John
Travolta. Lisa Kudrow. Tim Roth,
Michael Rapaport, Ed O'Neill, Bill
Pullman. Dir: Nora Ephron.
Was Made to Love Her, 7,28, SRD.
Chris Rock, Regina King, Dir: Chris &
Paul Weitz,
August 2000:
Save the Last Dance, 8/11, Rom. SRD
Julia Stiles, Sean Patrick Thomas.
Fredro Starr, Kerry Washington. Dir:
Big Momma's House, 6 2, SR, SRD,
Flat. Martin Lawrence. Nia Long, Paul
Giamatti Dir: Raja Gosnell.
Titan A.E. (formerly Planet Ice), 6/16, Ani
PG, DTS, SR, SRD. Scope Voices Matt
Damon. Bill Pullman. Drew Barrymore
Dir: Don Bluth S Gary Goldman.
Me, Myself & Irene, 6/23, Com, R. SR.
SRD, Flat Jim Carrey, Renee
Zellweger. Dir. The Farrelly Brothers.
X-Men, 7/14, Act, DTS, SR, SRD. SRD-
EX, Scope. Sir Ian McKellan, Patrick
Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry,
Anna Paquin, Dir: Bryan Singer,
11, Com. SR, SRD.
Scope. Brendan Fraser. Elizabeth
Hurley. Frances O'Connor, Orlando
Jones Dir: Harold Ramis
The Adventures of Rocky and
Bullwinkle. 6/30. Com/Adv, 105 r
SRD, Flat Rene Russo. Jason
Alexander, Robert De Niro, Janea
Garofalo. Dir: Des McAnufl.
(CURRENT)
Nutty Professor II - The Klumps.
7/28, Com, DTS, SR, SRD. Eddie
Murphy. Janet Jackson, Larry Miller,
John Ales, Jamal Mixon, Melinda
McGraw. Dir: Pete Segal.
Bring It On (formerly Made You Look,
Cheer Fever), 8/18, Com. Kirsten
Dunst, Jesse Bradford. Eliza Dushku,
Tsianina Joelson, Claire Kramer. Nicole
Gabrielle Union. Dir:
Peyton Reed
The Perfect Storm, 6/30, Act Dra, DTS.
SDDS, SRD. Scope George Clooney,
Mark Wahlberg. Mary Elizabeth
Mastrantonio, Diane Lane. Dir:
Wolfgang Petersen.
August 2000:
Space Cowboys, 8/4, Act, DTS. SDDS,
SRD, Scope Clint Eastwood, Tommy
Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland. James
Garner, Courtney B, Vance, Dir: Clint
Eastwood.
Bait, 8/11, Dra, SRD. Jamie Foxx.
David Morse. Doug Hutchison. Dir:
Anton Fuqua.
The Replacements 8/25. Dra. DTS.
SRD. Keanu Reeves, Gene Hackman,
Brooke Langton. Orlando Jones. Jon
Favreau Dir: Howard Deutch.
In Crowd. August. Thr. DTS. SRD.
Susan Ward. Dir: Mary Lambert.
September 2000:
September 2000:
SSES SCHEDULED
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
Driven, 9/22. DTS. Keanu Reeves.
James Spader, Mansa Tomei, Dir Joe
Charbanic.
Chain of Fools, 9/15. Act. R. DTS.
SDDS. SRD. Salma Hayek. Jeff
Goldblum, Sieve Zahn, Lara Flynn
Boyle. Michael Rapaport Dir Traktor,
In the Arms of Strangers, 9/15. Doc.
(aka Celebrity). 10/6,
DTS, SDDS. SRD.
Jums, Robert De Niro.
nmer, Melina Kanakaredes,
trzfeld.
!7, DTS. Snoop Dogg. Pam
el T. Weiss. Clifton Powell,
Ernest Dickerson,
erstar Fall/Holiday. Dra, R.
[pers, Fall/Holiday. Com.
Swain,
hd Guys. Fall/Holiday, Dra.
:ohen Afterworld.
Com.
Fall, Sup/Thr, R, -102 min,
SRD, Scope. Winona
Diehl,
i, John Hurt. Elias
Philip Baker Hall,
Dir: Janusz Kaminski.
Fall/Holiday. Mus/Dra Q-
ige.
Elvis Coslello, Fat
Martin
Fall/Holiday, Com
jys. Fall/Holiday. Dra, Kevin
Greenwood, Steven
itrovich. Frank Wood. Dir:
Kiountry. Fall/Holiday.
ml'TS, SDDS. SRD. Flat
Niy. Diane Keaton. Goldie
nc MacDowell, Garry
B,3nna Ellman. Dir: Peter
Mai Love. Fall/Holiday.
«h3ates. Rupert Everett,
I Bon, Dan Aykroyd. Dir: P.J.
CI- 11 17. Com. DTS, SDDS.
ItHam Sandler, Patricia
kHvey Keitel, Rhys Ifans,
wd Jonathan Loughran, Peter
i the Rings, Fantasy Elijah
atjlanchett, Sean Astin,
Maghan, Billy Boyd. Dir:
Bless the Child. Fall, SF, SRD. Scope.
Kim Basinger, Jimmy Smits. Angela
Bettis.
Holliston Coleman, Dimitra Arlys.
Dir: Chuck Russell.
Enemy at the Gates. 11/10. Jude Law.
Ed Harris. Dir: Jean-Jacques Annaud.
Rugrats in Paris - The Movie, 11/17,
Ani. DTS. SRD. Christine Cavanaugh.
Cheryl Chase. Susan Sarandon. Dir.
Paul Demeyer & Stig Berggvist.
What Women Want, 12/15, Mel
Gibson, Helen Hunt, Marisa Tomei,
Lauren Holly, Mark Feuerstein, Aviva
Gale, Delta Burke. Dir: Nancy Meyers
NO RELEASES SCHEDULED
COMING:
The Dancer. Fall/Holiday, Rom, SR,
SRD, Mia Frye. Dir: Luc Besson,
Moulin Rouge. Fall. SRD Nicole
Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John
Leguizamo. Dir: Baz Luhrmann.
Navy Diver, Fall, Dra/Act. SRD. Robert
De Niro, Cuba Gooding Jr , Charlize
Theron. Dir: George Tillman Jr,
Say It Isn't So (working title),
Fall/Holiday. Com, SR, SRD. Chris
Klein, Heather Graham. Dir: J.B.
Squelch. Fall/Holiday, Acl. Leelee
Sobieski. Steve Zahn Dir: John Dahl.
Monkeybone, 11/3, Com, SR. SRD
Brendan Fraser. Whoopi Goldberg,
Bridget Fonda, Chris Kattan. Dir: Henry
Selick.
Minority Report, 11/17, SR, SRD,
SRD-EX. Tom Cruise. Dir. Steven
Spielberg.
Cast Away, Christmas, Dra, SR, SRD,
Flat. Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, Nick
Searcy Dir: Robert Zemeckis.
The Black Knight. Chris Tucker. Dir: F.
Gary Gray.
Disaster Area. SR. SRD. Vince
Vaughn. Dir: Harold Zwarf.
From Hell, Act. Johnny Depp. Dir: The
Hughes Brothers.
Sunset Strip, R, SR, SRD Anna Friel,
Simon Baker-Denney, Nick Stahl. Rory
Cochrane, Dir: Adam Collis.
Tigerland Matt Davis. Colin Farrell.
Clifton Collins Jr. Dir: Joel Schumacher
Untitled Mike Judge Film. SR. SRD
Dir: Mike Judge.
Untitled Sean Connery Project SR.
SRD Sean Connery.
October 2000:
Meet the Parents, October, Com, DTS.
Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, Teri Polo,
Blythe Danner, James Rebhorn,
Thomas McCarthy, Dir: Jay Roach.
COMING:
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole
Christmas. 11/23. Com/Fam, SR. SRD.
Jim Carrey, Molly Shannon, Jeffrey
Tambor, Taylor Munson, Christine
Baranski, Bill Irwin, Clint Howard. Dir:
Ron Howard.
Family Man. Christmas. Com. DTS,
SRD. Nicolas Cage. Tea Leoni, Don
Cheadle. Jeremy Piven, Amber Valleta,
Harve Presnell. Dir: Brett Ratner.
Head Over Heels. 2/9/2001. Rom/Com,
DTS, SRD. Freddie Prinze Jr. Monica
Potter, China Chow, Shalom Harlow,
Ivana Milcevic, Sarah O'Hare, Tomiko
Fraser. Dir: Mark Waters.
D-TOX (formerly The Outpost, Detox),
2001 , DTS, SDDS. SR, SRD.
Scope Sylvester Stallone. Tom
Berenger, Polly Walker. Kris
Kristofferson. Jeffrey Wright. Dir: Jim
Gillespie.
October 2000:
Pay It Forward. 10/6. Dra. DTS, SRD.
Kevin Spacey. Helen Hunt. Haley Joel
Osment. Dir: Mimi Leder.
Best in Show, 10/13
Art of War. 10/20. Act. DTS. SRD.
Wesley Snipes.
Get Carter. October, Thr, SRD.
Sylvester Stallone. Miranda Richardson,
Michael Caine, Rachael Leigh Cook,
Alan Cumming Dir: Stephen Kay.
COMING:
Red Planet (formerly Mars), 11/10. SF.
DTS. SDDS. SRD. Val Kilmer. Carrie
Anne Moss. Tom Sizemore, Benjamin
Bratt. Dir: Anthony Hoffman.
13 Ghosts, 12/8.
Proof of Life, 12/15, Rom/Dra, SRD
Meg Ryan. Russell Crowe. Dir: Taylor
Hackford.
Miss Congeniality. 12.22. Act. DTS,
SRD Sandra Bullock, Michael Caine
Dir: Donald Petrie.
33 Liberty Street. DTS, SRD Robert
De Niro.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.
DTS Mike Myers.
Dino. DTS. Dir Martin Scorsese.
Metal God. 2001 , Com. DTS. SRD.
Mark Wahlberg. Jennifer Aniston,
Timothy Olyphant. Dir: Stephen Herek.
Pet People, DTS. Hugh Grant.
Steinbeck's Point of View, SRD. Dir.
Shekhar Kapur.
Summer Catch, 2001, Rom, DTS,
SRD Freddie Prinze Jr, Jessica Biel.
Dir: Michael Tolkin.
Sweet November, 2001 Keanu
Reeves. Dir: Pat O'Connor
Till Human Voices Wake Us Dir
Michael Petroni.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer.
Summer 2001. DTS. Dir: Chris
Columbus
The Incredible Mr. Limpet, Summer
2001, Com/Fan. DTS.
Osmosis Jones, 2001 Am. SDDS,
DTS. Voices Chris Rock, David Hyde
Pierce Dir: Tom Sito S Piet Kroon.

14 BOXOFFICE
j
BOXOFFICE Independent Charts
JUNE
American Anvil
805-530-0099
breamers. Dra. Jeremy Jordan,
Pourtney Gains, Brian Krause, Paul
partel. Dir: Ann Lu. 6/9 LA
Arrow
212-398-9511
Days, Rom/Com, 87 min. Ben
tOhenkman, Arija Bareikis. Dir: Aaron
JHarnick. 6/23
Castle Hill
212-888-0080
Jhe Tavern, Dra, 100 min. Cameron
ye, Kevin Geer. Dir: Walter Foote.
Cinema Guild
212-246-5522
he Interview, Psy/Dra, 103 min. Hugo
leaving. Dir: Craig Monahan. 6/16 NY
Fine Line
212-649-4800
]An Affair of Love, Dra. Nathalie Baye,
Sergi Lopez. Dir: Frederic Fonteyne.
«/1 6 NY, 6/23 NY/LA
Lions Gate
212-966-4670
Jesus' Son, Dra, R, 110 min. Billy
Crudup, Samantha Morton. Dir: Alison
Maclean. 6/16 ltd, 6/23 LA, 7/7 exp
Paramount Classics
323-956-5000 212-373-7000
Sunshine, Dra, R, 180 min. Ralph
Fiennes. Dir: Istvan Szabo. 6/9
Phaedra
213-380-9323
On the Run, Dra, 90 min. Michael
Imperioli, John Ventimiglia. Dir: Bruno
de Almeida. 6/2 NY
Went to Coney Island on a Mission
From God...Back by Five, Mys/Com, 94
min. John Cryer, Rick Stear, Rafael Baez.
Dir: Richard Schenkman. 6/9 LA/NY
Seventh Art
323-845-1455
Pop & Me, Doc, 95 min. Dir: Chris
Roe. 6/9 NY/LA/Chi
American Pimp, Doc. Dir: The
Hughes Brothers. NY/LA
Shooting Gallery
212-243-3042
Loving Jezebel, Rom/Com. Hill
Harper. Dir: Kwyn Bader. 6/2
Sony Classics
212-833-8851
Groove, Dra, R, 86 min. Lola Glaudini,
Hamish Linklater, Denny Kirkwood,
MacKenzie Firgens. Dir: Greg
Harrison. 6/9 NY/LA
Trixie, Com, R, 115 min. Emily
Watson, Nick Nolte. Dermot Mulroney,
Brittany Murphy, Nathan Lane, Will
Patton. Dir: Alan Rudolph. 6/30 NY/LA
Strand
310-395-5002
Praise, Rom. Peter Fenton, Sacha
Horler, Marta Dusseldorp. Dir: John
Curran. 6/23 NY/LA
USA
310-385-4400
The Match, 95 min. Max Beesley,
Laura Fraser, James Cosmo, Ian
Holm. Dir: Mick Davis. 6/16
Boricua's Bond. 6/23
Alice et Martin, Dra. Juliette Binoche,
Alexis Loret. Dir: Andre Techine. 6/30
ltd
WinStar
212-686-6777
L'Humanite, Dra, 148 min. Emmanuel
Schotte, Severine Caneele. Dir: Bruno
Dumont. 6/14NY
Arrow
Restless, Rom/Dra, 100 min.
Catherine Kellner, David Wu, Josh
Lucas, Sarita Choudhury, Geng Le.
Dir: Jule Gilfillan. 7/21
Artisan
310-255-3716
Chuck & Buck. Mike White, Chris
Weitz. Dir: Miguel Arteta. 7/14
Destination
310-434-2700
Thomas and the Magic Railroad,
Fam. Alec Baldwin, Peter Fonda, Mara
Wilson. Dir: Britt Allcroft. 7/26
Fine Line
Five Senses, Dra. Mary Louise Parker,
Daniel Maclvor. 7/14 NY/LA
Fox Searchlight
310-369-4402
Woman on Top, Rom/Com, R, 89 min.
Mark Feuerstein, Penelope Cruz,
Murilo Benicio. Dir: Fina Torres. 7/21
Lions Gate
But I'm a Cheerleader, Com, R, 81
min. Natasha Lyonne, Clea Du Vail,
RuPaul. 7/7 NY/LA/SF, 7/21 exp
The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Doc, PG-
13, 79 min. Tammy Faye Bakker. Dir:
Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato. 7/28
NY/LA/SF
The Tic Code, R. 89 min. Polly Draper,
Gregory Hines, Carol Kane, Camryn
Manheim. Dir: Gary Winick. Ltd
New Yorker
212-247-6110
The Wind Will Carry Us, 118 min. Dir:
Abbas Kiarostami. 7/28 NY
Paramount Classics
Girl on the Bridge, Dra, R, 92 min.
Daniel Auteuil, Vanessa Paradis. Dir:
Patrice Leconte. 7/28
Regent
310-260-3333
Spent, Dra, 91 min. Jason London,
Charlie Spradling, Richmond
Arquette, James Parks. Dir: Gil Cates,
Jr. LA/NY
Samuel Goldwyn
212-367-9435
The Big Blue (Reissue, Director's cut),
Dra, R, 168 min. Rosanna Arquette,
Jean-Marc Barr, Jean Reno. Dir: Luc
Besson. 7/14 NY/LA
Screen Gems
310-244-4000
The Broken Hearts League. Zach
Bratf, Dean Cain, Matt McGrath, Billy
Porter, John Mahoney, Timothy
Olyphant, Ben Weber. Dir: Greg Berlanti.
Sony Classics
Shower, Dra, PG-13, 92 min. Zhu Xu,
Pu Cun Xin, Jiang Wu. Dir: Zhang
Yang. 7/7 NY/LA
Strand
Criminal Lovers, Dra, 90 min.
Natacha Regnier, Jeremie Renier. Dir:
Francois Ozon. 7/21 NY
USA
Blood Simple (reissue), Thr. Frances
McDormand, Dan Hedaya, John Getz.
Dir: Joel Coen. 7/7 NY/LA
Mad About Mambo, Mus/Dra/Rom,
100 min. William Ash, Keri Russell. Dir:
John Forte. 7/21 ltd
Wonderland, Dra. Ian Hart, Molly
Parker, Gina McKee. Dir: Michael
Winterbottom. 7/28
Winstar
Madadayo, Dra, 134 min. Tatsuo
Matsumura. Dir: Akira Kurosawa. 7/7 NY
Ran (reissue), Epic Drama, 160 min.
Tatsuya Nakadai. Dir: Akira Kurosawa.
7/7 NY
Zeitgeist
212-274-1989
Water Drops on Burning Rocks, Dra,
85 min. Bernard Giraudeau, Malik Zidi.
Dir: Francois Ozon. 7/12 NY
AUGUST
Arrow
Autumn Heart, Dra, 110 min. Tyne Daly,
Ally Sheedy. Dir: Steven Maler. 8/11
Artisan
Cecil B. Demented, Com. Stephen
Dortf, Melanie Griffith. Dir: John Waters.
8/11 ltd
Way of the Gun, Dra. Ryan Phillippe,
Benicio Del Toro. Dir: Christopher
McQuarrie. 8/1 8 wide
Artistic License
212-265-9119
Gimme Shelter (reissue), Doc. The
Rolling Stones. Dir: David Maysles,
Albert Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin. NY
Destination
Whipped, Com, R. Amanda Peet,
Brian Van Holt, Jonathan Abrahams,
Zorie Barber, Judah Domke. Dir: Peter
M. Cohen.
Fine Line
Saving Grace. Brenda Blethyn, Craig
Ferguson. 8/4 NY/LA, 8/18 exp, 9/8
exp
First Look
310-855-1199
The Opportunists, 89 min. Cyndi
Lauper, Christopher Walken. Dir:
Myles Connell. 8/11 NY/LA
Fox Searchlight
Bootmen, Mus/Dra. Adam Garcia,
Sam Worthington, Sophie Lee. Dir:
Dein Perry.
Indican
323-650-0832
Cleopatra's 2nd Husband, D
min. Radha Mitchell, Paul Hi
Jon Reiss.
Lions Gate
Love and Sex, 82 min.
Janssen, Jon Favreau. Dir:
Breiman. 8/18 NY/LA
Steal this Movie (Abble),
Dr;
min. Vincent D'Onofrio,
Garofalo. Dir: Robert Greenwak
Lot 47
212-367-9435
The Ballad of Ramblin' J
min. Dir: Aiyana Elliott. 8/16
Phaedra
The Story of O. Dir: Camilo \;
Regent
Speedway Junky, Dra,
Jonathan Taylor Thomas,
Bradford, Jordan Brower. Dir:
Perry. LA/NY
Screen Gems
Glrlflght, Act/Dra. Michelle R
Santiago Douglas. Dir: Karyn
8/11 ltd, 8/18 exp
Sony Classics
The Tao of Steve, 90 mil
Logue, Greer Goodman. Dir:
Goodman. 8/4 NY/LA
Solomon and Gaenor. loan I
Nia Roberts. Dir: Paul Morrisl
NY/LA
Strand
Psycho Beach Party, Corm
Lauren Ambrose, Thomas
Nicholas Brendon. Dir: Ro
King. NY/LA
Trimark
310-314-3040
Skipped Parts, Com. Jenni
Leigh, Bug Hall. Dir: Tamra D
The St. Francisvllle E~
Supernatural Thr, 77 min.
Madison Charap, Ryan Lars
Palmer, Troy Taylor. Aug/Sep
WinStar
Bad Blood (Mauvais Sang),
125 min. Denis Lavant,
Binoche, Michel Piccoli. 1
Carax. 8/18 NY
Boy Meets Girl, Dra/Rom,
Denis Lavant, Mireille Perrier.
Carax. 8/18 NY
Pola X (France), Dra,
Guillaume Depardieu,
Golubeva. Dir: Leos Carax. 6
Zeitgeist
Almee & Jaguar, Dra, 125 A
Schrader, Juliane Kohler.
Farberbock. 8/11 NY/LA
SEPTEMB!
Artisan
El Norte (reissue), Dra, R,
Zaide Silvia Gutierrez, Ernes
Cruz. Dir: Gregory Nava. 9/8
Soul Survivors, Thr. Case
Eliza Dushku, Wes Bent
Wilson. Dir: Steve Carpenter.

1
>il
rl
<
the
j
'
:
Lot
I
I
Julv. 20(10 IS 1
iei for a Dream, Dra. Jared
E;n Burstyn, Jennifer Connelly,
asn Aronofsky. 9/29 ltd
Destination
:il, PG-13. Minnie Driver. Dir:
Fine Line
» Circus, Dra, R. Cameron
^lythe Danner, Jordana
I| Dir: Adam Brooks. 9/22
Lions Gate
r of the Vampire, Dra/Thr, 89
kn Malkovich, Willem Dafoe.
i; Merhige. 9/22
E^iily House. 104 min. Michael
i Kelly MacDonaldi. Dir:
DeFelitta. Sep/Oct
New Yorker
ir: Carlos Diegues. 9/1 NY
Panorama
I 914-937-1603
Species. 95 min. Sybil
a Amanda Peet, Jean Louisa
nathan LaPaglia, Michael
jtl Gold. Dir: Andres Heinz.
Providence
|
818-728-9700
jlreets. Eric Roberts, David
B5Hd
Regent
>:ials Comedy. 82 min. Rob
Imie Kennedy. Thomas Haden
.(elly Coffield, Jordan Ladd.
i! Mazin. NY/LA
I Sony Classics
l| Bordeaux, Dra, 103 min.
aal. Dir: Carlos Saura. 9/15
USA
iills, Dra, R. Brittany Murphy,
Michael Biehn. Dir: Geoffrey
CTOBER
Artisan
Castle Hill
*. Dra. 89 min. Sam
i Eddie Robinson, Jerry
Jonathan M. Flicker. 10/19
jr.
Destination
Mre (formerly Cowboy Up),
s>rn. Kiefer Sutherland,
jomas. Dir: Xavier Koller.
Fine Line
ihe Dark, Dra. Bjork, Catherine
'>ir: Lars von Trier. 10/6
4. Vince Vaughn, Ed Harris,
ty Mosher.
47
iiuty Institute, 105 min. Dir
ihall. 10/27
Strand
?end, Dra. Gena Rowlands
lelds. Dir: Brian Skeet.
NOVEMBER
Destination
Buying the Cow. Rom/Com. Jerry
O'Connell, Bridgette Wilson. Dir Walt
Becker. Nov/Dec
Strand
Suzhou River, Dra, 83 min. Zhou Xun,
Jia Hongsheng. Dir: Lou Ye. 11/8 NY
Trimark
What's Cooking?, Com. Alfre Woodard,
Dennis Haysbert, Mercedes Ruehl, Kyra
Sedgwick, Julianna Margulies. Joan
Chen. Dir: Gurinder Chadha.
USA
Nurse Betty, Dra, R. Renee Zellweger,
Morgan Freeman, Chris Rock, Greg
Kinnear. Dir: Neil LaBute. 11/10
DECEMBER
Destination
Slackers. Devon Sawa. Dir: Dewey
Nicks. Christmas
Fine Line
State and Main. Com. Alec Baldwin,
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Charles
Durning. Sarah Jessica Parker. Dir:
David Mamet. 12/22 NY/LA, 1/12/01
exp
Sony Classics
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Act/Dra. Zhang Zi-Yi, Michelle Yeoh.
Chow Yun Fat. Dir: Ang Lee. 12/22
NY/LA
USA
Traffic. Michael Douglas. Catherine
Zeta-Jones. Dir: Steven Soderberqh
12/22
The Man Who Cried. Christina
Johnny Depp. Dir: Sally Potter.
Ricci,
Zeitgeist
Dra, 110 Witchcraft, min. Hrafn
Gunnlaugsson. Hrafn
Dir:
Gunnlaugsson.
JAN. 2001
Samuel Goldwyn
The Faithless (Sweden), Dra. Dir: Liv
Ullmann. 1/26
Seventh Art
Hit and Runaway 1/26 NY/LA
Sony Classics
Shadow Magic, Dra. Jared Harris. Xia
Yu, Liu Peiqi. Lu Liping, Xing Yufei,
Wang Jingming, Li Yusheng,
ZhangYukui. Dir: Ann Hu. 1/26
FEB. 2001
Sony Classics
The Road Home, Dra. Zhang Ziyi. Sun
Honglei, Zheng Hao, Zhao Yuelin. Li
Bin. Dir: Zhang Yimou. 2/16
COMING
Arrow
Dog Run. Dra. Brian Marc, Craig
DuPlessis, Lisa Ristorucci, Elizabeth
Horsburgh. Dir: D. Ze'ev Gilad.
Jump, Dra. James LeGros, Amanda
Peet. Mike McGlone, lone Skye,
Jessica Hecht. Hal Linden. Dir: Justin
McCarthy.
Artisan
The Lost Son, Dra, R, 1 02 min. Daniel
Auteuil. Dir: Chris Menges.
Cinema Village
272-437-5779
Journey to the Sun (Turkey), Dra, 111
min. Newroz Baz, Nazmi Oirix. Dir
Yesim Ustaoglu. Fall
So Close to Paradise (China). Dra, 95
min. Wang Tong. Shi Yu. Dir: Wang
Xiaoshuai. Fall
Cowboy
212-929-4200
Benjamin Smoke, Doc. Dir: Jem
Coehn, Peter Sillen. Summer
First Run
212-243-0600
Dita and the Family Business, Doc,
58 min. Dir: Josh Taylor. Summer
The Personals, Dra/Com, 104 min.
Rene Liu. Dir: Chen Kuo-fu. Summer
The Wolves of Kromer, Dra, 82 min.
Lee Williams, James Layton. Dir: Will
Gould. Summer
Fox Searchlight
Sexy Beast, Dra. Ray Winstone, Ben
Kingsley. Dir: Jonathan Glazer. Summer
Quills, Dra. Geoffrey Rush, Kate
Winslet. Dir: Philip Kaufman. Fall
Hard Men (U.K.), Dra, R. Vincent
Regan, Ross Boatman, Lee Ross. Dir:
J.K. Amalou.
IMAX
905-403-6500
American Road, Doc.
Mission to Mir, Doc.
Lions Gate
Prince of Central Park, 109 min.
Danny Aiello, Harvey Keitel, Kathleen
Turner. Dir: John Leekley. Summer
Palm
312-751-0020
The Criminal, Dra/Thr, 98 min. Steven
Mackintosh, Natasha Little, Eddie
Izzard. Dir: Julian Simpson. Fall
Lock Down, Dra. R. Master P. Dir:
John Luessenhop. Fall
Panorama
Redboy 13, 88 min. Devon Roy-
Brown. Dir: Marcus van Bavel.
To Hell With Love, 98 min. David
Coburn, Corey Michael Blake, Michael
McCafferty. Dir: Karl Kozak.
What's Your Sign, 90 min. Judy Kuhn,
Jack Gindi. Dir: Jack Gindi.
You Are Here, 81 min. Robert
Knepper, Jenny Robertson. Dir: Tom
Rooney.
Paramount Classics
Company Man, Com, 86 min. Ryan
Phillippe, Sigourney Weaver. Dir:
Douglas McGrath. Peter Askin. 3rd Qtr
July, 200'
Phaedra
Too Tired To Die, Dra, 101 mir.
Takeshi Kaneshiro, Mira Sorvino. Dir
Won Suk Chin. Summer LA
Beneath the Surface (Sweden), Dra,
99 min. Johanna Sallstrom, Mikaei
Persbrandt. Dir: Daniel Fndell. 3rd Qtr
Sweet Jane, Dra, 87 min. Samantha
Mathis. Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Dir: Joe
Gayton. 3rd Qtr
On Guard! (France; aka Le Bossu),
Period Adventure. 124 min. Daniel
Auteuil. Dir: Philippe de Broca
Sinbad: Beyond the Veil of Mists. Ani,
PG. 84 min. Voices. Brendan Fraser. LA
Rialto
323-933-2733
Le Cercle Rouge (1970 reissue,
France), Act/Dra. Alain Delon. Dir:
Jean-Pierre Melville. Summer
Samuel Goldwyn
Solas (Spain), Dra, 98 min. Maria
Galiana. Ana Fernandez. Dir: Benito
Zambrano. Fall
Seventh Art
Creature, Doc. Dir: Parris Patton. Ltd
Karussell, Doc. Dir: Nona Ziok. Ltd
Speaking in Strings, Doc, 74 min Dir
Paola di Florio. Ltd
Shadow
207-872-5777
Souvenir. Dra, 78 min. Kristin Scott
Thomas. Dir: Michael Shamberg. Summer
Stratosphere
272-605-7070
Beautiful Joe. Sharon Stone. Billy
Connolly. Dir: Stephen Metcalfe. Summer
Goat on Fire and Smiling Fish, Dra.
R, 94 min. Derick Martini, Steven
Martini. Dir: Kevin Jordan. Summer
Jails Hospitals and Hip-Hop, Dra, 90
min. Dir: Danny Hoch. Summer
Trimark
Songcatcher, Dra. Janet McTeer, Aidan
Quinn. Dir: Maggie Greenwald. Fall
Rules of Attraction (formerly Stalk),
Dra. Matthew Settle. Gretchen Mol.
Dir: Russell DeGrazier. 2001
USA
Dancer. Julie Walters, Jamie Bell. Fall
One Night at McCool's. Dra. Liv Tyler,
Matt Dillon. Dir: Harald Zwart. Fall
A Room for Romeo Brass Dir: Shane
Meadows. Fall
Bloody Angels. Reidar Sorensen. Dir:
Karin Julsrud.
The Naked Man, Com. Michael
Rapaport. Dir: J. Todd Anderson.
Resurrection Man. Stuart Townsend.
Dir: Marc Evans.
Snarl Up. Dir: Michael Winterbottom.
Thursday. Thomas Jane. Dir: Skip Woods
What Rats Won't Do (U.K.),
Rom/Com. Natascha McElhone. Dir.
Alastair Reid.
Maybe Baby. Hugh Laurie, Joely
Richardson. Dir: Ben Elton. 2001
Whatever Happened to Harold Smith?
Tom Courtenay. Dir: Peter Hewitt. 2001
Viz/Tidepoint
4 75-572-7924
Tokyo Eyes, Dra. 90 min. Shinji
]|
Takeda. Dir: Jean P. Limosin. Summer I
Untitled (a.k.a. We Are Not Alone).
Dra. 115 min. Tsutomu Yamazaki. Dir:
Yojiro Takita. Summer
Moonlight Whispers, Dra, 100 min.
Dir: Akihiko Shiota. Fall

AUGUST
TRAILERS
Summer's just starting to heat up
As inviting as the barmaids at the Coyote Ugly look, yoi
won't have time for a drink just yet. Just because the mos
— tive tentpole weekend of the year—Fourth of July—
past doesn't mean the studios aren't packing in their sum
>lockbusters in the season's — waning days. Last August, thi
st sleeper hit of the year "The Sixth Sense"—bowed
ately grossing $293.7 million. "Bowfinger" am
"Payback" were likewise successful releases this month ii
"" ""
1 and $81.5 r

INTRODUCING

18 BOXOFFKK
Hate
Space Cowboys
Clint Eastwood ("True Crime") directs,
produces and stars in this action-adventure
set in space as a retired Air Force
pilot who was
passed over for the
astronaut training
program as a youth
because of his
cocky attitude but
decades later is
recruited by NASA
to repair a '60s
satellite that's broken
and headed for
Earth. He agrees to
help out only if he
can bring his buddies
along. Tommy
Lee Jones ("Rules of
Engagement") and
James Garner ("Twi-
I
light") co-star as the
codgers; James
Cromwell ("The
Green Mile"), Donald
Sutherland
and
("Instinct")
Marcia Gay Harden
("Flubber") also star.
Ken Kaufman
("Muppets From
Space") and Howard
Klausner script; Andrew Lazar ("10
Things About You") produces.
(Warner Bros., 8/4)
Exploitips: Eastwood's last couple of
directorial efforts— "True Crime" and
"Midnight in the Garden of Good and
Evil"—failed to connect significantly
with the moviegoing public, grossing
$16.6 million and $25.1 million, respectively.
Previously, however, "Absolute
Power" recovered its $50-million budget,
and his $20-million romance
"Bridges of Madison County" earned
$71.5 million. Market this comedy,
Eastwood's first since "The Rookie" in
1990, to an older demographic, offering
senior citizen discounts on tickets and
concessions during the wan weekday
matinee showtimes.
Saving Grace
Brenda Blethyn ("Little Voice") and
Craig Ferguson ("The Big Tease") star in
this British comedy about a recently widowed
and bankrupted woman named
Grace who capitalizes on her gardening
skills and her groundskeeper's off-duty
hobby to turn her greenhouse into a lucrative
marijuana farm. Tcheky Karyo ("The
Messenger") co-stars. Nigel Cole directs a
script by Ferguson and Mark Crowdy, who
also produces. (Fine Line, 8/4 NY/LA,
8/1 8 exp, 9/8 exp)
Exploitips: Fine Line battled USA Films
and Miramax to secure the rights to
"Saving Grace" at Sundance, where it
won the Audience Award in the World
Cinema division, ultimately coughing up
between $3.5 million and $4 million.
BOXOFFICE gave the pic three stars in the
silly,
April 2000 issue, saying, "Slightly
'Saving Grace' is good-hearted and all in
good fun, told— and enjoyed — in a
relaxed state of mind similar to that produced
by Grace's saving grace."
The Tao of Steve
Jenniphr Goodman writes and directs
her comedic debut about a womanizing
kindergarten teacher who meets his match
in an old college
pal who doesn't
respond to his
advances, forcing
him to re-evaluate
his capricious
lifestyle. Donal
Logue ("The
Opportunists") and
Goodman's sister
Greer, who also
scripts with Duncan
North,
star;
Anthony Bregman,
who executive produced
"Trick," produces.
(Sony
Classics, 8/4 NY/LA)
Exploitips: Logue
received a Special
Jury Award at
Sundance for his
performance here,
and after the fest,
Sony Classics added
"The Tao of Steve"
to its other
Sundance acquisitions,
"Shadow
Magic" and "Groove." BOXOFFICE gives
the film three stars in this month's issue,
saying,
"'The Tao of Steve' twists the ageold
dilemma of how to get the girl
into a
clever and buoyant bit of fun. Shrouding its
theme— is it a real philosophy or just about
sex?— in wily and occasionally shrewd
dialogue, 'Tao, ' with its eye-catching Santa
Fe setting and likeable stars, could be
called a coming-of age romance for the
thirtysomething set.
AUGUST 11
Godzilla 2000
"Godzilla 2000" is a Japanese-produced
sci-fi thriller that pits the giant reptile against
an alien life form that i
has been hibernating
in the Japan trench
for 6,000 years.
"Godzilla and
Mothra"
star
Takehiro Murata,
director Takao
Okawara and producer
Shogo
Tomiyama reunite;
Hiroshi Kashiwabara and Wataru Mimura,
who've both worked on other "Godzilla"
movies, script. (Columbia, 8/11)
Exploitips: No, this isn't the sequel to
Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich's 1998
monster movie (though that is in development).
"Godzilla 2000" is the fifth in the
franchise that Columbia has acquired from
Toho Co. Ltd. but the first to see theatrical
release. Arrange to screen the others—
"Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for
Earth," "Godzilla vs. Spacegodzilla" and
"Godzilla vs. Destoroyah" among them—
at midnight screenings in the months leading
up to "Godzilla 2000's" release.
Save the Last Dance
Julia Stiles ("Hamlet") stars in thi
musical drama as a white, middle-class
small-town teen who's suddenly thrus
into an inner-city, virtually all-blac
Chicago high school when her mothe
dies. She connects, however, with a pop
ular African-American student throug
their common interest in dance. Sea
Patrick Thomas ("Cruel Intentions") cg
stars. Thomas Carter ("Swing Kids"
directs by Duane Adler and Chery
Edwards; "Runaway Bride's" Robert Coi
and David Madden produce
(Paramount, 8/11)
Exploitips: Collaborate with loci
dance troupes to promote this film, invi
ing both ballet and hip-hop performers t
put on shows in or around your theatre o
opening weekend and offer lessons
prizes to patrons. Alternatively, sponsor
dance for neighborhood youth following
special screening of "Save the La:
Dance." BOXOFFICE interviews Stiles o
page 32.
Bedazzled
Brendan Fraser ("The Mummy") stars
this remake of the 1967 Dudley Moor
comedy as a low-level software compan
employee who enlists a powerful sedu(
tress to help him woo a co-worke
Elizabeth Hurley ("EDtv") and France
O'Connor ("Mansfield Park") co-sta
"Analyze This'" Harold Ramis directs an
scripts with Larry Gelbart ("Tootsie") an
Peter Tolan ("Analyze This"); Ramis als
produces with Trevor Albe
("Multiplicity"). (Fox, 8/11)
Exploitips: Following the success (
"The Mummy," Fraser was able t
secure an eight-figure salary— $10
.
ion—for "Bedazzled," a figure Fox wi
willing to fork over after Fraser comple
ed filming on the studio's fall favorit
"Monkey Bone." For kicks, prograi
"Bedazzled" on a double-bill with
'67 counterpart. Also, part of Fraser
character's deal with the devil is
that h
gets to make seven wishes, transformin
him into a rock musician, a genius,
drug lord and a professional basketba
player. This could serve as a goo
opportunity for circuits to team up wit
the Make-A-Wish Foundation
nationwide campaign.

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?l»
Rn\niMf k
went
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 band
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 Creisman ("Fletch Lives")
and Frank Price ("Circle of Friends") produce.
(Miramax, 8/11
Exploitips: In a role for which he was
paid $200,000, Van Der Beek led "Varsity
Blues" to an unexpected $50-plus million,
and his hot-ticket status resurrected "Texas
Rangers" from development 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 Savoy Pictures, where it was
intended to be the start-up's first big picture
in 1993. Once Van Der Beek was
attached (this time for a low seven-figure
sum), though, interest in the script resurfaced,
and Dimension Films picked it up.
Promote this Western to other demos by
dressing your staff up in boots, chaps and
spurs and offering discounts to patrons
who do likewise. See BOXOFFICE s Sneak
Preview on Van Der Beek in the April
2000 issue. Held from April.
Bait
In this comedy, Jamie Foxx ("Any Given
Sunday") plays a small-time thief (convicted
of stealing prawns) who is paroled early.
Unbeknownst to him, he is serving as bait
in the Feds' effort to ferret out a master thief
and his multimillion cache of gold. "The
Green Mile's" David Morse and Doug
Hutchison and Kimberly Elise ("Beloved")
co-star. Antoine Fuqua ("The Replacement
Killers") directs a script by Adam
Scheinman ("Mickey Blue Eyes"), Andrew
Scheinman ("North") and Tony Gilroy
("Armageddon"); Sean Ryerson ("Beyond
Rangoon") produces. (Warner Bros., 8/11)
Exploitips: Foxx's stock as a marquee
name has risen in recent months due to his
prominent role in Oliver Stone's "Any
Given Sunday" and the lead in May's "Held
Up."
Director's Chair: John Waters, "Cecil B. Demented'
A master of marketing with a finger on
the pulse of the world's depraved population,
|ohn Waters is one of the film industry's
most unexpected exploitation artists.
He made a midnight movie boxoffice phenomenon
with the spectacle of his star
eating dog doo in "Pink Flamingos" and
later created a sensation by presenting
"Polyester" in Odorama, with scratchand-sniff
cards that corresponded to specific
moments the film. Since then he has
capitalized on the nostalgia craze with
"Hairspray" and Kathleen Turner's image
as a dangerous sexpot with the murderous
send-up "Serial Mom." And, as "Pecker"
illustrated, Waters knows how to get the
most bang for the buck out of a title.
Waters' latest film, "Cecil B. DeMented,"
takes on celebrity icons, rebel filmmakers
and radical politics—and offers an endless array of potential marketing ploys. (See
Waters' personal Exploitips for "Cecil B. DeMented" on page 22)
Influenced by political slogans from the '60s and such cult figures as |im tones and
Patty Hearst rather than the Sundance-spawned indie film movement of the '90s, "Cecil
B. DeMented" follows an underground filmmaker (played by "Blade's" Stephen Dorff)
who abducts Hollywood starlet Honey Whitlock (Melanie Griffith) and forces her to ad
in his latest project. "It's a political fantasy about cinema terrorists, about a kind of crinx
inals that there [has] never been so far," Waters explains. "Of course, it's a comedy,
about people so obsessed by different kinds of genres that they actually have fights and
wars going on in the city—one audience against another." Reassuring exhibitors, he
adds, "They don't blow up the theatres or anything. It's very obviously a satire. ...In res"
life, porno fans don't attack the teamsters."
The cleverly cast topliner, Griffith, like Turner in "Serial Mom," appears in Waters'
to lampoon her own star image. Although she has never feared appearing in edgier films,
from "Something Wild" to "Another Day in Paradise," Griffith has rarely worked in comedy
and never with such self-satirizing material. "I think that everyone at some poinl
should stop and make some intelligent fun of themselves," Waters remarks. "I make fun
of myself in every one of my movies, and this one especially."
Between his groundbreaking filmmaking career spanning 30-plus years, his severa
books and a Cannes premiere for "Cecil B. DeMented," Waters has brought his trash)
tastes dangerously close to respectability. On the day of his interview with BOXOFFICE
he was on his way to the White House Correspondents' Dinner with Hearst. The avail
ability of his early work on video and his regular campus lecture series have also i
him a major inspiration to independent filmmakers. He has even worked with and beer
distributed by Hollywood studios, mostly through New Line Cinema and now througr
Artisan for "Cecil B. DeMented," while remaining true to his renegade spirit and mak
ing tidy profits for his producers along the way.
"I started out, certainly, making underground movies. Then I into midnigh
movies," Waters says. "I've tried never to repeat myself and to continue to change ant
to grow [but] still with basically the same idea of the kind of humor that I've liked from
the very beginning. But I am a commercial director as far as that most of my films hav<
made money all around the world. ...It's good to know that there are people everywhere
with a good sense of humor about themselves and a basic hatred of authority, and tha
is my worldwide audience."
Even though audiences are generally more adventurous than they used to be
exhibitors still may need to be more aggressive in exploiting specialized markets an<
pushing positive reviews for limited release films. "Sometimes, especially in mid
America, just making one screen an art screen isn't enough. Maybe [the audiencel has
n't seen the reviews, maybe they don't know about the film. I think you have to maki
sure that they do."
As difficult as it may seem to imagine, Waters made the progression from downtowi
urban midnight screenings to regular bookings in mall multiplexes without missirw
step or losing his following. Although his latest films may not contain the guerrilla aes
thetics or blatant shock factor of his underground work, Waters has maintained his sic
sense of humor while his audiences, even in suburban or small-town settings, have con
tinued to expand.
"If there are ever exhibitors who are nervous about playing a John Waters film, if
IBOXOFFlCE's] readers. [But] audiences have changed, and I know from my college tour
that there are insane people in every community. They didn't all leave and go to Ne\
York." Waters notes that there has been a significant change in mainstream au
j
attitudes since he began filmmaking. "They are more willing to take chances and hav
a much darker sense of humor. "
As one of the most prominent filmmakers consistently pushing the boundaries of i;oo
taste and audience repulsion, Waters has surely helped influence this change. With th
right exploitative campaign, audiences should be now be ready for Waters' latest opui
If not, they may still come to theatres for the novelty of the stadium seating. "I don't g<
it, but people go because they like the seats," Waters comments. "That's fine with me
long as they go."—iueas Hilderbrand

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11 Pnvi
Autumn Heart
TV actress Tyne Daly ("judging Amy")
stars in this drama as a school bus driver
who, when she suffers a heart attack, asks
her three daughters to locate their brother,
who was raised by his father. The women
discover that while they've struggled to eke
out a living, their father has become quite
wealthy and their estranged brother is
at enrolled Harvard. Ally Sheedy ("Sugar
Town"), Maria Sucharetza, Marceline
Hugot, Jack Davidson and screenwriter
Davidlee Willson co-star. Steven Maler
directs; Kelley McMahon and Jerri Sher produce.
(Arrow, 8/1 1
Exploitips: BOXOFFICE reviewed
"Autumn Heart" at Sundance in 1 999, giving
it 3.5 stars in the April 1999 issue:
"Director Steven Maler and writer/co-star
Davidlee Wilson have a sincere interest in
their creations, coupled with a fine ear tor
the rhythms of realistic conversation, and
the primal themes of separation, loss and
forgiveness Ithat] 'The Autumn Heart' deals
in acquire cumulative force as a result.
Cecil B. Demented
John Waters ("Pecker") directs Stephen
Dorff ("Blade") and Melanie Griffith ("Crazy
in Alabama") in this send-up of Hollywood
about a renegade filmmaker who kidnaps a
spoiled Hollywood starlet and forces her at
gunpoint to star in his underground movie.
Waters regulars Ricki Lake, Patty Hearst,
Alicia Witt and Mink Stole as well as Adrian
Grenier ("Drive Me Crazy") co-star.
(Artisan, 8/11
ltd)
Exploitips: I) Have senior citizens showings
and let the elderly in free but make
them pay to get out. 2) Announce a fake
bomb threat, evacuate the auditorium and
jack up the prices of your concession stand
while the patrons wait in the lobby. 3) Have
the ushers draw on John Wafers mustaches
and then jump out from under the seats and
scare the audience during the climax of the
movie.— John Waters
IDuring his interview with BOXOFFICE
(see Director's Chair, page 20), Waters
indicated that he's been a subscriber to the
magazine for 30 years, in part because he
loves the Exploitips. Hearing that, BOXOF-
FICE was delighted to invite the director to
write the 'Tips for his own movie.—Ed.]
Gimme Shelter
This documentary, first released in 1970,
tags along for the '69 Rolling Stones tour,
focusing on their free concert for a crowd of
300,000 at the Altamont Speedway just outside
of Oakland and the murder that took
place during the ensuing chaos. David and
Albert Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin direct.
(Artistic License, 8/11 NY)
Exploitips: Obviously this doc calls for a
Stones soundtrack on the theatre loudspeakers
that pays particular attention to
"Gimme Shelter's" tunes "Satisfaction,"
"Sympathy for the Devil," "Brown Sugar"
and "Under My Thumb," among others.
Further, collaborate with a neighborhood
record store to discount Stones albums for
moviegoers.
An Affair of Love
Nathalie Baye and Sergi Lopez cohcidlinc
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,
8/11 NY/LA)
Exploitips: Fine Line picked up "Affair of
Love," previously titled "A Pornographic
Affair," along with "Five Senses" at last
year's Toronto Film 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.
Held from June.
The Opportunists
Christopher Walken ("Sleepy Hollow")
stars in this caper as an ex-con attempting
to go straight when a distant relative shows
up on his doorstep with a plan for one last
Peter McDonald ("Felicia's Journey")
heist.
and '80s pop star Cyndi Lauper co-star.
Myles Connell makes his feature writing
and directing debut; John Lyons ("Austin
Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me") and
Tim Perell ("The Myth of Fingerprints") produce.
(First
Look, 8/11 NY/LA)
Exploitips: BOXOFFICE gave "The
its Opportunists" 2.5 stars in Sundance
coverage in the April 2000 issue, saying,
"A vehicle for Christopher Walken, 'The
Opportunists' does the great character
actor justice, giving him a complex role as
Vic... Vic's motivations are fully developed,
but 'The Opportunists' needs a supporting
storyline to round out the script. ..Neither
does the supporting cast provide a match
for Walken. " Held from June.
Bad Blood and Boy Meets Girl
Before "The Lovers on the Bridge," Leos
Carax wrote and directed these two
French-language romances, both starring
Denis Lavant. "Bad Blood" is also a crime
thriller of sorts about
an attempt to steal the
antidote to an AIDSlike
virus, co-starring
Juliette Binoche ("The
English Patient") and
Michel Piccoli. Alain
Dahan produces.
"Boy Meets Girl,"
starring
Mireille
Perrier, needs little
further
explanation.
Patricia Moraz produces.
(Winstar, 8/18
NY)
Exploitips: Program
"Bad Blood" and "Boy
Meets Girl" in a double
bill to promote
Carax's latest, "Pola
X" (see below).
PolaX
Leos Carax ("The
Lovers on the Bridge")
writes and directs this
French-language romance about a writei
who begins an incestuous relationship
with his long-lost sister. Guillaume
Depardieu and Yekaterina Golubyova star
Jean-Paul Fargeau ("Nenette et
Boni") anc
Lauren Sedofsky help out on the scrip
based on Herman Melville's "Pierre, or, the
Ambiguities"; Bruno Pesery produces
(Winstar, 8/18 NY)
Exploitips: Generate interest in Carax'
latest, which was nominated for a Goldet
Palm at Cannes in 1 999, by simultaneous!)
running a double bill of "Bad Blood" am
"Boy Meets Girl" (see above).
Aimee & Jaguar
In this World War ll-set romance, i
Jewish woman, active in an undergrount
anti-Nazi campaign, and a housewife, ;
mother of four, fall in love despite tb
chaos surrounding them in 1944 Berlin
Maria Schrader and Juliane Kohler sta
Max Farberbbck writes and directs; Ron
Munro also scripts based on the novel b
Erica Fischer; Hanno Huth ("Th
Harmonists") and Giinter Rohrbach pre
duce. (Zeitgeist, 8/1 1 NY/LA)
Exploitips: Schrader and Kohler tied ft
the Best Actress award at the Berli
International Film Festival in 1999, an
"Aime'e & jaguar" was nominated ft
Golden Globe this year. Give local ga
press a heads-up on the release of this pi
fo generate interest in its key demo, pe
haps even hosting a discussion panel o
the lives of gays and lesbians during Won
War II.
AUGUST 18
Autumn in New York
Richard Gere ("Runaway Bride") ar
Winona Ryder ("Girl, Interrupted")
this romance as a New Yoj
restaurateur/notorious playboy and[_
woman half his age who is dying and wan
to have one last great love affair. Joan Chf
("Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl") directs
script by Allison Burnett; Amy Robinst
("For Love of the Game") and "Runaw;
Bride's" Ca
Lucchesi and To
Rosenberg produ^
(MGM, 8/1 8)
Exploitips: The ft
film greenlight
under the new Al
Yemenidjian-Chi
McGurk regime
MGM, the $50-m
lion "Autumn in frk
I York" is actress Cha
sophomore effort I
I her first studk
I making her a bt
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^MOV^r^n

24 Rmotno
Sundance Series: "Love & Sex"
"Yes, this was my sex life," writer-director Valerie Breiman tells the audience after a
screening of her first feature film, "Love & Sex," at Sundance. "Pretty much that's it in a
nutshell. A lot of liberties were taken. My love life has been a comedy, but this is, you
know, enhanced."
Prodded about a particular scene in which her semi-autobiographical character loses
her virginity to a high school teacher, Breiman says, "I don't want to tell the whole details,
but I
did have braces, and he was not small."
Writing it all down was the easy part. Getting her film made was a little harder. "It took
five years to make it," Breiman says. "It was just sort of one of those things where it would
kind of get set up, and then it would kind of fall apart. And then it would get set up again,
and it would fall apart with schedules. There are so many million different reasons, but I
think it was fate because if I had made the movie in any other way than it was supposed
to have happened, it would have never been the same as with (stars) Famke [Janssen] and
Jon IFavreau). It's just total luck."
The sentiment is mutual. "Valerie is very smart," Favreau says. "She was an actor, so she's
very sensitive to how to get a good performance on the screen and what to be firm about and where to give a lot of leeway. And now [that]
I'm looking at the movie for the second time, I see why she was that way. She's very good and has a good perspective on things.
"What she did that was very smart was she wanted to create chemistry between us.
The way she did that is she talked to us individually, met with us individually, and then
had us for dinner together—the two of us with her—and then her and I back together
alone. We went through the process of rehearsals for five days, but the rehearsal process
|
on film isn't like in theatre where you're finding blocking and stuff. Everything changes
once you hit the set. The real thing you're doing is getting used to the way the other person
sounds, smells, getting used to touching them so that we can feel onscreen like
we've been together for five years, which I haven't really seen in a movie before
where you see this progression.
"Both [Famke and I have) been through long relationships. We both knew that you turn
into almost like siblings. That's the part I enjoyed most about this film. The romance is.
The Cell
nice, but that you've seen before with certainly better looking leading men than me. Soj
what we're giving to the audience, hopefully, is that real human vulnerable side of what
you're really like with somebody when you live with them a long time, and people don't
ke showing that. It's very vulnerable to show that. But it's so nice to hear everybody laugh
at it because— like in 'Swingers'— it's the part of my life that I'm the most self-conscious
about. I feel like nobody could relate to [it]. In sharing that in my performance here and;
...AND SEX: Jon Favreau and hearing everybody laugh, it makes me feel like everybody has got that tucked away
Famke Janssen star in 'Love and Sex"
In this sci-fi thriller, Jennifer Lopez ("Out
of Sight")
plays a child therapist who participates
in a breakthrough research program
that allows her to explore inside the
mind of a comatose
serial killer to hopefully
save his last victim.
Vincent D'Onofrio
("Impostor"), Vince
Vaughn ("Psycho")
and Marianne Jean-
Baptiste ("28 Days")
Commercial
co-star.
and music video
helmer Tarsem makes
his feature debut;
Mark Protosevich
scripts; Julio Caro and
Eric McLeod ("Austin
Powers: The Spy Who
Shagged Me") produce.
(New Line,
8/18)
Exploitips: Tarsem,
who directed R.E.M.'s
"Losing My Religion"
video and commercials
for Nike,
promises to bring a
certain visual and visceral
vision to this
film. Trailers were
already attached to New Line's
"Frequency" in April, and "The Cell" is
the studio's only release this summer, so
look for a big marketing push, especially
toward the MTV generation, to whom
Tarsem's and Lopez's contributions will
be targeted.
their life too."—Annlee Ellingson
About Adam
Stuart Townsend ("Wonderland") plays
the titular role in this Irish comedy about
an unassuming young man who systematically
seduces every member of his new
The Way
of the Gun
girlfriend's family.
Kate Hudson
("Gossip"), Frances
O'Connor ("Bedazzled")
and Charlotte
Bradley co-star.
Gerard Stembridge
writes and directs;
Anna Devlin and
Marina Hughes produce.
(Miramax, 8/18
NY/LA)
Exploitips: Ostensibly
a modern-day
take on the 1950s
classic "All About
Eve," "About Adam"
had a
working
title of "All
About Adam."
Program
the
two together
for an
Ryan Phillippe ("Cruel
Intentions"), Benecio Del Toro
("Fear and Loathing in Las
Vegas") and Juliette Lewis ("The Othe
Sister") star in this crime drama as
career criminals and the surrogate moth
er they kidnap for ransom. James Caai
("The Yards") and Taye Diggs ("Ho
on Haunted Hill") co-star. Screenwrite
Christopher McQuarrie ("X-Men"
scripts and makes his directorial debu
Kenneth Kokin, who co-produced "Th
Usual Suspects," produces. (Arti
8/18)
Exploitips: McQuarrie, in addition t
scripting this issue's cover subject
Men," also worked with director Brya
Singer on the critically acclaimed "Usu,
Suspects," for which he won an Oscar,
his directorial debut will be of interest t
cineastes who pay attention to sue
things. If possible, attach this trailer
"X-Men," one of the summer's bigge
blockbusters, to generate early word-o
mouth.

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Bring It On
Kirsten Dunst ("Dick") stars in this black
comedy as an ail-American girl about to
lead her cheerleading squad to the national
championships for the sixth year in a row.
She discovers, however, that the team's previous
captain stole their routine from an
inner city hip-hop group, whom they'll
meet at the nationals, and must act quickly
to save both their reputation and championship.
Eliza Dushku (TV's "Buffy the
Vampire Slayer"), lesse Bradford ("A
Soldier's Daughter Never Cries") and
Gabrielle Union ("She's All That") co-star.
Peyton Reed directs from a script by Jessica
Bendinger; Marc Abraham, who executive
produced last year's "End of Days," "The
Hurricane" and "For Love of the Game,"
produces. (Universal, 8/1 8)
Exploitips: In the weeks leading up to this
release, previously known as "Cheer
Fever," invite local pep squads to bring it on
in a cheerleading contest sponsored by
your theatre. The grand prize is a private
screening of the film for the winning team
plus free popcorn and soda.
Love & Sex
Famke ianssen ("X-Men") and Jon
Favreau ("Very Bad Things") star in this
romantic comedy about a magazine writer
who reflects on her past relationships for
her latest story. Valerie Breiman writes and
directs the semi-autobiographical pic;
Martin and Michael Barab, Timothy Scott
Bogart and Brad Wyman ("Freeway") produce.
(Lions Gate, 8/18 NY/LA)
Exploitips: BOXOFFICE gave "Love and
Sex" 3.5 stars in the Sundance coverage in
the April 2000 issue, saying, "Breiman's
observations of the dating game are both
clever and accurate, making 'Love and Sex'
film that viewers laugh at because they identify
with it." See Sundance Series, page 24.
The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack
Tyro filmmaker Aiyana Elliot writes,
directs and produces this documentary
about her father, legendary folk singer
Jack Elliot. Talking heads include Arlo
Guthrie, Kris Kristofferson and Pete
Seeger. Rick Dahl ("Red Rock West")
scripts; Paul Mezey ("La Ciudad") and
Dan Partland (who co-produced
"Welcome to the Dollhouse") produce.
(Lot 47, 8/16)
Exploitips: Elliot won a Special lury
Prize for artistic achievement at Sundance
for her portrait of her father. At press time,
there was no evidence that a soundtrack
for this film has been released, but your
neighborhood music store or online vendor
should have plenty of titles by Ramblin'
Jack to play in the auditorium and/or sell at
the boxoffice.
Loving Jezebel
Hill Harper ("The Skulls") stars in this
romantic comedy as a young man looking
for a special someone but chronically ends
up in bed with his best friends' girlfriends
instead. Kwyn Bader writes and directs;
David Lancaster produces. (The Shooting
Gallery, 8/18 ltd)
Exploitips: This is the first theatrical pic
by cablers STARZ! and BET Movies, which
look forward to expanding their relationship
with distributor The Shooting Gallery.
"Loving Jezebel" won the audience award
at the South By Southwest Film Festival
held in Austin, Texas.
AUGUST 25
The Crew
Richard Dreyfuss ("Krippendort's Tribe ),
Burt Reynolds ("Mystery, Alaska"), Dan
Hedaya ("Dick") and Seymour Cassel
("Rushmore") star in this comedy as four
ex-wiseguys who are being forced out of
their retirement home in South Beach,
Miami, and hatch a plan to save it. Michael
Dinner (TV's "Chicago Hope") directs
script by Barry Fanaro ("Kingpin"); "Wild
Wild West's" Barry Sonnenfeld and Barry
Josephson produce. (Buena Vista, 8/25)
Exploitips: Originally set up
DreamWorks with "Galaxy Quest's" Dean
Parisot attached to helm, "The Crew"
reverted to Touchstone Pictures when the
dream team put it into turnaround. It was
tne first—an d, at press time, only—pic
greenlit for the producers
Sonnenfeld/josephson Worldwidi
Entertainment. Like "Space Cowboys,
market "The Crew" to an older demo,
granting senior citizen discounts on tickets
and concessions during weekday matinees.
Highlander: Endgame
Adrian Paul (star of the TV version) and
Christopher Lambert (who starred in the firsl
three movies) return to appear in the fourth
big-screen installment, "Highlander
Endgame," whose plot is being kept top secret
Douglas Aarniokoski, who's been an assistan
director on several films, makes his directors
debut; Gillian Horvath and Joel Soisson S( rid
Peter Davis ("Highlander II") and Williarr
Panzer ("Highlander I, II" and the televisioi
series) produce. (Miramax, 8/25)
Exploitips: Both the "Highlander
movies and the television series are avail
able on video and DVD. Arrange with
local radio station to give away collectors
sets and opening-weekend movie tickets ft
die-hard "Highlander" fans who know thei
trivia.

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28 BOXOFFKF
Actor's Studio: Caroline Keenan, "The Replacements"
The cell phone call that may have changed Caroline Keenan's life came when she was
walking out of an art store on Beverly Boulevard in Hollywood. That's when the actress got
word she'd been cast in her first major film role—as a cheerleader in the upcoming Keanu
Reeves football movie "The Replacements."
Keenan figures "acting like a lunatic" at auditions helped land her the quirky supporting part,
and insanity struck anew when the idea sunk in that she was going to be spending three months
on location with the film's stars, Reeves, Gene Hackman, Brooke Langton (TV's "Melrose Place")
and (on Favreau ("Swingers"). "I did a little dance on that corner," Keenan says. "It was exciting."
Inspired by the true story of the second-string Washington Redskins, who managed to
win their first three games after the team's first string went on strike in 1987, the film follows
Reeves, Favreau and other scrappy Washington "Sentinels" back-up players as they
aim for the championship, led by coach Hackman.
Sipping a mixture of lemonade and ice tea at a trendy restaurant just down the street from
the spot where she got the fateful news about her casting in the film, Keenan describes her
character's narrative function as "kind of taunting the football players and dancing sexily.
BUMP AND GRIND: Caroline Keenan and Sham
Ann Morris show spirit in "The Replacements."
"I'm a stripper—me and this other girl," she says. "We see there's auditions for actual
professional cheerleading. The [regular] cheerleaders left, so we get the bright idea to move
out of the harsh world of stripping."
Keenan, whose natural comic presence and perky blond good looks guarantee comparisons
to Meg Ryan as her work reaches a wider audience, got into the acting game relatively
late. The New Orleans native had no such ambitions when she graduated college with a communications degree in 1994 and
made her way to L.A. "really just to be here." Her interest in performing kicked in when she made friends with other young people
who were in the process of making names for themselves as actors. "Some people were doing commercials, and I thought, 'Well, maybe
I'll just do that.' And I started, and it wasn't until maybe a year and a half into it that I developed the actual passion for it."
She quickly worked her way into guest spots on sitcoms such as "Saved by the Bell" and "Home Improvement" and scored a lead
role in an indie feature, the upcoming youth comedy "Totally Irresponsible"—all terrific learning experiences, she says.
"The Replacements," however, was filmmaking on an entirely different level. On location with the production in Baltimore, Keenan even had
the chance to observe the legendary Hackman in action. "He's wonderful—very, very, very professional," she says. "And ifs funny, because
you've got the director and the D.P. and everybody kissing his butt, pleasing him, which is understandable—he deserves the respect he gets."
She also came away with a different impression of the aloof, enigmatic Reeves, whose love affair with audiences continues despite
jeering from critics about his acting. "He's an actual genius," Keenan says. "I know he doesn't come across that way, but he's so smart.*
Oh, yes—and "really cute," Keenan adds with a laugh.
Now that she's had a taste of working in the Hollywood big time, Keenan is more determined that ever to parlay her up-and-com
ing status into a lasting, diverse career—a driving ambition she formed when she first discovered the drama of Tennessee Williams in
acting class. "I was just, 'Oh, my God— I have to do this,'" she says. "And now here I am. I don't have a choice anymore. I don't think
I could do anything else." Michael Tunison
The Replacements
Hot off "The Matrix," Keanu Reeves stars
in this pigskin comedy as the leader of a
ragtag replacement team that leads the
Washington Redskins to a remarkable string
of victories while the regular players are on
strike. Gene Hackman ("Enemy of the
State"), jon Favreau ("Very Bad Things")
and Rhys Ifans ("Notting Hill") co-star as
the team's coach, linebacker and kicker,
respectively. Howard Deutch ("Grumpier
Old Men") directs; Vince McKewin ("Fly
Away Home") scripts based on real 1987
events; Dylan Sellers ("Passenger 57") produces.
(Warner Bros., 8/25)
Exploitips: Based on positive test screenings
and industry buzz, Warner Bros, anticipated
the hit they'd have in "The Matrix,"
which has grossed over $450 million
worldwide, and quickly signed Reeves to a
new pic. Opening just prior to football season,
"The Replacements" offers a timely
opportunity to market to sports fans through
radio co-sponsored trivia contests and season
ticket giveaways. Held from April. See
Actor's Studio, page 28.
Steal This Movie!
Vincent D'Onofrio ("The Cell") stars in
this biopic as Abbie Hoffman, a '60s radical
who led the Vietnam War protests at the
1968 Democratic National Convention that
resulted in police riots. Hoffman was eventually
forced underground, emerging seven
years later as an environmental activist
named Barry Freed, janeane Garofalo ("The
Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle") costars
as his wife, Anita. Prolific television
producer Robert Greenwald directs; Bruce
Graham ("Anastasia") scripts based on "To
America With Love: Letters From the
Underground" by Abbie and Anita
Hoffman and "Abbie Hoffman American
Rebel" by Marty Jezer; Jacobus Rose (a coproducer
on "Election") produces. (Lions
Gate, 8/25 ltd)
Exploitips: In this month's reviews, BOX-
OFFICE gives "Steal This Movie!" two stars,
saying, "'Steal This Movie!' is the counterculture
equivalent to 'Man on the Moon,'
competent yet ultimately unenlightened
look at a figure who remains as enigmatic
by film's end as he was at the beginning."
The official web site, www.savethismovie.net,
is replete with info on the film',
major real-life players.
Went to Coney Island
on a Mission From God...
Be Back by Five
Ion Cryer ("The Pompatus of Love"
writes, produces and stars in this dram;
about two best friends who set out for Cone
Island when they hear that one of their gradi
school chums may now be living the lifec
a transient. Rick Stear and Rafael Baez co
star. Richard Schenkman writes, directs am
produces. (Phaedra, 8/25 NY/LA)

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Response No. 29

30 BOXOIIKK
Exploitips: BOXOFFICE reviewed "Went
to Coney Island" last month. The three-star
review reads, "Intelligent dialogue between
the best friends...goes a long way toward
redeeming a plot that sometimes wanders
as much as its two leads."
Solomon and Gaenor
In this pre-World War I Welsh-language
romance, a young Jewish man hides his
identity to sell
rugs door-to-door, eventually
falling in love with a customer's daughter,
to whom he doesn't reveal his religion until
she becomes pregnant, loan Cruffudd and
Nia Roberts star as the star-crossed lovers.
Paul Morrisson writes and directs his debut;
Sheryl Crown produces. (Sony Classics,
8/25 NY/LA)
Exploitips: "Solomon and Gaenor," the
U.K.'s official entry, was nominated for a
Foreign-Language Oscar this year.
Goat on Fire and Smiling Fish
Best friends Kevin Jordan, Derick Martini
and Steven Martini got together to make
this romance, starring the latter two brothers
as brothers scraping out a living in Los
Angeles and meeting the respective loves of
their lives—an animal wrangler and a 30-
ish mail carrier. Jordan directs a script he
wrote with Derick, who also produces with
Ryan Rothmaier and Brittany Taylor.
(Stratosphere, 8/25 NY/LA)
Exploitips: BOXOFFICE gave "Coat on Fire
and Smiling Fish" 2.5 stars in the April 2000
issue, saying, "The film rarely generates the
sparks needed to set it apart from countless
other 'hire me' indies. " Held from March.
AUGUST UNDATED
Bootmen
Tap Dogs dance troupe creator Dein
Perry directs this comedy/drama about two
brothers who escape their lives in the steel
mill by becoming professional tap dancers,
basing their performances on the industrial
sounds from their former workplace.
(Sound familiar?) Adam Garcia ("Coyote
Ugly") and Sam Worthington star. Steve
Worland scripts; Hilary Linstead produces.
(Fox Searchlight, August undated)
Exploitips: Be sure to point out the Tap
Dogs connection in your pre-release marketing
to attract fans of the art form and the
group in particular. Invite a local tap troupe
to perform on opening weekend with signup
sheets for moviegoers to take free
lessons. Look for BOXOFFICE s interview
with Garcia in next month's Australian coverage.
Cleopatra's 2nd Husband
Paul Hipp ("Another Day in Paradise"),
Boyd Kestner ("The General's Daughter"),
Bitty Schram ("Kissing a Fool") and Radha
Mitchell ("High Art") make up the ensemble
cast in this black comedy about a couple
desperate to get pregnant but whose
houseguests won't leave. Jon Reiss scripts
and directs as well as produces with lacqui
De La Fontaine, Jill Goldman and David
Rubin. (Indican, August undated)
Exploitips: After premiering with
"Pariah," fledgling indie distributor Indican
picked up "Cleopatra" at the Los Angeles
Independent Film Festival this spring. Held
from last September.
Prince of Central Park
Harvey Keitel ("U-571"), Kathleen Turner
("The Virgin Suicides") and Danny Aiello
(TV's "The Last Don") star in this drama
about a boy who runs away from his abusive
foster home to live in Central Park,
where he befriends other park dwellers.
Frankie Nasso co-stars, lohn Leekley
directs; Evan Rhodes scripts based on his
novel; action star Steven Seagal and his
producing partner Julius Nasso produce.
(Lions Gate, August undated)
Exploitips: Consider a similar marketing
campaign to "Autumn in New York's," only
this time offering the trip to New York for |
family of four.
The Story of
This American version of Pauline Reage's
erotic novel updates the story of a woman';
expression of love via kink. Camilo Vile
directs. (Phaedra, August undated)
Exploitips: Collaborate with a loca
bookstore but with discretion. The mated
al—often compared to that of Marquis di
Sade— isn 't for everyone.
White Badge
Ahn Sung-kee ("Nowhere to Hide") star
in this 1994 Korean drama as a busines
professional who must learn to deal witl
his past when he runs into an old wa
buddy who cowered in battle. Chun;
Jiyoung writes and directs; Gong Su Young i
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Response No 71

I
i
Lauren
July, 2(1(11) 31
lo Young Chel and Shim Seung bo script
based on the novel by Ahn Junghyo.
(Phaedra, August undated)
Exploitips: Collaborate with a local
bookstore to not only promote the book
land the movie) but host a panel discussion
on the effects of the Korean War on its residents,
a perspective only touched on in
"M*A'S*H."
Speedway Junky
Jesse Bradford ("Bring It On") stars in
his drama as a miliary
brat who runs
iway to become a
ace car driver but
uns into trouble
vhen a young
windier, played by
ordan Brower, devel-
)ps a crush on him
nd introduces him to
s gang of hustlers,
onathan Taylor
homas ("I'll Be
Jome for Christmas")
nd Darryl Hannah
Favorite
My
Martian")
co-star.
Jickolas Perry writes
nd directs; Rodney
)manoff, Randall
mmett, George Furla
nd Jeff
Rice produce,
tegent, August undated)
Exploitips: Exhibitors may be tempted to
larket this one towards teens or even pre-
?ens, considering the appeal of Thomas, but
's rated R for language, violence, sex and
rug use— nothing new in the realm of teen
?x romps, but this one has a darker tone.
sycho Beach Party
Ambrose ("Can't Hardly Wait")
;ars in this '60s beach bash send-up as a
irfer chick whose multiple personalities
lake her the prime suspect in a string a
iiurders. Thomas Gibson (TV's "Dharma &
and Nicholas Brendon (TV's "Buffy
>e Vampire Slayer") co-star. Robert Lee
ing directs; Charles Busch scripts from his
ay strand's Marcus Hu and Jon Gerrans
lid New Oz's Victor Syrmus produce.
trand, August undated NY/LA)
Exploitips: BOXOFFICE reviewed "Psycho
•ach Party" at Sundance this year, giving it
o stars in the April 2000 issue: "'Psycho
•ach Party' probably hopes to become a
rt of cult classic, but the average cultist is
harter than this.
Exploitips: \t
Skipped Parts
Jennifer Jason Leigh
("eXistenZ") stars in this
romantic drama as an irresponsible
mother who flees to
a small Wyoming town with
her 1 4-year-old son to escape
her domineering father. Brad
Renfro ("Apt Pupil") co-stars,
and Drew Barrymore makes a
cameo. Tamra Davis ("Billy
Madison") directs; Tim
from his own
Sandlin scripts
novel; Shelby Stone, Alison
Dickey and Sharon Oreck
produce. (Trimark, August
undated)
looks like this novel will be
republished in July, just in time to set up a
co-marketing venture with a neighborhood
bookstore.
LATE MOVIE MOVES
Pop & Me
Chris Roe writes and directs this documentary.
Crew members Erik Arnesen,
Juliann Jannus, Mark Kornweibel, Jesse
Negron and Richard Roe also script.
(Seventh Art, 6/9 NY/LA/Chi)
Exploitips: "Pop & Me" won the
Audience Award for Best Feature Film at the
1999 Los Angeles Independent Film Festival.
Boricua's Bond
Latino pop star Frankie Negron stars in
this urban drama as a young artist struggling
against a backdrop of drugs and violence in
the South Bronx. Val
his debut. (USA, 6/21
Lik writes and directs
NY, 7/1 2 select cities)
Exploitips: October Films picked up this
pic for its Rogue Pictures banner before the
indie was folded into USA Films. Among
the cameos are Method Man and DMX, so
expect a soundtrack tie-in.
Madadayo and Ran
Writer-director-genius Akira Kurosawa's
last film, "Madadayo" is a 1940s-set drama
about an elderly professor who's content in
his retirement to sit in the doorway of his hut
and write. His students, meanwhile, kx>k after
him. Tatsuo Matsumura and Kyoko Kagawa
star. Gohei Kogure and Yasuyoshi Tokuma
produce. "Ran" is
based on the Bard's "King
Lear" about an elderly 16th-century warlord
who divides his kingdom among his three
sons, but his youngest doubts the arrangement
can remain peaceful. Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira
Terao, Jinpachi Nezu and Daisuke Ryu star.
Kurosawa, Masato Ide and Hideo Oguni adapt
Shakespeare's play; Masato Hara and Serge
Silberman (Luis Buhuel's "The Discreet Charm
of the Bourgeoise," due out for re-release in
April) produce. (Winstar, 7/7 NY)
Exploitips: Kurosawa's "Madadayo" and
"Ran" would make an enticing double bill
for the auteur's fans.
Benjamin Smoke
Jem Cohen and Peter Sillen direct this
documentary about Benjamin, the HIV-positive
leader of Smoke, a band based out of
Atlanta. (Cowboy, 7/21 NY)
Exploitips: Smoke's albums— "Another
Reason to Fast" and "Heaven on a Popsicle
Stick"— can be ordered at www.benjaminremembered.com.
Criminal Lovers
Natacha R£gnier ("The Dreamlife of
Angels") and Jeremie Renier ("La
Promesse") star in this French-language
thriller about a suburban girl who convinces
her naive boyfriend to commit a
murder but finds the ramifications to be
more than she bargained for. Francois Ozon
("Water Drops on Burning Rocks") writes
and directs; "Water Drops on Burning
Rocks'" Olivier Delbosc and Marc
Missonnier produce. (Strand, 7/21 NY)
Exploitips: Zeitgeist is also releasing
Ozon's "Water Drops on Burning Rocks" in
July— an opportunity for a double bill.
The Tic Code
Gary Winick directs this drama about a 1 0-
year-old musical prodigy who'd rather play
jazz piano than the classical music encouraged
by his teacher. His mother's support
enables him to perform regularly at a local
nightclub, where he meets a saxophonist
who becomes his mentor in more ways than
one: They both suffer from Tourette's
Syndrome. Christopher Marquette, Carol
Kane ("Man on the Moon"), Polly Draper
(TV's "thirtysomething") and Gregory Hines
("Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her")
star.
Draper scripts as well as produces with
Sarah Pillsbury ("The Love Letter") and Karen
Tangora. (Lions Gate, July ltd)
Exploitips: Local Tourette's support
groups may want to use this film's release as
an opportunity to educate the public about
the disease, particularly considering that
one of its central themes is acceptance ofvs.
-disguising the affliction.
On the Run
TV's 'The Sopranos'" Michael Imperioli and
John Ventimiglia star in this comedy as a lonely
New York travel agent and the childhood
friend who shows up on his doorstep, having
just escaped from prison. Bruno de Almeida
writes, directs and produces; Jonathan Bemian
and Joseph Minion script; Tino Navarro produces.
(Phaedra, July undated)
Exploitips: Fans of "The Sopranos" will be
able to get their fix here while they await the
start of the next season— in March 2001. ^^

*? RnMiiiii I
Sneak Preview
When
Shakespeare's most
famous protagonist, the angstridden
Hamlet, first uttered the
bitter words, "Frailty, thy name is
woman," it's probably because he never
met Julia Stiles, the anything-but-fragile
young actress who, four centuries after
the Prince of Denmark's original conception,
would play his ill-fated true
love Ophelia, in addition to a few other
female characters penned by the Bard.
While other teenage actresses may shy
away from the challenge of bringing the
English language's most renowned playwright's
heroines to the big screen. Stiles
has brazenly embraced the opportunity
three times: first as Kat, Gen X's version
of "Taming of the Shrew's" Katharina,
in 1999s "10 Things I Hate About You";
opposite Ethan Hawke in Miramax'sjustreleased
"Hamlet"; and as Desi, the present-day
vision of the tragic Desdemona,
in Miramax's "Othello" update "O."
While Stiles isn't daunted by the task of
recreating these famed fictional femmes for
modem audiences, she certainly understands
the unique pressure that comes with
any project that has the name
"Shakespeare" attached to it. "Someone
told me the best kind of critic—for film or
any kind of art—will judge the project
based on what it tries to accomplish," she
tells BOXOFFICE. "So as soon as you put a
name like Shakespeare on it, you're sort of
saying, "I'm trying to accomplish something
more intellectual or more important,"
and then the standards are higher. It's really
sort of shocking how tough critics are."
However, any apprehension caused by
harsh criticism doesn't seem to be slowing
down the New York City native,
her current slate of films is an indication.
After her first bigscreen starring role in
"10 Things I Hate About You," Stiles
has been working non-stop, with a total
of five films scheduled for roll out this
year. In addition to the two Shakespeare
updates, she co-starred with Freddie
Prinze Jr. in January's "Down to You"
and will appear in Fine Line's Christmas
release "State and Main" as well as
Paramount's "Save the Last Dance,"
scheduled to open wide on August 1 1.
In "Save the Last Dance," Stiles
describes her character as "a ballet
if
CONTRASTING
-i
STILES Y-
From an Aspiring Ballerina in "Save the Last
Dance" to a Modern Version ofthe Bard's
Doomed Desdemona in "O," the Thinking Girl's
Starlet Handles it All With Flair and Stiles
dancer who lives in a suburb of Chicago.
by Francesca Dinglasan
[Her] mother dies and she has to go live
with her father in the ghetto, and she gets
involved in the hip-hop club culture
there. She starts dating a black guy
[played by Sean Patrick Thomas], and
they sort of contrast the culture that ballet
comes from and hip-hop culture."
When asked what attracted her to the
role, her initial response is quite simply,
"I love to dance." And although "really
excited about having to do the dance
training," she says that her passion was
tempered by the slightest tinge of fear,
considering this would be her first
attempt at ballet. "I had taken dance
classes when I was little and all through
high school," she explains. "But it was
only modern dance, which is different. I
was actually really worried about the
trainer being like one of those strict
French women who [would] yell at me
because I'm terrible. But Randy Duncan,
who choreographs the Joffrey Ballet, was
amazing. He loves the spirit of dance,
and he really got something out of me,
like confidence."
Another aspect of the film that
appealed to the politically conscientious
Stiles, whose sense of volunteerism
has extended to organizations
such as Habitat for Humanity and
Planned Parenthood, was its attempt to
realistically portray the issues involved
in interracial relationships. "I was hoping
it would present itself honestly." she
says. "[The film] brings up a lot of different
perspectives on the issue, [and
while] it's not really the number one
issue [of the plot], it also isn't completely
one-sided. It's not saying, 'Can't
everybody just get along?' and it's not
saying white people are [all] racists
because there's kind of racism on both
sides, and I think it presents [the issues]
pretty fairly."
In "O," her next slated release, Stiles
once more makes up half of a black-andwhite
romantic pairing, although, again,
the interracial nature of the relationship
isn't
necessarily the central theme of the
film. Remaining true to the original
"Othello," the plot is more of an exploration
of jealousy and betrayal, which,
according to the actress, was of utmost
priority in the making of this update.
"The director [Tim Blake Nelson] was
amazing," she says. "We had two weeks
of rehearsals where we actually rehearsed
with the play, and each scene in the movie
corresponds with a scene in the play, so
think that it's a lot more of a truer adaptation
than '10 Things' was."
Also notably different in "O," com'
pared with Stiles' previous Shakespearebased
projects, was the lack of ease wit!
which she could relate to her character
While the strong-willed Kat and the innocent
Ophelia presented their own uniqiu
challenges, the actress admits, "Desi wa
actually really hard because she's so trust
ing and open. At times it was hard for mt
to understand why she [would do what shi
did], but I think it makes sense. Somebod;
might not be treating [you] very well, bu
you still like them."
While Stiles has enjoyed beinj
involved in several onscreen reworking
of Shakespeare classics, she says that he
image as the modern-day Bard bato
came about more as a matter of chano
than design. "[My involvement in tb
three movies] was not really intentional,
she says. "I did '10 Things' and I wasri
going to turn down 'Hamlet' because
already had done an adaptation o
'Taming of the Shrew.' And then 'C
came along, and I really liked the scrip
and the director. I took them as indivic
ual pieces and they all were interesting t
me. I didn't know that people would tak
it so seriously."
While the attention that has been pai
to her Shakespeare trilogy may hav
caught the actress off-guard, the fact th
people take her seriously as an actra
should come to no one's surpris
Following "O," Stiles will appear in anotl
er work penned by an influential pla;
wright-this time David Mamet's featui
film "State and Main." Stiles' only ro
after that will be as a student at Columb
University, where she'll begin her fresl
man year this fall. And while she
that "the fun of playing a variety of diffe
ent characters is it's almost like you're ti
ing to bring out another aspect of yoi
own personality," this will be Stiles' fir
chance in a long while to play nothir
more than her 19-year-old self.

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Cover
THE UNCANNY XMENAGE
Patrick Stewart, Sir Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackman, Anna
Vaquin, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos and Director Bryan Singer Tafo
on the Xtreme Challenge of Bringing the Best-Selling Comic
Book Series ofAll Time to the Big Screen in Fox's "X-Men"
by Francesca Dinglasan
a world where certain human selves into two separate and opposing
It's beings, distinguished from the groups, one fronted by Professor Xavier
dominant populace because of
genetically-inherited characteristics,
and the other lead by Magneto, played
by two of most
their respectively the world's
famous Shakespearean actors, Patrick
must live separate from and
oppressed by the controlling majority, Stewart and Sir Ian McKellen.
who fear and loathe these individuals
simply because they're "others" who
look and act differently from themselves.
One leader of the minority
group wants to work towards creating
an integrated global citizenry by peacefully
eradicating the widespread prejudice
held against them, while another
influential leader believes the collective
mindset of the larger community can
only be changed through more forceful
and vociferous means.
Although history is chock full of
these contrasts in ideology—from the
divergent teachings of Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X in the
African-American struggle for equality
to the opposing schools of feminist
thought represented by longtime activist
Gloria Steinem and postmodern critic
Camille Paglia—the scenario takes on a
decidedly surreal turn in this summer's
"X-Men," a stylish and dark allegory
about intolerance based on Marvel
Comics maverick Stan Lee's 35-year old
comic series "The Uncanny X-Men."
Set in the futuristic-looking present,
"X-Men" is the elaborate tale of a "race"
of people, who, through the natural
process of human evolution, are born
with extra chromosomes that give them
special super powers. Reacting in prototypical
xenophobic fashion, society labels
these individuals as "mutants" and, taking
on an extremist mentality, concludes
the best way to deal with them is by the
total extermination of their kind. Forced
into hiding, the mutants divide them-
t
TWO SIDES OF
THE SAME COIN:
PROFESSOR X
AND MAGNETO
Stewart, best known for his work
on "Star Trek: The Next Generation,"
a television-turnedbigscreen
series also noted for its theme
of acceptance, is one of several members
of the cast and crew of "X-Men"
to talk with BOXOFFICE about their
unique roles in the film. "Professor
Charles Xavier is the founder and head
master of a school for mutant children
who have this genetic mutation, which
permits them a variety of different and
extraordinary powers." he says. "[It's] a
school where A) they can be safe and B)
their powers can be developed and the
can be trained in the use of them. an>
they'll be put to the benefit
humankind as a whole.
"But he is also the leader of the X
Men," continues Stewart. "They ai
dedicated not only to bringing an undei
standing of who and what mutants j
to the world in general, but also to con
bat any attempt that there might be 1
harm or damage the reputation of thes
extraordinary people. And to that em
of course, they are in opposition to tr
character Magneto, the leader of tr
Brotherhood, who was at one tirr
Professor Xavier's closest friend, but
now his most serious enemy."
Portraying the onscreen version
Xavier's friend-turned-foe is classical^
trained stage and screen performer 1;
McKellen, affectionately referred to I
Stewart as "my old colleague ar
friend. Sir Ian." In describing his cha
acter. McKellen points out that whi
many moviegoers may think him as tl
pic's clear-cut "baddie," the film's larg:
moral argument doesn't really allow fi
such pigeonholing.
"[The question] is, if you belong
a minority in society and you feel disa
vantaged, what do you do?" he sa>
"And the choice in 'X-Men' and
choice in other areas of society is yc
can try and integrate, you can try ai
play down your differences, you can t
and become like the majority, and y<
can quietly go about lobbying—tha
very much the Xavier point of view.
"If you're Magneto, you say, 'N
that's not right. That's not goir
change anything. We have to para
our differences, we have to be proof
what's special about us, and •
must force the world to accept

'
Stewart
it
i
'
ibsolutely on our terms. And we will
lo anything to achieve that end [by]
lot only doing violence the way socity
expects us to, but by doing [somehing
as] extreme as killing people.'
"Beyond that [description of him]. 1
wouldn't particularly want to go
>ecause I don't want to judge Magleto."
says McKellen. "I don't think
t's an argument against Magleto/villain
and Xavier/hero. I think
hat they are two sides of the same
oin. And I think it's interesting the
ivo British classical actors have been
ast in the parts. 1 think the audience
/ill
get the point from that."
also sees the casting as a
iv\y move, although unlike McKellen,
ie is willing to frame it in terms of a
bod guy/bad guy dichotomy. "I'm sure
a sense there probably was a feeling of
Ippropriateness that 'the good twin and
lie evil twin' should be paired in this
By," he says. "It's not just that we have
milar theatrical backgrounds, but we
.tuallv come from pretty much the
tme part of England. We're both
[lortherners. and I think our voices are
juite similar. There are other charactertics
too. which I think—I hope, anyay—
will perhaps lend a slight eerieness
p
the relationship because of the simirities."
Ironically—and strangely fitting,
>nsidering the two actors play former
>mrades who become bitter nemeses
|here Stewart sees similitude,
IcKellen sees centuries-old opposion.
"When you like each other, and we
mainly do—we make each other
jugh a lot—that is very helpful in the
prking relationship," says McKellen.
•Jut there is one crucial difference
•tween Patrick Stewart and me, which
that he was born and bred in
»rkshire and I was born and bred in
mcashire. They're adjacent counties
the North of England, and although
speak with what may seem to be the
:jme accents to outsiders, there's a
Jigstanding animosity between the
o. And the War of the Roses, which
Jiakespeare covers pretty extensively, is
a argument between the Yorkshiremen
;d Lancastrians, like me. So. despite
< r friendship, there is that!"
RTect-fashion so typical of the characters
with whom he has come to be identified,
light-heartedly notes. "[It's]
somewhat sexist as there happen to be
women there, too. I guess 'X-Persons'
isn't such a snappy title."
And while "X-Men" does follow the
quintessential superhero/supervillain
rule of always maintaining a high level
of testosterone— including Professor
Xavier prodigies Wolverine (Hugh
Jackman) and the laser beam-eyed
Cyclops (James Marsden), as well as the
Brotherhood's slime-producing Toad
(Ray Park) and the immensely powerful
half-animal Sabretooth (Tyler Mane)
the female members of each group not
only "happen to be there," but they do
more than their share of the work in
either saving or wreaking havoc on the
lives of human beings.
Comprising the feminine side of the
X-Men are Jean Grey (Famke Janssen),
who is both telepathic and telekinetic:
Storm (Halle Berry), who is worshipped
in her native Africa as a goddess and
has the ability to control weather; and
teenager Rogue, portrayed by high
school senior and Academy Awardwinning
actress Anna Paquin.
"Rogue is a young mutant with
the ability to absorb [the
traits of] anyone who
she touches," says
Paquin of her
character. "Men
tal abilities, physical
abilities,
powers, anything.
She can
basically drain
that person. So
she has to keep
anyone she cares
about far away
from her. and as
a resu
she's
says she connected with her character
on a very personal level. "Rogue is like
the ultimate embodiment of teenage
angsi and feeling like you don't lit in
and feeling different." she explains.
"She's a very lonely girl, and she's verj
isolated. I don't think I'd be alone in
saying that everyone at some point has
felt a little bit as if they don't lit in or
they're different. There's a lot of stuff
that I can relate to and I'm sure other
people can surely relate to in her."
Another actress in the film who
related to her own character—albeit in
a highly physical way— is Rebecca
Romijn-Stamos. whose past credits
include a recurring role on the small
screen's "Just Shoot Me" and 1999's
cover model for the Sports Illustrated
swimsuit issue. "[The casting director
for 'X-Men'] had me in mind for
Mystique because Mystique's a shapeshifter."
she says about the role. "She's
kind of the 'poser.' They wanted somebody
with my body-type, sort of a
model-type, to play her. She's a very
sexy character."
However, a perfectly matched
physique wasn't all that was required to
transform Romijn-Stamos into
Mystique, a loyal member of the
~ rotherhood and, as noted by
the actress, the "implied lover
of [Magneto]." In fact, the
process of changing her
outward appearance
for her role was as
much of a metamorphosis
as
those executed
by her character
onscreen.
"Mystique
is
reptilian."
explains
Romijn-Stamos,
"Her
power is
that
able
she's
to
morph
n t o
I AM WOMAN,
SEE ME MORPH
Following
the guidance of the
two adversarial leaders are
cadres consisting of individu-
I exceptionally diverse in nature, all
nging in regional accents, national
I
ritage, age and gender. In fact, when
Raking about the title of the film and
I nic book, Stewart, in the politically
another person for fear of physically
assimilating his or her every last
thought and emotion may seem difficult
for a 17-year-old to understand. Paquin
covered in blue scales [and have] yellow
eyes and bright red hair. My costume is
extremely fragile— it took seven to eighl
hours to apply the prosthetics that I
Images: Patrick Stewart as Professor Xavier (left); Rebecca
Romijn-Stamos as Mystique (above); Halle Berry as Storm,
Hugh Jackman as Wolverine (next page); Jackman (final).
July, 2000 35

\\< s
j
SFX Man
Director Bryan Singer On "X-Men's" Unusual Suspects
by Shlomo Schwartzberg
perhaps the most anticipated film of the summer, but for Bryan
It's Singer (The Usual Suspects"), "X-Men's" potential boxoffice success is
the furthest thing from his mind. Sounding tired on the phone from the
film's Toronto production office, Singer admits that making "X-Men" has
not been without its rigors ("It's not a vacation, it's a job," he states). Yet,
that doesn't mean he's not happy as a director. "I wouldn't change [my
job] for anything in the world," he says.
Compared to Singer's previous films, such as "The Usual Suspects"
($6.5 million) and "Apt Pupil" ($13 million), the $75 million "X-Men" is
not just more expensive, it's also a much longer shoot, totaling 85 days in
all. ("Long, long days" is how Singer refers to them. "The Usual Suspects"
was shot in 35 days and "Apt Pupil" in 50 days.)
It's also more special effects-laden, with eight companies contributing to
the SFX. The challenge of jumping into that arena from the character-driven
films Singer is known for was not a problem, he says. "I visited the set of 'The
Phantom Menace.' I educated myself in that area."
However, in "X-Men," although Singer says "there
are big set pieces (and) a lot of visual effects," he
doesn't want the movie to be specifically identified
as a special effects extravaganza and is instead
more concerned with "X-Men's" underlying
meanings. The X-Men, he says, are "reluctant
superheroes, outcasts of society, [but] they join
together consciously to protect society."
If there is a link between the various X-Men and
the characters in Singer's other movies, including
Kevin Spacey's Oscar-winning depiction of Verbal
Kint in "The Usual Suspects" or the Nazi war criminal
played by Sir Ian McKellen in "Apt Pupil," it's
that they "are not all they seem to be," says Singer.
"Things are different beneath the surface."
Deciding
to take on the "X-Men," a comic that Singer had never read
before embarking on the project, made for pressures not unlike
those felt by the makers of the "Star Trek" movies, who had to do
justice to a concept that had millions of fans. Singer admits that "X-Men"
is not a comic book writ large. "It plays more like a film," he says. Still, he
adds, "I was very, very conscious of respecting the history and essence of
the characters." About "X-Men's" look, he says, "It has lots of style but is
not so highly-stylized as to take you out of the realm of reality."
What does he think "X-Men's" legions of fans will think of the movie? "If
I make a good film, they'll like it," he answers. "You can never please everyone."
His main concern had been that the actors have fun working on the
film. "I took on a lot of the stress myself so they could enjoy the project."
If "X-Men" takes off, and reportedly the entire cast has already been
signed for the sequel, Singer may receive vindication for the financial
drubbing "Apt Pupil" received upon its release. However, "Apt Pupil's"
mediocre boxoffice take wasn't a factor for 20th Century Fox, the studio
behind "X-Men," says Singer. "The film wasn't green lit after 'Apt Pupil.'
[Fox] had every confidence in my ability to use film language, my ability
to control the material. Their willingness [to hire me] was not based
remotely on the financial failure or success of 'Apt Pupil.'"
And if the "X-Men" sequel is, in fact, made, will it be Singer behind the
camera? He won't say as of yet but suggests that it could happen.
"Probably, I guess," he admits. "It depends when [Fox wants to make it].
I
don't see myself going into 'X-Men 2' immediately."
wear.. .and I had to wear two pairs o
contact lenses, [which felt] really horri
ble because I had never put anything ii
my eyes before, and it turned out that
have dry, sensitive eyes. It was so high
maintenance!"
Fans eager to get an early glimpse o
Romijn-Stamos' costume had ampli
opportunity to do so because, accord
ing to the actress, "all these pictures [o
me] got leaked out." However, Romijn
Stamos is quick to clear up misconcep
tions about what many think they'r
seeing. "Bear in mind that three-quar
ters of my body [is] completely coverec
in prosthetics," she remarks. "People ar
like. 'You're naked in the movie!'
I'm like, 'No I'm not! I'm wearing mor
than any bikini I ever put on!'"
THE HUGH-MAN SID]
OF WOLVERIN1
Along
with the numerou
female mutants, who add fls
vor and drama to the oppos
ing factions in "X-Men," and outsid
of the two commanders, who Stewai
says "bookend the story," a strong cer
tral figure was neec
ed to brin
the var
of the pic
especially i
action, into focus. F
"X-Men" devotees, that figure cou
only be perennial favorite Wolverir
played with great intensity
Australian actor Hugh Jackman.
"Dark, brooding, enigmatic, rek
tant hero—these are all the clichl
about him," Jackman tells BOXOFFK
about his character. "He's got a bj
attitude. Wolverine. He's kind of unpi
dictable. which is good. The good gu
will be given to think he's not on th
side and the bad guys think, "Well, h
not really on our side.'
So, he ki
fits somewhere between the two. Butj
has this iron sense of morality,
probably why the role ended up comil
to [me]. He's got a pretty healthy dis[
spect for authority, which
36 Boxo i

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38 BOXOFFICE
Australians can definitely relate to."
Although Jackman's Down Under
upbringing may have helped him to
understand Wolverine's motives, it was
up to the actor to meet the numerous
other challenges presented by the role.
The first issue, of course, was to acquire
Wolverine's distinct look. Not an easy
task, because as BOXOFFICE notes
from encountering Jackman at the
Australian Movie Convention in
1999, the actor is very tall and
striking—completely opposite
from the short, compact, razorclawed
character he portrays.
"Wearing flat shoes," jokes
The props to which McKellen refers
are Wolverine's killer claws, which did
in fact give Jackman some pause when
he put them on. '"The first pair I got,
which I managed to keep, are like full
metal and sharp as pins," he says. "I
mean, they were deadly. I actually had
to say, 'Come on, I don't
think we really need to
use these.' I ended up
[with] a little scar on
my forehead. But,
there's bound to be
a few little accidents.
I think in
the end it will look
good—all in the
name of the
film!"
Adding more tongue-in-cheek analy
sis, McKellen—who vaunts "X-Men
as storytelling in its most canonict
form ("[The struggle in 'X-Men'] is
familiar situation in Shakespeare"),-
also notes, "Once you start flying in th
movie and wearing a glamorous cos
tume and special effects come into pla;
it might feel different."
What
also should "feel diffe
ent" for the actors are the
various post-"X-Mei
stints, which appear to be just as diver;
as the characters they portray in tl
summer flick. Paquin can next be see
in
director Cameron Crowe's still-unt
tied project, in which she's
groupie/muse" wl
There's
nothing remotely
is very large and very heavy, and the
directing of it was very delicate. But, on
the other hand, I could get up and walk
out of it at the end of the day."
(Stewart's efforts were applauded by
colleague McKellen, who notes, "He
didn't seem to have a problem with it.
Never bumped into my chair.")
On his own physical readiness for the
film, McKellen says that to unleash
Magneto's special power, which "is in his
name—he can control any metal." was
quite simple for him as an actor. "On the
whole I just stride around and tell people
what to do or wave my arm—and things
happen." Adds McKellen. "I think
Hugh has more problems than most of
us because he's having to fight and
maneuver those peculiar props."
just about people who are different
being ostracized and being told they're
outcasts and that they don't belong.
The things that they're dealing with
have serious undertones."
Jackman also sees the film as having
more resonance than what might be
expected. "Minus all the action stuff
the fights and the costumes and the
claws—we were attempting to do a
drama as intense as any other. [The
movie] is very much character-driven.
..which will be the meat of the
movie, and everything else—the storyline
and the special effects—will just be
the icing." (He adds on reflection
"Icing and meat? That doesn't really
work. ..Mustard! Yes, the special effects
are the mustard.")
"runs around
lowing musicians ai
rock stars all day lonjj
Stewart, who is appearing on Broadw
in Arthur Miller's "The Ride Down
Jackman
about how cartoonish about
he prepared
for the role. "An
this at all."
Morgan," says that his "next proj>
actor I had to work
will in fact be as a producer... [on] a "
with had to stand on an apple
movie called 'Boss Lear,' which is bas
box, but I'm kind of used to that. But, I
on Shakespeare's 'King Lear' and set
think on film, you won't really notice. We Ultimately, the consensus
Texas in 1841." Jackman, who is cl
were very attentive to it."
among cast members is that
sidering a few offers, promises tl
Jackman says the true challenge in
"X-Men's" appeal is its transcendance
of the caricatures associated
BOXOFFICE "will be the fourth
transformation was the physical
know" about his next
aration behind his action-driven with bigscreen comic book adaptations.
p
ject. (The actor lists "my wife, my cle:
cter. And by all accounts, it made "There's nothing remotely cartoonish
ing lady and a guy down the road wh
role of Wolverine, in terms of enactan
individual mutant power, the think an attempt has been made to real-
about this at all," insists Stewart. "I
promised to be the third" as having
higher priorities.)
t difficult—a point that many of ly try to overlap the real world and this
As for McKellen, the much-lauc
other cast members support. fantasy world of the mutants."
Romijn-Stamos says that for her "it was Paquin agrees, citing the message
thespian will next appear in the f
CGI, special effects," while Stewart behind the "X-Men" universe. "The trilogy "Lord of the Rings"—a t
admits that playing the wheelchairbound
Xavier required only a fair metaphor for discrimination and how fan loyalty as "X-Men." "I'm play
whole idea behind it is this extended that inspires the same kind of dieh;
amount of rehearsal. "[The wheelchair]
Gandalf." says McKellen about his
society deals with that. The [story] is
in the movie, which is based on
beloved series by fantasy nove
J.R.R. Tolkien. "Whether I match uj
people's imagined Gandalf from
books, who can say?"
It's an issue that has come up
McKellen in both "Lord of the Rin
and "X-Men," namely whether or
these onscreen versions are doing
tice to their literary predecess
McKellen, however, takes any and
pre-release criticism in stride. "If yo
worried that [the film] isn't being r
correctly, then you know what?" he
tulates. "Don't see the movie!"
After all. he concludes, "Whe
Oscar-winner or turkey, the comics
remain."
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Movers & Shakers
LEAVING A
(LAND)MARK
In
Lifelong Exhibitor Steve Gilula
Joins Fox Searchlight
February, Fox Searchlight
announced that it had created a
new position, naming Stephen A.
Gilula president of distribution and creating
a triad of leadership that pairs him
with president of production Peter Rice
and president of marketing
Nancy Utley. Gilula, who
co-founded Landmark
Theatres in 1974, has been a
familiar name in the exhibition
industry for over a
quarter of a century,
starting
out as a film buyer for
United Artists in San
Francisco and later working
in the same capacity for
Century Theatres in Los
Angeles. He sold his 140-
screen art-house chain for
$60 million to Dallas-based
Silver Cinemas in April
1998, taking some time off
to travel to Europe and
BOXOFFICE: Can you describe how the
new triad of leadership at Fox
Searchlight will work?
Steve Gilula: [Peter Rice, Nancy Utley
and I] will work together and actually
very closely in the process of selecting
the films— in other words, advising and
discussing with Peter, because we want
to make sure that the films that we
release theatrically are viable in the marketplace.
It's an extremely crowded market,
as you know, with more and more
specialty distributors coming into the
market. We want to be very attuned to
what the audiences are that we're producing
and acquiring films for and how
to release them. So it really is a team
approach. When Peter has a project,
he'll talk to us about what is the target
market. Because of all my years on the
exhibition side, I'm close to the market.
STILL SEARCHING:
by Annlee Ellingson
and Nancy knows how difficult it is in
terms of positioning.
[Also] distribution before did not have
the senior position, so arguably, distribution
was not taken into account at as
early a stage. And I think that the senior
management of Fox realized
that that may have been
a flaw, so they want to try
this new structure to see if
we can have a more effective
release schedule in terms of
integrating the marketing
and distribution aspects at
the earliest possible stage.
BOXOFFICE: Were you
looking to transfer to the
distribution side?
Gilula: I have always had an
interest in film. Actually,
my involvement in the
industry was because I love
movies, and in the early
stages of my career, I ended
Gilula, in his Landmark days.
India with his wife and two
up in exhibition. After we
children. Gilida took a few minutes out of sold [Landmark], I thought a lot about
his busy schedule to chat with BOXOF- it, and I realized that if I had the oppor-
FICE about his new job.
tunity to get closer to the film side, that
my heart, my first love is really with
movies, although I'll
always love exhibition
as well. I think
there's nothing like
watching a movie in
a movie theatre, but
to be able to work
with film and filmmakers
and the
whole marketing
and acquisition
processes was an
exciting opportunity.
It's an extraordinary
opportunity.
BOXOFFICE: What will your exhibition
experience bring to Fox Searchlight?
Gilula: What I did at Landmark for
almost 25 years was develop markets,
and the way Landmark grew, [which]
was really unlike almost any other circuit,
was product-driven. What I mez
by that is we were able to identify citic
whether it was San Diego or Denver i
Milwaukee or Minneapolis or Ne
Orleans, where the specialized—or wh
were called art films—were often n
playing off or [were] getting very limit
play off. And we believed, based on o
research or visiting markets, that the
was an underserved market, where au<
ences wanted to see these films and th
weren't being adequately serviced
my years of developing these regior
markets gave me a strong sense of t
demand, and in fact we were very si
cessful in developing and expandi
many of these markets, which in a ser
opened more outlets for Miramax
before them the studio classics di
sions—by creating more theatres tl
were dedicated to these films. We thi
that we also enhanced the ability for d
tribution to get their films out, so it v
a snowball effect.
So coming into Fox Searchlight
have an understanding of the wh'
country, not just Los Angeles or N
York. We didn't operate theatres in ew
city,
change in
but we operated theatres in ma
many cities across
country,
fir-
Cambridge, Mass..
Seattle to St. Lo
Mo.—a wide, dive
range of mark
And that gives
insight into w
exhibition's needs I
as the market con I
ually changes.
The other th|
that I saw and li
through over the
years was continu
the marketplace—change
the media, change in how films were I
tributed, changes in public taste. SJ
also bring with me the awareness c
constantly moving target, a constat
evolving marketplace, so that the kil
40 BOXOFFICE

sf films we make, the audiences we're
playing to and how the films should be
jeleased and marketed [are] continually
(hanging. The best example was "The
jllair Witch Project" last year. That film
|ad no precedent. When "Pulp Fiction"
|ame out. people thought Miramax was
uts going on 1.000 screens, but the marjetplace
showed that it was ready for
bat kind of movie. So having had onjie-ground
experience on the exhibition
jde gives me a better insight [into] the
[ational market as well as the major
[rban markets.
IOXOFFICE: What kind of direction will
ox Searchlight be taking in its upcoming
ate?
ilula: Peter has a real mandate to make
jigier. more adventurous films and also
,1ms for some of the niche markets,
iuch as] ethnic markets. There's all
linds of movies: films like "Election" or
jlms like "Rushmore" as well as some of
pe African-American films. We'll be
oing those as well as the traditional
nds of British and Australian come-
)es [that Fox Searchlight is known for],
idventurous, edgy movies—we're really
Itrigued in making those and breaking
tern to larger audiences.
(OXOFFICE: Were you involved in film
pfore you became a film buyer at UA?
ilula: Nope. No. I was a pre-med stunt,
and I wanted to take off some time
fore I went back to medical school. I
ed movies, so I got a job as a trainee
)oker at UA Theatres in San Francisco.
XOFFICE: Can you describe the arc
ur career has taken since then?
lula: As I got into it, being a film
yer at the time was not very inspiring
rk. so I thought. "Well, if I want to
ke movies or be involved, I should get
Los Angeles." And I was offered a job
ear later to come to L.A. with a small
onal circuit. I didn't really pursue the
"uction side. And then what hapned
is I joined with a couple of other
lows and formed Landmark because
were showing alternative movies at
time, and it was much more interestj
than just playing what the studios
d in the mid-'70s. There was a product
rtagc. There weren't a lot of films
Fox Searchlight is dedicated to serving
niche markets and alternative markets as
opposed to the mass-market films that
are released on 2.000 to 3.000 screens.
Yes, we're targeted to the same audiences.
Searchlight is just earlier in the
supply line in terms of creating and
acquiring these films and creating the
marketing campaigns for Landmark and
the other theatres in the country that are
focused on that. However, the potential
for crossover is greater than it's ever
been because the American audience, I
think, has grown up a lot. It is more
open to new and diverse films. A little
film, which is not so little anymore.
"Boys Don't Cry." which was already in
release when I got here, is going to be up
to 254 screens this weekend, and that's
quite extraordinary for a film of this
nature, and it just shows you that
although it's a very, very difficult market,
when a film catches on and people
recognize it. the potential is almost
unlimited. So the line between the socalled
art/specialty theatres and the rest
of the market is a very soft and fuzzy
line. Films can move out into the marketplace
pretty quickly once it penetrates
the public consciousness. HI
ing made. But on the other side of it,
ns like "Mean Streets" and "Raging
11." there were some interesting
wies being made, and we played them
revival houses. Landmark started out
a revival circuit because before there
vis home video and cable, those were
a only theatres where you could see a
Ij of the classic movies, and that's what
M really liked. So all of a sudden, I
MOB up 26 years later, and I'm working
sa studio. 1 just had a 26-year detour,
aJ
I'm finally closer to the whole prod.tion
side of it.
WXOFFICE: Would you consider
Lndmark and Fox Searchlight to be sim-
«• companies?
"la: Yes. They're mirror companies.
Response No. 206
July, 2000 41

SPECIAL REPORT: Projection
STARTING TO
SEE THE LIGHT
A short history of cinema lenses
by Glenn Berggren
Progress
in film projection could
be dead, one could argue, in a
cinema industry in which 35mm
screen images are routinely much too
dark, sound is much too loud, and
70mm has been abandoned! It appears
that the equipment money has been
spent in the wrong places. The industry
has been successful in avoiding technical
regulation, and this is the result. Well,
more light is coming—via lenses! How
come? It's a case of "Back to Basics."
The 55-year trend of cinema lenses
has zigzagged, but it is amazing. A thorough
technical paper is needed to fill the
unknowns. But, in quick summary,
before 1975 American cinemas were
nearly always equipped with Americanmade
lenses, such as those from Bausch
& Lomb, Projection Optics, Kollmorgen,
Wollensak, General Scientific,
and Bell & Howell. But not after 1975.
What happened?
By 1945, lensmakers made coated
lenses for more light. (Coating was a
World War II development.) By 1978, all
American cinema lensmakers were gone.
The typical American lens f/numbers
were from f/1.7 to f/3.0, in "quarterinch"
steps from 2 in. to 10 in. The exit
of the U.S. firms came well after the lens
boom of the 1950s, an era that included
the development of 3-D, Cinerama,
Cinemascope. 70mm and more.
The "dead" American lens names are
all before multi-coating. All the thousands
of lenses made back then are now
semi-antiques, not used by anyone serious
about film projection image quality.
Totally new designs in the mid-'70s
slammed the door on lenses of the past.
American lensmakers tried to keep up
with the trends, but eventually they did
abandon the industry.
Projection lenses have progressed well
from 1978 to now. although screens and
machinery have not. It is well known
that xenon bulbs, light-collecting mirrors,
film sprockets, intermittents,
screens and other non-lens items have
changed the basics since 1980. By 1985,
film quality had improved in a serious
way and opened many new viewing
opportunities that unfortunately could
not be seen when projected through
poor equipment.
The
desire of cinema equipment
buyers for more light was a
major factor for 55 years; so
too was better focus. In the '50s and
'60s, lenses did give more light with
popular f/1.7 to f/1.9 lenses—leaving
older f/2.0 lenses to disappear—but
they lost focus quality in the process
(and often with better, higher-resolution
lenses). The "new era" began with
the 1978 introduction of the multicoated,
no-cement, six-element ISCO
Ultra lens, whose special curved-field
concept and f/2.0 design brought it a
technical Academy Award in 1979.
This was the first high-tech f/2.0 lens.
It held focus, and thus lensmakers have
since avoided any design work in the
f/1.5 to f/1.9 region, with its focus-drift
problems. With new lenses, the improved
and uniform focus was preserved for the
focal lengths of 45mm to 150mm.
Schneider soon joined the cinema
lens field after the ISCO/Schneider
split occurred in 1982. Schneider created
new high-tech f/2.0 multicoated,
high-resolution designs. The German
lensmakers now led the field, but
Japanese firms were quick to follow.
Soon Kowa and Sankor were selling
f/2.0 multicoated cinema lenses. By the
mid-'80s, it was all metric from 45mm
to 150mm at f/2.0. But this consensus
did not hold lone!
Focus quality worried ISCO planni
with the more popular shorter foe
length lenses. So they created a m
seven-element concept that replaced t
f/2.0 with f/2.4 for the 50mm to 150|
lenses (normally used for Cinemascop
The designs also improved the reso
tion in the corners and gave more u
form light to the screen. All this was
hold focus, avoid focus drift and m;
for a better screen image. Focus drif
been the bane of the 1953 to 1977 er
Although this whole new lens
was f/2.4, there were exceptions. O
were f/2.0, so that common lens sets
instance 45mm for 1.85 and 70mm
Cinemascope, would provide closer li
levels and avoid cropping when cha
ing film formats. This new lens se
arrived between 1985 and 1989.
lens design, the lens facing the film
much larger to improve light distri
tion to the screen corners.
Schneider then expanded its Suj
Cinelux series with seven-element len
some having higher-index optical
for better resolution. The maker
In
added very short lenses at 40mm. 30
and even 25mm to suit the theatre de!
trend of moving the audience close
large screens. Currently. Schneider
created adjustable lenses to fit the sci
(
more precisely, which can improve 1
by up to eight percent, with no f/nun
change. Schneider has also run tests
given presentations for both distor
limitations and for curved screen de
ideas. But then a new challenge
arrived: the "stadium design" ado]
from the Greeks.
Stadium
cinema design, pop
from 1994, provided dow
viewing advantages but ca
projection problems and added di;
42 BOXOFFICf

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Other developments by equ
ment makers have incluc
new xenon mirrors, xen
bulbs with shorter arc gaps, higher ^
screens, and even shutter efficiei
evaluations. Still, the need for twice
much light (when 4000-watt bulbs w
already common in 1990) has not b<
solved. Part of the problem is that
ters were already optimized years
and higher-gain screens with short le
es usually give a major hot spot
picture unless curved or concave, so
was not a panacea. Xenon bulbs
shorter arc gaps often have h
amps, less volts, and in some
shorter bulb life. This is still proceed
in development.
I SCO has now developed a new hi
tech answer to improve light, especi
for 1.85 and for larger-wattage bulb
lets the light through in new w
Taking the Ultra-Star enlarged ir
lens concept and radically expanc
upon it, a new PLUS lens now joins
pack, with numerous cinema tests
ing 30 percent to 50 percent more o
all screen light (at same distribution
This new concept takes advantag
the large bulb arc size and collector
ror design shortcomings. With this
an input lens of 35mm diameter
formerly might be expected for an 8.
lens is now in place in 50mm lenses
shorter. The integrated Cinemasi
PLUS lens remains f/2.4, while
rate series at f/2. 1 is offered for the
format. This means more light in
cinema, or changing a 6 kw bulb to
kw bulb with less cost or more bulb
or maybe a little of both.
What will thev think of nex
Longtime occasional BOXOFI
contributor Glenn Berggren is t
consultant and is vice president at S
Design Group (www.sigmcM
group.com), which specializes in th
and screen design.
44 BOXOFF1CE

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46 BOXOFF1CE
|
]
j
SPECIAL REPORT: Sound
LOUDSPEAKERS
FOR MOTION
PICTURE THEATRES
Final in a series (this from 1980) of 20 years
of writing by our sound columnist
by John F. Allen
Better sound systems for theatres is
a subject very important to me, so
you can imagine how pleased I was
to hear so much discussion about sound
at the recent NATO convention in New
Orleans. It is generally acknowledged
that one key to bringing people out of
their living rooms and into your theatres
is big clear pictures and big clean sound.
Jack Valenti, President of the Motion
Picture Association of America, seemed
to sum it up best when he implored theatre
owners to exploit their "natural
advantage" over home stereo systems
and install full-fidelity stereo systems
including surround speakers in their theatres.
Later in a speech by Harmon (Bud)
Rifkin, he advised exhibitors not to
scrimp on speakers.
This makes sense. After all, if restaurants
can thrive while every home has a
kitchen, how difficult can it be for a modern
motion picture theatre to eclipse a
color television? And as one who has some
experience with the home hi-fi industry, I
can assure you most domestic stereo systems
are considerably less adequate than
most kitchens. Certainly they are no
match for a good theatre sound system.
I sometimes wonder what will happen
when the gadget-crazy, distortion-plagued
hi-fi industry discovers the theatre market.
I suspect exhibitors will suffer a barrage of
sales promotions for all sorts of small
items with large claims. At the moment,
the theatre sound industry is doing a good
job at sticking to basics. Let's hope that it
stays that way and that theatre owners can
be better prepared than consumers when
purchasing sound equipment.
A week after the NATO convention,
the Audio Engineering Society held its
own gathering in New York City. Several
excellent papers dealing with the development
of better tools to diagnose
acoustical problems in rooms were presented.
If room acoustics is not a subject
of deep interest to theatre owners, it
should be. The acoustics of the listening
room are as important to the sound as
anything else in the playback chain,
including the speakers.
In the past, the equipment (when
there was any) used to evaluate room
problems was cumbersome, expensive
and often insufficient. Today's packages
are still expensive but, considering their
abilities, they represent a bargain.
Two conventions in a row are exhausting,
but I did return home with a good
feeling. With the theatre industry getting
serious about sound again and with the
tools to help being rapidly improved,
one can only conclude that this is a very
exciting time in audio.
The most wonderful sound ever
recorded plays poorly through anything
but first-rate speakers. Sound systems in
modern theatres are asked to reproduce
increasingly demanding soundtracks,
sometimes at high levels. While the
familiar two-way speaker systems have
served well when used between 300 Hz
and 6,000 Hz (the academy characteristic),
they prove unsatisfactory to many
when asked to reproduce material from
35 Hz to 12,000 or 15,000 Hz, for simply
they cannot do this.
With these shortcomings in mind and
the requirements for the additional speakers
needed for stereo installations,
exhibitors are looking for new theatre
speakers. Some have tried the home-type
direct radiators, or speaker in a box, while
others chose to purchase more two-way
horn bass-reflex combinations. The smaller
direct radiators, even in multiples,
should never be considered for use behind
the screen. In fact, this may be a good
opportunity to dispel the rumor that these
speakers are even adequate in living rooms.
Although they can do a fair job with
low level or background music, they are
simply incapable of accurately reproducing
a symphony orchestra at concert levels
or a rock group at the desired levels.
There are two basic reasons for this:
speaker distortion and room reflections.
I leave out frequency response for the
moment though it is important. Large
response errors can be helped by a
graphic equalizer. As much appeal as all
the knobs of an equalizer have for the
audiophiles and engineers, there are no
knobs anywhere, save the volume cor
trol, that can lower speaker distortion.
All dynamic loudspeakers produc
distortion—that is,
frequencies not prt
sent in the original signal. Harmonic di:
tortion is
the generation of frequenck
harmonically related to the original. It
not as objectionable as modulation di
tortion where the generated frequencii
are not harmonically related. Harmon
distortion does tend to cause increase
modulation distortion, though, and ther
fore should be minimized. There are tw
types of modulation distortion: amp
tude modulation distortion and freque
cy modulation distortion. Modulatic
distortion occurs to the higher freque I
cies radiated by a driver while that driv
is also radiating lower frequencies. Tl
louder the level, the greater the drive
excursion and the greater the modulatii
j
distortion. This is a physical fact becau i
this type of distortion is caused by 1
driver's motion or, to be more specif i
the driver's velocity. Because all dynan I
loudspeakers must move to produj
sound, we cannot eliminate it.
An eight-inch midrange speaker c »
produce more than 10 percent To
Modulation Distortion while deliveri i
only 90 dB sound pressure level intc
living room or 1/100 of the pea;
required to reproduce concert levels. 1 f
poor old direct radiator has to mcl
through very large excursions at hi
speed to do this. The audible result i
significant loss of clarity. This is the rl
son for the so-called muddy sound ch
acteristic of home systems.
Horn-type speaker systems offer
most practical solution to the reductj
of modulation distortion. They are
much as 100 times more efficient tl
typical direct radiators. This means tl
produce louder levels from a given in
level. To put it another way, a horn si
tern produces a given loudness wl
much smaller driver excursions, ll
result is at least a 90 percent reductioi
j
frequency modulation distortion, j
virtual elimination of amplitude mo
lation distortion and much clea (
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Response No. 39

48 BOXOFFICE
sound. All this at true concert levels.
Obviously, if a direct radiator falls
short in a living room, think how dismal
it would sound in a theatre. The distortion
would be incredible. One would
need many more speakers per channel to
achieve the desired levels, not to mention
a pile of amplifiers.
The other factor mentioned is room
acoustics. Theatres are very big rooms,
all with their own acoustical characteristics.
Some rooms are considered good
for live music or speech (these items
should be considered separately) but
poor for playback. A concert hall is
designed to disperse, or reflect in many
directions, the sound from the stage. The
hall is really an instrument of the
orchestra. The audience sits in a very
deliberate reverberation field. Although
this is desirable for music, speech tends
to get lost in the reverberations or room
reflections and becomes unintelligible.
The radiation pattern of direct radiators
can be very wide, both vertically and
horizontally. In a theatre, most of their
energy is wasted bouncing off the walls
and the ceiling. Relatively little would go
where the audience sits. The levels in the
front rows or near-field would have to be
excruciating in order to even approach
normal levels in the rear. With all the
misdirected energy reflecting off the
walls and the ceiling, the sound at the
rear would consist of so much reverberation
or room sound that dialog would be
at best hard to understand. No audience
would be happy under such circumstances.
They might wait a long time to
pay their inflated dollars to sit through
another film in such a theatre.
Here again, the horn comes to the rescue.
A horn is in a real sense a sound
projector. Its function is analogous to a
headlight. Horns of different radiating
angles may be selected to cover rooms o
different shapes and sizes. They offer the
engineer the ability to build a playback
system that delivers clean sound over
long distances while keeping room
reflections to a minimum and without
blasting those in the front rows. These
same advantages apply to living rooms
and control rooms as well.
Although a horn-type speaker will
increase the ratio of direct versus reflected
sound heard by the audience, theatre
owners thinking about updating their
facilities should consider acoustically
treating those offending walls. Reducing
undesirable reflections increases the
number of seats where patrons can hear
good sound. This is particularly true in
the rear, where most people sit.
Covering entire walls may be best for
appearances, but it may not always be
necessary for the desired acoustical benefit.
This is where an experienced acoustical
engineer can help. He will be able to
determine how much treatment your theatre
needs and where it is needed.
The area behind the screen can be a
major source of reflections. Even with
horn-type speakers close to the screen,
treatment of the wall behind the horns
should be considered mandatory. This is
especially true when those horns have a
curved mouth. Curved mouth horns,
called radial horns, have one disadvantage
when used behind a screen. Because
only a small part of their mouth can be
near the screen, they spray sound
over the back of the screen. This alio'
the screen to reflect a good deal of em
gy backward toward the rear wall, whe
it is bounced back to the entire audien
delayed, distorted and determined
inhibit intelligibility. dialogue Hor
with a flat mouth, called axial horns
better for theatre use. Their entire moui

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opening can be placed near the screen,
thus reducing the amount of direct
sound bouncing around backstage.
For those interested in more complete
and theoretical discussions of modulation
distortion. I refer you to papers by
Beers and Belar, Paul W. Klipsch and
others. There have been many books and
papers over the years on room acoustics.
Highly regarded are those by Leo
Beranek. Don Davis. Vern Knudsen and
Cyril M. Harris. A brief introduction to
the subject may be found in a fine piece
by Ted Uzzle in the August 25, 1980
issue of BOXOFFICE, page 9.
But which horns are best? When selecting
speakers for stereo systems, I offer
these criteria: Output at one meter with
one-watt input should be at least 106
decibels sound pressure level. Total modulation
distortion should be one percent
or less at that level. Remember that modulation
distortion is a function of level.
Frequency response and bandwidth
are
important—not only for minimum
coloration, but because a speaker that is
flat across a wide band of frequencies to
begin with will require much less equalization.
No speaker is truly flat. They
deviate plus and minus from some average.
These deviations should be minimal.
The frequency response of a theatre
loudspeaker should be less than 10
decibels down at 35 Hz, ±5 decibels
from 45 to 400 Hz and ±2 1/2 decibels
from 400 Hz to 15.000 Hz. John K.
Hilliard. in a paper dated March 3, 1936
and published by the Academy Research
Council, called for a frequency response
of ±2 decibels from 50 to 8,000 Hz.
We're getting there.
Continuous power handling is important,
as no one wants to hear speakers
breaking up and no theatre owner wants
to replace burned-out drivers. The
capacity of a theatre speaker should be
300 watts for the woofer, 120 watts for
the midrange and 30 watts for the tweeter.
Such a speaker system with the efficiency
described above will be very reliable
and capable of delivering a wide
dynamic range without distortion.
Loudspeakers for mono houses will
not be called on to deliver the dynamic
range of a stereo system and as such
may be smaller. Output at one meter
with one-watt input should be no less
than 104 decibels sound pressure level.
Hilliard recommended a two-way fully
horn-loaded speaker system with a range
from 50 to 8,000 Hz. Today's stereo
soundtracks can range from 30 to 12,000
or 16,000 Hz and so a three-way hornloaded
system is more appropriate. I prefer
a full base horn instead of the bass
reflex types found in most theatres. A
horn can produce deeper, fuller bass and
deliver impact farther than most, if not
all, bass reflex systems of similar efficiency.
The sealed air chamber behind the driver
provides it some protection against
sudden pops, such as those caused by film
splices.
The open bass reflex design provides
no such protection.
In most situations, it still seems preferable
to use passive crossovers instead of
the active ones employed with bi-amplification.
The crossover frequencies are
somewhat determined by the horns but
400 Hz and 6,000 Hz seem to offer a few
advantages. Crossing over at 400 instead
of 800 Hz, for instance, eliminates the
modulation distortion in that range
caused by the longer excursions of the
woofer driver(s). Covering 400 to 6.000
Hz with one speaker prevents crossovers
in
the important speech areas and provides
virtually perfect phase relationships
or "time alignment" in the octaves where
errors would be most audible.
Why have a tweeter, you ask? Haven't
we gotten along fine with two-way systems?
Well, yes, we have, but the weight of a
midrange diaphragm rugged enough for
theatre use limits its dependable usefulness
above 8,000 to 10,000 Hz. Midrange
drivers that claim flat response out
to 1 5,000 Hz can be prone to failure in
theatre use. In addition, there's still that
old modulation distortion of the higher
frequencies by the lower ones. A tweeter
section is a better solution.
Surround speaker installations are a
problem because it is expensive to do
them well. Many speakers are required
to produce the desired even sound field
without directional cues. There is some
disagreement about the best approach.
Some are installing very inexpensive
arrays of "full range" direct radiators.
Others are using more costly home-type
bookshelf speakers. When the surround
becomes a more important part of the
action, such as when helicopters and
spaceships fly overhead, these direct
radiators become a liability. The sound
should not change as it moves from the
screen to the surrounds unless the producer
wants it to. The speaker with the
highest distortion determines the distortion
of the entire sound system. So, with
good speakers behind the screen, bad
surrounds stand out like a sore toe.
Fortunately, the frequency range of the
optical soundtrack's surround channel is
limited to 100 to 8,000 Hz. This allows
use of smaller systems. I've given much
thought to the pros and cons of the various
surround approaches and have concluded
a horn system is still best.
We do not need a horn woofer, but a
horn midrange using the same driver as
the midrange speakers behind the screen
offers the advantages of the same low
distortion and frequency response. A
horn allows the designer to build a predictable
sound field around the audience,
as horns can be aimed.
The first two surrounds should be
placed in the rear corners. The next one
or two (or more, depending on the width
of the theatre) should go on the back
wall. The rest are installed periodically
along the side walls ending about one
half to two thirds the way to the scret
The total number of surround speaki
depends on the size of the auditorii
and the beamwidth of the speakers us<
Many complain about the "honkin
;
quality of horn loudspeakers. I too co
plain when I hear it. But there are he
systems that do not have this quality.
1976, I was privileged to build a sou
system at Boston's Hatch Memor
Shell. Concerts there were founded
Arthur Fiedler in 1929. The system w
an enormous three-channel outdc
stereo system employing horn-load
speakers throughout. This is a particul.
ly demanding situation, as one can w
imagine. With a live symphony orches
present, there's no fooling anyone in i
audience as to what constitutes "go
sound." I can report that the live ven
reinforced sound comparison show
that, when the sound system is turned (
the sound quality does not change, o:
the level. The horns did not "honk."
In placing the speakers behind i
screen, spread the left and right ut
out as far as practical, but never behi
the masking unless it is acoustica
transparent. Install all speakers as cli
to the screen as possible. Toe the o
board high-frequency horns in. A gc
aiming point in many theatres is the o
ter seat in the back row.
For those using cinema processc
refer to the instruction manual for
appropriate speaker equalization pro
dure. They are all different in terms
the electronics used, but the goal is
same. I will discuss this subject m
thoroughly in a future paper.
A trained ear is still the best judge
overall sound quality. You may fine
small adjustment of the treble banc
desired. If so. adjust only the con;
marked "Treble." One word of cauti
Please don't tamper with equalizat
controls without the proper training i
equipment; you can only make thi
worse. If there is a problem with
sound, refer it to a qualified servicem;
It has often been said that the m
things change the more they stay
same. Since the pioneering work in au
done by Bell Labs and the film indu:
during the 1920s and 1930s, many thi'
have been considerably improved, w'
others seem to simply get reinvented e\
so often. For those in the market for i
atre loudspeakers, the properly desigr
well-made horn fitted with a prop,
designed, well-made driver remains
best sound reproducer.
Copyright 1980, 1981, 2000 Johr,
Allen. All rights reserved.
j
Mr. Allen is
founder and president of High Perfa
anee Stereo in Newton, Mass. He is <
the inventor of the HPS-4000 cim\
sound system and in 1984 was thefirs]
bring digital sound to the cinema, i
Allen can be reached by email i
JohnFA Uen@hps40Q0. com.
1
50 BOXOFFICE

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SPECIAL REPORT: Drive-Ins (Part III)
• STAR GAZING • *
Pamela Friend Keeps the Star Shining Bright ^k
• ^ in Montrose, Colorado by Jim Moore ^
• * *
When
today's movie buff
comment on the power o
the bigscreen, they invari
ably are referring to their local
tiplex theatre. But the biggest of the
bigscreens still loom above the horizon
at one end of a huge field, only
to be lit at dusk and in front of hundreds
of fan-filled automobiles.
There just aren't nearly as many driveins
as there once were.
Most are located in rural settings, away
from metropolitan areas and thereby away
from a majority of the country's population.
The reason for the isolation is purely
economic. As cities have grown and
expanded, the drive-ins became surrounded—not
only making them less
attractive to customers, but also
making the land they sat on
worth more money than the
owners could have imagined.
That said, one wonders why
in the world anyone would want
to operate a drive-in if the land
could be sold for more than the
business itself can bring in.
"In our case, it's a labor of
love," says Pamela Friend, who
operates the Star Drive-In
Theatre in scenic Montrose,
Colo., a community of about
10,000 folks located some 60
miles south of Grand Junction.
"Selling it
for the value of the
land probably would be the smart thing,
but there is a lot to be said for accomplishing
one's goals and pursuing them as
long as possible," she says. "The enjoyment
and memories at our drive-in would
surely outweigh any amount one could
possibly get from a real estate sale."
Those memories and enjoyment date
back a half-century for Friend and her
family. Her parents, George and
Elizabeth DeVries, began construction on
the Star in 1949 and the projector first
flickered on April 19. 1950. "Their first
showing was 'The Younger Brothers' and
tickets were 50 cents each."
Ever since, the Star Drive-in Theatre,
which accommodates 300 cars, has been a
family affair. "My mother ran most of
the drive-in operation until I took over
around 30 years ago," Friend notes. " My
father took care of the book work, and
was there some nights, but mom was
always there working. She hired, fired.
got supplies in, took care of banking and
worked in the ticket office, concession
[stand] and yard."
Friend's daughter, April Mason, has
worked at the Star for 17 years, and her
son. Randy, worked in the concession
stand, ticket office and projection room
until he went to college. Her brother Mick
and sister Betty co-own the land with her.
ON TOP OF THE WORLD:
Two young Star patrons get a geography lesson.
and although they now have other
careers, both put in many years working
at the ozoner. Friend's husband. Richard,
helps out at the Star when needed, but
devotes most of his time to raising buffalo
and growing and marketing produce.
Add the fact that dozens of nieces,
nephews and other relatives have, and still
do, help at the Star and one might say it's
the epitome of a family-owned business.
"We've been told that we're the oldest
drive-in in existence that's still operated
by the original family." Friend says with a
hint of pride in her voice.
It's obvious that keeping the Star's
screen lit isn't done for the dollars it produces.
Weather helps ensure that its
gates
are open only from April I through the
end of September, and it's open only on
Friday, Saturday and Sunday until the
end of May, when daily screenings start.
However, labor-of-love or not, -
it's important for Pamela to turn a
profit at the Star. To do that, she
has to find ways to attract cus-i
tomers, especially since Montrose
holds two competing theatres.
Some of her marketing techniques
are simple and straightforward,
such as offering a double feature
playing the newest releases available anc
keeping the establishment neat and clean
"I don't want anything to get run down, 1
Friend says. "So, everything is kept up
and nice for the public to be a part of.
am one of the few theatres that still print:!
upcoming movie fliers that are handec
out at the ticket office."
She also finds ways to involvi
the community and give back t(
it. "We do a 'Back to the '60i
Night' every July," Friend says
"This is our 1 0th year for this. Thi
classic car clubs come from mile
around to attend. We reserve th>
front four rows for them. Tall
about nostalgia—you couldn't {
any more so."
To further immerse her busi
ness into the community, she clos
es each season with a "Free Cus
tomer Appreciation" weekend
which helps raise funds for a dil
ferent local nonprofit group eac
year. "We don't charge for th
movies during the apprceiatio
weekend, but the group being helped ca
come and seek donations at the gates." sh
says. "Most people give to these loci
groups and it helps our entire communit
We have done it for Crime Stoppers. Littl
League, Boy Scouts, Women's Resoun
Center and others. They usually eolle<
around SI,000 to $1,100 over the tha
nights, which is a big donation for many i
these organizations."
Friend has also identified her core ma
ket. Drive-in clientele have gone full circ
from the 1950s. While families dominate
ticket purchasing during that era. drive-i
theatre owners saw a shift to the point th.
teenagers, perhaps with a party mentalit
became the dominant customers.
Now it's back to families—at lea
the Star. "My customers mostly want PC
13 [rated films] and they bring their kids
says Friend. "It's gone back to the fan]
lies and away from the teenagers. I dor
have to pick up beer bottles anymore."

|
BJ
And she knows most of her cusomers.
"90 percent of our business is
rom local residents," she says.
Regulars come back every week as
Dng as we have a good product. There
re some families I watched grow up.
eople who came as kids are coming
ack, bringing their own kids.
"As for marketing techniques. I guess
le only thing I really try to do. is play
great double feature, at reasonable
ites. and offer good. fun. family enterlinment."
That entertainment value extends
eyond the double feature— it includes
le drive-in itself. From the speaker
oles to the 50s-style concession stand
the projection room, just being at the
ieatre is an experience in itself.
The projector room— which is
-omul level, located in a small building
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Pamela Friend busy at work.
tached to the concession stand— is in
II view of customers as they walk by.
he wall of the projecting room is
istered with BOXOFFICE Magazine
vers, going back to 1953," Friend
m. "They really catch people's eyes as
walk by."
One changed witnessed by Friend
;r the years is the introduction of the
! of the Internet. Presently the Star
ms to launch its own web site at
w. stardrive.com. Meanwhile, inforition
about the Star and the dozen-orother
Colorado drive-ins is
available
arload.com, a web site lovingly creatand
updated by Michael and Anita
Igore. In addition to listing the Star's
Tent and future schedule, carload.com
a notes its "Super FM radio sound
1 burgers grilled to order."
^all it a unique set of values, call it
the allure of nostalgia or come up
with your own theory, but what-
C the reason. Friend and her family
e continued to keep a touch of
lerican heritage alive and well in
mtrose. Colorado. Indeed, when
st businesses talk about the bottom
they're talking about profit. Not so
h Friend.
I guess the bottom line is that the
•L'-in is a part of me and of my
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le life." she says. "So I light up the
:en every night from April through
tember to please myself and those
> enjoy it."
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"Our Reputation Is Spotless"
SERVICING IHEAIBJS NATIONWIDE
Response No. 474

EUROPEAN GIANTS
OF FILM EXHIBITION
A Roster of European Theatre Circuits
AB SVENSK FILMINDUSTRI/SF BIO
SWEDEN
Stockholm 127 83
PHONE: (46) 8-680-35-00
FAX: (46) 8-710-44-60
E-MAIL: stefan.klockby@sf.se
WEBSITE: www.sf.se
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
l, Pres., SF Bio
YEAR FOUNDED: 1919
TOTAL SCREENS: 181
TOTAL SITES: 31
THEATRE LOCATIONS: Sweden
AMC ENTERTAINMENT
(CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS)
106 West 14th Stn
Kansas City, MO 64141 USA
PHONE: 816-221-4000
FAX: 816-480-4617
WEBSITE: w
EXiHUTIVE ROSTER:
Peter C. Brown, Chmn., Pres. & CEO
Philip M. Singleton, COO
James Beynan, Treasurer
Craig Ramsey, CFO
John McDonald, Exec. VP/North
American Operations
Phil Pennington, VP/Concessions
Richard Fay, Pres./Film Mktg.
Richard King, VP/Marketing
YEAR FOUNDED: 1920
TOTAL SCREENS (Paris only): 20
TOTAL SITES (Paris only): 1
THEATRE LOCATIONS:
AMC EUROPE
62-64, blvd Pereire
Paris 75017 FRANCE
PHONE: (33) 1-42-12-02-92
FAX: (33) 1-42-12-01-18
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Bruno Frydman, Pres.
YEAR FOUNDED: 1992
AREA CATALANA D'EXMBICION
CINEMATOGRAFICA, S.A.
108 SPAIN
PHONE: (34) 93-323-64-26
FAX: (34) 93-323-72 ~~
EXECUTIVE ROSTE
Jaime Tarrazon Badia7Pres.
Jaume Camprecios Pujol, VP
"
co Garcia Bascunana, Mgr.
YEAR FOUNDED: 1985
SCREENS (WORLDWIDE): 207
TOTAL SITES (WORLDWIDE): 41
B.V. BI0SC00P
EXPLOITATIE MINERVA
Kromme Mijdrechtstraat 10
Amsterdam 1079 NETHERLANDS
PHONE: (31) 20-64-46-823
FAX: (31) 20-64-48-946
E-MAIL: info@minervagroep.nl
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Ron Scerk, Pres.
TOTAL SCREENS: 34
LOCATIONS: Netherlands
FAX: (33) 5-46-44-55-85
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Georges Rayr
Roger-Marc Lecoq, Gen. Dir.
Olivier Labarthe, Gen. Secreta
Jocelyn Bouyssy, Running D : -
SCREENS (WORLDWIDE): 4!
TOTAL SITES (WORLDWIDF^
THEATRE LOCATIONS: Frs
CINE-ALPES
FRANCE
PHONE: (33) 4-79-07-61-40
FAX: (33) 4-79-07-61-41
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Gerard Davoine, Pres.
TOTAL SCREENS: 110
TOTAL SITES: 53
THEATRE LOCATIONS: Fran
CINE UK LTO.
Chapter House
22 Chapter Street, 1st Flo
London SW1P 4NP U.K.
PHONE: (44) 207-932-22-00
FAX: (44) 207-932-22-22
E-MAIL: sabinek@cineuk.co.i
WEBSITE: www.cineworld.co
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Stephen M Itfeiner, CEO
Al Alvarez, VP/Operations
Paul Stefka,VP/Design &
CGR CINEMAS ^
Construction
Immeuble Procine
Richard Jones, VP/Finance
8 rue Blaise Pascal, ZI de Perigny
La Rochelle Cedex 117039 FRANCE Andrew Turner, Head Film Bi

I
I
I
I mburg
iAR FOUNDED: 1995
iZREENS (WORLDWIDE): 162
OTAL SITES (WORLDWIDE): 13
DCATIONS: United Kingdom
(NEMA LES ECRANS
511 place Denis Dussoubs
Imognes 87000 FRANCE
HONE: (33) 5-55-77-40-79
KX: (33) 5-55-79-49-91
MAIL: infn@minervagroep.nl
lECUTIVE ROSTER:
it Ii.icl Fridemann, Pres.
OTAL SCREENS: 30
II A IK I LOCATIONS: France
^EMAXX GROUP
EBBE FILMTHEATERBE-
IIBE GMBH & CO.)
>ttelwegl76 ~
20148 GERMANY
'IONE: (49) 40-45-06-80
X: (49) 40-45-06-11-22
•5BSITE: www.ci- —
ECUTIVE ROSTER:
Ins-Joachim Flebbc, Pres.
• it .w.i P^ufinumiii "res
la Ops.
Head of Op:
: ~~nce
ib Markt
M1I.1S SI
ff Faessel, Head of D<
IVR FOUNDED: 1977
irAL SCREENS: 313
(LAL SITES: 46
IEATRE LOCATIONS:
ermany, Switzerland,
irkey; plans to expnr
ito Austria and Dc
-vaarankuja 2
1 01640 FINLAND
(ONE: (358) 9-131-19344
V: (358) 9-131-19343
1AIL: yi
'
BSITE: www.finnkino.fi
y Sr. VP/Adv. & P
Richard Sh

i
>
Didier
NORDISK FILM BIOGRAFER A/S
Axeltorv 9
Copenhagen 1609
PHONE: (45) 33-14-76-06
FAX: (45) 33-14-79-79
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
;&!_;_ *_«— Nielsen, CEO
DENMARK
VP&CFO
& Adv.
itr. & Equip.
YEAR FOUNDED: 1906
TOTAL SCREENS : 74
TOTAL SITES: 14
THEATRE LOCATIONS: Denmark
PATHE CINEMAS
mis let
ANCE
PHONE: (33)1-71-72-30-00
FAX: (33) ^-71-72-31-00
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Jerome Seydoux, Chmn.
Xavier Rigault, Man. Dir. (France)
Jean-Pierre Valais, Dir./Comm.
YEAR FOUNDED: 1987
TOTAL SCREENS: 290
TOTAL SITES: 42
LOCATIONS: France, Netherlands
PATHE CINEMAS (NETHERLANDS)
P.O. Box 75948
* -iterdam 1070 NETHERLANDS
PHONE: (31) 20-57-51-751
FAX: (31) 20-66-22-085
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Lauge Neilson, Managing D
SCREENS (Netherlands only): 80
SITES (Netherlands only): 12
LOCATIONS: Netherlands
Bertil Sandgren, COO & Sr.
VP/Sandrew Metronome
iiational AB
d, CFO& Treasurer
Sandrew Metronome Denmark A/S
Jukka Vilhunen, Sr. Exec.VP/
"andrew Metronome
inland Ov AB
Leif Lindblad, Sr. Exec.VP/
Sandrew Metronome
Distribution Finland Oy AB
Frida Ohrvik, Sr. Exec.VP/
Sandrew Metronome Norway A/S
Fredrik Breh
Sandrew Metronome Sverige AB
Staffan Wallhem, Sr. Exec.VP/
Sandrew Metronome
Distribution Sverige AB
YEAR FOUNDED: 1926
TOTAL SCREENS: 115
TOTAL SITES: 27
THEATRE LOCATIONS:
Denmark, Finland, Sweden
SOREDIC
3E, rue de Paris—BP 135
Cesson-Sevigne Cedex 35513
FRANCE
PHONE: (33) 2-99-83-78-00
FAX: (33) 2-99-83-29-37
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Philippe Paumelle, Pres.
YEAR FOUNDED: 1968
TOTAL SCREENS: 75
TOTAL SITES: 30
THEATRE LOCATIONS: France
UFA
THEATER GMBH & CO.KG
Graf-Adolf-Strasse 96
Dusseldorf 40210
PHONE: (49) 211-355-955-0
FAX: (49) 0211-355-955-5
r "in. j_r_/m..

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IALOGIC CA2000 microcontroller automation and Panamation central control,
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^ , ^

WARNER BROS. INTL. THEATRES
4000 Warner Blvd., Bldg. 160 #250
Burbank, CA 91522-1602 USA
PHONE: 818-977-6278
FAX: 818-977-6040
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Millard L. Ochs, Prcs.
David Bent, VP/Oper. Finance,
Info. Sys. & Administration
n, Sr.VP/World. Ops.
Raul Miller, VP/Fina nee
~>irch, VP/Business
incurs & Gen. Counsel
Peter Dobson, VP/Ihtl. Fill
ler, Sr.VP/
Architecture & Planning j
Chris Sanders, Dir./Group Purch.
YEAR I OUNDED:1988
SCREENS^EUROPE): 468
TOTAL SITES (EUROPE): 50
LOCATIONS: Australia, Italy,
Portugal, Spa :" "«"—— «*
WARNER LUSOMUNDO
CINES DE ESPANA S.A.
Minipark 1—Edificio B-l Planta,
1
lea Nl, Urbanizacion el
Soto de la Moraleja
Madrid 28109 SP
PHONE: (34) 91-65„-.
FAX: (34) 91-658-5356
WARNER LUSOMUNDO SOCIE-
DADE IBERICA DE CINEMAS
Rua Luc
Lisbon lT5
PHONE: (35) 1-^*51-0330
FAX: (35) 1-21-3,
Manuel Faustino, Managing Dir.
» I
WARNER VILLAGE CINEMAS
98 Theobald's Road
London WC1X 8WB
U.K.
PHONE: (44) 207-984-6750
FAX: (44) 207-984-6831
SITE: www.warnervillasie.co.uk
WARNER VILLAGE ITALIA
:ala C/2nd piano
Rome 00186 ITALY
PHONE: (39) 06-68-81-11
FAX: (39) 06-68-80-85-78
WIENER STADTHALLE KIBA
Vienna A-1070
AUSTRIA
PHONE: (43) 1-5236-51136
FAX: (43) 1-5236-51131
TOTAL SCREENS: 34
THEATRE LOCATIONS: Austr
YELMO CINEPLEX, S.L.
<
Madrid 28008
SPAIN
PHONE: 34-91-758-96-00
FAX: 34-91-548-29-40
SITE: www.yelmocineplex.es
EXECUTIVE ROSTER:
Ricardo Evole Martil, Pres. & C
A—
Enrique Vinas, Programming
Development Dir.
" tinez, Constructi
& Design Dir.
Rafael Urio, Operations Dir.
YEAR FOUNDED: 1982
SCREENS (WORLDWIDE): 2;
TOTAL SITES (WORLDWIDE):
THEATRE LOCATIONS: Spaii
Movie Reviews, Right in the Palm in Your Hand.
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58 I'.IIMIIIK

lA/hile
others
talk quality, ~
Visit us at
CINEMA EXPO
Stands 217 & 218
1 Martek M
builds it!
r
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T«l: (6l6)BKi4?(!2U

CINEMA EXPO EXTRA: Associations
EUROPEAN EXHIBITOR
ASSOCIATIONS
AUSTRIA
Fachverband Lichtspieltheater
und Audiovisionsveranstalter
Wiedner Hauptstrasse 63
Postfach 340
1040 Wien
Austria
PHONE: (43) 1 501 05 35 25
FAX: (43) 1 501 05 35 26
E-MAIL: polts@wkdesk.we.or.at
PRESIDENT: Georg Mayrhofer
SECRETARY GENERAL: Dr.
Hans-Jurgen Gottschalk
BELGIUM
FCB—Federation des
Cinemas de Belgique/Federatie
der Cinema's van Belgie
241 rue Royale
B- 12 10 Brussels
Belgium
PHONE: (32) 2 218 14 55
FAX: (32) 2 217 23 72
E-MAIL: feb@euronet.be
CONTACT: Guy Morlion
DENMARK
Danish Cinema Association
Overodvej 10
2840 Holte
Denmark
PHONE: (45) 45461052
FAX: (45) 45461053
E-MAIL: danbio@post.tele.dk
URL: www.danske-biografer.dk
CONTACT: Mette Schramm
FINLAND
Finnish Cinema
Owners Association
Kaisaniemenkatu 3 B 29
SF-00100 Helsinki 1
Finland
PHONE: (358) 9 63 63 05
FAX: (358) 9 17 66 89
E-MAIL:
raija.nurmio@filmikamari.fi
URL: www.filmikamari.fi
CONTACT: Raija Nurmio
FRANCE
FNAC—Federation Nationale
des Cinemas Francais
15, rue de Berri
75008 Paris, France
PHONE: (33) 1 53 93 76 76
FAX: (33) 1 45 93 29 76
E-MAIL: fncf@fncf.org
PRESIDENT: Jean Labe
GERMANY
Hauptverband Deutscher
Filmtheater e.V.
Budapester Str. 39
D- 10787 Berlin, Germany
PHONE: (49) 30 23 00 40 41
FAX: (49) 30 23 00 40 26
URL:
http://194.195.240.148/kino_hdf.htm
ITALY
ANEC—Associazione
Nazionale Esercenti Cinema
Via di Villa Patrizi 10
00161 Rome, Italy
PHONE: (39) 6 88 47 31
FAX: (39) 6 44 23 18 38
E-MAIL: anecnaz@tin.it
URL: www.agisweb.it
PRESIDENT: Ernesto di Sarro
CONTACT: Enrico Di Mambro
FICE—Federazione Italiana
dei Cinema d'Essai
Via di Villa Patrizi 10
00161 Rome, Italy
PHONE: (39) 6 88 47 33 57
FAX: (39) 6 440 42 55
E-MAIL: fice@agisweb.it
URL: www.agisweb.it
PRESIDENT: Domenico Dinoia
CONTACT: Mario Mazzetti
NETHERLANDS
NVB—Nederlandse Vereniging
van Bioscoopexploitanten
Jan Luykenstraat 2
NL 1071 CM Amsterdam
Netherlands
PHONE: (31) 33 20 67 99 261
FAX: (31) 33 20 67 50 398
E-MAIL: info@nfc.org
URL: www.nfc.org
PRESIDENT: Wil H.H. Ruyters
DELEGATE FOR EUROPEAN
AFFAIRS: Jan Van Dommelen
SECRETARY GENERAL: Frank
Van Der Putte
CONTACT: Irene Van Helden
NORWAY
Film & Kino
National Association of
Municipal Cinemas
Dronningensgate 16
P.O. Box 446 Sentrum
0104 Oslo
Norway
PHONE: (47) 22 47 45 00
FAX: (47) 22 47 46 99
E-MAIL: lene@kino.no
URL: www.filmweb.no/filmogkino
SWITZERLAND
Procinema
P.O. Box 7563
3001 Bern
Switzerland
PHONE: (41) 31 387 37 00
FAX: (41) 31 387 37 07
E-MAIL:
sekretariat@procinema.ch
URL: www.procinema.ch
OFFICE MANAGER: Daniel
Lupoid
UNITED KINGDOM
The Cinema
Exhibitors Association
22 Golden Square
London W1R-3PA
England
PHONE: (44) 207 734 9551
FAX: (44) 207 734 6147
E-MAIL:
cea@cinemauk.ftech.co.uk
CHIEF EXECUTIVE: John
Wilkinson
60 BOXOFFICE

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CINEMA EXPO EXTRA: Exhibition Profile
Exhibition Entrepreneur Frank Stork Forges
a New Cinema Prototype With Warsaw's
Silver Screen by Christine James
Silver Screen CEO Frank Stork.
s enlightened and politically correct
as those of us in modern society
would like to be, most
Americans only know the Polish for their
sausage and as the brunt of inane jokes so
pervasive they have evolved into their own
genre, rivaled solely by gags involving
blondes and lightbulb replacements. As
unfair as the stereotype may be, it still
makes it all the more surprising to find that
Poland is the site of a new theatre whose
architecture and innovations are so cuttingedge
they have set the industry buzzing,
with developers now viewing the Warsaw
cinema as a prototype for the new millennium.
Dubbed the SilverScreen Warsaw, the
project is the brainchild of Paris-born
entrepreneur Frank Stork, who grew up in
various European cities, studied film in Los
Angeles and then returned to Central
Europe, where he became involved in exhibition.
"I was doing film finance and
looked at all aspects of the industry in
Central Europe, focusing mainly on Prague
and Budapest. And nothing was really happening.
I started looking at multiplexing,
but the economics just wouldn't work out
there. But a friend of mine from university
was based in Poland, and he said, 'Take a
look at Poland.' I went up there and met
with everybody 1 could, and realized that it
was the place to be. All the macroeconomic
factors made sense. Real estate prices were
still low enough that you could get properties;
ticket prices were going up; the economy
was set to boom. Forty million people,
nothing to do; very high educations; low
labor costs—everything made sense from a
business perspective.
"What [my associates and I] didn't
know anything about, at the time, was
exhibition. And we
brought in [Los Angelesbased]
Pacific Theatres
as our first strategic and
financial partner."
Stork credits the foresight
of Pacific chairman
Michael Forman, who
had spearheaded Pacific's
developments in Europe
for 30 years prior to
extracting themselves
from the market in the
early '90s. "So this was
Michael Forman's step
back into it," says Stork.
"[He] saw in Poland a
market about to explode, and so he became
a firm believer and gave us all the resources
to start up the company. And we actually set
about in two different directions: One start-
"We'll be
there from the
very beginning,
pioneering,
hopefully, this
new evolution
in what you
can use a
cinema for."
ing an exhibition organization and one a
real estate organization, which is developing
entertainment centers throughout Poland.
And the first few years were to secure properties
for both of those companies, and then
we [commenced] the true operations about a
year ago as we started building these projects.
We now have seven projects under
development around the country. The first
one opened [in January] in Warsaw, and we
have two more opening in summer, July and
August, and then staggered thereafter.
"They all are more than a cinema, and
that's the critical thing for us; it's how we
are competing against some of the other
groups [most notably Loews Cineplex and
UCI] coming into Poland right now."
Stork elaborates on what he means by
"more than a cinema." "Cinema is clearly
the core of the business, and is what brings
people there ultimately, but the intention is
to keep them there longer. A lot of people
are experimenting with different concepts.
and we have benefited from [watching
them being] tested throughout the last four
years as the entertainment center concept
was being developed. We've seen what
worked, what hasn't worked, what other
concepts the value innovation field might
be able to put into the whole business, and
we've pieced together a nice combination
for [the] Warsaw [Silver Screen]."
The combination includes a new cafe
brand that's become wildly
popular; a full-service bar;
an Internet zone; premium
auditoriums with fine dining
amenities called
Platinum Screens; and a
design that takes the physical,
psychological and aesthetic
into consideration to
create an immersive, unforgettable
experience.
"There are three levels—the
ground level and
two underground levels,
which is more common to
Europe than it is anywhere
else; historically, things
were built underground because of the
density of the cities," says Stork. "But it
makes sense for cinema because you don't
need windows."
62 BOXOKFKK

Silver Screen's space-agey cinema corridor
Internet seminar prodesigned
to make patrons feel like they are entering a ride.
« On the ground level are ticketing
points, including a main boxoffice that's
illuminated with a "glow that pulls you
in," says Stork. The Silver Screen boasts
the first automated ticketing system in
Poland, which Stork describes as "probably
the most sophisticated system in the
world." There's also the Platinum premium
screen boxoffice, designed with different
colors and materials than the rest of the
complex to give the impression of a special
experience. Finally, there's a customer service
area that doubles as a shop featuring
branded goods including T-shirts, hats and
film-related merchandise.
Upon purchasing their tickets, customers
descend down escalators, "which is
[where] the presentation [really begins],"
according to Stork. "We've put a large, very,
very wide double screen across the whole
thing and have digital loops of custom-created
imagery for Silver Screen, again giving
the sense that this is something special,
something unique, dramatic and very theatrical
as you're going down into the space.
And also, from our perspective and from
the architect's perspective, we didn't want
people to focus on [the fact that] they're
going down: instead, they're going into a
ride of some sort."
It's
this kind of careful consideration of
customer psychology that has likely played a
large part in the Silver Screen's success. "The
years of thought that went into it was probably
a little bit scary!" admits Stork with a
laugh. This technique of subtly maneuvering
patrons' behaviors and perceptions continues
at the escalators' base, where the
graphics direct customers' eyes to the
Cyberlounge Internet Zone and its adjoining
special events area, where Stork plans to
implement a catered
gram for ancillary revenues. "We hope to do
these a few times a week for different companies.
The thought process is, we have this
space, it is very centrally located; let's use it
for more than cinema. It's also a multifunctional
space for everything from a kid's
birthday party to corporate [functions]."
Down the escalators to the "minus-two"
level, as Stork refers to it, is the food and
beverage area, accessible without movie
tickets (as is the Internet Zone). "The cafe
space is very unique in its feel to the rest of
the space. We went to woods and more natural
colors: I think peo
pie just want to feel a little
bit more at home
when they're sitting and
lounging around having a
coffee. And we offer
everything from croissants
and cakes to bagels
and juices and all types of
coffees. There are three
zones here: The mellow
hang-out zone, being the
cafe; the high-energy
zone, around the corner,
which is the bar [Silver
Screen is the first cinema
in Poland to receive a
liquor license]; and then
the fast-food area, being
Silver Screen's sleek, futuristic design
the concession stand." extends even to its ticketing machines.
The concession stand
concept is new to Poland, according to
Stork: "It's only the multiplex operators,
which are two other groups that have
opened up in Poland, and ourselves that are
really focused on concessions. And [other
operators] were silly not to [offer concessions]
before, because it's proving to be a
huge business." Stork says that Poland concessions
are pretty comparable to the classic
U.S. fare: "Nothing wacky. No kielbasa.
And I think the Americanness of it is appreciated.
A lot of people are buying hot dogs
by the dozens in these places." In all these
areas, Silver Screen has monitors running
trailers intermixed with its own brands, and
different music according to the atmosphere
of each section: mellow music in the cafe
(proprietary music which Silver Screen also
sells on CD in the store); techno-based,
high-energy music in the bar; and general
music throughout the rest of the space.
Entering the cinema
corridor itself, audiences
find themselves in a spaceage
environment. "It's a
deep blue [with] zinc and
steel boxes. We wanted to
create special entry boxes
to give people the sense
that they're entering something
special now versus
just a door into a room."
Superlative standards
are also met within the
auditoriums. "[We have] the
highest quality everything
within the cinemas, and that
was also a departure from
our competitors. We said,
'We're not going to skimp
on materials and equipment.
We're only going to
put in the best.' We get our seats from
Spam, and the best projection equipment.
the best sound equipment. It's all state-ofthe-art.
And we got a lot of help from
Pacific: they came out and their projection
and technology veterans set up the booth
for us and made sure that everything was
perfect.
Julv. 2000 63

.:!: expands.
"And then, the Platinum area stands out
significantly from the rest of the space. It's
a more minimalist Asian type of environment,
[with] polished concrete floors,
creams, light greens, light blues. This is
appealing to a more sophisticated taste.
You're paying double the ticket price, but
you're not just getting additional pretzels
and more popcorn for free; it's a whole different
experience. There's a concierge that
takes your reservations for future shows; a
cloak room; and as you go up the stairs,
there's a bi-level restaurant bar that has
couples seating, quadruple seating and
triple seating. People come in an hour early,
they sit down, they get a menu [offering
such items as] Beluga caviar, champagne,
brie and grape quesadillas. [The auditoriums
have] large leather seats with a side
table for each couple, a lot of extra space
for your legs [and are] more intimate studio
screening rooms than large auditoria."
he Silver Screen's components may
I vary from city to city as the circuit
"When we go to [different
towns], they're different concepts and
we'll test different pieces—for instance, the
Platinum Screens won't work in all of the
centers across Poland, not necessarily for
economic reasons, but for cultural reasons.
For example, in Krakow, [people are] very
sensitive to snobbery and status, and it's
something we are conscious of."
If, as they say, the three most important
elements of success are "location, location,
location," Silver Screen has that locked up
as well. "That's also key for us versus [our
tions, which a lot of the other operators
are doing in Europe just because of ease.
And because we have a real estate arm and
understand real estate and understand
Poland, we've been able to get a lot of
these city center properties that make a lot
more sense for us."
Silver
Screen's
expansion currently
includes two theatres
that will open
in Gdynia this
month and a Lodz
locale in August,
with sites in
Krakow, Szczecin,
Gdansk and
Wroclaw to follow.
After that, says
Stork, "We're now
starting to look at
secondary cities and
tertiary cities, as
well as doing additional
projects in
• xl
: I ne silver screer
the main cities.
that it i
"There's a lot of
room for operators in Poland right now.
There's 40 million people and, until very
recently, there were only 700 screens. So it
was completely out of whack with the rest
of the world, certainly with the rest of
Europe and the U.S. So we can all compete
and we can all carve out our own little
niches. Obviously the city centers are the
most dense and ultimately, in our opinion,
will be the most profitable. And I think our
ratio of film revenues and ancillary revenues
will be a different mix than other
operators, just because we have a lot more
services under one roof."
I hile theatres in America underwent
a gradual evolution from
9 the shoebox of the '80s to the
modern megaplex,
the building boom
in Europe took
place after most of
the technological
and architectural
revolutions had
been developed,
allowing new
builds to wow
audiences by
transforming their
cinema experience
from ancient to
super-modern
with few steps in
between. Silver
Screen Warsaw
patrons are reactsource
The Internet Zone is a big draw and will be used as a
jng "very well" to
of ancillary revenues
with a soon-to-be-implemented seminar series for local businesses.
the new venu^
competitors]: We only do high-profile city though Stork notes, "Not to belittle our
center projects. They're more complex, competitors, but some groups still take these
they're architecturally more difficult and new markets for granted and assume that
you can build an older-style product and put
they're also more expensive, but for the
concept that we've created, which is bringing
in older technologies and it will work
all of these [entertainment elements]
together, we can't go into suburban loca-
because it's still new for the country.
"What we've done is, forget the video
games, bring in the Internet, bring in the
64 BOXOFIKE
fastest high-speed connections available
and offer that at a price people can afford.
And we just opened [the Internet Zone] up,
and it was packed.
"That, together with other technology
that we've brought into the centers, [is
's
World Coffee cafe has become so popular
; being spun off into its own chain.
drawing audiences]. We wired the whole
complex with fiberoptics, not just for the
future of e-cinema, but for the immediate
use of digital television presentations within
the auditoria, doing combined teleconferencing
together with some entertainment
presentations [and to] start exploring the
uses of the Internet within the auditoria, to
do streaming video short film festivals. And
we're talking to a few of the larger short
film websites to start really testing it. And
obviously the bandwidth isn't there yet to
do a perfect presentation, but I think [people]
don't expect the highest quality from
the Internet [at the present time]. It's a different
product. As the bandwidth improves,
as the streaming capabilities improve, we'll
be there from the very beginning, pioneering,
hopefully, this new evolution in what
you can use a cinema for."
Other concepts new to Poland are luring
customers in droves, "even if it's as simple
as bringing a cafe into the cinemas," says
Stork, who created the World Coffee brand
for the Silver Screen. "Of course, Starbucks
has tested that concept in the U.S.; it's
untested in Europe, and we've brought it in
and it's been a phenomenal success. That
was a big, big surprise for us. Consequently,
we will roll out a whole series of just the
cafes as a separate business."
Stork may have a lot going on all at
once, but he's not stopping there. An
expansion of the Silver Screen circuit outside
of Poland is in the planning stages,
with countries in Western Europe and even
the U.S. in his sights. "The concept is so
successful not just because there's nothing
around [in Poland], but because it's a
brand new concept. Everybody we've
shown it to—clearly, our investors from
the States feel very strongly about it—but
even rival operators keep wondering why
we're not doing this in Paris and why we're
not doing this in London. It's very much
an urban city center, sophisticated cinemagoer
concept, bringing in all these services
including full liquor bars, the cafes, the
Internet, the special events, the conferencing
and the Platinum screens, which a
more metropolitan audience appreciates.
The concept has already worked in Poland
and will continue to."
Hi

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Seminars Sponsored by BOXOFFICE
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Concessions, Promotions and Marketing
Workshops
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SPECIAL SERIES: 2001-2010
GLOBAL EXHIBITION:
A 2000-2010 OVERVIEW
A Summary of "Global Film: Exhibition
and Distribution," Third Edition
Following the boom year of 1998,
1999 proved to be a somber year.
The outstanding success of
"Titanic" highlighted the need for good
content. Though "Star Wars: Episode 1"
performed well, it failed to match the
results seen for "Titanic."
Exhibitors realize the need for good
content more than ever. Widespread
multiplex and megaplex construction
means that exhibitors have more seats to
fill per site. Customers also require more,
with luxuries such as stadium seating
becoming the expected norm. Exhibitors
must spend more on their sites but cannot
charge too much for the tickets for
fear of losing customers to rivals.
Expansion opportunities for exhibitors
are fast becoming scarce in the
developed markets, though several
developing markets offer great potential.
Developed markets are reaching the saturation
point for suburban sites, and
local governments are becoming increasingly
cautious about granting licenses
for these sites. Exhibitors are investigating
the potential of limited-screen city
center locations.
Global box-office revenues are forecast
to grow US$10 billion between
2000 and 2010 to US$28 billion. The
2010 figure is more than double the
1996 total. The global screen count will
fall slightly to 162,464 by 2010 as several
countries, especially China, shed
many traditional theatres and TV
becomes more important. Admissions
growth will be only 19 percent.
EXHIBITION
China will shed
about 14,000 screens
between 2000 and
2010. Although the
country is forecast to
have 47,000 screens in
2010, its sheer size is
enough to affect the
global total. China
accounts for 37 percent
of global screens
prepared by Baskerville Communications
in 2000, but the proportion will fall to 29
percent by 2010.
China's demise is responsible for
Asia's declining importance. The short-
SPLIT OF SCREENS BY CONTINENT ('
Asia Pacific
North America
Europe
Latin America
Middle East/Af
fall will be made up by modest gains in
the other areas of the world, including
the mature North American market.
Widespread multiplex construction
requires substantial investment. This has
resulted in consolidation, including overseas
joint ventures. Theatres were traditionally
family run, but the trend is toward
stock exchange-listed corporations.
The rise of the multiplex created a
breed of international exhibitors. Major
players in markets that are fast
approaching saturation, particularly in
North America and Australia, are looking
abroad for future expansion.
Many key international exhibitors are
linked to the major Hollywood studios,
though their theatres screen product
from other studios. Loews Cineplex
Entertainment is partly backed by Sony
and Universal. Universal also owns half
of United Cinemas International, with
Paramount taking the rest. Paramount
is linked to National Amusements
through Viacom.
Warner Bros. International Theatres
has a global deal with Australia's
Village Roadshow. Fox was part of a
consortium that took a 16 percent share
in the Hong Kong-based Golden
Harvest in July 1998.
Together, China, the U.S. and India
account for 67 percent of the global
screen count in 2000. By 2010, these
countries will lose five points from the
global total. The top 10 countries house
about 80 percent of the world's screens.
Of the countries covered in our full
report, Brazil will enjoy the fastest
growth, with its
screen count rising
79 percent
over the next
decade. Far behind,
Argentina,
Japan, the Netherlands,
Poland
and South Korea
will all increase by
30 percent to 40
percent. This overall
count does not.
66 BOXOFFICE

MMMNNMRNMMMMI

however, reveal how
many screens will be
converted to modern
theatres.
The screen count
in some other countries,
such as
Sweden and the
Czech Republic,
fall will as many
traditional, subsidized
theatres close
at a faster rate than
multiplexes open.
The population
per screen is a useful
indicator to reveal
which countries have
the most potential
for screen development.
The global
average is likely to be
above 42,000 people
per screen by 2010.
The U.S. requires
a high number of
visits per capita to
keep its screens in
business. The Swedish
and the Czech
figures are distorted
by a high number of
subsidized screens.
ADMISSIONS
Global admissions
will reach
about 9 billion in
2000, which is
down from
slightly
1995. The drop is
due to heavy falls in
China as increased
TV penetration has
a negative impact
on cinemagoing. By
2010, global admissions
are expected
to rise
19 percent to
10.7 billion.
The waning influence
of the Asia
Asia Pacific
North America
Europe
Latin America
Middle East/Africa
GLOBAL FILM EXHIBITION FORECAST, 2000-2010
Screens
Five-Yr. Growth (°/<
Pop./Screen
Admits (mil.)
Five-Yr. Growth (°/<
A.dmits/Screen
Five-Yr. Growth (%)
Admits/Pop.
Box Office (US$ mil.)
Five-Yr. Growth (%)
B.OVScreen (US$000)
Ticket Price (US$)
Five-Yr. Growth (%)
^
Pacific region is
shown in the above
table, with its share of total admissions
falling from 1995's 71 percent to 63 percent
by 2010. However, the worst of the
Asian slump appears to be over, and the
region is forecast to lose only two points
in the 10 years between 2000 and 2010.
India, China and the U.S. will
account for 75 percent of global admissions
in 2000. This level will drop only
slightly to 73 percent in 2010. The top 10
countries will take about 85 percent of
the total for both years.
Brazil, the country with the fastest
screen growth, will enjoy a corresponding
increase in admissions. Rapid admissions
growth will also take place in
Argentina (42 percent), Japan (40 percent),
Russia (59 percent) and Poland
(64 percent) between 2000 and 2010.
The U.S. is not the only country that
records high per-capita cinema attendance.
Australia and Singapore are not
far behind. The global average in 2010
will be 1.55 visits per capita per annum.
Several international exhibitors are
constructing multiplexes in wealthy
European countries in anticipation of
admissions-per-capita ratios similar to
those in the United States and Australian
marketplaces. Although multiplexes
increase cinema attendance,
there is little evidence to suggest that
Western European countries will reach
U.S. levels by 2010.
BOX OFFICE
Despite the low
admissions growth,
global box-office
figures are expected
to rise 55 percent
between 2000 and
2010 to US$28 billion.
Much of this
increase is due to
multiplexes charging
more than do
traditional cinemas.
Asia Pacific dominates
the admissions
figures, but
low ticket prices
mean that its influence
on gross boxoffice
revenues fell
in the late 1990s.
Asia Pacific is now
expected to retain its
share, though North
America will lose
some dominance.
The U.S. will take
43 percent of global
box office in 2000,
and this share will
fall only slightly to
39 percent by 2010.
The top 10 countries
account for 81
percent of global
box office in 2000;
this proportion is
likely to drop only a
little by 2010.
The fastest-growing
box-office countries
are Brazil (up
241 percent between
2000 and 2010),
Poland (193 percent),
Mexico (168
percent) and Russia
(220 percent). High
inflation, however,
fuels growth in some
of these countries.
Japan is the most
lucrative market per
screen, with Hong
Kong and Singapore
following. These top earners are ideal
markets for multiplex expansion. The
global average revenue per screen is
US$111 ,000 in 2000, with the U.S. figure
almost double at US$213,000.
The global average ticket price is only
US$2, though this figure reflects low
charges in most parts of Asia, Africa
and the Middle East. The average ticket
price in India, for instance, is only
US$0.16. Ticket prices are expected to
fall in several countries, notably Japan,
as competition intensifies.
HM
For more on the report, call Simon
Murray (44-171-299-4508) in England or
Bob Mar icii (914-422-3866) in the U.S.
68 BOXOFUCE

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draper*
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Het ttje popcorn pop anb tije £foba floto.
Het tije pm not sttcfe to tfje tijeater carpet.
Utt tfje
ueppab remain brp.
Het ttie electricity run aplenty.
jffflost of all, bear Horb, map mp management
extern not tie torougfjt toitf) problems.
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MAR

70 BOXOFFICE
SPECIAL REPORT: Cinema Expo 2000
June 26-29
RAI International Exhibition
-~ anFtongress Centre
Amsterdam. Netherlands
EXHIBITOR OF THE YEAR
Although Guy Verrecchia's attempt to introduce an inexpensive way
to frequent movies playing at his French cinema circuit UGC didn't
fare well with rival chains and the country's culture minister (see
EUROVIEWS, p. 82), his valiant efforts as an exhibitor are being honored
at this year's Cinema Expo convention. Verrecchia has been named the
event's "Exhibitor of the Year" for his work as UGC founding partner,
chairman and CEO.
Verrecchia owned and operated his own exhibition chain when he hrst
joined Paris-based UGC in 1971. He quickly made his way through company
ranks, ascending to his current position in 1974. In addition to his
duties at UGC, Verrecchia has served as president of French film industry
liaison BLIC and has been involved in various aspects of the country's
movie business, including production, rights acquisition and onscreen
advertising.
This will be Verrecchia's second Cinema Expo "Exhibitor of the Year
Award, having been previously honored by the convention in 1993.
No.
INTERNATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT
IN MARKETING
it's not the comedian so beloved by the French, but Gerry Lewis
with a "G" who will be receiving Cinema Expo's International
Achievement in Marketing Award at this year's convention. The former
head of marketing at DreamWorks International, whose credits include
campaigns for "Godfather," "Jaws" and "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," began
his career nearly 30 years ago, first entering the field as a unit publicist,
eventually moving into film publicity before landing in marketing.
Lewis has held executive posts at ABC/EMI and Paramount and was
named head of international marketing when the latter company combined
etforts with Universal to form what is today known as UIP. He stepped
down from his post at DreamWorks last summer, but is presently working
with the company through his own independent marketing firm on some of
the studio's upcoming pics, including co-productions "Minority Report"
(with 20th Century Fox) and "A.I." (with Warner Bros.).
Previous recipients of the award include 20th Century Fox International's
Scott Neeson, Universal's Nadia Bronson and longtime marketer Hy Smith.
Schedule
of Events
MONDAY,
JUNE 26
8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Convention Registration
RAI Onyx Lounge
8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Trade Show Registration
Holland Hall #11
10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cinema Expo
Hospitality Lounge
Co-Sponsor:
Sony Cinema Products
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
11:15 a.m.- 12:30 p.m.
Media Salles Seminar:
Moderated By Karsten Grummit
& Elisabetta Brunella
Room A
12:30 p.m. - 1:45 p.m.
Buffet Lunch
Co-Sponsor: Media Salles
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Technical Seminar:
Digital Cinema is a Reality;
What's Next?
Forum Centre
4:30 p.m - 6:45 p.m.
Screening:
United International Pictures
RAI Auditorium
7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Opening Night Dinner
Sponsor:
United International Pictures
West Hall #3
9:00 p.m. - 11:15 p.m.
Screening:
United International Pictures
RAI Auditorium

^««-^^^^^ J_nature
to me," says Rick Sands. "I grew up in it."
But that doesn't necessarily make movie
distribution easy—not these days when
the business is confronted with challenges
such as the task of reaching audiences for
films as diverse as "Scream 3" and "The
Cider House Rules" as well as facing a
summertime slate that includes two offbeat
spins on Shakespearean classics: the
mean streets of New York version of
"Hamlet" and the Hollywood heyday
jriusical version of "Love's Labour's
Lost."
Sands will be addressing those challenges,
particularly those faced by the
independent market, when he makes a
speech at Cinema Expo in Amsterdam
this June. Sands is being honored at the
convention as "Distributor of the
Year" in recognition for the sterling job
he's done as Miramax Films' chairman
of worldwide distribution.
"There's nothing simple any more,"
says this second generation distribution
executive to BOXOFFICE. "You can't
just buy the TV spots, cut the trailers
and say 'good-bye'." He identifies "festivals"
as a key factor in current distribution
strategy, and not just because he
plans to head off to Cannes for a few
days after this interview!
"We have tremendous belief in festivals,"
he says. "The people who attend
them are usually friendly towards
movies, and people are seeing the films
in the best possible venues [and] well
equipped theatres.
"It's also a very good way to start
talent-travel," he continues, stressing
his belief in the visibility of star
power, mentioning a Freddie Prinze Jr.
trip to Japan in connection with the
upcoming "Boys and Girls."
Sands talks a pace about the business,
but sounds less driven when talking
about himself. Now 43, he studied film
and economics at Syracuse University
and then began his career in the late '70s
as VP of distribution at Columbia
Pictures, just as the UFOs of "Close
Encounters of the Third Kind" were being
launched. As day-to-day operations
manager of the distribution branch in
North America, he was moved around a
great deal and names "New York, Des
Moines, Washington, D.C., New York,
Cleveland, New York, Los Angeles" as
his various homes while working his way
up the corporate ladder.
SANDS STORM
Miramax International's
Rick Sands Receives
Cinema Expo's "Distributor
of the Year" Award
by Bridget Byrne
Sands first joined Miramax in 1990
as executive VP and CFO. He left the
company in 1993 to become executive
VP and CEO of Hallmark/RHI Entertainment,
but was enticed back to
Miramax in 1995 to cope with the burgeoning
company's continually more
complex dealings in worldwide movie
distribution.
"It's much more complicated than it
ever used to be," stresses Sands, who
has to plan in terms of both the "thinking
person's" Miramax product and the
younger-oriented, broader appeal of
Dimension releases.
Sands says what he loves about the
business is "the fact you never do something
twice. There's an excitement to
each new film, to seeing the film, to
working out the proper release pattern
and knowing you've accomplished the
best for the film."
Sands is a member of the board of
directors of the American Film
Marketing Association, the Will Rogers
Hospital and Charities and the Foundation
of the Motion Picture Pioneers.
He and his wife. Ellen, have two young
daughters, so he sighs a little wistfully
about all the travel his job demands. But
he believes it's essential to show up to
places in-person. "I go to all festivals and
all markets," he says. "You have to be
there. I learned that from my years in the
domestic market: You must let people see
your face, even be in your face, [and]
know you. It's so much easier to do business
that way because there is more to it
than just showing the product."
Sands says he understands Spanish
and a little bit of German and Italian
but, essentially, "business is done in
English, though it is useful to understand
what someone is saying in their
language, particularly if it's a sidebar!
But deals are done in dollars. If the
Euro kicks in some of that may change,
but right now it's dollars, which makes
[doing business] straightforward."
That's how Sands sounds: straightforward—on
to the next plane, the next
day and date, with the same focus and
energy, whether it be for "Scary Movie"
or "The Golden Bowl."
"Certainly it's a job and like any job
it has it's moments when it's a grind,"
he says. "There is a lot to know [and] to
keep track of. It's challenging and everchanging,
but what never changes is
that people want entertainment and
that's what the distributor brings
TUESDAY,
JUNE 27
7:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Convention Registration
RAI Onyx Lounge
7:45 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Continental Breakfast
Sponsor:
United Cinemas International
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
8:00 am. - 6:00 p.m.
Trade Show Registration
Holland Hall #11
8:30 a.m.- 10:00 a.m.
Concession Seminar:
Moderated by Barry Jones,
Coca-Cola
Forum Center
10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cinema Expo
Hospitality Lounge
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
10:15 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Screening:
Columbia TriStar
Film Distributors International
RAI Auditorium
1:00 p.m. -2:30 p.m.
Opening Day Luncheon
Sponsor: Columbia TriStar
Film Distributors International
West Hall #3
2:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Cinema Expo Trade Show &
Cocktail Party
Sponsor: Dolby Laboratories
Holland Hall #11
6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Screening:
Twentieth Century Fox Intl.
RAI Auditorium
8:00 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Gala Dinner Party
Sponsor:
Twentieth Century Fox Intl.
West Hall #3
9:45 p.m.- 12:00 a.m.
Screening:
Twentieth Century Fox Intl.
RAI Auditorium
.Julv, 2000 71

Italian moviemaker. He also sounds vigorous
and busy, although it's the cocktail
hour and he's been up since dawn
because "Hannibal," the much anticipated
sequel to "The Silence of the Lambs,"
begins shooting each day at five a.m.
Asked what keeps him going so strong,
de Laurentiis immediately answers, "The
three Cs: cerxetto. more and coglione. You
know what that means? Brain, heart and,
well, you know."
Yes, BOXOFF1CE does: balls. He
laughs, knowing how apt this "old
Neapolitan saying" is to describe his
long career of glories and duds, brave
adventures and disappointing setbacks.
He's much too busy getting on with
life and his latest production to have
time to discuss any details of the more
than 100 movies that bear his credit. "I
can't talk about that, we'd be here all
day," he says, but he tries to make sure
he can find the time to pick up the lifetime
achievement awards that come his
way—the inevitable consequence of
survival, but also apt recognition for
the year 2000, which has not only seen
the start of production on "Hannibal"
but also the release of "U-571," which
was No. 1 at the U.S. boxoffice two
weeks in a row.
"Is polite to be there and I do not
want disappoint," he says about his
next award, which will be presented to
him at Cinema Expo this June.
De Laurentiis was born in Torre
Annunciata and educated at the Centra
Sperimentale di Cinematografia in
Rome. "When I was first 18," he says in
explanation of how young he was when
he entered the movie business. His first
production credit is for "L'Amore
Canta" in 1941, and his first homegrown
production to earn some international
buzz was the 1949 melodrama
"Bitter Rice," which starred the beauteous
Silvana Mangano who became
his wife. Together they had four children,
one of whom, Rafaella, continued
the family tradition by establishing
her own production company.
DINO-MITE!
Eightysomthing Producer
Dino de Laurentiis Receives
Cinema Expo's Lifetime
Achievement Award
by Bridget Byrne
"La Strada," however, gave de
Laurentiis the chance to shine in front of
Hollywood when he stepped on stage to
Astill prime-of-life voice comes pick up the "Best Foreign Language"
across in a swift teasing burst, a Oscar for director Federico Fellini's
melange of Italian phrasing movie in 1956. That was also the year he
dropped into heavily dolce vita accented
English. It's Dino de Laurentiis.
produced the epic adaptation of "War
and Peace." a film that got overlooked in
Over the phone from Florence, Italy, a flurry of larger-than-life movies that
the eightysomething producer sounds included "Giant," "Around the World in
80 Days," and "The Ten Com-
just like one's pre-conception of an
mandments. War and Peace,'" joked a
comedian, "cost nine million dollars
that's more than the real war cost."
Money and mammoth running times
have never been something de
Laurentiis feared, which explains why
he's paid so much to secure "Hannibal"
($10 million just for the rights to the
novel and production costs that could
run upwards of $100 million).
De Laurentiis doesn't apologize for
such enthusiasms. "They say you crazy
if you do something so mammoth, but
when I believe so much in something I
never stop. Budgets go up, up. up, but
income come up too, now with video
and other things. Money is the last
thing you think of. If you need the
money you can find it. Someone is
always willing to finance a good project.
What is important: the idea!"
And the passion. "I have same passion
as when I was young," he says.
"One thing I tell you—if you not love
to do it, better not to do it. If you love,
maybe you succeed. In life you go up
and down all the time, but you must
always do the best you can."
He says when he's asked to talk to
students about how to become a movie
producer, what he tells them is very
simple: Technique can be taught, but
what really counts is what comes from
within. "When Picasso was young I'm
sure someone teach him to draw, but
nobody teach him the way to use
color," he says. "You can teach until
some point, but then it is something
inside, like a personality," or. using
another Italian colloquialism BOXOF-
FICE can't translate, "like the little bulls
that are inside me."
While there have been many changes
in the business since he started, he says
"the freedom to be creative" isn't any
different, nor is "the freedom to negotiate."
And what remains important is
"finding a great script and a great
director." He can't say more than that,
however, because he's too busy, so
"must go...."
Hi
WEDNESDAY,
JUNE 28
8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Convention & Trade Show
Registration
RAI Onyx Lounge
8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast
Sponsor: Warner Bros.
International Theatres
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
9:15 a.m.- 11:30 a.m.
Screening
RAI Auditorium
10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cinema Expo
Hospitality Lounge
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
TTJTJDDDD
DDTTt,
lirjDaaDDDarjrjDrjaaaDC
Intern t i o n a I
11:30 a.m. -3:00 p.m.
Cinema Expo
Trade Show & Luncheon
Co-Sponsor: Cinemeccanica
Holland Hall #11
4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Screening:
Buena Vista International
RAI Auditorium
6:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Buffet Dinner
Sponsor:
Buena Vista International
West Hall #3
8:45 p.m.
Screening:
Buena Vista International
RAI Auditorium
72 BOXOFFICE

CINE...
TRADE SHOW I
o Acoustic Panels. ..286
90 Armand-Chaput
Ureal, Quebec HI C 1
J-NE: 514-643-0800
ptive Micro Systems
}pe...362, 363
57, Canada
IE France.. .225, 226, 227, 228
ue Coge de Loup
39 Lyon, France
)NE: 33.472 19 89 89
Design & Installation Ltd.
17
Hood Road
4C7
kham.Ontario, Canada
)NE: 905-4774522
.120
North 67 Streel
FL 33138, USA
INE: 800-346-8575
V Systems Inc. ...158
10 Yukon Ave
thorne, CA 90250, USA
NE: 310-973-8090
TS—The Moving Image
*ty...332
ria House, Vernon PI.
B 4DA London, UK
NE: 44-207-242-8400
! Point Ltd. ...333
NE: 44-1865891666
sit Buro Donanimlari Sanayi
fgaretA.S. ...359, 360, 361
)s Organize Sanayi Bolgesi
Sokak
Box 11
9 Bursa, Turkey
NE: 902242610180
idio...163
ide House, Summit Road
rs Bar ENC 3JB
Drdshire, UK
4 1 707 643643
Pacer Cats... 241, 242, 251, 252
?lanck-Str. 15 B
699 Erkrath, Germany
na Film Systems... 162, 168,
4orth Berson Avenue
Id, CA 91 786, USA
•it: 909-931-9318
oeccanica S.P.A. ...237, 238,
224
Campania, 23
ano, Italy
«:39 02 748 1151
Cineproject & Xetron...245, 248
382 Springfield Ave.
Summit, N| 07901, USA
PHONE: 908 273 3696
Colpac Ltd. ...108
Enterprise Way
Maulden Road
MK45 5BW Flitwick
Bedfordshire, England
PHONE: 44-0-1525-712261
Compeso...339, 340
Mitterfeldstr. 4
85737 Ismousing, Germany
PHONE: 49899643054
Crown International.. .104
1718 W. Mishawaka Road
Elkhart, IN 46517, USA
PHONE: 219-294-8200
Data Display. ..199, 200
Deer Park Industrial
Ennistymon Co.
Estate
Clare, Ireland
PHONE: 353 65 7072600
Decor Fabrications... 107
Drake House
Drake Avenue
TW18 2 AW Middlesex, UK
PHONE: 441 784457345
DestroS.P.A. ...126, 127, 128
Via Marco Polo 1
35020 Albignasego (PD), Italy
PHONE: 39498805299
Deutsche Theaterbau...112
lagerstr. 6
D-09380 Thalheim, Germany
PHONE: 49 3721 841 56
Digital Theater Systems.. .31 7, 318
Unit 5, Tavistock Ind. Estate
Ruscomb Lane
RG10 9N|Twyford
Berks, UK
PHONE: 44-118-934-9199
Dolby Laboratories... 161, 170
Woorton Bassett
SN4 8Q| Wiltshire, UK
PHONE: 44 179 38 42100
Duware Services BV...29I
Willemsparkweg 69
1071 Amsterdam, Netherlands
PHONE: 31-206644088
Eastern Acoustic Works.. .195, 196,
197, 198
One Main Street
Whitinsville, MA01588, USA
PHONE: 508-234-61 58
EIMS Inc. ...205, 206, 191, 192
8801 State Hwy., Suite A
Gig Harbor, WA 98332, USA
PHONE: 253-857-6411
EOMAC...219, 220
Unit3E
1 Bourne End Business Centre
SL8 5AS Cores End Road
Bourne End, Bucks, UK
PHONE: 44-0-1628-850350
Ernemann...244, 249
382 Springfield Ave.
Summit, N| 07901, USA
PHONE: 908-273-3696
LIS
Euro Seating Intl. ...334, 335, 336
Poligono industrial
26280 Ezcaray
La Rioja, Spam
PHONE: 3441427450
Eurokeyton ...193
Pol Ind Las Atalayas
Parcela 85
03114 Alicante, Spain
PHONE: 34-965109150
E VI Audio Cmbh...203, 204
Hirschberger Ring 45
94315 Straubing, Germany
PHONE: 499421 706377
Ezcaray Intl. ...301, 302, 303
Ctra. Santo Domingo
Apdo. Correos, 5
26280 Ezcaray
La Rioja, Spain
PHONE: 941-354054
Figueras Seating... 173, 174, 175,
176, 177, 178
08186 LilcaDeMunt
Barcelona, Spain
PHONE: 3428445050
Film Ton Technik...153, 154, 155
lahnstr. 37-41
40215 Dusseldorf, Germany
PHONE: 49 21 1 3 73 047
Focus Computer Products
A/S...113
Generatorvej 15
DK-2730 Herlev
Copenhagen, Denmark
PHONE: 45-4484-5144
Ghigny S.A. ...289, 290
Av. Vesale 1
B-1300 Wavre, Belgium
PHONE: 3210243500
Cold Medal Products.. .179, 180
10700 Medallion Drive
l in. inn, Hi. OH 45241, USA
PHONE: 513-769-7676
Golden Link/Finseda... 121, 122,
129, 130
Mill Lane
Monks Kisborough
Hp27 9L| Bucks, UK
PHONE: 44 1844 344456
Cradus Lighting... 209
Park Green
Macclesfield Cheshire
SK11 7NE United Kingdom
PHONE: 44625428922
Crammer Buerostuehle
CMBH...267, 268
Sulzbachor Str. 105
92224 Amberg, Germany
PHONE: 49 9621 6774 50
Great Western Products.. .257
PO Box 466
Highway 72 East
Hollywood, AL 35752, USA
PHONE: 256-259-3578x233
Hammarlind AB... 109
Langbrodalsvagen 48
12534 Alvsjo, Stockholm, Sweden
PHONE: 46-886-3504
Harkness Hall Ltd. ...348
The Gate Studios
Station Road
THURSDAY,
JUNE 29
8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Convention & Trade Show
Registration
RAI Onyx Lounge
8:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Continental Breakfast
on the Trade Show Floor
Co-Sponsor: Harkness Hall
Holland Hall #11
10:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m.
Cinema Expo Hospitality Lounge
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Screening:
Miramax International
RAI Auditorium
1:00 p.m. -2:30 p.m.
Luncheon
Sponsor: Miramax International
West Hall #3
2:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Screening
RAI Auditorium
7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Gala Champagne Reception
Sponsor: Eastman Kodak Co.
RAI Auditorium
Lounge & Terrace
8:30 p.m.
Coca-Cola Final Night
Banquet & Awards Ceremony
Sponsor:
Coca-Cola Greater Europe
Award Presentations:
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Dino Dc Laurentiis
Distributor of the Year:
Rick Scalds, Miramax Films
Exhibitor of the Year:
Guy Verrecclua, UGC Cinemas
International Achievement
in Marketing Award:
Gerry Lewis
Independent Exhibitor of the Yea
Albert Broccoli Award
Technical Achievement Award
Final Night
Dessert & Entertainment
Co-Sponsor: Imax
West Hall #3
lulv. 2000 73

I
WD6 1 DQ Boreham Wood
Herts, United Kingdom
PHONE: 44.181.953.3611
lcon/ETM...143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148
949 South Coast Drive, Suite 300
Costa Mesa, CA 92651, USA
PHONE: 714-444-5600
IMAXLtd. ...184, 185
2525 Speakman Drive
Mississauga, Ontario L5K 1B1, Canada
PHONE: 905-403- 6444
International Paper.. .105
Rue Louis Meyer 2-B
Vevey 1 800, Switzerland
PHONE: 41219236608
IREM...326, 327
VIA VAIE 42
10050 S.Antonio
PHONE: 964621 3
ISCO-OPTIC...159, 160
PO Box 200155
37075 Cottingen, Germany
PHONE: 4950583
ITEA...275
244 West 49th St., Suite 200
New York, NY 10019, USA
PHONE: 212-246-6460
lack Roe ICS) Ltd. ...315, 316
Poplar House, Peterstow
HR9 6|Z Herefordshire, UK
PHONE: 441989567474
larco Industries.. .257
125 Laser Court
lauppauge, NY 11788, USA
PHONE: 631-851-9100
mmm
IBL Professional... 1 64, 165, 166, 167
8500 Balboa Blvd.
Northbridge, CA 91 329, USA
PHONE: 818-894-8850
Kinetics Hoise Control.
6300 Irelan Place
Dublin, OH 43017, USA
PHONE: 614-889-0480
Kinetronics Europe.. .278
P.O. Box 450051
D-53344 Alfter, Germany
PHONE: 49-2222-62105
Kino Box... 134
Hobjergvej 2
4340 Toelloese, Denmark
PHONE: 4559185806
Kino Export... 347, 350
u Hlavnu 804
JiiJ
687 65 Strani, Czech Republic
PHONE: 42 06 33 695 330
Kinoton Gmbh...306, 307, 308, 309,
310,311
Industriestr. 20a
82110 Germering, Germany
PHONE: 49 89 89 44 460
Klipsch Europe BV... 305
Verbeckstraat 8A
2332 Galeiden, Netherlands
PHONE: 49726691 1990
Le Film Francais...273
150 rue Galliehi
92514 Boulogne Cedex, France
PHONE: 141.861.652
Lesna Inc. ...357
8487 8th Avenue
H1Z2X2
Montreal, QC, Canada
PHONE: 514-721-6914
Lucasfilm/THX...181, 182
POBoc 10327
San Rafael, CA 94912, USA
PHONE: 41 5-492-3945
M Nur Marketing... 354, 355, 356
Herwigsmohlenweg 3C
34123 Kassel, Germany
PHONE: 495619506500
Marcel Desrochers/MDI...288
1440 Raoul Charrette
|6E 857 loliette, Quebec, Canada
PHONE: 450 755 3795
Martek...217, 218
37 Willow Lane
Willow Lane Industrial Estate
CR4 4NAMitcham
Surrey, United Kingdom
Martin Audio. ..116, 117
Century Point Halifax Road
Cressex Business Park
HP12 3SL England, UK
Media Technology Source.. .151, 152
10501 Florida Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55438, USA
MegaSystems...115
432 Devon Park Drive
Building 500
Wayne, PA 19087, USA
PHONE: 610-971-4079
Meopta Prerov...351
Kabelokova 1
750 00 Prerov, Czech Republic
PHONE: 39 3 4767 6990
Mils Technology Pic. ...346
Sandringham House
199 Southwark Bridge Road
5E1 0HA London, England
PHONE: 44-20-7378-6776
Mobiliario S.A. ...271, 272
Calle del Sol #3
San Rafael Chamapa
Naucalpan, Mexico
PHONE: 525-300-0620
Mundocolor Intl. ...194
C/Alicante No. 16
Sani Boi De Jo|o
08830 Barcelona, Spain
PHONE: 3436302800
NAC...274
35 East Wacker
Chicago, IL 60601, USA
PHONE: 312-236-3858
Neumade Products. ..246, 247
$82 Springfield Ave.
Summit, N) 07901, USA
PHONE: 908 273 3696
Ningbo Dafeng Movie & TV
Equipment. ..259
Qilipu Yangming West Road
Yuyae Zhejiang 31 540, China
PHONE: 865742821689
Octagon Handels Cmbh...253, 25
239, 240
Hupfleitenweg 10
D-82467 Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Germany
PHONE: 49 8821 95010
Omniterm Ltd. ...188
2785 SkymarkAve., Unit 11
L4W 4Y3
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
PHONE: 905-629-4757
OsramCmbh...136, 137
Nonnendammalle 44-61
D-13629 Berlin, Germany
PHONE: 49-30-3380070
PAI Group.. .215, 216
3-4 Heol Rhosyn
Dafen Park
MCMXCIX by Pike Productions. Inc
Rover may be stuck on Mars, but he and his friends are
having a great time at the "FLY-IN" where movies
are Outdoors, Digital and shown on a FORCE FIELD.
It's a SCI-FI Policy Trailer with Music & FX in SRD
and the ROBOTS run the Theatre. Available FLAT
or SCOPE. Your audience will love it.
PiKE PTODuciionxinc.
e-mail: pikefilmtrailers@earthlink.net
PHONE (401) 846-8890 • Fax (401) 847-0070 • 1 1 Clarke Street • P.O. Box 300 • Newport, Rl 02840 USA
74 BOXOIIKK
Response No. 145

i
'
'
i-Cola Intl. ...255, 256, 269, 270
Anderson Hill Rd.
hase, NY 10577, USA
)14-253-2890
n Elmer/ORC Lighting. ..106
Mission College Blvd.
a, CA 95054, USA
NE: 408-565-0768
tic Ear Inc. ...260
Cypress Drive
uma, CA 94954, USA
NE: 707-769-1110
orn Company.. .349
Berg 1 7
942 Dassow, Germany
NE: 451-3909178
orn USA... 139
580
weg 7
Woerden, Holland
NE: 31348432923
'S.R.L. ...212,213
'or Companies... 183
~ ~ ntennial Road
!On, CO 80127, USA
303-973-8989
•otiortln Motion.. .201
lien Drive
NJ 07624, USA
i: 201 -784-5800
otional Management Croup.
imore Avenue
ty, MO 64108, USA
516-221-3833
Audio Products... 299, 300
McArthur Blvd.
Mesa, CA 92626, USA
"It: 714-957-7127
QuinetteCallay...10O, 101, 102, 103
1 5 rue de la Nouvelle France, BP1 55
93103 Montreuil, France
Ricos Products... 138
621 South Flores
San Antonio, TX 78204, USA
PHONE: 210-222-1415
RMB International. ..324, 325
133 rue Colonel Bourg
1140 Brussels, Belgium
PHONE: 32.2.730.44.11
Roelants Europrint Ticketing.. .214
De Zwaaikom 2
9641 KV Veendam, Netherlands
PHONE: 598-612-553
Screen International. ..110
33-39 Bowling Green Lane
EC1RODA London, UK
PHONE: 44.171.5058116
Skeie A/S...364, 365
P.O. Box 4, 4301 Sandnes, Norway
PHONE: 47 51 66 3531
Smart Devices Inc. ...328
5945 Peachtree Corners East
Norcross, GA 30071, USA
PHONE: 770-449-6698
Sonics Associates... 186, 187
2111 Parkway Office Circle
Birmingham, AL 35244, USA
PHONE: 205-733-0500
Sony Cinema Products. ..141, 142, 149,
150
25 Golden Square
W1R6LU London, UK
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Soundcheck...211
lAMerivale Rd., SW15 2NW Putney
London, UK
PHONE: 441 81 7894063
Stage Accompany. ..189, 190
Anodeweg 4
1627 Hodrn, Holland
PHONE: 31229212542
Star Manufacturing Intl.
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Stein Industries Inc. ...329, 330
22 Sprague Avenue
Amitvville, NY 11701, USA
PHONE: 516-789-2222
Strobbe Ticket...111
Kasreelstraat 1
B-8870 Izegem, Belgium
PHONE: 32 51 33 32 40
Strong Intl. ...229, 230, 231, 232
4350 McKinley Street
Omaha, NE 68112, USA
PHONE: 402-453-4444
Suministros Kelonik S.A. ...322, 323
C/Badajoz, 1 59 BIS
08018 Barcelona, Spain
PHONE: 34-93-3004361
The Trane Company. ..124, 125
2550 Corporate Exchange Dr., #200
Columbus, OH 43035, USA
PHONE: 614-899-5136
Ticket and labeling Solutions... 331
Vlietweg 17 Leidschendam
2266 KA, Holland
PHONE: 31-70-3207686
Ticket Intl. . 262, 263, 264
TechnicPark
54550 Daun, Germany
PHONE: 49659295990
Tickets.com... 31 2, 313
City Gate, 1 7 Victoria Street
AL1 3|| St. Albans
Herttorrlshire, UK
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TK Architects Inc. ...171, 172
106 West 11th Ave., Suite 1900
Kansas City, MO 64105, USA
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Ultra-Stereo Labs... 243, 250
181 Bonetti Drive
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Ushio Europe B.V. ...337, 338
Sky Park
Breguetlaan 16-18
14 38 BC Oude Meer, Netherlands
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Venners Computer Systems... 133
249 Upper 3rd Street
MK9 1DS Milton Keynes, UK
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Veronese Paolo.. .304
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20128 Milano, Italy
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Metro Blvd.
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Wassmann S.A. ...297, 298
382 Springfield Ave.
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United States
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Weaver Popcorn. ..210
Box 395
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Whisper Walls...2S8
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SPECIAL REPORT: ShowCanada Wrap-Up
WHISTLER A HAPPY TUNE
Whistler, British Columbia, Provides an Idyllic
Setting for ShOWCanada 2000 photos and text by Christine James
Getting
to Whistler, British
Columbia, is no small feat, as
foreshadowed by the
ShowCanada 2000 registration form,
which offered contact information for
buses, vans, airport limos, helicopters and
other air services as means to reach the site
of this year's convention. It's
a three-hour
drive from Vancouver Airport, and that
doesn't count the regularly scheduled route
closures implemented while workmen scale
roadside cliffs to remove loose rocks in
their everyday effort to circumvent
avalanches. On the other hand, one usually
doesn't get to see babbling brooks to the
left and waterfalls to the right while traversing
North America's thoroughfares.
This visually splendorous journey set the
stage for the destination itself.
A world-famous ski town. Whistler was
atypically quiet during the May 5-10
ShowCanada convention, with ski season
just ending and the area's equally
renowned summer sports still around the
corner. Many attendees were able to fit in
some excellent spring skiing prior to and
during the show, enjoying the luxuries of
good snow conditions, warm weather and
no lines. Even those not inclined toward
hitting the slopes still
got to the top of Mt.
Whistler:
For
ShowCanada's kickoff
event, conventioneers
were whisked up, up
and away in gondolas
to the ski lodge, which
had been converted
for the evening into a
time-warped disco,
complete with go-go
dancers and a John
Travolta lookalike.
Invited to "polish up
that groove thing and
dust off that moneymaker"
by the event's
sponsors, the National
Post/Southam Inc./
Hollinger Inc. newspapers,
exhibitors
turned the beat
around, did the hustle
Ni9ht Fever sWtes
and enumerated the merits of the YMCA
via mime.
Those who danced the night away may
have had a hard time getting up for the
next morning's breakfast, sponsored by
DreamWorks, which showed a 26-minute
Exhibitors were the stars at the ShowCanada 2000 Showmanship Awards.
clip of its claymation feature, "Chicken
Run." (For all those not converted to vegetarianism
by "Babe," this film should finish
the job.) Posters around the room featured
the movie's punny taglines, including
"A Few Good Hen," "Poultry in Motion."
"The Lone Free Ranger"
and, in reference to the
villain of the piece, "A
Real Plucker." "Chicken
Run" was going to
ShowCanada.
screen following the
breakfast, but the film
was not quite ready; substituted
was Buena
Vista's "Dinosaur."
Universal's lunch featured
trailers from its
upcoming slate, including
"Nutty Professor 2,"
"Head Over Heels,"
"Meet the Parents,"
"Bring It On" and
"Family Man," with
teasers for "Jurassic
Park 3" and "The
Mummy 2." In an
attempt at an anticipation-building
tease, a
Universal exec began to
express regret that a clip of "How the
Grinch Stole Christmas" wasn't ready to
be shown when a gray-haired man burst
forth and approached the podium with
news that it was indeed cued up and ready
to go. This little skit backfired to a certain
extent as some thought momentarily that
the aforementioned bustling messenger
might be the film's star, Canada's own Jim
Carrey, in disguise, which proved not to be
the case. Nevertheless, the trailer, which
showcased the amazing makeup used to
transform Carrey into the Grinch, as well
as the wild special effects created to snake
the Grinch around on his fingers and toes,
was very well received.
Also on the agenda on the first full day
of the convention was a projection workshop,
"Sparkling Images: High-Tech
Projection For a New Century," hosted by
Terri Westhafer, head of Colorado-based
Westhafer Cinema Consulting, who
stressed cleanliness above all else as the key
to reducing projection problems. A full
report on this seminar will be included in
an upcoming issue of BOXOFFICE.
Following the seminar was another
screening, "100 Girls" (which currently
has no stateside distributor), a comedy in
which a college student ("The Virgin
Suicides'" Jonathan Tucker) tries to determine
the identity of a girl with whom he
had an encounter during a blackout.
The day was still nowhere near winding
down. Buena Vista hosted an Atrium
Cocktail at the Whistler Village
Conference Center, which was also the
site of the Showmanship Awards Gala
hosted by Paramount, Famous Players
and Fuji Film. Trailers from Paramount's
"Shaft," "Mission: Impossible
"Rugrats in Paris" and a re-release of
76 BOXOFFICE

"Sunset Boulevard"* were shown, followed
by the announcement of the
Showmanship awardees. Steven McCune
of Landmark's Galaxy Theatre in
Campbell River, B.C., took home the titular
Showmanship Award; Merv
Weinrauch of Twin Pine Cinemas in
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, won Best
Promotion for a Canadian Film
English; Esam Mokhtar of Famous
Players' Montreal Downtown Cluster
won Best Promotion For a Canadian
Film— French; Stephen Yuen of Famous
Players' Silver City Coquitlam in
Coquitlam, B.C., received the
Blockbuster Award; Trent Sales of
Landmark's Towne Cinema Centre in
Abbotsford, B.C. topped the Audience
Development competition; and Stephane
St. Jean of Famous Players' SilverCity
Hull in Hull, Quebec, won the concessions
category. Lions Gate's French-language
"Elvis Gratton II— Miracle a
Memphis" was lauded as 1999's topgrossing
Canadian film, and Denise
Filiatrault, helmer of "Laura Cadieux:
La Suite," received Best Director honors.
' The next day's schedule was just as rigorous:
After breakfast with the National
Film Board of Canada and La Presse was a
screening of Odeon Film's "The New
Waterford Girl" (which BOXOFFICE
reviewed in its Sundace coverage, giving it
three stars and calling it "a gentle ode to
girlhood [pairing] a girl
too precocious for
her tiny Cape Breton town and a relocated
New Yorker who discovers she's inherited
her championship boxer father's fatal left
hook"). The subsequent workshop, in
which marketing ideas were to be discussed,
had to be cancelled due to time constraints.
Cineplex Odeon hosted the luncheon,
where they announced 13 builds in development,
a flagship at their Queensway and
Islington site and a new design, of which
their Niagara Square project is the prototype.
The trade show opening faced stiff
competition with "Everything You Ever
Wanted to Know About D-Cinema," a
seminar in which NATO's J. Wayne
Anderson, Texas Instruments' Pau
Breedlove, Digital Projection's Peter
Nicholas, Imax's Ken Howarth,
Qualcomm's Steven Morely, Sony Cinema
Products and SMPTE's Al Barton,
Entertainment Technology Consultants
and SMPTE's Matt Cowan, Famous
Players' Barry Blackburn and Kodak's
Bob Mayson discussed the current state of
digital cinema, as addressed at ShoWest.
The Torstar Daily Newspaper Group
and Toronto Star Television hosted a
Woodland Terrace Cocktail that preceded
the Warner Bros., Kodak and Covitecsponsored
Haida Potlach and Casino
Night. Warner's "Perfect Storm" sent a
thunderclap of applause through the
crowd, with "Pokemon 2," "The In
Crowd," "Space Cowboys," "The
Replacements," "Red Planet" and
"Osmosis Jones" also previewed. Eaglegarbed
Haida Indian Dancing Bear, a.k.a.
Ernie Philip, performed a ceremonial
dance, followed incongruously but entertainingly
by 15-year-old singer Alexz
Johnson, whose blue minidress bore some
Native American designs to vaguely tie in
with the theme of the festivities. The
evening was capped with a casino night,
featuring exhibitors as dealers.
The final day of the convention began
with a Fox-hosted breakfast, with clips
from "Big Momma's House," "Titan
A.E.," "Me, Myself and Irene," "X-Men"
SEPARATED AT BIRTH? Dancing Bear wings it at
the Haida Potlach dinner while a devilish dancer
; dark forces and cake at the Alliance lunch.
traditional ShowCanada State o\' the
Industry address had both good and bad
news for exhibitors in Canada and worldwide.
Using information accrued from industry
trade magazines, the Motion Picture
Theatre Associations of Canada, the
MPAA and various business analysts,
Lichtman's presentation compiled a
decade of comparative data demonstrating
exhibitions' recent rises and falls.
In the plus column, 1999 was another
record year at the boxoffice; the North
America total of $7.45 billion was up 55
percent from 1 99 1 "s $4.8 billion, and
marked the eighth consecutive year of
increase—the first such run since 1946.
Canada's part in that achievement was
eight percent with $598 million, up from
$547.4 million in 1998. These results are
mostly due to higher ticket prices rather
than increased attendance; U.S. admissions
were at 1.47 billion in 1999, a one
percent decline from 1998's "Titanic"-
enhanced 1.48 billion. Nevertheles,
Canada had a two percent increase, with
93 million patrons in 1999 versus 91 million
in 1998, and there are currently more
people going to the movies since exhibition's
heyday in 1959, according to
Lichtman.
The best-performing months in Canada
last year were August, December, July and
June, in that order, contrasted with 1998's
anomalous January bonanza, again attributed
to the above-mentioned waterlogged
weeper. 1997's top month was July.
The United States saw an 8.3 percent
jump in ticket prices, going from US$4.69
in 1998 to US$5.08 in 1999. In Canada,
boxoffice per patron in 1999 was C$5.59
(US$3.73). up seven percent from 1998's
figure of C$5.23 (US$3.49). Of Famous
Players' recently announced ticket price
hike to C$11 (US$7.35), Lichtman commented.
"Eleven [Canadian] dollars is still
substantially cheaper than [top prices] in
the United States or other countries.
Compared to hockey games, basketball
games and theatrical productions,
moviegoing continues to be [one of the
lowest priced entertainment options]."
On average, each American went to the
movies five times last year; in Canada, the
figure was 3.2 times. It is estimated that
North Americans are patronizing theatres
once more per year than a decade ago.
An analysis of demographics reveals
that the percentage of 16- to 20-year-old
patrons (20 percent of all moviegoers) is
more than twice their number in the population
(nine percent). Twelve- to 15-yearolds
make up 1 1 percent of moviegoers
compared with seven percent of the population;
21- to 24-year-olds, 10 percent compared
with six percent: 25- to 29-year-olds.
1 2 percent compared to eight percent; 30- to
and "Bedazzled." as well as Fox 39-year-olds. 18 percent compared to 19
percent; 40- to 49-year-olds. 14 percent
Searchlight's "Bootmen," "Woman on
Top" and "Quills." Immediately afterward.
Lightning Group president (and former
Cineplex exec) Howard Lichtman's now
compared to 18 percent; 50- to 59-yearolds,
seven percent compared to 13 percent;
and people 60 and over, eight percent compared
to 20 percent. Broken down another
way, 1 2- to 24-year-olds made up 40 percent
of audiences in 1 999; 25- to 39-year-olds, 28
percent, and those 40 and older. 32 percent.
Julv.2000 77

distribution will have the upper hand in
negotiations." Meanwhile, despite this
ominous trend, screens are still on the rise;
in the U.S., screen count is up 8.8 percent
from 34,186 in 1998 to 37,185 in 1999—
staggering 55 percent increase since 1990.
Canadian screens were up eight percent in
The members of Hyperdance strut their stuff at CopaCanada Night
Of the studios, Disney had the highest
North American market share in 1999
with 17 percent. Following was Warner
Bros (14.2 percent). Universal (12.7 percent).
Paramount (11.6 percent). Fox (10.9
percent), Sony (8.6 percent), DreamWorks
(4.3 percent). New Line (4 percent) and
MGM (4 percent). The number of $100
million dollar films is on the rise, from 13
in 1996 to 17 in 1999. Lichtman predicts a
time in the near future when his slide presentation
will be of films that break the
$200 million barrier; four already reached
that mark last year.
On the down side, the number of films
released significantly decreased from 509
in 1998 to 461 in 1999 (and of those 461
films, only 113 made more than $10 million,
and only 42 of those made more than
$20 million). Lichtman reiterated the
warning he gave at ShowCanada 1999:
"Less films chasing more screens [means]
,903 screens, compared to
iuilding in North America
increased 33 percent over the last five
years, while attendance rose at half that
78 BOXOFFICE

The Leader
Exhibit Freight Logistics
u\BIT/Oa/
International

PRESENTING THE FANTASTIC 4
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS
NORTHERN EXPOSURE
Canadian News Notes by Shlomo Schwartzberg
FAMOUS HIKES TICKET PRICES TO C$11
The top ticket price for movies in Canada has now hit
C$11 (US$7.35). Just a year after Famous Players increased
prices to $10 (US$6.68) at its brand name theatres, such as the
SilverCity and Colossus sites, the company announced the
new price level for those same venues. Matinee prices are
now C$7 (US$4.68) during the week and C$9 (US$6.02) on
weekends. Asked why the circuit has implemented a new
increase so soon after the last one, Barry Patterson, national
media relations manager for Famous Players, told BOXOFFICE,
"We do review our policy on a yearly basis." Patterson added
that "the increase is due to higher operating costs. Our price
increase reflects the value of our new entertainment destinations.
We provide good value for the money." At press time,
Cineplex Odeon had not confirmed whether it was raising
ticket prices accordingly. In his state of the industry address at
ShowCanada 2000, Howard Lichtman, president of the consulting
company The Lightning Croup and a former Cineplex
executive, pointed out that "Eleven [Canadian] dollars is still
substantially cheaper than [top prices]
in the United States or
other countries." Some theatres in prime U.S. markets charge
as high as $10, which equates to C$14.96.
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ROCK SOLID SINCE 1990
B.C. PROJECTIONISTS STRIKE SETTLED
Projectionists in British Columbia voted 71 percent to accept
an offer from Famous Players and Cineplex Odeon that saw
their salaries cut drastically, in some cases going from C$38
(US$25.41) an hour to about C$15 (US$10.03). Accepting the
offer allowed them return to work after a 16-month lockout. The
60 projectionists in B.C. had been fighting against both salary
cuts and the proposed reduction of workers and total shifts
across the province. (Jobs at
17 of 29 provincial theatres will be
eliminated.) The final result of the fight paralleled that of other
parts of Canada, including Quebec and Ontario. No spokesman
for Cineplex was available for comment and while Famous Players
did not want to speak about the B.C. settlement. Famous' national
media relations manager Barry Patterson did remark to BOX-
OFFICE. "We [and Cineplex Odeon] did pay C$1 million
[US$688,800) in severance pay for displaced projectionists."
UNSTABLE BEHAVIOUR
Bernard Legendre has resigned as CEO of the troubled Behaviour
Communications. Behaviour, which suffered a loss of C$30.6 million
(US$20.5 million) for the past year, has sold off its Canadian distribution
arm and digital studio in an attempt to stay afloat. Los
Angeles film executive Mark Damon has taken over as CEO and also
as chairman, replacing Richard Szalwinski.
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Response No. 22
July, 2000 81

INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS
EUROVIEWS
European News Notes by Francesca Dinglasan
FRENCH TICKET TIZZY
PARIS—French exhibitor UGC Cine Cite has announced
plans to halt the sale of a promotional ticket pass that allows
patrons unlimited access to movies playing in any one of the
circuit's 42 theatres in the country. The month-long pass, which
was offered for 98 francs (US$14), has stirred endless controversy
since its introduction last March. Because the special
price was contingent upon a year subscription, several independent
and art house theatres complained that the pass constituted
unfair competitive practices, which could contribute to the
closure of several smaller cinemas throughout France. As a
result of these complaints from indie exhibs as well as those
voiced by French directors organization Societe des
Realisateurs de Films, the country's culture minister Catherine
Tasca called on UGC to suspend its promotion. Although the
circuit will no longer offer patrons the opportunity to purchase
the discounted pass. UGC says it will still honor the approximate
20,000 passes that were purchased from the end of last
March to the end of April.
TAX HUNGARY
BUDAPEST—Hungarian exhibitors and distributors, along
with the state-funded Hungarian Motion Picture Foundation, are
supporting new legislation that calls for a one percent tax hike targeting
the country's movie theatre owners. Functioning as somewhat
of a compromise among the various facets of the Hungarian
film market, American lobby groups and local governmental
agencies, the proposal recommends that a 1 5 percent tax based on
boxoffice take be charged to exhibitors. The tax, which includes
the country's 12 percent value added tax combined with a 3 percent
charge earmarked for local production, would replace the
current system, comprised of the 12 percent VAT and the state's
two percent culture tax.
The new legislation arrives at a time of prolific cinema construction
throughout Hungary. The capital alone has already witnessed
the addition of three new venues, including Australiabased
Village Roadshow's new seven-screener as well as domestic
exhibition and distribution outfit Budapest Film's eight-screen
multiplex and three-screen art house.
GERMAN EXHIBS DO THE SHUFFLE
BERLIN— Engaging in corporate movements that could be
called the Teutonic Shuffle, numerous German exhibition circuits
have recently undergone a change in controlling ownership. In a
multi-leveled deal that will result in the country's largest theatrical
circuit, domestic plex operator CinemaxX announced plans to
purchase shares in rival 320-screen chain UFA Theater for DM18
million (US$9 million)—a sum industry analysts feel
to be surprisingly
low. The acquisition will give CinemaxX a 10 percent
stake in UFA as well as an option to obtain the remaining 90 percent
over the next five years.
In addition to this deal, German distributor Senator Film has
revealed it has acquired a 25 percent stake in CinemaxX. Senator
follows the lead of Belgian exhibitor Kinepolis (controlled by
majority shareholder Hans Joachim Flebbe), which has also
recently acquired holdings in the German circuit. As a result of
the deal. CinemaxX will see its share of the local cinema market
jump from 12 to 20 percent.
KIN0WELT TAKES THEATRES AND TICKETER
COLOGNE—Also partaking in the dance is major cinema
chain. Theile Hoyts Entertainment, which operates under the
Kinopolis banner. The joint venture in Germany between domestic
distributor Kinowelt Medien and Australian theatre circuit
Hoyts recently saw controlling interest pass into the hands of the
local company. Industry observers note that Kinowelt has taken a
50.1 percent stake in Theile Hoyts, which currently ranks as the
country's fifth largest multiplex chain, with 10 venues comprising
86 screens throughout Germany. In addition to the theatrical
acquisition. Kinowelt also revealed that it
has gained a majority
stake in online company Ticketing/S AG, which estimates this
year's annual sales of DM10 million (US$5 million) to triple over
the next three years.
News of Kinowelt s multiple acquisitions come shortly after
the company announced its wholly positive results for year-end
1999, including a revenue jump to DM 370 million (US$181 million)
from 1998's DM210 million (US$105 million), as well as a
pretax profit rise from DM20 million (US$10 million) a year ago
to DM52 million (US$26 million).
LOCAL PICS FLOURISH IN EUR0PA
BRUSSELS—Europa Cinemas, an intercontinental circuit
comprising over 750 screens in 183 cities, reports that European
moviegoers are attending local productions in record numbers.
The chain counted nearly 20 million tickets sold for European pics
in 1999, compared with 15.5 million during the previous 12-
month period. The circuit, which increased the overall amount of
European films screened in its theatres from 58 percent in 1998 to
64 percent last year, witnessed the greatest attendance rise among
continental movies playing in territories outside of their country
of origin. In this category, the number of attendees grew to 12.7
million from 8.8 million a year ago. The figures come as welcome
news to the European Commission, which provides financial support
to Europa Cinemas and other theatrical circuits that screen
and promote local products.
SWEDEN GOES DIGITAL
STOCKHOLM—Swedish conglomerate Bonnier Group's
exhibition arm SF Bio has announced plans to construct the first
screen, 3,000-seat plex will be located just outside of Stockholm
in the city of Kista and will anchor a shopping and entertainment
slat-
development. Dubbed the Filmstaden Kista, the new plex is
ed for an October 2002 bow.
multiplex in Scandinavia to feature digital projection. The new 14-
VALENTI GOES AFTER BOOT
ROME—MPAA head Jack Valenti isn't just setting his sights
on China (see Hill News, page 86), he's also keeping his eye on the
Boot. Insisting that Italy is ignoring an agreement passed by the
World Trade Organization regarding intellectual property, Valenti
is asking government agencies stateside to push their Italian counterparts
towards adopting a stricter anti-piracy policy.
Valenti's
complaint is in reaction to the fact that the Italian Chamber of
Deputies did not vote on legislation that would increase the
degree of punishment for acts of piracy. The outspoken MPAA
president stated, "This bill has been languishing too long."
82 BOXOFFICE

III Til' i^
INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS
PACIFIC OVERTURES
Notes From the Pacific Rim by Francesca Dinglasan
LEAD STORY: USHERING IN A NEW GOLDEN ERA?
HONG KONG—Shortly after Taiwanese hardware company
Acer Digital Services Group's purchase of a 22 percent stake
in Asia film giant Golden Harvest Entertainment (acquired
from former majority stock holder Australia-based Village
Roadshow), the Hong Kong-based outfit revealed its intentions
to move aggressively into the Internet arena as well as to
increase its exhibition presence throughout mainland China.
Golden Harvest's ambitious plans include constructing
between 15 and 25 new venues throughout the country, adding
to its two existing sites in the city of Shanghai. The locations of
the new builds will depend heavily on land availability and economic
factors, such as the cost of theatrical equipment (all of
which must be imported) and the need to keep ticket prices low
in order to attract Chinese audiences to its venues. In addition
to its exhibition-sector and online activities, Golden Harvest
hopes to re-establish its focus on in-house production by making
approximately 10-12 films annually, including local action
star Jackie Chan's upcoming "The Accidental Spy." Besides
ADSG's stock purchase, another Taiwan-based company,
investment firm South-East Asia Investment Holding, recently
acquiring a stake in Golden Harvest, buying an additional
eight percent.
LOEWS SHOWS ITS SEOUL
SEOUL—New York City-based exhibitor Loews Cineplex has
finalized negotiations with South Korean cinema circuit
Mediaplex regarding the formation of a joint venture in the local
market (see Pacific Overtures, May 2000). The new partnership,
dubbed Cineplex Inc., has revealed details of its flagship theatre
located at the Korea World Trade Center in the country's capital.
The Megabox Cineplex. which bowed last May, is presently the
largest theatre in South Korea, holding 16 screens and more than
4,300 seats. Features include loveseat-style seating in every auditorium,
wall-to-wall screens and advanced projection and digital
sound systems. The 12,000-square-foot venue also has a
concierge-type guest services desk, which is the first of its kind in
a South Korean cinema, and anchors the Coex Mall shopping
and entertainment complex located adjacent to the World Trade
Center's Convention and Exhibition Center.
JAPAN INVASION
TOKYO—Loews wasn't joking about taking Asia by storm.
Besides the new joint venture in South Korea and the recent
announcement to construct new plexes throughout Vietnam, the
international exhibition giant has just revealed its intention to
enter the Japanese market. Its first step into the Land of the
Rising Sun (as well as growing cinemas, considering that the previously
underscreened market now holds several multiplexes
owned and operated by foreign circuits, including UCI, AMC and
Warner Bros.) is the opening of a representative office in the country,
which will be managed by Alec Menikoff. who has been
appointed the company's director of business development,
Japan.
In addition to seeking out and negotiating possible theatrical
sites within the country, the Japan-based office will support
Loews Cineplex 's other business development activities throughout
Asia.
NIPPON HERALD ENTERS EXHID FRAY
TOKYO—Not to be outdone by foreign devils (especially the
exhibition industry variety), one of Japan's largest independent
distributors has announced that it will enter the local movie theatre
business by constructing several new art-house cinemas
throughout the country. Nippon Herald vice president Hiro Iijima
says that the company's move into the exhibition sector is part of
an overall strategy to diversify. The distributor recently opened its
first venue, an eight-screener in the city of Hiratsuka, earlier this
year, with sites in the markets of Tsukuba and Kokura slated to
bow by this December. The company intends to have a total of 1
theatres in operation by year-end 2000, all of which will devote at
least one screen to art and specialty films, which are the cornerstone
of Nippon Herald's business. Other more mainstream pics
will be acquired through competing Japanese distributors, including
Toho and Shochiku.
OZ'S STUDIO CITY GOES DUST
MELBOURNE—After a long and rocky road, the Down
Under Studio City project, which called for the construction of a
studio facility and a theme park, has finally been abandoned.
Following a series of 1 1th hour attempts to secure financing, the
proposed project, which was considered by many Australian film
industry workers to the best way to revitalize the state of
Victoria's production market share, fell through. Victoria production
is significantly lagging behind New South Wales', whose
recent success can be largely credited to the opening of Fox's new
studios in Sydney. The Viacom-led consortium of companies
attempting to attract both domestic and international investors
sought to raise AUSS485 million (USS291 million) for completion
of the facilities. However, despite a three-month extension granted
by local government authorities that own the 72-acres where
the proposed site was to be built, the parties were still unable to
raise adequate interest in the project.
PACIFIC RIMSH0TS
New York City-based Loews Cineplex has tapped former
Australia-based Village Roadshow executive Ian Riches to oversee
the circuit's expanding operations throughout Asia and
Europe. ..Rupert Murdoch's company News Corp. and partner Lend
Lease Development have informed the Australian Stock Exchange
that each outfit needs to invest upwards of AUSS20 million
(US$12.5 million) in its joint venture project, a theme park in
Sydney's Fox Studios Australia. ..Censors in Hong Kong have ignited
protest from local activists in reaction to their banning of a
poster for Canadian feature film "Better Than Chocolate" about a
lesbian relationship. The censors described the promotional poster
as "offensive to public morality, decency and ordinary good taste."
DO YOU HAVE EXHIBITION-RELATED NEWS
AD0UT THE PACIFIC RIM?
CONTACT FRANCESCA DINGLASAN AT
(626) 396-0250, OR FAX (626) 396-0248,
ORE-MAIL: francescad@boxoffice. com

84 Boxoffice
|
EXHIBITION
BRIEFINGS
by Franceses
Dinglasan
LEAD STORY: SILVER SEEKS
LINING IN FINANCIAL CLOUD
As further indication of the crisis in
domestic exhibition, Landmark Theatres parent
company Silver Cinemas has followed in
the footsteps of Encino, Calif.-based Mann
Theatres (see Exhibition Briefings, Novemer
1999) and filed for bankruptcy protection
from its creditors. The Addison, Tex. -based
84-theatre circuit says that it has secured
$50 million in financing from Foothill
Capital Corp. to help with its mass restructuring,
including plans to focus on niche arthouse
markets via the Landmark banner.
News of Silver's Chapter 11 filing comes
shortly after exhib giant United Artists came
dangerously close to declaring bankruptcy
itself. The Englewood, Colo. -based chain
avoided Chapter 11 by entering into negotiations
with its lenders regarding recapitalization
(see Ticker Time, p 85).
Just prior to Silver's bankruptcy announcement,
the chain had laid off some
160 employees and closed down 17 of its
theatres, which were mostly discount, non-
Landmark venues.
GENERAL CONSIDERS
SALE OF MEXICAN CIRCUIT
Boston-based General Cinema has
revealed that it is considering the option of
selling its 45-screen circuit in Mexico to
Cinemex, presently the fastest-growing theatre
chain south of the border. While
Cinemex COO Matthew Heyman has
announced that his company is in fact negotiating
with General Cinema, financial details
of the deal were undisclosed. General is
believed to be putting its Mexican sites on the
auction block as part of its plans to refocus
efforts on domestic markets.
CHANGE OF HANDS AT R/C
J. Wayne Anderson, who has held a variety
of posts at Reistertown, MD-based R/C
Theatres, including CEO and president, has
successfully acquired the circuit via an
investment group comprised of himself,
Dennis R. Daniels, David G. Phillips,
Richard A. Hershel, David F. Knight, Philip
W. Ridenour and Gerald S. Divaris. In addi-
SHOWMANDISER PROMOTION OF THE MONTH
The
fact that there are no bigscreen
Westerns to promote doesn't mean
that Boston-based Hoyts Cinemas.
BOXOFFICEs Showmandiser of the
month, can't hold a few quick-draws in its
theatres. However, the "draws" it's hoping
will "draw" the attention of moviegoers isn't
the gun-slinging variation, but rather the
more civilized one of artistic creation. In
conjunction with Val Morgan Cinema
Advertising and Hasbro Corporation,
Hoyts is providing patrons in several of its
theatres throughout the Northwest an
onscreen version of the popular "Pictionary" game. During the Val Morgan-created
advertising presentation screened before the start of a pic, slides featuring sketches
invite moviegoers to guess the phrase represented by the drawing. Want to play? Take
a guess at the Pictionary slide above, now being played on Hoyts screens (hint: we hope
its something that's very close to your heart in more ways than one).
Send photos and descriptions of your promotion to:
BOXOFFICE, /55S. El Molino Ave., Suite 100
Pasadena, CA 91101
Attn: Showmandiser
tion to his posts at R/C, Anderson's exhibition
background includes 27 years at United
Artists, where he most recently served as
executive VP of operations. The new ownership
team says that it's goal is
"to re-establish
the circuit as a dominant regional exhibitor,"
with new multiplexes currently being developed
in Hanover, Penn.; Culpeper, VA; the
Florida cities of Pinellas Park and Daytona
Beach; and the Maryland markets of
Hagerstown and Frederick. Longtime R/C
owners the Cohen family, lead by Irwin R.
Cohen, have retained a certain number of
venues, which will be managed by R/C
Theatres Management Corp.
AMC GOES TO GOTHAM
The ever-increasing number of venue
options for New York City moviegoers has
added 25 more screens to its tally with the
recent opening of AMC's new state-of-the-art
complex located on 42nd Street. The 4,975-
seat AMC Empire 25 Theatres was
redesigned by Gould Evans Affiliates architect
Doug Doering to maximize the unique
characteristics of the 93-year-old building,
including its dome, which can be seen by
patrons as they move up and down the
venue's bank of escalators. The theatre also
features an outdoor space, where moviegoers
can grab a cup of Java before the movie
begins. The theatre, which opened its door
last April, is part of an extensive neighbor-
THIS MONTH'S M0VIEB0SS.COM PLAYING TIP
An Online Game for Exhibitors
Screen Upgrades Add Up to Profit
On June 1st the rules of the game change slightly to encourage players to upgrade
their screens instead of just adding more screens. Quality will now matter as it does in
the real multiplex. Instead of adding the previous 20 percent boxoffice Per Screen
Average, Movie Boss will now pay out 33 percent per upgrade. This means that all things
being equal, a fully upgraded screen (with all three possible upgrades) will pay out 199
percent of PSA. This is almost equal to adding an additional screen, and you can do
that and save $5,000 in the upgrade costs. The rule change was implemented due to player
requests and to balance the scales toward booking skill rather than pure number of
screens. Let us know your opinion at www.movieboss.com .
hood renewal program taking place under
the watchful eye of the Empire State
Development Corporation Historic Preservation
Committee.
WEHRENBERG'S NEW RONNIE
St. Louis-based Wehrenberg Theatres has
announced the opening of its newest hometown
theatre. Dubbed Ronnie's 20, the multiplex
is equipped with state-of-the-art
equipment, including digital sound and
"snuggle seats," which let moviegoers do
exactly that via adjustable armrests.
Additional features include a two-story
arcade entertainment facility named "Now
Playing," which boasts coin-op games, a virtual
roller coaster ride and the Wehrenberg
exclusive "Bowlingo" game, as well as a
dining area modeled after a drive-in theatre,
where actual 1950's automobiles comprise
the seating area.
CLEVELAND'S CREW OF CINEMAS
Ohio circuit Cleveland Cinemas has
unveiled plans to acquire the existing
Colony Theatre in the downtown area of its
hometown and rename the venue Shaker
Square Cinemas. Cleveland, which currently
operates the Cedar Lee Theater in Cleveland
Heights and Tower City Cinemas
Cleveland, is working in conjunction with
General Theatres, also part of the Cleveland
community, to renovate the cinema as part
of the larger redevelopment taking place in
the surrounding Shaker Square neighborhood.
The exhibitors intend to transform the
site into an elegant six-screener, which
incorporates such features as the latest digital
technology, specialty concession items
and a VIP screening room, while maintaining
the historic aspects of the venue.
According to Cleveland Cinemas president
Jonathan Forman, the revamped theatre will
i
specialize in both mainstream films and arthouse
fare, so that "audiences seeking an
I
alternative to the multiplex [can] find their
favorite films showing, as [can] those seeking
a greater selection of specialized films."

IWERKS COMES HOME
Burbank, Calif.-based large format giant
Ivverks has announced the opening of two
new domestic sites. The company's trademark
Extreme Screen Theatres will bow in
Ohio science center COSI Columbus—the
Fascination Destination this November, with
doors to open shortly afterwards at Kansas
City's Science City at Union Station, also a
science center. Specializing in the screenings
of educational films while utilizing the
latest state-of-the-art technology, Iwerks' two
new venues will be the first of their kind
within the United States. Other Extreme
in Screen Theatres currently development
include sites in the U.K., Argentina, Scotland
and Fargo, North Dakota.
NEUMADE CROWNED
EXCLUSIVE SUPPLIER
South Norwalk, Conn. -based Crown
Theatres has reached a deal with Theatre
Products of Neumade that names the manufacturer
as the circuit's exclusive supplier of
projection equipment for 1 20 screens scheduled
to open to the public over the next 18
months. In addition to Odyssey 15/70 Large
Format Systems to be installed in two different
Florida sites, the partnership will see that
Crown's new auditoriums are equipped with
Neuexcel 2000 Automation & Eremann projection
systems. Among the new venues
bowing in the coming year-and-a-half are an
11-screener in Annapolis, MD; an 18-
screener in Miami Gardens, Fla.; a 17-
screener in Hartford, Conn.; a 1 6-screener in
Hollywood, Fla.; and an 18-screener in
Skokie, III.
CIRCUITS MEMORIALIZE
DRIVE-IN FOUNDER
More than 100 drive-ins throughout the
country celebrated the history of outdoor
exhibition by paying tribute to Richard
Hollingshead, who opened
the first ozoner in Camden,
NJ on June 6, 1933. Drive-in
owners and operators celebrated
the occasion by hosting
a number of special
events and promotions on
the first weekend of last June.
Among the organizations
that helped to spearhead the
nationwide celebration were
Hollingshead Day Event
coordinator Rick Cohen, the
United Drive-in Theatre
Owners Association and the
Drive-in Theatre Fan Club.
SHOWMINDER
CALENDAR
Remember to save these dates:
Cinema Expo, June 26
29, RAI, Amsterdam. Call
(212) 246-6460... Theatre
Historical Society of America's
2000 Annual Conclave,
Cleveland. Call
Michael Hauser at (734)
241-2831 or Richard Sklenar
at (630) 782-1800. ...Show-
South, August 15— 16,
Peabody Hotel, Orlando,
Fla. Call Saundra Conner at
(770) 455-8988. ..Geneva
Convention, Sept. 26—28,
Grand Geneva Resort and
Spa, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
Call (262) 532-
0017...ShowEast, Oct. 11 —
14, Mariott Worldwide,
Orlando, Fla. Call (212) 246-
6460...CineAsia, November
14— 16, Hong Kong Convention
and Exhibition
Centre, Hong Kong. Call
(212) 246-6460.
NATO REGIONAL NEWS
ASSEMBLY ALLY TO RETIRE
NATO is losing an ally in the Wisconsin Assembly at the end of this
year. Representative Don Hasenohrl (D— Marshfield), is not seeking
re-election. Rep. Hasenohrl has served honorably in the Wisconsin
assembly for 25 years. He played a key role in the final passage of the
movie theatre equipment property tax exemption in the state budget.
Rep. Hasenohrl joins five Assembly Republicans who are not seeking
re-election. — by Lisa Hilhert & Jim Tenuta; contributed by NATO of
Wisconsin & Upper Michigan
SHOWSOUTH NAMES ITS NEW CHAIRMAN
ShowSouth is proud to announce the appointment of its new chairman.
Randi Emerman of Muvico Theaters. She will be succeeding
John Stembler Jr. of Georgia Theatre Company.
Emerman has been in the film industry for 15 years and has been
the director of marketing for Muvico Theaters for the past four years.
Her talents and creative ideas will be a great asset to ShowSouth.
We're very excited to have her on board! — Contributed by Saundra
Conner, ShowSouth (co-hosted by NATO of Georgia and' NATO of
Florida with additional sponsorship from NA TO of North Carolina,
NA TO of South Carolina and NA TO of Alabama)
TICKER TIME
40% . j 1 1 1 j-
Regional NATO offices,
send your news clips to:
B0X0FFICE, 155 S. El Molino Ave., Suite 100
Pasadena, CA 91101
Attn: Regional News

1 1 5
I
HILL
NEWS
by Franceses
Dinglasan
LEAD STORY: NATO REACTS
TO ADA-RELATED SUITS
In addition to the numerous lawsuits
claiming that stadium seating in the newest
multiplexes is inaccessible to wheelchairs
(see Hill News, )une 2000), some of the
country's largest exhibitors are facing another
kind of court battle regarding compliance
with the American Disabilities Act—this
time involving blind and deaf patrons.
According to exhibitor trade organization
the National Association of Theatre Owners,
a string of court battles arising from ADArelated
issues have been waged throughout
the year. Among the lawsuits was one initiated
by eight hearing impaired people in
Oregon demanding that "rear window technology,"
which provides certain moviegoers
with individual access to movie captions, be
installed in venues; another suit brought on
by a blind patron asks for the installation of
"Descriptive Video Service" technology,
which was designed to aid those unable to
see the screen; and the latest courtroom dispute
involves three deaf individuals against
two major circuits (unidentified by NATO).
The association, which represents
approximately 70 percent of domestic
screens, has officially expressed outrage at
these recent cases, insisting that the suits
are legally unfounded and are ultimately
seeking to force theatres to adopt the
"wrong solutionis]." Says NATO president
John Fithian, "The law suits are contrary to
the position of leading national disability
rights organizations, counterproductive to
the needs of lawyers' clients and wholly
lacking in legal merit." The organization
insists that there is no language in the ADA
that requires cinemas to carry the technology
named in the recent suits and that a better
solution than the incorporation of
expensive rear window devices would be
open-captioned films. NATO says that it
encourages the disabled community to
work with theatre owners in persuading
filmmakers to produce movies with this
technology.
VALENTI-LED GROUP TO TAKE ON
GREAT WALL VIA WASHINGTON
As part of his continuing effort to ensure
that American bigscreen product is available
on every single square-foot of the
globe, Motion Picture Association chairman
and CEO Jack Valenti has formed a
new committee that will work toward persuading
Congress to establish permanent
normal trade relations with China, thus
opening up the largest market in the world
for U.S. -based distributors. As part of the
World Trade Association gathering that took
place late last year, China agreed to
increase the quota of U.S. films allowed
into the country from 10 to 20. However,
the majority of boxoffice revenue earned
from the releases automatically goes to the
Communist government, which Valenti is
attempting to remedy. The newly-formed
association consists of executives from several
major studios including Disney, Fox,
MCM, Sony Pictures, Universal, Paramount
and Warner Bros.
L.A.'S TAX WRITE-OFF
While screenwriters in Los Angeles
bemoan the fact that they may never get
their big break, they can take some comfort
in the idea that at least they'll be getting a
tax one. The City of Angels Council has
decided that it would no longer oppose
State Assembly Bill 83, which prohibits
municipalities from exacting business taxes
from individuals who work at home and
meet the legal definition of being an
employee (as opposed to an independent
contactor). The Writers Guild of America
has been negotiating with representatives
from the city of Los Angeles for several
months in an attempt to secure the tax
exemption for scribes and other homebased
creative artists.
DO YOU HAVE NEWS ABOUT
LEGAL ISSUES 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:
boxoffice@earthlink.net
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have
have
STUDIO
NEWS
by Annlee Ellingson
THE WEINSTEINS SIGN A NEW
LEASE AT THE MOUSE HOUSE
The Walt Disney Co. has reupped
Miramax toppers Bob and Harvey
Weinstein's contracts for another seven
years. Though courted by other studios,
the brothers, who founded their
indie distributor
in 1979 and sold it to Disney in
1993, opted to retain their Mouse ears,
reportedly due to profit incentives,
expanded greenlight authority, further
financial support from Disney and continued
autonomy.
Calling the Weinstein brothers "creative
geniuses," Disney chairman and CEO
Michael Eisners says, "Their love of film is
matehed by their deep understanding of the
second to none at discovering and developing
talented young actors, directors and writers.
We look forward to continuing to work
with these dynamic leaders of the entertain-
CORPORATE REPORT CARD
ment industry as they add to their incredible
body of work."
"We couldn't have accomplished this
without the unique combination of autonomy
and backing from Disney, as Michael
has been such a tremendous supporter of
our vision and given us the ability to run our
own show," the Weinsteins reply. "Everyone
talks about corporate 'synergy,' and we
think this relationship shows how well it
can really work."
Miramax's recent releases include the
Oscar-nominated "Cider House Rules" and
boxoffice hit "Scream 3."
INDIES FORM IDP
Emulating United International Pictures,
Universal and Paramount's joint international
distribution apparatus, Stratosphere,
Samuel Coldwyn and Canada-based
CanWest have formed IDP Distribution.
Financed equally by the three partners, IDP
will market and distribute their films in
North America. The companies will still
acquire, develop and produce pictures individually,
retaining their own profits, but they
may opt to enter co-ventures with each other
as well. IDP, which will be run under COO
and distribution and marketing president
Michael Silberman, expects to release 20
films annually.
OVERSEAS INVESTMENTS
Infused by television advertising dollars stemming from the success
of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," the Walt Disney Co.
reported a net income of $369 million, or 18 cents a share, for the
company's second fiscal quarter ending in March, up 31 percent
from last year's $281 million net income. Revenues increased 14
Overseas Filmgroup, parent company of
First Look Pictures, has struck a $1 7-million
investment deal with Rosemary Street under
which Rosemary will own nearly 60 percent
of the independent foreign distributor.
Overseas also has arranged a five-year
revolving credit facility with Chase
Securities worth $30 million. The company
will use the funds from both arrangements to
fund production and acquisitions in television
and film, refinance its debt and form a
commercial division.
percent to $6.2 billion compared with $5.4 billion in 1 999. The studio
entertainment division, which includes Disney's home video
and theatrical operations, was less profitable due to poor performances
by 1999 holiday holdover "Bicentennial Man" and
"Mission to Mars." Operating income declined 97 percent to $3
million. Revenues nudged up four percent to $1.7 billion.
Investing heavily into its launch of PlayStation 2, Sony Corp.
revealed a net loss for the quarter ending in March of $339 million,
compared with $179 million in the same timeframe last year.
Revenue increased 11 percent to $15 billion from $13 billion in
1999. Profits dropped 32 percent to $1.1 billion, compared to
$1.61 billion last year. Sony's movie division sales fell nearly 10
percent, injured by the poorly received "The Messenger: The Story
of Joan of Arc" and "Random Hearts."
Unlike Disney and Sony, News Corp.'s fiscal financials were
buoyed by its film division, with the Leonardo DiCaprio vehicle
"The Beach" performing well internationally. The conglomerate's
net income rose 15 percent to $193 million, or 18 cents a share,
from $168 million, or 17 cents, in the January-to-March time period
in 1999. Revenues increased five percent to $3.2 billion from
$3.1 billion last year, and operating income grew 15 percent to
$417 million from $362 million a year ago. Filmed entertainment
far outperformed the company's other divisions, reporting an operating
income of $95 million, a 150 percent increase over 1999's
$38 million.
ON THE MOVE
In the wake of former chairman Joe Roth's
departure from Walt Disney Studios, Todd
Garner has decided to follow his mentor's
footsteps, ankling his position as Buena
Vista Motion Picture Croup co-president
and leaving Nina Jacobson solely in charge.
The two had shared the position for less
than a year. In making the announcement,
Walt Disney Studios chairman Peter
Schneider says, "Over the last year, Nina
has been both a fearless leader and creative
visionary—two qualities I believe are essential
to running this division well. She has
exquisite taste, a keen eye for talent and
truly understands the mission of our film
group. I enjoyed working with her
immensely and am delighted to have her in
charge."
Acknowledging i
his contribution
in elevating
Artisan to majorindie-player
status
after the phenomenal
success
of "The Blair
Witch Project,"
the distributor
I
has promoted
Amir Malin to co-CEO. He will share the
responsibilities with Mark Curcio. "Amir
and I worked together in creating
Artisan, and this announcement is a formal
recognition of that work and our partnership,"
Curcio says. Maline replies, "It
is an honor to now be at the helm of a
company that has established a new paradigm
for an independent entertainment
company."
Former Disney chairman Joe Roth,
who recently exited the studio to form his
own production shingle, has been named
to the board of directors at Pixar
Animation Studios. Roth was instrumental
in developing Pixar's latest release,
"Toy Story 2."
Still banking on the success of "The World Is Not Enough" and
adhering to a policy of
financial conservatism, the new MGM posted
its third consecutive profitable quarter ending in March. Profits rose to
$5.2 million, or three cents a share, compared with a loss of $307 million,
or $2 a share (a figure that includes a one-time only $225 million
charge to exit the studio's home video distribution pact with Warner
Bros.), in the comparable 1999 quarter. Revenues rose 33 percent to
$345 million. Feature film revenues rose 46 percent to $285 million.
As Viacom finalized its merger with CBS, the conglomerate
reported first-quarter net profits of $76 million, up 69 percent from
last year's figure of $45 million. Revenue rose a slight 2.5 percent
to $3 billion. The company's entertainment division, which
includes Paramount Pictures, reported relaxing revenues of $1
billion,
down three percent, and a three-percent increase in operating
income to $117 million.
Also for the quarter ending in March, Seagram reported a net loss
of $265 million, or 61 cents a share, compared with a loss of $199
million, or 50 cents, in the same timeframe last year. Operating
losses decreased to $1 million compared with 1999's $163 million,
and revenues rose five percent to $3.4 billion, compared with
$3.32 million a year ago. The film entertainment division— i.e.,
Universal—revealed a negative cash flow of $8 million, a vast
improvement over 1999's loss of $97 million in the same quarter.
Revenues rose 1 2 percent to $877 million. The success is attributed
to "The Green Mile's" overseas performance.
"The Green Mile" also contributed to Time Warner's bottom line.
The company's operating income increased 12.5 percent to $1.17
billion from $1.04 billion last year. Net losses equaled $101 million,
compared with an income of $120 million in 1999. The filmed
entertainment division's earnings rose over 20 percent to $194 million
from $160 million a year ago.
July, 2000 87

i that
TECH
TALK
SUPPLY SIDE
by Annlee Ellingson
ASC EXTENDS HAND TO SMPTE
Recognizing the importance of the decisions
being made by the Society of Motion
Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE)
digital cinema standards committee, the
American Society of Cinematographers
(ASC) has called for full participation from
the creative community. "We welcome and
support all efforts to improve the quality,
accuracy and efficiency of the presentation
of motion pictures to the public," acknowledges
ASC President Victor J.
Kemper.
"However, we believe that the authors of
films, whose work is at risk. ..must fully participate
in
the development of standards for
digital projection in theatres.
"Let's not settle for the lowest common
denominator," he continues. "This is a oncein-a-lifetime
opportunity to set standards
that can enhance the moviegoing experience
for the public."
ANGELICA IMPROVES ITS IMAGE
For the 11th year in a row, Angelica Image
Apparel has taken home the gold at the Career
Apparel Institute's Image of the Year awards
program. Among the
company's eight
prizes is an Image of
the Year Award for
its
General Cinema uniforms
and acces-
Angelica's
sories.
Laurie Boyd and
CCC's Chris Fahey
accepted the award.
SILVER SOUNDTRACKS TARNISH
Dolby and Kodak have indicated that the
industry is progressing toward the elimination
of the silver-applicated soundtrack, a
financially and environmentally costly
process. A growing number of prints—and in
the cases of Fox, Artisan and Warner Bros.,
all prints—are being released with the highmagenta
analog alternative, a silver-based
soundtrack that acts as an intermediary step
between silver and pure cyan dye tracks.
EXPO EXTRA: NEW PRODUCTS
The high-magenta soundtracks sound better
on projectors installed with red LED readers,
and currently there are 55,000 projectors
worldwide and 20,000 in North America
outfitted with the red LED reader. When
these readers have saturated the market, the
industry can make a permanent move to
cyan.
SCREENCHECK DEBUTS IN NY
Clearview Cinemas' Ziegfeld Theatre in
New York bowed the city's first Kodak
ScreenCheck-certified screen in conjunction
with the release of "Gladiator." "The
Ziegfeld and Kodak are names synonymous
with images and quality," says
Clearview spokesperson Gene Heaney.
"This joint effort with Kodak is important
because it affirms our commitment to the
people who create movies and the audiences
who pay to see them." Nearly 500
screens are now certified by the Kodak
program.
A NIGHT AT THE ROXY
Santa Rosa, Calif.-based North American
Cinemas has partnered with CardLogix to
create a stored value ticketing and loyalty
program for its Roxy Stadium 1 4 theatre. The
cash-free Roxy Movie Card, based on
CardLogix's Movie Gold smart card, can be
used at the boxoffice or kiosks located in the
theatre and is the centerpiece of the Santa
Rosa Downtown Theatre Experience tourism
campaign.
KLIPSCH BOWS DOWN UNDER
In another first, the Capitol Theatre in
Sydney, Australia, has installed the continent's
first Klipsch cinema loudspeaker system,
just in time for a month-long run of the
digitally remastered "Gone With the
Wind."
ON THE MOVE
DTS has promoted Jon Kirchner to president
and COO of the company, where he
has worked since 1993. For the past 18
months, he has served as executive VP, managing
day-to-day operations.
Christie Systems, the newly created parent
company of Christie and Christie Digital
Systems, has appointed Dr. Glenn Sherman
as its president and CEO, in which capacity
he'll oversee the development of both companies.
Following in his father's footsteps, David
Lawrence has assumed the presidency of
Lawrence Metal Products. His dad, Steve,
has become chairman.
Taking advantage of having a major trade show on its own turf, Amsterdam-based Stage
Accompany will introduce several new products at Cinema Expo. First, the Screen Series
S 38 sound system is
a "Ribbon Compact Driver loaded" three-way system with a depth ot
14 inches. The system will also feature a Newton Mid array and reverse bass configuration,
a frequency response of 30Hz to 30,000Hz and high SPL, making the unit digital-cinema
ready. Also, the Efficiency Series ES 40 power amp features dynamic damping control,
"on-board" dedicated processing that optimizes filtering and output and four ohms of
power. Visit booths 189 and 190 for more information.
Also showcased at Cinema Expo, QSC's DSP-3 digital signal processing
module has two channels of independent DSP and attaches
directly to the back of the company's DCA two-channel amps. The
module's RS-232 serial port allows configuration of a wide variety of
functions— including crossover and shelf filters, signal delay, compression
and limiting—with most PCs, made even easier by a "dragand-drop"
graphical user interface. Visit booths 299 and 300 for
more information.
DIGITAL CINEMA
KODAK COMMITS TO DIGITAL
Kodak has struck an agreement with
QUALCOMM to incorporate QUAL-
COMM's encryption and compression technology
into a prototype digital projection
system that Kodak is developing. "The commercial
success of digital cinema will
require a fully integrated system involving a
number of partners making contributions in
their respective areas of expertise," says
Kodak COO Eric Rodli. "Kodak intends to
play an enabling role as 'integrator' in the
development of this system."
In his opening remarks at Kodak's "It's
More Than a Movie Theatre" seminar at
ShoWest, general manager Mayson indicated
Kodak is also testing and
discussing the possible use of
JVC's D-ILA chips in its digital
system. Of digital cinema
he said, "I would suggest that
ve want image quality that's
better than film, a distribution
process that's more efficient
and reliable, a system
designed to world standards and an audience
experience that's superior to home viewing."
The company's alliance with QUALCOMM
and discussions with JVC appears to support
Kodak's commitment to these goals.
DIGITAL TO THE IMAX
One of the few licensees of Texas
Instruments' (Tl) Digital Light Processing (DLP)
digital projection technology, the Imax
Corporation has indicated its intentions to
launch an aggressive roll-out of a new generation
of advanced DLP projectors through its subsidiary
Digital Projection International (DP!) as
soon as the technology is "fully accessible,"
according to a company statement. "We believe
that digital cinema is the way of the future for the
commercial film industry," say Imax co-CEOs
Richard Gelfond and Bradley Wechsler. "We
believe eventually all film-based projectors in
movie theatres around the world will be
replaced with digital projectors, and DPI is in a
unique position to be a leader in this industry as
Tl's longest standing projection partner."
FANTASY IMAX
LARGE FORMAT
Imax's fantasies came true in its first-quarter
financials, when "Fantasia/2000's" fantastic
success drove the company's earnings
to $3.1 million, up from $2 million in the
same timeframe a year ago. Stockholders
earned 10 cents a share, up 43 percent from
earnings of seven cents in 1999. Revenue
reached $56.4 million, increasing 54 percent
from 1999's $36.7-million figure.
"Fantasia/2000," playing exclusively at 75
IMAX theatres, grossed $64 million during
its four months in release.
"'Fantasia/2000' proved the boxoffice
power of the IMAX theatre network and will
help establish IMAX theatres as another distribution
channel for Hollywood films," say
Imax co-CEOs Richard Gelfond and Bradley
Wechsler.
88 BOXOFFICE

Meanwhile, the company has bowed a
new division, Imax Enterprises, to develop
businesses associated with its large-format
and digital cinema operations.
LARGE-FORMAT VETS DESCEND
MACGILLIVRAY FREEMAN
Chris Blum, Joshua Colover and Myles
Connolly, principal players at large-format
MacCillivray Freeman Films ("Everest,"
"Adventures in Wild California"), have
ankled the distributor to form Aperture
Films, a production and consulting company
based in Laguna Beach, Calif.
WIRED WORLD
HOME BOXOFFICE
Taking the next step in online ticketing,
both AOL MovieFone and ETM
Entertainment Network have unveiled technology
through which moviegoers will be
able to print their own tickets on their home
computers. AOL MovieFone will first partner
with United Artists (see Tech Talk,
February
2080), who expected to begin accepting the
self-printed tickets this spring. While one
million AOL MovieFone customers purchase
tickets via the 'Net, 90 percent of the service's
300 million users still rely predominately
on the phone.
ETM expects to go so far as to eliminate
the need for paper tickets altogether. In this
system patrons would simply swipe an ID
card, such as a credit card, to gain entry.
Meanwhile, Disney and Loews Cineplex
have made multi-million-dollar investments
in EncrypTix, a subsidiary of Stamps.com
that applies the web site's technology to ticketing
and other services such as travel and
financial products, like traveler's checks.
Print-your-own tickets will have barcodes
that prevent forgery.
MISSION TO MARS 2
In conjunction with its segue into at-home
ticket printing, AOL MovieFone has
launched MARS Sequel, the newest version
of the point-of-sale system. In addition to
managing movie theatre business activities—such
as ticket printing and sales, concessions
sales and home-office reporting
the sequel interfaces with online and phone
ticketing and includes software with the
capability to have moviegoers print their
own tickets. Other amenities include
reserved seating and flexible payment methods,
such as cash, credit cards, passes,
coupons and gift certificates.
"The new MARS Sequel system is a great
addition to the suite of products and services
we can offer our exhibitor partners," says
AOL MovieFone CEO Andrew Jarecki. "This
new state-of-the-art point-of-sale solution
will allow theatre owners to better control
and analyze their business, but it will also
ensure that they have ready access to the
millions of moviegoers who use
MovieFone.com, 777-FILM and our new
wireless applications as they evolve."
Also, AOL MovieFone has introduced
speech recognition capabilities to 777-FILM.
Now callers can access movie listings and
tickets by simply speaking into the phone.
The technology was developed in association
with Lucent Technologies' Bell
Labs.
9 ON THE 'NET: European Circuit Web Exec
Kris Hoet Discusses the New www.kinepolis.com
Given that Kinepolis gave birth to the
megaplex, it's no surprise that the Belgiumbased
exhibitor is charging ahead in the
online environment. A completely
redesigned website is slated to launch in
July, right after
Cinema Expo;
below, Kinepolis
exec Kris Hoet
provides a look
at the redone
kinepolis.com.
BOXOFFICE:
Your new design
(example page
shown at right)
will use frames,
as does your previous
site?
KRIS HOET:
The engine of the
new site is developed
to use frames. This gives us the ability
to change and refresh the site in an easy and
flexible way. Having a lot of multimedia
content, we don't want people to wait too
long to see the information they want.
BOXOFFICE: The site was already wide,
but the redesign will add downloads of
desktop theme/screensavers and expanded
corporate coverage, among other elements.
HOET: We wanted a complete website—both
information and entertainment
are major values of the site. That information
includes several aspects of the company,
consumer as well as business-to-business,
public relations,
investor relations, et
cetera. With the updating tool delivered
with the site, it's also easy for several
Kinepolis employees to put information
online without interference from corporate.
We will still be in charge of part of the
input and keep an eye on the fact that
everybody has to respect the corporate
guidelines. Next to
this, we will develop
several entertainment
values added
to the site— for
example, forums,
chat, frontstage.com,
games, gossip— all
related to film.
BOXOFFICE: Your
platform solution
was Lotus Domino
4.6.3 on the NT. Will
that be changing?
HOET: It will stay
an NT platform, but
it'll be Microsoft IIS
with an SQL database.
BOXOFFICE: The
new site will use
Macromedia Flash.
HOET: With IE 4,
the Flash plug-in is
automatically downloaded,
and with IE
5 it's included. Only
Netscape doesn't
offer this functionality. So we always suggest
a way to download Flash.
BOXOFFICE: What types of email
newsletters will your new site offer?
HOET: Both text and HTML emails,
where we will
experiment with
banner ads. As
the mailing is
really
considered
a "service"
to our visitors,
we must experiment
to know
whether they
will unsubscribe
because the
bannering is
annoying.
BOXOFFICE:
How will online
ticketing be handled?
HOET: The ticket platform is in development
but will be launched later this year.
BOXOFFICE: What is your current showtimes
solution, and will that be changing?
HOET: Currently, cinema programming
is entered in the Domino database
by the webmaster. In the new website,
cinema programming will come right out
of the local cashier databases of our
complexes.
BOXOFFICE: Will your advertising
arrangement with Publicast (www.publicast.be)
and your storefont partnership with
online entertainment store Frontstage
(www.frontstage.com) continue?
HOET: We're advertising via banners
only for one year, but we saw the attractiveness
of our visitors' profile to several
companies to use kinepolis.com to advertise.
And, in our attempt to offer as much
entertainment as possible, Frontstage.com
is the perfect partner there: the link with
film and online buying—of,
for example,
a soundtrack
is really important.
Frontstage.com is a
part of Kinepolis
Group, so we can
also do a lot of
actions and promotions
together.
BOXOFFICE: How
will you do languages?
HOET: Users will
have the choice between
the language
of their country and,
always, English.
International people
will be able to visit a
more general version
without, for
example, the program
for the cinemas—
it will be
more concentrated
on corporate information.

90 (R-71) BOXOFHCE
_K2fiQEH
REVIEWS
July 2000
DAY AND DATE: JULY 14
CHUCK AND BUCK ••**
Starring Mike White, Chris Weitz,
Lupe Ontiveros and Beth Colt. Directed
by Michael Arteta. Written by Mike
White. Produced by Matthew
Greenfield. An Artisan release. Black
comedy. Rated R for sexuality and language.
Running time: 99 min.
Chuck and Buck were boyhood best
friends. They indulged in the usual
childhood pastimes and some not so
usual, particularly ones that happen to
rhyme with their names. Chuck moved
away and they lost touch ~ jnd now,
years later, they are
all grown up. Well,
at least Chuck, now
Charles, is trying to
be, while Buck
seems to be stuck
in some kind of
time warp. He follows
Chuck to Los
Angeles and tries to
insinuate himself
sequel, but instead of waiting for "Chuck
and Buck II" ("Son of Chuck and Buck"?),
that movie will be played out in the heads
of audiences for weeks to come.
Mike White has written one remarkable
movie and one humdinger of a role
for himself. His childlike Buck is the
kind of social misfit that you instinctively
feel sorry for, but really don't want in
the same room. It is a delicate balance
and, as actor and writer, White perfectly
walks the emotional tightrope between
pathetic and obnoxious. He was, incidentally,
the supervising
producer of
TV's "Freaks and
Geeks"; Buck is the
poster boy for both.
Chris Weitz is faultless
as the pal who is
now determined to
fly straight. He leaves
enough ambiguity
with the comfort
zone he enjoys in his
into Charles' life.
new life to keep you
The embryo showbiz
mogul resists,
constantly guessing.
And a special mention
and when stalking Mike White and Chris Weitz
goes to Chris' brother,
doesn't seem to be in Artisan's "Chuck and Buck.
Paul, who Buck casts
getting him anywhere
Buck dashes off a play remarkably
like his own life story and invites easy to play a bad actor without acting
as the Chuck character in his play. It's not
Chuck and his fiancee to opening night. badly. Paul Weitz pulls it off.
The cat is out of the bag in a major way. "Chuck and Buck" was shot on video
If this had been a conventional and transferred to film. The gritty look
Hollywood movie, the scene would works perfectly. Director Miguel Arteta
have been set for some kind of )ack the ("Star Maps") lets the story unfold at just
Ripper ending, probably with a car the right pace, allowing the tension to be
chase through wet city streets. Instead, cranked up one agonizing moment at a
"Chuck and Buck" is allowed to play out time. Like all great movies, you can't be
all the psychological tension it has created.
It even leaves the stage set for a -Mike
sure what's going to happen next.
Kerrigan
••••• OUTSTANDING
*••* VERY GOOD
*•• GOOD
•• FAIR
• POOR
(no stars) BOMB
CANNES, PART I
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon R-72
Shadow of the Vampire R-72
Vatel R -72
AFM (beginning on page R-73)
Best, Charmed and Dangerous, The Duel, Love,
Honour and Obey, The Million Dollar Hotel,
Nurse Betty. Steal This Movie!, 2000 A.D., When
the Sky Falls, The Widow of the Saint-Pierre
SANTA BARBARA
(beginning on page R-77)
Astoria, Bad Company, Breaking Out,
Everything's Jake, New York in the Fifties, The
Prompter, Roller Coaster, Row Your Boat,
Shikoku, Swimming
REVIEWS
Battlefield Earth
R85
Better Living Through Circuitry R-82
The Broken Hearts League
Caravan
Center Stage
Croupier
Dinosaur
Family Tree
R
R
R
R
The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas ... R
Gossip
Held Up
Road Trip
Screwed
The Shadow Hours
Shanghai Noon
Small Time Crooks
Such a Long Journey
The Tao of Steve
nAY AND DATE: 7/14
Chuck and Buck R " 71
FLASHBACK: 1933
The Invisible Man
PRFVinilSLY REVIEWED
Coming films already reviewed
REVIEW DIGEST
R
R
R
R
F
F
F
F
F
F

CANNES REVIEWS
CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON
• •••
Starring Michelle Yeoh, Chow Yun-Fat
and Zhang Zi Yi. Directed hy Ang Lee.
Written hy James Schamus, Wang Hui Ling
and Tsai Kuo Jung. Produced hy Bill Kong,
Hsu Li Kong and Ang Lee. A Sony Pictures
Classics release. Action-drama. Chineselanguage;
subtitled. Not yet rated. Running
time: 120 min
If one film dazzled Cannes critics and
crowds alike with almost staggering solidarity,
it was Ang Lee's ferociously entertaining
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon." So broad is its appeal and so
promising are its prospects that with savvy
marketing and careful planning, this could
be one of the most successful foreign language
films ever released in the U.S.
The reason for all the fuss is that
"Oouching Tiger" blends different genres
with remarkable success. Part love story,
part historical and mythological drama,
part action and part fantasy, it is such an
imaginative melange with such spectacular
effects that it makes "The Matrix" look
rote by comparison. It combines traditional
martial arts (always appealing to boys)
with a devastatingly effective new slant: the
all-female combat scene, making this film's
catfights a wild card selling point to young
women. If that weren't enough, it also features
the buff and beautiful Michelle
Yeoh—an international star after
"Tomorrow Never Dies" and "Supercop"
and Chow Yun-Fat, who recently toplined
"Anna and the King." And in director Ang
Lee's name, Sony Classics has potential
credibility for more mature demographics;
this is the man who brought us "Sense and
Sensibility" and "The Ice Storm." What it
also has, finally, is an engaging storyline cowritten
by longtime Ang Lee collaborator
James Schamus.
The tale itself takes place in the early
19th century and concerns martial arts vet
Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat), who decides
to leave combat and his beloved sword, the
Green Destiny, and asks his longtime
friend Yu Shu Lien (Yeoh) to take it to a
nobleman in Beijing on his behalf. There
Shu Lien meets a seemingly innocent
nobleman's daughter, Jen (Zhang Ziyi),
who has been pressed into an arranged
marriage but longs for the life of an adventurer,
like Shu Lien. While that first 20
minutes is slow, even tediously dull, the
payoff is huge.
When Green Destiny is stolen, Shu
Lien pursues the masked thief (presumably
Jen). That chase prompts a thrilling fight
scene, the first of many, that blends the
actors' physical gifts and stunts with
remarkable digital effects. At times the
women actually appear to fly, but the
sophisticated CGI technology has wiped
clean any trace of a wire.
The rest of the tale focuses on the sta-
SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE ***i/2
Starring Hillem Dafoe, John Malkovich,
Eddie Izzard and Catherine McCormack.
Directed by E. Elias Merhige. Written by-
Steven Katz. Produced by Nicolas Cage arid
Jeff Levine. A Lions Gate release. Drama.
Not yet rated. Running time: 93 min.
An intriguing and audacious look at
the great German filmmaker F.W.
Murnau. "Shadow of the Vampire" both
documents and mythologizes Murnau's
celebrated 1922 production, "Nosferatu."
Assets include fine technical values and
standout acting, especially a nuanced,
understated performance by John
Malkovich as Murnau and a thrillingly
over-the-top turn by Willem Dafoe as the
vampire. British comedian Eddie Izzard
also excels in a small but compelling role as
the production's leading man.
Denied the rights to Bram Stoker's
original "Dracula," Murnau decided to go
ahead and shoot his own version of the
story. Seeking an effect of heightened realism,
he takes his cast and crew out of the
studio and goes on location in
Czechoslovakia. There he has discovered a
dedicated, unknown method actor. Max
Schreck, to play the title role, but no one is
prepared for Schreck's eccentricities. It
seems the ghoulishly bald, Vulcan-eared,
long-nailed "actor" may be an actual vampire,
with whom Murnau, in his passionate
quest for authenticity, struck a harrowing
secret deal: play the part and receive the
film's self-absorbed actress (Catherine
McCormack) after the shoot as a
reward—and possible meal. But Schreck
can't seem to wait, and when members of
the crew start to fall ill, Murnau knows
whom to blame.
Film historians, no doubt, would quibble
with the liberties Steven Katz's script
takes about Murnau's production. But historical
accuracy is not his goal: rather, he
and director E. Elias Merhige aim to capture
the exquisite daring and experimental
atmosphere of German Expressionist filmmaking.
In that they succeed beautifully.
The story takes a while to get moving, but
when it does, Assheton Gordon's production
design and Lou Bogue's cinematography
so convincingly recreate the look and
feel of silent film that at various moments
tus of the Green Destiny, Mu Bai's quest
to avenge the death of his late master, an you'd swear you were watching the original
unspoken but powerful love between Mu "Nosferatu." But then, of course, the
Bai and Lu Shien, and a clandestine amorphous distinction between reality and
romance between Jen and a rag-tag mountain
warrior (Chang Chen). There are
art is exactly the point. Lael Loewenstein
action sequences aplenty, some of them VATEL ••
refreshingly humorous, and enough melodrama
to satisfy anyone hungry for emo-
Thurman and Tim Roth. Directed by
Starring Gerard Depardieu, Uma
tion. The camera work, acting and production
design are all stellar, and there's even and Tom Stoppard. Produced by Alain
Roland Joffe. Written by Jeanne Lahrune
an additional bonus in the form of Yo-Yo Goldman and Roland Joffe. A Miramax
Ma's cello solos. Lael Loewenstein
release. Period drama. Not yet rated.
Running time: 117 min.
A visually sumptuous period drama,
"Vatel" is as remarkable for its lavish
onscreen excesses as it is for its thoroughly
uninvolving story. Gaumont spent $37 million
to make this French costume piece
nearly a king's ransom by French industry
standards—and Miramax, in a surprise
move, snapped up stateside rights on the
Cannes Festival's opening day. But tepid
reactions to the initial screenings prompted
some to speculate that Miramax made
the bid largely to garner attention, since
laurels and sizable financial returns will be
a longshot.
Gerard Depardieu plays the titular
character, a chief steward to the physically
and politically enfeebled Prince de
Conde. In the hope of improving his status,
Conde has invited Louis XIV and the
entire court of Versailles to visit him in
Chantilly. He leaves the arrangements to
Vatel, who envisions a splashy three day
extravaganza of feasting and merriment
to impress even the decadent Sun King.
Along the way, Vatel earns many admirers,
including the beautiful Anne de
Montausier (Uma Thurman), the King
(Julian Sands) and his brother. But he
also provokes the envy of the Marquis de
Lauzin (Tim Roth), who covets Anne
himself. Vatel's accomplishments are
stunning, to be sure; he concocts ravishing
combinations of food, decoration and
entertainment the likes of which Martha
Stewart never even dreamed.
Casting Depardieu as the steward Vatel
is itself an interesting choice. By now the
veteran star can play everything from
kings to commoners and he does bring a
quiet dignity and grace to the extravagant
proceedings. But Roth and Thurman
almost seem to be in a different movie altogether:
They stand around like window
dressing,
primping, preening and posing,
but they never betray any real depth of
character, and the love triangle is never
emotionally engaging. Director Roland
Joffe, with the help of DP Robert Fraisse
and production designer Jean Rabasse, has
created a glorious piece of eye candy, but
in the end it leaves you feeling undernourished.
Lael Loewenstein
July, 2000 (R-72) 91

••
STEAL THIS MOVIE!
Starring Vincent D'Onofrio, Janeane
Garofalo, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Kevin
Donal Logue and Kevin Corrigan.
Pollak,
Directed by Robert Greenwald. Written by
Bruce Graham. Produced by Robert
Greenwald and Jacobus Rose. A Lions Gate
release. Biographical drama. Rated R for
language, drug content and some nudity.
Running time: 106 min.
Based on the life of '60s-era radical
Abbie Hoffman, "Steal This Movie!" is the
counterculture equivalent to "Man on the
Moon," a competent yet ultimately unenlightened
look at a figure who remains as
enigmatic by film's end as he was at the
beginning.
Adapted from the books "To America
With Love: Letters From The
Underground" by Hoffman and his wife
Anita, and "Abbie Hoffman, American
Rebel" by Marty Jezer, "Steal This
Movie!" endeavors to compress as much
of Hoffman's (Vincent D'Onofrio) colorful
personal and public life as possible
into one movie, structured primarily on
the flashback recollections of Anita
Hoffman (Janeane Garofalo) and attorney
Gerry Lefcourt (Kevin Pollak).
Whether intended or not, the net result is
a fragmented, largely episodic account
that mostly just preaches to the choir, presenting
plenty of facts but very little
insight into the chaotic, frenetic mind that
was Abbie Hoffman's.
Part of the problem lies with D'Onofrio.
who also served as the film's executive
producer. While D'Onofrio's undeniable
gifts as an actor occasionally spark to
something meaningful, the greater part of
his performance comes of as simply hysterical
and shrill, an overwrought portrait
of a raving lunatic who just happened to
be exceedingly principled.
At the same time, the film never sufficiently
narrows its focus nor abates its
pace to make any kind of pertinent observations
into its characters or the era.
Seemingly more concerned with presenting
a historical slide-show than a serious
character study, screenwriter Bruce
Graham and director Robert Greenwald
speed through time, slowing down only
where the public record becomes the most
dense. It is no coincidence that the film's
best moments center around the
"Chicago 7" trial, the only point at which
the film seems willing to take its time and
not rush on to the next chapter in Abbie's
life.
Unfortunately, it's a high point that
comes and goes all to quickly as the film
decelerates into the present day where, like
Abbie. it finds depressingly little dissent to
sustain a life structured solely, and somewhat
emptily, on protest.— Wade Major
AFM REVIEWS
THE MILLION DOLLAR HOTEL • • •
Starring Jeremy Davies, Milla Jovovich,
Mel Gibson, Bud Cort, Jimmy Smits, Tim
Roth, Donal Logue, Gloria Stuart, Amanda
Plummer and Peter Stormare. Directed by
Wim Wenders. Written by Nicholas Klein.
Produced by Deepak Nayar, Bono, Nicholas
Klein, Wim Wenders and Bruce Davey. A
Kintop Pictures/Icon Entertainment production.
No distributor set. Drama. Rated R
for language and some sexual content.
Running time: 122 min.
Wim Wenders reteams with his "The
End of Violence" screenwriter, Nicholas
Klein, on the ensemble drama "The
Million Dollar Hotel." a less glamorous
tale than their previous collaboration that
nonetheless voices many of the same
underlying concerns. Stripped to their
essentials, both films are meditations on
the emptiness of conventional contemporary
living and the extent to which humans
may or may not reinvent themselves
accordingly. Ironically, what ultimately
distinguishes "The Million Dollar" hotel
from its predecessors is really nothing
more profound than a cast member by the
name of Mel Gibson.
The moody, noirish story, co-conceived
by Klein and U2 lead singer Bono,
centers on the titular ramshackle Los
Angeles hotel where a colorful cast of
crazies, rejects, drug addicts and generic
societal dross seem to coagulate. The
death of an aspiring artist named Izzy.
one of the more popular inmates, generates
a maelstrom of media attention when
it is revealed that Izzy was the estranged
son of a billionaire media mogul.
Assigned to investigate the case is a partially-crippled
detective named Skinner
(Gibson), a bullish, determined sleuth
whose tenacious methods continually put
him at odds with the hotel's less-thanforthright
occupants.
But there is another layer to "The
Million Dollar Hotel"—a love story
between a well-meaning half-wit named
Tom Tom (Jeremy Davis) and an emotionally-imbalanced
waif named Eloise (Milla
Jovovich), which runs parallel to and often
intersects with the murder investigation,
despite ultimately having little to do with
it. At times, the romance almost begins to
consume the rest of the narrative, a
metaphoric risk that is far more interesting
than successful.
In the end, as with most of Wenders'
films, mysteries and their resolutions take
a back seat to philosophical pontification.
Longtime Wenders fans will undoubtedly
welcome the affront to conventional storytelling
while others, attracted by the marquee
value of Mel Gibson, are more likely
to leave the theatre scratching their heads.
— Wade Major
THE WIDOW OF SAINT-PIERRE
•**••
Starring Juliette Binoche, Daniel
Auteuil and Emir Kusturica.
Directed by
Patrice Leconte. Written by Claude Faraldo
and Patrice Leconte. Produced by Gilles
Legrand and Frederic Brillion. An Epithete
Films production. No distributor set. Period
drama. French-language; subtitled. Not yet
rated. Running time: 113 min.
Based on actual court records and transcripts,
French director Patrice Leconte's
penetrating, powerful "The Widow of
Saint-Pierre" is yet a further testimony to
the health of the French film industry and
its ability to consistently produce films of
exceptional artistry and emotional resonance.
The story begins in 1849 on the remote
French island of Saint-Pierre, just off the
coast of Newfoundland, where life in the
delicate settlement is torn asunder by a
murder. While in a drunken stupor, two
men attack and disembowel another, driven
by nothing more than curiosity as to
whether he was "fat or just big." No sooner
are the accused condemned to die by
guillotine than one is prematurely killed in
an accident, leaving his somber accomplice,
Neel Auguste (filmmaker Emir
Kusturica), to atone for their sins alone.
But there is a complication—the island has
no guillotine with which to carry out the
sentence.
As the village leaders undertake the
arduous process of locating and procuring
a guillotine from elsewhere, Auguste is
placed in the custody of the dutiful yet
compassionate local army captain (Daniel
Auteuil), whose wife (Juliette Binoche)
makes no secret of her disapproval of the
death sentence. In the weeks that follow,
and with tacit approval from her husband,
she makes it her mission to redeem
Auguste in the eyes of the townspeople, a
mission which will eventually place the letter
of the law at odds with the spirit of
humanity.
That "The Widow of Saint-Pierre" is
based on actual events only makes the
achievement even more remarkable.
Sensitive, subtle and meticulously executed
as one would expect from the director
of "The Hairdresser's Husband,"
"Monsieur Hire" and "Ridicule," "The
Widow of Saint-Pierre" flirts with perfection
at nearly every turn, viscerally
communicating the austerity of 19thcentury
life while never losing sight of
the timeless power of forgiveness and
redemption. Contributions both before
and behind the camera are likewise flawless,
from the three excellent leads to
Joelle Hache's superb cinematography
and Pascal Esteve's rich, melancholic
score.— Wade Major
92 (R-73) BOXOFFICE

NURSE BETTY
•**
Starring Renee Zellweger, Morgan
Freeman, Chris Rock, Greg Kinnear,
Crispin Glover and Aaron Eckhart.
Directed by Neil LaBute. Written by James
Flamberg and John Richards. Produced by-
Gail Mutrux and Steve Golin. A USA
release. Drama. Rated R for strong violence,
pervasive language and a scene of
sexuality. Running time: III) min.
The much-awaited third feature from
writer/director Neil LaBute is a peculiar
but ultimately satisfying black comedy, the
austere auteur's first effort with material
not of his own creation. Scripted by James
Flamberg and John Richards, the film
focuses on a naive smalltown waitress
named Betty (Renee Zellweger) who suffers
a psychotic break while witnessing her
slimy used car salesman husband's (Aaron
Eckhart) murder at the hands of two hitmen
(Morgan Freeman and Chris Rock).
With her husband's killers in hot pursuit,
Betty retreats into a world where she
believes herself a part of her favorite soap
opera, undertaking a cross-country road
trip to rejoin her imagined television beau.
Dr. David Ravell (Greg Kinnear).
Though the film is frequently amusing,
it is rarely laugh-out-loud hilarious.
AFM REVIEWS
restrained by LaBute's determination to
keep viewers from entering too cozy of a
comfort zone. Whatever humor the film
does possess, in fact, is often combined
with violence, cruelty and serious soulsearching,
underscoring the film's underlying
message about life and its irritating
uncertainties. It's an approach which gives
way to a fair amount of frustration during
the road trip as the film meanders without
getting any closer to a resolution or a
point. But by the final third, LaBute
begins to bring the divergent elements
together, giving both his characters and
the audience good reason to carry on.
Fans of LaBute's first
two films — "In
the Company of Men" and "Your Friends
& Neighbors"—may be a bit perplexed by
the detour into less acerbic material, a
seeming attempt to reach a more mainstream
audience. Indeed, while "Nurse
Betty" can hardly be called a mainstream
movie, it will undoubtedly be deemed more
accessible than its predecessors, thanks in
large part to the exceptional strength of
the four leads. Of particular note is Chris
Rock, who turns in his best performance to
date, exhibiting a flair for drama and
restraint as yet unseen in his comedy
work.
Wade Major
THE DUEL *l/2
Starring Andy Lau and Ekin Cheng.
Directed by Andrew Lau. Written by Wong
Jing and Manfred Wong. Produced by
\\ bng Jing. No distributor set. Martial arts
fantasy. Cantonese-language; subtitled. Not
yet rated. Running time: 105 min.
It's a sad comment on the state of the
once-mighty Hong Kong martial arts fantasy
film when the presence of two of the
industry's biggest heartthrobs still can't abate
the onslaught of ennui. Set during the Ming
Dynasty, "The Duel" might pass for run-ofthe-mill
medieval espionage if not for a story
so hopelessly convoluted that it verges on
pure confusion. What little can be discerned
is that a whole bunch of people keep trying
to outsmart and deceive each other, with a
stolen imperial seal having some kind of
obvious importance. Eventually, the whole
mess starts filtering down to a grudge match
between two master sword fighters, just in
time for the film to ramp up to its climactic
rooftop sword battle.
Writer/producer Wong Jing is as inconsistent
a talent as ever produced; for each of his
hits, like Chow Yun-Fat's "God of Gamblers"
and Jackie Chan's "City Hunter," there are at
least a half-dozen hastily-produced hack
jobs like "The Duel." Wade Major
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Response No. 92
July, 2000 (R-74) 93

CHARMED & DANGEROUS •••1/2
Starring Sean Barnes, Scott Morris,
Jennifer Loto and Vanessa Lock. Directed
and written by Brad Wallace. Produced by
Brad King. A Big Screen Partners production.
No distributor set. Romantic comedy.
Not yet rated. Running time: 94 min.
A wickedly funny look at the battle of
the sexes, the independently-produced
"Charmed & Dangerous" breathes new life
into the romantic comedy genre, offering a
delightfully old-fashioned romp that recalls
the best antics of such legendary lovelorn
misfits as Danny Kaye and Bob Hope.
Sean Barnes stars as Max Nutman, a
mild-mannered department store employee
with a lifelong weakness for the wiles of
women. Just the mere scent of perfume
makes him putty in their hands. Finally fed
up with his weakness. Max takes matters
into his own hands and swears off the fairer
sex for good, even going so far as to join
a bizarre "men only" support group. Max's
plans are complicated, however, when he
meets Gloria (Jennifer Loto), a liberated
feminist whose like-minded view of men
dooms the two of them to love at first sight.
Smartly written and directed by debut
filmmaker Brad Wallace, "Charmed &
Dangerous" bravely attacks just about
every romantic comedy cliche in the book,
skewering genre conventions whenever and
wherever possible, yet without ever betraying
its own fundamentally optimistic view
of romance. Sentimentality is Wallace's
obvious target here, bowled over by a
series of extremely funny comedic set
pieces and farcical encounters, most of
them highlighted by a sophisticated use of
physical comedy and slapstick.
Considerable credit, of course, must
also go to Barnes and Loto, whose impeccable
sense of timing and infectious chemistry
help elevate all those around them.
Supporting performances also contain a
number of gems, most of them from the
wild and wooly "men's group," and from
Scott Morris and Vanessa Lock as Max's
well-meaning friends Bob and Suzanne.
Technical credits are uniformly good, with
Rusty Stiers' quirky, bubbly musical score
a welcome standout. David Lawrence
••••
BEST
Starring John Lynch, Ian Batmen, Patsy
Kensit and Linus Roach. Directed by Mary
McGukian. Written by John Lynch and
Mary McGukian. Produced by Mary
McGukian, Chris Roff and Elvira Boh. Not
yet rated. Running time: 106 min.
George Best was one of the greatest
soccer stars who ever lived. He was also
once of the most self-destructive sports
personalities of modern times. His story is
a true tragedy, in the classical definition of
that term. So it is only reasonable that his
AFM REVIEWS
life story would make a pretty good movie.
But "Best" is a whole lot more than that. It
is a meticulously researched, brilliantly
acted and superbly directed reconstruction
of an enormous talent largely squandered.
Director/writer/producer Mary Mc-
Gulkian and writer/star John Lynch, a
husband and wife team, have combined
their talents to bring forth a truly memorable
film. The archive footage of the soccer
genius is seamlessly combined with
newly shot film to make for gripping
action sequences. But even they are overshadowed
by the dramatic content—an
astonishing descent from fame and fortune
to drunkenness, despair and even jail.
Best became famous in Britain at the
same time as the Beatles. His success
story—from the slums to instant stardom—largely
mirrored theirs. Even his
hairstyle and clothing were similar.
However, he handled celebrity less well
than the Fab Four, and by the early '70s he
was on the skids.
The big problem with this movie is that
it may be dismissed as simply a soccer film
and be largely ignored, especially by
American audiences. But it's a moving
story that happens to be told against a
backdrop of soccer. It is, first and foremost,
a cautionary tale about coping with
success.
Lynch (like Best, a native of Northern
Ireland) is brilliant as the flawed genius.
He was great in "Cal," "In the Name of the
Father" and many other films, but this is
the role he was born to play.
And he gets
powerful support from the rest of the cast.
Adding to the undeniable authenticity
of the piece is that George Best himself
consulted on the script. With some, that
could have meant a diluted version of the
story, but Best has long since come to
terms with his demons. This is a compelling
portrait, warts and all. Mike
Kerrigan
WHEN THE SKY FALLS
••••
Starring Joan Allen, Patrick Bergin,
I i:im Cunningham, Pete Postelthwaite and
Owen Roe. Directed by John Mackenzie.
Written by Ronan Gallagher, Colum
McCann and Michael Sheridan. Produced
by Nigel Warren Green and Kevin Menton.
An Icon production. No distributor set.
Drama. Not yet rated. Running time: 96 min.
Throughout the 1990s, Joan Allen
brought a new respectability to the historically
thankless role of the beleaguered
wife, with stalwart performances in such
films as "Nixon," "Face/Off," "Pleasantville"
and "The Ice Storm." It comes as
something of a wonderful surprise, then,
to see her finally play the character doing
the beleaguering in director John
Mackenzie's "When the Sky Falls."
Very loosely inspired by events in the life
of slain Irish journalist Veronica Guerin,
the film is a hard-hitting crime drama about
a journalist (Allen) fighting to bring down a
ruthless crime kingpin with the help of a
toughened police detective (Patrick Bergin).
It's the kind of film for which director John
Mackenzie once made a name for himself,
the first time in years that the maker of
"The Long Good Friday" has looked like
himself. Ruthlessly realistic, often almost
unwatchably brutal
but always irresistibly
compelling, "When the Sky Falls" is
smart,
unapologetic filmmaking unafraid to venture
where audiences might not wish to go.
Ultimately, however, it
is Allen's picture,
and she commands it
an Oscar-caliber tour-de-force performance
to the fullest, offering
that is easily among the best of her career, if
not the best. Running a gauntlet of conflicting
emotions throughout, from fear to
anger to courage to borderline madness,
Allen single-handedly elevates the film to a
higher level, giving audiences a frighteningly
believable look inside the mind and heart
of a deeply conflicted yet rigorously moral
individual.
It should be pointed out, too, that the
script, for all its gritty realism, resembles
Guerin's life only in the broadest, most symbolic
possible sense, a fact which many viewers
may find hard to believe given how convincingly
Mackenzie brings the effort off.
Supporting performances and technical
contributions are all predictably firstrate.—
Wade Major
LOVE, HONOUR & OBEY ••••
Starring Sadie Frost, Ray Winstone,
Jonny Lee Miller, Jude Law, Sean Pertwee,
Kathy Burke and Rhys Ifans. Directed by
Dominic Anciano and Ray Burdis. Written
by Dominic Anciano and Ray Burdis.
Produced by Dominic Anciano and Ray
A BBC FilmslFugitive production.
Burdis.
No distributor set. Comedy. Not yet rated.
Running time: 98 min.
A riotous burst of low-budget British
originality, "Love, Honour & Obey" looks
to do for crooks what "The Full Monty"
did for the unemployed. The brain-child of
character actors Dominic Anciano and
Ray Burdis. who produced, directed, wrote
and acted in the film, "Love, Honour &
Obey" focuses on the lives and relationships
of karaoke-singing North London
gangsters as seen through the eyes of
Jonny (Jonny Lee Miller), a working class
bloke who asks his childhood pal Jude
(Jude Law) to score him a job working for
Jude's crime boss uncle Ray (Ray
Winstone). One thing leads to another and
Jonny soon finds himself happily shoulder-deep
in theft, extortion, money laundering
and. naturally, karaoke. It's a seductive
if dangerous lifestyle that inevitably
94 (R-75) BOXOFFICE

leads to conflict with a rival gangster
named Sean (Sean Pertwee) and his maddog
henchman Matthew ("Notting Hill""s
Rhys [fans).
Satirizing the gangster lifestyle, of
course, is nothing new to either English or
American movies. The success of television's
"The Sopranos" and films like
"Analyze This." "The Whole Nine Yards"
and "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking
Barrels" begs the question of whether or
not anything new can be possibly be
extracted from the concept. Impressively,
"Love, Honour & Obey" manages the feat
by reinventing the concept, creating its own
zany kind of gangster lifestyle instead of
simply poking fun at traditional depictions.
Rumored to have been substantially
improvised, the film also features hilariously
top.-notch performances from Kathy Burke
and Sadie Frost (aka Mrs. Jude Law) as typically
accommodating mob wives, and from
the filmmakers—Anciano and Burdis—as a
pair of "average guy" bodyguards. It
AFM REVIEWS
helps,
too, that most of the cast and filmmakers
are close friends and/or business associates,
making the effort feel more like a personal
labor of love among pals than a calculated
attempt at second-guessing commercial
taste. Wade Major
2000 A.D. •*•
Starring Aaron Kwok, Phyllis Quek,
Daniel Wu, James Lye, Gigi Choi,
Andrew Lin and Ken Lo. Directed hy
Gordon Chan. Written by Stu Zieherman
and Gordon Chan. Produced hy John
Chong, Solon So and David Leong. A
Media Asia production. No distributor
set. Action. Cantonese-language; subtitled.
Not yet rated. Running time: 104
films to successfully fuse both American
and Asian action formulas, the Hong
Kong/Singapore co-production "2000
A.D." is an engaging international espionage
thriller that blends hair-raising
gunplay and bone-cracking martial arts
with such Hollywood mainstays as digital
effects.
Directed by veteran Gordon Chan
(Jet Li's "Fist of Legend" and Jackie
Chan's "Thunderbolt") and executive
produced by Jackie's longtime manager
and partner Willie Chan, the film stars
heartthrob Aaron Kwok ("Storm
Riders"), often called the Asian Brad
Pitt, as Peter Tong, a bright up-andcoming
computer game designer who is
drawn into the proverbial "web of
intrigue" when his
brother and business
partner is assassinated. Launching his
own investigation. Peter follows a trail
that takes him from Hong Kong to
Singapore, where he and his friends wind
up teaming with a maverick Singaporean
cop to stop a renegade band of CIA
operatives from taking control of the
world's stock markets.
Die-hard Hong Kong action fans may
consider the film's accommodation of
Hollywood themes and techniques a
betrayal of more traditional approaches,
but the end result speaks for itself. Crisply
paced and rife with suspense, the film features
at least four or five superb set pieces
well worthy of a comparable Hollywood
production. In the end, though, the film
hinges primarily on Kwok's bookish,
Hitchcockian everyman, a convincing
performance that helps bring the film's
more far-fetched elements into the realm
of believability.
Fans of the genre will also enjoy
Jackie Chan's bodyguard and key stunt
performer Ken Lo as one of the deadlier
heavies, a stone-faced assassin who
leaves a path of death and destruction in
his wake wherever he goes.— Wade
Major
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REVIEWS
SHIKOKU • ••1/2
Stan-iii!; Kuriyama Chiaki, Natsukawa
Yui, Tsutsui Michitaku and Osugi Ren.
Directed by Shunichi Nagasaki. W ritten by
Manda Kunimi and Sento Takenori.
Produced by Hara Masato. No distributor
set. Horror. Japanese-language; subtitled.
Not yet rated. Running time: 100 min.
Sometimes it's not the psycho in a
hockey mask with a chain saw, nor the
screeching music warning of a teenager's
imminent slashing, that makes a movie
truly frightening. More often, it's the
smallest details in a flick, such as a terrifyingly
long silence or the rising horror in
an actor's face when he or she is watching
something off-screen, hidden from moviegoers'
eyes, that really gets under one's
skin» Shunichi Nagasaki's "Shikoku,"
which follows the story of a young
woman returning to her childhood home
in a small Japanese village only to discover
that her former best friend died years
ago, is a film that has this expert ability to
haunt.
Upon arriving at her home island of
Shikoku (which translates to "The Island
of the Four Lands," but has the secondary
meaning of "The Island of the
Dead"), Hinako learns that Sayori, an old
schoolmate she had hoped to see,
drowned in a nearby river when she was
just 16 years old. Hinako meets up with
another old friend, Fumiya, who also
happens to have been Sayori's first love.
The two confide in each other that
Sayori's ghost has been visiting them and.
through further investigation, the couple
learns that the mother of the deceased
girl, a priestess with the power to communicate
with the dead, is performing a ritual
to bring her daughter back to life.
Imbued with Buddhist lore and the
ancient traditions of the island, which
really does hold annual pilgrimages in a
symbolic effort to maintain the seal
between this world and the next,
"Shikoku" successfully frightens
because as Hinako and Fumiya 's trepidation
grows with the unfurling plot, so
does the viewer's. And, of course, there's
those perfectly placed details: a shot of
a colorless hand, and not its owner,
being placed on Fumiya's shoulder:
Hinako waking in the middle of the
night to see a pale face staring silently at
her; and scenes of beheaded statues in
the village. All these seemingly meaningless
aspects contribute to the undercurrent
of dread running throughout the
film. While "Shikoku" does sometimes
disappoint, especially in the final confrontation
between the three childhood
friends, it's the meticulous rendering of
the quietly horrific that holds one's
attention. Francesco Dinglasan
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Response No. 524
Julv, 2000 (R-78) 97

98 (R-79) BOXOFFICE
ASTORIA **i/2
SANTA BARBARA
Starring Rick Stear, Paige Turco, Ed
Setrakian, Joseph D'Onofrio, Geraldine
Librandi, Steven J. Christofer and Yianni
Sfinias. Directed and written by Nick
Efteriades. Produced by Athena Efter and
Jamie Dakoyannis. No distributor set.
Drama. Not yet rated. Running time: 103 nun.
Taking its title from the Greek-American
neighborhood in which the movie is set,
"Astoria" explores the conflict that arises
between a father and his first-generation son
due to their different ideals about the
American Dream. Alex ("Went to Coney
Island on a Mission From God... Be Back by
Five's" Rick Stear) wants to leave the confines
of the district he's called home all his
life and join an international expedition
searching for the tomb of the most famous
of Greeks, Alexander the Great. His best
friend's cousin Elena (Paige Turco) is the first
person he meets who shares his passion for
the ancients and she encourages him to follow
his dream. Alex's father (Ed Setrakian),
however, only measures success by the
amount of money made, and to that end. he
reminds his son that his turn to take over the
family restaurant is fast approaching.
The collision between a pragmatic parent
and his idealistic child is a theme that
ge Turco in
are effective, and Stear is especially credible
as the local boy with a terrible case of
unfulfilled wanderlust, hindered by his loyalty
to his family and friends.
"Astoria."
transcends any particular culture, and on Unfortunately, the sympathetic characters
just aren't enough to overcome the
this level, "Astoria" is a film to which one
can easily relate. Performances all around film's predictable plot, which, despite the
bit of dialogue delivered in Greek and the
mandatory smashing of a plate or two, follows
the same formula as any other typical
coming-of-ager. Francesco Dinglasan
National Ticket Company
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BREAKING OUT (VAGEN UT) • • *
Starring Bjorn Kjellman, Peter Haber,
Michael Nyquist, Thomas Hanzon, Lamine
Dieng, Johan Hamnegard, Magnus Krepper,
Oliver Lofteen, Shanti Roney and Viveka
Seldhal.
SANTA BARBARA
Directed by Daniel Lind Lagerlof.
Written by Matin Lind Lagerlof. Produced by
Bjorn Carlstrom, Joakim Hamsson and Lars
BjaJkeskog. No distributor set. Comedyldrama.
Swedish-language; subtitled. Not yet rated.
Running time: 100 nun.
Perhaps best described as the Nordic
answer to "The Full Monty." "Breaking
Out" is amiable and amusing tare that substitutes
a reluctant group of male strippers
in a British economically hard-hit town with
a reluctant group of theatre performers in a
Swedish high-security prison. Reine (Bjorn
Kjellman) is an unemployed actor who
take? a job as a recreation director at the
local jail to make ends meet. Seeing this as
an opportunity to produce the play he has
written, he convinces the skeptical prison
head (Viveka Seldahl) to let him work with
a group of inmates interested in participating.
However, unbeknownst to Reine. the
prisoners-turned-thespians (Thomas
Hanzon, Michael Nyquist, Oliver Lofteen
and Lamine Dieng) think of the dramatic
stint as their way of escaping jail.
While the plot follows a predictable path,
complete with a close bond forming among
the prisoners and their deepening sense of
loyalty towards Reine developing, the chemistry
of the ensemble cast has enough
comedic knack to keep the film feeling more
fresh than formulaic. Also balancing the
expected feel-good elements of the film is
the undercurrent of violence that director
Daniel Lind Lagerlof wisely chose to
include in his prison-set feature, rather than
giving into the temptation of excluding it
altogether to maintain the pic's overall lightness.
Francesco Dinglasan
THE PROMPTER •••1/2
Starring Hege Schoyen, Sven Nordin,
Philip Zanden and Sigrid Huun. Directed
and written by Hilde Heier. Produced by
Christian Wildhagen. No distributor set.
Drama. Norwegian-language; subtitled.
Not yet rated. Running time: 97 min.
Norway's official 1999 Academy Award
entry, "The Prompter" is a moving story
about a woman trying to convince herself
that she's happy in a thoroughly disconsolate
situation. Siv (Hege Schoyen) is a
music lover who makes a living as an opera
house prompter—in other words, she
works in a closed-off box at the foot of the
stage, silently guiding singers when they
forget their lines. That tiny enclosed space
comes to represent Siv's outside life as
well, where she desperately wants to be
happy, but is really nothing more than a
quiet spectator to the events happening
around her. Just married to Fred (Sven
Nordin), Siv moves into his house and is
surrounded by his ex-wife's possessions,
including his two children, who are unhappy
about their new stepmother. Siv's internalized
unhappiness only finds relief in the
few moments that she spends with an
adoring tuba player (Philip Zanden) at the
opera, who senses the sadness that she herself
refuses to acknowledge.
Touching without being overly sentimental,
Hilde Heier's debut work is convincing
and heartfelt in its depiction of a
woman trying to make the best of her failing
marriage. Everything about Siv rings
true, from her quiet excitement in counting
down the days to her wedding to her
painfully lonely attempt to assimilate into
a hostile blended family. And while secondary
characters tend to be slightly onedimensional.
Hege Schoyen's strong performance
as the confused titular character
carries the film from beginning to end.
— Francesco Dinglasan
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July, 2000 (R-80) 99

SANTA BARBARA
HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS
EVERYTHING'S JAKE **1/2
Starring Ernie Hudson, Graeme Malcolm, Debbie Allen and Lou Myers. Directed by
Matthew Miele. Written and produced by Christopher Fetchko and Matthew Miele. No
distributor set. Comedyldrama. Not yet rated. Running time: 90 min.
ROW YOUR BOAT **1/2
Starring Jon Bon Jovi, Bai Ling, William Forsythe and Jill Hennessy. Directed and
written by Sollace Mitchell. Produced by Chip Duncan, Claudia Vianello and Harvey
Kahn. No distributor set. Drama. Not yet rated. Running time: 90 min.
The homeless and what they have to
offer "regular" people are the thematic foci
of "Everything's Jake" and "Row Your Boat,"
two films that differ in the types of relationships
they attempt to examine, but are
almost perfectly identical
in their structure.
In Matthew Miele's "Everything's Jake,"
the titular character (Ernie Hudson) is a New
York City vagrant who's not only happy in
the niche he's carved for himself on the
streets, he's actually made a conscious
choice to be homeless, free from the worries
of middle-class life. His primary source of
income is the spare change he's given by
B
passersby while banging on his bongo
drums, and one day, while practicing, he encounters Cameron (Graeme Malcolm), a former
upper-class music composer who is having a difficult time adjusting to his lowered
status. Jake takes him under his wing and shows him how to survive the streets. A close
friendship forms, only for Jake to discover that his new buddy is not what he appears.
In "Row Your Boat," the growing bond between a homeless man and a person unhappy
about life is also explored, although this time the relationship takes a romantic turn.
Jamey (Jon Bon Jovi) has just gotten out of prison, where he served time for a crime that
his brother (William Forsythe) committed. Determined to stay out of trouble, Jamey vows
to make an honest living, which, for the present time, means being too poor to live anywhere
but on the streets and in shelters. He eventually takes a job with the Census
Bureau and, while out on his rounds, he meets Chun Hua ("Anna and the King's" Bai
Ling). Captivated by her, he offers to give her English lessons. Through the course of their
meetings, he learns about her unhappy marriage, and the two slowly start to fall
in love.
Driving the interest quotient in the central relationships of both "Everything's Jake"
and "Row Your Boat" is the fair amount of chemistry within each of the pairings. Hudson
and Malcolm give amusing performances as something akin to a homeless "Odd
Couple," with Graeme particularly convincing as the uptight old curmudgeon. Similarly,
the unlikely match-up of Bon Jovi and Ling also surprisingly pleases, although the
strength of Ling's portrayal of a lonely Chinese immigrant quite noticeably overshadows
the performance of her less experienced co-star.
However, while both films are successful in making their protagonists likable, the
point at which they diverge is in their respective conclusions. "Everything's Jake's" slightly
contrived but acceptable twist keeps the film engaging, while "Row Your Boat," which
hopes to convey a sense of tragedy in the impossibility of its love story, is instead just
anti-climactic. Francesca Dinglasan
ROLLERCOASTER
••*
Starring Brendan Fletcher, Kett Barton,
Crystal Buble, Brent Glenen, Sean Aiming
and David Lovgren. Directed and written by
Scott Smith. Produced by Scott Smith and
Connie Dolphin. No distributor set. Drama.
Not yet rated. Running time: 90 min.
Teenage angst is given serious bigscreen
treatment in "Rollereoaster," a drama
about five friends who spend the day at a
recently bankrupted Vancouver amusement
park. Darrin (Kett Barton), his
younger brother Justin (Brent Glenen), his
best friend Stick (Brendan Fletcher), his
girlfriend Chloe (Crystal Buble) and his
other buddy Sanj (Sean Amsing) all live
together in a group home and have borrowed
their counselor's car for a day of
freedom. With plenty of alcohol and drugs
to occupy their time, the friends soon learn
the real reason for coming out to the abandoned
park: Chloe. pregnant and not very
happy about it. announces that she and
Darrin plan to commit suicide by jumping
off the highest point of the roller coaster
ride when night falls.
Since the suicide pact is
revealed early
on, a sense of dread inevitably permeates
the entire film. Yet, despite this clearly
dark overtone, filmmaker Scott Smith, in
his debut effort, proves amazingly adept at
keeping his work from becoming so desolate
and his characters so hopeless that
they ultimately become unsympathetic. It
is because Smith takes the time to explore
the relationships between characters, each
one haunted by his or her individual
demons, that "Rollereoaster" successfully
holds its viewers attention.
While a number of sequences and
some dialogue could have been tightened
up. the young cast turns in some
good performances. Particularly convincing
is Brent Glenen's portrayal of
Justin, whose silent anger towards his
suicidal brother is simply heartbreaking.
Francesca Dinglasan
SWIMMING **1/2
Starring Lauren Ambrose, Jennifer
Dundas Lowe andJoelle Carter. Directed
by Robert J. Siegel. Written by Lisa
Jake." Bazadona, Robert J. Siegel and Grace
Woodard. Produced by Robert J. Siegel and
Linda Moran. No distributor set. Drama.
Not yet rated. Running time: 98 min.
With the exception of a semi-busy beach
burgh substituting for the oft-used rural or
suburban setting, "Swimming" covers
familiar thematic ground of a young
woman struggling with the prototypical
crises of insecurity, love and friendship.
Frankie ("Can't Hardly Wait's" Lauren
Ambrose) is quiet and unassuming, traits
that have allowed her family as well as her
lifelong and more extroverted best friend
Nicola (Jennifer Dundas Lowe) to take her
for granted. Things start to change when
Josee (Joelle Carter), a beautiful wanderer,
comes to town and takes a job at Frankie's
family's restaurant. Frankie also attracts
the attention of Heath (Jamie Harrold),
another outsider who has made his way to
the beach locale. Both Josee and Heath take
separate interests in Frankie. helping her to
gain confidence and express her desire to
get away from her hometown.
Buoyed by the performances of the film's
trio of actresses, "Swimming" hits its mark
in a number of scenarios, most precisely in
its depiction of the jealousy that ensues
when a newcomer threatens to disrupt the
comfortable friendship between two best
friends. Ambrose in particular is
quite convincing
in her role, easily winning over the
sympathy of the audience. Unfortunately,
the plot itself isn't quite as persuasive, filled
with scenes that take much too long to
develop and oftentimes prove purposeless.
It's great, for example, that Frankie finally
shares her hopes of getting away; it's
disappointing
that she, like the story, ultimately
goes nowhere.
Francesca Dinglasan
100 (R-81) BOXOFFICE

•••
THE TAO OF STEVE
Starring Donal Logue and Greer
Goodman. Directed by Jenniphr Goodman.
Written by Duncan North, Greer Goodman
and Jenniphr Goodman. Produced by Anthony
Bregman. A Sony Pictures Classics release.
Rated R for language and some drug use.
Romantic Comedy. Running time: 88 min.
"The Tao of Steve" twists the age-old
dilemma of how to get the girl into a clever
and buoyant bit of fun from first-time
director and co-writer Jenniphr Goodman.
Shrouding its theme—is it a real philosophy
or just about sex?— in wily and occasionally
shrewd dialogue, "Tao," with its
eye-catching Santa Fe setting and likable
stars, could be called a coming-of-age
romance for the thirtysomething set.
Kindergarten teacher Dex (Donal
Logue) is the story's unlikely hero and
pudgy lothario who lives and breathes a
highly successful philosophical creed of guy
coolness established by emulating modern
culture's great Steves (TV characters Steve
McGarrett and Steve Austin, and actor
Steve McQueen). Despite having added an
excess amount of weight in the decade since
he was his college campus' killer Romeo,
Dex has lost none of his amorous skill, to
the awe of his gambling buddies and close
friend Rick—whose wife Beth is
Dex's latest
conquest. Naturally, a new girl rattles
Dex's cage: visiting New York opera set
designer Syd (co-writer Greer Goodman),
who is as adept as Dex in philosophic quips
laced with insightful truths. Dex's selfassurance
takes a broadside, however, when
Syd coolly evades his advances before making
a startling revelation which throws the
Steve truisms into jeopardy.
The script carefully avoids exploring
the real allure behind Dex's amazing
romantic feats, settling for Dex's unorthodox
appeal, a thin veil of mystery and a
somewhat stereotypical (and disappointing)
reduction of what women want.
Nevertheless, the palpable chemistry
between Logue and Goodman overcomes
the story's occasional shortcomings, making
this light charmer an unabashed pleasure.
Luisa F. Ribeiro
THE BROKEN HEARTS LEAGUE •••
Starring Timothy Olyphant, Dean Cain,
Andrew Keegan and John Mahoney. Directed
and written by Greg Berlanti. Produced by
Mickey Liddell and Joseph Middleton. A
Screen Gems release. DramalComedy. Not
yet rated. Running time: 98 min.
Here's a "Boys in the Band" for the new
millennium—a movie about friendship
and how your pals are the people who
drive you crazy and yet are the ones you
turn to when you really need help.
It is a bright, witty and occasionally
brittle look at life in West Hollywood, one
of the biggest gay communities in the U.S,
REVIEWS
It is being marketed as a movie where the
protagonists just happen to be gay, but it
the sexual orientation that
the characters and the film itself.
is
largely defines
Not, as
they used to say on "Seinfeld." that there is
anything wrong with that. In fact, it is the
playing field that makes this movie what it
is, which is very entertaining.
There are some wonderful moments.
After a series of shots with guys confessing
to their hairdresser, another complains to
his shrink that his friends at least get a
haircut with their sessions. An actor
breaks up with his boyfriend with an audition
monologue. Somebody else is traumatized
when his lesbian sister asks for sperm
to impregnate her significant other. It's
tightly written and creatively directed by
TV's "Dawson's Creek" alumnus Greg
Berlanti. and boasts a first-rate cast.
But there is one curious, almost perverse,
feature. Despite all the bed hopping,
much of it albeit in the quest for a real
relationship, there is not one mention of
disease or prevention thereof; the only person
who dies is an elderly gay gent who
passes away of a heart attack. Okay, so
this wasn't a movie about AIDS. But to
ignore that is like doing the history of
World War II and being oblivious the
Holocaust. Mike Kerrigan
SHADOW HOURS **l/2
Starring Balthazar Getty, Peter Weller,
Rebecca Gayheart and Peter Greene. Directed
and written by Isaac H. Eaton. Produced by
Peter McAlevey and Isaac H. Eaton. A Seven
Arts release. Drama. Rated R for strong violence,
sexuality, masochistic images, drug use
and language. Running time: 93 min.
With its ambiguous moral message and
running allusions to Dante's "Inferno,"
writer-director Isaac H. Eaton's "Shadow
Hours" aims for a level of thematic ambitiousness
that is rare among low-budget
indie dramas. But like
the film's troubled
hero, a drug-addicted gas station attendant
trying to find his bearings in the
Information Age Babylon known as Los
Angeles, this "walk on the wild side" story
has a way of not living up to its potential.
Following in the footsteps of Dante's
narrator, Michael Holloway (Balthazar
Getty from "The Lost Highway") starts out
lost in a metaphorical dark wood and proceeds
to descend through the concentric circles
of a torture-filled Hades--in this case.
the grim underworld of L.A. sex. violence
and fetish clubs. The guide coaxing the vulnerable
protagonist deeper and deeper into
this land of lost souls is Stuart Chappell
(Peter Weller of "RoboCop" fame), a mysterious
writer with a seemingly inexhaustible
supply of pocket cash who claims
to be researching a book, but seems more
focused on undermining what little selfcontrol
the 12-stepping Michael has left.
Meanwhile, generic elements such as a
serial killer on the loose (argh!) are just as
effectively undermining the narrative's
punch. The use of Michael's young wife
(Rebecca Gayheart from "Urban
Legend") as a Beatrice-like angelic voice
calling him back to the light is especially
contrived-feeling— the scenes between
husband and wife are the film's least dramatically
convincing. Sequences involving
sadomasochistic action in the clubs are
certainly jarring (fishhooks in the face,
anyone?), but they often seem spliced
to pump up interest as the storylines
direction becomes increasingly obvious.
— Michael Tunison
BETTER LIVING THROUGH
CIRCUITRY
*••
Starring The Crystal Method, DJ
Spooky,
Electric Skychurch and Roni Size.
Directed by Jon Reiss.
in
Written by Jon Reiss,
Stuart Swezey and Brian McNeil's. Produced
by Brian McNelis and Stuart Swezey. A
Seventh Art release. Documentary. Unrated.
Running time: 86 min.
Pulsing techno beats, all-night dancing in
"semi-legal" settings and stimulation overload
capable of sending participants into
trancelike states—these are the plugged-in
Dionysian pleasures of the "rave" scene.
While perhaps not quite as mesmerizing as
the latest track from Moby or The Crystal
Method, Jon Reiss' debut documentary feature
"Better Living Through Circuitry" is
solid, energetically
paced look at the rebellious
counterculture that has sprung up
around the innovative new wave of homeprogrammed
electronic music.
With their focus on free-flowing creativity
and peaceful harmony among fans, the
informal rave bashes that began to spontaneously
sprout up at untraditional venues in
the early '90s were a reaction to the posturing,
"look at me" atmosphere common to
dance clubs. The deejays, electronic artists
and ravers interviewed for Reiss' film are for
the most part a refreshingly idealistic,
thoughtful bunch interested in more than
partying wildly until the sun comes up
though they certainly do that on a regular
basis. At its best, the documentary explores
how the genre's more ambitious fans see in
its digital update of rhythmic tribal dance
rituals an opportunity for society to break
down old social barriers and reshape itself
in radical new ways.
One bit of quibbling: Apart from a short
section that deals rather superficially with
the widespread use of drugs such as ecstasy
at events, Reiss adopts a cheerleading tone
that doesn't allow him to
probe as deeply
into this issue as he might have. Given his
unapologetically positive slant, however.
it's hard to imagine a more engaging survey
of this interesting artistic and social
phenomenon. Michael Tunison
a
July, 2000 (R-82) 101

SHANGHAI NOON
•••1/2
Starring Jackie Chan, Owen Wilson,
Lucy Liu, Roger Yuan, Brandon Merrill
and Xander Berkeley. Directed by Tom Dey.
Written by Alfred Gough & Miles Millar.
Produced by Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber
and Jonathan Glickman. A Buena Vista
release. Action! Comedy. Rated PG-13 for
action violence, some drug humor, language
and sensuality. Running time: 111 min.
Despite some cursory plot similarities to
"Rush Hour" (Jackie Chan teaming with an
American to rescue a kidnapped Chinese
woman), "Shanghai Noon" is faster, funnier
and more inventive than its predecessor,
allowing Chan greater latitude to indulge his
unique physical and comic talents and providing
him a co-star (Owen Wilson) bettersuited
to complement, rather than compete
with, those talents. It is precisely the movie
for which Jackie Chan fans have always
dreamed—a true Jackie Chan film,
financed with Hollywood money.
Set in 1881, the story centers on the
efforts of misfit Imperial Guardsman Chon
Wang (Chan) to bring his kidnapped
Princess Pei Pei (Lucy Liu) back to Beijing
from Carson City, Nevada, where she is
being held against her will by a renegade ex-
Guardsman-turned-railroad baron named
Lo Fong (Roger Yuan). Along the way,
Chon repeatedly crosses paths with a wily
gentleman bandit named Roy O'Bannon
(Owen Wilson), each causing endless trouble
for the other before O'Bannon finds out
about the chest of Imperial gold being
offered as ransom and calls a truce, proposing
that teamwork would better serve their
respective interests.
Originally conceived and scripted by
Chan nearly 10 years ago. "Shanghai
Noon" is replete with unmistakable Chan
touches, closely
following the formula of
his classic turn-of-the-century actioners
"Project A" and "Project A Part II" (from
which several "Shanghai Noon" scenes are
borrowed) wherein interwoven threads of
recurring characters and subplots creates a
comedic pretext for the action. In
"Shanghai Noon" those threads include a
band of watchful native Americans, corrupt
lawmen and a trio of Roy's resentful
ex-colleagues, all of whom help make the
narrative as colorful as it is unpredictable.
More serious, historical themes enter the
picture as well,
focusing primarily on the
exploitation of Chinese immigrants as railroad
labor.
Chan and Wilson's chemistry so
impressed Disney executives that a sequel
was put into the works months before the
film was due to hit theatres, and audiences
are sure to be equally delighted. Perfectly
matched in temperament and timing, they
make for a classic duo whose cinematic
exploits have surely only begun. Wade
Major
102 (R-83) BOXOFFICE
REVIEWS
DINOSAUR • ••
Voiced by D.B. Sweeney, A Ifre Woodard,
Ossie Davis, Max Casella and Julianna
Margulies. Directed by Ralph Zondag and
Eric Leighton. Written by John Harrison
and Robert Nelson Jacobs. Produced by
Pam Marsden. A Buena Vista release.
Animated. Rated G. Running time: 82 min.
A skillful blend of old-fashioned Disney
storytelling and newfangled computer animation
makes for an effective and frequently
spectacular summer family film in
"Dinosaur." a prehistoric extravaganza
about an orphaned dinosaur's coming-of-age.
Combining live-action backgrounds
(photographed throughout the globe in
such exotic locations as Australia.
Venezuela, Samoa, Hawaii and Florida as
well as California) with computer generated
characters, "Dinosaur" creates an
astonishingly real setting for its story
about an apatosaurus raised by lemurs on
a remote island away from dinosaur society.
Naming him Aladar (voiced by D.B.
Sweeney), the lemurs (Alfre Woodard,
Ossie Davis and Max Casella) accept him
unselfishly into their midst, a happy
arrangement until a massive meteorite
storm devastates the planet, washing the
island paradise away in a tidal wave and
depositing Aladar and his adoptive family
onto the barren mainland. There, for the
first time, Aladar encounters his own
kind—a mournful assortment of herbivores
migrating across the wasteland on
their way to the fabled "nesting ground"
where they will be safe from the clutches of
the insatiably carnivorous allosaurs (a
meaner, nastier cousin to the tyrannosaurus).
Unfortunately, the herd is being
led by a stubborn egomaniac named Kron
(Samuel E. Wright) who has no sympathy
either for the elderly stragglers who keep
slowing them down (Joan Plowright and
Delia Reese) or for the bleeding-heart likes
of Aladar. who questions his authority.
That Aladar also has a thing for Kron's sister
Neera (Julianna Margulies) merely
exacerbates an already bad situation.
It's all rather formulaic Disney material,
borrowing entire scenes, subplots and
character relationships from any number
of previous Disney and non-Disney animated
features, including last year's
"Tarzan" and Don Bluth's 1988 feature
"The Land Before Time," whose story
"Dinosaur" replicates almost verbatim.
What makes the lack of originality just a
little more bearable is the caliber of the
animation—in many ways more accomplished
than either "Toy Story 2" or
"Jurassic Park." Technical grievances,
however, are sure to be numerous, beginning
with the inclusion of lemurs in an era
when mammals (particularly simians) were
hardly a blip on the evolutionary radar.
Unlike the "Toy Story" films and "A
Bug's Life," which were produced in
collaboration
with Bay Area animation studio
Pixar, "Dinosaur" marks Disney's first
effort at producing a computer-animated
feature entirely in-house—and judging
from the result, it will surely not be the
last.— Wade Major
PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED: JUNE/JULY/AUGUST 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" ••: 7fA Art, 619; see April 1999.
"But I'm a Cheerleader" *•: Lions Gate, 717; see November 1999.
"Butterfly" •••: Miramax, 619; see June 2000.
"Crime + Punishment in Suburbia" **: MGM, Summer undated; see April 2000.
"Five Senses" ****: Fine Line, 7114; see September 1999.
"Girl on the Bridge" ••1/2: Paramount Classics, 7128; see November 2000.
"Goat on Fire..." ••1/2: Stratosphere, Summer undated; see April 2000.
"Groove" •••: SPC, 619; see June 2000.
"Jails, Hospitals & Hip-Hop" **l/2: Stratosp/wre, Summer undated; see June 2000.
"Jesus' Son" *: Lions Gate, 6116; see November 1999.
"L'Humanite" •••1/2: Winstar, 6114; see September 2000.
"Love and Sex" •••1/2: Lions Gate, 8118; see April 2000.
"Love's Labour's Lost" ••**: Miramax, 619; see June 2000.
"The Opportunists" ••1/2: First Look, 8111; see April 2000.
"Pola X" ••: Winstar, August undated; see July 1999.
"Psycho Beach Party" ••: Strand, 814; see April 2000.
"Saving Grace" •••: Fine Line, 814; see April 2000.
"Sunshine" ••*: Paramount Classics, 619; see November 1999.
"Things You Can Tell..." •••: MGM, JulylAugust undated; see April 2000.
"Trixie" •••: SPC, 6130; see April 2000.
"Went to Coney Island..." •••: Phaedra, 8125; see June 2000.
"The Wind Will Carry Us" ••: New Yorker, 7128; see December 1999.
"The Wisdom of Crocodiles" •••: Miramax, 7114; see Nov. 1999.
"Wonderland" ••••: USA, 7128; see July 1999.

ROAD TRIP
REVIEWS
***l/2
Starring Breckin Meyer, Sean William
Scott and Amy Smart. Directed by Todd
Phillips. Written by Todd Phillips & Scot
Armstrong. Produced by Daniel Goldberg
and Joe Medjuck. A Dream Works release.
Comedy. Rated Rfor strong sexual content,
crude humor, language and drug use.
Running time: 94 min.
Road Trip—two of the most famous
words in movies, a defiant cry that started
a lunatic chain of events in the classic
"Animal House." Now "Road Trip" has
been retooled for the 2 1st century and is a
worthy successor to the exploits of Bluto.
Otter and the rest of the Delts. It's very
funny, it's rambunctious and it's
unabashedly sexy. It even has a plot. The
reason Tor the road trip is to retrieve a selfrecorded
video, showing Josh (Breckin
Meyer) in a compromising position with
his new pal Beth (the gorgeous Amy
Smart), mailed in error to Josh's long-time
girlfriend. Actually, the tape shows many
compromising— not to mention athletic
positions. Josh and two other students persuade
a nerd with wheels (DJ Quails) to
join their quest from Ithica, New York, to
Austin, Texas. Naturally, all does not go
well en route. The car is soon destroyed but
replaced by a bus from a blind school.
There's a total gross-out at a coffee shop
and a wonderful cameo by Andy Dick as a
motel clerk.
But it's not just the trip that provides
the laughs. The film is sort of narrated by
the hilarious Tom Green of MTV fame as
he shows a group around the campus of
the University of Ithica while meandering
from his duties to tell the tale of "Road
Trip." When one of his tour takes issue
with a plot point, complaining that in the
real world women don't walk around their
communal bathrooms naked. Green, who
has described the scene in loving detail,
tells his critic to shut up. "This is my
story," he says.
And the scene involving Green, a
mouse, a python and a nasty teaching
assistant is destined to become a classic.
With the right scripts and direction. Green
could easily become the next Jim Carrey.
— Mike Kerrigan
SMALL TIME CROOKS **
Starring Woody Allen, Tracey Ullman,
Elaine May, Jon Lovitz, Michael Rapaport,
Elaine Stritch, Hugh Grant and Tony
Darrow. Directed and written by Woody
Allen. Produced by Jean Doumanian. A
DreamWorks release. Comedy. Rated PG
for language. Running time: 90 min.
Throughout Woody Allen's career, certain
tendencies have remained constant,
namely a predisposition to mediocrity
before each new burst of hyper-creativity.
One can only hope, then, that the mediocrity
of "Small Time Crooks" stays true to
formula, heralding something uncommonly
brilliant on the horizon.
A tedious, uninspired grab-bag of
recycled Woody Allen cliches, "Small
Time Crooks" was to have marked a
return to the zany antics of such early
classics as "Take the Money and Run."
placing Allen more closely in line with the
commercial sensibilities of his latest
patron studio, DreamWorks. And for
roughly 30 minutes, the film shows
promise with petty thief-turned-dishwasher
Ray (Allen) coaxing his one-time
stripper wife Frenchy (Tracey Ullman)
into supporting his latest get-rich-quick
scheme: to rent a newly vacant pizza shop
and turn it into a cookie store which
Frenchy will run as a front while Ray and
his gang tunnel from the basement into
the vault of an adjacent bank. It's a very
funny plan, particularly when populated
with Ray's dysfunctional mob of misfit
hoods (Michael Rapaport, Tony Darrow
and Jon Lovitz).
A bizarre turn of events, however, has
Frenchy's cookies becoming explosively
popular, so much so that within a year of
their attempted heist, they find themselves
legally wealthy beyond their wildest illegal
dreams.
Ordinarily, this kind of "Beverly
Hilbillies" twist would suggest even greater
things to follow. Unfortunately, Woody
chooses to change gears completely, dropping
the uproariously engaging trio of
Lovitz, Darrow and Rapaport out of the
picture entirely and shifting focus to the
marital problems of a couple torn apart by
the demands of high society.
It's hard to know just what to make of
the shift in tone and narrative, for either
storyline might have made for a
respectable movie on its own. Stitching
such disparate sensibilities together in one
film, however, seems a sure recipe for confusion,
apathy and even anger on the part
of audiences expecting either one or the
other.
It's obvious, too, that Allen is not particularly
enamored of the material. His
own performance is noticeably automated
and predictable— far more than
usual—too often relying on jokes that are
so carelessly obscure that even die-hard
fans may not get them. What helps sustain
the film is Allen's workmanlike professionalism
as a director, extracting fine
work from supporting performers and
collaborators alike. Cinematographer
Zhao Fei, who previously worked with
Allen on "Sweet and Lowdown," does
some luminous work here, as does veteran
writer/director Elaine May ("Ishtar,"
"Primary Colors") in a rare acting turn
as Frenchy's hilariously half-witted
cousin May.— Wade Major
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Response No. 504
Julv, 2000 (R-84) 103

I
REVIEWS
BATTLEFIELD EARTH (no stars)
Stalling John Travolta, Barry Pepper and
Forest Whitaker. Directed by Roger Christian.
Written by Corey Mandell. Produced by Elie
Samaha, Jonathan Krane and John Travolta.
A Warner Bros, release. SF. Rated PG-13
for sci-fi violence. Running time: 117 min.
All the fuss about John Travolta and
Scientology notwithstanding, the most
deplorable thing about "Battlefield Earth"
is that it's a simply horrible movie. Based
on the popular science fiction novel by late
Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, the
post-apocalyptic epic is
the kind of catastrophically
misguided vanity project that
often derails careers, if not entire studios.
In this case, the fallout should be more
than enough to go around.
The time is 3000 A.D., many generations
after a cone-headed, dreadlocked
alien race known as the Psychlos attacked
and reduced the earth's population to cavedwelling,
superstitious primitives, the socalled
"man animal" whom they exploit
for slave labor and to mine precious metals.
Ruthlessly lording over the humans is
Psychlos security chief Terl (Travolta), a
sadistic megalomaniac who seems to relish
humiliating his doddering second-in-command
Ker (Forest Whitaker) almost as
much as the "man animals."
What Terl and the rest of the Psychlos
fail to take into account is the indefatigable
human resolve that always seems to stir up
some trouble-making "savior" figure like
Johnny Goodboy Tyler (Barry Pepper), a
restless, freedom-loving youth who cons
Terl into hooking him up to a "learning
machine" that miraculously fills his head
with the sum total of all lost human knowledge.
Armed with understanding, Tyler rallies
a scrappy army of conscripts, shuttling
them around the ruins of North America
where they receive a crash course in human
history that
includes paramilitary training
in the operation of ancient 20th Century
fighter jets (which for some strange reason
are fully tanked up and still operational).
Unfortunately, by the time the final "battle"
rolls around, what should have been a gleeful
exercise in camp stupidity seems tedious
and anti-climactic, the final insult in a
movie so wantonly moronic that it defies
description. Indeed, despite the Joseph
Campbell-esque aspirations, the film bears
only the most superficial resemblance to the
films it most wishes to emulate: "Planet of
the Apes." "Independence Day." "The Road
Warrior," "Star Wars" and "The Matrix."
Surprisingly, the film's greatest undoing
may be the fact that it does not confirm
the confessed fears of many that
Travolta, a devout Scientologist, would
use the film to promote Scientological
doctrines. It is, in fact, utterly inane and
innocuous in the most harmless, uninteresting
way—the fruit of an overrated star's
overblown ego. recklessly indulged by studio
excess.— Wade Major
CENTER STAGE *1/2
Starring Amanda Schull, Zoe Saldana,
Susan May Pratt, Peter Gallagher, Donna
Murphy, Ethan Stiefel and Sascha
Radetsky. Directed by Nicholas Hytner.
Written by Carol Heikkinen. Produced by
Laurence Mark. A Columbia release.
Drama. Rated PG-13 for language and
some sensuality. Running time: 113 min.
What appears to have been conceived
as an attempt at a kind of teenage "The
Turning Point," "Center Stage" comes off
MOVIE REVIEWS, RIGHT IN THE PALM IN YOUR HAND.
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a *J>C

HELD UP
•
Starting Jamie Foxx, Eduardo Ydriez,
Barry Corhin and i\'ia Long. Directed by-
Steve Rash. Written by Jeff Eastin.
Produced by Neal H. Moritz, Jonathan
Komack Martin and Stokely Chaffin. A
Trimark release. Comedy. Rated PG-13 for
language, violence and sensuality. Running
time: 88 min.
If it wasn't for bad luck, Michael
("Any Given Sunday's" Jamie Foxx)
wouldn't have any luck at all. All he wanted
to do was take his fiancee, Rae (Nia
Long, "Big Momma's House"), on a nice,
romantic trip to the Grand Canyon in his
new car. After a bathroom fiasco that
lands them at a remote convenience store,
their relationship is rocked by matters of
mistrust and poor money management.
Not only does he lose his girl, Michael
also gets carjacked and is taken hostage in
a botched robbery. In a vain attempt at
professionalism, the local authorities consult
"The Book," a hostage negotiations
manual still in shrink-wrap. With time
running out, Michael has to rely on his
quick wit to resolve his situation and
make it to the airport to stop his fiancee
from leaving.
"Held up" is how paying audiences will
be left feeling when the credits begin to
roll. The film sets up several sight gags and
potential running jokes but fails
to follow
through with most of them. Director Steve
Rash's lack of comic timing even manages
to botch the humor in a potentially riotous
scene involving lethal Doritos. Dwayne
E. Leslie
SCREWED 1/2
Starring Norm Macdonald, Dave
Chappelle and Danny DeYito. Directed and
written by Scott Alexander and Larry
Karaszewski. Produced by Robert Simonds.
A Universal release. Comedy. Rated PG-13
for crude and sex-related humor, nudity,
language, some violence and brief drug content.
Running time: 81 min.
The writing team of Scott Alexander
and Larry Karaszewski has penned — three
of the best movies of the '90s "Man on
the Moon." "The People vs. Larry Flynt"
and "Ed Wood." Norm Macdonald has a
well-defined and popular persona of an
amoral and irreverent but likable schemer.
So how come they couldn't come up with
something better than this road kill of a
movie?
And there's more. How did they manage
to involve class acts like Danny
DeVito. Elaine Stritch and Daniel Benzali
in their folly? Surely there can't be that
many incriminating photos out there.
Macdonald, straying far from his
character comfort zone, plays the putupon
butler of a witchy tycoon. The hired
REVIEWS
hand is treated like a dog. or rather much
worse than his mistress' pampered pooch.
The Norm we know and love from movies
("Dirty Work") and TV (ABC's "Norm")
would have told his employer where to
stick her job, but then there would have
been no "Screwed"—which would have
been best for all concerned. Instead,
there's a pathetic plot
about kidnapping
the dog for ransom, which veers off in
convoluted and totally pointless directions.
There is one brief promise of salvation
with the introduction of Danny
DeVito's creepy character— a morgue
attendant with an impressive collection of
things found inside corpses. Think Louie
DePalma meets Frankenstein. But he's
not given the opportunity to go anywhere
with it.
The real tragedy is that there are no
laughs—nothing remotely amusing. The
closest it gets is naming the characters
almost after presidents. There's Willard
Fillmore, Grover Cleaver and Rusty B.
Hayes. And the cop is called—wait for it
Tom Dewey. It might not be exactly sidesplitting
to suggest that audiences forking
over their money expecting to be entertained
are getting exactly what the title
promises. But it would be funnier than the
film. Mike Kerrigan
THE FLINTSTONES IN VIVA ROCK
VEGAS ***1/2
Starring Mark Addy, Stephen Baldwin,
Kristen Johnston and Jane Krakowski.
Directed by Brian Levant. Written by
Deborah Kaplan & Harry Elfont and Jim
Cash & Jack Epps Jr. A Universal release.
Comedy. Rated PG for innuendo and brief
language. Running time: 90 min.
If you liked the first "Flintstones"
movie, you will love this one, which is a
prequel explaining how Fred and Wilma
met and married as well as how Barney
and Betty hooked up.
It is also a lot more fun than the first
film, which always seemed to be trying too
hard to get laughs. This one is a lot more
relaxed and the jokes just seem to bubble
to the surface. For example, credits like
"Univershell Studios" and "Steven
Spielrock" are really not funny. But having
a couple of hoods called Rocco is. And so
is the headline act at the Vegas casino-
Mick Jagged and the Stones.
The first outing had a legendary list of
three dozen writers (not all got screen
credit) and many reported technical problems
but went on to gross $350 million
worldwide. This version has some fabulous
visual effects (check out the dinosaur roller
coaster) and genuine warmth.
Mark Addy, who flashed to fame in
"The Full Monty," is a quieter and more
introverted Fred than John Goodman's
brash version in the first one. But Addy,
who has obviously spent some time in the
gym, gives Fred a warm, human side that
was lacking earlier.
Plotwise, the film starts with space
characters (not the Jetsons) looking at
earth and sending one of their number,
Gazoo, to investigate the human way of
reproduction. Gazoo, a huge head on a
tiny hovering body, is hilariously played by
Alan Cumming (who also essays Mick
Jagged).
Director Brian Levant, who helmed
Jingle All the Way," "Problem Child 2"
and "Beethoven" as well as the first
"Flintstones," gets great performances
from the whole cast. The technical credits
are excellent. Mike Kerrigan
••**
CROUPIER
Starring Clivc Owen, Kate Hardie, Alex
Kingston and Gina McKce. Directed by
Mike Hodges. Written by Paul Mayersberg.
Produced by Jake Lloyd. A Shooting
Gallery release. Crime drama. Unrated.
Running time: 95 min.
Clive Owen is the coolest guy in the
movies; the competition is not even close.
In the kinky drama "Close My Eyes," he
made incest seem almost socially acceptable.
In "The Rich Man's Wife," he gave
Halle Berry a reason for having her husband
whacked. Now he's dealing blackjack
and spinning a roulette wheel with enough
attitude to intimidate even the most hardboiled
gambler.
Jack Manfred (Owen) really wants to
be a novelist. He's working in a casino to
pay the rent. But as he writes, the character
he is
creating gives him license to take
chances with his own life. With a tightly
spun script by Paul Mayersberg ("The
Man Who Fell to Earth." "Merry
Christmas, Mr. Lawrence"), this absorbing
drama hooks you early and keeps you
guessing.
The film even looks as cool as Owen's
even stare, and you would expect no less
from Mike Hodges, the man who directed
"Get Carter," one of the greatest crime
movies of all time. It is all flashy interiors
and gloomy night shots, agonizing closeups
and tight cross-cutting. It is a fascinating
look into the head of a casino worker
but it is also a terrifically plotted crime
drama.
Although the hero is not a terribly
admirable character- he wants to be a
writer for only financial reasons—he is
very compelling, and Owen gets powerful
support from three accomplished actresses
creating three very different characters.
But ultimately this film belongs to the icecool
Owen. If Pierce Brosnan ever decides
to abandon James Bond. Owen would be
just the guy to fill his elegant calf-skin slipon
loafers. Mike Kerrigan
July, 2000 (R-86) 105

*••
FAMILY TREE
Starring Andrew Lawrence, Robert
Forster,
Cliff Robertson and Naomi Judd.
Directed by Duane Clark. Written by Paul
Canterna. Produced by Mike Curb and
Carole Curb Nemoy. An
Independent Artists release.
Family. Rated G. Running time:
90 min.
Periodically, childhood landmarks
are torn down and memories
are lost forever. This encouraging
tale will hit viewers deep
and resonate triumphantly, especially
among those who wish
they could have done what nineyear-old
Mitch Musser (Andrew
Lawrence) does for his neighborhood.
When his father, Henry
(Robert Forster), is chosen to
spearhead the negotiations with
Benjamin Plastics to open a
plant in their town, nobody foresees
that for the community to
become economically stable, a tree nicknamed
"Old Oak" has to be cut down. For
generations. Old Oak has been used by
children as a playground and has provided
a place for others to reflect. But the desperate
need for jobs outweighs the citizens'
desire to save the tree. Feeling that anything
worth having is worth fighting for, Mitch
defiantly starts a one-boy campaign with
hopes of saving his best friend.
Not only is this film for a nostalgic audience
who remembers what it is like to watch
a part of one's childhood destroyed by progressive
augmentation, but also for troubled
preteens who feel alienated because of their
altered views. It shows that with a lot of
determination, the underdog can prevail in
the midst of jealousy, greed and sibling
rivalry. Dwayne E. Leslie
•••
Starring James Marsden, Lena Headey
and Norman Reedus. Directed by Davis
Guggenheim. Written by Gregory Poirier
and Theresa Rebeck. Produced by Jeffrey
Silver and Bobby Newmyer. A Warner Bros,
release.
Psychological drama. Rated R for
sexual content including language and for
brief violence. Running time: 90 min.
It has a little more style than substance,
but nevertheless "Gossip" is head-andshoulders
above many other college-age
movies. It at least has a viable idea that
plays to effect and even manages a nice
double-whammy ending.
The story concerns three communications
students who start a rumor to see
who will believe it and how it is spread.
Their efforts are a little too effective, and
people start to get hurt, culminating in the
arrest of one possibly innocent person.
What is really potent is their largely futile
efforts to halt the damage they are doing.
106 (R-87) BOXOFFICE
REVIEWS
FLASHBACK: November 23, 1933
What BOXOFFICE Said About...
THE INVISIBLE MAN
[Columbia's "Hollow Man," opening August 4, is "clearly" an
homage to 1933's Claude Rains starrer "The Invisible Man,"
based on H.G. Wells' classic novel.]
One of the best of the horror stories to reach the screen, this
picture rates high because of originality of theme, excellent
acting, expert camerawork and direction, plus an atmosphere
of brooding mystery which helps engender the proper mood
for the fantastic tale of a man who created a miracle only to
have it destroy him. Claude Rains is excellent in the title role,
that of a young scientist who discovers a drug which, if injected
under the skin, causes one to become invisible. The discovery
unbalances his mind and he retires to a country inn to continue
his experiments undisturbed. Enraged by interferences,
he becomes an instrument of destruction, waging a one-man
reign of terror.
SELLING ANGLES:
The theme of this picture allows unlimited scope to the showman with imagination.
Forget the cast and play up the title. Endeavor to create an atmosphere of deep
mystery by the clever use of cutouts and dim lights. The picture is based on a wellknown
novel by H.G. Wells, which permits book tie-ins. This film is a natural for a
bang-up teaser campaign.
CATCHLINES:
The fantastic story of an unseen menace. ..Wielding destruction. ..Impossible to Detect!
See this blood-curdling story of a man who sold his soul for a power that destroyed him!
A thrilling, nerve-tingling drama of an invisible menace who waged
destruction undetected! Beware of the Invisible Man!
He may be behind you ready to strike and destroy!
"Gossip" is a bit plot-heavy, but there is
enough action to hold one's interest and
the movie has a very stylish look. The loft
in which the three leads live—who has this
kind of money?—is a spectacular set and
director Davis Guggenheim gets great
mileage from it.
James Marsden ("Disturbing Behavior")
is the charming, handsome bad boy, Lena
Headey ("Onegin") is the bright and pretty
girl-next-door while Norman Reedus
("8mm") is the introverted and slightly
creepy artistic member of the trio. The
three have good chemistry and work out
the many intricacies while swigging
enough multi-colored martinis to put lesser
mortals in rehab or a liver transplant
program.
The three relative newcomers get sterling
support from some familiar faces like
Edward James Olmos, Sharon Lawrence
and Eric Bogosian. Kate Hudson ("200
Cigarettes") delivers another solid performance
as the woman who may or may not
have been raped. For her part, she was too
drunk to be sure. It will not be long now
before people stop referring to her as
Goldie Hawn's daughter. Mike Kerrigan
CARAVAN **•*
Starring Thilen Lhondup, Lhapka
Tsamchoe and Gurgon Kyap. Directed by Eric
Valli.
Written by Olivier Dazat, Jean-Claude
Guillebaud, Louis GardeL Nathalie Azoulai
and Jacques Perrin. Produced by Jacques
Perrin and Christophe Barratier. No distributor
set. AdventurelDrama. Napali-language;
subtitled. Unrated Running time: 104 min.
The first-ever Oscar-nominated film
from the small Tibetan kingdom of Nepal,
"Caravan" is a breathtaking achievement,
an epic undertaking that dwarfs even the
most logistically challenging Hollywood
productions in scale without ever overwhelming
the small, intimate story at its
center.
Directed by Frenchman Eric Valli, a
photographer/author/documentarian who
has lived in the remote northwestern Dolpo
region for nearly two decades, the mostly
French-financed film belongs to a rather
specific sub-genre of Asian film, mostly situated
in remote, rural regions like Tibet and
Mongolia and centering on the trials and
tribulations encountered by traditional,
indigenous peoples. The most famous of
these are, perhaps, Akira Kurosawa's 1975

REVIEWS
Oscar-winner. "Dersu Uzala"
and Chinese Fifth Generation
maverick Tian Zhuangzhuang's
SUCH A LONG JOURNEY
•••1/2
Starring Roshan Seth, Om
Puri, Soni Razdan and Rangit
controversial and little-seen
"Horse Thief," recently proclaimed
Chowdhry. Directed by Simla
"Best Film of the Gunnarsson. Written by Sooni
1990s" by Martin Scorsese Taraporevala. Produced by Paul
(despite being made in 1986). Stephens and Simon
The latter film seems the MacCordindale. A Shooting
strongest influence on Valli's Gallery release. Drama. Unrated.
more accessible effort here, for Running time: 113 min.
both share similar preoccupa- This is a story set 30 years
tions with the role that tradi- ago against the backdrop of a
tional Tibetan Buddhism plays bloody conflict that was
in the lives of poor, rural vil- already more than 20 years old
lagers and the seemingly end- a nd has still not ended. But
less survival cycles that blind there are no battle scenes, no
adherence to tradition imposes tanks coming over the horizon,
upon them.
Instead, the tale is about a fam-
The story, inspired by real
ji y many miles from the action
acquaintances of Valli's, con- but whose lives were reluctantly
cerns a generational power strug- but inextricably bound up in
gle for leadership of a tiny moun- wha t was happening in their
tain village, the entire economy country.
of which relies on the annual car- Based on the award-winning
avan, a weeks-long yak drive nove i by Rohinton Mistry,
through barren, treacherous "Such a Long Journey" tells the
topography to trade salt for pre- t ale of a lowly bank clerk trying
cious grain. When the son and to cope amid the dirt and din of
successor to the aging town chief, Bombay. As wonderfully
Tinle (Thilen Lhondup), dies
i
p ayed by Roshan Seth
during one such caravan, a dis- ("Ghandi", "My Beautiful
pute arises between the head- Laundrette"), Gustad Noble is
strong Tinle and an equally as patrician as his name would
headstrong young caravanner SUgge st. He is trying to hold his
named Karma (Gurgon Kyap), fam ily together, be faithful to
rightfully next in line to head the
his friends and maintain a semvillage.
But Tinle blames Karma blance of dignity. But as a disfor
his son's death and refuses to tant war rages, he is caught up
relinquish power, determining to m a dangerous situation involvlead
the next caravan himself on mg illegal money,
the day "appointed by the gods," The tension spills over into
even though the greater part of his private and professional
the village favors Karma in his
i;veSi but he manages to cope
determination to defy tradi- and even occasionally to beat
tion and lead a rival caravan the system. There is an unsightfour
days earlier. ly wall outside his apartment
Filmed on location in the building which people have been
Dolpo region over the course of us ing a s an outside toilet. His
nine months, "Caravan" cap- solution is to persuade a pavetures
the natural beauty of the ment artist to paint holy picarea
and its inhabitants with tures on it, thus solving the aesarresting
allure. It is by no thetic and the sanitation probmeans
a perfect film, noticeably )em m one fell swoop,
slower and less interesting in its i this positive t i s attitude
first half than after the two car- which drives Gustad's life and
avans depart on their competing t he movie. Despite the depressjourneys.
It is the totality of the jng setting and circumstances,
achievement, however, that there is always optimism,
makes "Caravan" more than Director Sturla Gunnarsson
simply another exotic tale of a Was born in Iceland, grew up in
faraway place. For Valli does not Vancouver and once worked as
merely blur the line between cin- a shepherd in Crete, but he perema
and anthropology—he fec tly captures the mood and
places each in the service of the rhythms of India. Mike
other. Wade Major Kerrigan
Review Digest
Genre kcr: (Ac) Action; (Ad) Adventure; (Ani) Animated;
(C) Comedy; (D) Drama; (Doc) Documentary; (F) Fantasy; (Hor)
Ho: r (M) Mucicsl- (My) Mystery; (R) Romanse; San Satinl
(SF) Science Fiction; (Sits) Suspense; (Th) Thriller; (W) Western.
Si
n
- / u > o u. o.
American Beauty R (DWl
1 II

ovieron
Moviegoer Poll and Activity Report for April 2000
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1%, allowing nearly 99% of the light from the projectot
through to the si rem ( uslom sizes arc .n.nLihle in thu k
nesses from 1/8" to 3/8". Call Steve Berk at Sycamore Glass
Components: (815) 895-8533, or fax (815) 895-7829. Visit
our web site at www.sycamore-glass.com, or email
.jle -"-.y.in:nte j.i-.-Y THEATRE SYSTEMS
" THE ECONOMICAL WINDOWS* BASED MANAGEMENT SOLUTION "
Graphic Show Scheduler - Inventory Management - Box Office Reports - Touch Screen
Remote Communications - Fast and Easy to Use - Advanced Ticketing - Capacity Warnings
Free Demo Available at rts-solutions.com or call (616) 463-5096
Response No. 130
9OTrmnwuwinciM'.-v
Show movies?
www.bigscreenbiz.com
Click here for b2b exhibition auctions . discussion services
!
DRIVE-IN CONSTRUCTION
DRIVE-IN SCREEN TOWERS Since 1945 Selby
Inc., Products, P.O. Box 267, Richfield, Ohio 44286
(330) 659-6631, 800-647- 6224.
THEATRE SEATING
"ALL AMERICAN SEATING" by the EXPERTS. Used
seats, many makes—American Stellar $25. Irwin
Citation, real nice, many colors from $20. Many blue
& grey American Desk and Irwin. Blue and blue $25.
Irwin Atlas high back black $37.50. Seating Concepts
mauve and black $40. Like new!! All with cupholders—some
rockers, new Seating Cotuepts chairs from
$97. Also gravity lift seat bottoms! We ship and install
all makes and models. Try us—we sell no junk!
TANKERSLEY ENTERPRISES, 4877 National Western
Drive #149, Denver, CO 80216. Phone (303) 675-
1)8(10; lax (303) 675-0808.
ALLSTATE SEATING is a company that is specializing
in refurbishing, complete painting, molded foam, tailor-made
seat covers, installations, removals. Please
call for pricing and spare parts for all types of theatre
seating. Boston, MA. Phone (617) 268-2221, FAX
(617) 268-7011.
AUDITORIUM SEATING SPECIALIST New installations,
rebuilds, repairs and reasonable rates. Bob,
(970) 224-1147. Perfection Seating Inc., 295 Lone
Pine Creek Drive, Red Feather Lakes, CO 80545.
ON-SITE UPHOLSTERY AND DRAPERY SERVICE!
Replacement covers, screen clening, parts chair painting
and used chairs. We guarantee our completii
QUALITY USED CHAIRS lor sale, reasonable prices.
We sell no S'crap. Delivery and installation available.
Call toll free 1-877-401 -7328 or fax 1-847-821-0185.
SEAT AND BACK COVERS: Most i.ibn, s in stock Molded
cushions. Cv Young Industries Inc., 8(10-729-2610.
"WHILE THE THEATRE SLEEPS zzzzz" On-site
rrupholstery, 20 years' experience in the field. Top
fabrics, molded seat t ush ions and Slate of the Art. Cy
Young cupholders. Call Cy Young Industries Inc.,
"29-2610.
1
MARQUEES
MARQUEE LETTERS: All makes, all styles. Heavy-dis
counted — immediate shipping. Bux-Mont. phont
(215)675-1040, fax (21 5) 675-4443.
Are Your Theatres Still
Overstocking Supplies?
Concession
Manager
for Windows®
Only $199 per Location BJ3JJTQ ,, 3
Sensible Cinema Software
sensiblecinema.com • (615)799-6366
SERVICES
ALTEC, |BL, E.V. SPEAKER RECONING Factory authorized
service, fast turnaround. We stock diaphragms for
popular theatre drivers. Cardinal Sound & Motion
Picture Systems Inc. Dealer inquiries welcome. (301
595-8811.
CALL ME about rebuilding your intermittents, projectors
and sound heads. Century or Simplex. Pinky Pinkston
at (903) 523-4912. Pinkston Sales and Service, Rt. 1,
Box 72-H, Sadler, TX 76264.
SOUND/DRAPING FABRICS IN STOCK. All new
selection of fabrics. Installation on brackets available, or
sewn in pleated drapes. Call Cy Young Industries Inc.,
800-729-2610.
"WHILE THE THEATRE SLEEPS zzzzz" On-site reupholstery,
20 years' experience in the field. Top fabrics,
molded seat cushions and .State of the Art. Cy Young
cupholders. Call Cy Young Industries Inc., (800) 729-
2610.
WWW.BIGSCREENBIZ.COM A business to busine:
site. Theatre owners, distributors, bookers, manufactu
ers, projectionists, employees and anyone in the mov
business. Auctions, discussion forums, service
www.biescreenbiz.com .
MISCELLANEOUS
July. 2000 113

, y

SUPERIOR SOUND MHDE SIMPLE.
troducing The New Q5C
gital Cinema Monitor.
Digital Onema Monitors are designed to make today's
sound systems easier to install
and better sounding.
used with QSCs Digital Cinema Amplifier (DCA) Series,
is provide all necessary signal processing and monitor funcin
a single integratec^system. Three models—the DCM-1,
2 and DCM-3—cover cinema systems ranging from six to
channels configured for bi-amp or tri-amp operation.
tplified Installation
systems are simple to install, significantly reducing set-up
and installation costs. A standard DB-25 cable from the
na processor provides the input to the DCM. All DCM
ections to DCA amplifiers for input and monitor signals are
through a single VGA-style cable.
PKWffPTT^WP"!"!*
also allow you to quickly set crossover parameters using
-based, menu-driven software program. The program
Jes a master speaker database that lists default parameters
ipular cinema speaker models to ensure proper configuration
system every time.
erior Sound
signal processing (DSP) in the DCM maximizes your
s
performance. Crossover frequency, delay, parametric
ization,
polarity and gain can be precisely adjusted for
speaker in your system. Digital delay, adjustable in
21 (is
ensures proper acoustical time-alignment of louder
drivers for smooth frequency response—especially
in three-way systems. A passive emergency bypass
QSCs DCA
Amplifiers
iver is also included for fail-safe operation.
anced Monitor Functions
tion to audio monitoring of amplifier inputs and outputs,
include QSCs exclusive "Load Fault"
detection feature
wides a real-time indication of opens and shorts that
in the speaker system or wiring.
e the easy-to-install DCM Digital Cinema Monitor and
lize the performance of your digital sound system.
A single "VGA" style cable provides all
inputs, monitoring, and AC power control
for each amplifier.
1 -800-854-4079 for more information
hit www.qscaudio.com
A DCM system requires only eight cables for a six-channel
tri-amped system. A conventional system requires at least 34.
The Power Behind the Pictures.
Response No. 26

'BUILD
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CALL: 516-789-2222 516-789-8888
• FAX: bib-/ o*-o
http://members.aol.com/steinincl