plus 3, China: Theaters must meet domestic movie quota - San Francisco Chronicle

China: Theaters must meet domestic movie quota - San Francisco Chronicle
Reel Movie Trailers: When In Rome - Reel Movie News
'Veer' not going strong at box office - Economic Times
Mel Gibson Stars in New Movie After Seven Year Hiatus - Fashion

China: Theaters must meet domestic movie quota - San Francisco Chronicle

Posted: 27 Jan 2010 12:30 AM PST

James Cameron's 3D sci-fi epic has grossed about $103 million as of Jan. 12, although the film's state-run distributor ordered it removed from 2D theaters in an apparent move to reduce competition for China's homegrown films like a state-backed biopic of Confucius, which brought in a lackluster $5.6 million during its opening weekend.

China remains highly protective of its domestic film industry and permits just 20 revenue-sharing film imports each year. The restriction amounts to a limit on foreign blockbusters that are typically distributed under revenue-sharing deals.

That has not dampened China's enthusiasm for Hollywood films. "Avatar" has smashed the box-office record of $67.3 million set by "2012" in December. The disaster movie broke the previous record of "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."

"Transformers" in 2009 surpassed an 11-year-old record held by another Cameron epic: "Titanic."

This week, China's State Council Web site posted a statement that theater operators should support the "expansion and development of the domestic film industry" and that no less than two-thirds of movies shown each year should be domestic.

China's restriction of movie imports has been taken up by the World Trade Organization. In December the WTO upheld an earlier ruling that China is illegally restricting music, film and book imports from the U.S. The original ruling didn't address the 20-movie limit, but urged Beijing to let foreign companies distribute their entertainment products in China.

In fact, demand has grown for some domestic movies.

The Chinese propaganda movie "The Founding of a Republic" made $61 million in early 2009, not far behind the record takings of "2012" and "Transformers."

But Avatar's 3D experience, and its plot, have struck a chord with Chinese viewers.

The movie revolves around the forced evictions of the alien Na'vi race by humans — a story line that some have said draws unflattering comparisons to China's own, often brutal removal of millions of residents to make way for property developers.

20th Century Fox said Tuesday that "Avatar" had passed "Titanic" to become the highest-grossing film worldwide, bringing in $1.859 billion at the box office.

The reason for 2D screenings being scrapped in China is a little unclear.

Weng Li, spokesman for the film's state-run distributor, China Film Group, which decides which movies to import, said select movie theaters did so for commercial reasons.

"'Avatar' 2D makes up for little more than 5 percent of all 'Avatar' revenue. Everyone wants to watch it in 3D," Weng said. "It's natural for movie theaters to pull movies that aren't doing well and replace them with more promising ones — in this case, 'Confucius.'"

Gao Jun, deputy general manager of the New Film Association, one of China's top multiplex chains, said some 2D showings only had 10 people watching.

"If the government really wanted to push Confucius, they would also push to remove 3D movies," Gao said.

A UME International Cineplex theater spokeswoman in Shanghai, who would give only her surname, Li, confirmed that they had pulled all 2D screenings of "Avatar," but declined to give a reason.

Zhang Hongsen, deputy head of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, denied that the government had imposed the order.

"Confucius," which opened Jan. 22 and stars Hong Kong actor Chow Yun-fat, did not do as well as hoped on its opening weekend.

"People are still flocking to see 'Avatar' because it's a whole new movie experience," Weng said.

In a sign of its popularity, tourism officials in China's southern province of Hunan are trying to cash in on the movie's success by renaming one of its famous peaks "Avatar Hallelujah Mountain," according to the Zhangjiajie city Web site.

Tourists can make "Avatar"-themed visits to the mountain within the Wulingyuan scenic area — a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its towering rock formations.

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Reel Movie Trailers: When In Rome - Reel Movie News

Posted: 26 Jan 2010 03:55 PM PST

Opening January 29th, Disney presents Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel in the romantic comedy When in Rome.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall's Kristen Bell plays Beth, a young, ambitious New Yorker who is completely unlucky in love. However, on a whirlwind trip to Rome, she impulsively steals some coins from a reputed fountain of love, thinking this will help her attract the charms of Nick (Josh Duhamel) a bumbling photographer. However, upon returning to New York, Beth finds that she is being aggressively pursued by a band of suitors- men whose coins she stole from the fountain.

Check out the trailer below, and take a look at our When in Rome photos in the gallery!

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'Veer' not going strong at box office - Economic Times

Posted: 26 Jan 2010 05:10 AM PST

NEW DELHI: Salman Khan's much ambitious period drama "Veer" has fallen flat at the box office despite having an extended weekend for business, thanks to Republic Day. The movie has not gone beyond an average 45 percent occupancy over the initial weekend.
Released Friday, the film was a solo release, but has failed to attract masses.

" 'Veer' is an average movie. While the constant on Friday and Saturday was only 44 percent occupancy, it dropped to 39 percent on Sunday and has been on an average only 43 percent over the initial weekend," Amit Awasthi, manager (programming and operations) of Spice Cinemas at Noida, told.

"It is now expected to fall around 30-35 percent. We were running 19 shows per day and in the new week, we will change it to eight shows per day," he added.

Written by Salman 20 years ago, the film was co-produced by Eros International Media Ltd presentation and Vijay Galani's Moviez production.

Made at a budget of around Rs.44 crore, (Rs.440 million) 'Veer' has been directed by Anil Sharma and marks the big screen debut of Zarine Khan, who is said to have a close resemblance to Salman's actress girlfriend Katrina Kaif.

Set in colonial India, the film encapsulates a period when the British enslaved India with their divide and rule policy and kings and nawabs fell for it, except for the Pindaris who preferred death to dishonour and fought till their last breath. Salman plays one of the bravest and strongest Pindari soldiers named Veer.

"There has been a major drop in the movie. 'Veer' is a period movie and audiences have not been able to relate to it. The movie got only around 40 percent of opening because there was no competition considering it was a solo release," said Yogesh Raizada, corporate head (cinemas) of Wave Cinemas.

"Now that we have an extended weekend due to Republic Day, may be it gets some footfalls as people don't have any other movie to watch," he added.

Piyush Raizada, director of Delite Cinema that upgraded itself into a two-screener, however, claims that movie is doing a good business.

"'Veer' is doing very well and the collections are fantastic considering it's a long weekend," said Raizada.

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Mel Gibson Stars in New Movie After Seven Year Hiatus - Fashion

Posted: 26 Jan 2010 04:52 PM PST

The last time Mel Gibson starred in a movie, he was grappling with alien invaders and a misplaced faith in the sci-fi thriller "Signs."
That was seven and a half years ago. In the intervening time, Gibson became a cultural firebrand, directing the controversial 2004 box-office hit "The Passion of the Christ" and the violent 2006 action epic, "Apocalypto."
He also became a cultural pariah in July 2006 when, after being pulled over in Malibu for speeding and driving under the influence, Gibson made obscene, anti-Semitic remarks to the arresting officer after being handcuffed and put inside a police car.
Gibson largely disappeared after the incident, but returns to theaters Friday with a new movie, "Edge of Darkness," a thriller about a Boston police detective seeking revenge for the murder of his 24-year-old daughter. Receiving lukewarm reviews so far, the movie is similar in tone with past blood-drenched Gibson films such as "Ransom" and the "Lethal Weapon" franchise.
"It was time," Gibson, 54, tells The Associated Press. "I felt like getting back in the saddle. I felt like I was getting stale about seven or eight years ago. Stepped back, did some things I wanted to do. Did a few things I didn't want to do. And then time to come back."
"I don't think Mel eases his way back into anything," says "Edge of Darkness" producer Graham King. "Sure, we discussed very early on, 'Is this the right role for him to come back in?' I think it is, and hopefully moviegoers will agree."
Will they? Hollywood.com box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian believes Gibson picked the right movie for his comeback.
"In revenge roles, Mel Gibson has few peers," Dergarabedian says. "If you've been away for awhile, it's smart to go back to what people are comfortable seeing you do."
Some, though, question whether Gibson's public standing hasn't been permanently damaged.
"I think that drunk-driving tirade confirmed a lot of people's suspicions about the kind of person Mel Gibson is," says Matthew Traub, managing director at Dan Klores Communications.
Traub, who specializes in crisis management public relations, believes people are willing to forgive celebrities for substance abuse or sexual indiscretion but draw the line at bigotry.
Publicist Michael Levine, whose agency has represented Bill Clinton and Michael Jackson among others, agrees.
"I think he's done," Levine says of Gibson's career prospects. "He'll work, he'll exist, but I think he's seared his obit for life."
Gibson defiantly rejects the notion that he's damaged goods.
"It's 30 years ago that I lost my own personal anonymity," Gibson said. "And it's 30 years ago that the public humiliation began. And sometimes it reaches a global level. And what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. And I'm telling you right now, I'm one strong motherf—– because I'm right back at you."
Gibson also insisted his past notoriety will not affect his ability to work with Hollywood studios in the future.
"What scandal?" he says. "That's mostly newspaper hype, OK?! I can get in with the studio, work with them, or work independently as I wish. And I'll go on as I always have."
Gibson has been tentatively making the rounds to promote his new movie. He attended the Golden Globes on Jan. 17 and good naturedly played along when host Ricky Gervais brought a pint of beer on stage and jokingly introduced Gibson, saying, "Honestly, I like a drink as much as the next man — unless the next man is Mel Gibson."
He was also seen cheerfully working the phone bank at last week's all-star "Hope for Haiti Now" telethon.
But there have been missteps, too. A brief TV interview with KTLA entertainment reporter Sam Rubin turned tense when Rubin told Gibson: "Some people will welcome you back, some people will say you should never come back."
Gibson, defensive, leaned forward and asked, "Why?" Rubin replied: "Because of what happened before." Gibson: "What happened before?" Rubin: "The remarks that were attributed to you." Gibson: "The remarks that were attributed to me that I didn't necessarily make."
After the interview aired, Rubin questioned whether Gibson was ever truly sorry for the anti-Semitic remarks he made in 2006, particularly when he now contests the comments for which he widely apologized in the aftermath of his arrest.
While some may question Gibson's remorse, there's no doubting that people are still happy to make movies with him. Gibson just completed filming the offbeat comedy, "The Beaver," directed by longtime friend Jodie Foster, who plays Gibson's wife in the movie.
He has written a prison drama, "How I Spent My Summer Vacation" and will star in that movie later this year.
And he plans to direct Leonardo DiCaprio in a Viking epic that will employ Old Norse dialogue, a movie Gibson says will "put the V in Viking."
If that sounds a little out there, that's one reason why many are eager to welcome Gibson back in the fold.
"As a Jew, I have to say Mel Gibson's my favorite anti-Semite," says veteran film reporter Lewis Beale. "He's an incredibly talented guy both behind and in front of the camera."
Adds film historian David Thomson: "Gibson's not a tidy person. There's an authenticity to the unhinged characters he plays that sets him apart. Whether you like him or not, there's a daring there that makes him compelling."
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