James Cameron Critical over Glut of Inferior 3D Films

James Cameron is critical over the glut of inferior 3D films in the wake of Avatar.  Few can argue over the success of Cameron’s epic blockbuster as it reaches nearly 3 billion dollars in world wide box office receipts.  According to Boxofficemojo.com, Avatar is currently at $2.7 billion dollars and that’s not including the re-release containing an additional 9 minutes of footage scheduled to hit theaters on August 27th.  Reported as the highest grossing movie of all time, Avatar has rekindled an interest in 3D (three-dimensional) or S3D (stereoscopic 3D) films, a technology that enhances the illusion of depth perception.  The technology has actually been around in some form or another since the 1950’s, popularized by the films Man in the Dark from Columbia and House of Wax from Warner Bros.  But expensive hardware and the processes necessary to create and project the 3D films and a standardized format made widespread distribution almost impossible.  Yet the technology endured and was later resuscitated in the 1980s and 90s by IMAX theaters and Disney.

But not all is well in the land of Hollywood and 3D movies as James Cameron addresses what he believes to be a “knee-jerk reaction to seeing the gold rush happen and the studios just wanted to jump in on it”.  With recent movies like Clash of the Titans and The Last Airbender riding on the coat tails of Avatar’s success, both shot in the traditional 2D format and later converted to 3D, Cameron and others have been critical of the technology used to convert them to 3D.  He equates the conversion process to a “sausage grinder..with some kind of faux 3D or a 2 ½ D mess”.   But back-lash over inferior films and criticism of producers rushing to meet demand might just be the beginning as ticket sales decline for the latest 3D films that are high on concept and low in story.

On the heels of Cameron’s very public scrutiny is news that he plans to make the conversion of his 1997 blockbuster Titanic to 3D and release it in theaters in 2012.  He admits that the conversion process, purportedly better than companies he has publicly panned, will not be as good as the technology used in Avatar but will be a cinematic experience nonetheless that will continue to expand and develop as new techniques and technological innovations are explored.

Some wonder whether or not Cameron can have his 3D cake and eat it too, while others believe the proverbial bottom is poised to drop out of 3D mania as big screen manufacturers rush to deliver 3D televisions to home theaters everywhere.

Sources:

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1645329/20100807/story.jhtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3-D_film

http://www.today3d.com/2010/08/james-cameron-slams-hollywood-for.html

Going The Distance World Premiere

Movie-Vault.com’s entertainment reporter Claire Bueno interviews director Nanette Burstein and cast Drew Barrymore, Justin Long, Oliver Jackson-Cohen and The Boxer Rebellion at the World Premiere of Going The Distance.

Synopsis

Erin’s (Drew Barrymore) wry wit and unfiltered frankness charm newly single Garrett (Justin Long) over beer, bar trivia and breakfast the next morning. Their chemistry sparks a full-fledged summer fling, but neither expects it to last once Erin heads home to San Francisco and Garrett stays behind for his job in New York City. But when six weeks of romping through the city inadvertently become meaningful, neither is sure they want it to end. And while Garrett’s friends Box (Jason Sudeikis) and Dan (Charlie Day) joke about his pre-flight calorie-cutting and his full-time relationship with his cell phone, they don’t like losing their best drinking buddy to yet another rocky romance. At the same time, Erin’s high-strung, overprotective married sister, Corinne (Christina Applegate), wants to keep Erin from heading down an all too-familiar road.

But despite the opposite coasts, the nay-saying friends and family, and a few unexpected temptations, the couple just might have found something like love, and with the help of a lot of texting, sexting and late-night phone calls, they might actually go the distance.

Academy Award®-nominated documentary filmmaker Nanette Burstein (“Onthe Ropes”) directed “Going the Distance,” which marks her feature film directorial debut, from a screenplay by Geoff LaTulippe. The film stars Golden Globe Award winner Drew Barrymore (“Grey Gardens”), Justin Long, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis and Christina Applegate.
 

Pal Danny DeVito to accept award for Michael Douglas as star receives treatment

Following up on Joe's Celebrity Health News->

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Pal Danny DeVito will step in for ailing Michael Douglas who has been receiving radiation treatment for throat cancer.  DeVito will attend the Zurich Film Festival in October to accept the prestigious Golden Icon Award on behalf of his long time friend.

DeVito and Douglas met in 1967 at the National Playwrights Conference in Waterford, Connecticut as aspiring acting students and later roomed together in 1969.  Though a lot of time has passed between projects, they have maintained a connection ever since.  DeVito began a career in theater before being asked by director Milos Forman and producer Douglas to reprise his successful stage role for the film adaptation of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in 1975.  Douglas was already in the third season of the popular television series The Streets of San Francisco at the time.  Though DeVito's career stalled afterwards, he went on to find notoriety as the iconic character Louie DePalma in the ABC sitcom Taxi and subsequently many diverse projects followed.

DeVito and Douglas returned to the screen together in the 1984 hit Romancing the Stone and again in 1985 for the successful sequel, Jewel of the Nile.  In 1989 they teamed up for the widely successful War of the Rose, which DeVito also directed and most recently appear in their fourth film together in the 2009 Brian Koppelman and David Levien film, Solitary Man.  Please feel free to discuss this in the Movie-Vault.com forums.

Movie-Vault extends continued best wishes to Mr. Douglas for a speedy recovery.

-SOURCES-

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i915ec0f14ba05d67622b451bfda51a09

http://www.manhattanmoviemag.com/interviews/michael-douglas-is-a-solitary-man.html#comments

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Danny_DeVito_by_Gage_Skidmore.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Michael_Douglas_Navy3.jpg

Celebrity Health News!

Some big-name celebrities are dealing with some serious health issues. On the actor front - Michael Douglas, son of Kirk Douglas, is dealing with a tumor in his throat. He will be undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments over the next eight weeks. Doctors expect the actor to make a full recovery, the actor's publicist told People magazine on Monday.

"I am very optimistic." The 65-year-old actor said in his statement to People.

Mr. Douglas is married to Academy Award winning* actress Catherine Zeta-Jones. He is a three time Golden Globes winner and two time Academy Award winner, his first as producer of 1975's Best Picture for One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and the other for Best Actor for his 1987 film Wall Street (which has a sequel coming out later this year). Douglas is best known for his roles in films like - Romancing The Stone, Jewel Of The Nile, Wall Street, Fatal Attraction and Basic Instinct.

On to other news - Zsa Zsa Gabor had two blood clots removed at a Los Angeles hospital and is said to be in very serious condition. She has been read her last rites. The 93-year-old actress is best known for being a socialite, actress of TV and films and a former beauty queen as well.

UPDATE - I just learned that Zsa Zsa Gabor chose to spend her final days at home, declining further operations her publicist said. Her husband Frederick Prinz von Anhalt said he did not want to "torture her anymore." referring to various operations she has had since undergoing hip replacement a month ago. Doctors wanted to do a liver operation that would have given her a 50-50 chance. "She wanted to spend her final days at home." her publicist John Blanchette said, continuing "she is in and out of conciousness."

Gabor broke her hip on July 17th when she fell out of bed watching the game show "Jeopardy."

"She had a great run," Blanchette said. "She's 93. She knew five presidents ... she knew kings and queens, celebrities."

The Hungarian-born Gabor has appeared in more than 30 movies, and her penchant for calling everyone "dah-ling" in her Hungarian accent made her a well-known Hollywood personality.

She, along with her two glamorous sisters Eva and Magda made several appearances on radio and television shows in the 1950s and 1960s. Gabor appeared in movies "Moulin Rouge," followed by "Lili" and later "Touch of Evil."

Gabor was married nine times to a string of husbands that included a Turkish diplomat and the hotel magnate Conrad Hilton. She has been married to von Anhalt for 24 years.

Movie-Vault.com wants to send out it's best wishes to Michael Douglas for full and speedy recovery and our thoughts and prayers are with both Michael Douglas and Zsa Zsa Gabor's families and loved ones. You can discuss this news in the Movie-Vault.com Forums.

• Sources -
• http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/38727655/ns/today-entertainment/
• http://http://wonderwall.msn.com/movies/zsa-zsa-gabor-receives-last-rites-1567067.story?GT1=28135
• http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/38716352/ns/today-entertainment/?gt1=43001

* - Catherine Zeta-Jones won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in the film version of Chicago in 2002.