Thompson on Hollywood

News Update: Grand Ole Opry Flooded, Spielberg Picks War Horse, Stone Tours South America

Flood damage to the Grand Ole Opry House was reportedly topic number one in the Nashville music community Monday. At least three feet of water encroached on the historic venue, whose stage is considered hallowed ground in country music. This weekend's shows have been relocated to the Ryman Auditorium downtown, an equally revered venue that fortunately was unaffected. Heavy rains and the rising waters of the Cumberland River devastated middle Tennessee over the weekend.

By Amy Dawes
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May 4, 2010 1:26 AM
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Anime: Next Big Thing

Would you buy a ticket for a big-budget, live-action anime feature? What if there were four of them released at the same time?

By Cameron Carlson
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May 4, 2010 1:22 AM
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Lynn Redgrave Dies, Tough Time for Redgrave Family

I feel for the Redgrave family, which has suffered so much loss in a short period. Lynn Redgrave, the youngest daughter of the great acting family of Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kemp, died Sunday night at age 67 at her home in Connecticut. Her recent autobiographical one-woman show Nightingale dealt with her battle with breast cancer. Here's indieWIRE, The Guardian and NPR.

By Anne Thompson
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May 3, 2010 4:32 AM
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New York Diary: Tribeca Breakouts, MoMA and Fela!

I love New York in spring (even when the temperature hits the 80s at Sunday's Yankee/White Sox game).

By Anne Thompson
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May 3, 2010 2:45 AM
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2 Comments

News Update: New Orleans, Nashville, Treme, Jonah Hex Trailer

Weekend flooding in Nashville won't be a good thing for TV and film productions in the area (see video below). And in New Orleans, the cast and crew of HBO's Treme are among the many who are "very distraught" about the BP-related oil slick heading for shore, executive producer Eric Overmyer told us Friday. Treme wrapped production on its first season late Friday and doesn't resume for season two until November.

By Amy Dawes
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May 3, 2010 2:00 AM
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Cannes Update: Fair Game, Raavan, Biutiful, Tree vs. Tree

Cannes news and notes:

By Anne Thompson
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May 3, 2010 1:20 AM
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Hero Complex Film Fest Books Nimoy, Scott, Nolan

Geoff Boucher's The Hero Complex blog at the LATimes is mounting its own Film Festival: tickets go on sale Monday at 10 am.

By Anne Thompson
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May 3, 2010 1:12 AM
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Polanski Speaks Out, Wants Out

On Sunday Roman Polanski stated that "he can remain silent no longer" over his still-unresolved rape case, now 33 years old, and distributed a statement to the media. Actually his old friend Bernard-Henri Lévy sent around the 908-word statement, reports the NYT.

By Anne Thompson
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May 2, 2010 12:18 PM
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SFIFF 53 Day Five: The Way of Nature, Between Two Worlds, Morning, Wholphin Waters

San Francisco's Meredith Brody reviews The Way of Nature, meets Leland Orser and goes Wholphin.

By Meredith Brody
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May 2, 2010 6:46 AM
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A Smart Note to Twilight Fans from Bill Condon

Writer-director Bill Condon is a smart cookie. On Saturday afternoon, he posted a note to Twilight fans on Facebook, beginning an engagement with them, letting them know he gets their world as he approached getting started on the final installment(s), Breaking Dawn. One of his tasks is going to be figuring out if he's going forward with one or two movies. Summit has not officially yet made that decision, they tell me. Word is, it's two--Condon turned down another movie for scheduling reasons.