Thompson on Hollywood

The Hangover Beats Up, Universal Loses on Land of Lost

Americans who are cinching their belts and making do with less flocked to cinemas over the weekend to watch a group of grown men exercising no restraint whatsoever. The Hangover was the perfect antidote to a nation on a fiscal diet.

By Anne Thompson
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June 8, 2009 7:15 AM
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Fans, Friends & Followers: Playbook for the Social Media Age

Cinematech blogger Scott Kirsner drank the digital Kool-aid some time back. So the author of 2007's The Future of Web Video and 2008's Inventing the Movies decided that he had to self-publish his newest book, Fans, Friends and Followers. "If I was writing that artists had to be their own entrepreneur," he says, "then I had to do it too."

By Anne Thompson
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June 8, 2009 6:44 AM
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Saving Journalism: from Obama to Pincus

President Barack Obama, at the end of his funny, barbed and self-mocking White House Correspondents speech, graciously thanked the assembled press corps for doing their jobs --even when he disagreed with them--and recognized that their profession was under duress. He wished them well as they reinvent journalism.

By Anne Thompson
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May 9, 2009 4:36 AM
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SnagFilms Docs on YouTube

">YouTube has gone live with long-form feature content. One of the charter partners on the new deal is SnagFilms, which now has a YouTube channel featuring full-length feature documentary films selected from SnagFilms' online library. Their long-form feature collaboration launches April 17.

By Anne Thompson
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April 17, 2009 7:38 AM
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SXSW Screens Bruno Footage, Debuts Raimi's Drag Me to Hell

After its success debuting at SXSW such Judd Apatow projects as Forgetting Sarah Marshall last year and Knocked Up the year before, Universal Pics is taking advantage of the hip SXSW demo --and the fest's pre-summer time-frame--to promo two more flicks. The studio will screen the first-ever footage from Bruno, Sacha Baron Cohen's follow-up to Borat, on 3/15 at 11 PM followed at midnight by Sam Raimi's full-length horror title Drag Me to Hell.

By Anne Thompson
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March 10, 2009 5:15 AM
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W Poised to Hit Zeitgeist, But Will It?

Lionsgate threw a party at the Landmark in Westwood Monday night for Oliver Stone's W, which was basically an intimate L.A. premiere for Stone and his cast; the movie will also premiere in New York and the Austin Film Fest. Josh Brolin soaked up the applause, flanked by his father and uncle; everyone agreed that he did a helluva job as George W. Bush, from Yale frat-party boy to reformed drunk and born-again Christian and one of the worst presidents in United States history. James Cromwell also scored big as Bush, Sr. in the father-son drama. Cast members Richard Dreyfuss, Scott Glenn, Ioan Gruffudd, and Noah Wyle were also on hand, along with producers Bill Block and Moritz Borman.

By Anne Thompson
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October 7, 2008 12:31 PM
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IndieWIRE Finds Deep-Pocketed Backer

It makes sense that filmanthropist, doc lover and web enthusiast Ted Leonsis, the former vice chairman of AOL, would not only launch doc-friendly website SnagFilms but would also buy IndieWIRE, the trusted New York-based indie film newswire, social network and hub.

By Anne Thompson
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July 7, 2008 7:42 AM
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Summer Movies: Women Want Sex and the City

The NYT's Manohla Dargis seems to think that ">there aren't many women's pictures coming out this summer. True, much of the summer movie advance buzz and online hype is about what the fanboys are interested in. The women's pictures, which appeal to one or two audience quadrants and don't necessarily target men, won't be blockbusters. That's one issue. (Another is the current phobia about putting sex in movies, like Speed Racer and Iron Man, because it will scare off men and younger folks. Please.)

By Anne Thompson
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May 6, 2008 5:36 AM
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Cyrus Reps Make Big Misstep

What were they thinking? Vanity Fair can shoot 15-year-old Disney pop star Miley Cyrus in a silk bedsheet if they want to. Clearly, mighty star photographer Annie Leibovitz was persuasive; Cyrus thought she was participating in something "artistic," she told People.com, adding that from now on she would "trust my support team."

By Anne Thompson
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April 28, 2008 5:51 AM
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Stardust Stirs Memories of Princess Bride

[Posted by Peter Debruge]Box office predictors are crying doom and gloom for Stardust (some suggest the weekend total will be as low as $15 million off 2,540 situations), and I‚Äôm inclined to believe them. Nobody seems to like the Stardust trailers ‚Äî no argument here (judge for yourself). (The reviews are fine: 73 % fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.) It‚Äôs a shame, really, given how original the film is, but how do you sell it?