FEBRUARY, 28

MOVIES RELEASED

1-T.Y.M.: THE SECOND CHANCE

Action / Sci-Fi / Comedy
Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld
Starring Brendan Fraser, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Dennis Hopper, Kathy Bates
Box Office: 65 mill.
Net Gains: 64 mill.

CMP Reaction: A comfortable breakdown for a nice action comedy. A pop corn show profitable enough.

2-CURSED NEVERLAND

Horror / Evil
Directed and Produced by M. Night Shymalan
Starring: Harrison Ford, Reese Witherspoon, Kiefer Sutherland, Kathy Bates
Box Office: 76 mill.
Net Gains: 52 mill.

CMP Reaction: Higher box office but lower net gains than ‘T.Y.M.: The second chance’. A brilliant horror movie the Studio feels very satisfied about.

THE MOVING THUMBS

1-T.Y.M.: THE SECOND CHANCE

“The formula: (Ghostbusters x Ghostbusters) x (Men In Black x Men In Black) = T.Y.M.:The Second Chance”
-Bob Felton, ‘Entertainment Weekly’

“It is not a coincidence that Barry Sonnenfeld was also the director of ‘Men In Black’. This movie follows exactly the same concept, just changing aliens for evil spirits. A simple premise that always seems to work. Talking about quality here would be superfluous.”
-Charlie Kiggs, ‘Variety’

"A pretty fun and wild action comedy from director Barry Sonnenfeld. What can I say? The movie is good fun from beginning to end. Just pick up your bucket of popcorn and go with the flow. The camera is fluid, never keeping still and the movie moves at a quick pace. Brendan Frasier plays his part perfect in this movie. I say bring on a TYM 3 already! On a scale of 1-4 I give this a 4."
-Sam Elliot, 'The Blog Reviews'

2-CURSED NEVERLAND

“The problem with Shymalan’s previous movies was that they always had an undefined genre. What was ‘Lady In the Water’? A horror movie? A fantasy thriller? What was ‘Signals’? Sci-fi, horror, family drama? Now, Shymalan has made a pure genre movie. Horror at its best. And it works. Scary, claustrophobic and thrilling. Good work.”
-Anne Roman, ‘At The Movies’

“Kiefer Sutherland has made a villain to be remembered. And Harrison Ford hits the target changing the genre of his movies, trying horror instead of another action movie. Great choices. I really had a great time watching it”
-Jessica Tyne, ‘ET’

"M. Night Shymalan has had a pretty spotty movie directing record. But this one seems to bring him back on track. This movie is scary with some stunning visuals and turning Peter Pan into one hell of a scary character. Peter Pan coming into children's rooms to take them away at night makes for a chilling movie. I love how they sort of reverse roles making Captain Hook the good guy in all of this as he and Kate try to figure things out. The trademark M. Night Shymalan twist seems rather tacked on to create a new franchise though. On a scale of 1-4 I give this a 3."
-Sam Elliot, 'The Blog Reviews'

"A daring reimagining of a classic tale by Shymalan which looks to twist the tale into a dark horror, it is unfortunate therefore it is not managed. The cast is interesting to say the least and as good as Ford is I can't stand seeing Reese Witherspoon in this role, she is not accustomed to the genre and it shows on screen. Then again the true weakspot of the film is the direction. M. Night Shymalan has learned nothing from his recent 'dark fairy tale' excursion 'Lady in the Water'. This retelling of Peter Pan is almost a Carbon Copy in terms of direction and clunks along. A good concept that deserved so much more."
-Philip Brookes, 'The Blog Reviews'

" I would like to say first off that I’ve never been much of a horror fan. None the less the premise of turning the Peter Pan legend completely around was so fresh and intriguing that I actually requested the job of reviewing this one. As the theater darkened I found myself enthralled by a superb script by Matt Kubrick, dark and moody directing by M. Night Shymalan, and outstanding performances by the entire cast. I wish to call particular attention to Kiefer Sutherland’s delightfully terrifying performance as Peter Pan. Quite frankly he scared the hell out of me, which is why we go to a horror movie in the first place. Whatever you do, don’t miss Cursed Neverland."
-Sid Carter, 'The Blog Reviews'

THE STAR PROFILE – KIEFER SUTHERLAND

After a promising beginning, his career was slowly going down until ‘24’ got in his way. The tv series has turned him into one of audiences’ favourite and it has opened again the doors of big screen productions for him. Without doubt, one of CMP’s favourite talents, regularly demanded by writers and directors. The good thing about him is that he doesn’t care playing lead or supporting roles, heroes or villains, as his talent shines in all of them.

FILMOGRAPHY

THE CRUSADES (Paul Verhoeven, B.O.: 199 mill.): Kiefer was a noble obsessed with his will of becoming King of Jerusalem. He was also obsessed with his half-brother, Ethan Hawke. An epic adventure that became both a financial success and a GMA Best Picture winner. Kiefer’s prestige in CMP grew up to the sky.

SPACE QUEST (Roland Emmerich, B.O.: 34 mill.): Due to the success of ‘The Crusades’, CMP called him back to be the hero of this space opera saga. An alternative to Star Wars conceived as a trilogy. But it flopped. There are continuous rumours about the sequel, but anything can be assured yet.

THE PASSION BENEATH (Brian Kelley, B.O.: 22 mill.): Kiefer accepted a supporting role in this one, probably looking for acting prestige. He was a convincing drug dealer. But the movie flopped. A shame.

CURSED NEVERLAND (M. Night Shymalan, B.O.: 76): A great villain by Kiefer. He plays an evil version of Peter Pan. Kiefer had to suffer long sessions of make up to play his character. But it was worthy. Probably, his creation of this peculiar villain will be remembered for a long time.


AWAITING RELEASE

1-STAR WARS: NEW ORDER

The Cast: Tobey Maguire, Catherine Z. Jones, Adrian Brody, Daniel Craig, Katie Holmes, Patrick Stewart, Jeremy London.

The Director: Steven Spielberg
The Producer: George Lucas

The Plot: It is one hundred years after the death of Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine. In that time the Empire has collapses, the Republic restablished and Luke Skywalker with a new understanding of the Force has rebuilt the Jedi Order. Into this setting Darvin Skywalker (T.Maguire), grandson of Luke Skywalker, returns to the Temple on Corcuscant after a three year absence to find his place. On his return he finds not much has changed, many Jedi (Masters and Students alike) consider him proteged, someone of great power and will that will fulfill a destiny still left unresolved. There is a reaquanited with his sister Lana (C.Z.Jones), his friend Sara Davis (K.Holmes), and someone who resents Darvin for his heritage and power his ex-best friend Joel Jummer (A.Brody).
However whilst Darvin tries to settle back into Jedi life on the edges of known space something stirs something long thought loss, and when a planet mysteriously goes out of contact Darvin goes with Jedi Master Borel Vass (P.Stewart) to find the truth and find a Jedi who was on the planet when contact was lost.
On that planet Darvin and Borel find the worse possible situation, the Sith are alive and they are now in command of an alien race, the M'tok and the Chiss.
Escaping an encounter with Sith Darth Valis (D.Craig) they return to Coruscant and convince the senate to send a fleet to the planet to fight the force there despite the hesitation of the senate. Borel and Darvin join the Fleet, and Joel feeling left out runs off into the underbelly of Coruscant and experiences how hard can be in the undercity. Upon arrival at the planet the fleet finds the planet a burning inferno, its atmosphere was ignited and all life is destroyed.
Back on Coruscant the Sith fleet arrives in orbit and while fighting the defence force manages to get a hole in the shields and send in land troops. Joel alerted to his runs back to the temple to save the Jedi and in particular Sara, who he has feelings for. The Republic fleet arrives back at Coruscant and instantly engages the Sith, Darvin while piloting a fighter senses something from the Temple and heads down.
On arrival he finds the Temple swarming with M'tok wielding blades that lightsabers can't cut through. Eventually he makes his way to the central chamber where a mass fight is occuring M'tok verses Jedi, and Jedi vs the Sith as the Sith Lord Darth Valis is present. Darvin joins the fight and engages just after Lana's husband, non Jedi, Kyle Griff (J. London) is slain by Darth Valis in protection of her.
Eventually however the Jedi have to retreat and find themselves fighting towards a shuttlebay, where Joel Hummer is defending himself. Darvin and others help and while Jedi load into the shuttles Darvin falls and Joel saves his life, when they too finally leave the planet. Once out in space the Republic fleet is also retreating and some ships help save the Jedi Shuttles which jump to hyperspace safely.
As the Jedi recover from this sudden change in events, Lana grieves for her husband and on Coruscant Darth Valis announces a new order has arisen. The Sith Empire has begun.

The Comment: Almighty God, please, attend our prayers…


2-RED LIGHT

The Cast: Demi Moore, Ashton Kutchner, Jane Fonda, Gene Hackman, Alicia Silverstone

The Director: Joel Schumacher
The Producer: Demi Moore

The Plot: A young girl who was abused through most of her early childhood by neglectfull parents grows up to become a pornstar (D.Moore) but ultimately she does her best to leave her life and try to move on. But she finds it hard and frustrating to change her ways. After meeting guys that only want her for her body she manages to pull herself together when she meets a younger man (A. Kutchner) whose parents (J. Fonda and G. Hackman), a congressman and a lady in Philadelphia’s high society, reject her saying she's too old and not right for their young son. They face Moore and try to convince Kutchner, a brilliant student in Harvard, to marry his teenage times girlfriend, the rich and proper Alicia Silverstone. But love knows no bounds.

The Comment: Nobody at CMP feels too confident about this one. But everybody is so scared and nervous with the release of ‘Star Wars: New Order’ that anyone has time to remember this little low budget production.


THE PROMO PIC

CMP has decided to make an advertising campaign in all movies specialized magazines to gain more presence in the industry. So the Studio has taken three of its favourites female stars to Bora Bora for a photo session. And here is the result. A refreshing add with the splendorous presence of Jessica Alba (‘T.Y.M.’, ‘Deep Silence’, ‘Poor Little Rich Boy’), Halle Berry (‘Dark’, ‘Westworld’, ‘The Last Lawman’) and Rebecca Romijn (‘Dead Man’s Song’, ‘Ace Banner 2’).


MOVIES IN DEVELOPMENT

SMOKE SIGNALS: Diane Lane and Edward Burns have completed the cast of David Mamet’s drama. It is the first time they will appear in a CMP’s movie. Both complete the quartet of heavy smokers together with Johnny Depp and Jennifer Connelly.

UNCOMMON VALOUR: BROAD PENDANT: And back to Depp. Ridley Scott has revealed that Best Villain GMA Winner does not appear in the first sequel of ‘Uncommon Valour’. His character will return in the third movie of the trilogy, but it will probably be only a cameo.

THE TOYMAKER: First talents names announced: Dustin Hoffman (‘Alice In Wonderland’) will be leading the cast as the toy maker himself. And Kate Winslet is definitely confirmed as screenwriter James Bradley’s muse, as she will be in a movie written by him for the third time, after ‘Bill and the Rocket Man’ and ‘Fools Game’.

THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH: The vintage circus tent where most of the action in the movie takes place has been built up in Universal Studios, together with some 1920’s looking streets. CMP had not infrastructure enough to do it, so both Studios have reached a collaboration agreement. Tom Hanks is already filming there at the moment.

HOME: First names announced for this one too: Matt Damon (‘Indigo Prophecy’, ‘Robotech 2’) and Robert Downey Jr. (‘Hot Iron’) will play the main roles of Matt Kubrick’s war movie. But the cast will fill up with quite a few more names pretty soon.

THE LAST LAWMAN: Right after finishing his work in ‘Red Light’, Gene Hackman has immediately joined the cast of this movie. If things go right, Hackman would stay committed to the whole trilogy.And a nice surprise to complete this great cast: Nicholas Cage will play his second villain of the season after 'Captain America vs Superman'. It seems like CMP is looking for a top quality action movie here.

POOR LITTLE RICH BOY: Diane Keaton has only worked for CMP once. And she was soon murdered. It was in the acclaimed and remembered ‘Deadly Sins’. Now she’s back with a completely different role, as the strict and tyrannical mother of Jason Biggs.

DIVE IN THE SUN: A classic concept from Jack Hammer. Michael Mann (‘Dark’) is directing and producing this commando adventure taking place during Second World War.

THE LITTLE SISTER: Ray Liotta was originally considered to star this movie. But, when George Clooney accepted to be Philip Marlowe, CMP offered Liotta to stay in the project playing a different character. And he accepted. By the way, Clooney is not only starring but also producing Jack Hammer’s debut as director.

HITMAN: TWO WAYS TO DIE: Here is the sequel of the succesful ‘Hitman. The Myth of John Jackson’. Tony Scott and Colin Farrell return and shooting will begin as soon as Keira Knightley finishes her work in Uncommon Valour’s sequels.

RUMOURS AND GOSSIPS

Deep silence about ‘Deep Silence’. Harry Stark has always wanted to produce a sequel of one of CMP’s major hits ever. But this task is not being an easy one. Tom Figgs, screenwriter of the original movie, seems to have retired from moviemaking. James Cameron, director, has rejected the offer of directing a sequel. And Keanu Reeves has also stated that he has no intention of playing the same character again. So Harry Stark’s will of developing a sequel hasn’t found yet any echo in the talents involved in the original blockbuster.

‘Space Quest’ was developed from the beginning as a trilogy by sci-fi specialist writer, Steve Connors. But the unexpected flop of the first movie stopped the whole project. Now, as CMP’s arks are full of money due to recent hits, the idea of going on with the saga seems to be resurrecting. Julian Jones has already contacted with Roland Emmerich to begin the pre-production of the first sequel.

INSIDE CMP

Will sequels of failed movies work in box office? Is it possible to revitalize a failed concept? That’s the big question in this moment for CMP’s Executive Board. Two sequels of flopped movies will be produced in the near future, ‘Space Quest’ and ‘Hot Iron’. ‘Uncommon Valour’ wasn’t also a major financial success at all and two sequels are being shot simultaneously. Is this crazy or will it be a terrific idea? The answer coming soon in a few weeks.

Obviously, CMP has a private circle of close friends in the industry. Any idea supported by them gets immediate green light and any wish they have about a movie is conceded. George Clooney, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg are the members of this small and private club. As soon as Hanks showed his interest in directing ‘The Greatest Show On Earth’ any other candidate was ruled out. As soon as Clooney said that he wanted not only to star but also produce ‘The Little Sister’, the Studio agreed. And Spielberg would get green light in a second for any idea coming from him. Requirement to be in this selected group? Only one: previous box office hits.

Everything is ready for the release of ‘Star Wars: New Order’. A nerve breaking moment for everyone at the Studio. What will happen if it flops? This is not an ordinary release. In so many ways, everyone at CMP feels that the Studio’s prestige will depend on how this movie turns out in box office. If it flops, more than one head will be cut in CMP’s offices.

COMING SOON – THE ADD