U.S. release date set for 'Snabba'

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 19:00:42 PST

Film News: Swedish pic to hit U.S. theaters as 'Easy Money' -- Daniel Espinosa's "Snabba Cash" will hit U.S. theaters on July 27, nearly two years after it screened at the Toronto Intl. Film Festival.

'Tis Pity She's a Whore (Silk Street Theater, London)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:45:58 PST

Legit Reviews: The most baffling thing about this defiant "'Tis Pity She's a Whore" is that it's a Cheek by Jowl production directed by Declan Donnellan: He and his company have spent 30 years bringing lucidity and insight to productions of classics.

RCR Pictures develops 'Wolves' crimer

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:22:04 PST

Top News: Marc Maurino to pen script for indie based on Dennis Tafoya novel -- Robin Schorr's RCR Pictures has optioned feature rights to Dennis Tafoya's crime novel "The Wolves of Fairmount Park."

Oscar venue: Hollywood & Highland Center

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:42:05 PST

Oscar News: For now, erstwhile Kodak Theater owner will be sponsor-free -- When the Oscar telecast is broadcast worldwide in just a few days, it will originate from the Hollywood and Highland Center, not the Kodak Theater -- nor will the theater carry a new sponsor's name.

Graham King set to keynote

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:21:03 PST

Film News: Leads roster of speakers at Variety's BritWeek summit -- Producer Graham King will keynote the BritWeek Film and TV Summit, produced in association with Variety and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, on April 27.

Fox scores weekly win in demos

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:57:05 PST

TV Ratings: But 'Idol' ratings are eroding year on year -- Four hours of "American Idol" carried Fox to a primetime demo victory last week, but the franchise's declines -- along with nothing-special results elsewhere on the network's sked -- have resulted in sizable year-to-year falloffs.

France's second look at 'Artist'

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:46:04 PST

International News: WB to re-release kudos favorite for bigger box office bump -- Capitalizing on awards buzz on both sides of the Atlantic, Warner Bros. has rereleased Michel Hazanavicius' "The Artist" in France more than three months after its initial outing -- a rare practice in Gaul.

Davis, Hammer, Moretz and Applegate honored by Women in Film

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:32:03 PST

Film News: More honorees to come for org's June 12 event -- Women in Film will honor Viola Davis, Bonnie Hammer, Chloe Grace Moretz and Christina Applegate at its June 12 fundraising dinner.

Digital brands team for own upfronts

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:27:07 PST

Technology News: Googgle, Hulu, Yahoo set NewFronts for mid-April -- A group of leading brands in the digital content space are taking a page from the TV industry and hosting a series of presentations to advertisers inspired by the upfronts.

Disney adds to China's 'You On Demand'

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:02:03 PST

International News: Market's first PPV/VOD service expands with Mouse House movies -- Disney is joining Warner Bros. and Lionsgate to provide films to You On Demand, touted as the first national pay-per-view and video-on-demand service in China.

'X Factor' to use two hosts for new season

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:29:05 PST

TV News: Cowell also says Spears, Jackson are in judges' mix -- While who sits on the judges table for the second season of "The X Factor" remains a mystery, two things are certain: Both those new judges will be women and hosting duties will handled by two people.

N.Y. Philharmonic rides 'Carousel'

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:16:05 PST

Legit News: Tuner on tap for orchestra's 2012-13 season -- A production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's 1945 musical "Carousel" is among the offerings on tap as part of the 2012-13 season from the New York Philharmonic.

5 million 'Breaking Dawn' discs sold

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:50:06 PST

Film News: 'Twilight' film sales up 13% over 'Eclipse' in same frame -- Summit has sold over 5 million DVD and Blu-ray units of "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1" in the first 11 days of release.

WB developing pic of manga 'Bleach'

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:47:03 PST

Film News: Producer Peter Segal and scribe Dan Mazeau shepherding project -- Warner Bros. has acquired live-action feature rights to Tite Kubo's manga and anime property "Bleach," which will be adapted by "Wrath of the Titans" scribe Dan Mazeau.

Winfrey hits the road for new season

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:32:04 PST

TV News: 'Oprah's Lifeclass' to begin in St. Louis, New York -- To help promote the second season of her OWN series, Oprah Winfrey is hitting the road.

'Oz' ruby slippers to Academy Museum

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:26:03 PST

Film News: Leonardo DiCaprio led donors to enable purchase -- The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures has acquired a pair of Dorothy's ruby slippers from "The Wizard of Oz," its first major acquisition since announcing fund-raising chair Bob Iger in December.

CAA signs 'Bullhead' star

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:04:17 PST

EXCLUSIVE: Matthias Schoenaerts has been lauded for perf -- CAA has signed Belgian thesp Matthias Schoenaerts, the star of Michael R. Roskam's Oscar-nominated foreign film "Bullhead."

Tuner 'Garage Band' gets reading

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:04:04 PST

Legit News: Dolenz to appear in industry peek -- Producer Ken Davenport has pulled together an industry reading of developing musical "Garage Band" with a cast that includes legit vets as well as former Monkees member Micky Dolenz.

Bill DeCinces dies at 84

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:27:04 PST

Obituary: Was former senior VP of Universal's studios operation group -- Bill DeCinces, an art director who ended his 53-year stint at Universal as senior VP of the studios operation group, died on Feb. 10 from complications of Parkinson's disease in Tarzana, Calif. He was 84.

Bad Robot extends Par deal through 2015

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:22:04 PST

Film News: J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions has reupped its first-look deal with Paramount Studios through the end of 2015.

GoDigital nabs VOD rights to Latin Anywhere

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:08:04 PST

Film News: Deal marks first digital distrib of Spanish-language pics -- GoDigital has secured all on-demand rights to the Spanish-language film library of Latin Anywhere, making most of its 1,000-plus titles available on digital platforms for the first time.

Wanderlust

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:00:00 PST

Film Reviews: The Judd Apatow school of R-rated comedy, perhaps unavoidably, has begun to produce some "C" students.

In the Shadow of a Man

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:37:46 PST

Film Reviews: Four Egyptian women from diverse backgrounds and generations talk about their lives and how they were shaped by their gender, in slender, low-budget docu "In the Shadow of a Man," from debuting English-Egyptian helmer Hanan Abdalla.

Oma & Bella

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:36:49 PST

Film Reviews: For everyone who had a Jewish grandmother, or wanted one, there's "Oma & Bella" to help them remember.

The Oscar-Nominated Short Films 2012: Animation

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:45:18 PST

Film Reviews: While devoid of instant classics, Oscar's toon shorts noms were clearly selected for concept and originality, making for a delightful survey when viewed together.

The Oscar-Nominated Short Films 2012: Live Action

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:45:01 PST

Film Reviews: All five finalists leave auds wanting more, illustrating that not all stories require 90 or more minutes in order to convey an inspired idea.

Shatner's World: We Just Live in It

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:42:47 PST

Legit Reviews: The main demographic to turn out for William Shatner's 19-perf Broadway run in "Shatner's World: We Just Live in It" would seem to be Trekkies: Here's Captain Kirk, live and in person, and any mention of "Star Trek" or one of its familiar sound effects brings cheers from the faithful.

Reporting … A Revolution (Althawra … Khabar)

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:23:30 PST

Film Reviews: The January-February Egyptian Revolution is seen through the eyes of journalists in Bassam Mortada's absorbing "Reporting … A Revolution."

Sons of the Clouds: The Last Colony (Hijos de las nubes: la ultima colonia)

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:17:15 PST

Film Reviews: Javier Bardem's name will do much to raise the profile of "Sons of the Clouds: The Last Colony," a slick docu on the Western Sahara crisis geared to capture the attention of Western auds.

Bliss (Glueck)

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:16:10 PST

Film Reviews: An alienated punk and a war-refugee hooker prove that their feelings for one another go above and beyond societal constraints in "Bliss."

Deep in the Heart

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:34:23 PST

Film Reviews: Obviously sincere but unremarkably bland, "Deep in the Heart" provides only a modest amount of uplift while recounting the true-life story of Richard Wallrath, a Texas businessman and philanthropist who managed to quit drinking and turn his life around only after losing his job and family, and plumbing the lower depths of rock bottom.

Beyond the Hill (Tepenin Ardi)

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:43:04 PST

Film Reviews: An eye-catching parable about scapegoating and the multitude of sins it covers, "Beyond the Hill," from debuting Turkish helmer-writer Emin Alper, is a deliberately paced drama set amid the scenic hills of central Anatolia. Appealing more to the intellect than the emotions, the low-budgeter is most interesting for the way it uses the stunning landscape, at times adopting Western iconography. The powerful visuals as well as a special mention garnered in Berlin's first feature competition, should pique fest programmer interest.