Variety articles from April 2002

Variety archives from April 2002

H'W'd's hot to trot with tots; studios trade on family jewels for B.O. bonanza.(family films)
April 29, 2002... Hollywood has adopted a cuddly credo: Films should be fun for the whole family. Propelled by the phenomenal showings of such pics as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," "Monsters, Inc.," "Spy Kids" and "Ice Age," development slates...

Hot numbers. (The Week).(entertainment industry)(Brief Article)(Illustration)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... HOT NUMBERS TOP 5 TV SHOWS Rank Title Network No. of viewers * 1. CSI CBS 22.10 2. Survivor: Marquesas CBS 19.88 3. Friends (8:30) NBC 17.17 4....

Dugan rolls with `Jumanji' sequel. (Film).(Dennis Dugan to direct film sequel)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... After years in development, the "Jumanji" sequel is getting ready to roll, with the appointment of Dennis Dugan to helm the Columbia TriStar new take on the 1995 hit. Among Dugan's credits are a number of Col laffers, including "Big Daddy,"...

`Blade II Helmer to burn, baby, burn. (Film).(Guillermo del Toro to direct "Hell-boy')(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Director Guillermo del Toro will follow up his work on New Line's "Blade II" by helming his own adaptation of "Hell-boy," for Revolution Studios. Ron Perlman is circling to star in the Dark Horse Comics tale about a warrior originally...

Artisan finds `Punisher' Marvel-ous. (Film).(Artisan Entertainment and Marvel Enterprises to develop 'The Punisher 'feature film)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Artisan Entertainment and Marvel Enterprises will develop "The Punisher" based on the comicbook character for Jonathan Hensleigh to make his directing debut. "The Punisher" is the stow of a man who becomes obsessed with avenging the death of...

Disney, Pixar release film sked. (Film).(Walt Disney Co. and Pixar Animation Studios)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Disney and Pixar announced they will release three films in the next three years, starting with fish tale "Finding Nemo" during summer 2003. "The Incredibles" about a family of superheroes who try to lead normal lives will follow in Christmas...

Nets get ready to rumble. (TV).(LMNO Prods. deal with Ultimate Fighting Championship)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Reality TV vets LMNO Prods. inked a deal with Ultimate Fighting Championship to bring its no-holds barred style of combat to commercial television. The idea of weekly primetime showdowns is now being shopped to congloms. UFC events have...

TNT comes clean with J&J. (TV).(Johnson & Johnson to present original movies on TNT)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Johnson & Johnson will present original movies on TNT, with biopic "Door to Door" with William H. Macy and Helen Mirren becoming the first "Johnson & Johnson Spotlight Presentation" in July. J&J has committed to two projects a year for the...

`Rings' Lords over MTV noms. (TV).("The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" nominated for 6 MTV 2002 Movie Awards)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" was tapped for six MTV 2002 Movie Awards, the most for any film. Heading up against the hobbits in the best pic category are: "Black Hawk Down," "The Fast and the Furious," "Legally Blonde"...

Reality gets Dodgy. (TV).(Zoo Prods. developing reality show featuring celebrities playing dodgeball)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Zoo Prods. is developing a 13-episode reality show that would feature celebrities playing "Ultimate Dodgeball" against a bunch of average Joes. Skein was dreamed up based on the recent success of the celebrity dodgeball tournament benefiting...

Mitchell journeys to `La Mancha'. (Legit).(Brian Stokes Mitchell to star in Broadway revival of 'Man of La Mancha')(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Brian Stokes Mitchell will star as Cervantes/Don Quixote in "Man of La Mancha," skedded to return to Broadway in December under the direction of Jonathan Kent. The 1966 Tony-winning tuner was last seen on Broadway in 1992, with Raul Julia in...

EMI exec shuffle. (Business).(EMI Group PLC executive changes)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... EMI topper Alain Levy revamped the worldwide marketing structure of the diskery, putting David Munns in charge of marketing for organization as a whole. Tony Harlow was tapped to run marketing for label Capitol and Mattieu Lauriot Prevost for...

USA shareholders favor U deal. (Business).(shareholders of USA Networks approve Universal Studios merger)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... About 87% of shareholders of USA Networks (not including topper Barry Diller, Vivendi and Liberty Media) voted to merge the group's entertainment portfolio with Universal Studios. The deal, estimated at $10.3 billion, would create Vivendi...

Willis takes flight from Blighty. (International).(John Willis leaves Granada for WGBH)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... British TV exec and docu maker John Willis will join Boston pubcaster WGBH as vice president of national programs in June. Willis previously was managing director of worldwide productions at Granada. At his post at WGBH he will be responsible...

Signpost appoints production prexy. (International).(Signpost Films; Nina Sadowsky)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Nina Sadowsky was named president of production for Stewart Till's Signpost Films. She will be based in Los Angeles and charged with finding project that could play to auds abroad. Sadowsky previously was prexy of Meg Ryan's Prufrock...

SAG election challenge dismissed. (Labor).(Screen Actors Guild)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... The Screen Actors Guild's election committee dismissed a challenge to last month's re-run election. The 15-count complaint alleged that several of the guild's rules were violated during the rerun, including Prexy Melissa Gilbert staying in...

Pols cool on cable deal. (Government).(congressional concern about proposed Comcast/AT&T cable merger)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Capitol Hill solons, including a key Republican, voiced concerns about the proposed Comcast/AT&T cable deal, saying the Federal Communications Commission should hold off on reversing ownership rules in light of similar proposed pacts....

Confab decries piracy plague.(Milken Institute conference on film industry)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Speaking at a Milken Institute conference April 23, industry toppers like Jeff Berg, Peter Chernin and Mel Karmazin opined that anti-piracy efforts should take center stage soon, before intellectual property theft swells completely out of...

A firm handshake for AMG? (Inside Moves).(Artists Management Group)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... HOLLYWOOD In the thriller "The Firm," a young hotshot joins a prestigious law firm only to discover it has a sinister side. The Sydney Pollack movie turned out to be prescient for Rick Yorn and sister-in-law Julie Silverman-Yorn. The duo...

What did Bronfman uncork? (Shareholders' Spirited Debate).(Edgar Bronfman, Jr. of Seagram)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Edgar Bronfman, Jr. has slipped quietly out of the spotlight, leaving Jean-Marie Messier to fend off the slings and arrows of outraged investors. Yet many disgruntled Vivendi shareholders used to own stock in Seagram, the Bronfman family...

Teflon titan stays above fray; while other media moguls take hits from investors and the media, Barry Diller keeps flying high as the stealth fighter of the entertainment biz.(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Jean-Marie Messier has been catching it lately for his remarks about the "cultural exception," but I wonder whether he's thought much about the "media exception" -- namely Barry Diller. Diller qualifies for that title for one very simple...

Zanucks keep July 12 slate all in the family. (`Road' Or `Reign'?).(Zanuck Co.'s two movies will compete against each other)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... The summer movie marketplace can be competitive enough without having to battle yourself. But that's exactly the situation the Zanuck Co. finds itself in July 12, when DreamWorks opens "The Road to Perdition" opposite Disney's "Reign of...

U.K. pic biz balks at deferrals overhaul. (Coin Conundrum).(new tax rules for movie industry)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... While TV producers squealed with shock, the U.K. film industry was quietly pleased when Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown announced April 17 that TV shows would be immediately excluded from the tax break supporting British film...

Mags mix crix betwixt pic profiles. (Inside Moves).(magazine stories on movies blur the line between critique and article)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... NEW YORK The tentpole era has created at least one unlikely byproduct: the blockbuster magazine cover. Time and Newsweek now dedicate major space to mega-releases. This week's cover of Time, which boasts an inside look at the latest...

Pummeled Euro players pulling out of market. (Paybox Plummet).(cable television broadcasting)(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
April 29, 2002... Pay TV is pooping out all over Europe. In fact, movie channels and the digital platforms that carry them are finding it tough to survive in all the major Euro territories. In some cases, there are too many players vying for subs in...

News channels nipped as war interest wanes. (Radio Retrenching).(news radio market share numbers)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... Interest in the war on terrorism and strife in the Middle East apparently waned among radio listeners this winter. According to recently released Arbitron data, a majority of major-market all-news outlets -- which experienced a tremendous...

Dim sums. (Inside Moves).(China's box office)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... China's box office took a tumble in 2001, chalking up just $73 million in grosses, a 25% drop from the prior year. Pearl Harbor was the highest-grossing film, landing $16 million. The number of local pics (88) far exceeded the number of...

Pact rejection sends SAG, agents spinning. (Deal's On Wheels).(continued troubles for Screen Actors Guild, Assoc of Talent Agents)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... What now, SAG? That was the question resonating through Hollywood last week as SAG spurned the much-hyped deal to ease agency ownership restrictions. Thesps were unmoved by warnings of the chaos that would ensue without SAG's master...

H'wood talent boosts clothier's star wattage. (Bridging The Gap).(The Gap's new TV ads star and are directed by celebrities)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... After recruiting Hollywood thesps such as Kiefer Sutherland, Danny Glover and "The Producers" co-stars Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane to appear in print ads and billboards, the Gap is taking its star-studded clothing campaign to another...

In a storm, arthouse biz needs some rainmakers. (Inside Moves).(distributors complain of overcrowded market)(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
April 29, 2002... HOLLYWOOD A perfect storm of distribution challenges has engulfed the arthouse market. The upsurge in specialty releases that traditionally follows the Academy Awards is being confounded by two new factors: the rollout of even more...

Media companies take big hits in 1st quarter. (Conglom Crunch).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... Earnings -- or the lack thereof -- battered the quarterly results of media congloms last week, with onetime charges and a slow ad market taking their toll on AOL Time Warner, Vivendi Universal, Viacom, Sony and MGM. AOL tallied the...

Exex talk turkey on primetime pocketbook. (A Price For Prosperity).(Jamie Kellner and Sandy Grushow at panel discussion)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... When it comes to networks owning their own programming, how much is too much? Turner topper Jamie Kellner quips that it's easy to figure out how many shows to produce inhouse: "Every hit." After all, who wouldn't want to avoid...

Showbiz banks $90 bil in overseas exports. (Creative Cargo).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... For media companies hunkered down under the weight of their own earnings woes last week, there was at least one bit of solace: Movies, music, TV, publishing and other copyright-driven industries racked up nearly $90 billion in foreign sales...

Clarification.(Correction Notice)
April 29, 2002... Australian pay TV platform Foxtel has renegotiated licensing deals with Fox Sports and XYZ Entertainment. Information wasn't clear in a story in the April 22-28 issue.

Boutique barons play to the fans; proven acts help brand smaller labels. (The A List).(music industry)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... In the music biz, cult faves are getting a new lease on life thanks to scrappy indie labels. As the Big Five record companies grapple with declining sales worldwide and spiraling marketing costs, smaller players the boutique labels --...

New player places major wagers; strong slate marks Intermedia's second phase. (Film).(Intermedia Films)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... At Intermedia's new offices in the heart of Beverly Hills, the message is clear. From its airy interior of frosted glass and wood to the framed and autographed one-sheets from Intermedia projects like "K-PAX" and "Sliding Doors," this is a...

Right-wing loss deflates patriotic pix. (Hungary).(changes for Hungary's movie industry)(Industry Overview)
April 29, 2002... BUDAPEST The April 21 electoral defeat of the center-right conservative government of Viktor Orban may mark the end to one of the strangest epochs in Hungarian cinematic history -- the era of the state-funded patriotic epic. Over the...

`Scorpion' solid as a rock in Asia and Oz. (Film/International).(international box office)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... Brawny bows by "The Scorpion King" in Asia and Australia and chart-topping debuts by "Panic Room" and "Blade II" in key European markets put a spring in many exhibs' steps last week, although the French were distracted by political events,...

`Assumption' rises. (London Eye).(Mirage Enterprises' 'Assumption of the Virgin' back in production)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... "The Assumption of the Virgin" is showing signs of life again. This $28 million project from Sydney Pollack and Anthony Minghella's Mirage Enterprises has been flatlining since director Walter Salles and star Benicio Del Toro fell out last...

`English Pie' it ain't. (London Eye).(marketing angle for 'About a Boy')(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... "From the makers of `Bridget Jones's Diary' and the producers of `Meet the Parents' -- based on the bestselling novel by Nick Hornby." So boasts the poster for the latest Hugh Grant movie, "About a Boy," a co-production between Working Title...

Brit trio joins Cannes crowd. (London Eye).(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... "Once Upon a Time in the Midlands" by Shane Meadows, the auteur of Uttoxeter, will join Lynne Ramsay's "Morvern Callar" in the Directors Fortnight at next month's Cannes Film Festival. That brings the British presence on the Croisette to a...

Familiarity breeds content Cannes. (Film/International).
April 29, 2002... PARIS Veteran Croisette favorites dominate the Competition lineup of the 55th Cannes Film Festival (May 15-26). New pictures by directors including the U.K.'s Mike Leigh, and Ken Loach, Italy's Marco Bellocchio, Portugal's Manoel de...

Pix play waiting game o'seas. (Film).(international film marketing)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Last summer, the mantra among Hollywood execs was "day-and-date," as a slew of films rolled out in international markets on the heels of their domestic launches. This year, it's more a case of day-and-wait. For a variety of reasons,...

Crix' picks.(critical reaction to feature films)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
April 29, 2002... CRIX'S PICKS NEW YORK The Scorpion Murder by King Numbers Studio Universal WB Release date April 19 April 19 ...

Box Office News[TM]. (Film).(film box office sales)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... SPRING BRINGS BLOOM TO B.O. After getting off to a slow start, the domestic box office came alive with the arrival of spring, elevating the year's cume 14% above 2001's mark. However, the top 10 pics for the period don't account for the...

Production hopes feature offshore pix. (Australia).(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... SYDNEY The chasm between the Australian film industry's haves and have-nots is getting wider, with booming offshore production casting a long shadow over the faltering domestic production industry. Four $25 million-plus Hollywood features...

"I like Dave (Letterman)," says Jay Leno. (TV).(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... "I like Dave (Letterman)," says Jay Leno. But everybody's different, everyone handles things differently, so oh well."

Fox focuses on fix for fall; Stalwarts like `Ally' and `X-Files' leave sked issues in their wake. (TV).(Fox Television)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... This should have been Fox's big year. Creatively, Fox was on top of its game, winning over critics with frosh entries such as "24" and "Undeclared." And if all of that wasn't enough, Fox boasted two of the year's blue-chip events, the...

`Dragnet' on beat. (Late News).(Dick Wolf and Studios USA developing new version of 'Dragnet')(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Here are the facts, ma'am: Emmy-winning "Law & Order" supremo Dick Wolf and Studios USA are developing a primetime take on classic cop drama "Dragnet." Wolf's show is expected to be more of a revisualization of "Dragnet" as a modern-day...

YES gets static. (Update).(new Yes Network feud with Cablevision: Yankee rebates)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... Cablevision last week released the details of rebates for Yankees-deprived subscribers as the cabler continues its bizarre feud with the new YES Network, which now has rights to the games. Cablevision plans to pay $17.4 million to MSG...

Still the champ. (Demo Derby).("Fear Factor" and "Survivor: Marquesas" TV ratings)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... NBC's "Fear Factor" has posted some pretty impressive demo scores since it bowed as a series regular in January, but CBS' "Survivor," whose fourth edition "Marquesas" is doing very well, remains the reality program to beat: "Survivor:...

`Dateline' timeline, reaches 10th year. (Television).(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... To hear Neal Shapiro tell it, "Dateline NBC" might as well be called "Friends." According to the NBC News prexy -- and former "Dateline" topper -- the secret to the success of the Peacock's newsmag franchise is that nobody on the staff really...

Nielsen Syndication Ratings. (Television).(television ratings)(Brief Article)(Illustration)(Statistical Data Included)
April 29, 2002... NIELSEN SYNDICATION RATINGS For week ended April 14 Stations/ Rank Program % coverage AA% GAA% 1 Wheel of Fortune 274/98 8.9 -- 2...

Cablers take it easy in Big Easy. (Television).(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... WASHINGTON Acknowledging a downturn in the trade show biz, cablers have opted for a big-tent approach to their annual gathering next week in New Orleans. The National Cable & Telecommunications Assn., host of the May 5-8 show, has...

Naughty but nice C5 grows up: Web eases back on thrills to woo mature auds. (U.K.).(Channel 5)(Brief Article)(Company Profile)
April 29, 2002... LONDON Channel 5, the upstart U.K. terrestrial net once famous for a schedule driven by "football, films and fucking," is celebrating its fifth birthday. But the young pretender is showing signs of premature middle age by taking a more...

Tyro webs bank on Yank pacts. (Indonesia).(new TV stations form alliances with American broadcasters)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... JAKARTA Two of the four new terrestrial TV stations that began trial transmissions last November have formed programming alliances with American broadcasters. TV7, owned by media giant Gramedia, has signed with ESPN Star Sports and will...

Telco dials up eyeballs. (Japan).(Nippon Telephone and Telegraph Corp. introduces fee-based distribution channel of short films on Internet service)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... TOKYO Japan's telco behemoth Nippon Telegraph & Telephone (NTT) has joined the race for viewers over the Internet. It launched a fee-based distribution channel of short films on its Internet service OCN April 26. Initially, three...

Politicos pass tax hikes for pay TV. (Brazil).(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... RIO DE JANEIRO Politicos in Brazil's upper house of Congress have passed controversial new taxes for the pay TV and film industries -- dubbed Condecine. The April 23 vote rubber stamps the lower house's approval of the taxes, which...

Fishing for funds: startup trawls choppy Teuton waters for investors. (Germany).(Fishbowl Fund to invest in film, animation, and TV production)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... BERLIN With Germany's media industry plagued by financial fatalities on the Neuer Markt, a serious advertising slump and the fall of the once-mighty TV and rights conglom the Kirch Group, many media watchers see little hope for startups. ...

Messier set to pull the plug on Stream merger. (France).(Jean-Marie Messier and digital platform Stream)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... PARIS Vivendi Universal chief Jean-Marie Messier has told staff he plans to ditch the merger between Telepiu, the loss-making Italian arm of pay TV unit Canal Plus, and News Corp.'s Italian digital platform Stream, union sources said last...

Star shines out on Sky again. (Philippines).(Star Group and Sky and Home dispute)(Brief Article)
April 29, 2002... MANILA The Philippine cable industry has resolved a bitter financial dispute that has kept Star Group's popular channels off the tube for six months. Star angered viewers by pulling Star World, Star Movies, Star Sports, ESPN, Viva...

Lescure loyalist in CP seat. (Television).(Dominique Farrugia named chairman of Canal Plus)
April 29, 2002... PARIS A loyalist of ousted Canal Plus topper Pierre Lescure, Dominique Farrugia, was tapped April 25 to become chairman of troubled paybox Canal Plus. Farrugia, head of programming at the channel, is the latest appointment in the...

Jolie gives `life' support.('Life Or Something Like It')
April 29, 2002... LIFE OR SOMETHING LIKE IT A 20th Century Fox release of a Regency Enterprises presentation of a Davis Entertainment/New Regency production in association with Epsilon Motion Pictures. Produced by Arnon Milchan, John Davis, Chi-Li Wong,...

Allen goes on the inside for ironic look at `H'w'd'.('Hollywood Ending')
April 29, 2002... HOLLYWOOD ENDING A DreamWorks release (in U.S.) presented in association with Gravier Prods. of a Perdido production. Produced by Letty Aronson. Executive producer, Stephen Tenenbaum. Co-producer, Helen Robin. Co-executive producers,...

Space Station.
April 29, 2002... (DOCU) An Imax release of an Imax and Lockheed Martin presentation in cooperation with NASA. Produced by Toni Myers. Consulting producer, Graeme Ferguson. Directed by Toni Myers. Camera (CFI color, Imax 3-D), James Neihouse, various...

Jason X.
April 29, 2002... A New Line Cinema release of a Scan S. Cunningham production. Produced by Noel J. Cunningham. Executive producer, Scan S. Cunningham. Co-producer, Jim Isaac. Directed by Jim Isaac. Screenplay, Todd Farmer, based on characters created by...

Night at the Golden Eagle.
April 29, 2002... A Shangri-La release of a Shangri-La production. Produced by Steve Bing, Adam Rifkin. Executive producers, Morgan Sackett, Mindy Marin. Co-producers, Lisa Perkins, Peter Schink. Directed, written by Adam Rifkin. Camera (color,...

Aankhen.
April 29, 2002... (INDIA) A Vinod Doshi presentation of a VR Pictures/Gaurang Doshi Prods. production. Produced by Gaurang Doshi. Directed by Vipul Amrutlal Shah. Screenplay, Aatish Kapadia, Shah, based on the play "Andhala pato" (Blind Man's Buff) by...

Shooting Stars.
April 29, 2002... (FRANCE) A Bac Distribution release of a Mandarin presentation of a Mandarin, TF1 Films, Bac Films production, with participation of Canal Plus. (International sales: TF1 Intl., Paris.) Produced by Eric and Nicolas Altmayer. Executive...

Warriors.
April 29, 2002... (GUERREROS) (SPAIN) A Warner Sogefilms release of a Sogecine production, in association with TVE and Canal Plus. (International sales: Sogepaq, Madrid.) Executive producers, Fernando Bovaira, Enrique Lopez Lavigne. Directed by...

The Repentant.
April 29, 2002... (LA REPENTIE) (FRANCE) An Arp Selection release of a Michele & Laurent Petin presentation of an ARP Production, in association with France 3 Cinema and with participation of Canal Plus. (International sales: Mercure, Paris.)...

Senso '45.
April 29, 2002... (ITALY) An Eagle Pictures release of a Cine 2000 production. (International sales: Adriana Chiesa Enterprises, Rome.) Produced by Giuseppe Colombo. Directed, written by Tinto Brass, freely inspired by Camillo Boito's novella "Senso."...

Man's Gentle Love.
April 29, 2002... (FRANCE) A Magouric Distribution release of a Les Films Pelleas production, with participation of CNC. (International sales: Flach Pyramide Intl., Paris.) Produced by Philippe Martin. Directed, written by Jean Paul Civeyrac, freely...

Petty Crimes.
April 29, 2002... (FRANCE) A Velvet Films release of a Nouvelles Editions de Film production, in association with Sammler & Taxila. Produced by Manuel Cuotemoc Malle. Executive producer, Pierre Marmiesse. Directed by Michel Ferry. Screenplay, Sarah...

The White Sound.
April 29, 2002... (GERMANY) A Cameo Film production in co-production with KHM (Academy for Media Arts, Cologne). Produced by Ole Landsjoaasen. Co-producers, Annette Pisacane, Hans Weingartner, Herbert Schwering. Directed by Hans Weingartner. Camera...

Glissando.
April 29, 2002... An AAA Acme Discount Film Works (Brooklyn) production, in association with Enormous Head. Produced by Chip Hourihan, Vivian Holtzman. Co-producer, Stephen Shin. Directed by Chip Hourihan. Written by Hourihan, based on a short story by...

Reviews on the Web.
April 29, 2002... REVIEWS ON THE WEB For reviews of the following films, go to: Variety.com/filmreviews BERLIN FEST 12 Past Midnight Bernd Michael Lade Germany The Mars Cannon Shiori Kazama ...

Presumed Guilty.
April 29, 2002... (DOCU) A KQED and Skylight Pictures production. Produced by Peter Kinoy, Pamela Yates. Co-producer, Rachel Raney. Directed by Pamela Yates. Camera (video), Paul Mailman; editor, Peter Kinoy; music, Douglas J. Cuomo. Reviewed at San...

The Princess Blade.
April 29, 2002... (SHURAYUKI HIME) (JAPAN) A Kadokawa Shoten (in Japan)/ADV (in U.S.) release of an Oz Prod. production. (International sales: Horizon Entertainment, Vancouver.) Produced by Taka Ichise. Directed by Shinsuke Sato. Screenplay,...

School Trip.
April 29, 2002... (KLASSENFAHRT) (GERMANY) A Peripherpresentation (in Germany) of a Schramm Film Koerner + Weber production, in association with ZDF. (International sales: Schramm Film Koerner + Weber, Berlin.) Produced by Florian Koerner von Gustorf,...

Blue Surge.(Anspacher Theater, New York, New York)
April 29, 2002... (JOSEPH PAPP PUBLIC THEATER/ ANSPACHER THEATER; 280 SEATS; $45 TOP) NEW YORK A Joseph Papp Public Theater/ New York Shakespeare Festival presentation of a play in two acts by Rebecca Gilman. Directed by Robert Falls. Sets, Walt Spangler;...

Osborn revival serves angst with affection.('Morning's At Seven,' Lyceum Theater, New York, New York)
April 29, 2002... MORNING'S AT SEVEN (LYCEUM THEATER; 924 SEATS; $65 TOP) NEW YORK A Lincoln Center Theater presentation of a play by Paul Osborn in two acts. Directed by Daniel Sullivan. Set, John Lee Beatty; costumes, Jane Greenwood; lighting, Brian...

Swimming With Watermelons.(Vineyard Theater, New York, New York)
April 29, 2002... (VINEYARD THEATER; 125 SEATS; $45 TOP) NEW YORK A Music-Theater Group and Vineyard Theater presentation of a play in one act written and directed by Diane Paulus and Randy Weiner, co-written and performed by Emily Hellstrom, Rachel Benbow...

Polk County.(Arena Stage, Washington, D.C.)
April 29, 2002... (ARENA STAGE; 816 SEATS; $54 TOP) WASHINGTON An Arena Stage presentation of a play in two acts by Zora Neale Hurston and Dorothy Waring, co-adapted by Kyle Donnelly and Cathy Madison, with music by Stephen Wade. Directed by Donnelly....