May 2004 Movie News
Shrek 2: Among Films at Cannes, Shrek (2001) was the first cartoon film to be shown at Cannes in 27 years. So it seems fitting that its sequel is among 19 competing films at Cannes this year. Previous films, such as Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, and even the Toy Story series have pushed those that work in this medium to new heights of wow-ness and realism.
Shrek 3 and Shrek 4 Already in the Pipeline: Jeffrey Katzenberg, co-founder of DreamWorks, announced at Cannes that the 3rd and 4th movies are definitely in the works. He revealed that more of the story behind the Ogre will be unveiled, and in the last installment we will find out exactly why Shrek was in that swamp at the beginning of the first movie.
Blood and Fighting at 'Bill' Party: Apparently some partygoers thought to bring fiction to fact at the Kill Bill, Vol. 2 fete. Pit bulls and various bodyguards quickly moved in to pull the fighters apart. It seems almost fitting at this party, although gallons of blood were not spilled.
Now: The Partridge Family: After the success of Charlie's Angels and Starsky and Hutch we shouldn't be surprised to see producers scrambling to recreate the '70s. Paramount Pictures has picked up the rights to this pop family TV series that aired on ABC from 1970-74.
Newmarket and Icon Join Forces: Following Newmarket's enormously successful domestic release of Icon's The Passion of the Christ, the two companies have created an informal alliance to buy movies together for distribution in North America, the U.K. and Australia. It will be interesting to see what kinds of packages and movies they will put out in the future.
Van Helsing Was Good For One Model: Josie Maran, one of the three wives of Dracula, thought the process of turning her into a CGI vampire was "weird, but it's kind of cool to see this body that they've created for you, and it's a pretty nice body." She also joked that "This body will forever be in the computer."
Top Adult Movie-maker Is Back: Vivid Entertainment Group has resumed filming after a month's hiatus. Five performers were infected with HIV, shutting down most of the industry. But that didn't stop them for long: and no wonder, as estimates of the porn industry's take each year range from $4.4 to $10 billion.
