Archive for October, 1999

View Askew NewsBites™

October 26th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Lord Adrock, Melanie Greco, Mick, & Dave Offord

  • The latest issue of Entertainment Weekly features the Hollwood Power 100 – Chris Rock and the pair of Damon and Affleck hit the charts as numbers 77 and 87, repsectively. Click HERE and HERE for their full write-ups.
  • iF (Independent Film) Magazine is giving away Nuns ‘O Plenty in honor of Dogma. Surf over to their site HERE. and write “your own personal Dogma” and information (so they can contact you if you win a boxing nun or nunzilla), and you’re ready to go. No purchase necessary. Good luck!
  • A small Dogma piece appeared in yesterday’s Daily Record, one of the bigger Scottish newspapers, which was mainly based on the Alanis pics we recently added. This time Kevin’s name was mentioned, and there were also a few lines on the Catholic league’s protests.
  • Dogma’s even hitting the auction circuits already, it seems: EBay magazine’s got an article with some pics on Dogma in their latest issue.
  • Finally today, a reader of the site checks in with his take on some of the elements brought up in the In Pittsburgh article, as well as some information and direct quotes from it that you may not have heard. We thought it was well written and made some good points, so we’re sharing it with you. It’s a good summary of the piece:
Unorthodox Views

Kevin Smith muses on faith, Catholics and his intent to pop up at the Three Rivers Film Festival. BY STEPHEN H. SEGAL

“All that’s vile comes from you,” reads one piece of hate mail posted on Smith’s website. “You teach hatred and prejudice. You insult Christians, especially Catholics. How Satanic!.. Hitler didn’t die, you’re still doing his hatreds and works. Are you aware you’re un-American? … May God judge your terrible acts.”

That article claims that is from a post on Kevin’s web page.. (the WWWBoard??). Anyway, In Pittsburgh has a really nice 1 and a half pager on Kevin Smith. The first part mainly deals with the Catholic League, and their president William Donohue. It’s quick to point out that Donohue hasn’t seen the film though…. Here is what makes me laugh though, this could have been printed elsewhere here, but if not.. enjoy:

“I’ve got a message for Hollywood: Just think of the Catholics as a big bunch of Indians. Would you portray Indians like this?”

Donohue said that in New York.. Smith’s reply:

“That’s what blows my mind… their insistence on Catholics as a minority. Catholics have pretty much run the world for the last 2,000 years. I don’t think a Catholic has been really persecuted since the last apostle died. If I were a real minority. I’d be shocked and appalled by Donohue’s comments. You’re a minority? You’re a man, you’re white!”

The article continues with more of the whole controversy. Then goes into Daredevil.

“Working with that character, (Daredevil), gave me an opportunity to explore some of those themes, (the infant in the storylines who just might be the second coming of Christ, or the anti-Christ)….I pretty much worked out my own religious issues a while ago.”

Now for the part that everyone who will be at the Three Rivers Film Festival all care about…

Now that he’s through with Daredevil and Dogma is in the home stretch – the often overextended Smith and his View Askew Productions team are enjoying a bit of breathing room. “It’s kind of nice.”, he says, “for the first time in five years we don’t have a next project lined up.” Of course that doesn’t include the trip to Pittsburgh for the Dogma screening at the Three Rivers Film Festival. “We made a lot of friends out there.”, he says. “If we ever do a shoot that’s not Jersey-centric, I’d definitely go back to Pittsburgh.”

It then shifts gears and talks about the Clerks cartoon. How he brought back the old cast of the movie, and how here are gonna be some guest vocals done by Gwyneth Paltrow, James Woods, and Mario Joyner. The article talks about the ABC deal, and closes with mention of Smith and his wife and baby… and ends with this:

“I want to raise my daughter to believe that church is good – but God is better.”

View Askew NewsBites™

October 25th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

  • Updates over at the official Dogma website continue — An exclusive set ofbehind the scenes photos from the lens of producer Scott Mosier have been addedto the photo gallery for your enjoyment. Surf over to the Dogma website tocheck them out, and lots, lots, lots more.
  • Pittsburgh Screening Update: In an interview from the recent issue of “In Pittsburgh”, Kevin reveals that he does indeedplan to be in attendance for the Dogma screening at the Three Rivers Film Festival. There ya go! Got your tickets?
  • A representative from FilmFour International confirms that Dogma will indeed hit theaters on Boxing Day (Sunday, December26th) in the U.K. The flick’s just 2 months away for our friends over the pond…
  • Those Affleck as Batman rumors are back, thanks to AICN. The fifth Batman movie reportedly has two scripts in the running. One is a Batman: Year One style work in which Warner wants Ben Affleck to star, and the other is reportedly isbased on the animated TV show “Batman Beyond” and would star Keanu Reeves. “Hey, Commissioner Gordon. Whoa.”
  • Dark Horizons breaks another big story today regarding Ben Affleck’s recently filmed “Reindeer Games” that we’ve beendoing tidbits on here and there. It appears the flick’s undergone a name change and may actually have some MPAA problems.Here’s the story:
Deceptions (aka. ReindeerGames): Miramax’s most expensive movie ever has just undergone a name changeaccording to Entertainment Tonight. Originally entitled “Reindeer Games”,the $60 million thriller with Ben Affleck has now changed to the simpler”Deceptions”. Meanwhile there’s talk that a few seconds of a rather steamysex scene between Affleck and Charlize Theron in the movie may have to becut. While the obligatory T&A shots of the two leads will likely make it in,there’s one scene of simulated sex on a floor which some think the MPAAwon’t approve of. Will it be spared? Lets hope so, and I’ll keep you abreastof the issue (just had to slip a pun in somewhere).

They can cut the Affleck stuff if they want, but leave Charlize in there, darn it! Like there’s anything she can hideafter “Devil’s Advocate”, anyways. And hey, call us crazy, but we liked the old title better. MUCH better. It sounds likea Shannon Tweed direct-to-video flick now. It’ll still be a good movie, though.

  • A scooper in St. Louis slips us a rumor that the Archdiocese of the church there sees Dogma as “Apocryphal” and mayattempt to ban the movie from playing in that town. It’ll be fun to watch them try, anyway.
  • And finally today, we always like to have a little bit of Jason Lee news: In the new “Skateboarder” Nov/Dec 1999 magazine there was a small article called “Popular Misconception” and it spoke very highly of Mr. Lee: “When Skateboarding’spopularity began to wane in the late 80’s and early 90’s we were blessed with the birth of shoes designed by skateboarders,jeans that don’t hug your nuts, graphics that go beyond skulls and daggers, Matt Hensley and Jason Lee.”

Film Threat’s Gore Speaks On Dogma Music…

October 25th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Joe Hatton

  • Film Threat‘s Chris Gore, a well-known antagonist of Kev’s work since Clerks (and one of the few critics out there who vehemently spoke out against Chasing Amy) threw a little diatribe into their weekly newsletter, stating his reservations about Dogma but giving great praise to the soundtrack that features Alanis’ amazing new song along with that brilliant Howard Shore score:
KEVIN SMITH’S LATESTI am not a huge Kevin Smith fan. I thought “Clerks” was brilliant and Ifind it amazing that it has the distinction of being perhaps the most technicallyincompetent film ever made to get a theatrical release. What makes “Clerks”successful, however, is its compelling characters, hilarious dialog and theoriginality of its premise. I love this film. However, I was not impressedby “Mallrats” and I found “Chasing Amy” to be irritatingly immature andamateurish. I seemed to be the only one who noticed that all three films inSmith’s “trilogy” seemed to center around themes involving a man who feelsthreatened by a woman who is sexually active. I was left with theimpression that when it came to women, Smith’s experience was like that of a nerd whowas barely out of high school.

When I began to hear reports about Smith’s film “Dogma”, I just wasn’tinterested. However, I recently obtained an advance release of the “Dogma”film soundtrack and it is absolutely amazing. The Alanis Morissette song”Still” is incredible. The score is by Howard Shore and is brought to lifeby none other than the London Symphony Orchestra. It is fantastic. Themusic is moving and epic. This soundtrack blows away the “Star Wars Episode1” score by John Williams released earlier this year. While I have heardthat Dogma is another dialog-heavy Smith film, I am encouraged by thestrength of the music and I can’t wait to see it.Later,
Chris Gore

We think Chris is in for even more surprises: Sure, Dogma’s got lots of dialogue, we wouldn’t have it any other way. The flick is ALSO heavy on action, plot developments (incredible amounts of them, actually), and a completely different direction that any of the previous three flicks. And no men feel threatened by women’s sexual activity in this one. We promise.

Oh yeah, by the way, the music IS outstanding, too.

Dogma Benefit Details For Attendees!

October 25th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

  • View Askew’s website posted all you need to know about getting your ticket, your exclusive swag, and your very own cushy, comfy seat for the hometown premiere of Dogma this evening. Read on for all you need to know. By the way, tickets ARE sold out in case you didn’t notice the news a few days back…
Well, we finally got some official word from the theater, so I can put details in (electronic) writing!

Monday, October 25th @ 9:15 PM
ClearView Cinemas
White Street, Red Bank, NJ

Please stop into Jay & Silent Bob’s Secret Stash beginning Saturday, Oct.23rd to pickup your pass for the theater.

Simply give your name and confirmation # to Walt or whomever is working. He will hand you an envelope containing your pass (for the theater and the afterparty) and your credit card receipt if that is how you paid.

Store Hours for the weekend:
Saturday 10/23 – 11 AM to 6 PM
Sunday 10/24 – Noon to 5 PM
Monday 10/25 – 11 AM to 9 PM**
**We have extended the store hours on Monday to facillitate ticket distribution.

Begin lining up at the theater (the same one where we held the Vulgarthon for those who were there) promptly at 9:00 PM, as we want to keep the night running smoothly. Your special swag will be given to you at the door as you enter. Once everyone is seated in each theater (they will not be assigned, first on line is first seated until the first theater is full, then all others are seated in the second theater) Kevin will introduce the film to both audiences. Then sit back and enjoy the show!

After the screening, all ticket holders are invited back to the Downtown Cafe, located within a 2 block walking distance, at the corner of Broad and West Front Street. The cafe is 18 to enter, 21 to drink, ID will be checked at the bar. Live Music performances will be going on both levels, but my accoustic act will be upstairs, about Midnight, followed immediately by The Amazing Meet Project. Remember, drafts (both domestic and imported) will be a mere $1.50, so come celebrate with us at the Downtown Cafe.

I trust I have covered all the pertinent information. If there are any questions then post and I will do my best to give you answers.

Thanks, we look forward to seeing you next Monday!

Kim

Good luck, have a safe trip into town, and we’ll see all of you there!

Commentary

October 25th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

  • Well, today’s the day that the first large group of rabid, drooling, honest-to-goodness Kevin Smith fans will sit down and enjoy Dogma together. There’s no way we’re going to miss this, so we WILL be there. We’re hitting the road around 5:00 tonight and should arrive in town a little after 8 PM. We may check the chaos at the Stash or just head right to the theater. If you spot us (shouldn’t be too hard, hopefully), stop us and say hello.

We know that Dogma Rumor Control is behind in updates, and we missed the new poll topic changeover. We’ll have everything squared away ASAP, but probably not for a few days considering the incredibly late night we’ll have tonight (and going to work tomorrow on about 3 hours sleep), as well as the remaining chaos to settle from the move. We’ll get it, though.

In the news today, we’ve of course got full details for those of you heading into Red Bank tonight, and a few other tidbits of note. The Dogma commercials have started to air more widely now, so expect to see the flick’s name plastered all over the place as part of Lions Gate‘s huge marketing campaign. And now, on with the show…

View Askew NewsBites™

October 24th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Aug, Wayne McFarland, Dan, Magnum Adam, John Miller, Sam Liao, Closedown, & Static

Click For A Larger Version!

  • We got quite a few scans in of that Young Justice page, so thanks to all who sent it in. Strange, though, we don’t thinkthey look too much like Jay & Bob ourselves…

Click For A Larger Version!

  • Here’s that Village Voice comic on Dogma — We’re not sure if it’s trying to be positive or negative really, or just silly, but it was mentioned so what the heck. Click the thumb to read it.

Click For A Larger Version!

  • Scan #3 for today — Here’s that ad for Dogma that ran in a few papers recently. Click to enlarge.
  • In the latest issue of GQ, starting on page 205, there’s a 4 page piece on Kevin. Reason enough for buying the issuefor yourself, but we WILL try and get a transcription online — If anyone’s got the photos or a TEXT version of the piece,please let us know. We’re just low on time for transcribing scans lately.
  • IF Magazine has posted an excellent review with Chris Rock — He talks about how he came onto the Dogma project, andlots of other stuff. Part One is available now and can be read HERE.
  • Amazon.Com now has the Dogma screenplay book for pre-order — $10.40. We suggest waiting for the Stash to get copiesof the book in, though, we’re sure they’ll have SIGNED editions at a really fair price. Worth the wait.

Dogma Televsion Ads Begin…

October 24th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Magnum Adam, Jason Hester, Andrew Sauls, Matthew, Kim, & Mike Cuenca

  • Looks like the TV media blitz has started nice and early for Dogma! We’ve got reports from folks spotting the Dogma commercial (which is basically a condensed version of the trailer with a couple of new scene bits) — Some saw it while watching Ghostbusters 2 on Comedy Central (A walking Statue of Liberty? Puh-lease) and also during Charmed on the WB (We watch it for the articles). The E! network has also been airing the spot off and on. We’re sure these are just the first of many, many more networks that will be airing the ad. Not that the flick needs it too much after all this press we’ve had leading up to the release, but some more promotion can never hurt!

Dogma CD Soundtrack Listing…

October 24th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Closedown

  • Courtesy of a listing for pre-orders on Ebay, here’s the full track listing of the upcoming Dogma soundtrack CD. Looks like it’s all of Howard Shore’s score along with the new Alanis tune:
1. Alanis Morissette: “Still”
2. Dogma
3. Behold the Metatron
4. Mooby the Golden Calf
5. The Golgothan
6. The Last Scion
7. Stygian Triplets
8. Bartelby & Loki
9. John Doe Jersey
10. A Very Relieved Diety

Kevin On Conan O’Brien Nov. 2!!!

October 24th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

  • An anonymous, helpful source tells us that Kevin Smith will be appearing on Late Night With Conan O’Brien on Tuesday, November the 2nd! There are no more tickets available for that show, but, anyone interested in getting standby tickets needs to be at the 49th street side of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, right underneath where it says NBC Studios. The tickets are distributed at 9AM in numbered order. So, if you are #1 at 9am, you will be #1 when you come back at 4:15pm, right before show time. The standby tickets do not guarantee admission, but, depending upon how many regular ticket holders show up, some stand-bys do get in. Have fun, and send us your stories….

Also on the Conan front, Ben Affleck’s listed as a guest during the week of November 9-12, when the show heads out to Los Angeles. We assume he’ll be there to promote Dogma.

Commentary

October 24th @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

  • Believe it or not, here it is only SUNDAY and we’re writing an update. That’s dedication, huh? The move went incredibly smoothly, thanks to all of our good friends who took time out of their Saturday (and got up horribly early) to carry the heavy stuff — We got 3 people moved to 3 totally different locations in about 7 hours — Not bad, ‘eh? Anyway, I’m actually almost totally unpacked, still lots of stuff to set up the way I want it, but having the last week to spend in the new house helped a lot. Chris, on the other hand, has about 50 boxes piled up at his place from what I hear, and is slowly finding a spot for everything. He’s got his PC set up, though!

Remember, you can still reach us at our newsaskew.com e-mail addresses, even though we’ve moved into new areas.

Now, for the update: There’s some headliners today and the usual newsbites for your enjoyment. Ahhh, it’s nice to be back: