- Well, the week rolls on and things really are very, very quiet. There’s still the matter of the Clerks TCS thing going on, but even that has quieted a bit. ZENtertainment” ran a story on the piece here, as did Cinescape, but most other media outlets have yet to see it. As for a new poll topic this week, sorry, but we never got to it. Keep in mind we always take suggestions for poll topics, and often the best come from you, our readers, so if you’ve got a burning Askew-like question you’d like answered by the masses, send it our way.
You are at the archive for the News category &rarr
View Askew NewsBites™
- DVDFile has a blurb the Dogma slimmed-down DVD release this May. Nothing new, but here ya go:
Columbia : Just a single new announcement from Columbia today. Though it is not particularly a surprise, the full Dogma details have come in, and the $24.95 disc is due on 5/2. This is the bare-bones edition, with a full-on special edition expected next fall. This slim edition will have the 130-miute theatrical cut in both full frame and anamorphic widescreen on a double-sided disc (guess they are really pushin’ that bit rate with this one), with no features of note aside from production notes and the trailer. For more info on the special edition, check out our interview with View Askew’s Vincent Pereira.
By the way, we received our screener VHS in the mail the other day — Thanks, Columbia! No word on if we’ll be receiving a test pressing of the May DVD release, but if we do, we’ll have a review up for ya right away.
- Online DVD sites are delaying Vincent Pereira’s “A Better Place” DVD release from Synapse until July 18th. We’re waitingfor official word from Vincent on delays and reasons, though we assume he needs more time to record the new 5.1 DD mix atSkywalker.
- “Time Code 2000”, that experimental flick from Mike Figgis, and Salma Hayek‘s next onscreen appearance, now has a site online with information and a trailer. It’s an interesting concept…Atotally one-take flick with improvisation, shot 4 times, and run simultaneously in each of the 4 corners of the movie screen.Sounds interesting, yet also potentially headache-inducing.
- Finally today, a happy 40th birthday to the last scion, Bethany herself, Linda Fiorentino.
New Clerks TCS Spoof Online!
- Remember that wonderful Trooper Clerks flick that Studio Creations made a couple years back? Well, we’ve got another exlusive one for ya from that same gang! From the guys who brought you “Trooper Clerks: The 13 Megabyte Movie Trailer” comes a new Clerks/Kevin Smith Spoof: TROOPER CLERKS: THE ANIMATED ONE SHOT!!! Surf HERE to view this latest epic and learn more about the team behind it all. It’s to be seen as a spoof of Clerks TCS (due Mat 31st at presstime). Part one of two is now online. Part 2 is due on March 20th. Don’t let ABC spoil your fun — Check out this online animation today!
View Askew NewsBites™
- Care to see some shots of Kev from the UMASS Amherst appearance? Click the thumbs for a better look.
- Speaking of pics, check out Kevin cozying up with the Troma mascot, The Toxic Avenger. Man, ya gotta love Troma.
- We dunno if we mentioned this before, but Synapse has a page dediced to the upcoming “A BETTER PLACE” DVD release HERE. Expect an announcement relating to this disc soon, by the way.
Kevin’s Upcoming Appearances…DETAILS!
- Our scooper from the North Carolina area says it best about what to expect there (for one thing, HEFTY ticket prices, sheesh! Kev’s getting to be a hot ticket!). Here ya go:
I just got off the phone with the box office at Thalian Hall, a concert hall off campus of UNC-Wilmington. Kevin Smith is scheduled to appear on Thursday,March 30 at 8:00 P.M. I just bought a ticket for this event. Tickets are $18.00+$3.00 handling charge for early buys and $20.00+$3.00 handling charge for night of the event. I got front row balcony seats. There are still tickets available for front row lower level (although it is a concert setup and a orchestra pit makes front row lower level hard on the neck) and front row balcony.The show is a speaking event only, no knowledge of a sneak preview of Clerks:The Animated Series although that could change. This was verified with the Information Desk at UNC-Wilmington, 1-910-962-3000, and the box office at Thalian Hall, 1-910-343-3664. The address for Thalian Hall is:
Thalian Hall
310 Chestnut Street
Wilmington,N.C. 28401
That confirms that one.
Now, we ALSO hear rumblings of an appearance at Tulane University on April 12th, where Kevin will speak following a screening of Dogma. More on that as we can dig it up.
FINALLY, and this is an odd one: Kev’s on the schedule for the 6th Annual “From Concept to Sale Confernce” coming up this March 17th in Los Angeles. You can find details and registration information HERE. Interesting enough, Kev’s new pal P.T. Anderson is supposed to show, too…
View Askew NewsBites™
- Kevin’s Dennis Miller Live appearance, coming up on March 10th, will feature discussion about GOD. Should be a really, really good show. Kev was a lot of fun the last time. Here’s the blurb:
DENNIS MILLER (CC) TV-MA (L)
FRI. 11:30 PM
HBO
FRI. 11:30 PM
HBO
Mr. Smith Goes to Heaven
Devilish director Kevin Smith joins one of comedy’s higher powers to gab about God.
Having incited the religious right with his fallen-angels comedy “Dogma,” Smith sets the record straight about his own spiritual status. “Some people find it strange because I’ve made movies that trade on [subject matters] most don’t associate with Christian behavior,” says Smith, a self-professed churchgoer. “But I’m a big believer.” Smith (who does a killer Miller impression) also has faith that his visit with the snarky, cerebral host will be a blessed event. “He’s always been one of those comics I’ve dug,” says Smith. “Because he’s smart.” (Live)
- Screening alert: Marcus Cinema in Pickerington, Ohio, just outside of Columbus, is hosting a midnight double feature of Mallrats & Chasing amy on Friday, March 24th.
- A British tabloid ran a funny little story concerning a…get ready for this…Ben Affleck/Briteny Spears team-up. Huh.Now we’ve heard it all:
Britney shows Ben good will
Britney Spears will star in Ben Affleck’s new movie – as long as he directsone of her music videos. The pop sensation has revealed actor Ben, who wasalso behind Oscar-winning film Good Will hunting, wants her to appear inone of his up-and-coming flicks. Britney, 18, already worth around £18million, says actor Ben asked her during a cozy dinner meeting recently.She said “he was great and really down to earth, just a regular guy.” Butin return Britney wants Ben to be the man behind the camera for one of herpop videos.”
Other Affleck for today: A 20 Questions interview over at E! Online. Check it out, if you desire.
- Here’s a complimentary bite from an article appearing on TheStreet.com discussing Lions Gate:
…
More recently, the company enjoyed substantial entertainment press by screening Dogma, a controversial take on Catholicism starring Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. Lions Gate picked up the movie after pressure from the American Catholic League forced the original distributor — Walt Disney (DIS:NYSE – news – boards) subsidiary Miramax Films — to shy away from it. But the angry protests and boycotts directed against Dogma underscored the company’s willingness to embrace the full spectrum of cinema.
For its efforts, the company was duly rewarded. Last week, the company announced that revenue for its motion picture operations had increased by more than 150% — attributed in large part to Dogma’s success.
Commentary…
- Howdy folks! We took a day off yesterday for a couple of reasons…We didn’t have a lot to talk about, plus this way we could do our FIRST February 29th update since News Askew started! That’s right, we can promise ya there’s NEVER been a February 29th update before. Happy leap day, folks.
We’d also like to say a few final words on the whole Clerks TCS thing. First of all, thanks to everyone who sent in the stories from Variety and the various other agencies that chose to run with it. We didn’t print them again because we felt that all that was needed to be said was out there. Basically, it’s just a bit frustrating for everyone that the series is debuting at such a tough time in the season. We’re just a couple of webmasters here, and never pretend to understand the politics of everything that goes on in this industry, so forgive us for not being more incisive about the whole situation. Whether this was a deliberate stab by ABC to keep the show from success, a move as a result of test scores, or simply just a judgement call, we can’t say. We’re as upset as the rest of you that the show won’t be in that prime timeslot next month, and wish we had better news. We’re also still hopeful that you, the fans, can help to make the show a HUGE success when it premieres this May. At the very least, we’re proud of ALL of the hard working folks at both View Askew AND ABC that did manage to do something we’re sure that no one ever imagined, create a funny animated series about a bunch of characters from a little indie flick that almost earned an NC-17 from the MPAA. Now THAT’S an accomplishment. We’ll enjoy every minute of those six episodes, even if that’s all we ever get to see.
Now that we’ve closed the lid on that, let’s talk about a couple other things today. We’ve got box office on Affleck’s two new offerings from the past weekend, some info on a possible upcoming Kev appearance, and a couple of little NewsBites. Not much, but it’s all we could dig up during this lull. We’re expecting things to be generally slow for a bit here, but that’s good, because it gives us time to catch up on some other things. Alrighty, let’s roll:
Possible North Carolina Appearance For Kev?
- Nothing more on this at the moment, but a source tells us that Kevin is scheduled to do yet another of his famous public appearances at the University of Wilmington, North Carolina, on Thursday, March 30th. More details on this as we can uncover them.
Dogma May DVD/VHS Release: Full Details!
- Kevin sent us the official press release on the Dogma VHS/DVD May release today, and we’ve also got a scan of the ad they’re running in the trades. Keep in mind this is the movie/trailer only release, but it WILL feature 5.1 Dolby Digital sound and a brand new 16:9 transfer, which is excellent news. Here’s the full text of the press release.
“THUMBS UP!Roger Ebert – Roger Ebert at the Movies
“MERCILESSLY FUNNY…EXHILARATING, AUDACIOUS AND WILDLY IRREVERENT”
Janet Maslin – New York Times
A NEW COMIC FANTASY FROM THE DIRECTOR OF “CLERKS” AND “CHASING AMY”
FAITH IS A FUNNY THING
COMES TO VIDEOCASSETTE AND DVD MAY 2, 2000
(Starring Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Chris Rock, Linda Fiorentino, Salma Hayek, Alan Rickman, Jason Lee and Jason Mewes
( $30 Million Box-Office)
( Day/Date VHS and DVD Release)
DVD EXCLUSIVE ELEMENTS INCLUDE:
(Talent Files (Kevin Smith (Director), Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Chris Rock, Salma Hayek, Linda Fiorentino, Jason Lee and Jason Mewes
Culver City, CA (02/28/00) – On May 2, 2000 Columbia TriStar Home Video will release DOGMA on DVD and videocassette. From director Kevin Smith (Clerks and Chasing Amy), DOGMA tells the story of two banished angels who find a loophole to get back into heaven, but must destroy humankind in the process. The film features an all-star cast which includes Matt Damon (The Talented Mr. Ripley), Ben Affleck (Shakespeare in Love), Chris Rock (Lethal Weapon 4), Salma Hayek (Wild Wild West), Linda Fiorentino (Men in Black) and Alan Rickman (Galaxy Quest).
SYNOPSIS – One of the most talked about movies of the year is also one of the funniest! In this hilarious comic fantasy from writer/director Kevin Smith, two banished angels (Damon and Affleck) find a loophole that would get them back into heaven. The only snag? They’ll be destroying existence in the process. In an effort to stop them, the overworked voice of God (Rickman), taps cynical mortal Bethany (Fiorentino), to save the world by preventing the angels from reaching their unholy destination, New Jersey. Throw in two unlikely prophets (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith), the quick-witted, yet little-known thirteenth apostle (Rock) and a sexy, former muse with a case of writer’s block (Hayek) and you’ve got an hysterical and thrilling race against time.
Rated R
Color
Feature: 128 Minutes
DSS
Closed-Captioned
DVD SPECS
Format: Fullscreen and Widescreen (Enhanced for 16×9 TVs)
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby 2-Channel
Languages: English, Spanish and French
Subtitles: English, Spanish and French
Suggested List Price: $24.95
DVD #04891
UPC #0-43396-04891-1
TRADE INFORMATION
Order Date: April 11, 2000 (VHS)
April 4, 2000 (DVD)
UMASS Article Transcribed!
- For those of you who hate loading long scans, a scooper was kind enough to transcribe the entire article about the UMASS appearance for your enjoyment. If ya read the scans we posted the other day, this is the SAME thing, FYI:
Kevin Smith comes to UMass; Silent Bob speaks to students
After a brief introduction by DVP (Distinguished Visitors Program) secretary John Kazlauskas, independant filmmaker Kevin Smith took the stage at the Fine Arts Center Concert Hall to a raucous and eager crowd and a wall of applause and cheering.
“It’s reactions like that that make up for any woman who ever said I had a small dick,” he said, one of many moments of self-effacing humor Smith would subject himself to over the next two hours and forty-five minutes on stage. He came with no prepared speech, and made no opening remarks, choosing instead to jump directly into crowd interaction, fielding a myriad of questions from fans, film students, and more than a few people just looking for a good laugh.
As can be expected, one of the first topics hit upon was how upstart independant filmmakers, such as those working towards their Film Studies certificate here at UMass should go about entering the industry.
“Is there a film school here? You can get a certificate? Well, fuck, I can give you a certificate.”Smith himself only attended film school for four months, and advised hopeful writer/directors to spent their money on film projects, not tuition.
Another hot topic of discussion was Smith’s most recent film, Dogma, Which sparked a backlash of hate mail (and some threats of violence) from religious apologists who saw Smith’s movie as a direct attack on their belief systems, the Catholic Church in particular.
“It was a pro-faith movie,” said Smith when asked about the reactions Dogma received, and although he said he tends to view organized religion with “suspicion and disdain,” he also noted, “Church I actually enjoy going to. It gives me a piece of mind.”
One of the highlights of the evening was Smith’s lengthy and hilarious tale about how he came to know Jason Mewes, who has made appearances in all of Smith’s films as the character Jay. Although too long (and far too profane) to retell here, one particular anecdote does merit mention. Smith and cast member Jason Lee were in their hotel room when Mewes stepped through the door wearing nothing but a red vest. “Did you order this?”
Smith also talked about his one-time involvement with the new Superman movie, Superman Reborn), for which he was hired as the scriptwriter. Untimately, the movie was shelved when Tim Burton was hired as a director, and insisted on bringing in his own writers. Kevin was dismissed, and the Burton-headed efforts untimately floundered and died.
Thats not to say Smith’s involvement in the comic book world has come to an end – far from it.A longtime fan of the genre, Smith has written for Daredevil, and is currently working on both The Green Arrow and a one-shot comic book detailing the history of Loki and Bartleby, the two angelic protagonists of Dogma.
And speaking of comic book movies, Smith’s opinion of the new X-men feature film was simply “It’s Halle Berry in a bad wig.”
Following this was a lengthy and hilarious exchange with the audience about unspeakably profane sex acts, a reminder that regardless of how articulate and thoughtful Smith might be, he’s still a nutty guy who loves a good, immature laugh.
What will Smith’s next movie be? “I know what it is, I just don’t want to say it,” is all he would divulge.
The evening concluded with a screening of the second episode of the new animated adaptation of Smith’s first movie Clerks, set to premiere this May (a move that, Smith acknowledges, means that the television company has little faith in it’s success, and is planning to discontinue work on the series soon after it’s debut).
If the audience’s laughter is any indication, however, there may be hope for the series yet.