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View Askew NewsBites™

May 17th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Rob Olsen & Joe Jenkins

  • Thanks to IndieWire for the nice site mention and link in their latest edition:
      Weinsteins Screen “Dogma” for Distributors Ahead of Cannes Debut

      While executives and members of the press were settling into suites in Cannes last week, Harvey and Bob Weinstein were screening Kevin Smith’s new film, “Dogma,” for a select group of acquisitions folks, executives, and others in New York and Los Angeles, in advance of what will be the film’s world premiere out of competition on Friday in France. Miramax recently announced that it would not distribute the film because of its potentially controversial content involving the Roman Catholic church — the Weinsteins are currently seeking a distributor for the movie.

      On Wednesday night the Weinsteins, along with Smith and producer Scott Mosier, attended a screening of the film in downtown Manhattan. While one insider clearly labeled the showing a “distributor screening,” another called it a “research screening without the research.” The showing was hardly a private affair, an audience was recruited in New York at sites including Columbia University, however unlike many such screenings, attendees were not polled with research surveys. The film screened the following night in Los Angeles.

      Advance reviews from fans who attended the screenings began showing up late last week on Internet sites including Harry Knowles’ “Ain’t it Cool News” and the “News Askew” site. The NewsAskew site is offering links to a handful of the reviews .

  • Ironically enough, it sounds like Details Magazine still thinks the Fletch thing is going to happen! We assure you that it’s definitely NOT, but just in case you were curious about what they said:
      FLETCH 3

      Chevy Chase tries a career Hail Mary pass by choosing indie icon Kevin Smith to write and possibly direct a speculative third installment. Smith claims he learned to write dialogue from Gregory McDonald’s classics about the wise-ass crime reporter, and he’s taken a shot at scripts and story lines for Superman and Jaws sequal projects, so he could be a natural.

      WHY IT MIGHT NOT SUCK:Because in the right role, Chevy is God. Fletch is the right role.

  • George Carlin‘s hilarious new album, “You Are All Diseased”, hits stores tomorrow. Pick up a copy to help fill the void caused by the rumoredly light amount of Carlin in Dogma.
  • Darth Maul Bank Needed!

    May 17th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    Darth Maul Bank

    • Okay, I caved. Those new Star Wars banks are just too cool. There’s 3 of them (Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, and Darth Maul) who all interact with one another. Qui and Obi were fairly easy to find, and I got a good deal on them, but the damned Darth Maul bank is EVADING me!!! Anyway, is there anyone that wants to help me out? The bank should run about $35 (or less). Don’tpay more than that! I’d be happy to repay anyone for the cost of the bank plus shipping (though a polite reminder, my birthday’s coming up in a month…hehehe). But seriously, I gotta have this guy to round out the collection. Plus, if you connect all 3 of them together, THEY FIGHT! If ya find one, please drop me a line before you buy it…I just need one, not ten or anything. Oh, and I know there’s some on e-bay, but I don’t feel like paying auction prices when I know there’s still some to be had out there in stores. Thanks!

    Dogma Screening: A Clarification…

    May 17th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    • Seems like something we said got blown waaaay out of proportion, and we want to clarify: A story posted a few days ago mentioned another Dogma screening on May 17th – But if you look at the headline, you’ll see it was “News From CANNES”…Meaning, the screening WAS to take place in Cannes, not anywhere stateside. Also, we just heard that the screening was cancelled regardless. So, it looks like Dogma will first hit screens in France only this Friday, May 21st, as planned.

    By the way, Kevin & crew left for Cannes today, so wish them luck! The film’s sure to be the talk of the festival after it plays.

    More From Cannes, & A Review…

    May 17th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by The K-Man & Hayman

    • The K-Man checks in with a story on the latest Dogma-related buzz at Cannes:
    Today at the American Pavilion, Hollywod Reporter and Kodak sponsored “A Conversation with Harvey Weinstein and Roger Ebert.” The hour-long conversation brought up many interesting topics, but no DOGMA. So during the Q&A, yours truly asked Harvey to talk about the film and its current status. He basically said that a lot of the controversy was coming from people who didn’t even see the film, and the film will prove itself this week when it screens. A reporter from ET then asked him to talk more about it, so he just commented that the film has screened for “the people” and it’s getting great feedback and positive responses. He ended by saying that for him, it’s an honor to be able to “go along for the ride” with filmmakers like Kevin and Tarantino as they “paint their unique pictures.”

    We’d also like to take this time to thank “The K-Man” very much for being a great source for us from Cannes! He’s the guy that’s been checking in with all the latest Dogma-related stuff over the past week, and we appreciated it! Unfortunately, he’s heading home now and will miss the screening and aftermath, but hopefully someone’ll pick up where he left off.

    Also, another scooper who saw the flick in New York checks in with a review – This person didn’t like Dogma at all, and wasn’t shy at all to say what he didn’t like! There have been MANY different reactions to the film, from total love and admiration, to disappointment. Also, some folks seem to be singling our certain actors as the greatest, with others calling those same people the worst in the film. Anyway, give the review a read and decide for yourself.
    Dogma NYC Screening Review  
    (Mixed/Negative, Minor Spoilers)

    Commentary…

    May 16th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    • As we’d figured, it didn’t take long to hit the one million milestone once the details of the contest were announced. News on our winner and some bites round out the weekend at News Askew today, along with a brand new poll, this week courtesy of Robby:

    NEWS ASKEW HITS ONE MILLION!!!

    May 16th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    • Wow, what an exciting Sunday morning it’s been! Around 8:35 AM, with many of you feverishly loading the page in the hopes to see all those zeroes at the top, it happened. News Askew hit the big one million mark. Congratulations to PAUL ROBERTS from the UK on hitting the magic mark! Paul kindly stepped down from the prize and deferred it to the next hitter above the million mark to step forward and claim the prize.

    And so, congratulations to our next closest to the big number, and grand prize winner…Jason-Guy! He was the closest over one million to provide the proof on the hit (that could make it to Red Bank) so he’s the one. He’ll be spending an afternoon in Red Bank with Kevin and ourselves…We’ll grab some lunch and then take a personal tour of the new offices & the Stash, administered by Kev himself!

    As always, we owe all of our success to you, the fan, who supports this page through your daily, weekly, or monthly visits, as well as your scoops. A special thanks goes out to all of you for making News Askew what it is today, and for allowing us to continue growing all the time! We wish we had prizes for all of ya…Alas, you’ll just hafta settle for our little ‘ol updates.

    Now then, let’s get started on that next million, shall we?

    View Askew NewsBites™

    May 16th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Kilgore, Jesse, & Rugmuncher

    • Premiere Magazine has announced their Hundred Most Powerful: On the list, the Weinsteins hit very high with number 16. Affleck and Damon also held on with ranks 91 and 93 respectively.
    • “Clerks” will be showing at the State Theater in Detroit on Monday May 17th, to kick off to their 1999 ‘Monday night at the movies’ series.
    • Finally today, E! Online‘s been working quite a bit of Dogma into their Cannes coverage online. This piece has kind of a gossipy flair to it, but it’s still nice to see folks are talking:
    God Forbid

    Film talk here in the south of France is still Dogma–quelle surprise, since the flick is oozing with every hormonal actor around these days. Though, let’s not forget people’s anticipation of Steven Soderbergh, Tim Robbins and the massive Austin Powers beachy preem this weekend. (Don’t worry, I’ll take my shovel ‘n’ bucket.) You see, that Dog Matt Damon is not coming to town next week. Too busy bein’ young and beautiful? Grrrr.

    But smiley types like that same film’s Ben ‘n’ Salma will be here, so I can save a slightly suntanned face. (Heaven knows what kind of mischievous face Ben’ll be showin’ me.)

    Meanwhile, here’s what’s got the sundried tongues a-waggin’:

    “Harvey Weinstein is trying hard to sell Dogma domestically while he is here,” said a source who has the puissant exec’s ear, “because somebody owns some theme parks.”

    Read: Familial blissed-out Disney, which is currently on religious-right alert, wants no part of this all-too-familiar thorny road it’s traveled with problematic projects like Ellen and Priest.

    Why? It’s just about a couple of angel dudes (played by guess which two inseparable matinee idols?), a modern-day prophet (Chris Rock as the 13th disciple)–and don’t forget Alanis Morrissette starring as God.

    What’s the big deal? Everybody thinks they’re God in Hollywood. Hello?

    NEWS ASKEW’S ONE MILLIONTH HIT CONTEST!

    May 15th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    • We’ve been teasing ya, and not much more than that, only because we’ve been making some final arrangements to make sure that the contest goes off safely, securely, and that everyone has a fair chance at the prize. As most of you who stop to check the counter at the top of this page once in a while, you realize we’re getting close to quite the milestone, our ONE MILLIONTH HIT. We’re very proud of this, and you should be as well, since readers like yourself have made this possible. For a target audience as specific as the realm of Askew, we’ve racked up an amazing number in under 2 years. And this is ours (and Kevin’s) way of saying thanks for keeping the site going.

    So, for that reason, our ONE MILLIONTH visitor (or closest over to claim the prize) will be spending a day in lovely RED BANK, NEW JERSEY, where he or she will have lunch with Kevin Smith (and two lowly News Askew webmasters), as well as be treated to a personal tour of the Stash and the new, improved View Askew Offices, given by Kevin himself!

    We’re sure that it’ll be a day full of fun and surprises. The day/time of this will be arranged after we’ve got a winner, and can come to agree on something that fits everyone’s schedule, but will most likely be sometime after Kevin and the gang have returned from Cannes.

    All you gotta do is submit a screenshot (just push your PRINT SCREEN KEY and paste the image into a graphic or word processing program), or a note claiming that you were indeed the millionth hit along with any other pertinent information (Your IP address, PC type, web browser, etc.) that you can provide as proof. We’ve got a TON of background processes running to verify who indeed hits the magic numbers, and followup questions that we ask you after you submit you claim will make sure that yours is genuine. In short, WE WILL NOT TOLERATE CHEATING. Anyone who sends a fake screenshot or claim in will be disqualified from any further contests or giveaways that take place at this site for as long as we’re around, and we MEAN that. Let’s play fair, folks. We’ll catch you if you cheat, and humiliate you publicly.

    Now, the details. Unfortunately, we can’t offer airfare or transportation into town, that’s your responsibility. We also realize that, because of these stipulations, that hit number one million just might not be able to make it. There aren’t any substitutes for prizes here, so if you can’t, we’ll give ya the glory and announce you, but be kind and allow someone else to have the prize. We’ll start at a million and work our way up (1,000,001, 1,000,002, etc…) until we have a winner that’s submitted a screenshot (or similar proof). The closest over ONE MILLION (or AT one million, of course) that can make it to town gets the grand prize.

    Good luck to you all, and remember, many will try to win, but THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!

    Positive Dogma Reviews…

    May 15th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    • More folks that really enjoyed Dogma have submitted their reviews of the film, and we’ve got ’em!

    Dogma LA Screening – Review   Dogma LA Screening – Review
     (Very Positive, NO Spoilers)     (Very Positive, Minor Spoilers)

    Dogma LA Screening – Review  
    (Positive, NO Spoilers)

    Commentary…

    May 15th, 1999 @ 12:00 am | No Comments » | Scooped by Brad & Chris

    • Today brings us even MORE Dogma reviews, all positive this time around. It seems that the film, as with Kevin’s others, just needs to find its audience to get properly appreciated. Also, we’ve FINALLY got all the security measures in place, and are now proud to bring you the details on the MILLIONTH hit contest! See below for details. We think you’ll dig the prize.

    By the way, we haven’t heard a peep from Marvel on DareDevil #7, which is scheduled to debut next Wednesday, but AllentownMike writes us to point out that the book ISN’T appearing on any of the release lists for next week. It wouldn’t be a surprise, since the date DID seem very aggressive considering DD #6‘s recent arrival, as well as the busy schedule of all involved with the book as of late. We’ll keep ya posted…But don’t be surprised if the book is delayed a week or two.