LOS ANGELES — Can a bunch of rowdy pirates slay a corn-fed superhero? Real-life lovers Orlando Bloom and Kate Bosworth are not really in a contest to see who has the biggest hit of the summer, according to Bloom. But it is still intriguing to see which one of them will come out on top. Superman Returns opened last week, generating a five-day, $84 million box-office bonanza with Brandon Routh as the Man of Steel and Bosworth as his Lois Lane. On Friday, Bloom’s modest little adventure flick, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, is preparing to blow the doors off a few thousand theatres across North America. The original Pirates movie made $654 million worldwide in 2003. [More]
Category: Original TORn
Orlando Bloom is slated to be a guest on ‘Good Morning America’ tomorrow (July 5th). He is there to promote his latest film ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest’. ‘Good Morning America’ airs on ABC early every morning, be sure to set those TiVos!
The Box Office triumphs of movies like The Lord of the Rings, King Kong and The Chronicles of Narnia have helped New Zealand develop an international reputation for filmmaking. But it seems these highly bankable blockbusters, and a host of more modest but critically acclaimed films, came at a price. Kiwi actors and technicians have been paid less than the Australians working on the same productions, and that pay disparity has angered union members on both sides of the Tasman, as New Zealand Correspondent Peter Lewis reports. [More]
The director of three new “warts-and-all” documentaries set to be released with the new editions of Lord of the Rings on DVD this autumn says he was not consulted over cuts made by studio New Line. Wellington film-maker Costa Botes was given full access to the set of Peter Jackson’s fantasy triptych and his work is said to take a more critical approach in comparison to the original documentaries that appeared with the films the first time they were released on DVD. He shot about 800 hours of footage, starting work a year before the cameras rolled with Jackson’s full blessing. Botes told New Zealand website Stuff that he is pleased the films are coming out, even though his deal with the studio means he will see no royalties from DVD sales, but is disappointed that he has not been consulted about cuts. [More]
Ninety years ago, Allied commanders launched the World War I offensive lastingly remembered as the Battle of the Somme. At 7.30am on 1 July 1916, officers blew their whistles to signal the start of the attack. As 11 British divisions clambered out of their trenches and walked slowly towards the enemy lines, German machine guns opened fire, causing wholesale carnage. The first day of that battle was the bloodiest in the whole history of the British Army. By the end of the day, the British had suffered 60,000 casualties; almost 20,000 were dead, including 60% of all the officers involved. [More]
Lesley writes: On July 1st, I attended what is, I suspect, a mostly unknown and unheralded opera called Leithian, the tale of Beren and Lúthien. It was held at the Liederkranz Hall, a small venue near Central Park on E. 87th in New York City. The composer and Metropolitan Opera singer, Adam Klein, also performed the lead role of Beren. Approximately 20 musicians and singers contributed, some singers trading off to play instruments from time to time. [More]