DAN’S MOVIE DIGEST 151

Jackson: “I have greatly enjoyed my collaborations with Howard Shore, whosemusical themes made immeasurable contributions to the Lord Of The Ringstrilogy. During the last few weeks, Howard and I came to realize that we haddiffering creative aspirations for the score of King Kong.”

“Rather than waste time arguing with a friend and trying to unify our pointsof view, we decided amicably to let another composer score the film. I’mlooking forward to working with James Newton Howard, a composer whose workI’ve long admired, and I thank Howard Shore, whose talent is surpassed onlyby his graciousness.”

In related news, it seems the digital tweaking at WETO on the moviecontinues. Eagle-eyed fans have noticed that Kong himself has been modifiedto appear more aged – see the comparisons for yourself! (see right)

AUSTIN POWERS 4Mike Myers has told ‘Entertainment Weekly’ that he is discussing a fourthAustin Powers movie, saying: “There is hope! We’re all circling and talkingto each other. I miss doing the characters.”

In related news, Myers has recently agreed to play Keith Moon in a newbiopic about the Who drummer.

CASINO ROYALEWell, after many months of rumours and gossip, it has finally been confirmedthat the 21st James Bond adventure, Casino Royale, will indeed debut DanielCraig (Layer Cake) as 007 – consigning Pierce Brosnan to Bond history. FLEMING’Warner Brothers’ have made a deal to develop a movie about James Bondcreator Ian Fleming, reports ‘Variety’.

Fleming has been written by Damian Stevenson and will be produced by AndrewLazar through his ‘Mad Chance’ company.

The film tells the story of how the author’s own experiences with womanizingand spying shaped his signature secret agent creation. Born into aprivileged English family, Fleming began as a comparative underachieveruntil a stint as a journalist covering the Soviet Union led him to beginspying on that country for the Foreign Office. Fleming was the mastermind ofnumerous clever spying schemes, some deemed too outlandish to use.

He unveiled 007 in the first of many James Bond novels, Casino Royale, in1953.

All figures are weekend box-office gross.

• 1. The Fog ($11.8m)
• 2. Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of The Were-Rabbit ($11.5m)
• 3. Elizabethtown ($10.6m)
• 4. Flightplan ($6.49m)
• 5. In Her Shoes ($6.11m)
• 6. Two For The Money ($4.69m)
• 7. Domino ($4.67m)
• 8. A History of Violence ($3.60m)
• 9. Corpse Bride ($3.58m)
• 10. The Gospel ($3.12m)

UK TOP 10 (CINEMA)

• 1. Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of The Were-Rabbit (£9.37m)
• 2. Lord of War (£0.72m)
• 3. Pride and Prejudice (2005) (£0.59m)
• 4. Kinky Boots (£0.506m)
• 5. Oliver Twist (2005) (£0.504m)
• 6. Serenity (£0.49m)
• 7. Domino (£0.48m)
• 8. A History of Violence (£0.36m)
• 9. Four Brothers (£0.25m)
• 10. Goal! (£0.17m)

All the following are U.K. release dates, and are subject to change.

• 21st October 2005: Nanny McPhee, Broken Flowers, Corpse Bride, Cry Wolf, Sky High, Into the Blue
• 28th October 2005: Doom, Flightplan, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, Saw II, Thumbsucker, The Legend of Zorro
• 4th November 2005: Murderball, Elizabeth Town, Brothers Grimm, The Exorcism of Emily Rose
• 11th November 2005: The Constant Gardener, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Hustle & Flow, In Her Shoes
• 18th November 2005: Transporter 2, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Rize
• 25th November 2005: White Countess, Mad Hot Ballroom, The Matador, Mrs Henderson Presents, The Libertine, The Proposition, Just Like Heaven, Bee Season
• 2nd December 2005: Tickets, Keeping Mum, Ice Harvest, Where The Truth Lies, Family Stone
• 9th December 2005: Everything is Illuminated, The Chronicles of Narnia: Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe (2005), Shopgirl
• 14th December 2005: King Kong (2005), Joyeux Noel
• 16th December 2005: Lassie (2005)
• 30th December 2005: Stray Dogs, Brokeback Mountain, Proof

Page Content copyright © Dan Owen, 2005.