LIBERACE MOVIE A HIT FOR HBO

Aided by solid reviews earlier in the week at the Cannes Film Festival, where it participated in the competition, director Steven Soderbergh’s Behind the Candelabra produced the highest ratings for an HBO original movie in nine years. The first screening of the movie attracted 2.4 million viewers; a second, immediately afterwards, attracted an additional 1.1 […]

SODERBERGH TO WORK A LOT DURING RETIREMENT

Steven Soderbergh has taken another step back from the “retirement” he announced in 2010 (and hinted at in previous years). In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, he explained, “I’m sort of taking time off and just trying to determine whether I can come at movies from a different direction. That’s something I think I […]

DIRECTOR SAYS LIBERACE BIOPIC WAS “TOO GAY” FOR STUDIOS

Despite being directed by an Oscar winner and starring two other Oscar winners, Behind the Candelabra, Steven Soderbergh’s drama about flamboyant pianist/entertainer Liberace, received a pass from every major studio, Soderbergh told TheWrap.com. The film, which cost just $5 million to produce and stars Michael Douglas as Liberace and Matt Damon as his longtime lover […]

WEB FEAT: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN BAGS $140M IN DEBUT (Updated)

The Amazing Spider-Man lived up to its name over the six-day Independence Day holiday, piling up $140 million domestically and more than $200 million overseas, according to studio estimates. Receipts for the franchise may not have been quite what they were for the first two installments but they far exceeded the forecasts of many veteran […]

RAUNCH AND SEX RULE AT WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

Records of sorts were set at the box office last weekend. The Los Angeles Times discovered that for the first time in history two R-rated movies earned more than $21 million apiece. In fact, Ted, with $54.4 million, and Magic Mike, with $39.1 million, according to the final official tally, did it with millions to […]

MOVIE REVIEWS: MAGIC MIKE

It may seem surprising that a movie about male strippers would become one of the best-reviewed films of the year, but such is the case with Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike, starring Channing Tatum and Matthew McConaughey. Mick LaSalle in the San Francisco Chronicle compares the movie to the best of Howard Hawks and William Wellman. […]

FROM SODERBERGH: SOUR NOTES ABOUT MAKING LIBERACE BIOPIC

Director Steven Soderbergh, whose movies represent a cross-section of film fare — from the more-than-four-hour-long commercial failure Che (it earned less than $1.5 million at the box office) to the box office hits Ocean’s Eleven and Ocean’s Twelve — says it is difficult to find financing for a film “that’s not bubbly and positive all […]

MOVIE REVIEWS: HAYWIRE

Critics have by and large concluded that Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire has put a new wrinkle on the action flick, thanks mainly to the performance of Gina Carano. “Watching Carano kick, spin, flip, choke, crack and crush the fiercest of foes … is thoroughly entertaining, highly amusing and frankly somewhat awe-inspiring,” Betsy Sharkey remarks in the […]

MOVIE REVIEWS: CONTAGION

Critics can’t seem to resist a pun or two when reviewing Contagion, despite their generally positive reactions to it. It’s “nothing to sneeze at,” remarks Mick LaSalle in the San Francisco Chronicle. His conclusion: Don’t expect great cinema ingenuity despite the fact that it comes from director Steven Soderbergh and boasts an impressive cast. “It’s […]

CLOONEY FILM TO OPEN VENICE FILM FESTIVAL

George Clooney’s political thriller The Ides of March has been selected to open the Venice Film Festival on Aug. 31, organizers said today (Thursday). Clooney directed the film and stars in it with Ryan Gosling. Some 22 films will be presented in competition, including Roman Polanski’s Carnage, starring Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz and […]