Other Topics : Art Culture - Fashion - Tourism

Latest & Hot Hollywood Film News : * hourly updation

Back to Hollywood Current News Section

Polanski breaks off all ties with Hollywood
DPA

Hamburg, Dec 15 (DPA) Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski said he will not direct any more Hollywood movies, Germany's Stern magazine reported in its latest edition published Thursday.

The 72-year-old Polanski, who received the Oscar for best director in 2003 for his Holocaust movie "The Pianist", told the magazine that Hollywood movies were governed by a simple rule - the more childish the project, the easier it is to get funding for it.

The Polish-born director, who has lived in Paris for the past 27 years, said he failed to see why he should invest two years of his life in something that people had forgotten about after a few minutes.

A fugitive of the US justice system, which charged him with unlawfully having sex with a 13-year-old girl in 1977, Polanski did not travel to Hollywood to accept the Oscar for "The Pianist" for fear of being rearrested.

Britain's Adrien Brody, who played the lead role in the film, won the Best Actor award.

Even if the US waives the charges against him, Polanski said he still wanted nothing more to do with Hollywood. He said he feared being hounded by the US media because of his past.

Asked if his two children were familiar with such Polanski classics as "Chinatown" or "Dance of the Vampires", he said two years ago he showed them "The Pianist". Afterwards, his son Elvis, who was five at the time, said he preferred "Spiderman".

Indo-Asian News Service

Berlin film festival's gay award marks 20th anniversary
DPA

Berlin, Dec 15 (DPA) The Berlin Film Festival's Teddy Award, which honours films on gay and lesbian themes, celebrates its 20th anniversary next year with the festival's programme including 36 movies.

The Teddy festival is rather unique in that it is fully integrated into the main programme for the Berlinale, which is one of the world's top film festivals.

The Teddy bear statues are now in a sense the younger cousins of the Golden and Silver bears awarded in the festival's main competition.

Moreover, since it was launched, the Teddy award has grown into a major part of the annual festival and is credited with helping to catapult several young budding directors to international fame.

Noah Cowan, co-director of the Toronto International Film Festival, is to preside over the 2006 Teddy jury.

Indo-Asian News Service

Federline criticises Spears?
Indo-Asian News Service

New York, Dec 15 (IANS) Pop singer Britney Spears has lashed out at reports that her husband Kevin Federline has made negative comments about their marriage.

According to Internet Movie Database, the couple has attracted media attention for their marital problems. In the midst of all this were reports that Federline criticised his wife for her attitude towards their marriage. 

He is quoted as saying: "I love her. But ask me now about life apart from Britney, and all I can say is, 'Can it be any worse than living with her?' I am doing what she wanted, getting out of the house and trying to find work, but I do that and she trashes my efforts. 

"She just wants me at her beck and call as a little house husband. Marriage is something you don't go into lightly. She has to learn she can't just pick me up and dump me off like her first husband."

But Spears' spokesperson has hit out at the report saying: "The story is untrue and hurtful and he didn't give them an interview. He and Britney are as normal as other couples, they fight and they make up. They are fine and happy."

James Dean museum to close
Indo-Asian News Service

New York, Dec 15 (IANS) A James Dean museum in Indiana, which chronicles the life of the legendary star, is set to close due to growing debts.

According to Internet Movie Database, owner David Loehr had moved the James Dean Gallery to Gas City where Dean had attended high school less than two years ago. Though attendance has increased, it wasn't enough to match the cost of the building maintenance. 

He says: "The operating expenses and upkeep and payments are just more than we can handle. I'm just getting further into debt and I just can't do it anymore." 

The gallery contains dozens of items of clothing worn by Dean in his films, school papers, paintings, original posters, books and magazines. All of it will now be put in storage.

Cruise criticised by 9/11 firefighters
Indo-Asian News Service

New York, Dec 15 (IANS) Actor Tom Cruise has been criticised by firefighters, suffering the effects of smoke inhalation from the World Trade Center terrorist attacks, for his controversial views on their treatment.

According to hollywood.com, Cruise has urged the victims to give up their medication and inhalers as a part of a 'purification rundown', which favours sauna sessions, ingestion of cooking oil and large doses of niacin as alternate cures.

Cruise is also supporting a new Scientology clinic preaching these remedies near the Ground Zero site. 

But his remedies have been slammed as ridiculous and potentially harmful by members of medical profession and the victims. 

Deputy Fire Commissioner Frank Gribbon says: "If our doctors are prescribing medication, and they (Scientologists) are saying 'don't take it', that's a problem for us.

Pitt and Jolie: No immediate marriage plans
Indo-Asian News Service

New York, Dec 15 (IANS) Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have no immediate plans to marry, according to Pitt's grandmother.

Hollywood.com quotes grandmother Betty Russell as saying that she has had no talks with Pitt concerning any immediate plans for marriage and was also happy that he filed for legal guardianship of Jolie's adopted children.

She says: "I don't believe they've planned the wedding yet. He hasn't told me anything about that." 

But she adds: "He's a natural dad. It's going to be nice for us all to have tiny children around for Christmas."