I doubt they mean you get to go back for more (Film News - 19/03/11)

I was worried about this week's news being even worse than last Sunday. As I dipped in and out of the web during the week there was absolutely nothing grabbing my attention - except maybe for the unfortunate departure of Darren Aronofsky from The Wolverine and that certainly won't be a major story (I try to keep it positive around here). However, when trawling the web yesterday I found some stories that had been given very little coverage during the week, and so we move on to:

Seconds of Happiness

Neil LaBute's collection of short stories within the theme of fleeting pleasures is making it to the big screen under the watchful gaze of Leaving Las Vegas director Mike Figgis. All set on a plane the film will highlight the differences between the sexes as they exploit each other's weaknesses. The cast list includes Kristen Scott Thomas, Matt Dillon, Christina Hendricks and Brendan Fraser.

There's potential for soap-like interconnectivity which will go down like Airport without the suitcase bomb, however I rather think that LaBute's biting satire and clever plotting will ensure the project doesn't fall into that trap. Plus Figgis seems like an interesting choice given his experimentation with the medium (like Timecode with it's split-screen single take action below) so maybe we could be onto something interesting.



Read on for naughty bits coming out the screen, exploitation and taking to the piste.



Me and You

You know the 3D circus hasn't hit it's peak yet when hitherto serious directors start announcing using stereoscope for more auteurish projects - see Baz Luhrmann and The Great Gatsby for proof - but this many jaws dropped when Bernardo (The Dreamers, Last Tango in Paris) Bertolucci announced his next movie will be the adaptation of Niccolo Ammaniti's Italian novel about adolescent love. Given his form with nudity I'm imagining this will be a really odd development for multiplexes.

Untitled Russ Meyer biopic

When producer/director Russ Meyer passed away in 2004 it was inevitable that his life story would eventually be made into a film in itself. Known as the Fellini of the sex-industry Meyer's work in soft-core porn and exploitation pics earned him a legion of fans thanks to best selling titles like Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (right) and Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. At the moment this is just another movie on David O. Russell's list of potential projects, but you know when it gets made - whoever ends up in the directors chair - it's going to be wildly fun.

Woodchucks

I love it when an outcast returns to the fold, so it was great to hear that Tremors director Ron Underwood is making his first feature since the disastrous one-two combo of Pluto Nash and In the Mix ten years ago. The comedy focuses on a ski instructor getting his incompetent local ski team up to scratch to fight off corporate resort developers. Sounds like a cross between Dodge Ball and Mighty Ducks to me. Oddly Underwood has stated that, as a skier himself it's great to be involved in making a rare movie about the sport. Clearly he's not seen the adverts for Chalet Girl which opened in the UK this weekend.



A picture of a block skiing - because I needed to break up the post...

Casting News

A few good rumours this week with Jude Law and Aaron Johnson potentially attached to Joe Wright adaptation of Anna Karenina, Tommy Lee Jones mooted as a possible husband for Meryl Streep in Great Hope Springs (nice match) and the rather delicious prospect of Woody Allen cameoing in his next Italy set movie - although given my review of You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, coming Wednesday, I may regret saying that.