Oscars organizer says it does not condone violence

The organizer of the Oscars ceremony on Sunday tweeted that it does not condone violence following an incident in which actor Will Smith slapped presenter Chris Rock in the face on stage during the live broadcast.

"The Academy does not condone violence of any form," the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences tweeted following the ceremony.

"Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world."

-reuters-

Hemsworth, Thompson suit up for 4th installment of 'Men in Black'

MOSCOW, Russia - The "Men in Black" are back - wearing the same suits and sunglasses but different faces.

Actors Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson flew to Moscow to launch the fourth installment of the science fiction franchise originally starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, which pits suited agents against aliens disguised as humans on Earth.

In "Men in Black: International," the "Avengers" star and "Creed" actress play Agent H and Agent M, who have to find a mole in the organization. As in the other installments, cars and gadgets take center stage.

"We had this pretty cool souped-up Lexus that we got to drive which has all sorts of gadgets and the ability to... fly across water and fly up walls and all sorts of things," Hemsworth told reporters on Thursday.

"And then there was this old classic Jag (Jaguar) that just looked like a classic beautiful car but again, all the weapons... come out of the exhaust pipe and the side-view mirror and so on, so that was pretty awesome."

Thompson paid tribute to Smith. "The first ("Men in Black") film marks his real entry into global stardom and I think now we can take it for granted because there are a lot of people of color in Hollywood but he was really... one of the first."

The agents try to keep Earth's alien population a secret from humans, and use neuralyzer devices to wipe people's memories if they see too much.

Given a real neuralyzer, "I'd probably attempt to... forget all the wonderful films that I'd watched over the years, that I grew up on, and erase them and experience that joy all over again," Hemsworth said.

"Certain films... I've seen 10, 15 times and still love them but wish I could have that very first impression and experience again."

The movie, which hits cinemas next week, also stars Liam Neeson and Emma Thompson, who featured in "Men in Black 3." 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Will Smith movie 'Bright' gets a sequel

MANILA – Video streaming service Netflix announced on Thursday that its latest big-budget offering, “Bright,” is getting a sequel.

This after it became the No. 1 movie on Netflix in over 190 countries – with more people viewing the film internationally than domestically – since its premiere on December 22, 2017.

Director David Ayer and stars Will Smith and Joel Edgerton have been confirmed to be part of the sequel.

“Bright” is set in an alternate version of present-day Los Angeles, where humans live alongside supernatural beings like orcs, elves, and fairies.

Smith plays the role of Daryl Ward, a human police officer who is racist against orcs like Nick Jakoby (Edgerton).

In a previous interview, Smith and Edgerton talked about the movie’s racial undertones and anti-bullying message.

“I became very much in love with the character of that orc who is bullied by everybody. I felt like the whole script was saying something about bullying en masse, like bullying other cultures, religions, and groups,” Edgerton said.

   
Smith, for his part, said: “In playing [my role], I learned a lot, looking at the racial and class divides from that angle in a science-fiction film.”

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Netflix vs. cinema: Will Smith, David Ayer weigh in

TOKYO, JAPAN – For director David Ayer, doing a movie with Netflix is just like working on a film with a traditional studio.

His latest movie, “Bright,” is Netflix’s biggest project to date and marks his reunion with Hollywood superstar Will Smith after “Suicide Squad.”

It premiered on the video streaming service last December 22.

“The basics of filmmaking never change. It’s about script, the actors, and the camera and you grow and learn from everyone,” Ayer said in a recent press conference for “Bright” at The Ritz-Carlton in Tokyo.

“I have to own everything that happened with ‘Suicide Squad,’ and it really taught me a lot of amazing lessons as a director. I learned about large-scale action, computer imagery, and makeup, and I was able to bring those lessons into ‘Bright,’” he added.

Perhaps the only major difference Ayer saw between a Netflix movie and a film that is meant for cinema is that the former gave him more freedom as a director.

Noting the flexibility and adaptability of Netflix as a platform for creative storytelling, the director said: “Making ‘Bright’ was wonderful for me because Netflix is very nourishing to filmmakers and they really let me have my voice.”


Smith shared the same sentiment, saying that he could not imagine a traditional studio spending more than a $100 million for a rated R movie.

“With Netflix, everything about the production was identical to a major big-budget Hollywood feature,” said Smith, who has starred in movies like “Men in Black,” “I Am Legend,” and “Independence Day.”

“But what happens with studios is if they’re going to spend more than a hundred million dollars on a movie, they will have certain creative demands because of the risk profile,” he continued.

“So what happens with the demand is it jams the creative process. In a way, you can’t make a movie like ‘Bright’ in a studio because of how much it costs. Just the very cost of it changes the entire creative process. [In the end] It has to be PG-13. They’re not going to make a hundred-plus-million rated R movie that’s not about an IP (intellectual property) that is historically proven.”

  
CHALLENGE 

But doing a big-budget Netflix movie like “Bright” was not without its challenges, according to Smith.

And the biggest challenge for them, he believes, is making sure the movie will have “the same kind of emotional penetrating power” to viewers as they watch it from their electronic devices at home instead of the cinema.

“So the question is, does the big cinematic experience of seeing it in the theater have any emotional reaction? Can you get that same emotional reaction if you’re watching it in your house? That’s what I’m not certain yet, that’s the big question,” he said.

“Does it penetrate the human mind and the human heart? Does it penetrate in the same way that it does in the cinematic experience, that you have to drive an hour to get to the cinema with hundreds of other people? Does it have that same kind of emotional penetrating power?” he added.

Actress Noomi Rapace, who plays the elf villain Leilah in “Bright,” also recognized people’s difficulty in focusing on a movie because of distractions like smartphones and tablet computers.

“I think one of the biggest problems today is that it’s really hard for people, including myself, to stay concentrated. And when you watch a film at home, you have your iPad, you have your computer, you have your iPhone, all your devices next to you. To actually switch them off and decide that you are watching a film as if you are watching it in the theater, that is a decision that you have to do,” she said.

“You want to check your e-mails and text, and you respond to them and you miss out on the film because you’re going between different things… So it’s something that you really need to decide on, that you’re watching the movie and putting everything else away. So I would love everyone to do that [with ‘Bright’],” she ended.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Netflix movie 'Bright' sends anti-bullying message

TOKYO, JAPAN – Netflix’ newest movie not only seeks to entertain as it also sends a powerful message about bullying.

“Bright” is set in an alternate version of present-day Los Angeles, where humans live alongside supernatural beings like orcs, elves, and fairies.

The movie also marks the reunion of lead star Will Smith and director David Ayer, who last worked together in “Suicide Squad.”

Smith said he was able to experience “a very different social paradigm” in his role as Daryl Ward, a human police officer who is racist against orcs.

“The elves are at the top of society, they’re the rich people that have everything. And the orcs are at the bottom of society. They’re the people that everybody looks down on. So humans are in the middle,” he said in a press conference at The Ritz-Carlton in Tokyo.

“In playing [that role], I learned a lot, looking at the racial and class divides from that angle in a science-fiction film,” he added.

In “Bright,” Smith stars alongside Joel Edgerton, who takes on the role of the earnest orc cop Nick Jakoby.

Bullied all his life by humans, elves, and even his fellow orcs, Jakoby seeks to make a name for himself as a police officer and was tasked to work with Ward (Smith).

Edgerton hopes that through his character in “Bright,” he is able to represent “everybody who is judged, bullied, and mistreated when all they want is to be judged based on their actions and merits.”

“When I read the script… I was very hooked,” he said. “I became very much in love with the character of that orc who is bullied by everybody. I felt like the whole script was saying something about bullying en masse, like bullying other cultures, religions, and groups.”

Ayer, for his part, said he wanted to use “Bright” as “a great opportunity to make a movie with a message in it.”

“Bright” also stars Noomi Rapace and Lucy Fry, who portray the elves Tikka and Leilah, respectively.

The movie is available in Netflix worldwide.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Will Smith shuns Oscars in diversity protest, Ruffalo to attend

Will Smith on Thursday joined director Spike Lee and his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith in not attending the 2016 Oscar ceremony in February in protest over the absence of nominated actors of color, while nominee Mark Ruffalo said he will attend the show after confusion over his stance.

Smith, star of football head trauma movie "Concussion," was the highest-profile black actor to be snubbed by Oscar voters when nominees were announced last week. No actors of color were nominated in any of the 20 acting categories for a second straight year.

"My wife's not going... We've discussed it. We're part of this community. But at this current time, we're uncomfortable to stand there and say this is OK," Smith told ABC television's "Good Morning America."

Ruffalo, who is white, is a best supporting actor nominee for playing an investigative journalist in Catholic Church abuse probe "Spotlight."

After some confusion over whether he would join the protest, the actor said on Twitter he will be at the Oscars "in support of the victims of clergy sexual abuse and good journalism," but that he did support those not attending in protest.

Lee, Smith, Pinkett-Smith and documentary director Michael Moore are the only major stars so far to announce they will not attend the Oscars.

Their protest has sparked a major debate over the lack of diversity both at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, whose majority white male members vote on the Oscars, and in Hollywood at large.

Smith said that both times he had previously been nominated for an Oscar, he had "never lost to a white person."

"When I see this list and series of nominations that come out — and everybody is fantastic and that's the complexity of this issue, everyone is beautiful and deserving and it's fantastic — but it feels like it's going the wrong direction," he said.

Lee on Wednesday said he had never used the word "boycott" to characterize his protest.

Oscars host Chris Rock has made no public statement on the issue, but has also come under pressure from rapper 50 Cent and "Fast & Furious" actor Tyrese Gibson to quit.

"There is no joke that he can crack. There is no way for him to seize the moment and come into this thing and say, 'I'm going to say this and say that I'm going to address the issue but then I'm still going to keep my gig as the host,' " Gibson told People magazine. "The statement that you make is that you step down."

(Additional reporting by Piya Sinha-Roy in Los Angeles; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Andrew Hay)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Studio denies 'Concussion' film softened to appease NFL

LOS ANGELES -- Sony Pictures on Wednesday hit back at a New York Times report saying it had "softened" the upcoming Will Smith movie "Concussion" to avoid antagonizing the National Football League.

"Today's New York Times article and headline, written by individuals who have not seen the film, contains many misleading inferences," a studio spokesman said in an e-mailed statement.

"As will become immediately clear to anyone actually seeing the movie, nothing with regard to this important story has been 'softened' to placate anyone."

The movie due for release in December tells the story of Nigerian-born forensic neuropathologist Bennet Omalu, played by Smith, and his diagnosis of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in the brains of deceased NFL players who suffered multiple concussions.

Omalu's work was first widely publicized in the 2013 Frontline documentary "League of Denial".

Concussions have become a major injury concern for the league, which agreed to pay $765 million to retired players to settle concussion-related health claims after accusations it long ignored evidence that head injuries posed long-term risks to players.

The New York Times, citing internal Sony emails that were made public in last year's cyberattack on the studio blamed on North Korea, reported that the studio was concerned not to condemn the NFL -- a financial juggernaut that boasts an estimated $10 billion (7.6 billion euros) in annual revenues and a combined value for its 32 teams of $45.76 billion.

The NFL's place as steward of America's most-watched game and it's links to various television networks and corporate sponsors make it an entertainment as well as a sports juggernaut.

However, in addition to Sony's statement on Wednesday, "Concussion" writer and director Peter Landesman told Deadline.com that it seemed to him the New York Times "is working for the NFL".

"It seems like a hatchet job has been done here, and came out of the NFL's offices," he told the entertainment news website.

Although the film is slated for a Christmas release, Sony released a trailer on Monday, and has screened it for some prominent figures in the sports world.

That includes sports broadcaster Bob Costas.

"I have seen the movie," Costas said in a statement issued through Sony.

"As one who has followed, and commented on, this issue, it doesn't appear to me many punches were pulled."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com