This was a point advanced in Cinema Blend that I just about dropped my jaw when reading. See, I had forgotten that, way back in the long long ago, the brothers Weinstein owned Miramax, but they sold it to Disney back when it was doing a lot better. Now that Miramax is bleeding cash like a stuck piggy bank, are the Weinsteins plotting to buy the name off Disney’s hands?
There’s no doubt they’d get a bargain for it–with Miramax putting out just a handful of titles a year and generating precious little revenue for Disney, a cash infusion would probably be welcome there. And if the Weinsteins want it–and it’s been suggested that they definitely DO want it–now would be the prime time to get it back for a song.
Does that mean they’d make it better? Well, considering that it’s currently been hobbled and is only putting out slim numbers to begin with, chances are the Weinsteins would crank it to full production again, and considering some of the awesome pieces it’s come out with since they sold it to Disney, they might be able to get something good out of it again.
Okay, remember when I talked about how Miramax was pretty much getting castrated by Disney, seriously downsized, with only one release every other month? Well, it’s getting worse out there. A lot worse.
Miramax’s current president, Daniel Battsek, recently announced that he would step down as the head of Miramax following the recent defanging of same. Disney had said that Battsek would remain in charge of day to day operations, but Battsek wasn’t having it, and left after a month.
Excuse me if I don’t smell a rat bugging out of a sinking ship. After all, Battsek’s career looks pretty prime right now; he DID release No Country For Old Men, after all, not to mention Gone Baby Gone, so if this isn’t a move to go find greener pastures at another studio, I’ll be plenty surprised.
Stranger things have happened, of course, so it’s a move worth keeping an eye on.
Terrible news for Miramax fans–and for those of you wondering why I’m not talking more about Kuzuricon, well, you didn’t expect me to throw my whole package out in one day, did you?–as Disney announces a restructuring deal by which Miramax releases will be sorely curtailed.
They’ve only had four so far this year, and will put out just one more, the Robert De Niro comedy / drama Everybody’s Fine, before calling it quits for the year.
Miramax’s track record hasn’t been exactly what anyone would call top-flight, and most of their films have been box-office losers. Considering parent company Disney’s down year, it’s not surprising that they’re looking to cut out anything that isn’t making money and making it hand over fist. This is of course a blow to the entire film community, as Miramax has put out some interesting, risky stuff, and if studios like Disney continue to be paralyzed by risk phobia, we can all look forward to a pretty lousy 2010 movie season.
Now this is an interesting bit of news. Kathleen Kennedy joining up with Miramax and Focus Features International to produce the English language remake to Gallic thriller Tell No One.
I love the movie’s story and have been following its success. Interestingly, even though it is a French film, the movie is the first film adaptation from prolific American novelist Harlan Coben.
The plot reminds of a Hitchcock storyline. A doctor grieving for his dead wife, after eight years is finally able to put it all behind him, then discovers she may still be alive. The discovery comes via an email and video of his wife very much alive. The doctor receives a threat that he and his wife are being watched. The doctor is then suspected of murder, hooks up with a female defense attorney and together they go on the run to discover the truth.
Variety reports that the French film was a surprise hit last year in the U.S. with grosses topping $6 million and grossed $22 million in France and $2.3 million in the U.K.
Variety reports that actress-turned-writer Jenny Lumet (Rachel Getting Married) is set to pen This Strange Thing Called Prom for Miramax Films.
Based on Brooke Hauser’s New York Times article, the film will examine the experiences of some immigrant students as they help put together and attend a senior prom at the International High School in Brooklyn.
Students attached came from various countries, including Poland, Tibet, Haiti, Senegal and Venezuela.
From Variety comes word that Miramax Films is working on developing a biopic about baseball legend Tommy Lasorda. The infamous Major League Baseball pitcher and manager of the Dodgers will most probably be played by Al Pacino as he has expressed interest in the role.
Michelle Pfeiffer has also expressed interest in the movie, especially in the role of the baseball star’s wife.
The Hollywood Reporter carries word that Miramax will produce and distribute Muchas Gracias, Bob Oppenheimer, a period romantic drama.
The story focuses on an American serviceman in the ‘60s who is sent to a fishing town in Spain after a US military plane crash results in the accidental detonation of four hydrogen bombs.
It draws from the true story of Palomares, Spain, where an American B-52 bomber crashed and released more than 1000 tons of nuclear material in 1966.
The script has been penned by Bob Dolan Smith; it will be rewritten by Daniel Taplitz.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a fictional story that offers a unique perspective on how prejudice, hatred and violence affect innocent people, particularly children, during wartime.
Through the lens of an eight-year-old boy largely shielded from the reality of World War II, we witness a forbidden friendship that forms between Bruno, the son of Nazi commandant, and Schmuel, a Jewish boy held captive in a concentration camp. Though the two are separated physically by a barbed wire fence, their lives become inescapably intertwined.
The imagined story of Bruno and Shmuel sheds light on the brutality, senselessness and devastating consequences of war from an unusual point of view. Together, their tragic journey helps recall the millions of innocent victims of the Holocaust.
Miramax’s Extract, hopefully, brings Ben Affleck into play with other actors Jason Bateman, Clifton Collins Jr., Mila Kunis and Kristen Wiig. Affleck is now in negotiations.
A Mike Judge comedy is about an ambulance-chasing lawyer (Affleck), which centers on a flower extract factory owner (Bateman) who’s managing with workplace problems and a streak of bad luck, together with his wife’s affair with a gigolo.
Clifton Collins Jr. is joining the cast as a factory worker who loses a body part in a freak accident and is now due for a huge settlement.
This was a point advanced in Cinema Blend that I just about dropped my jaw when reading. See, I had forgotten that, way back in the long long ago, the brothers Weinstein owned Miramax, but they sold it to Disney back when it was doing a lot better. Now that Miramax is bleeding cash like a stuck piggy bank, are the Weinsteins plotting to buy the name off Disney’s hands?
Okay, remember when I talked about how 
Terrible news for Miramax fans–and for those of you wondering why I’m not talking more about Kuzuricon, well, you didn’t expect me to throw my whole package out in one day, did you?–as Disney announces a restructuring deal by which Miramax releases will be sorely curtailed.
produce the English language remake to Gallic thriller Tell No One.
Variety 
From Variety comes 
The trades are 
The Hollywood Reporter carries 