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‘Silver Linings Playbook’ Getting Big Time Premieres, Oscar Sized Treatment

Roger Friedman
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‘Silver Linings Playbook’ Getting Big Time Premieres, Oscar Sized Treatment

David O. Russell’s “Silver Linings Playbook” is about to arrive–are you ready? On Sunday, the film is getting a private fundraising screening here in New York to benefit the LaJolla Playhouse in California. (Note: this doesn’t mean The Weinstein Company’s “Finding Neverland” musical is heading to the fabled theater company for its pre-Broadway tune up. TWC says no– West End, then Broadway.) Then on Monday night “Silver Linings” will get a big Ziegfeld Theater premiere with the director and cast including Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert DeNiro and Jackie Weaver. And, hopefully, breakout star Chris Tucker.

“Silver Linings” won the audience awards in Toronto and at the Hamptons Film Festival. It is without a doubt a top 5 Oscar pick, and all the actors– maybe especially Jennifer Lawrence and Robert DeNiro-are headed for big things. It’s Bradley Cooper’s chance to shine and show that he’s a real actor, and that we must forget about “The ‘A’ Team.” (I really liked him in “Limitless.” Check it out.) DeNiro is sensational. Jennifer Lawrence is a revelation. There aren’t enough superlatives.

Chris Tucker? It’s his first movie apart from the “Rush Hour” series. Seeing him you wonder why he’s waited so long. He’s always been nervous that “Rush Hour” was just a fluke. It wasn’t at all. He’s a most welcome part of this cast. For David O. Russell, “Silver Linings” is another step forward after he hit his stride with “The Fighter.” Fans of “Three Kings” always knew he had it in him, but when “Silver Linings” starts its limited run on November 16th, everyone will  get to see his great work advance.

The Civil Wars Have Their Own Civil War, Cancel Tour

Roger Friedman
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The Civil Wars Have Their Own Civil War, Cancel Tour
Jeez, Louise. It was only last February that I sat right behind these two people from The Civil Wars at the Grammy Awards. Adele came tottering over to say hi to them during the show. They seemed like they were getting along just fine. And now, this duo that needs live appearances and doesn’t need to be fighting have cancelled their tour. The announcement is on their webpage. Maybe they fought over whether ‘cancellations’ has two l’s. It does.
Joy Williams and John Paul White have one album out, called “Barton Hollow.” It threatens to be the new “Buckingham Nicks.” Maybe then can join a band together, infiltrate it, and break up all the couples.
Here’s the announcement:
The Civil Wars – Tour Cancelations
We sincerely apologize for the canceling of all of our tour dates. It is something we deeply regret. However, due to internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition we are unable to continue as a touring entity at this time. We thank each and every one of you for your amazing love & support. Our sincere hope is to have new music for you in 2013.– Joy Williams & John Paul White.

PS – We understand that there are many of you stuck with service charges and travel reservations due to our abrupt cancelations. Please email us at info@thecivilwars.com if there are costs incurred that you would like to be reimbursed for, include a scan or attachment to your receipt(s) of the costs, and we will do our best to reimburse you for non-refundable charges.

Alfred Hitchcock: Lovable Curmudgeon or Obsessed Whack Job?

Roger Friedman
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Alfred Hitchcock: Lovable Curmudgeon or Obsessed Whack Job?

Alfred Hitchcock is back, in a big way. He’s the subject of two movies and they are diametrically opposed. He was either the obsessed whack job from “The Girl,” HBO’s excellent film starring Toby Jones as Hitch and Sienna Miller as Tippi Hedren. Or he was the lovable curmudgeon from “Hitchcock,” the Fox Searchlight feature film that’s going to get a lot of awards attention just about now. Of course, the irony will be that since the Golden Globes give awards to TV and films that both movies will be nominated as well as the actors and actresses.

“Hitchcock,” directed by Sacha Gervasi, is a lead pipe cinch for Oscar nominations considering the provenance of the leads. Sir Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren, each past Oscar Best Actor and Actress winners, are right in the zone as Hitch and his long suffering wife Alma. Mirren is absolutely sensational because she–like Imelda Staunton as Alma in “The Girl”– creates a completely fresh character for us because we don’t know anything about her going in.  The two Almas, of course, face different problems: in “The Girl” Hitchcock is obsessed with Hedren, and it nearly kills Alma. In the Gervasi film, Mirren gets to portray her as Hitch’s collaborator on “Psycho”– and actually makes Alma out to be the rogue in the couple’s relationship.

Whichever story is true, it doesn’t matter. But it’s instructive to watch Jones vs. Hopkins as the temperamental director. Jones doesn’t much go in for impersonation. He plays Hitch low key and without much affectation. Of course, the story in “The Girl” is more intimate, and circles around Hedren. Hopkins goes for the outsize bigger than life director, a blown up cartoon or parade float who’s comfortable with his celebrity and power. Jones makes Hitch’s fame look like an affliction. They both work, and they could both win Globes. I’m waiting for that photo op.

“Hitchcock” also has superior supporting work from Danny Huston as Hitchcock screenwriter Whitfield Cook, Scarlett Johannson as Janet Leigh, Toni Collette as Hitch’s assistant, and Jessica Biel as Vera Miles.

The AFI screened “Hitchcock” last week in Los Angeles, where the guests included our old pal Robert Forster, the hardest working actor in Hollywood. Our LEAH SYDNEY was there, and spoke to Gervasi, who had just delivered his final print in time for the show.

“We actually just finished the film 20 minutes ago,” Gervais quipped to the crowd.  Referring to editor Pamela Martin, he added, “Can we still take notes Pam? If the film seems a little wet, it is.”

Will “Hitchcock” be Fox Searchlight’s this year’s “Crazy Heart”– a sleeper in many categories? Maybe. I do think Mirren gives Jennifer Lawrence (“Silver Linings Playbook”) the most serious competition so far for Best Actress.

Rupert Murdoch Defeated: Why the Hands Off On Barack Obama?

Roger Friedman
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Rupert Murdoch Defeated: Why the Hands Off On Barack Obama?

The usually voluble Rupert Murdoch was curiously restrained on Twitter yesterday. His one Tweet: “Everybody searching for any scrap of news about election tomorrow.plenty of straws to grasp for Romney, probably not enough”And today’s New York Post is very careful to congratulate Obama both in the lead story and in the editorial. All the bite and bile are gone. And while Fox News’s Karl Rove, aka Republican operative, was melting down on the network, that was something Murdoch couldn’t control.

But as I pointed out last week, it’s Murdoch’s National Geographic Channel that aired the pro-Obama “Seal Team Six” on Sunday night. And my experts abroad note that Murdoch’s British papers have been extremely warm to Obama. So what’s going on here? Sources say Murdoch is taking it easy with Obama because he’s afraid of investigations and anything negative here in the U.S. in the phone hacking scandal.

Murdoch is a savvy politician himself and knows how to read tea leaves. He could see some time ago that Romney was not going to win, and that staying on Obama’s good side would come in handy. Even three days ago he Tweeted: “Seems slight edge to Obama, but Romney seeing small late surge. Many state polls look unreliable.” But will it do any good? After the 2008 election, Fox News went wild in anti-Obama rhetoric. It will be interesting to see if Murdoch can tame that group and keep the inflammatory stuff to a minimum.

Check out today’s front page of Foxnews.com. The usual swagger and craziness have been replaced by stately analyses of the election. And even Foxnation.com, the subrosa website for the radically right wing, has been reined in and buttoned up significantly.

Rolling Stones Finally Make Deal for Brooklyn Show

Roger Friedman
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Rolling Stones Finally Make Deal for Brooklyn Show

Hey kids, it’s not all Doom and Gloom: I told you first at the end of the summer that the Rolling Stones would play at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. Then things got weird as Virgin Live and the promoter Paul Dainty were busy also negotiating with the Prudential Center in Newark. But now I can tell exclusively that a Barclays date has been worked out for December 8th. It’s the only open day in the busy Barclays schedule of Nets games.

My sources say the announcement is imminent. This would make Brooklyn first before New Jersey on December 13th and 15th. Tricky stuff here: the Stones will debut their documentary “Crossfire Hurricane” on November 15th on HBO. But there’s been a real hurricane since all this stuff started. Maybe the Stones will announce a special charitable donation, or a show dedicated to the victims to help raise much needed funds for the vast numbers of homeless folks.

In any case, with Brooklyn locked down for one show, which will sell out in 2 seconds flat, my guess is a fourth show — maybe Madison Square Garden– cannot be far behind. And after that, a good ol’ fashioned tour. Stay tuned. Or as they say in Stones land now, “Grrrrr….!”

Louis CK Lincoln Sketch Will Get “Unedited” Release on Hulu

Roger Friedman
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Louis CK Lincoln Sketch Will Get “Unedited” Release on Hulu

If you saw “Saturday Night Live” this past weekend, then you probably caught the brilliant sketch about Abraham Lincoln that aired in the first half hour. Show host comedian Louis CK played Lincoln as a stand up comic right before his assassination. Seth Meyers wrote the sketch, which was sublime. The Lincoln segment has already caught on at Hulu.com. But now I’m told that sometime Tuesday or Wednesday, a fuller, longer version will show up on Hulu. Apparently Louis CK did quite a bit more stand up as Lincoln, and it’s hilarious.

Coincidentally, I ran into Meyers last night at the “Skyfall” premiere. We had a good laugh about his summer long stretch as this column’s number 1 pick to join Kelly Ripa as co-host of “Live.” Meyers told me: “I loved hosting the show with Kelly. I like trying new things. And she’s amazing. But I could not have done that and Saturday Night Live. When I got back to our own show, I felt like I was home.” Meyers added that he thought Michael Strahan was “doing a great job.”

http://www.hulu.com/watch/421088#i1,p0,d0

“Skyfall” Screenwriter: ‘Judi Dench is the Bond Girl in This Film’

Roger Friedman
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“Skyfall” Screenwriter: ‘Judi Dench is the Bond Girl in This Film’

James Bond 23– “Skyfall”– came to New York last night at last. It opens on Friday after raking in nearly $300 million abroad in the last two weeks. The “Skyfall” cast couldn’t make it to the fundraiser for the Tribeca Film Institute at the Museum of Modern Art.

But there were plenty of stars including Sting and Trudie Styler, their actress daughter Mickey Sumner (wait til you see her in “Frances Ha” come May 2013), Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, Seth Meyers of “Saturday Night Live,” “Forest Gump” producer Wendy Finerman, Grace Hightower DeNiro and the “Skyfall” screenwriter John Logan. We also ran into international music star K’Naan, whose new album Country, God or the Girl” is just out from A&M/Octone Records. (Download “The Seed” ASAP.)

And yes, James Bond does say goodbye to Judi Dench’s M in “Skyfall” but I won’t tell you how. Logan says in this film, despite several young beauties, “Judi Dench is our Bond girl this time.” She’s marvelous, as are Albert Finney and of course Javier Bardem as the new villain obsessed with James Bond. Daniel Craig will only be more popular in this role now. Logan is writing him a two part Bond film, numbers 24 and 25.

PS The Tribeca Film Institute set up a table for people to make Hurricane Sandy donations to the Red Cross. You’re going to be seeing that at every charity event from now on this fall and winter.

David Geffen, Music Visionary, Would Sign Arcade Fire Now If He Had A Label

Roger Friedman
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David Geffen, Music Visionary, Would Sign Arcade Fire Now If He Had A Label

David Geffen: let’s face it, he was a visionary in the music business. Without him we would not have had Laura Nyro, Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne, the Eagles, or Crosby Stills Nash & Young. And maybe even Linda Ronstadt. He was significant in the career of Carly Simon, too. And oh yes, Guns ‘n’ Roses. Last night we got to see the new PBS documentary “Inventing David Geffen,” produced and directed by Susan Lacy. And while you might think two hours of Geffen wouldn’t be so interesting, it turned out to be fascinating. Lacy did a superb job, and Geffen is very likeable in it– warts and all.

Before the screening I asked Geffen if he had his seminal label, Asylum Records, now, who would he sign? I mentioned a couple of top young performers, but he recoiled at their names. You can guess. Then he answered: “Arcade Fire. If they’d come out in the 70s, they would be much bigger than they are now. I love them. But radio is a problem now. And you don’t have the repetition of playing the music over and over. There’s no community.”

When we spoke in the nearly empty Paris Theater, Geffen was seated next to business partner and long time friend Jeffrey Katzenberg. New Yorker writer Ken Auletta was chatting with them. Soon enough the Paris filled up with a heavy A list crowd brought in by Peggy Siegal Company, from Mike Nichols and Anjelica Huston to Candice Bergen, Bob and Lynn Balaban, Liz Smith, Regis and Joy Philbin, Mica Ertegun, DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, Julie Taymor and Elliot Goldenthal, director Robert Benton, Tony Danza, Carol Kane, Les Moonves, former spouses Griffin Dunne and Carey Lowell (not together),Tom Freston, Barbara Walters, plus of course, Fran Lebowitz and Calvin Klein. And that was just on my side of the theater! A second screening was held right after with more bold faced names. And Vanity Fair’s Graydon Carter hosted a dinner for a select few at four star La Grenouille.

Susan Lacy manages to pack a lot into two hours, and manages to hit all the high points. There’s a nice section on how Joni Mitchell wrote “Free Man in Paris” about Geffen, another segment about the openly gay Geffen’s love affair with Cher (who looks great), a couple of revelatory interviews with Clive Davis, and the details of how Crosby, Stills & Nash came together, how Bob Dylan was lured away from Columbia Records for two albums, a rare interview with “Risky Business” director Paul Brickman, and plenty of good, now classic, rock and roll.

PS Warner Music, which still owns the Asylum name, would do well to bring it back as a place for real artists and actual musicians. Maybe they could start with Jenny Lewis, who seems to have disappeared in the WMG miasma. She would have been a perfect Geffen-Asylum artist.

ABC’s Real Soap Opera: “General Hospital” is Booming in the Ratings

Roger Friedman
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ABC’s Real Soap Opera: “General Hospital” is Booming in the Ratings

ABC must be having a fit: “General Hospital” is a hit. The last remaining soap opera on ABC was almost cancelled last year. But for a terrible show, now gone, called “The Revolution,” turning out to be a terrible dud, “General Hospital” would have followed “All My Children” and “One Life to Live” to a VHS tape bin.

But “The Revolution” is no longer televised. The executive producer and head writer from “One Life to Live” transferred over to “GH” in its 49th year. They brought over some of the “OLTL” characters, mixed them into the show, and brought back favorite actors like Finola Hughes and Robin Mattson to enliven the story. And it worked.

Last week, “General Hospital” added 378,000 viewers vs. the same week one year ago. They’re up to a 2.7 rating, third among the remaining four soaps (including “Days of our Lives” on NBC and “Young the Restless” and “Bold and the Beautiful” on CBS.) But very importantly “GH” is now second among the four soaps, in viewers ages 18-49 and growing in all the ratings categories. Last year around this time “GH” had a 2.2 rating. The increase is significant.

(The ratings may have increased because the show brought back a character who died on screen seven years ago. It reminded me of the scene in “SoapDish” when Whoopi Goldberg, who plays the writer of the soap in the movie, exclaims, “The man was decapitated. I can’t write for a man without a head.” Apparently these people can.)

Soap plots are always crazy, so you have you have to accept these things. It’s better than watching one more person discuss how to slice a rutabaga, that’s for sure.

One other thing is for sure: ABC has never explained in any realistic way whatever happened in their whole debacle with Jeff Kwatinetz’s Prospect Park Productions. ABC and Prospect Park announced they were moving the other two soaps over to the internet and maybe cable. Then the whole thing collapsed mysteriously. Prospect Park made it seem like “All My Children” couldn’t be done because star Susan Lucci was asking for too much money. Lucci told me recently that simply was not the case. “One day we were negotiating,” she said, “and the next day we were not. We didn’t know what happened.”

Indeed, Prospect Park–aside from a limited involvement in USA Networks’ “Royal Pains”–doesn’t do very much and didn’t do very much when the soap ‘deal’ was going on. Like many Hollywood production companies, they have a few things ‘in development.’

And now ABC is having a hit on its hands that it didn’t want. The network thought it was out of the soap opera business. CBS is doing everything it can to kill its remaining soaps. They hired General Hospital’s fired and failed executive producer to take over “Y&R,” long the number 1 show. The ratings and viewers are in decline. At “B&B” two of the main actors are gone in the last few weeks, sending that show’s numbers down. It’s clear what CBS wants. But ABC may be stuck giving afternoon viewers what they want a little while longer no matter how much they want to cancel “General Hospital.”

Weekend Take: $49 Mil for “Wreck it Ralph,” $23 Mil for Rock Star Telethon

Roger Friedman
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Weekend Take: $49 Mil for “Wreck it Ralph,” $23 Mil for Rock Star Telethon

Even though New York and New Jersey were still partially shut down, and a lot of people are still in dire straits, money was spent on entertainment this weekend. Disney’s animated “Wreck it Ralph” took in $49 million and set some records for the fabled company. This probably had a lot to do with needing some place to take kids, but it’s still good. The record is for a weekend debut by a Disney Animated Studios release. “W-I-R” topped the old record set by “Tangled” in 2010. None of these is as good as “The Lion King” or “Aladdin” or even the glorious “Wall E” but “Ralph” does show Disney has much life left in it…

The NBC telethon “Coming Together” for Hurricane Sandy made $23 on Friday night, with appearances by Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Steven Tyler, Jon Bon Jovi, Mary J. Blige, Christina Aguilera, among others. Matt Lauer gets much needed points for organizing it so swiftly. Of course, $23 million is  drop in the bucket, but it brings awareness of Sandy victims to people not in the immediate area. There may have to be a bigger show in December to raise more money: Staten Island, the Rockaways, the Jersey Shore and other areas will require huge amounts more to recover properly.

I don’t want to nitpick and take away from the event but now that it’s over: “Coming Together” wasn’t exactly multi-cultural. Maybe next time we could see some New York R&B. There’s plenty of local soul, from Valerie Simpson to Jay Z and Beyonce to Dionne Warwick, Ronnie Spector, Darlene Love, to Allen Toussaint, who comes from New Orleans but came here after Hurricane Katrina.

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