Well, I put a lot of thought into this, and the answer I came up with was music. Sure, there are many great silent films that I have long admired. Films that were beautiful to look at! Even after coming up with this answer, I believe that true greatness in film comes from ALL elements introduced. What I think has the most impact though… is the music.

I'm not just talking about the huge, dramatic scores that you hear at the beginning or end of a film. I'm talking about the background music in each scene. Allow me to further explain…

Imagine watching Clarece in Silence of the Lambs, stalking through a dark garage. She's searching for something… that much we know. However, the music in the background offers even more atmosphere. Mysterious music that plays with your senses. Music that tells you when to shriek, when to sigh, and even when to laugh. I experienced this while watching the SILENCE OF THE LAMBS: CRITERION COLLECTION DVD. In the special features section, they show an extended scene with Clarece searching through that garage. This extended scene, however, had no soundtrack. There was no music whatsoever. Then when I watched the actual scene in the film… I was amazed to see how much of a difference there was WITH that soundtrack. Anyway, that's just one of many examples. I'm writing to salute this music. More importantly, I'm writing to salute the man who has contributed to America's greatest cinematic experiences. The man's name is John Williams.

Born in 1932, Williams studied music at the University of California in Los Angeles. He then joined the Air Force in 1951 for three years, returning to his studies as a pianist at the Julliard School of Music, New York. He later went back to Los Angeles for further studies, including composition with Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. Willaims was hired by Columbia Pictures in 1956 as a session pianist in film orchestras. He became fascinated with scoring for film and less interested in being a concert pianist. He moved to 20th Century Fox and became involved in arranging and orchestration, and finally, composition. As 'Johnny' Williams, he wrote scores for the classic TV series of the day - episodes of 'Wagon Train', 'Gilligan's Island' and 'Bachelor Father'. This led onto work with the Director and Producer, Irwin Allen starting with 'Lost in Space'.

The rest leads to a brilliant career that is not even close to an end. A career that reads like a list of America's most loved films: The Patriot, The Star Wars Trilogy, The Indiana Jones Trilogy, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Saving Private Ryan, Amistad, Seven Years in Tibet, The Jurassic Park films, Sleepers, Nixon, Schindler's List, Home Alone, Born on the Fourth of July, JFK, Hook, Far and Away, Empire of the Sun, Jaws, Raising Arizona, Goonies, The Big Chill, 1941, Superman, E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Towering Inferno, Earthquake, The Sugarland Express, etc.

Most people will recognize his name from all but one of Steven Spielberg's films. Or they may remember him from his excellent work within the Star Wars films. Either way, no one can deny the fact that his talent brings forth a true cinematic experience. Who can forget the triumphant music displayed during the opening scroll of Star Wars… perhaps the most recognizeable of all scores in the history of film. But if I mention that, I have to also turn towards one of the greatest films of all time, Jaws. The Jaws theme proves my point that music alone is the final touch of any scene. It represented the shark, without having it be seen. If you heard that music, you knew Jaws was coming. You knew he was out there! You didn't need to see him.

What would Star Wars be without that music? What would Superman be? Williams' greatest scores are not at the beginning of these films. And they aren't at the end. They are the ones that are located during each scene of each of his films. We forget that they exist. We take them for granted. Music with soundtrack titles like; "Luke and Leia", "The Imperial March", "Duel of the Fates", etc.

Composers like Williams create the emotional aspects of a scene… of a whole film. If a composer needs to write music for a sad part of a film, they write something dramatic… something slow. They create that emotion to go along with that scene. If they are composing to a battle, they will create something epic. Without this music, the film would be incomplete. It wouldn't have the kind of emotional response from its viewers. That is what makes John Williams the elite of the elite. His roster would have even the many successful Hollywood composers in envy. Don't get me wrong… people like James Horner and Hans Zimmer are fantastic in what they do. But they haven't reached the epic level of Williams. He has created music that will forever echo in our minds.

So… I salute Mr. Williams, and thank him for all he has offered in the past 50 years. I await his next epic score in upcoming films like; A.I., Memoirs of a Geisha, Star Wars episodes II and III, Minority Report, Indiana Jones 4, etc.

To all interested, look for the CD compilation JOHN WILLIAMS: GREATEST HITS 1969-1999… among others. Also, in a salute to ALL film composers… keep an ear out for their music. Don't ever take it for granted. For without them, these films we love just wouldn't be the same.

LOTR ACTORS ON THE LONG SCHEDULE
One of the most ambitious aspects of the Lord of the Rings production currently filming in New Zealand is the fact that all three films in the trilogy are being filmed simultaneously. At their Dragon Con panel last weekend in Atlanta, actors Karl Urban and Brad Dourif illuminated some of the specifics regarding the current filming plans for the three films.

"I believe we are supposed to be filming until February of next year," revealed Urban, who portrays Eomer in the films. "I found out when I was cast in January that my first day would be in March of this year, and then I've got a lot more toward the end of the year. It's been broken bits of work--a week here, a day there."

"When a location's hot and you have a film crew there, it's much cheaper to do everything there," explained Dourif, who portrays Grima Wormtongue. "So if you do three movies, you just keep bringing people there and you can shoot all the way through, then strike it. That saves a lot of money. As for battles, a lot of times you can double battles; you can cross-use footage. That saves enormous amounts of time. Continuity-wise, because you're doing everything at once, you really can get an idea of how things blend together as you're doing them, so the three movies are one movie, in a way.

"My feeling is that come February, it's over," Dourif explained. "It's just really expensive to go back and rebuild something like Helm's Deep."

ALSO ON THE HYPE
Also at Dragon Con, Brad Dourif and Karl Urban had a chance to comment on the massive hype already building around the Lord of the Ring films. Even though the first film won't be released until Christmas 2001, the release of an online trailer busted all existing records for downloads of a film-related file, and crowds of people were constantly gathered around a Dragon Con booth where the trailer was screened in a loop on a laptop. Having seen some of the footage--and filmed some of it themselves, for that matter--both actors are in a unique position to comment on director Peter Jackson's progress.

"I think the hype is justified," said Urban. "From what I've seen, I think this has been made with meticulous love and care. I think Peter Jackson is very aware of the responsibility he has to do justice to what Tolkien has written, and I'm very confident from what I've seen. I'm just so stoked to be a part of it."

"They showed me a half-hour, and you'd think with all this stuff--they've got some of the best toys you've seen in your life--that it's just going to be about these toys," added Dourif. "In the half-hour I saw, the whole thing was very character-driven. It's fast; it moves quick, and it's very exciting to watch."

AND A SITH JOINS THE "LOTR" FILMS
Bob Anderson, who performed Darth Vader's lightsaber duels in The Empire Strikes Back, is also working on choreography for the swordfights in the Lord of the Rings films. His know-how is being employed to give each species of creature its own unique brand of swordplay.

"I'm a Rohan, and my fighting style is completely different from all the others," said Karl Urban at Dragon Con last weekend. "It's really quite amazing, because you have these battles that can just degenerate into full-on carnage, with characters just going at it, and then you have this sleek character who's like a dancer, weaving his way through the battle.

"My first day, a gentleman came up to me and said he was going to teach me swordfighting," Urban continued. "He shows me a few moves, and we put together this fight. After he leaves, this other young stunt guy comes up to me and says, 'Do you know who that was? That was Bob Anderson.' I said, 'Yup.' He says, 'Darth Vader.' I said, 'Oh.' This is the guy who taught Errol Flynn how to fight, so that gives you some idea of the level of expertise they're drawing on."

INDY 4 A GO?
M. Night Shyamalan is likely to be writing the script for Indiana Jones 4 after he wraps Unbreakable. Given that, when is the film actually going to be made? While talking to EW Online, Harrison Ford's manager is quoted as saying, "As soon as a script gets done, they'll do it. That could be 2002."

Still, don't get your hopes up yet, as Steven Spielberg's spokesperson Marvin Levy adds, "Steven's got AI, George [has] Star Wars. Do the math. We could be lookin' at 2007, but your guess is as good as mine."

JURASSIC PARK 3 TIDBITS
After the recent signing of Sam Neill to the sequel, we all couldn't help but wonder if Laura Dern might follow as well. According to EW Online, an unnamed source close to the production is suggesting that Dern is currently in talks to make a cameo appearance in the film.

In addition, a source talking to the site is saying that the film's story may be about a group of very unlucky people (including Neill?) who end up stranded on the island and have to fight their way out and off the island. One possible obstacle in their way is rumored to be a new creature in the works by Stan Winston which may be an underwater monster. Are we going to see a plesiosaur in the next film?

UNCLE OWEN CASTED
Owen Lars, who will be played by Australian actor Joel Edgerton in Star Wars: Episode Two.

According to Sidious News, in spite of the official novelization of Return of the Jedi which has the character being Obi-Wan Kenobi's sibling, the upcoming film may reveal that Owen Lars is Anakin Skywalker's step-brother. According to a tipster to the site, while appearing on an unnamed Australian TV program, Edgerton is said to have revealed that seemingly incorrect point regarding his character. Is this just a case of an actor speaking erroneously, a smoke screen on the part of Lucasfilm, or is George Lucas making changes to the established canon? Lucas has previously said that any material from the numerous Star Wars books isn't necessarily true, but would he also ignore material from direct adaptions of the films themselves?

NEESON JOINING GANGS
Liam Neeson is on the verge of joining Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz and Daniel Day Lewis on Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York project. While talking to the Hollywood Reporter, Neeson revealed, "I am pretty sure I will be in Gangs as the character who plays Leonardo DiCaprio's father." Shooting is scheduled to start next month in Rome.

WOO TALK "WINDTALKERS"
John Woo is talking about his next project: Windtalkers.

While talking to Popcorn, Woo explained the film's title, saying, "It's a phrase from the Indian Navajo tribe. The Navajo people, for their language, they never had it written. And they used it as a code-talk [in World War II], that's why the Japanese couldn't break it."

Regarding the film's story, Woo says it will be a "World War II movie about the Marines, and how they were using this Indian tribe as a code-talker. So it's a story about these two guys, how they work together, learning from each other and how they become friends. The whole film is about friendship, it's a sad movie…It's a war movie, so the action has got to be very realistic and powerful."

The film will star Nicolas Cage, Christian Slater and newcomer Adam Beach.

STAR TREK 10 SCRIBE
The official Star Trek webpage has announced the hiring as follows:

"The next Star Trek film will inject some new creative blood into the mix with the addition of John Logan as the primary screenwriter. Logan's previous film credits include Bats (1999) and work on the screenplays for Any Given Sunday and Gladiator, as well as last year's acclaimed TV movie RKO 281."

Last week, Cinescape and TrekWeb were working together chasing tips on the rumor that Logan had been hired to do the job. Publicists for the writer were non-committal or vague, though they did not deny the rumor. Over the weekend, the rumor was posted on a number of other websites, which would seem to have prompted Rick Berman and company to go public on the matter.

So what can we expect from the next film. Given the lukewarm reaction to Star Trek: Insurrection, the next film in the series will be more action oriented with franchise honcho Berman telling Star Trek: Communicator magazine that it will be "a very action-oriented story that revolves around a remarkable villain. A higher percentage of this film will take place in outer space than in our previous films."

Still, the Insider's hunch is that the "villain" will be drawn from the plethora of established adversaries in the Trek mythos rather than creating something new along the lines of Insurrection's first time foes.

In addition, though we know that the Next Generation cast will be featured in the film, this could well be their final appearance… or at least the last hurrah for Brent Spiner as Data, who previously revealed that he wanted to have his character killed off in Insurrection. Time, of course, will tell.

At this point, the film is officially being called "Star Trek X" and is scheduled for a Thanksgiving 2001 release.

AFFLECK AS NEW JACK RYAN? GIMME A BRAKE
There have been a lot of rumors about Ben Affleck being up for the role of Jack Ryan in the Sum of All Fears project. I don't think so. While talking to Reel.com columnist Jeffrey Wells, Affleck's PR rep is said to have called the story "Internet b.s." His rep is also quoted as saying, "Is this for a prequel? He's 27 years old. Maybe in 20 years he could step in for Harrison Ford, but not now."

CHICKEN RUN CREATORS HAVE INTEGRITY! NO SEQUEL
Don't plan on there being a Chicken Run sequel any time in the near future.

While talking to Reuters, Aardman Animation spokesperson, Arthur Sheriff, "I can tell you it is beyond their wildest dreams what has happened in the United States."

However, when it comes to sequel talk, Sheriff says, "We are not going to consider a Chicken Run II. The studio's next movie will be an Aardman version of the Aesop Fable The Tortoise and the Hare -- a Tortoise and the Hare meets Spinal Tap."

In addition, there's the recently announced Wallace and Gromit feature film.

Sheriff adds, "Those productions will occupy us for at least the next five years. There is of course pressure for a Chicken Run sequel but right now it would be impossible."

SW2 2ND UNIT DIRECTOR?
Cinescape's Matt Springer attended DragonCon down in Atlanta this weekend. He picked up a few tidbits of information, including info on Star Wars: Episode II.

Battlefield Earth director Roger Christian has a long-standing relationship with George Lucas, including his work as set decorator on the original Star Wars and as second unit director on The Phantom Menace. Should the need arise, he may also find himself down under to pitch in on Episode II.

"I'm sort of on standby," Christian told a panel audience at last weekend's Dragon Con in Atlanta. "They never think they're going to need second-unit work, and then they run behind and they do. So I told George that if he needs me, I'd be happy to help. We'll see what happens."

BATTLEFIELD EARTH SEQUEL STILL COMING?
Let me start off by saying this… I don't think so. If so, it would be Hollywood suicide for Travolta. Roger Christian also spoke at Dragon Con on several Battlefield Earth panels, during which it became clear that despite the film's poor box office performance and negative critical reaction, plans may still be afoot for a sequel, covering the second half of L. Ron Hubbard's sci-fi opus. According to Christian, he and Travolta remain in contact in discussing a sequel, and most of the crew would be willing to return for a second film as well.

"The last night we were shooting, I looked at the crew," said Christian. "Usually at that time everybody just scurries off, but the crew stayed on the set for hours afterwards. I think universally, every one of them said they'd like to work together again. Sometimes these things sort of gel together under adversity, and that certainly happened this time."

Also announced at the panel were a Battlefield Earth computer game and an animated series, both expected next year.

STEWART ON "X-MEN"
SciFi.com had a chance to speak with Patrick Stewart, star of the upcoming X-Men movie. He claims he hasn't seen the film yet, adding:

"There's some last-minute work still going on," Stewart said in a telephone interview from New York. "Probably the editing process is completed, but there's probably still some fine-tuning."

Asked what he thought of the film, Stewart replied:

"I haven't seen the movie yet. It's very difficult to assess ... exactly how it's going to look. I shall know much more when we see it. ... I've seen tiny portions of it. I think it looks very exciting, very cool and attractive, and it has quite an original quality about it. From having been in Star Trek for so many years, and having helped create a new version of Star Trek, I also know that people are very protective of the original work that first attracted them," Stewart said. "And some people don't want to see it change, [or] some people want an extension and development of it. It brings with it some problems too, because the expectation of course is based entirely on the comic book, and that's not what they're going go to see. They're going to see something quite different."

…AND ON STAR TREK 10
Stewart also confirmed a 10th Star Trek film is definitely in the works. "The story's being developed, yes ... And my character [Capt. Jean-Luc Picard] is in the story. ... Conversations [with Trek producer Rick Berman] are ongoing, A director has not been selected. ... We're really at the very earliest stages of creating a possible story for this film, and perhaps in a couple of months ... I will have more to say."

Regarding rumors that Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Joss Wheedon may pen the script, Stewart answered: "No, not as far as I'm aware."

MULDER'S REPLACEMENT?
Eonline is reporting a rumor today that the X-Files have maybe found their man. Christopher Noth (Law & Order) has been rumored to join the cast of the X-Files' eighth season, filling in for David Duchovny who is scheduled to appear only intermittenly in the upcoming season. I think they should go with the Millenium character played by Lance Henricksen!!

WALTER MATTHAU WILL BE MISSED!
Walter Matthau, the veteran actor best known for his portrayal of Oscar Madson in Neil Simon's classic The Odd Couple, passed away last Saturday from a heart attack at the age of 79.

Matthau spent five decades in show business, appearing in more than 60 films, winning his Academy Award for best supporting actor for the 1966 Billy Wilder hit The Fortune Cookie and later two best-actor nominations. He won a Tony Award for his stage work in A Shot in the Dark.

GET A LOAD OF THIS S***
A few weeks ago it was reported the Centropolis, the people who brought you Independence Day, Godzilla, and now The Patriot, were planning a giant spider movie. According to JAM! Showbiz the project has now received the greenlight.

"We're heading down to Australia to produce Arac Attack. It's about a giant spider attack on a small town in Nevada," says producer Dean Devlin. "It's kind of inspired by the 1955 sci-fi classic Tarantula. It's going to be a small-budget, big-bug movie."

SW2 SCRIBE SPEAKS
Scribe Jonathan Hales is talking about his work on rewriting George Lucas' draft of the Star Wars: Episode Two script. In this week's Star Wars Homing Beacon e-newsletter, Hales speaks of the challenges of working on the script, saying, "My personal goal was to make it the best screenplay that ever was, so that it will be the best movie that ever was. You just do your very best. I tried to forget, in a way, that it was Star Wars, in a sense that I didn't want to think 'Oh my God, there is a world out there waiting to see this stuff.' I just tried to concentrate on it and what it was, and forget about that terrifying dimension that's out there."

More specifically, though not giving any story details, Hales reveals what we can expect from the next chapter in the saga, saying, "It will add political complexity, but it will also add an interesting and a fascinating love story."

Hales says that he will be headed down under to meet with Lucas on the script. The writer adds, "He and I will sit down and he'll tell me what more thoughts he's had about the screenplay, and I will tidy that up. I shall only be there for a couple of weeks, anyway. There's nothing more useless than a writer on a soundstage."

WAHLBERG AND OLDMAN IN "PLANET OF THE APES"
Not only is Mark Wahlberg signed for Tim Burton's film… The most recent name being tossed around to possibly join the cast of Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes project is Gary Oldman. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Oldman has been in talks to join the production as one of the film's ape actors. The trade reports that the actor may be up for the part of the head of an anti-human Senate, which was played by James Whitmore in the original Apes.

ST. FRANCISVILLE REAL??
I can't wait for this film!!!!! Anyway. One of the participants of Trimark's The St. Francisville Experiment, Ryan Larson, claims that what we see in the film is all real. While talking to SCIFI.COM , Larson was asked how the film compared to The Blair Witch Project. Larsen says, "I've never seen it. I really, honestly hate scary movies. I never see scary movies. The Blair Witch Project was scripted; it was based on fake story. That's the difference. These things really happened."

The film is said to have taken place in one night in the allegedly haunted house of Delphine Lalaurie in New Orleans. Larsen, who plays (?) a history student in the film was coy on what we might see on the big screen, saying, "Without giving away the movie, a lot of unexplainable, very frightening, very scary things happened that night," she said. "You're going to see a lot of things unfold in this house that I have no explanation for. This was not scripted. We went into this haunted house ... not knowing what to expect."

When asked if her experience in the house made her believe in ghosts, Larsen answers, "That's a tough question. I was the skeptic going in. ... I'm a minister's child, and I was always told those things don't exist. ... Coming out, I still have no explanation for the things that happened. I still hold back from saying what they were, because I honestly don't know, but still, I can't explain them."

REEVES TALKS "THE GIFT"
Keanu Reeves is talking about his next genre picture, Sam Raimi's The Gift. While talking to Popculprit, Reeves gave his opinion of the film, saying, "It's going to be a dark and disturbing film - it is a dark and disturbing film."

Regarding his role in the film of a brutal, wife beater, Reeves says, "Yeah, this isn't something I have done too often, but the script's so riveting, and I wanted to work with Sam."

The film tells the 1950s era story of a psychic (played by Cate Blanchett) helping in the investigation of a missing young lady (Katie Holmes). Reeves says that the film "really harks back to this Southern Gothic type of thing. It's really stylized…I can't think of any script I've read that it reminds me of, but it's really original, as scary as Rosemary's Baby."

Though principal photography was wrapped about a month ago, the site reports that on Wednesday Raimi filmed additional pick up shots.

SMITH TAKES ON NEW FLETCH
The Fletch franchise has found a new home at Miramax… and Kevin Smith is attached to bring it back to the big screen. According to a number of sources, Miramax optioned the film rights for the entire run of Fletch books by Gregory McDonald. This came after producer David List, who held the rights to the books approached Smith about the property. Smith alerted Miramax who swiftly made the deal.

Smith had previously been involved with a Fletch revival project at Universal which fell through, in part due to the director's obligations to his Dogma project.

While talking to the Hollywood Reporter, Smith explained his enthusiasm for the property, saying, "I was a huge fan of the series of books. I liked the movie quite a bit too, but the books were fantastic. That's actually where I learned to write dialogue."

As for which book he plans to start with and who he would like to take on the Fletch role, Smith reveals, "Fletch Won is the one we're leaning towards making first because it's the story of how Fletch became Fletch. Off the top of my head, I'm leaning towards Ben Affleck (for the title role). Or Jason Lee. We'll also see if we can get Chevy Chase involved in the film."

Smith will write and direct the film with Scott Mosier and David List producing. There's no telling what effect if any this might have on Smith's final "Askewniverse" project. Sorry, only Chevy could play that role.

"T3" SCRIBE RAVES ABOUT HIMSELF
Scribe Tedi Serafian is talking about how his script accomplished the seemingly impossible task of interesting Arnold Schwarzenegger enough to sign on to the Terminator 3 project, minus James Cameron's participation. While talking to Variety columnist Michael Fleming, the writer revealed that his script did the job better than you could have ever dreamed, saying, ""It was pretty shocking, because it was my first draft. He read it, we sat down, he said how much he liked it and gave me some notes, and then he said yes."

Serafian adds, "Even though Arnold had said publicly that he would not be involved without Cameron, I wrote it half for him, while leaving open the possibility it would not be him. He asked where were the one liners, and I said they would only work if you said them and they'll be back in the next draft."

SPIDERMAN AUDITIONS
First off, I can't give away the address and name of the casting director. Trust me, they will NOT take submissions from anyone without an agency… an established agency. Believe me! Trust me! I know! Hehehe… anyway. Sony's Showbiz Scoop e-newsletter has been talking about those recent auditions for the casting candidates for the Spider-Man movie. The most recent slightly tongue-in-cheek info says:

"Felicity's Scott Speedman read for the role, impressing producers who were anxious to pluck his brows, buff him up and dye him dark brown...much to the actor's chagrin.

"Caveman's Valentine actor, Jay Rodan infused his grueling audition with athletic ability that impressed Sony skeptics & Union stuntdoubles.

"And Whatever It Takes troublemaker, James Franco, who has already been cast as James Dean in a TNT flick, had the spandex GIFT, but not the lift to scale scary Parker heights."

In addition, the newsletter passed along that Tobey Maguire may be testing for the film's title role as well. They're also keeping alive that old rumor that Liam Neeson was up for the role of the Green Goblin. I think without Cameron, this film will bomb. The again, Sam Raimi is a great… but doesn't have the big budget experience of Cameron. I hope I'm wrong.

TAKEN FROM VARIETY AND HOLLYWOOD REPORTER CASTING

• Sean Patrick Thomas (CRUEL INTENTIONS) joins WES CRAVEN'S DRACULA 2000.
• Dan Bucatinsky, Adam Goldberg and Richard Ruccolo will star in the pic ALL OVER THE GUY.
• A.J. Benza and Steve Guttenberg will star in the indie flick P.S. YOUR CAT IS DEAD for director Roger Cardinal (DEAD SILENT).
• Michael Rosenbaum ("Zoe") will play Marcus MacBeth in RAVE MACBETH, a retelling of the Shakespeare play in the world of rave music.
• Sam Neill has signed to star in JURASSIC PARK 3 for director Joe Johnston (OCTOBER SKY). Alessandro Nivola may join as well.
• Robert Duvall joins Denzel Washington in JOHN Q about a father who takes an ER room hostage so his son can have a heart transplant. Nick Cassavettes will direct for New Line.
• Mark Wahlberg will star in the PLANET OF THE APES remake for Tim Burton. The deal also includes a sequel. Gary Oldman is in talks to join as well.
• Noah Wyle joins Jake Gyllenhaal in DONNIE DARKO for writer/director Richard Kelly.
• Adam Garcia will star opposite Drew Barrymore in RIDING IN CARS WITH BOYS for director Penny Marshall. Morgan Upton Ward (A PYROMANIAC'S LOVE STORY) adapted Beverly Donofrio's 1990 memoir.
• Denise Richards, Marley Shelton, Jessica Capshaw, Jessica Cauffiel and David Boreanaz will star in VALENTINE for director Jamie Blanks (URBAN LEGEND) about four women who victimize a college nerd. Years later, he is handsome and successful and starts killing the women one by one every Valentine's Day.
• Jon Seda joins William Baldwin in DOUBLE BANG.
• Lochlyn Munro joins DRACULA 2000, KEVIN OF THE NORTH, TAKE MY LIFE...PLEASE and PC AND THE WEB.
• A.J. Buckley, Kerr Smith and Simon Rex will star in the vampire pic THE FORSAKEN.
• Dagmara Dominczyk (KEEPING THE FAITH) joins THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO.
• Amy Smart joins Breckin Meyer and Whoopi Goldberg in RAT RACE.
• John Leguizamo joins WHAT'S THE WORST THAT COULD HAPPEN starring Martin Lawrence and Danny DeVito based on the Donald Westlake novel.
• John Michael Higgins (BICENTENNIAL MAN) joins CALL O' THE GLEN with Michael McKean and Larry Miller.
• Sam Ball (URBANIA) joins THE GLASS HOUSE.
• Bridget Moynahan (COYOTE UGLY) will play John Cusack's fiancee in SERENDIPITY.
• Mark Ruffalo joins John Woo's WINDTALKERS starring Nicolas Cage.
• Joey Lauren Adams (CHASING AMY), Rebecca Gayheart (JAWBREAKER), Adrian Grenier (CECIL B. DEMENTED), Eric Stoltz and NBA player Ray Allen join Sarah Michelle Gellar in James Toback's college flick HARVARD MAN.
• Carly Pope ("Popular") and Dash Mihok (A PERFECT STORM) joins FINDERS FEE starring James Earl Jones and Robert Forster.

  DIRECTOR/WRITER ATTACHMENTS
  

  • Mike Newell (DONNIE BRASCO) is attached to direct HOW TO LOSE A GUY IN 10 DAYS based on a bestseller by Michele Alexander and Jeannie Long. Gwyneth Paltrow is set to star. Shooting begins in the fall.
  • Gregory and Gavin O'Connor and Robert A. Hopes have written PRIDE AND GLORY which was optioned by Fine Line about the professional and personal lives of some NYPD officers.
  • Donald Petrie (upcoming MISS CONGENIALTY) is attached to direct BIG BABY for Parkway Prods. about a man who can't hold down a job, so he becomes a professional wrestler to save his marriage and family.
  • Darryl Quarles will write an untitled hockey comedy for Revolution Studios as a starring vehicle for Cuba Gooding Jr.
  • French director Benoit Jacquot will direct a French-German version of the Puccino opera TOSCA.
  • Brian Lynch has written NIGHTCRAWLERS about a team of kids who fight monsters (who are led by the Boogeyman) found underneath beds everywhere. Warner Bros. picked up the action/horror/comedy script.
  • Adam Herz will write a sequel to AMERICAN PIE for Universal Pictures.
  • Mark Illsley (HAPPY, TEXAS) will direct BOOKIES about four college buddies who become bookies and garner attention from the mob. Actor Michael Bacall (FREE WILLY) scripted.
  • Brett Ratner (RUSH HOUR) will direct a remake of the 1970 French film LE CERCLE ROUGE for producer Arthur Sarkissian and New Line. The story involves a thief, a murderer, a mob boss, a sharpshooter, a pimp, a nightclub owner and a cop all entangled in a web of theft and revenge.
  • Rod Hardy will direct the indie pic ROUTE 52 about four friends who take a shortcut home and their car breaks down. They must spend the night in a poor mountain town where they become suspects in the murder of the sheriff's son. Sidney Lee and Myrica Taylor wrote the script.
  • Ivan Reitman will produce and direct the DreamWorks sci-fi comedy EVOLUTION about the quickly mutating one-celled organisms mutating on Earth after a meteor hits it.
  • Kevin Smith will adapt and direct Gregory McDonald's book FLETCH WON for the big screen for Miramax after the studio optioned McDonald's 11-book series. David List will produce along with Smith's View Askew Prods. partner Scott Mosier.
  • Mark Rocco will direct his script THE JACKET about a man who is imprisoned for a murder he didn't commit. He is able to forsee his death and tries to solve his own case before he dies. Steven Soderbergh's and George Clooney's Warner Bros. based production banner Section Eight will produce.
  • William Shatner may produce and direct THE SHIVA CLUB about two showbiz hopefuls who arrive at a comic's house during the Jewish ritual shiva--a weeklong period of mourning.
  • Billy Devlin sold a pitch to Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer about a Yankees baseball player who is hated so much he gets death threats on his trip to the city. He is given a cynical Yankee-fan cop who is assigned to protect him.
  • Rolfe Kanefsky (THE CURVE, MIDNIGHT 5) will direct his third teen comedy PRETTY COOL for producer Alain Siritzky. Alexis Thorpe, Summer Altice, Cecilia Berqvist and Amy Brassette will star in the pic of a high schooler who can read and control people's thoughts.
  • Betty Thomas (28 DAYS) is in final talks to direct SURVIVING CHRISTMAS for Columbia about a lonely guy who rents a family for the holidays.
  • Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel will write an adaptation of the Japanese film AFTER LIFE for Fox 2000 about souls stopping on the way to the afterlife and choosing only one memory to keep for eternity.
  • John Hughes will write, direct and produce an untitled romantic comedy for Revolution Studios. The pic may begin shooting in the spring for a Christmas 2001 release.
  • Gary Lennon sold his pitch to Fox Searchlight for CubeVision and the Firm to develop about a female DJ and a male DJ who fall in love despite their different styles.

  MISCELLANEOUS PRODUCTION TIDBITS
  

  • There are several Isaac Asimov-related film projects in the works: Warner Bros. is adapting Asimov's short story THE UGLY LITTLE BOY for Demi Moore; Fox optioned his novel series, FOUNDATION, for Shekhar Kapur (ELIZABETH) to direct; Paramount is developing END OF ETERNITY into a film that Ridley Scott may direct from a script by Gary Goldman (TOTAL RECALL).
  • Scott Rudin has picked up the film rights to THE SMOKER by David Schickler about teacher at a private girl's school who is adored by one of his students, has dinner with her folks and is asked to tie the knot with her.
  • Revolution Studios has the rights to the Elle magazine article "Single-Gal Haven" by Deanna Kizis about a reporter who dates five dot com millionaires in five days. Team Todd will produce. Jessica Bendinger (upcoming BRING IT ON aka CHEER FEVER) will script.
  • Michael Douglas and MGM are developing a feature based on Peter Landesman's investigative article "Art Con of the Century." David Henry Hwang (M. BUTTERFLY) will script the true story of a con who hired a forger to produce a large number of fake "originals" which they put into the market for large sums of money. Around 200 fakes were in circulation in nine years.
  • Disney picked up the book CHAIN OF EVIDENCE by Michael Detroit about the true story of Victoria Steele, who (straight out of police academy) is teamed with a hardened criminal/informant and the two go undercover in Hell's Angels biker gangs for a drug-trafficking investigation.
  • MGM's THINGS YOU CAN TELL JUST BY LOOKING AT HER, starring Calista Flockhar, Cameron Diaz, Glenn Close, Holly Hunter, Kathy Baker and Gregory Hines, will get its release via Showtime as opposed to theaters in early 2001.
  • Working Title Films and producer David Kelly will develop TOWER based on the true story of Welsh coal miners who won a fight against the British government.

Well, that's the word on the street. Sorry for the delay. Nothing new on the homefront here in California. Word has it that I'm in the BEDAZZLED trailer… although I haven't seen it yet. I'm off to Santa Barbara this weekend for the AVP Karch Kiraly Classic!! That's a two man beach volleyball pro-tournament. I'm interviewing for a writing position, so keep your fingers crossed for me! But don't worry, I'll still be here at Entertainment Insiders. Things to see? Rent the ID4:SPECIAL EDITION DVD!!! After that, go see THE PERFECT STORM… no matter what anyone saysJ If anything, it's a great summer movie. Peace…

Ken Miyamoto