Universal Pictures To Adapt The 1955 Novel "Le Voyeur

Massy Tadjedin will adapt the 1955 novel "Le Voyeur" by Alain Robbe-Grillet, for Universal Pictures.

The picture is being produced by Universal-based Kevin Misher and Oscar-winning "A Beautiful Mind" scribe Akiva Goldsman.

The story follows a man's return to a the Caribbean island of his birth, and follows him as he works to prove he couldn't possibly be the chief suspect in a grisly child murder two days after his arrival.

While Robbe-Grillet was himself the screenwriter behind Alain Resnais' French-language classic, "Last Year at Marienbad" and a director himself of New Wave films like 1963's "L'Immortelle," the adaptation of "Voyeur" will mark his first novel to make it to the big screen.

Now 80, Robbe-Grillet is watching his latest novel, the as-yet-untranslated "La Reprise," perch atop French bestseller lists, where it peaked last February. No word on the sale of it's rights yet.

A former assistant for Creative Artists Agency, Tadjedin most recently penned the drama "Leopold Bloom," a Joseph Fiennes and Elisabeth Shue starrer helmed by Mehdi Norowzian. She's also rewritten the thriller "The Jacket" for Mandalay Pictures.

Halle Berry In 'Need for Luis Mandoki

Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry is in negotiations to star in Sony-based Escape Artists' "Need" for director Luis Mandoki. The project is aimed to go into production in the fall.

In "Need," Berry would star as a successful New York therapist who discovers that one of her patients -- a neurotic, suicidal woman named Beth -- is having an affair with her husband. Marisa Tomei is the frontrunner to star as Beth, sources have confirmed.

Chloe King wrote the script, which is based loosely on Lawrence David's novel of the same name. Jon Bokenkamp rewrote the material. Escape Artists' Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch are producing. Marc and Peter Samuelson are also producing through their Samuelson Prods., as is Jonathan Prince.

Berry is repped by CAA, manager Vincent Cirrincione and attorney Neil Meyer. She will shoot 20th Century Fox's "X-Men 2" next and recently wrapped shooting "Die Another Day," MGM's 20th installment in the James Bond franchise. Earlier this year, Berry won a best actress Oscar for her performance in "Monster's Ball."

DreamWorks To Pay Mid-Six Figures For 'Master P: Kung Fu Panda'

A kung fu-fighting panda is a contender to become one of DreamWorks' next animated heroes. DreamWorks Pictures has picked up "Master P: Kung Fu Panda" for a mid-six figures from writers Cyrus Voris and Ethan Reiff, based on an original pitch.

"This is one of the best and funniest pitches we've heard," DreamWorks SKG co-principal Jeffrey Katzenberg said. "We've been looking for a story set in China with all of the amazing animals that live in that world -- specifically pandas."

"Kung Fu Panda" is being developed into a fully animated, computer-generated feature to be produced at Pacific Data Images about a gang of snow leopard bandits that come down from the highlands to invade a bamboo jungle. In response, the jungle animals must search for a prophesied warrior to defend them. They find their hero in a lazy, underachieving panda who they must train to become the ultimate kung fu master.

The project will be overseen by DreamWorks creative executive Michael Lachance for the studio's animation chief, Ann Daly.

Voris and Reiff penned "Bullet Proof Monk," an MGM feature currently in production starring Chow Yun-Fat. The duo's other credits include Universal's "Demon Knight" and "Men of War," starring Dolph Lundgren.

Voris and Reiff were represented in the deal by WMA and attorney David Feldman of Bloom, Hergott, Diemer & Cook Llc.

Jamie Foxx  in HBO biopic titled "Livin' for the City: The Marion Barry Story"

Jamie Foxx will star as former Washington mayor Marion Barry in an HBO biopic titled "Livin' for the City: The Marion Barry Story" that Leon Ichaso will direct, sources said. The project will begin shooting late summer or early fall in Baltimore and Washington.

Chris Rock, who riffed on Barry in his 1997 HBO stand-up special "Bring the Pain," is executive producing the project with Joan Fields and Tracey Kemble.

Barry served three terms as mayor of Washington until 1990, when he left office in shame after being videotaped by the FBI seducing a woman and smoking crack cocaine at the Vista International Hotel. The incident resulted in the end of his third marriage and a six-month sentence in federal prison. Barry staged a comeback when he was elected to his fourth term as mayor in 1995. Richard Wesley wrote the script for the biopic.

"Barry" would mark the second time Foxx has worked on a project based on a personality. Foxx starred as Bundini Brown in Columbia Pictures' biopic "Ali." After the completion of "Berry," Foxx will step into his third biopic, Crusader Entertainment's "Unchain My Heart: The Ray Charles Story," where he will star as the legendary singer.

Foxx, repped by CAA and King Management, is shooting the RKO Pictures/Merv Griffin Entertainment crime thriller "Shade".

Ichaso has directed other projects based on the lives of personalities, including Miramax Films' "Pinero," the Showtime feature "Hendrix" and the Fox network's "Ali: An American Hero." HBO declined comment.

Shaolin Soccer' Director Stephen Chiau, Plans Another Action Film

Stephen Chiau, actor and director of Asian blockbuster "Shaolin Soccer," is planning an even bigger-scale action comedy for the international market.

"I'll write and direct another film. It will be related to action. A story that happened in Hong Kong in the 1940s, 1950s," Chiau, who has been dubbed as Hong Kong's answer to Hollywood's rubber-faced Jim Carrey, told Reuters in a recent interview.

He said a script was in the works for the production but gave few other details other than to say that he intended to take one of the roles.

Shaolin Soccer, with its unusual blend of soccer and Chinese martial arts, quickly became Hong Kong's highest-grossing film ever and went on to captivate moviegoers in Southeast Asia.

It is now screening in South Korea and will debut in Japan on June 1. The film will show in at least 240 Japanese cinemas, a record for Hong Kong movies, according to Chiau's aide.

The film was originally slated for release in the United States in April or May, but has yet to hit U.S. cinemas.

Chiau would not comment on the delay, referring all queries to Walt Disney Co's Miramax Films, which bought the international distribution rights to the movie even before its Hong Kong release.

SOCCER

Shaolin Soccer has won a string of local accolades, including seven prizes at the prestigious Hong Kong Film Awards. Chiau took home awards for best director, best young director and best actor. It also won for best film.

To Chiau, the theme of the movie came naturally. "Kung fu and soccer are the two things that I was most interested in as a child," said Chiau, who is pushing 40.

"I was very poor. As a child my dream was to have a leather football," said the actor, waving both hands in the air.

"Then my interest switched to wushu (kung fu). After Bruce Lee's death, I started to watch Bruce Lee movies and then got fascinated with Chinese kung fu." Chiau began taking kung fu lessons in his early teens.

"Behind wushu is the spirit of always heading forth and never giving up. This spirit, the fighting will, is what I learned from Bruce Lee films. Bruce Lee's wushu theories heated up my heart like a fireball, helping me through many difficult times."

Chiau became a television actor in 1982 and was recognized initially only as a kids' show host. He made a career breakthrough in the late 1980s with nonsensical TV and film comedies.

"I will also plan some films in which I don't play a role. I hope my company can be more prolific and diversify into things like computer animation and TV dramas," said Chiau.

He said his productions might star some top Korean actresses. Profiles of several were stacked on the desk of his trophy-laden office.

"The Devil Wears Prada," For Fox 2000

 Fox 2000 has optioned Lauren Weisberger's first novel, "The Devil Wears Prada," for producer Wendy Finerman and her Fox-based shingle. The deal could be worth seven figures if the film is made.

Last week, Doubleday editor Stacy Creamer paid a substantial six-figure sum for the book, called " The Devil Wears Prada," about the glamorous but demeaning life of an editorial assistant very much like herself. The magazine where the book's heroine works is called Runway, with a Madison Avenue address near Vogue's former offices. The overstepping, dictatorial boss is said, by some who have read the 100-page manuscript, to bear a notable resemblance to Ms. Wintour.

Spider-Man and Clones 'pirated 3 million times'

Research from America claims as many as three million people may have got their hands on online pirate copies of Spider-Man and Attack of the Clones just weeks after their cinema release.

According to a report entitled Copyright Crusade II by the Nasdaq-listed "digital solutions" firm Viant, Spider-Man was first uploaded on to the internet on May 2 - one day before its official release in the US.

It is believed an audience member made a secret recording at a preview screening of Sam Raimi's smash hit Marvel Comics adaptation, which is due to be released in the UK on June 14.

A superior pirate version called a "telesync" has subsequently done the rounds and experts say this would have to have been recorded from within a projection booth and features high quality sound.

Meanwhile webcam versions of Star Wars Episode II appeared a week before the film's worldwide release on May 16. Although downloading the pirate versions can take as long as six hours, Vaint estimates ten million internet users have attempted to see the two pictures in this way, though many without high-speed broadband connections gave up. The report adds that between 400,000 and 600,000 pirate versions of movies are downloaded each day.

Spider-Man is currently the sixth biggest box office movie of all time in the US and has taken more than $334.3m after nearly four weeks on release. So far Clones has amassed $202.5m in sales in the US alone.

Legal; Woody Allen's Manhattan Court Drama

It wasn't quite "Bullets Over Broadway" when Oscar-winning filmmaker Woody Allen and his long-time producer pal Jean Doumanian squared off in a packed Manhattan courtroom on Thursday.

 But there were no "Stardust Memories" either as each accused the other of making off with profits from Allen's movies.

Allen, 66, who launched the legal action against his old friend, is the first witness expected to take the stand on Friday after opening statements from lawyers.

Wearing a blue blazer and beige pants, the director looked glum slumped in his chair, his hand resting on his face.

Throughout the proceedings, Allen never once looked up at either the jury, the judge or his former friend who was sitting no more than six feet from him.

Allen's lawyer, Michael Zweig, told jurors in Manhattan Supreme Court that "Woody Allen was deprived of nearly $12 million plus interest."

Not so, countered Peter Parcher, the lawyer representing Doumanian and her companion Jacqui Safra. He claimed that Allen got everything he had coming to him -- $19.5 million -- and in fact owes them money.

Zweig explained to jurors that Doumanian and her production company, Sweetland Films, financed Allen's last eight films but the only agreement written, in 1993, was for a three-picture deal for a total budget of $52 million.

'MIGHTY APHRODITE'

The movies were "Bullets Over Broadway," "Mighty Aphrodite," and "Everybody Says I Love You."

"All of the money in dispute went to two persons, Jean Doumanian and Jacqui Safra," Allen's lawyer said, citing the fact that during the filming of "Celebrity," the production company bought two Aston Martin cars at $40,000 each.

When the film was over, one was sold to Safra "for less than $5,000 and is sitting in his garage at the Safra Vineyards in Napa, California," Zweig said. The fate of the other luxury sports car was not made clear.

Zweig urged jurors to "follow the money in the case" as the trial unfolds.

"The defendants used every way possible to take profits that were supposed to be split with Woody Allen and put it in their own pockets instead. What you will not find in this case is an agreement extending the three picture deal," Zweig said.

"This is a bogus case orchestrated by Woody Allen's handlers," Parcher told jurors. "Woody Allen does not negotiate. He makes movies. His advisers negotiate. He followed the suggestions of his people.

"They thought they had a golden goose they wanted to fleece," Parcher said, describing Allen's handlers as "Hollywood Harrys."

Parcher reminded jurors that Doumanian, 67, was "the best friend Woody Allen ever had. For 20-25 years they would have dinner almost every night of the week. They were pals."

Judge Ira Gammerman's second floor courtroom was packed with friends and relatives of Allen, Doumanian and Safra. Among them was Lettie Aronson, Allen's sister who is expected to be a key witness at the trial expected to last two weeks.

How do you market a four-hour Hindi musical about cricket to Middle America?

Simple - let the critics and word-of-mouth do all the work. As "Lagaan" winds up its pitch for a wide US release on May 31, art house theaters are hoping to lure moviegoers from Hollywood formula fare to the dusty land of Champaner, where Bhuvan braves dastardly British officers in a life-or-death game of cricket.

The film opened in New York and Los Angeles on May 10, earning $27,000 in a handful of theaters, and Sony Pictures Classics is "rolling out" the film in theaters across the United States through July.

In northern California, the film opens on May 31 at the Rafael Film Center in San Rafael; Camera One in San Jose; Landmark's Shattuck Cinemas in Berkeley; and the Lumiere Theatre in San Francisco.

"We're really thrilled to be showing it," Ray Price, vice president of marketing for Landmark Theaters, said over phone from Los Angeles. "What interests me is that it's more accessible than most Bollywood films. With some of them, the cinematic language is so foreign that it's hard for American audiences to understand them."

Landmark, the nation's largest art-house chain, has 175 screens in 13 states. Landmark has shown Indian films such as Asoka, Monsoon Wedding, East Is East, Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, and Gurinder Chaddha's Bhaji on the Beach with success.

Since Chaddha's latest film, Bend It Like Beckham, has been picked up by Fox Searchlight Pictures, Price expects to play it in the US, and he said that if Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas gets a mainstream American distributor he'd consider showing it as well. "I think it's neat to have all these Indian films," he said. "Ten years ago, they wouldn't have even gotten US distribution. It's not an avalanche by any means, but it's a beginning."

One thing working in Lagaan's favor is its critical acclaim in the US press.

Entertainment Weekly's reviewer wrote: "If, like me, your experience of India's Bollywood musicals has been pretty much limited to the opening credits of Ghost World, you should make a point of catching Lagaan ... every frame of Lagaan believes in what it's showing you, and that's the film's secret."

Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times calls Lagaan, "an affectionate homage to a popular genre (Bollywood) that raises it to the level of an art film with fully drawn characters, a serious underlying theme, and a sophisticated style and point of view."

The Village Voice dubs star Aamir Khan a "true sex object ... a studly tough-guy hero with righteousness on his side and a devilish, ultra-white, heart-melting smile, he struts and boasts with a winning blend of Tom Cruise cockiness and Tom Hanks virtue." The New York Times calls Lagaan, "perfectly positioned to be the first crossover Bollywood hit," and E! Online calls it "glorious and extravagant."

The film's success at the Toronto Film Festival captured the eye of Rama Dunayevich, associate director of programming for the Rafael Film Center in northern California. "Everybody I spoke to, across the board, said 'you'll love it,'" she said. "I said, 'Four hours? Cricket? That's a challenge!'" But she's confident that the film will generate interest in Marin County, home to a diverse yet educated cross-section of moviegoers, many of whom trust the Rafael Film Center's instincts to such a degree that they often show up at the box office without even calling to see what's playing, she said.

Marina Bailey, Landmark's director of publicity, said she'd already seen Lagaan twice. "It's one of my personal favorites," she said. The film played for a week at the chain's Nuart Theatre in Santa Monica and Rialto in South Pasadena, but has had only middling success there since its long running time has meant fewer screenings and fewer tickets sold per day.

Another challenge is the fact that it's in Hindi. "Any time you have a foreign-language film, people can be off-put," said Bailey. "Some people still don't want to have to read at the cinema."

Sony Pictures Classics, which is distributing the film, hasn't lent much support to marketing it here. The company is rumored to be tight-fisted in its approach to spending; in addition, "since the film had already been released on DVD and home video, they're not giving it that big a push," said Landmark's Price. "But because it was an Academy Award nominee, and got good press, they're giving it a run."

Publicizing the film has been a seat-of-your-pants affair, with exhibitors like Dunayevich watching out for reviews in local papers like the Pacific Sun and putting up flyers in local Indian restaurants.

Sony Pictures Classics head of publicity, Carmelo Perone, did not return four phone calls from India-West requesting a comment for this story.

Since most American movie audiences are unfamiliar with Bollywood, they'll have to take a leap of faith before plunking down their $9 to see a star they've never heard of play a game most of them know nothing about.

"But at least we are seeing more pronounced awareness of Asian culture, especially in places like New York and California," said Price. "People are already familiar with the history of the Raj. And we do have a history of music in theater - from Gene Kelly to Moulin Rouge and even serious films like Pennies from Heaven.

"If it's a good film, it makes it easier and easier for the next Indian film that comes along," Price said. "I'm very optimistic."

Legal; Courtney Love's vs Vivendi Universal Recordings

A five-page court ruling in Courtney Love's case against Vivendi Universal Recordings virtually ensured that the trial will take place as scheduled beginning June 11. The label had filed a summary judgment motion that effectively sought to throw out most of the musician's key claims.

Three weeks after lawyers for both sides presented oral arguments, Los Angeles Superior Judge Fumiko Wasserman ruled against Love's assertion that a Labor Code section allowing record companies to sue recording artists for damages was invalid and unconstitutional. But the judge ruled that Love's claims of breach of contract, breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, breach of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty would be heard by a jury.

"When we first filed this case, many prognosticators in the music industry said Courtney's suit was frivolous and shrugged it off," said A. Barry Cappello, Love's attorney. "I doubt they feel the same way now. The judge reviewed all of Vivendi Universal's arguments and let the key claims stand. It tried everything it could to get this case thrown out, but it failed. We're ready for trial."

Love announced the breakup of her band Hole earlier this month, a move that will not affect the Golden Globe-nominated actor's work with her new band Bastard.

Barry Cappello is managing partner of the Santa Barbara law firm of Cappello & McCann. He was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Mr. Cappello graduated from UCLA in 1962 and the UCLA School of Law in 1965. Mr. Cappello is listed in The Best Lawyers in America (published by Woodward/White).

Related points of interest;

Courtney Love's Contract
Courtney Love's Cross-Complaint

Courtney Love's rock band, Hole, have confirmed they have split up.

The group won acclaim and fame for Love outside her marriage to Nirvana star Kurt Cobain, but had been dormant since releasing their last album in 1998.

They were one of the most popular but raw and angry bands to come out of the United States grunge scene, with hits including Doll Parts and Celebrity Skin.

Love has been locked in a copyright battle with record label Universal, claiming her record contract was too long and too strict.

"Courtney Love and [guitarist] Eric Erlandson announced today that they will no longer record or tour together as Hole," a statement on their website said.

"I will always treasure the time we played together," Love said. "Eric has been an important part of my family for over 10 years and he'll continue to be a part of my life."

Formed in Los Angeles in 1989, the band were loud, intense and alienated when they began.

Love married Cobain in 1992 and the band's line-up changed, leading to Hole's first commercial success with their more tuneful second album, 1994's Live Through This.

New material

Cobain was found dead four days before the album was released, and two months later Hole bassist Kristen Pfaff died of a heroin overdose.

Love also admitted to heroin use, but rebuilt the band again and released their third and final album, Celebrity Skin, in 1998.

Love announced a new band, Bastard, in 2001, and has also been working on new material with Hole drummer Patty Schemel and ex-4 Non Blondes singer Linda Perry.

She has also built a successful acting career, starring in films including The People vs Larry Flynt and Man on the Moon.