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Screenwriter
Jason Laskay Announces Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Against Universal
Pictures
Screenwriter Jason Laskay announced
today he has filed suit in federal district court for copyright infringement
arising out of Universal Pictures' release of its new major motion picture,
"K-Pax." Attorneys Richard G. Osborn and William H.
Ford, III of The Ford Law Firm are lead counsel. Mr. Laskay's
company, Laskay Film Productions, owns the exclusive domestic copyrights
to the 1986 Argentine film "Hombre Mirando al Sudeste"
(translated "Man Facing Southeast"), including all film
sequel, production and distribution rights. The suit alleges that "K-Pax"
infringes Mr. Laskay's copyrights and bears a startling similarity to
"Man Facing Southeast."
"Over the course of the last thirteen
years, Mr. Laskay invested an enormous amount of effort, time and money
developing the `Man Facing Southeast' film project for the American cinema,
only to have it all wiped away by the release of the `K-Pax' film. We
are disappointed that Universal did not meaningfully respond to our efforts
to reach a private resolution of this matter, leaving us no option but
to turn to the court for redress," commented Mr. Osborn.
The suit claims that both films have virtually
identical plots, themes and other creative elements. They both portray
an unknown man with no apparent history who appears suddenly as a patient
at a mental health facility claiming to be an alien from a nearby solar
system. He possesses extraordinary talents and insights, while demonstrating
an incomprehensible ability to reach the hospital's mentally ill patients
who readily accept that he is an alien and express the desire to return
with him to his home planet. Both films trace the attempts of a staff
psychologist to treat what he initially presumes to be delusional behavior.
As the plot progresses, the viewer and therapist share a growing sense
that the man is whom he claims to be, an alien concerned about our planet.
Mr. Osborn continued, "The similarities
between the films are particularly troubling to us inasmuch as Universal
has been aware of Mr. Laskay and `Man Facing Southeast' from the beginning
of the pre-production of `K-Pax' several years ago. Indeed, it is my understanding
that the movie's star, Kevin Spacey, was actually provided with a copy
of Mr. Laskay's English-language version of the `Man Facing Southeast'
screenplay."
Inquiries should be directed to Attorney Richard
Osborn at The Ford Law Firm in Los Angeles, via telephone 310/826-2648,
or e-mail Richard.Obsorn@fordlawfirm.com.
Nov. 30, 2001
Man
Facing Southeast (Hombre Mirando Al Sudeste)
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Summary
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A saxophone-playing, divorced psychiatrist,
Dr. Denis, is baffled by the unexplained arrival of a new patient
in his mental hospital. The highly intelligent newcomer, called
Rantes, has extraordinary gifts and spends long hours in the yard
facing southeast, where he claims to receive communications from
his home planet. He is visited by the saintly Beatriz, who works
in a church, and Denis asks her questions about Rantes.
The bond between the three people begins
to transgress the ordinary boundaries between doctor and patient,
and culminates in an excursion to a concert in the park. Charmed
by Beethoven's "Song of Joy," Rantes instigates generalized
waltzing and takes over from an inexplicably obliging conductor.
Back in the asylum, the other patients feel the vibrations emanating
from Rantes' concert and engage in a good-humored romp. The doctor
is reprimanded for the embarrassing situation, and begins to doubt
the integrity of the psychiatric enterprise. A weakened Rantes dies
after electroshock therapy and the film ends in ambiguity.
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Commentary
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A sensitive portrayal of a lonely, depressed
psychiatrist, who is revived by his mysterious new patient, more
because of the challenge he poses to the doctor's own situation
than for the diagnostic dilemma of his case. This film uses gentle
humor and stark contrasts to evoke the inherent problem of distinguishing
between the normal and the pathological, and raises questions about
the plausibility of psychiatric diagnoses. In the end, the man's
madness and his extraterrestrial origins seem to be equally strong
possibilities; the educated, well-meaning psychiatrist is unable
to chose between the two.
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Director
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Eliseo Subiela
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Writer
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Eliseo Subiela
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Leading Actors
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Lorenzo Quinteros, Hugo Soto,
Ines Vernengo, Cristina Scaramuzzae,
Rubens W. Correa, David Edery,
Rodolfo Rodas, Jean Pierre Requeraz,
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Studio
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FilmDallas Pictures
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Production Co
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Cinequanon
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Producer
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Lujan Pflaum
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Executive Producer
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Lujan Pflaum
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Cinematography
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Ricardo de Angelis
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Editing
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Luis Cesar D'Angiolillo
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Music Composer
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Pedro Aznar
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Art Direction
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Abel Facello
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Set Direction
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Marta Albertinazzi
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Year
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1986
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Color/BW
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Color
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Running Time
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105 minutes
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Miscellaneous
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In Spanish, subtitled.
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Video Source
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New
World Video, 1987
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