PAN

[hughmanity]

This could be a wise move. I've been concerned for a long time about the crowdedness of the summer release schedule, filled with a lot of "buzzy" tent pole releases. I only hope "schedule change" doesn't automatically generate bad press before an objective look at the film's (many, I hope) merits.

[jo]

Empire confirms the post-production delay, quite apart from the supposed wariness over a summer release --

www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=44066

Joe Wright's Pan Is Flying To An Autumn Release
Warners is shifting the fantasy film's date

20 April 2015 | Written by James White | Source: The Hollywood Reporter


It’s release date shift a go-go over at Warners today. With word already arriving that the Lego movies are being juggled in terms of release date order, now comes news that Joe Wright’s Pan is being unhooked (pun entirely and shamelessly intended) from its summer date to an October release in the States.



The move is, according to the studio, intended to help the movie find and hold an audience. “We wanted to give Pan the space to extend its theatrical run, so taking it out of the cluttered summer season made the most sense,” domestic distribution head Dan Fellman says in a statement carried by The Hollywood Reporter. “Moving the film to the heart of the fall will allow us more time to screen the picture, enabling us to capitalize on what we anticipate will be strong word of mouth.” The delay will also allow Wright the time he needs to finish post-production. “As you might expect, the fantastical story of Peter Pan involves very complex effects and I did not want to compromise on quality in finishing the film,” he says. “This allows me and my team the time to complete the movie and tell the story the way it should be told.”

Pan aims to put a new spin on J.M. Barrie’s story, exploring how Neverland’s most famous young resident came to be. In this version, Peter (Levi Miller) is a lad in an orphanage abandoned by his mother, who has nevertheless left a note saying she hopes to come and reunite with him – cryptically in this world or another.

But before that can happen, our hero is indeed whisked off to another world, as he’s kidnapped by the dread pirate Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman). Put to work in the mines, he meets a charming, cocky, Indiana Jones-style rogue named James Hook (Garrett Hedlund) and the pair escapes, only to land in the clutches of the local natives, led by Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara). And that’s just the start of Peter's adventures.

Originally set for July 17 here (a few days before the original US date of July 24 opening), we’ll have to see where Pan lands.

I think they are using the heavy summer schedule releases as an ostensible reason ( they knew this beforehand when they scheduled it for a July release), but the post-production delays may have been the more serious reason. This is an effects-heavy movie ( CGI) and this is the first time that Joe Wright is handling such a comprehensive project.

Remember when I posted this - after the delay of the release of the second trailer?

Or...is there a delay in post-production???

This reminds me of the shift in the release of Les Miserables, from early to December to Christmas Day in 2012...but that had a very short post-production schedule. PAN completed filming in the fall of 2014 and has a longer period to handle reshoots and major post-production aspects, although PAN presumably has a more difficult schedule due to all the CGI work in the movie.

Remember when they also delayed the release of Baz Lurhmann's Great Gatsby from Christmas Day to the following spring ( missing the boat for awards season glory)  because he needed a lot more time to handle post production? He also handed the final print for AUSTRALIA only in the final week before release.


Re the transfer of release dates for PAN -- this moves it to the beginning of the awards season and holiday season moviegoing. Hopefully, the young demos will still be able to give it its full support even if it has moved to the time when school is ongoing.

One other thing -- Hugh will have to make some adjustments to his schedule for filming GREATEST SHOWMAN which supposedly is scheduled for September filming. Hope it does not affect its own schedule for filming and post-production as well!

On the other hand -- after seeing a first cut, is Warner Bros confident that they may have a great movie on their hands and would like to pitch it for awards season contention?  I hope so


Jo

[jo]

I wonder -- will they try to premiere it at the Venice Film Festival, even in the Out-of-competition category. La Biennale de Venezia will hold its film festival on September 2- 12, 2015!



Per Box Office Mojo - the movie will be released on October 9, 2015.

This is the competition --

www.boxofficemojo.com/schedule/?view=bydate&release=all&date=2015-10-02&showweeks=5&p=.htm

Friday
2

NEW IN THEATERS/ DISTRIBUTOR/ RELEASE

Adam Jones
Comedy Weinstein Company Wide

Hillsong - Let Hope Rise (on Wed.)
Documentary Relativity Wide

London Has Fallen
Action Focus Features Wide
Victor Frankenstein

Drama Fox Wide

The Walk
Adventure TriStar Wide
The Keeping Room

Drama Drafthouse



Friday
9

NEW IN THEATERS/ DISTRIBUTOR/ RELEASE

Kidnap (2015)
Thriller Relativity Wide

Pan
Fantasy Warner Bros. Wide

Steve Jobs
Drama Universal Wide


Friday
16
NEW IN THEATERS/ DISTRIBUTOR/ RELEASE
Bridge of Spies
Thriller Buena Vista Wide

Crimson Peak
Horror Universal Wide

Goosebumps
Horror Comedy Sony / Columbia Wide

Steve Jobs stars Michael Fassbender and Kate Winslet. Kidnap is headlined by Halle Berry.

[jo]

Hollywood columnist Anne Thompson ( IndieWire) poses the question of the real reason for the postponement --

blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/joe-wrights-pan-gets-fall-release-date-good-news-or-bad-news-20150420

Joe Wright's 'Pan' Gets Fall Release Date: Good News or Bad News?


Photo of Anne Thompson
By Anne Thompson | Thompson on Hollywood

April 20, 2015 at 8:05PM


Studios have their reasons for moving big-budget movies out of summer and into fall. Question is, which one is true?


For example, why has Warner Bros. postponed the release of Peter Pan origin tale “Pan” from the height of summer--July 24, opposite Marvel's "Ant Man," followed a week later by Paramount’s “Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation”--to a more forgiving October 9th? If they're trying to get out of the line of fire in a competitive marketplace it suggests a lack of confidence that they can compete with the big boys.

“We wanted to give ‘Pan’ the space to extend its theatrical run, so taking it out of the cluttered summer season made the most sense,” WB distribution exec Dan Fellman said in Variety. In other words, this movie could use good reviews and word of mouth.


Joe Wright is not a blockbuster guy. He's a good choice to handle material with period frills and action pieces--he's a fabulous visual and actor's director often in the awards conversation, from "Atonement" and "Pride and Prejudice" to "Hanna" and "Anna Karenina." (His big studio effort "The Soloist" starring Robert Downey, Jr. is best forgotten--it wore its Oscar hopes on its sleeve.)

So what is Warners doing? Perhaps they need more time and space and PR energy and perhaps a Toronto berth to set this up as a potential awards corridor movie. To that end I am encouraged that this may be a higher-caliber picture, if perhaps less commercial than it needs to be to hit on all cylinders in a steroid-enhanced summer season.


The 3D movie starts out during WWII and tracks an orphan boy (Levi Miller) who is kidnapped by pirates led by Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman) who spirit him to Neverland, where he fights Captain Hook (Garrett Hedlund) and cavorts with Tinkerbell, Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara) and Mary (Amanda Seyfried).

The film was shot in London.

Producers are Greg Berlanti, Paul Webster and Sarah Schechter, with studio execs Courtenay Valenti and Andrew Fischel supervising

Hmmm...hope it is the reason that "this may turn out to be a high-caliber picture, and perhaps less commercial than it needs to be to on all cylinders in a steroid-enhanced summer season" that premises the postponement!

The Toronto Film Festival is scheduled for September 10-20, 2015. Although the bulk of offerings here are for innovative and usually dramatic film projects. Not very sure if PAN fits the bill, unless it is billed as eye-popping artistic spectacle. But it is a publicly-attended festival and is usually thought of as good forecaster of Oscar glory. It can generate great buzz for the American market!

Maybe Venice ( the festival is slated for September 2-12) might be a more logical choice, whether for the Competition or Out-of-Competition list? It can produce international awareness! Plus it is almost as glittering as Cannes.


Venice or Toronto ...or both


Jo

[jo]

Have there been any reports of test screenings? I liked the Black List script and the actors looked great and Joe Wright is known for his artistic and visual strengths ...so where could any negativity arise? Did Joe Wright depart too much from the original script?

I thought the release of the set visit reports was a good sign, as that was the first part of the ramping up for the publicity campaign. All of a sudden, there is this decision to push it back by 2 1/2 months? They have known all along that the competition for a summer schedule is going to be very stiff and they could have addressed it earlier. But it seems that after the trailer release in November 2014, nothing much came out to entice the audience. That is a must for blockbusters! There also seemed to be an informal embargo on any leaks about the movie ( I had assumed it was Joe Wright's directive)...sometimes this is needed to whet the appetite of moviegoers.

Audience awareness, if that had been the problem, could have been mostly addressed with a bigger marketing campaign and budget. But if the problem is the need for more polishing of the movie ( no further reshoots, please - Hugh is still busy with Eddie the Eagle, plus what does he do with his hair ), the extension if needed by Joe Wright makes more sense. Has the top brass of WB seen the first cut and wanted to change the appeal of the movie beyond solid, fun family entertainment? Or have the CGI people not been up to their commitments ( is this something that can be farmed out to more technology-oriented outfits...or are they taken up by the many CGI requirements of the many other summer blocbuster movies?).

[suefb]

Digging into the reasons behind the change in musical scorer provides a hint of concern. Supposedly, producers considered Dario Marianelli's score to be "too dark".

[jo]

Uh-oh ---


This may just be pure gossip


I have found this forum re filmscoring and found a few bits of gossip, as some posters seemed to have an inside look on what's happening behind the scenes.

www.filmscoremonthly.com/board/posts.cfm?threadID=106920&forumID=1&archive=0&pageID=2&r=593



It looks like it is not just the film score ( Marianelli replaced by Powell) but there may have been other major concerns ( Page 3 of the forum discussions) --

1.) The Film is being recut to make changes that will make it more "Family Friendly", certain characters are being changed so they are more "Family Friendly"

2.) The Additional time will allow them to make these changes and open at a point when a family friendly film will stand a good chance at making it's $$$ back.

3.) The Studio clearly wasn't happy with the director's vision and so now they can only go back recut reshoot a few things and re-score.

And a bit of discussion on the film scoring--

Sadly Marianelli had to go. Who to blame? The corporate body of Warner Brothers. They'd make remarks like "your score is too European". The producers obviously want a lighter, funnier film and thought his score was too dark. Director still supported him. But ultimately with these big studio pictures, the studio has the final say. So bastards really.

Apparently the guy who works on this picture said he wasn't all that surprised, since they had pretty much said it might happen for the last 4 months.

But it doesn't excuse them having worked directly with him, saying they were happy with everything and then turning on him after the screening. If they were unhappy with the musical direction, they should have told him sooner. If only to give the next guy a half chance of writing a decent replacement score.

As regards score, it's like an old school score really. Orchestral, grand, heavy use of brass. A bit more straightforward harmonically than Brothers Grimm. He simplified it quite significantly after the first preview. In an effort to make it less European. Sadly it was never recorded.

As for Marianelli, he's pretty pissed off.

I don't envy Powell really, as he has a hell of a mountain to climb because the recording sessions are in 5 weeks time!

Breathe...and breathe deeply


If Joe Wright's cinematic vision was somewhat dark, that explains why the score of Marianelli also leaned along those lines.

The summation seemed reasonable as to what might have caused the change in release date. Maybe if additional reshoots happen...there might really be a ring of truth to the above gossip.


Btw, when Hugh was asked about his impressions of the first cut that he had seen -- he only referred to the "visual beauty" of the movie. At that time, I was surprised that he had not said anything about the film turning out to be a well-made movie. Of course this is hindsight, but I really had some qualms at that time.

So, is this why the filming for EDDIE THE EAGLE is doing late night filming, so Hugh can be available for reshoots? Just speculating of course!


I wonder what the production budget for this movie is?

Jo

[jo]

certain characters are being changed so they are more "Family Friendly"

Blackbeard is the only key character who is not family-friend. Will they have to change some scenes to show an even softer side?

A tweeter/writer makes this comment --

Marcus Woolcott @gyropitus
· 32m 32 minutes ago
...Hugh Jackman as a heroin addict pirate who dresses like a raven was always going to be a tough sell.

Unless Joe Wright also changed the original script dramatically ( from the original script by Jason Fuchs) and painted a darker palette of the characterizations ?

Maybe the other major and supporting characters were portrayed too dark?



Jo

[jo]

Forbes.com puts in its take on the postponement of PAN's release date...and the competition it is expected to face --

www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2015/04/21/hugh-jackmans-pan-leaves-crowded-july-for-insanely-crowded-october/

[njr]

Apr 20, 2015 18:49:39 GMT -5 mamaleh said:

Yep, it's official. New release date, as per Variety, Hollywood Reporter and others is October 9, ostensibly to avoid a crowded summer marketplace.

variety.com/2015/film/news/pan-release-date-october-hugh-hackman-1201476156/

Ellen

Now in that pic his outfit looks black! Maybe he has two of them? smiley-signs002

Nancy

[njr]

Apr 20, 2015 21:44:26 GMT -5 jo said:

I wonder -- will they try to premiere it at the Venice Film Festival, even in the Out-of-competition category. La Biennale de Venezia will hold its film festival on September 2- 12, 2015!



Per Box Office Mojo - the movie will be released on October 9, 2015.

This is the competition --

www.boxofficemojo.com/schedule/?view=bydate&release=all&date=2015-10-02&showweeks=5&p=.htm

Friday
2

NEW IN THEATERS/ DISTRIBUTOR/ RELEASE

Adam Jones
Comedy Weinstein Company Wide

Hillsong - Let Hope Rise (on Wed.)
Documentary Relativity Wide

London Has Fallen
Action Focus Features Wide
Victor Frankenstein

Drama Fox Wide

The Walk
Adventure TriStar Wide
The Keeping Room

Drama Drafthouse



Friday
9

NEW IN THEATERS/ DISTRIBUTOR/ RELEASE

Kidnap (2015)
Thriller Relativity Wide

Pan
Fantasy Warner Bros. Wide

Steve Jobs
Drama Universal Wide


Friday
16
NEW IN THEATERS/ DISTRIBUTOR/ RELEASE
Bridge of Spies
Thriller Buena Vista Wide

Crimson Peak
Horror Universal Wide

Goosebumps
Horror Comedy Sony / Columbia Wide

Steve Jobs stars Michael Fassbender and Kate Winslet. Kidnap is headlined by Halle Berry.

Steve Jobs movie stars Ashton Kutcher as Jobs and Josh Gad as Steve Wozniak. Tom Cruise's cousin (William Mapother) also has a small part. But no Michael Fassbender & Kate Winslet.
www.imdb.com/title/tt2357129/

Nancy

Nancy

[suefb]

There was a previous Steve Jobs movie "Jobs", which starred Ashton Kutcher. It was released in 2013 and was widely panned. The 2015 one will be called "Steve Jobs" and stars Fassbender in the title role.

www.imdb.com/title/tt2080374/

[jo]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Jobs_(film)


This particular biopic of Steve Jobs had a controversial background on how it came into being --


*Change in director from David Fincher to Danny Boyle

*Many actors considered for the role before it landed on Fassbender ( who does not look like Jobs, even in manner-- but you never know how a film can transform someone closer to the person being portrayed). For a while, Christian Bale was the major casting possibility ( he actually looks closer to the gaunt Steve Jobs towards the end). I don't think Kate is playing a very important role.

*The movie was as a Sony project but was put on turnaround and eventually picked up by Universal.

*Aaron Sorkin wrote the screenplay ( who actually turned away from his "Houdini" project partly to devote his time on this film project). The way it was described on the Wiki notes, it seems more like a play ( as the movie will feature three important scenes in Steve Jobs's life)


The project progress seems more interesting than the biopic of Steve Jobs itself


How will PAN rack up against this one? They are courting different demos ...and one is more of a blockbuster-type family entertainment type... while the other probably veers towards the more dramatic. Not sure that Fassbendeer has enough of a fanbase to lure away everyone to see it, although some of the techie fanboys may want to see the biopic of their idol ( Jobs and his Mac/Apple computers and his iPhones and his iPads). I wonder - will the interest here be like that for Social Network ( also written by Sorkin)?

This is a more likely candidate for Toronto...and sounds like an Oscar bait for acting honors and maybe screenplay (given Sorkin's touch)! PAN sounds more like Oscar bait for production design, maybe cinematography, special effects?


Jo

[jo]

I think the timing of the announcement re the change in release date for PAN was deliberately done -- in anticipation of the announcement of the Warner Bros slate of movies for 2015 and beyond at the CinemaCon in Las Vegas --

www.hypable.com/wb-2015-slate-cinemacon-preview-fantastic-beasts-title/

There were also several major first looks, including a trailer for the upcoming Peter Pan story Pan (October 9) starring Hugh Jackman. The preview offered a colorful, whimsical, and trippy look inside the new movie and billed itself as “from the studio that brought you Harry Potter,” clearly establishing who WB is aiming this film at. Levi Miller will play the titular character.

I am hoping that a new trailer ( the much- awaited second trailer) made its debut at this convention!



Btw, in case you're interested on who they might be casting for the Harry Potter spinoff(s) -- there is buzz that current hot actor ( he has another Oscar bait role coming up, The Danish Girl directed by Tom Hooper) Eddie Redmayne is the top contender.


Jo

[jo]

Another report on the CinemaCon- Las Vegas convention. Was this the old Showest convention held at Las Vegas? If I remember right, this was the place where Hugh stood ahead of Clint Eastwood and Hugh decided to make the acquaintance of Dirty Harry...and he simply told him that he was holding up the line - LOL! Years later, this was the same convention which gave Hugh the STAR OF THE YEAR Award. That was in 2006 -- then Hugh was in 6 movie releases -- XMen Last Stand, Scoop, Flushed Away, The Fountain, The Prestige, and Happy Feet

pro.boxoffice.com/latest-news/2015-04-22-cinemacon-2015-warner-bros

Pan
October 9

Joe Wright's film was just delayed from its summer release to October this week, likely to give it a better chance to compete in the fall season. Enchanting visuals and a strong ensemble cast are huge pros for the latest reinvention of the classic Peter Pan tale, and as we've seen in recent years, October can churn out sizable box office hits. The big question is how much family appeal it will carry just a few weeks after Hotel Transylvania 2 opens.

WB does have a lot of movies for release on its slate.

Re PAN - it does seem that it fills the revised slate quite nicely! Take a look at the rest and how they make up the entire WB lineup. Hugh has now done quite a few movies with WB - The Fountain ( which WB unfortunately did not support fully when it was panned in Venice, including withholding from Darren Aronofsky the chance to do a director's commentary to accompany the DVD/BluRay), The Prestige, Prisoners, Pan...and eventually (Apostle)Paul

With his eventual departure from his Wolverine role, will he continue to work closely with FOX (or its subsidiaries) after he has completed Wolverine 3 and Greastest Showman on Earth?


Jo

[njr]

Apr 21, 2015 14:55:42 GMT -5 suefb said:

There was a previous Steve Jobs movie "Jobs", which starred Ashton Kutcher. It was released in 2013 and was widely panned. The 2015 one will be called "Steve Jobs" and stars Fassbender in the title role.

www.imdb.com/title/tt2080374/

I didn't know they had made another Steve Jobs movie! Thanks for the info.

Nancy

[suefb]

Apr 22, 2015 11:02:39 GMT -5 njr said:

Apr 21, 2015 14:55:42 GMT -5 suefb said:

There was a previous Steve Jobs movie "Jobs", which starred Ashton Kutcher. It was released in 2013 and was widely panned. The 2015 one will be called "Steve Jobs" and stars Fassbender in the title role.

www.imdb.com/title/tt2080374/

I didn't know they had made another Steve Jobs movie! Thanks for the info.

Nancy

You're welcome! You wonder how many they really need, but I guess since the first one was not great, maybe they felt a better one was possible. I have a hard time envisioning Fassbender as Steve Jobs, but we'll see. 

[hughmanity]

A video version of PAN set visit. Watch til the end...this guy has high hopes for Hugh

m.youtube.com/watch?v=tFO9itMa3CI

[suefb]

That's very cool! I love their enthusiasm. And an Oscar nomination for Hugh to boot. Hope they vote.

[mamaleh]

Wouldn't that be loverly, to borrow that phrase.

Nancy, I saw that earlier JOBS movie and didn't think it was bad. It's no CITIZEN KANE, but Kutcher was effective and believable as the quixotic Steve Jobs.

It's interesting that when PAN opens, Hugh will be surrounded by his X-MEN colleagues.

Ellen

[jo]

Thanks for the link...I have read the written set visit report but the enthusiasm is way more cool on this video report

An Oscar nod for Hugh ? Why ever not -- Johnny Depp got a nod for Pirates of the Carribean. And he was mostly just campy portrayal. Hugh's Blackbeard seems both a campy and a truly fearsome pirate!

Another filmsite expressed similar expectations. Clayton Davis thinks Hugh can be up for Supporting Actor. Hmmm...I think his role qualifies for lead as he and Levi are the the lead antagonists! And how do you justify Supporting Role when the trailer shows your name as above the title?

Btw, Regal Cinemas was responsible for the featurette on Les Miserables being shown on its cinemas before the movie's opening. If I remember right it was the LIVE SINGING feature which was used to persuade people to see the movie.

Jo

[jo]

Levi Miller posts an instagram image of his early boyhood memories...of Peter Pan

Levi Zane Miller
‏@levizanemiller Throw back to when I was 6yrs old and performed Peter Pan for the first time ?

http://instagram.com/p/12XLx_A7V9

[hughmanity]

That close-up scene in the trailer where his eyes tear up and his chin quivers looks Oscar-worthy to me! :)

[jo]

A tweet from the UK --

Amy Wells ‏@amynicolewells · 47m47 minutes ago
amanda seyfried & hugh jackman are going to be in a film being shot in swanage from tomorrow what a joke

If true --

*Is Hugh flying back to England during the weekend?

*Is he working on reshooting scenes or new scenes for PAN?


In the script, there was mention of the battle confrontation between Mary and Blackbeard. There were no actual scenes but the conflict was narrated. I was hoping that there would a real scene between Amanda (Mary)_and Hugh ( Blackbeard). Could this be it


Again, it the tweet is correct


Jo

[jo]

More tweets indicating some location shooting may be happening in Swanage --

Addzy Cullen ‏@addzycullen · 17m17 minutes ago
Might have to take a trip to #Swanage today to se the filming of #Pan, Would love to meet #Wolverine @realhughjackman, Nerdgasm

Mark Dwen ‏@zeusruledcronos · 1h1 hour ago
@realhughjackman rumour has it you're in swanage, dorset filming pan? Am I having my leg pulled?

Has Hugh flown back to England?


Jo