Oscar winner Nicholas Cage and super-producer Jerry Bruckheimer have another hit on their hands!!  NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS, the sequel to the blockbuster hit, NATIONAL TREASURE, is the number one movie in America with a $45M opening weekend and STAR Movies has exclusive interviews with Cage, co-star Justin Bartha and Bruckheimer from the Tokyo premiere.  Don't miss VIP ACCESS on Sunday, December 30 @ 8:30PM (HKT) and see Dom chew the fat with Cage and shamelessly beg Bruckheimer for a job if there ever is a NATIONAL TREASURE 3.  (If he gets one, I'm going to demand a finders fee).

Nic Cage returns as adventurer/scholar/all-around good guy Benjamin Franklin Gates who receives a bit of bad news from Jeb Wilkinson, played by Oscar winner Ed Harris.  It turns out that Gates's great great grandfather has been implicated in the 1865 assassination of Abraham Lincoln, one of America's greatest Presidents.  Of course, it couldn't be true, so Ben re-teams with Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger) and Riley Pool (Justin Bartha), Ben's smart-ass, wisecracking associate on another treasure hunt to clear the Gates name.  This time, their adventure doesn't just take them across America, but across the Atlantic as well to Paris and London.  And it's not just a simple google search to clear his great great grandfather's name, Ben has to steal the "President's secret book" which has the answers to every mystery ever known (e.g. who shot Kennedy, are there aliens in Area 51, etc.)  Easy peasy!

Host Dominic Lau and STAR Movies had the chance to join Cage, Bartha and Bruckheimer for the Tokyo premiere of NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS.  Tune in this Sunday to catch it, but if you miss them, they will be on this blog in the near future.

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So there you have it, a week of being in one of the most interesting cities in the world, surrounded by filmmakers, actors and of course the festival itself.

I managed to cull together some of the highlights of my festival in the piece below. It's been amazing and educational to say the least. I look forward to seeing what the festival will achieve in 2008.

Thanks again for inviting us DIFF!

 

 

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Renowned director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake) brought her latest project "AIDS Jaago" to Dubai this year. A collection of four shorts directed by some of the biggest names in Bollywood (Santosh Sivan, Vishal Bharadwaj, Farhan Akhtar and of course Mira herself), each short tackles the impact of AIDS in contemporary India.

Funded by the Gates Foundation (that would be Bill Gates of ahem, Microsoft), Mira took on this project because she was shocked to hear that the rates of HIV / AIDS infections were growing at an alarming rate in India.

By making films about how HIV affects everyday citizens of her country, AIDS Jaago's goal is to get the message out to as many people as possible (online, free dvd's etc). 

Luckily I was able to have a chat with Mira about this project, a possible collaboration with Johnny Depp and her feelings about screening the film in Dubai. Eloquent and honest, I could have spent an hour talking to this talented and passionate filmmaker.   

 

 

Check out Mira's segment of the film below (Starring Sameera Reddy, Shiney Ahuja, Raima Sen and Irfan Khan)

If you want to see all the other films, check them out here.

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Look at the goodie bag we got from Alvin and the Chipmunks!

The singing trio finally get the theatrical treatment this Christmas and we've got some sweet stuff to pass on to you (cause we're so nice like that).

All we ask you to do is watch the trailer below and then answer the following question:

What are the names of all three chipmunks?

Now wasn't that easy?

Please send all answers to hkmarketing@startv.com with your name, daytime contact information and mailing address.

Each goodie bag contains the following:

*   Plushies
*   Phone tags
*   Notebooks
*   Hooded tops
*   Stickers
*   Micro Voice Changer
*   Key Rings
*   T-shirts

5 lucky winners will be selected at random, so good luck!

Of course, if you want to find out more of Alvin and the Chipmunks, remember to come back to this site to see my full interviews with the cast and creators of these cute singing critters!

Before I go, let me leave you with a bit of classic Alvin and the Chipmunks magic.

Singing the Christmas Song, here they are with the late creator of the characters, Ross Bagdasarian. Happy Christmas people!

[Click on to read the rules and regulations of the competition.]

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Bringing her legendary charm and skills to the sands of Dubai, Sharon Stone swept into town to host the 1st ever AmFar charity event to benefit AIDS research.

The event, located some 40 minutes away from the Dubai Film Festival grounds, brought together some huge names including Michelle Yeoh, designer Kenneth Cole, Rachel Bilson, Hayden Christensen and burlesque fashion icon Dita Von Teese, all of whom flew in for the occasion.

Though many countries in the middle east still consider the epidemic of AIDS to be a taboo subject, the organizers of DIFF feel that bringing a charity such as AmFar really shows their openness to educating and perhaps bridging the cultural gap between the west and the middle east.

By the end of the evening, Sharon Stone auctioned off over $3 Million US dollars and swore to reach higher numbers when she returns the next time.

Now, as we were waiting to chat with some of the guests, Hayden Christensen dropped by literally for a minute to talk about his upcoming film Jumper. I bring him up only because in the next month, you'll see what Hayden and the VIP Access team have in store for you... and it's BIG!

Finally, I just want to end this piece with the FABULOUS burlesque fashion icon Dita Von Teese working the red carpet. No doubt her gorgeous prescence helped raise some money for the worthy cause.

Damn, she look good!

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In town to celebrate the inaugural Rhythm and Reels festival of DIFF, Gloria Estefan brought along her husband Emilio and the whole Miami Sound Machine to not only screen the self produced documentary "90 Millas" (90 Miles) but also perform a sold out concert (their first in the middle east) later in the week.

Emilio, being of partial middle eastern descent, was especially proud to bring his documentary to the festival. The doc and subsequent album, 90 Miles, describes the distance between Cuba to Miami. Both having roots there, Gloria decided to record an album covering all the musical influences that their homeland gave to latin music while bringing in the best of the best latin musicians around. The final result is something truly dynamic (heck, it was my unofficial soundtrack every night in my hotel room).

I got a chance to talk to Gloria and Emilio right after the press conference. As you will see below, they are lovely and really interesting to chat with.       

 

 

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After a wonderfully posh flight over to Dubai (via Emirates thank you!), my first impression of the city was actually seen through half opened eyes. Much had to do with the fact that we didn't get into our hotel room until 3am and also the fact that I had to hit the ground running since opening festivities all circled around a certain George Clooney.

 

After a packed press conference (in which Clooney called DIFF an "interesting film festival that gives everyone the opportunity to cross culture a bit"), George was quickly whisked away to a press room for 1 on 1 interviews. Unfortunately he wasn't quick enough because he was soon mauled by every woman in the hallway, literally pulling on him. George being such a nice guy, took pictures with every woman that asked... no wonder they love him!

By the evening, I got all suited up for the opening night gala red carpet event (see video soon). With the film Michael Clayton as the opening film for DIFF, the star studded attendance included everyone from Gloria Estefan (who stopped and talked to us) to Sharon Stone (who is in town for her own AmFar red carpet event in a few days) and of course George Clooney.

  

But that's not all, AFTER the screening, George sat down with a select group of fans and had an hour plus conversation with them. Besides marriage proposals and jokes about being the sexiest man alive, Clooney impressed everyone with his detailed breakdown of why the general population of the US has a 'sheltered' understanding of the middle east, plus his interests in bringing knowledge of the continuing problems of Darfur. If I wasn't a fan before, Clooney's talk definitely inspired me indefinitely.

What a great first official day into DIFF 2007!

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The 2008 Golden Globes announced their list of nominees this morning with Ryan Reynolds, Hayden Panettiere and Quentin Tarentino doing the honors.

Sitting on top of the nomination heap with seven is the tragic war torn epic Atonement with Keira Knightly, James McEvoy and newcomer Saoirse Ronan all getting rightful nods.

Other interesting nominations include Nikki Blonksky for best actress in a comedy/musical (Hairspray), Ryan Gosling for best actor in a comedy/musical (Lars and the Real Girl) and Ang Lee's Lust, Caution with a best foreign film nod.  

Of course the biggest drama that could unfold is that the current writers strike will still be in effect when the winners are announced on Jan. 18. If the writers guild do not sign the waiver to write for this ceremony, most believe that none of the actors (who stand alongside the writers in this strike) will cross the picket lines to attend the awards!

Oh yes, it's THAT crazy at the moment! More coverage to come! 

 

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The last man on Earth is not alone.

Singer-Actor-Producer and all-around superstar Will Smith rolls through Asia and makes his first trip to Hong Kong to promote his latest blockbuster, I AM LEGEND.  You can catch it all in the next episode of VIP ACCESS which premieres this Sunday, December 16th at 8:30pm only on STAR Movies.

Will Smith stars as Robert Neville, a military scientist and as far as he knows the only survivor of a man-made epidemic that killed nearly everyone.  The unfortunate survivors were transformed into the Infected -- mutated humans who can only exist in the darkness.  Ironic, mirror opposites of each other, Neville is immune to the virus and hunts the Infected by day, seeking captives to test cures based on his own blood.  The Infected, driven to ravage the night hunting for blood and flesh and infecting any living thing in the way.  But it's been three years and Neville has made no progress until a catastrophic event opens the way for a brighter future...or (you guessed it) eternal darkness.

I AM LEGEND is the revolutionary follow-up feature by director Francis Lawrence (CONSTANTINE -- one of my favorite movies!) and starring Will Smith in a tour-de-force performance reminiscent of Tom Hanks's performance in CAST AWAY.  Smith takes his acting to another level, filling the screen with not only his heroism, but his sadness, vulnerability and pathos.  He's not just one man stuck on an island, but quite possibly the only man left on Earth.  The production itself is gorgeous with sets that feature an impossibly empty, desolate New York City.  Yes, that really is NYC.

We were fortunate enough to catch up with Will Smith and Francis Lawrence on not one but two continents --  they stopped by Hong Kong to talk to Dom and Stevie sat down with them in Los Angeles.  VIP ACCESS also captured the madness that occurs when Will Smith makes an appearance at Times Square, Hong Kong -- in one of the most crowded shopping districts in all the world.  Thousands gathered to see the superstar greet the crowds and bang a drum right before the HK premiere of his film.

In this episode, we also feature Stevie's exclusive interviews with the cast of ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS, FRED CLAUS and the exceptionally twee ENCHANTED.  For the full-length versions of those interviews, check the blog in the near future as we'll be hosting them here.

I AM LEGEND will be coming to a theater near you on the dates below, but as always, check your local listings for updated details.

Hong Kong    13 Dec
India        21 Dec
Indonesia    12 Dec
Malaysia    13 Dec
Philippines    8 Jan  2008
Singapore    25 Dec
Taiwan        15 Dec
Thailand    13 Dec

One final, fairly unrelated note...if you have the chance to see BEOWULF in IMAX 3-D run, don't walk, to that theater.  I guarantee you will bear witness to nothing short of a revolution in moviegoing.  There are no words for how incredible the experience was after strapping on those 3-D glasses.  You have to see it to believe it.  GO GO GO!

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Hey guys, I'm actually packing my bags at the moment to get ready for a week at the 4th annual Dubai International Film Festival.

With the film Michael Clayton opening the festival, George Clooney himself will be in attendance for a Q&A titled "In Conversation with George Clooney". Also ready to set Dubai with glamour is the AMfar event in which Sharon Stone and Michelle Yeoh are all slated to attend.

Of course there's more, and I will be there front and center to give you a heads up on the whole festival!

I'm so excited (now I should really pack)!

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Oh it's starting! With the year almost over in a few weeks, lists of best films and campaign for the Academy Awards is coming on strong! Just a day ago, the National Board of Review released their list of favorites for the year.  

Taking top honors is the Coen Brothers violent epic No Country For Old Men (keep an eye out for my interviews very soon!) for best picture, Tim Burton (Sweeney Todd) for best director, George Clooney (Michael Clayton) for best actor and the esquisite Julie Christie (Talk To Her) for best actress.

Now is the time to start watching these films people!

Below is a full list of the awards given by the National Board of Review:
 
Best Film: NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
Best Director: TIM BURTON, Sweeney Todd
Best Actor: GEORGE CLOONEY, Michael Clayton
Best Actress: JULIE CHRISTIE, Away From Her
Best Supporting Actor: CASEY AFFLECK, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Best Supporting Actress: AMY RYAN, Gone Baby Gone
Best Foreign Film: THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY
Best Documentary: BODY OF WAR
Best Animated Feature: RATATOUILLE
Best Ensemble Cast: NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
Breakthrough Performance by an Actor: EMILE HIRSCH, Into The Wild
Breakthrough Performance by an Actress: ELLEN PAGE, Juno
Best Directorial Debut: BEN AFFLECK, Gone Baby Gone
Best Original Screenplay (tie):
DIABLO CODY, Juno and NANCY OLIVER, Lars and the Real Girl
Best Adapted Screenplay: JOEL COEN and ETHAN COEN, No Country For Old Men
 
Top Ten Films:
(In alphabetical order)
THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD
ATONEMENT
THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
THE BUCKET LIST
INTO THE WILD
JUNO
THE KITE RUNNER
LARS AND THE REAL GIRL
MICHAEL CLAYTON
SWEENEY TODD
 
Top Five Foreign Films:
(In alphabetical order)
4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS, 2 DAYS
THE BAND’S VISIT
THE COUNTERFEITERS
LA VIE EN ROSE
LUST, CAUTION
 
 
Top Five Documentary Films
(In alphabetical order)
DARFUR NOW
IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOON
NANKING
TAXI TO THE DARKSIDE
TOOTS
 
Top Independent Films
(In alphabetical order)
AWAY FROM HER
GREAT WORLD OF SOUND
HONEYDRIPPER
IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH
A MIGHT HEART
THE NAMESAKE
ONCE
THE SAVAGES
STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING
WAITRESS
 
Career Achievement – MICHAEL DOUGLAS
William K. Everson Film History Award – ROBERT OSBORNE
Career Achievement in Cinematography – ROGER DEAKINS
The BVLGARI Award for NBR Freedom of Expression – THE GREAT DEBATERS and PERSEPOLIS

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I did this interview with Academy Award nominee Terence Howard (Hustle and Flow) a few months back during the Toronto Film Festival. But I decided to pull it from the vaults because it's actually a very honest and articulate conversation from a talented, smart actor.

Forget the fact that The Brave One came out awhile back, just listen to how Terence talks about the surreal normalcy of celebrity and the differences he has with his co-star Jodie Foster.

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[There goes Taiwan!]

[Ta-ta England!]

[Au revoir Paris]

Aren't these posters for I Am Legend amazing? Used as a local campaign for each major city around the world, these posters of urban devestation give you an idea of what Will Smith will faces on a daily basis through the streets of New York (where the film is based).

And just what is he up against once the sun goes down?

Of course I managed to get some 1 on 1 time with Will, but we ended up chatting lovingly about his co-star Abbey (the dog in the poster). I know, totally dorky, but once you see this film, you'll understand why i'm obsessed with her.  

Keep watching this space, cause my exclusive interviews will be on here in no time.

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[new Batman poster, don't you just love it?]

On Monday evening, VIP Access was invited to a very special IMAX presentation for The Dark Knight.

Though the film isn't due for release until next summer (heck, they were just in Hong Kong last month!), director Christopher Nolan was very eager to personally introduce a 6 minute prologue of the Joker (played by a creepy Heath Ledger) for us.

Before the show, I saw Christopher Nolan at the drinks reception and sheepishly made my way over to him to ask him how his experience was shooting in Hong Kong.

"The city of Hong Kong was very welcoming to us during our 5 day shoot," Nolan answered, "we felt that having Hong Kong as an integral part of the Dark Knight storyline was very exciting, and I'm really happy with the results. Plus we shot the scenes with IMAX cameras, so the effect is wonderful to look at. Hopefully you'll get an idea from watching this Joker presentation."

Then we were asked to go into the IMAX theatre where Christopher Nolan personally introduced his teaser.

["leaked" Joker pics that came out the day of the presentation... hmm] 

So what is this Joker Prologue? Well, it's a 6 minute teaser that is scheduled to be placed before the I Am Legend screenings on IMAX next week (of course people who watch Legend on 'normal' screens will also get a Joker fix, but it's different..).

Shot with the IMAX cameras, the intro to the Joker is told through a big (like 52 feet/16m high!) bank heist. The robbers, all wearing clown masks, enter a bank for a robbery, but then proceed to double cross each other (to read the full shot breakdown check out this site).

What happens next is moot. The big thing of this whole teaser is that we get to see the Joker appear for the first time and damn, he's freaky!

The prologue ended as quickly as it began, but I'm now determined to ONLY see this film on an IMAX screen. Summer 2008 can't arrive fast enough! 

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Have you seen the VIP Access Bee Movie special on Star Movies yet? Well if you missed it, the whole episode is available online right here (just remember to come back to the blog cause I'll get lonely).

Speaking of which, if you want a bigger fix of Bee Movie, remember that my FULL interviews with Renee Zellweger, Jerry Seinfeld and the Barry B Benson (that would be the Bee himself) will be streaming here on the blog in no time.

You have been warned, but until then, keep coming back cause I have a LOAD of goodies for you!

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