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This is going to bomb.
Cinema Libre Studios, hmmmm....?
That was the experience of Robert Greenwald, whose "Uncovered: The War on Iraq" is slated to open in New York on Aug. 13 -- 17 days before the Republican National Convention rolls into town. Greenwald says the project developed as an extension of his involvement in the anti-war movement, though he began work on the film last June without producing partners or even a designated budget.
"I thought it was important to (make the film) right now, while issues crucial to the lifeblood of our country were being debated," says Greenwald, whose background is predominantly as a producer and director of feature films and television (his helming credits include 2000's "Steal This Movie"). "There are two goals when you do these kinds of films: You want to make a good film, but you also want to have a political impact."
During a period of three months, Greenwald interviewed an array of high-ranking government officials, including former ambassador Joe Wilson -- whose wife, Valerie Plame, was the covert CIA operative whose identity was leaked last year to political columnist Robert Novak -- and completed an hourlong cut of "Uncovered," thanks in part to completion funds from the political Web site MoveOn.org and the Washington think tank Center for American Progress. Several Web sites including MoveOn began selling "Uncovered" on DVD to the public in October, and more than 100,000 units have been sold to date.
But it is a new feature-length version of the documentary that will screen in theaters. Encouraged by the buzz surrounding "Uncovered," Cinema Libre Studios signed to co-produce the extended cut and handle its theatrical distribution.
"Political documentaries are becoming very, very important," Cinema Libre founder Philippe Diaz says. "People will tell you that five or 10 years ago, they never would have thought to go to a documentary in the theater, but because now they are so disenfranchised by what they see on TV in terms of news, they go to theaters to see a movie."
"Uncovered" is only one of the political docus on Cinema Libre's slate. Exact dates have not yet been determined, but the feature-length "The Oil Factor Behind the War on Terror" is slated tentatively for an October release in the United States, and the 57-minute "Unprecedented: The 2004 Election" could begin a theatrical run by year's end.
If that sounds like a wine-induced manifesto scrawled on a caf?apkin, it's no wonder. A devout cinephile, the Parisian-born Diaz is as French as good brioche. A veteran director and screenwriter, Diaz has produced a dozen features in Europe and the U.S., among them 1986's "Mauvais Sang" (Bad Blood), winner of the Louis Delluc award for best French film and the first to star Juliette Binoche, and 1989's "The Bengali Night," which gave Hugh Grant his first leading role. Opened in June, the 6,500-square-foot studio was launched with $1 million from European investors, much of it spent on current filmmaking technology. The plan is to produce five films a year, most with budgets of less than $2 million. Such tiny budgets are newly realistic thanks to digital technology that has made the quality of independent moviemaking soar and costs plummet, Diaz said.
French. Figures. Wonder if the Axis of Weasels is involved? And can Jean Kerry be far behind?
Robert Greenwald's controversial documentary, Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism will be released in theaters Friday, August 6 in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington D.C. It will subsequently open in select cities across the country. The film is being distributed by Cinema Libre Distribution, which is also distributing Greenwald's Unconvered: The War in Iraq, opening in theaters August 20.
"Since its debut on home video more than two weeks ago, Outfoxed has sold a significant number of units via the Internet while simultaneously creating noteworthy controversy among the media and public alike. Prior to its release on DVD, the Center For American Progress sponsored premieres and MoveOn.org organized 3700 house parties across the nation. The DVD has been listed as Amazon.com's bestseller for two weeks with over 145,000 hits on Yahoo!
"Philippe Diaz of Cinema Libre Distribution says, 'We've had the privilege of collaborating with Robert to break all the rules in distribution, by changing the order of traditional distribution practices, and working with grassroots organizations like MoveOn.org to create new forms of promotion which are not usually part of the movie world.'"
Outfoxed will open August 6 in New York at the Quad, in Washington D.C. at the Avalon, in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Fairfax and in San Francisco at the Roxie. In addition to Outfoxed and Uncovered, Cinema Libre Distribution will also be handling limited theatrical releases for Greenwald's "Un..." series, including Unprecedented and Unconstitiutional...
Grassroots, my derriere. Follow the money...
I unfortunately got redirected to the Amazon.com/dvd reviews of this movie while following a blog and was astounded by some of the comments regarding the movie. While I despise the Moore's and Grennewald's of the world...it is their constituency which disturbs me more. I, of course, couldn't leave Amazon without writing a review and correcting some of the inaccuracies...which I suggest some others do as this movie was getting 4 stars.