|
10.21.99 - DOGMA GOES DIGITAL!
(As Seen On News Askew)
Dogma played ShowEast last night, and holds the prestige of now being the first ever Full-Length feature film presented
in an all digital format at the festival. Wow. And we hear it was SWEET! In fact, we've been holding off on fan reviews
for the flick just because there's too darn many, but here's a scooper's writeup of the experience and completely non-spoiler
thoughts on the film. Sounds like he LOVED it througha and through, along with the rest of the audience:
I just returned from attending the Dogma screening at ShowEast in the
digital projection format. First let me start off by saying I have seen
the future of movies, and film is not a part of it. The color and
clarity of the picture were flawless. From the moment the Dolby Digital
trailer hit the screen (one attendee was so impressed he yelled "Holy
Shit!!) to the final credits, I was lost in a visual dream. If ant one
has the chance to see a digitally projected film, jump on it!
Enough about the picture and all that technical stuff, let's move on to
what people really care about-Kevin and his film. Let me say that there
is no doubt that this is a Kevin Smith film what-so-ever. His style of
writing and his knack for humor are unmistakable. But.... he has
definately outdone himself with Dogma. From the opening apology
statement, to the first appearance of the dynamic duo, to the long
awaited appearance of God, he keeps the movie flowing. Whether it be the
numerous movie references,from the obligatory Star Wars, to a subtle
Indiana Jones, to Home Alone, and The Six Million Dollar Man or the
onscreen presence of his finest cast yet, in which we see many familiar
faces. To see this movie in a theatre full of movie buffs (which we all
were, showing up at midnight for a religious satire film) even made the
experience that much more enjoyable. It's great to be in a room with
someone who knows at least half as much as I do about the "Jersey
Trilogy". But to be in a room with hundreds of them, all laughing at
even the most subtle of jokes, that was the best. Unsurpassed by
anything ,other than see it in a theatre full of Askewers on Monday.
Yes, I will still be attending the show on Monday, wanting only to see
it more now as I already know how great it is. So a big congrats to
Kevin for sticking with this baby til' the end and making one helluva
film. So until Jay goes straight, make mine Marvel!!
10.20.99 - HOWARD SHORE INTERVIEW
(As Seen On News Askew)
A new pic of Alanis in her Dogma garb appears in the November issue of
ALLURE MAGAZINE. The article is called "Good
God". Click the thumb for a scan of the text with the pic of Alanis in her divine threads.
10.19.99 - HOWARD SHORE INTERVIEW
(As Seen On News Askew)
There is an interview with Howard Shore over at www.soundtrack.net in which he discusses the score he did for Dogma,
amongst other things. Read it here.
10.13.99 - DOGMA TO OPEN PITTSBURGH FILM FEST
(As Seen On News Askew)
We've got some fantastic breaking news for you western Pennsylvanians, especially those of you that have been mailing
us asking if the folks out there who took part in the film (extras, crew members, and the like) would get an early screening.
Sounds like your wish has been granted!
In todays edition of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,they listed Dogma as the opening film for the 1999 Three Rivers Film
Festival. It will be shown at the Regent Square Theater (located in Downtown Pittsburgh) on November 5th at 8:00 PM. Wanna
go? Tickets are $6.00 per film or $60.00 for admission to 13 films. For information on purchasing tickets call
(412)681-5449. Have fun!!!
10.08.99 - YAHOO INTERNET LIFE MENTIONS US!
(As Seen On News Askew)
I totally forgot about talking to Yahoo a couple months ago about the websites we
run here, but lo-and-behold, the piece is now in their latest issue, and it's got a couple of quotes from Kevin on his
web presence as well as a couple from yours truly on our Dogma RC site. Here ya go:
CLICK Web Tracks
BUZZ-SMITH
"The Dogma director looks for a little Net religion"
Alanis Morissette is God. Linda Fiorentino is a descendant of Jesus who
works in an abortion clinic. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon? They're angels who
take to gunning down innocent churchgoers. Sure, wilder rumors have sprouted
on the Internet, but in these cases, the heresay may actually be true.
The object of speculation is Dogma, the contentious new film from Kevin
Smith that follows a pair of fallen angels scamming a passage to heaven. As
the Catholic League vigorously attacked the film and Disney subsequently
backed out as its distributor, the Net buzzed with gossip.
Throughout this tumult, you'll find Smith where few of his peers dare to go:
online with his fans. The director, via his company's site, VIEW ASKEW
PRODUCTIONS [viewaskew.com], keeps up an online dialogue. Inviting visitors
to the Chasing Amy premiere or asking them to be extras in Dogma are just
two instances of Smith's relatively intimate rapport with his fan community.
"The main interest for me as a filmmaker is communication," says Smith, "
Rather than just making a movie for people to watch, I can actually talk to
them about the process of making it."
So when the Dogma controversy started to simmer, fans swarmed to DOGMA RUMOR
CONTROL. [newsaskew.com/dogmarc]. Now, "people are so anxious to see this
[film] because of the anticipation levels out there," says the site's
co-founder, Brad Plevyak. "For a guy like Kevin, who has only been around
for a few years, the amount of traffic we're seeing is pretty astounding."
With the film due for release mid-month, the momentum at Dogma Rumor
Control, the Kevin Smith newsgroup [alt.movies.kevin-smith], and Smith's
official DOGMA site [dogma-movie.com] is building to Blair Witch Project
proportions. ANd that doesn't surprise Smith: "Word-of-mouth pictures thrive
on the Internet. That's all it is out there anyway--word of motuh."
10.08.99 - BUNCHA DOGMA MENTIONS...
(As Seen On News Askew)
Roger Ebert, while hammering that new likely to fail
SNL flick "Superstar",
managed to give a positive nod to Dogma yet again today:
Too bad the Catholic League is so busy attacking good films, like "Dogma,"
that it can't spare the time to picket bad ones. I'm not in favor of
protesting films on the basis of theology, but to picket them because
they're boring could be an act of mercy.
Thanks, Roger!
"Jim Mullen's Hot Sheet", that fun little section in each Entertainment Weekly,
even mentions Dogma in its write-up on Superstar:
"#15 SUPERSTAR - SNL's Molly Shannon takes her panty-flashing Catholic
schoolgirl to the big screen. It's Dogma Lite"
TheSpark.Com puts Dogma as one of it's Top 10 list of flicks to see this fall:
DOGMA
Directed by: Kevin Smith
Starring: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Linda Fiorentino, Salma Hayek, Chris
Rock, Jason Lee, George Carlin, Alanis Morissette
Release Date: Early November
I think the world needs far more religious comedies. With Dogma, indie
hipster king Kevin Smith, the brains behind such comic favorites as Clerks
and Chasing Amy, spins this irreverent tale about a pair of renegade angels
(Good Will Hunting pals Damon and Affleck) trying to scam their way into
heaven. The only one who stands in their way is Fiorentino, who plays a
descendent of Jesus working in an abortion clinic. Rock star Alanis
Morissette pops up as God, George Carlin dons the robes as a foul-mouthed
cardinal, and Jason Lee plays Azrael, desperately trying to escape from
Hell. The premise is terrific, but I think it's worth noting that if I were
running things, Jennifer Love Hewitt would be God.
Salon.Com also has a Dogma story, it's a big longer though so you can find it
over on the Dogma RC press page.
US Magazine also gives Dogma a blurb in their November issue, but it's just a one paragraph plot synopsis.
The BBC has also placed their own story covering the Dogma premiere and protests online HERE.
10.07.99 - DOGMA PREMIERE/PARTY PICS...
(As Seen On News Askew)
We've never been known to carry a camera around to take pics of stuff, and just never felt comfortable asking celebs if
we could have our pics taken with them, so you probably noticed the lack of original shots from our latest diary from the
Dogma Premiere on Monday as well as our stories in the past. Luckily, Ming was along with his trusty camera and has some
exclusive shots for us today. Ming's got a couple pics with him and some of the big names there, including A classic with
him sandwiched Ben and Salma. There's also a shot of the Lowe's electronic marquee displaying the Dogma logo (cool stuff).
And yes, there's even one of us in there (it was taken in the back of the VIP area, not outside of a dressing room at The
Gap as it might appear). Chris is on the left, Brad's on the right, FYI. Click all these thumbs for larger, clearer
versions. We think Ming's got more, too, but may be using them as part of a special page for the View Askew site. Not sure
what he's got in store at this point.
As for the Red Bank showing at the end of this month, we're not sure if we're coming in for that or not. It's not that we
wouldn't LOVE to see Dogma again, and meet some of you as well, it's just that we're getting low on days off from work due
to all of these weekday events, plus with the busy month of moving and all, well...It's gonna be tight. We'll see, though.
Thanks to all of you that asked about it, though, we'll keep ya posted. Glad so many of you were able to get your tickets.
10.07.99 - BRAD & CHRIS IN THE BIG APPLE
(As Seen On News Askew)
Here it is, our diary covering our trip to the Dogma premiere and post party from this past Monday evening, complete in
usual long-winded, overly detailed format. Kick back and read it if you so desire. Once again, we think we've given you a
pretty good recollection of all the stuff that happened, so hopefully you can have a better idea as to what it was like to
have been there. The start time of our show (the second that night) was too close to the Festival showing's, and about 30
blocks up the street, so we missed the protesting and the big celebrity entrances, sorry to say. So, this story pretty much
covers the day, as we saw it, from start to end, including the few hours we spent in the city, the Lions Gate screening, and
that way cool post party. Enjoy.
10.07.99 - DOGMA BITS...
(As Seen On News Askew)
Here's a few stories too small for article pages, but we thought worth a read anyway. The first comes from
People Online, the second from AnotherUniverse...
Matt Damon Is Cool
More on Monday's New York Film Festival premiere of
"Dogma," after yesterday's PEOPLE Daily report on the
protest staged by some outraged Catholics over the
film's satirical take on death: "These people haven't
even seen the film yet," the film's co-star Matt Damon
told PEOPLE as demonstrators shouted at him (and, in one
case, thrust rosary beads at him). "I'm all for protests,
but I think you have to see (the film) to know what
you're talking about. But I defend anybody's right to
protest." An agitated-looking Ben Affleck, who costars
in the movie, acted surly at the premiere and refused to
speak to the press. He attended the festivities with his
mother.
Dogma's Big Apple Fans, Pans
When Kevin Smith's highly irreverent new film Dogma
opened in New York Monday night, it drew critical acclaim as well as
vehement protests from about 1,500 people gathered outside the Lincoln
Center. The protestors were led by New York's Auxiliary Bishop
Francisco Garmendia, standing in for Cardinal John O' Conner,
and were bolstered by a pan of the film from Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.
Smith noted, "We thought we were going to have to battle the Catholics,
not the mayor." But Ben Affleck, who stars in the film, joked about being
late for the premiere. "Sorry it took so long. We stopped to pray with the
protesters."
10.06.99 - THREE REALVIDEO SEGMENTS...
(As Seen On News Askew)
E! News Daily
(104 Seconds) |
Entertainment Tonight
(67 Seconds) |
Extra
(134 Seconds) |
Naturally, the entertainment programs, and even some of the news stations around the country (and other countries as well,
actually) covered the Dogma premiere on Monday night. It's kind of a shame though that the movie and the celebrities
themselves weren't enough to do a story on, though. Most agencies seemed to mention the film then focus mainly on the
protesting and the so-called controversey with the flick. Why can't Dogma just be allowed to be Dogma in a segment? Always
with the protesting...Anyway, it's still good press, though some folks for some reason seem to think Disney and Miramax still
own the flick. Click above for RealVideo versions of the stuff that aired on Entertainment Tonight, E! News Daily, and
Access Hollywood. News agencies in Pittsburgh, New York, and even the BBC in London ran Dogma segments. It sounds as if the
BBC's was the most expansive, with almost 10 minutes devoted to the flick and its premiere. Talk about a country waiting
for a film!
For those of you that haven't read the press yet, most of the clips are of Damon, Affleck, and Hayek chatting about the
flick (and yes, the protests), Kevin carrying an angel-wing clad Harley Quinn, and again sticking up for the fact that Dogma
is indeed a very pro-faith movie. We couldn't agree more after seeing the flick again for ourselves.
10.06.99 - DOGMA PREMIERE IN THE PRESS
(As Seen On News Askew)
More press! You betcha. Today, Dogma RC adds heaps more articles from CNN, indieWire, Liz Smith, and more. We've even
got a new positive review of the flick from Texas. All of the latest is on our press & reviews page...
10.05.99 - DOGMA SOUNDTRACK DUE NOVEMBER 2ND
(As Seen On News Askew)
ZENtertainment reports the good news that the Dogma soundtrack will be
hitting the presses and ready for an in store date of November the 2nd, less than a month away:
MAVERICK Records will release the soundtrack to Kevin Smith's anticipated new film DOGMA on November 2nd. The recording
features the exclusive Alanis Morissette song "Still," as well as several tracks composed and conducted by Howard Shore
(Seven, Silence of the Lambs), performed by the LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA.
And an excerpt from the Alanis piece over at the press page states:
Apart from Morissette's song, the "Dogma" soundtrack features music composed and conducted for the film by Howard Shore
("Philadelphia," "Seven"), performed by a scaled-down, 30-piece version of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Titles
include "Dogma," "Behold the Metatron," "The Last Scion" and "Stygian Triplets."
No word on what other vocal tracks may be included, though possibilities seem to be the Mooby tunes or maybe even that classic
80's track that blares during Salma's opening scene. It'll be nice to have Shore's score on a disc though, it sounded great
in the flick last night.
10.04.99 - New Articles & REVIEWS
(As Seen On News Askew)
We've gotten lots of scoops featuring Dogma in the press yesterday, namely that wonderful
New York Times review, as well as Yahoo's
article on the Dogma protests going on at the premiere (funny how those that were protesting were still crying
foul on Disney and Miramax, who really have nothing to do with the flick anymore). There's also a couple more reviews and
a new piece on Alanis and the music in the film. Surf over to Dogma RC's press page for all the latest, as always.
09.28.99 - US MAGAZINE STORY
(As Seen On News Askew)
US Magazine has listed Dogma in its November issue as one of
"The Big Sleepers" Ten underdog fall movies you shouldn't miss:
#4 Dogma
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck play fallen angels who try to hustle their
way back into heaven by scamming God (Alanis Morissette) with the
involuntary help of an abortion clinic volunteer (Linda Fiorentino) who
may be a descendant of Christ. Yikes! Writer/director Kevin Smith, a
practicing Catholic, has been unfairly hammered by the Catholic league
for a film that never strays into sacrilege to express faith in both God
and irreverent laughter. (November 12)
09.24.99 - MAVERICK TO RELEASE SOUNDTRACK!
(As Seen On News Askew)
Since people can't tell from the poster graphics, we took a closer look at our
Dogma One Sheets to verify it. There will
indeed be a soundtrack on Maverick Records. Now, I don't recall any original songs in Dogma
when I watched it in Toronto
(aside from the excellent new Alanis track that blares over the closing credits), so I'm not sure what the plan is as as far
as celebrity-filled CD. I'd at least count on a hybrid disc of sorts, perhaps with some dialogue, some of
Howard Shore's
music, the Alanis track (and perhaps a few others like the Mooby song and the rumored
Beastie Boys cut), but this is all
pure speculation. With a release coming soon, expect an announcement on this stuff, probably from Kevin, soon.
09.22.99 - DOGMA ONE-SHEET POSTER UNVEILED!
(As Seen On News Askew)
The very slick-looking Dogma one-sheet has arrived and wow...If it ain't ever eye-catching! After all the fan art,
though, it's quite obvious that there's a TON of themes that could have been used to create this thing. We'd sure love to
see the other rejected designs (there had to be some) or a few more one-sheets to promote the flick. This one seems to
capitalize on Matt & Ben's stardom, though, rightfully so, as well as give most of the excellent ensemble cast a shot in
the limelight. We can see why they went with it.
Pretty odd tagline though, don't ya think?
Be that as it may, the poster and lots more coolness is all on display over at the
OFFICIAL Dogma site. We've got a local
copy of the one-sheet if ya wanna take a quick peek at just that, too.
09.21.99 - DOGMA IN AUSTRALIA!
(As Seen On News Askew)
Dark Horizons reports that Village Roadshow in Australia have picked up the distribution rights to the Australian
release of Dogma. There ya go, folks! We've been getting TONS of mail from Aussie fans just dying to see the flick, so this
is certainly fantastic news for them. Of course, they won't catch the flick until the first quarter of the year 2000, but
hey, it's better than never, right?
09.18.99 - PRESS ONSLAUGHT & NEW CLIPS
(As Seen On News Askew)
Naturally, since Dogma premiered in Toronto, there's been an amazing amount of requests for interviews with Kevin and
the gang. Many pieces have surfaced on the web and in print over the past few days, and they're all being added to Dogma
Rumor Control's Press Section. The standout piece comes to us from
CNN, who write a long, detailed account of all the
controversy surrounding the film, present 4 new stills, and 3 exclusive clips. You can find the clips linked at our
files page, and the latest stories all on the press page.
09.17.99 - OFFICIAL DOGMA SITE ONLINE!
(As Seen On News Askew)
Ming dropped us a line with the excellent news that the Official Dogma Website (www.dogma-movie.com) has now gone online.
The site is amazing, including a animated Flash-enhanced interface, TONS of behind the scenes stills, the complete Dogma
Diaries that we compiled here at RC, and lots, lots more. Here's Ming with a summary on the fruits of his efforts:
So here's the scoop on the Dogma website.
It is now up and fully functional at www.dogma-movie.com. We got the
green light to launch it yesterday. Please block off the next hour or so
and take a look. And as always, please let me know what you think. My only
hope is that everyone gets something out of it.
A couple notes:
1) The full treatrical trailer is up and running. QuickTime 4.0 is highly
recommended.
2) Some of the images in the 'From the Eyes of the Director' section may
be considered a bit spoilerish. If you're concerned about seeing Lee's
horns close up, don't head into any of the Lee sections. Buddy Christ pics
are scattered around the site as well and I believe that's all an open
book at this point. I tyink the section some people may want to be careful
around are the Church pics ('Keep Holy the Lord's Day') however. A marked
image index is provided for anyone who's concerned.
3) We'll have an outtake posted early next week featuring Scott Mosier
entitled, "Is This Your Dog?" It'll be dumped in the Multimedia section.
Sounds great! We'll keep ya posted here as to when cool new stuff appears at the Dogma site. They've even got a HATE LETTER
of the week section, which we found quite clever.
To celebrate the site's appearance, you can now get the Mooby Magnet set, on sale through the Stash.
FINALLY: Ming tells us that the one sheet is speeding its way to him as we speak. It was pressed about 3 days ago. The
Dogma site will present the one sheet any day now. We'll have it here for ya, as well.
09.14.99 - AICN PICTURES
(As Seen On News Askew)
A scooper for AICN managed to sneak a digital camera into last night's
screening in Toronto. The pictures are spoilerish, so they have been blurred for for protection...
I just got back from the Dogma afterparty at the Toronto film fest. The film premiere was cool although only Kevin, Scott Mozier, and Jason Lee were there...and Harvey Weinstein.
I'm a huge kevin smith fan but unfortunatelly this movie wasnt too great. It has some good moments and poignant dialogue, but those are often shattered by Silent Bob and Jay who should never have been written in as major characters. They do nothing but ruin great dialogue with completely innapropriate humour. The movie lost it's wit and sarcasm with the unhealthy dose of toilet humour. Chris Rock is great as the 13th apostle, and Linda Fiorentino is a great angsty descendant of Jesus. I cannot say that I liked Matt and Ben as the avenging angels simply because their pairing is an unneeded indie film inside joke.
While the film flip flops between toilet humour and much needed religious criticism, it loses it's direction.... until the end. Alanis plays god in a fantastic scene that appears to be from the 'Dogma' that kevin wanted to make................... before getting tied down with the obligatory "Jersey Trilogy" references.
I snuck in my digital cam to get some snaps for the net... here they are!
Buddy Christ
|
Alanis Morissette & Alan Rickman
|
Chris Rock & Linda Fiorentino
|
09.13.99 - BRAD HITS TORONTO & THE DOGMA PREMIERE
(As Seen On News Askew)
My incredibly detailed (TOO detailed, really) summary of my
Trip to Toronto is now online for your enjoyment. Skip towards
the last third of it if you just wanna read the Dogma stuff, since most of it is just fluff. Dogma was just a small part of
a really cool weekend. I'll also be working on my final Dogma review, which will detail the film itself, but feel pretty
burnt out at the moment, so expect that one tomorrow (I hope!). For now, though, click here for the full story. I didn't
take any pictures, partly beacuse I don't really like looking touristy, and partly because I don't own a camera. I painted
the best picture that I could, though. Enjoy.
09.10.99 - CHASING THE DOGMA TRAILER & OFFICIAL SITE
(As Seen On News Askew)
A new box office weekend is upon us, and, with shades of the Star Wars prequel, TONS of fans are going to the movies to
see...A TRAILER! That's right, requests are pouring in (as well as some information) on which flicks the Dogma trailer will
be playing with this weekend! Well, here's the verdict: It looks like your best bet is with the new supernatural Kevin
Bacon flick "Stir Of Echoes", which is getting a good buzz anyway. So, not only is it probably the flick to see this
weekend, but you'll get to see that incredible full-length Dogma trailer in all its widescreen glory, too. Keep in mind now
that JUST because the Dogma trailer is "chasing" Echoes, that's not an absolute guarantee that you'll get to see it. Some
theater owners will remove or shelve the trailer to play it at a later time.
Here's a quick description:
The trailer run time is 2min and 30secs. It is essentially the same as the
E.T. footage with a few minor things added. Jason Lee says "get it?" right
after that scene where he has that big grin... also Alan Rickman has an
additional line around that 'Sex is a joke' bit... also the main cast is
presented at the end.... The voice over at the beginning is there... During
the trailer credits an odd scene of three young boys with hockey sticks
'tear' a whole in the air and walk thru it. The address
'www.dogma-movie.com' appears at the very end. There might be a few other
things i missed, but its pretty close to what E.T. showed.
Did ya see that!?!? So did we! Looks like the official website may not be www.viewaskew.com/dogma as we'd originally
thought, but www.dogma-movie.com. We stopped by. Looks like a shell is up right now, with a simple yet effective animation
on the front and the latest press. We think this is gonna be a damn cool site when it all goes online. Check it out!
09.08.99 - LIONS GATE FILMS TO RELEASE DOGMA!!!
(As Seen On News Askew)
Well, we're sure that 95% of you aren't surprised, but it's now OFFICIAL! Lions Gate has announced that they've
acquired Dogma and will release the film. This is something we've been sort of sitting on, since the good folks at Lions
Gate have been in direct contact with us for the past few weeks now as things have developed. At any rate, this is GREAT
news for the film, and quite timely as well, with the flick making its North American debut this weekend in Toronto, as
well as the trailer going nationwide this weekend.
We've got the full text of the press release directly ahead, or you can download the studio's official copies of the thing
in either Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format.
Congratulations to everyone involved, this is exciting news! We're looking forward to what we hear is going to be an amazing
release campaign from Lions Gate -- Dogma's on its way!
LIONS GATE ACQUIRES "DOGMA"
Kevin Smith Film Starring Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Linda Fiorentino,
Salma Hayek, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Alan Rickman and Chris Rock
to be Released this Fall
SEPTEMBER 8, 1999, Toronto -- Lions Gate Films has acquired North American rights to "Dogma," the eagerly anticipated comic
fantasy from acclaimed filmmaker Kevin Smith, it was announced today. The film, which stars Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Linda
Fiorentino, Salma Hayek, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Alan Rickman, Chris Rock, and Smith himself, will be released wide this
fall.
"What else can I say except that I'm ecstatic," said Kevin Smith, writer and director of 'Dogma'. "The Lion's Gate guys
did top-notch work last year with 'Gods and Monsters' and 'Affliction', and I have every confidence that they'll do the
same if not better with 'Dogma'. I give these guys props for standing behind our flick, and giving audiences a chance to
see a pretty funny pro-faith film."
"I'm thrilled that Lions Gate is handling the film," said Harvey Weinstein, who along with his brother Bob, personally
acquired the film from Miramax in April. "I know they will do a great job, and we are looking forward to a very successful
release of the movie."
"We are very excited to have acquired a film with so much potential to succeed on a big scale, both artistically and
commercially," said Lions Gate Films president Jeff Sackman. "We have been building our distribution company steadily with
the precise goal of gaining an opportunity like this."
Mark Urman and Tom Ortenberg, co-presidents of Lion's Gate releasing, began pursuing "Dogma" after seeing the film at the
Cannes Film Festival in May. The film, which was a hit at the French festival, will also play at the Toronto and New York
Film festivals in the coming weeks.
Urman said, "'Dogma' is the ideal addition to our ever-evolving slate, and like all of our previous hits, it too is the
work of a brilliant writer/director with a wholly original point of view."
"We are extremely excited by 'Dogma's' possibilities," added Ortenberg. "Not only will it allow us to use our proven
skills, it will also enable us to do things people haven't seen us do before."
In "Dogma" Affleck and Damon play fallen angels whose scheme to re-enter Paradise threatens to destroy the world. Standing
in their way is a woman having a crisis of faith (Fiorentino), who is assisted by a winged messenger of God (Rickman), a
hitherto unknown Thirteenth Apostle (Rock), a heavenly muse (Hayek) and two unlikely prophets, Jay (Mewes) and Silent Bob
(Smith).
A View Askew production, "Dogma" was produced and co-edited (with Smith) by his longtime partner, Scott Mosier. Laura
Greenlee is co-producer, Robert Yeoman ("Drugstore Cowboy") is director of photography, Robert Holtzman is the production
designer and Abigail Murray is the costume designer. Special visual effects are by Station X Studios.
LIONS GATE ENTERTAINMENT CORP. (AMEX/TSE:LGF) develops, produces and distributes a targeted range of film and television
content. Via four operating divisions-motion pictures, television, animation, and studio facilities-the distinctive Lions
Gate brand is recognized as a symbol of quality entertainment throughout North America and around the world.
Lions Gate Films received two Academy Awards for its 1998 releases, "Gods and Monsters" (Best Adapted Screenplay, Bill
Condon) and "Affliction" (Best Supporting Actor, James Coburn). Current and upcoming titles on Lion Gate's release slate
include Don McKellar's award-winning apocalyptic romance, "Last Night," Francis Veber's Cesar-winning French comedy
sensation, "The Dinner Game," and Francois Girard's "The Red Violin" starring Samuel L. Jackson. The company's most
recent acquisitions, Peter Greenaway's "8 1/2 Women," starring John Standing, Polly Walker, Amanda Plummer and Toni
Collette, and Errol Morris' "Mr. Death," will have their North American premieres as Special Presentations at the 1999
Toronto International Film Festival. Alison Maclean's, "Jesus' Son," starring Billy Crudup, Samantha Morton, Holly Hunter,
Dennis Hopper and Denis Leary, screened at the 1999 Telluride Film Festival and will screen at both the Venice
International Film Festival and the Toronto Film Festival. The company recently wrapped production on Mary Harron's
"American Psycho" starring Christian Bale and will release the film on April 7, 2000.
We think that Lions Gate is a perfect choice for handling the flick, and couldn't be happier. After all the controversy, it
seems that things really did work out best for the film and everyone involved. What a long, strange trip it's been...
09.06.99 - *EXCLUSIVE* DOGMA ET FOOTAGE ONLINE!
(As Seen On News Askew)
Yep, you read the headline right...We've got it! Entertainment Tonight came through and aired the new Dogma trailer
on the show tonight (with voiceover, unfortunately), and we've got the full version of that broadcast right here for those of you that missed
it due to being out of town, telethons, not having TV's, and the like.
So now, courtesy of ET...We're proud to present the Internet Debut of the first footage from the official DOGMA TRAILER!
You can download the movie in streaming RealAudio currently. A better QuickTime format is coming soon. Sorry to say we're still
not experts at capturing this stuff, so the quality's the best we can get for ya at the moment.
The trailers will ALWAYS be available over in our growing Downloads section.
Needless to say, the flick looks absolutely fantastic. We hadn't seen many of the FX shots in place, and what's been done
looks fantastic. The trailer's also very tightly edited to show the scope of the film without giving anything away. Just
what a good trailer's supposed to do. Bravo.
09.02.99 - STORIES FROM TORONTO...
(As Seen On News Askew)
It doesn't seem that TNT Roughcut's got that much
faith in Dogma's Oscar potential. Here's their prognosis:
Dogma (Nov. 12)
Rumors abound that Kevin Smith's new one is a great religious satire. Rumors
also abound that Jay and Silent Bob are main characters. These two rumors
don't jibe. (Hey Kevin, put those tired, pathetic characters to rest
already!) Boasting an ensemble cast that includes Ben Affleck, Matt Damon,
Chris Rock, Janeane Garofalo and Alanis Morissette as God, this one just
might have enough star power and semi-witty one-liners, which have
historically been enough to carry this one-trick pony without a clue about
direction, to make it worthy. But we think not.
Genre: Good question. Out-there comedy
Prediction: Bleak
Oscar® buzz: A controversial religious comedy. Uh... No.
Movies For Men at IGN is running another story on Dogma, this time using the Toronto Con's events as the backdrop. Kevin
gets a lot of press at this place, he must have some fans there! Here ya go:
Kevin Smith gives Toronto talk about God and Green Lantern. September 1, 1999
Kevin Smith gave a sermon about long-awaited Dogma at last weekend's Toronto
comic expo. Coming Attractions reports that Smith confirmed a November 12
release date, denied Alanis Morissette plays God, and called down fire and
brimstone on Catholic League president William Donahue for trying to ban a
film he's never seen.
A departure from his rawly funny oeuvre, Kev dips into the serious end of
the holy water pool with this edgy morality tale of renegade angels Loki
(Matt Damon) and Bartleby (Ben Affleck) igniting the apocalypse in their
attempt to re-enter heaven. Comic touches are provided by Chris Rock as the
thirteenth apostle, and "Just Say Yes" poster children Jay and Silent Bob.
Dogma's duality was reflected in the two trailers Smith showed: one minute
angel of death Damon is murdering an adulterer, the next Jay is trying to
get The Last Seduction's Linda Fiorentino into bed (or against a fence, or
damn near anywhere). Declining to name the film's distributor, Smith did say
that the film was edited down to two hours because earlier cuts were just
too long.
09.01.99 - TORONTO CON RECAP...
(As Seen On News Askew)
There's a TON of new wrapups over on our Toronto Con page...Many of you were kind enough to write in with your stories
and pictures detailing your experiences from the event, and we appreciated every one of them. They're all included, in
an unedited form, on our Toronto page...So read at your own risk as far as spoilers and the like go. Lots of good stuff
in there, though. Also, here's a few tidbits that came out of the convention that we thought were important enough to
single out here, just to make sure that you didn't miss them:
Two Dogma trailers now exist. The previously seen trailer cut by Mosier (shown at previous appearances and the Stash
Bash), and the new "Studio" trailer. Here's a rundown of what's in that trailer, which, as far as we know, was seen for
the first time in Toronto. A scooper describes:
The word "logo" was in place where the actual logo of the distributor
would normally go.
The beginning starts off with an extended look at the airport scene
between Bartleby and Loki. There is more explanation on who they are and what
they are doing.
There is more use of Alan Rickman, Chris Rock and Carlin I think. In
particular, they show more of Chris Rock's scene where he falls from heaven,
and they have the scene where Rickman says something to the effect of "anyone
who's not an Angel better cover their ears."
In the line by Rock: "Know him (Jesus)? Nigger owes me 12 dollars!" The
word Nigger is changed into "brother." My friend also said he noticed the
word "fuck" taken out of Mewe's line "The whole fucking world's against us."
A very quick but cool shot of the Golgothan coming up and forming out of
the toilet (at least I think that's what it was doing).
Several quick cuts of Bartleby (Affleck) descending from the church with
his wings spread.
A shot of Bethany jumping on Bartleby's back, I think it was on the
train.
A few more shots of Salma dancing.
The last shot we see is the Stygian Triplets on their roller blades with
hockey sticks in their hands jumping through what looks to be a tear in the
universe. Very cool shot.
The release date was also confirmed as November 12th, and a new Dogma
logo was shown (it looked like it had shadowing or something).
08.27.99 - NYFF INFO & SHOWTIMES...
(As Seen On News Askew)
Many of you have been writing in asking for Dogma New York Film Festival info. Welp, we've got it. Following is their
very well-written synopsis of the film (just basic plot details, no real spoilers here) as well as the dates and times for
the two showings of the flick. Hope ya got your tickets!
08.27.99 - DOGMA PREVIEW IN ROLLING STONE...
(As Seen On News Askew)
Rolling Stone does their own version of a Fall Movie preview and, of course, Dogma gets a nice little piece of the
action...This bit is slightly more spoiler-prone in its description of the plot, but still not too bad as far as we're
concerned. Plus, there's some excellent quotes from Kev explaining the point he was trying to get across with the flick:
"'Dogma': Matt Damon and Ben Affleck play fallen angels who try to get
back into heaven by using a loophole in church dogma. They've been
living in Wisconsin for nearly 2000 years, so life had been dull- until
they start shooting sinners they catch in the act of
commandment-breaking. In the company of and abortion-clinic counselor
(Linda Fiorentino) who may be a decendant of Jesus Christ and a
smartass named Rufus (Chris Rock), unheralded as the thirteenth apostle
because he's black, the angels head to a New Jersey church for an
audience with God, who's played, as a mute, by Alanis Morisette. This
comic brainchild of Kevin Smith, the twenty-nine-year-old writer and
director of 'Clerks', 'Mall Rats', and 'Chasing Amy', is boldly funny
without ever being blasphemous. But not everyone is laughing-
especially not William A. Donohue of the Catholic League for Religious
and Civil Rights. Bob and Harvey Weinstein of Miramax had to buy the
film back from their parent company, Disney, which wanted no part of
this hot potato, and arrange alternative distribution. Good for
Miramax. Despite the rantings of Donahue, who is notably irked that
"God is played by a singer known for her nude videos and songs about
oral sex," Smith says he intends no offense: "The central message of
Christ were 'Love one another' and 'Tell other people.' 'Dogma' was my
way of spreading the word. Granted, Christ wasn't a filmaker, and he
didn't trade in dick and fart jokes, but he did tell stories to get a
point across." Here's Smith's parable to explain his intentions: "The
way my film treats the church is kind of like the girl you really like
in the first grade, and you don't know how to express yourself, so you
pull her pigtails. It's like that. Affectionately, this film pulls the
pigtails of the Catholic Church." Smith believes that Donohue is
raising a ruckus to "increase his own profile" at the expense of a
movie he hasn't even asked to see. "My film is irreverent," says Smith,
"but it's not cynical. At the end of the day here, faith saves the
world."
08.24.99 - DOGMA TO PLAY TORONTO FILM FESTIVAL...
(As Seen On News Askew)
Well, it looks like that good Eastern Canadian news that Kevin hinted about is actually what everyone had hoped! Dogma
will be featured as a "Special Presentation" at The Toronto Film Festival! Another proverbial notch in the bedpost for the
flick, which is having the honor of playing at a growing number of film festivals to rave reviews. We assume that Dogma will
be an amazingly hot ticket at the fest...
...But we've got some good news! Tickets are still available! Grab them while you can. Tickets for individual screenings
are $11.77 (Canadian) and are available at the festival box office at 444 Younge St, Toronto starting September 8. But
beware: Most festival regulars buy passes in advance, which can be redeemed for tickets starting September 2. If you dont't
have passes or coupons and want to buy individual tickets, you might find yourself shut out of popular screenings.
Passes and coupons cab be ordered through the web site or by phone (416) 968-3456.
The festival schedule is available at the box office Aug. 31st, and on the web September 1st.
Festival passes (good for 50 films) cost $278.20 (Canadian). A 10-film coupon book is $90.95, and a daytime pass (for any
25 films that start before 6pm) os $107.
Last minute rush tickets are sometimes available even for sold out films, because of no-shows. Best bet: Get in line early
outside festival theatres and hope for the best.
For those of you who try to make it into the flick and get turned away, though...Jason Lee's new flick, "Mumford", which
looks quite good, will be a gala presentation. Its Gala opening is on Saturday the 11th at 6:30 at Roy Thompson Hall.
This is a HUGE festival folks, and all the shows, showtimes, and other great stuff can be found on their
official site.
CLICK HERE TO READ ARCHIVED NEWS
|
|
 |
