Millions Movie

Having first bounded onto the international filmmaking scene with the twisted money-mystery "Shallow Grave" and the drug-soaked excitement of the epoch-defining "Trainspotting," British director Danny Boyle has subsequently continued to leap from genre to genre, style to style. As a follow-up to his terrifyingly scabby, digital-video horror film "28 Days Later," a surprise hit, he has reemerged with the sweetly endearing, kid-friendly "Millions."

The long-awaited movie museum in Hollywood moves another step closer to fruition with the announcement today by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences that it has raised its first $100 million in its goal to generate $250 million toward the new institution. The academy also announced its vision for the museum, slated to open in 2016, by architects Renzo Piano and Zoltan Pali, which will include the complete restoration of the old May Co. building -- a 1938 Streamline Moderne structure -- located on Wilshire and Fairfax.

The long-awaited movie museum in Hollywood moves another step closer to fruition with the announcement today by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences that it has raised its first $100 million in its goal to generate $250 million toward the new institution. The academy also announced its vision for the museum, slated to open in 2016, by architects Renzo Piano and Zoltan Pali, which will include the complete restoration of the old May Co. building -- a 1938 Streamline Moderne structure -- located on Wilshire and Fairfax.

These days, the term "young Hollywood" conjures up images of pouty, plastic starlets being chased down Robertson Boulevard by paparazzi and probation officers, but recently the soulful side of young Hollywood made an appearance at a corner deli on Franklin Avenue. "Hi Joe," Ellen Page said with a faraway smile as Joseph Gordon-Levitt gave her a hug. Page and Gordon-Levitt are costars in Christopher Nolan's "Inception," the perception-bending heist movie that opens Friday amid high expectations and strong early reviews.

Walt Disney Co. has sold 125,000 digital copies of its movies in less than a week via Apple Computer Inc.'s iTunes store, generating $1 million, Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger said. Disney expects revenue of $50 million in the first year from its iTunes partnership, Iger said at an investment conference in New York sponsored by Goldman Sachs.

The Inglewood City Council has approved a proposal to develop a $24-million complex that will house a 12-screen theater, retail establishments and a fast-food court in the downtown area. After rejecting the proposal six months ago, the council now includes two new members. The only dissenting vote this week was from Councilwoman Judy Dunlap. The proposal was adopted on a 4-1 vote.

The weather outside may have been frightful, but the movie business continued hot during the weekend. It was a strong encore to the busy week between Christmas and New Year's Day, which ranked among the best ever. Film industry estimates place the weekend's ticket sales at between $76 million and $78 million, down, as expected, from the giant $94 million collected for the weekend between the holidays.

In his third week of filming "The Addams Family," just when he thought he'd finally hit his stride, first-time director Barry Sonnenfeld suddenly felt the room spinning crazily, like a topsy-turvy carnival ride, as he toppled to the ground. He had fainted. "I remember I was talking with Ron Lynch, an Orion executive who was paid to worry about our budget, and rightfully so the way we'd been going," recalls Sonnenfeld during a lunch break on the set.

An alien invasion paved the way for the best pre-opening box-office receipts in motion picture history, as 20th Century Fox's "Independence Day" took in $11.1 million, tripling the previous record. Some 68% of the theaters exhibiting the film reported sell-out screenings throughout Tuesday night. The $70-million sci-fi movie, which officially opened Wednesday, kicked off with preview screenings in 2,433 theaters. The previous pre-opening record holder was 1990's "Die Hard 2," which earned $3.

After a spirited trial that provided a rare look inside the convoluted world of Hollywood bookkeeping, Art Buchwald's allegation that Paramount Pictures stole his story and converted it into the $300-million Eddie Murphy film "Coming to America" was handed over to a judge Thursday to decide. Superior Court Judge Harvey Schneider, who admitted from the bench he is something of a "film buff," said he probably will rule next week on a case that unfolded as a plagiaristic whodunit.

The money keeps flowing into Hollywood. Independent film executives Mark Gill and Neil Sacker said Wednesday that they raised $200 million to form the Film Department, a production company for modestly budgeted movies. "There's a perfect storm of favorable conditions for our new business," said Gill, former president of Warner Independent Pictures and Miramax Film.

Walt Disney Co. has sold 125,000 digital copies of its movies in less than a week via Apple Computer Inc.'s iTunes store, generating $1 million, Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger said. Disney expects revenue of $50 million in the first year from its iTunes partnership, Iger said at an investment conference in New York sponsored by Goldman Sachs.

Having first bounded onto the international filmmaking scene with the twisted money-mystery "Shallow Grave" and the drug-soaked excitement of the epoch-defining "Trainspotting," British director Danny Boyle has subsequently continued to leap from genre to genre, style to style. As a follow-up to his terrifyingly scabby, digital-video horror film "28 Days Later," a surprise hit, he has reemerged with the sweetly endearing, kid-friendly "Millions."

A decade after a new movie theater was proposed as the centerpiece of a downtown Oxnard revival, a 14-screen complex is finally moving forward as demolition began last week on an old bank building on the theater site. "I've been to three different [theater] ribbon cuttings," said Gloria Stuart, owner of BG's Coffee Shop, across A Street from the planned theater. "But I think it's really going to happen this time."

In one of Hollywood's biggest book auctions ever, Universal Pictures has agreed to pay as much as $9 million for the rights to two of Dr. Seuss' classics: "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Oh, the Places You'll Go." The company negotiated the deal with the widow of Theodor Geisel--otherwise known as Dr. Seuss--on behalf of Imagine Films, Universal's biggest product supplier, which plans to produce full-length, live-action movie versions of each of the books.

"Godzilla," with a $44.5 million Friday-Sunday gross, jumped into the record books as the eighth-highest three-day weekend debut of all time. All told, "Godzilla" raked in an estimated $55.5 million for the four-day Memorial Day weekend, and $74 million in its first six days, including Tuesday night previews. The monster film established a pattern closer to the $180-million grosser "Mission: Impossible" than $230-million "The Lost World."

A decade after a new movie theater was proposed as the centerpiece of a downtown Oxnard revival, a 14-screen complex is finally moving forward as demolition began last week on an old bank building on the theater site. "I've been to three different [theater] ribbon cuttings," said Gloria Stuart, owner of BG's Coffee Shop, across A Street from the planned theater. "But I think it's really going to happen this time."

Coca-Cola Co., which already owns Columbia Pictures Industries, said it signed definitive agreements Monday to buy a host of major television properties and a fledgling movie business privately owned by Norman Lear and A. Jerrold Perenchio for $485 million in cash and stock.

The Inglewood City Council has approved a proposal to develop a $24-million complex that will house a 12-screen theater, retail establishments and a fast-food court in the downtown area. After rejecting the proposal six months ago, the council now includes two new members. The only dissenting vote this week was from Councilwoman Judy Dunlap. The proposal was adopted on a 4-1 vote.

An alien invasion paved the way for the best pre-opening box-office receipts in motion picture history, as 20th Century Fox's "Independence Day" took in $11.1 million, tripling the previous record. Some 68% of the theaters exhibiting the film reported sell-out screenings throughout Tuesday night. The $70-million sci-fi movie, which officially opened Wednesday, kicked off with preview screenings in 2,433 theaters. The previous pre-opening record holder was 1990's "Die Hard 2," which earned $3.