Florist to the stars

By MICHELE LIAN

“It’s not as glamorous as it looks. My mind is usually so busy that I don’t have time to mingle with anybody,” he confesses.

Razak can rattle off the favourite blooms of celebrities he’s worked with the most.

“Sela Ward loves lilies. Cameron Diaz loves Cala lilies. Keanu Reeves’ mother Patricia Taylor prefers sunflowers.”

The 43-year-old floral designer is now back in Malaysia to run his own show in Kuala Lumpur, having spent the last 18 years working alongside celebrity event designer Kevin Lee in Chicago, Illinois, and then Beverly Hills, California.

He now runs Flora etc ? Weddings & Events at The Ampwalk in Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur.

The list of events that he’s worked on would make any resume look stellar. Among them: the weddings of Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, and Drew Barrymore and Tom Green; The Emmy and Academy Awards after parties; farewell bashes for the cast and crew of Friends and Frasier; and the premieres of The Lord of The Rings, Charlie’s Angels, Spiderman, The Stepford Wives and Shrek.

“I worked mostly behind the scenes,” says the Johor native modestly.

For someone who’s worked with the glitz and excess of Hollywood for so long, he seems refreshingly down to earth and still very much Malaysian in his mannerisms, peppering his sentences with Bahasa Malaysia.

“It was just another job. It’s all Hollywood and all very superficial,” he says.

The Matrix: Path of Neo

Developer: Shiny; Publisher: Atari
Preview by Gunner (23 November 2005)

WAKE UP, NEO! FREE yourself from the programme. It is the time of the "One". Yes, it's your chance to take on the role of Neo and play a serious role in the storyline of all three movies as you unravel the secrets of the Matrix.

The original Matrix movie broke plenty of new ground when it was first released and the trilogy has also spawned some good tie-in games. The Matrix: Path of Neo however is likely to be the best of them all. Featuring all the main characters - including Neo, Morpheus, Trinity and Agent Smith - the game places you in the role of Neo and allows you to participate in the most pivotal and exciting bits of all three movies.

The Matrix: Path of Neo will also include footage from all three movies as well as sequences from The Animatrix. To ensure a seamless transition from game to movie footage the developers have made considerable effort to ensure the main characters retain accurate likenesses of the movies' original actors. The aim here is to deliver a complete Matrix experience.

That's not all though - the game will also come packed with special features such as character profiles and behind-the-scenes footage. This has all the hallmarks of a "must have" title for Matrix fans.

Scheduled for release here on 24th November, fans can expect the following features:

Once again blurring the lines between Hollywood and interactive entertainment, Path of Neo will feature the likenesses of all of the films' key actors - including Keanu Reeves (Neo), Laurence Fishburne (Morpheus), Carrie-Ann Moss (Trinity), Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith) and Jada Pinkett-Smith (Niobe).

To truly immerse the gamer in the Matrix universe, the game will feature a 'Director's Cut' of the original movie footage from all three films and The Animatrix as cinematic sequences to progress the story told from Neo's perspective. An exclusive to Path of Neo, the footage was edited by Zach Staenberg, the Academy Award winning editor of The Matrix, working side by side with the Wachowski Brothers.

Re-creating the incredible ambience of being in the Matrix, Path of Neo will feature a full orchestral score playing in surround sound, developed to follow the action of the game. In addition, the game's soundtrack will feature original songs by the bands that were featured in the Matrix films.

The player will use martial arts, medieval weapons and guns (lots of guns) to take on a variety of enemies, such as heavily armed SWAT officers; Agents of the Matrix, including Agent Smith; and Exiles in the employ of the Merovingian. To help prepare for these battles, there are several training levels which Neo must complete.

The game will have enhanced 'Bullet Time' special effects from the films and allow gamers to dodge bullets, jump off walls and defy gravity and logic to recreate its most memorable scenes.

To re-create Neo's incredible range of moves Path of Neo will also feature a more sophisticated martial arts engine to give gamers the true feeling of being "the One".

HOLLYWOOD STARS 'SCARED' OF AMERICAN PSYCHO ELLIS

KEANU REEVES, TOM CRUISE and JOHNNY DEPP are too "scared" to take roles in AMERICAN PSYCHO author BRET EASTON ELLIS's latest novel adaptation.

Ellis, whose notorious suave serial killer PATRICK BATEMAN was played with huge critical acclaim by CHRISTIAN BALE in 2000, is baffled by stars' reluctance to appear in new offering LUNAR PARK - as the writer himself.

Ellis is even prepared to stay away from the movie set if fears of his irreverent behaviour or bisexuality are the reason behind the actors' reluctance to accept the role.

He says, "I actually mention Keanu Reeves in the book and really wanted him to play me. He said he'd loved the book, but refused.

"It was the same with Tom Cruise, and Johnny Depp also said no but only because he has already played a writer.

"I don't know what they're all scared of - I won't be turning up on set."

ComingSoon,net

In a Los Angeles Times article talking about the performances of Sony's recent films, the newspaper reports that the studio will no longer make The 8th Voyage of Sinbad, which Keanu Reeves was set to star in.

"Sinbad" would have been directed by Rob Cohen and produced by Neal Moritz. Cohen's $135-million Stealth was a summer flop, grossing just $32.1 million in domestic theaters and generating a Sony loss of almost $50 million. "It didn't seem like a good idea for us to make that movie after 'Stealth,' " Pascal said of "Sinbad."

The article also talks about Sony's big screen I Dream of Jeannie adaptation. It says that the studio has not been able to settle on a specific point of view or lead actress, considering the very different choices of Jennifer Garner, Lindsay Lohan or Kate Hudson in the starring role.

The Lake House

The Lake House is a re-imagining of the Korean film Siworae, aka Il Mare. That 2000 release was directed by Hyun-seung Lee from a screenplay by Ji-Na Yeo. Now, Pulitzer Prize Award-winning playwright David Auburn has reworked the tale for North American audiences, with Argentian director Alejandro Agresti (Valentin) at the helm.

Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves reunite for the first time since Speed in the romantic drama. Bullock will portray a lonely doctor who begins to exchange love letters with an architect who is frustrated by both his job and his situation. Soon, the two realize that they are actually living in the same house two years apart, and their mysterious mailbox is somehow bridging the time between them.

Along with Bullock and Reeves, Christopher Plummer and Shohreh Aghdashloo will also have key roles. (Kim Hollis/BOP)

BBC: Bulgaria's Harry Potter Star Big Fan of Keanu Reeves

Lifestyle: 10 November 2005, Thursday.

Although educated in London, Bulgaria's Stanislav Ianevski fitted the Krum bill right down to his nationality and his love of keeping fit, BBC wrote in an article dedicated to the stars of the newest movie for Harry Potter.

There is acting in Ianevski's blood, his grandmother was a professional actress in black and white films in Bulgaria. Ianevski, 20, was plucked from obscurity to play Krum, the Bulgarian Quidditch hero of the Durmstrang Institute.

"The Bulgarian film industry was very strong but the money has gone now since the fall of communism and not so many films are made there," said Ianevski.

He insists the newcomers were made to feel welcome on the set by the Potter veterans. "I met Emma (Watson) first when Mike (Newell) introduced me to her when I went into the studio for the first time. I felt as if I had known everyone for years even though I was entering something new. It was a really good family atmosphere," Ianevski shares with BBC.

Although this was his first screen role he has his sights set high. "I have always followed Keanu Reeves, right from the beginning until he reached the top - I would like to do the same."

But Ianevski was disappointed when he read the sixth Harry Potter book and found his character did not make a return to the action.

"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" will be screened in Bulgaria on November 25, with the reported attendance of Yanevski himself.

That would be the first time the London-resided star will introduce himself to the Bulgarian public.

New A Scanner Darkly Movie Photos

Date: 2005-Nov-4
From: Eonline
(The detail is here)

New A Scanner Darkly Movie Photos

Director Richard Linklater Movie A Scanner Darkly
News Genre : Sci-Fi Movie News Drama Movie News

Warner Independent provided us with 3 new movie photos for Richard Linklater's upcoming Sci-Fi movie "A Scanner Darkly", starring Keanu Reeves, . The movie is set in suburban Orange County, California in a future where America has lost the war on drugs. When one reluctant undercover cop is ordered to start spying on his friends, he is launched on a paranoid journey into the absurd, where identities and loyalties are impossible to decode.

You can view all pics in our A Scanner Darkly gallery right here.

It is a cautionary tale of drug use based on the novel by Philip K. Dick and his own experiences. Like a graphic novel come to life, "A Scanner Darkly" will use live action photography overlaid with an advanced animation process (interpolated rotoscoping) to create a haunting, highly stylized vision of the future. The technology, first employed in Richard Linklater’s 2001 film "Waking Life," has evolved to produce even more emotional impact and detail.

Keanu Reeves Designs a Line of Items for Charity

Keanu Reeves, The Black Eyed Peas, Hilary Duff and Lindsay Lohan are among a host of stars who have teamed up to personally design a line of items to benefit various charities.

The designs, which are featured on T-shirts and greeting cards, will be donated to charities of the celebrities' choice.

Sylvester Stallone, whose designed items will benefit the Heart of a Child Foundation, says, "The whole concept is such a heartfelt idea."

Steven Tyler, Anthony Kiedis and David Arquette are also among the stars who have added their own artistic designs to the items, which have been created in partnership with Angelwear, and are for sale online and at Bloomingdale's.

Photo Copyright Getty Images

Copyright World Entertainment News Network 2005

STARS DESIGN A RANGE OF ITEMS FOR CHARITY

The BLACK EYED PEAS, HILARY DUFF, LINDSAY LOHAN and KEANU REEVES are among a host of stars who have teamed up to personally design a range of items to benefit various charities.

The designs, which are featured on tops, T-shirts and greeting cards, will be donated to charities of the celebrities' choice.

SYLVESTER STALLONE, whose designed items will benefit the Heart of a Child Foundation, says, "The whole concept is such a heartfelt idea."

STEVEN TYLER, ANTHONY KIEDIS and DAVID ARQUETTE are also among the stars who have added their own artistic designs to the items, which have been created in partnership with Angelwear, and are for sale online and at US department store Bloomingdale's.