The Night Watchman

September 10th, 2007: A crime thriller of a disgraced cop who discovers corruption inside a police department and sets out on a mission to redeem himself.

What to Expect: Cop dramas are almost as old as movie making itself. The audience is always fascinated by a well woven police tale. These films usually enjoy success at the box office and the better ones will often go on to win Oscars. This is why I was so surprised that other than Live Free or Die Hard, we have not had a single major cop drama to hit the theatres recently. That is all going to change early next year when The Night Watchman comes out. This film has the pedigree to be amazing with David Ayer directing a screenplay by James Ellroy and John Riddley. Ellroy is one of the world's greatest detective story authors and Ayer has already won an Oscar for his movie Training Day. This is the first time the two are working together and the results should be pretty good.

What makes Ellroy such a great author is the fact that he makes every character feel so real. This realism comes from the fact that all stories draw inspiration from real life and this one is no exception. Watchman is about a vice cop who, after the death of his beloved wife, can only find solace at the bottom of a bottle. His life becomes cheerless, dark, and deadly until he is pulled back to reality when he is framed for a murder he did not commit. His descent closely parallels that of the author. In 1958, Ellroy's mother was murdered, which led him to spend his teens and early twenties drinking heavily, dabbling in drugs and crime, and spending much of that time either homeless or in jail. Ellroy used these experiences to create a very deep and well developed character in Tom. However, one must ask... if the script is so great, then why did it take twelve years for this project to see the light of day? One reason I can think of is that he used the OJ Simpson trial as a backdrop. Ellroy is an outspoken supporter of the LA Police Department. He believes that the cases of corruption in the department are no more than apparitions that are sensationalized by the "biased liberal media" in an irresponsible attempt to create news rather than report on it. This may have caused many studios to shy away from one of his scripts that discussed the polarizing trial and its controversial verdict.

Ellroy wrote the screenplay in 1995 soon after the OJ verdict was announced. He was quickly able to get producers Alexandra Milchan, Lucas Foster, and Erwin Stoff on board. Yet, the project stalled there. For the next 9 years they treaded the turbulent waters of Hollywood. At one point, Arnon Milchan produced Ellroy's L.A. Confidential, even though he used some of his own money just to keep it afloat. Finally The Night Watchman began to pick up steam very recently. In 2004, it was announced, that Spike Lee would direct it with the title Nightwatch for a 2005 release. That fell through, and then in 2005, Oliver Stone was rumored to direct. I am not sure how two of the most liberal directors in Hollywood, like Lee and Stone, were going to work on ultra conservative Ellroy's script. Well, Stone did not pan out and then in late 2005, David Ayer was attached to the project. Ayer and Ellroy have much in common. Ayer was kicked out by his parents as a teenager and moved to South Central LA where he got to experience the mean streets first hand. Ayer, like Ellroy, always uses LA as the setting for his crime dramas, giving them a sense of realism that can only be achieved by someone who has lived it. The two were able to secure a meager budget of twenty five million dollars and begin casting. At this point the title had been changed from Nightwatch to The Night Watchman to avoid confusion with the Russian Matrix bite-off called Night Watch. Ellroy and Ayer were able to leverage the great script and their reputations to put together a star studded cast with Keanu Reeves starring as Ludlow and Forest Whitaker as his corrupt sergeant.

Whitaker is a great actor, who is coming off his Oscar winning performance in The Last King of Scotland. Reeves, on the other hand, is probably not the best choice. I am not one of those people who outright hates Reeves, but I just do not think he is right as a macho cop. He did play a cop in Point Break and Speed, but in Point Break he needed to be an undercover surfer dude, which he is good at, and in Speed he needed to be a bomb expert. In this one he needs to be a big, intimidating street cop who can violently explode at any minute. The diminutive, soft spoken Reeves cannot intimidate a puppy, let alone LA street gangsters. Yet, contrary to my analysis, word on the set is Reeves is doing a great job and is totally believable as a street hardened cop. Another rumor from the set is that Kevin Ferderline also has a roll in this movie. This rumor was confirmed when we interviewed Amaury Nolasco, who said that Federline was on set, but he did not get to work with him. Luckily, E! has been reporting that Federline's part has been cut from the movie. I find Mr. Spears (Federline) extremely annoying, and I think he would have overshadowed a great movie with his presence, but I guess these days a cop drama needs to have a rapper. Therefore, Ayer cast Common in the movie, who at least can act unlike many of his rapper counterparts.

When all the casting was done, money became very short to the point that they could not even hire an Artistic director. Fortunately, Gabriel Beristain liked the script so much that he took a significant pay cut to work on Watchman. Shooting finally started in 2006 and was completed in only nine weeks. There was not much money left for big stunts or perks for the stars. All the actors had the same small trailers with very little bells and whistles. Money had to be saved in every aspect of filming. This spartan approach actually had an unexpected positive result. It brought the cast and crew much closer together, bringing the best out of everyone.

In Conclusion: Two guys who really know crime dramas and LA, making a movie about police corruption in LA. Sounds like a sure formula for success to me. Ayer and Ellroy took a brilliant script, small budget and questionable actors to create a masterpiece. These types of movies usually do not make that much money since it is not a movie the entire family can attend. Yet, they will still make a profit and more importantly actually turn out to be extremely entertaining and thought provoking. Chances are that you will not be seeing anything new here, but you will still get an old formula done in an extremely entertaining way. And if you hate Keanu, maybe this movie will change your mind. If nothing else, it will be worth the price of admission!

Pullen Upwards

Feature, By danny corvini, 20th November, 2007

Scott Pullen is the man booking the DJs for the Bank Hotel’s new gay night, which opens this week, and he’s a DJ with a history longer than most.

“Back in those days I was DJing at Kinselas’ Middlebar and Kylie was in the thick of her relationship with Michael Hutchence,” says Pullen, describing just one of his close encounters with celebrity. “She was in the process of growing up and Michael introduced her to this whole other side. They used to come down all the time and just hang out and sit with me.”

Pullen is a DJ whose typical calendar oscillates from playing at a gay event to doing an A-list party  this was the case the week of our interview when he was in Melbourne for both the Melbourne Cup and the gay party Crash Palace. He insists that the key to a celebrity’s heart is to just treat them like you would anyone else. “I’ve done parties for Jamie Packer and worked with INXS and The Models, and you know, they really love it when they meet people who treat them normally.”

Take the case when Keanu Reeves wrapped up filming of one of The Matrix films at Fox Studios and wanted to throw a party up in north Queensland  who you gonna call? Pullen was flown up and was looked after “very well” by the Hollywood star (wink, wink, party favours) and in turn looked after the A-list crowd sonically.

What do you play at a party like that? He just played minimal tech and all the underground party beats he’d play at a Sydney rave to the A-list party-goers, who included Brad Pitt and Jennifer Anniston. And who knows how often these people get to hear music like that? Later in the night, he was approached by a very satisfied Keanu Reeves, who brought his sleeve of personal CDs to the DJ booth and requested a few personal faves. Pullen says what ensued was “surreal”  he found himself bashing out skate punk metal to a crowd that surely must have resembled Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure.

When it comes to music his philosophy is that “there are only two types of music  good and bad, and not enough DJs take risks these days.” His open attitude to music was spawned back in ‘86-87 when he was among the very small handful of DJs still around who played at the early Hordern parties preceding the advent of house music, acid house or rave. “House music hadn’t even kicked in yet and probably didn’t kick in til ’89, so DJs were playing a mix,” he says, describing the scene. “I was playing ‘80s electronica like Depeche Mode and New Order mixed in with bands like Talking Heads and James Brown and hip hop.” But why? “If you were playing a three hour set you had to do that because there wasn’t much dance music to choose from!” he laughs. “I guess I have experienced a lot more styles of clubs and events than a lot of DJs, many just box themselves into a particular genre like vocal house or electro. There’s so much good music across so many different genres out there,” he insists. While you might hear him playing Latin tribal house at an outdoor party in Sydney, he ventures into deep progressive electro minimal tribal at the Phoenix’s Action parties, where he often plays the closing set.

On the gay scene (and he is actually straight, by the way), Pullen has held numerous residencies which includes playing the terrace of Queer Nation, he played at a Mardi Gras, ran his own nights Milk ‘n 2 Sugars, Smooch and iCandy, plays Action and promotes his own night Hazard at the Oxford on the first Saturday of every month  the December party features himself, Sveta, Sista P and Mark Murphy on the wheels (or, increasingly, the CD players). And this week Pullen helps launch a new night Boy’s Night Out at the Bank Hotel for which he books the DJs, which is a lifeline to the Newtown gay community who are struggling with the closing of the Newtown Hotel.

He laughs when I call him a ‘true metrosexual DJ’ but there is an element of truth in that statement, and he admits he prefers to play in a gay or lesbian club than a straight club because he feels more comfortable there and finds it easier to relate to people’s headspaces. Unfortunately, it does mean he occasionally comes up against punters or begruntled gay DJs who would rather a straight DJ not be on their turf  even if he has experiences of gay Sydney nightlife from before they were born. But on the positive side, he says that he gets a lot of “good feeling” from knowing that he is being booked on the gay scene because of his “musical merit” and not necessarily his sexuality.

Yet it’s the new night at the Bank Hotel that will be this week’s hot talking point. With the controversial sudden closure of the much-loved Newtown Hotel and the renovations of the Imperial which could see it closed for many months, the timing is just right for a new night to bring the inner west queer community (and its lovers) back together.

“I think it’s really sad that the Newtown has closed down and I knew people who worked there, but it has happened unfortunately and so with nowhere in the inner west for guys to go we have marketed it towards the gay male community  given that Wednesday is lesbian night. It kicks off at 7pm with one DJ per night and it will go until it runs itself into the ground!” he laughs. “We’ll find out, but when you start a new night it’s organic, so if it gets bigger then we might need to put more DJs downstairs. We might, for instance, go from vocal house earlier in the night and then move into deep progressive techy electro vibes later in the night..” He adds with a laugh: “But it is a school night!”

Boy’s Night Out at Bank Hotel opens this Thursday with DJ Jason Barry and entry is free. Forthcoming DJs will include Chip, Terry Vietheer and Alex Taylor who will play on December 9, which will also be the Bank renovation one year on party. Entry is free.

Scott Pullen also joins the line up at Summer Gay Day on December 1.

All About

There must be a dancing curse

[Snipped for Keanu]

OUT OF THE WAY Hollywood stud-puppet Keanu Reeves was socked with a lawsuit by a paparazzo for damages incurred when the actor struck him with his sports car in March. Brazilian photographer Alison Silva filed the claim Monday.

The “Matrix” star was pulling out of a parking spot at a clinic in Rancho Palos Verdes, south of Los Angeles, when he hit Silva in the knee, allegedly knocking him down. No charges were filed. Silva was transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital.

A lawyer for Reeves told the Associated Press in March that Silva was blocking Reeves’s way and that if there was a collision, it was too minor to have caused injury.

Keanu's Not So Excellent Lawsuit

Posted Nov 5th 2007 8:01PM by TMZ StaffFiled under: Celebrity Justice

Keanu Reeves has been smacked with a lawsuit seeking unspecified damages, courtesy of a paparazzo he rammed with his Porsche.

TMZ has the court papers filed just hours ago by Alison Silva, a Brazilian snapper who says the "Matrix" star struck him (yup, Alison's a guy) in the knee on March 19, 2007 -- outside a clinic in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.

At the time, Keanu was reportedly handcuffed, but it is unclear if he was charged.

'Earth' welcomes Jennifer Connelly

Keanu Reeves attached to Fox's sci-fi remakeBy TATIANA SIEGEL,MICHAEL FLEMING

Jennifer Connelly has signed on and Kathy Bates is negotiating to star in "The Day the Earth Stood Still" for 20th Century Fox. Keanu Reeves has already boarded the sci-fi remake.Scott Derrickson will direct the pic as his follow-up to "The Exorcism of Emily Rose." Ryne Douglas Pearson wrote the screenplay; David Scarpa penned a recent draft.

Story kicks off as aliens land on Earth carrying a message for all humans: Live in peace or be destroyed. Connelly is set to portray Helen Benson, the role Patricia Neal played in the 1951 original.

Fox has set a December start date in Vancouver.

Erwin Stoff is producing alongside Derrickson's partner Paul Boardman, who also produced "Emily Rose."

Connelly is shooting the ensemble comedy "He's Just Not That Into You" for New Line. She will then segue to "Day the Earth Stood Still."

Reeves Dating Director's Daughter?

Movie hunk Keanu Reeves has reportedly fallen for the daughter of his "Something's Gotta Give" director Nancy Meyer.

The "Point Break" star was spotted kissing and cuddling pretty Hallie Meyers-Shyer after lunching with her recently in New York.

The new couple enjoyed two dinner dates in two days late last month and fellow diners at Pastis insist the pair was "very flirtatious."

Point Break 2 To Begin Filming Next Year

November 1st, 2007 by Lucy
In Sections: Film News, News

Back in the summer it was announced that Peter Iliff (Patriot Games) had signed on to write and direct a sequel to Point Break. It has now been announced that Point Break 2 will begin production in mid-2008 in Southeast Asia.

Iliff wrote the first movie, but the second film will see his directional debut with this $20-$30 million sequel.

Point Break 2 follows the story of an ex-pro surfer who enlists in the US Navy and is recruited to track down a criminal gang based in Southeast Asia. Patrick Swayze’s character Bodhi apparently didn’t die in the giant wave at the end of the first film - is he behind the new criminal gang? It’s unlikely that Keanu Reeves will be involved in the sequel.

It has been speculated that Point Break 2 was given the go ahead after Edgar Wright’s recent Hot Fuzz made the film a big focal point. I suspect this maybe the case.