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Posted: 11 Mar 2013 05:36 AM PDT

The producer of the Oscar-winning Chariots Of Fire has become an educator.

THE 1981 movie Chariots Of Fire is a highly regarded drama that won four Oscars, including one for Best Picture. It was the first film to win an Oscar for movie giant Warner Bros "in years and years, so they were happy", recalls its producer, Lord David Puttnam.

Yet Warner Bros was initially unenthusiastic about the movie that was to earn them such kudos, according to Puttnam, 72.

Rolling out the anecdotes from a career spanning many decades, he vividly remembers the initial pitch for Chariots Of Fire, which involved an early meeting with the studio's head of production.

Incredible as it may seem now, Puttnam says that this studio head told him: "We're really happy you're here but you have to do us one favour. Stop sending us s*** like this."

And then the script went straight into the wastepaper basket.

Of course, Puttnam had the last laugh. His credits among numerous others also include war drama Memphis Belle (1990), searing historical drama The Killing Fields (1984) and religious drama The Mission (1986), winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival in France in 1986.

His films have won a total of 10 Oscars and 25 Bafta (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) awards.

Puttnam was in Singapore at the invitation of Lasalle College of the Arts for the Lasalle Public Lecture Series.

There are no airs about this gentleman of the cinema and he is genial and charming as he recounts stories from his fascinating life.

He was in advertising, switched to producing films, had a disastrous stint as chairman and chief executive of Columbia Pictures from 1986 to 1988, was raised to the peerage as Baron Puttnam in 1997 and has been chancellor of Britain's Open University since 2006.

In the world of advertising, he started out as a messenger and worked his way up. At the agency Collett Dickenson Pearce, he found himself surrounded by a group of hugely talented people such as Alan Parker, then just a copywriter, and Charles Saatchi.

Parker would go on to direct the hit thriller Midnight Express (1978) and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Director for drama thriller Mississippi Burning (1988).

Saatchi co-founded with his brother, Maurice, the global advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi.

Filmmakers of that era were criticised for doing television commercials but Puttnam points out that this was the only way they could have afforded to pool together the equipment required for film.

"It was about getting resources to prove you had the talent to do bigger and better things," he says during an interview at the Fullerton Hotel.

The success of Midnight Express, which Puttnam produced, led to a contract with Warner Bros.

He describes himself as a humanist filmmaker and says: "I was never interested in special effects, science fiction, and not really interested in comedy."

Also, his films are almost always about men and there is a simple reason for that. He admits: "I don't understand women's motivations. I've been married 52 years, you would think I'd know better."

His wife Patricia Mary Jones does fashion design and they have two children.

Daughter Deborah Grossman works in the costume department for movies while son Sacha Puttnam composes music for film. For a while (1999-2002), Sacha toured with the British rock band Bush.

"I didn't see him for three years, he was touring the world playing stadiums and having his ears blasted. It's like people who were in the war, he doesn't ever talk about it," says his father with a bemused air.

While he was a capable producer, Puttnam was less adept when it came to running a studio and Columbia Pictures was sold to electronics giant Sony after his stint there.

He readily admits of his tenure that "it was probably a mistake".

Ask him what he took away from the experience and he says laughing: "I became very aware of the things I wasn't very good at."

He muses: "Sometimes it's as important to find out what you don't want to do as to find out what you do want to do. I spun my wheels for a year and a half but I was very well paid. Worse could happen to a person."

He largely retired from filmmaking in 1998 but instead of twiddling his thumbs, championed causes such as education.

He calls himself a "born-again educationist" and one of his proudest achievements is founding the National Teaching Awards in 1998, "a legacy, if you like".

Remarkably, he did all this while suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome.

He describes it thus: "It comes in bouts and the worst thing is that it comes with depression. When you're in a depression, you think it might not go away and that's the only scary thing."

He says the key to beating it is in one's attitude. He adds: "If you want to hide behind it, it can become an excuse."

Because of his condition, he is the only member who can take his jacket off in the British House of Lords as otherwise, he might pass out.

So are there any other perks to being a lord?

He says with a laugh: "I liked being Sir David, but Lord is slightly alienating, people don't know how to treat you.

"But I'm very lucky. I live on the south-west coast of Ireland and no one's ever called me Lord there. The Irish don't like lords, so it's not really an issue." – The Straits Times, Singapore/Asia News Network

Boys are back in town

Posted: 11 Mar 2013 02:35 AM PDT

The second movie has not even been released yet, but Singaporean director Jack Neo is already preparing for a second sequel to his box-office hit Ah Boys To Men.

During a promotional tour in Kuala Lumpur recently, Neo announced that Ah Boys To Men 3 is already in the works.

"I officially announce that we will bring you Episode Three for the movie," he said during a press conference in Kuala Lumpur in early March, adding that he might be roping in his long-time friends and colleagues Mark Lee and Henry Thia for the sequel.

Ah Boys To Men, Singapore's first military-themed film in 10 years, is the highest grossing Singaporean movie of all time, and was also a success in Malaysia, raking in an impressive RM1.8 million at the box-office back in December.

The second movie, Ah Boys To Men 2, was filmed back to back with the first and will be released later this week.

After his rash actions in the first movie landed him in hospital, Ken (Joshua Tan) is now a reformed man who returns to Tekong Island to continue his basic military training.

Determined to change for the better, Ken goes all out to prove himself.

However, this change in attitude from Ken also draws the ire of his fellow trainees, especially his friend Lobang (Wang Wei Liang), who thinks he is sucking up to the superiors.

Ah Boys To Men 2 also stars Noah Yap, Tosh Zhang, Maxi Lim, Richard Low and Irene Ang.

Ah Boys To Men 2 opens on Thursday.

May wedding possible for Brad and Angelina

Posted: 11 Mar 2013 01:05 AM PDT

The Moneyball star got a wedding licence at the end of February which states he and the screen beauty must now tie the knot within 90 days and if the pair do decide to get hitched in May the date could clash with his ex-wife Jennifer Aniston and her fiancé Justin Theroux's big day.

A source told The Sun newspaper, "Brad and Angelina left themselves short of time to sort out their wedding because of the licence deadline. A few months is nothing when you're planning a wedding - especially one as major as theirs."

Sources say the couple might just tie the knot in May just after the Cannes Film Festival ends in France.

Jennifer and Justin have been busy organising their wedding for months and are also believed to be planning their special day in May.

If both couples decide to get hitched in the same month it could cause big problems with the celebrity guest lists, and upset Jennifer (she actually was willing to attend her ex-hubby's wedding), should Brad and Angelina get hitche the same month she decides to walk down the isle.

"All that goodwill would go out the window if Brad's wedding date comes close to Jen's. Jennifer will see it as an attempt to upstage her and there will be a battle over Hollywood guests," says the source.

Jennifer knows they will be judged on who had the better wedding by pulling in the biggest stars. "Brad and Angelina - who raise six children together - are tentatively setting a date for after the Cannes Film Festival, which ends on 26 May, and will hold the ceremony at their £35 million Chateau Miraval mansion in the South of France."

Jennifer and Justin, on the other hand, have already picked their rings and the former Friends star has chosen her dress and rumours are rife they intend to wed in Hawaii.

(BANG Showbiz)

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Isnin, 11 Mac 2013

The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies

The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies

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