RULES: Fill out the form below to enter but also tell us how you will make this a romantic night and what loved one you will be bringing with you(husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend). The studio is trying to make this about Valentine’s day and have couples at this screening so please keep this in mind. There will be other screenings you can enter later if you are not a couple and trying to make a romantic night out of this!

RULES: Fill out the form below to enter but also tell us how you will make this a romantic night and what loved one you will be bringing with you(husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend). The studio is trying to make this about Valentine’s day and have couples at this screening so please keep this in mind. There will be other screenings you can enter later if you are not a couple and trying to make a romantic night out of this!

The first suit has been filed by Eric Ryder who claims that he entered into an agreement with Cameron’s production company, Lightstorm Entertainment, to develop a movie based on his story ‘KRZ 2068.’ According to the suit, the Ryder’s film project was envisioned as

an environmentally themed 3-D epic about a corporation’s colonization and plundering of a distant moon’s lush and wondrous natural setting.

After two years of work Ryder also claims that Lightstorm squashed the project stating there would be little to no interest in an environmentally themed science fiction feature film. Then of course Lightstorm began work on ‘Avatar.’ In the suit Ryder says that Lightstorm

liberally and substantially uses material that fell within the LEI-Ryder agreement

Cameron completely denies lifting anything from Ryder’s project and that he alone came up with and wrote the ideas for ‘Avatar.’ Ryder however begs to differ and is claiming breach of implied contract, fraud and deceit, negligent misrepresentation and other infractions, Ryder is seeking unspecified contract damages, tort damages, punitive damages and that he be awarded the profits

that defendants obtained from their wrongful acts

Hot on the heels of Ryder’s lawsuit is Bryant Moore with a lawsuit of his own claiming very similar things. Moore has written two screen plays, ‘Aquatica’ and ‘Descendants: The Pollination’ and claims Cameron used the two screenplays as the basis for ‘Avatar.’ Moore points out various similarities, including bioluminescent flora/plant life, unbreathable atmospheres, matriarch support of hero vs. heroine, spiritual connections to environment and reincarnation, appearance of mist in scene, sunlight to moonlight, crackling from gargantuan foliage, blue skin/green skin and battle scene on limbs/branches.

Cameron’s attorney, Bert Fields has said in response to the allegations

Mr. Cameron was demonstrably the author of ‘Avatar,’ we can prove that, and we intend to prove that in court

Feilds has also stated that any plagerism on the part of James Cameron is

completely without merit

While the amount Ryder is seeking in compensation for his suit has not been disclosed Moore is seeking $2.5 billion dollars from Cameron. $1.5 billion in actual damages and more than $1 billion in punitives which would be almost the total box office gross for ‘Avatar’ which raked in $2.78 billion world wide.

The cases are interesting because had ‘Avatar’ not made so much money would Ryder or Moore be crying foul? If ‘Avatar’ had been a complete box office failure would either of these men be standing up to claim a failed movie as their ideas? It’s easy to target the king of the mountain but I doubt Cameron has anything to worry about, with earnings in the billions he has the money to hire the best lawyers money can buy. Chances are both Ryder and Moore will look to settle out of court for a nice payday but again with the legal expertise Cameron can afford I’d be surprised if they even got that.

So what is your opinion, do you think Cameron stole the ideas or do you think ‘Avatar’ is 100% his creation? Personally, I think if anyone should sue it’s Ferngully but that’s just me.

Source : The Wrap, TMZ

James Cameron is a big proponent of 3D. This is probably because he will do anything visually to take away from the fact that he’s a terrible screenwriter, without the help of others. The reason I say that is he always had other writers working with him on the screenplay for “True Lies”, “Aliens”, and “The Terminator”. Those are all examples of entertaining movies by an incredibly talented director. The movies that he has written solely on his own, such as “Titanic”, “The Abyss”, and “Avatar”, just don’t seem to hold up over time.

Here is the first trailer for the 3D release of “Titanic”. Will the effects take away from some of the horrible dialogue? It remains to be seen.

There is no doubt that Cameron is a world-class director. But, like many other extremely talented directors that write their own movies (cough Lucas cough Shyamalan cough), Cameron needs to be willing to work on other writer’s work. I don’t want to completely tear “Titanic” to shreds as there are plenty of things to admire about it, but the screenplay simply isn’t one of them. The initial emotional attack of the story and the sheer magnitude of what your eyes were seeing disguised how corny and cheesy the things those actors were saying are. If this is the first time you’ll see “Titanic”, you may not notice it. With each additional viewing, it becomes more and more apparent of how poor the screenplay actually is.

The release, which marks the 100th anniversary of the Titanic setting sail (April 10th), will present the film in 3D for the first time ever.

Written, directed and produced by Cameron, “TITANIC” is the second highest grossing movie of all time. It is one of only three films to have received a record 11 Academy Awards® including Best Picture and Best Director; and launched the careers of stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.

Called “A spectacular demonstration of what modern technology can contribute to dramatic storytelling” by Variety upon its release in 1997, the long in the works 3D conversion is being overseen by Cameron and his Lightstorm producing partner Jon Landau who produced the hit movie.

Said Cameron, “There’s a whole generation that’s never seen ‘TITANIC’ as it was meant to be seen, on the big screen. And this will be ‘TITANIC’ as you’ve never seen it before, digitally re-­‐mastered at 4K and painstakingly converted to 3D. With the emotional power intact and the images more powerful than ever, this will be an epic experience for fans and newcomers alike.”

“This new presentation of Paramount’s top-­‐grossing film is particularly special because 2012 is the 100th anniversary of our studio. Paramount has had the pleasure of introducing audiences to some of the all-­‐time classics of cinema during that century of moviemaking and we cannot think of a better way to mark the occasion than with this re-­‐release of ‘TITANIC’,” said Brad Grey, Chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures.

Commented Fox Filmed Entertainment Chairmen and CEOs, Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman: “Our 30-­‐plus year relationship with Jim Cameron and Lightstorm has been enormously rewarding, from ‘Aliens’ to ‘Avatar’, and the global phenomenon of ‘TITANIC’ remains one of the greatest sources of pride in our history. We are pleased to allow a new generation of audiences to experience the film in its brilliant digital restoration in 3D.”

via: Paramount Press Release

It’s actually Pacificor that approached me,” explained Lin. “They had an idea…but I guess a lot of studios didn’t go for it or something happened… So then, they came back to me and they said, ‘D’you have an idea?’ and, I said ‘I have THE idea!

Technology has grown so much that there’s a whole idea of gluttony. Sometimes you get carried away because you can have a camera go through the window, but do I need a camera go through the window? Those choices are up to the director, for Terminator, it’s still very early on, but I don’t want to make a movie where it’s not just showing off. I want to support the human elements. If you don’t have humanity, then it just becomes robots

After the Christian Bale screaming prequel, the rights to the Terminator franchise got tangled up in some legal troubles and since those rights will return James Cameron in 2018, there is an understandable desire to milk this cash cow before Cameron regains control. Enter the Santa Barbara-based hedge fund Pacificor who nabbed up the rights for $29.5 million and hired on Justin Lin to sit in the director’s chair.

After two sequels, one of which was just a complete retread of ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ (‘Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines’) and a one that is considered a flop (‘Terminator: Salvation’) does Lin, with the help of a returning Arnold, have what it takes to bring Terminator back to the forefront of action movies before the rights return to Cameron? Only time will tell… and since time travel is a key component to Terminator that throws everything up in the air.

If the 3D puts you into the picture, the higher frame rate takes the glass out of the window

Hopefully this new take on Showscan won’t be a multi-decade spanning process like his 3D technology.

Even after the much ballyhooed – at least in genre circles – of the melding of director Guillermo Del Toro, producer and current 3-D deity James Cameron, Tom Cruise and one of author H.P. Lovecraft’s best stories, Universal Studios has decided not to go forward with the proposed big-budget adaptation of “At the Mountains of Madness”.

The story first broke late Monday afternoon when Deadline reported that the plug had been pulled on the project – this after Ain’t It Cool News and other outlets had been reporting that one of the film’s producers had confirmed a start date for shooting.

What followed was much weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Personally – yes, I’m bummed that it’s not going to be made but I understand the reason behind it. When you’re looking to spend 150 million dollars of someone else’s money, you’d better make damn sure you give the best chance possible for that person – or in this case, the studio – to make its money back. As described by Del Toro and others, the film was to be horror on a grand scale and unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.

Therein lies the problem.

The movie going public wants something familiar and they aren’t willing to take chances on anything new and possibly challenging. At least that’s what the studios think. And the certainly don’t want anything that will keep away the prized teen demographic. Del Toro had always said this movie would be “R ” rated and, in the end, that is what killed the project. Sadly, until that kind of thinking changes, these “Mountains” might never see the light of day (for a more detailed and insightful take on this, check out Drew McWeeny’s take on this at HitFlix).

As for me, I will head back into the shadows and wait for the stars to be right once again.

EXTENDED COLLECTOR’S EDITION

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Announces Avatar Blu-ray and DVD Global Release Dates

Three-Disc Set of the Worldwide Theatrical and Home Entertainment Phenomenon Contains Even More of the AVATAR Experience with Over Eight Hours of Never-Before-Seen Material and In-Depth Exploration into the World of Pandora!

Director James Cameron is unlocking the secrets of Pandora and taking fans on a guided tour of his vision with the highly anticipated release of AVATAR Extended Collector’s Edition on Blu-ray and DVD releasing November 16th in North America and rolling out internationally from November 15th. These exclusive Extended Collector’s Editions come with iconic, collectible packaging to get fans to experience Pandora like never before. With three versions of the film, AVATAR fans will get an all-new extended cut of the film and hours of never-before seen material including over 45 minutes of amazing deleted scenes!

“I told our team — let’s do the ultimate box set of Avatar, with everything in it the fans could possibly want. There’s an extended length cut that’s sixteen minutes longer, plus documentaries, behind the scenes featurettes, artwork and over 45 minutes of deleted scenes. Everything worth putting into a special edition is in this set,” said James Cameron.

The three-disc AVATAR Extended Collector’s Edition Blu-ray and Theatrical Special Edition Re-Release DVD will both feature the original theatrical release, a special edition re-release, family audio track with all objectionable language removed and new collector’s extended cut with sixteen more minutes including an exclusive alternate opening Earth scene. Viewers will journey to the depths of Pandora with filmmakers during “Capturing Avatar“ an in-depth feature length documentary covering the 16 year filmmaker journey including all new interviews with James Cameron, Jon Landau and cast and crew exploring James Cameron’s unique vision for the film seen by more than 310 million people worldwide. The Oscar and Golden Globe winning epic is the highest grossing film of all time, taking in over $2.7 billion in worldwide box office. It is also the top-selling Blu-ray disc of all time.

The AVATAR Extended Collector’s Edition Blu-ray will also have even more bonus material and interactive viewing. Through the unparalleled, interactive technology of Blu-ray, fans can dive further into the world of the Na’vi and experience the #1 international sensation from behind the scenes, with a “master class” on the production of the film. Leveraging the interactivity of Blu-ray, viewers can experience the full film in three stages of production: Performance Capture, Template (1990’s video game version) and Final as well as a composite of all stages in “Pandora’s Box”. This will be supported with interviews by Jim Cameron and the filmmakers and serve as a “master class” on the making of AVATAR.

Disc One

· Original Theatrical Version

· Special Edition Re-Release

· Collector’s Extended Cut

o 16 more minutes and exclusive alternate opening

Family Audio Track (All Objectionable Language Removed)

· Original Theatrical Release

· Special Edition Re-release

Disc Two

· “Capturing Avatar“ An in-depth feature length documentary with James Cameron, Jon Landau and cast and crew

· Deleted Scenes – including over 45 minutes of new never-before-seen deleted scenes

· Production Materials

Disc Three

· Open “Pandora’s Box” and go deeper into the filmmaker process

· Interactive Scene Deconstruction: Explore the various stages of production through 3 different viewing modes

· Production Shorts: 17 featurettes covering performance capture, scoring the film, 3D fusion camera, stunts and much more

· Avatar Archives including original scriptment, 300 page screenplay and the extensive Pandorapedia

· BD-live Portal with additional bonus materials

Disc One

· Original Theatrical Version

· Special Edition Re-release

· Collector’s Extended Cut

o 16 more minutes and exclusive alternate opening

Disc Two

· Original Theatrical Version

· Special Edition Re-release

· Collector’s Extended Cut

Disc Three

· “Capturing Avatar“ An in-depth feature length documentary with James Cameron, Jon Landau and cast and crew

· Deleted Scenes – including over 45 minutes of new never-before-seen deleted scenes

Enter the ULTIMATE AVATAR SWEEPSTAKES at www.AvatarSweeps.com for a chance to win $50,000 and daily limited edition instant-win prizes!