Movie News: 9/11, Passion, Hellboy 2

The Weinstein Brothers are no amateurs when it comes to marketing and distribution so it comes as no surprise that things are looking up for Fahrenheit 9/11 despite the recent ?controversy.? There has been some dispute about the details, but Disney has agreed to sell the film to the Weinsteins who will in turn find distribution. Michael Moore?s cries of censorship seem hallow now that there is a waiting list of studios trying to pick up a piece of his documentary. That list is rumored to include, Lions Gate, Focus and Newmarket. Miramax?s marketing was pushing for a July 2 release, but there's still no firm confirmation on a release date.

Speaking of controversial movies, Fox Home Entertainment announced an August 31 release date for The Passion DVD. The expectations are very high for Icon and Fox. Variety reports that the studios expect to bring in about as much revenue with video sales as The Passion grossed domestically in theaters (that would be around $370 million). Finding Nemo was the 2003 video champion with close to $400 million in DVD and VHS sales.

Guillermo del Toro is ready for another Hellboy. The producers claim that the relatively low cost of the movie makes the sequel prospects look very promising. ?Relatively low? does not mean much in comparison to those summer movies with $200+ million price tags (LMI has Hellboy budgeted at over $65 million). Hellboy has grossed just around $60 million so far in the US and Canada.

NC-17 has never been more popular. After a long draught of movies carrying the dreaded MPAA rating, Dirty Shame joined Young Adam and The Dreamers to become the third NC-17 movie in 2004. Showgirls still holds the record for the highest grossing NC-17 movie with over $20 million domestically.

Critics have been praising Troy for its visuals but have been much more critical on its stories and casting. Many remarked on the critical omission of the Greek gods, who are completely absent in the movie, as a major departure from the original millenniums old epic poem. Another change is the inclusion of the infamous Trojan Horse. The wooden horse does not appear in the original Iliad, but try telling that to average moviegoer. With the Hollywood Reporter predicting that Troy will come in ?just north of the $40 million mark? this weekend, it might be unlikely we would ever get to see The Odyssey made into a $200 million sequel (that?s the poem where the Trojan Horse really shows up in).