By Romeo San Vicente
Lane and Broderick are movie 'Producers'
It wouldn't have been the same without them, really, and now both Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick have smartly signed on to star in the film version of the Broadway musical "The Producers." The hit show was suffering a little at the box office after the two exited, only to surge again when they returned for a second go-round, so the prospect of committing the show to film without its beloved stars had kept the project in limbo. Fortunately, the money was right (each is getting somewhere in the mid-seven-figure range for his role) and so was the timing, with cameras scheduled to roll on the Universal picture in early 2005 – a real, live "Springtime for Hitler," if you will. Expect to enjoy the finished product for Christmas of the same year.
Nick Stahl does the 'Twist'
It's official: Movies about young gay street hustlers are now their own indie genre film. The latest to join the list – which includes hits like "My Own Private Idaho" and misses like the deservedly little-seen "Johns" and "Speedway Junky" – is "Twist." The film stars Nick Stahl ("Terminator 3" and HBO's "Carnivale") as Dodge. As in Artful Dodger. As in "Oliver Twist." That's right, folks, it's an adaptation of the Dickens classic, re-imagined as a tale of rough trade on the streets of Montreal. The movie also stars up-and-coming Canadian actor Joshua Close as Oliver, and was written and directed by Canadian actor Jacob Tierney in his first time behind the camera. Picked up by edgy independent distributor Strand Releasing, it should arrive in theaters sometime this year and maybe bring new meaning to the classic line, "Please sir, I want some more."
'La Cage Aux Folles,' part five
Talk about an evolution. "La Cage Aux Folles" was a play that became a hit French movie that became a Broadway musical that became a hit Robin Williams movie. What's left? A return to Broadway, of course. The perennially popular tale of two gay male lovers – one of whom is a drag performer – and their visiting son, his fiancee, and her conservative parents will get the revival treatment from the Jerry Team: director Jerry Zaks, choreographer Jerry Mitchell, and composer Jerry Herman. The three will collaborate to bring the show back for the beginning of the 2004 season (and a Best Revival Tony Award, no doubt). But no word yet on how much involvement Tony-winning book-man Harvey Fierstein will have in the project, nor on casting. You'll just have to hold onto your wigs for that.
Screen 'Sisters'
If you were fortunate enough to see the wonderful documentary "Living with Pride: Ruth Ellis at 100," you saw not only an intimate portrait of a fascinating century-old lesbian, but also the vibrant direction of its helmer, Yvonne Welbon. The filmmaker's next project is an hour-long documentary called "Sisters in Cinema," an overview of African-American women directors and the paths they forge through a film industry where there are few women of color behind the camera. It includes interviews with people like Cheryl Dunye, Julie Dash, Kasi Lemmons, Maya Angelou, and many others. Cable channel Black Starz! will air the program in February, so sister, set that TiVo.
