By Chloe Veltman

If the Castro Theatre didn’t exist, then neither would Sophia Padilla.

“I always joke that I was conceived at the Castro Theatre,” said the San Francisco resident, who happened to be passing by the iconic, 100-year-old movie palace on a recent afternoon while out walking her dog.

Padilla said her parents first met in line to see a movie at the theater, 27 years ago.

“Both of them were on dates with other people, actually,” Padilla said. “They fell in love right here. And I’ve been coming to the Castro to see movies for my entire 26-year life.”

Padilla also said the Castro Theater played a role in recognizing her queer identity.

“The Castro really helped me find who I was,” she said.

San Francisco resident and movie fan Sophia Padilla poses outside the Castro Theater with her dog.Chloe Veltman/NPR

Located in the heart of one of the country’s most high-profile LGBTQ neighborhoods, the Castro Theatre, which has been owned by the same family since 1922, has long been a bastion of queer cinema and community events.

Highlights include the first ever public screening of the 2008 movie Milk about the pioneering openly gay politician Harvey Milk, the annual Frameline queer movie festival, and an abundance of drag performance nights.

“The Castro Theater is like a sacred temple for the community,” said Castro LGBTQ Cultural District board member Jesse Sanford. “It’s where we gather to laugh together, cry together, learn our history and mourn our losses.”

The venue has also hosted major film festivals like the San Francisco International Film Festival and the San Francisco Silent Film Festival.

But the recent takeover of the theater’s lease by Another Planet Entertainment — which operates and programs a handful of mostly music-oriented venues and festivals around the San Francisco Bay Area — has led to a struggle for the theater’s future.

“Another Planet’s plan will mean that films rarely get shown, and community events rarely happen,” said Sanford.

Conservationists push back

The Castro LGBTQ Cultural District is one of several local groups pushing back against Another Planet’s plans to refocus the venue’s programming and make sweeping renovations.

“This is a hundred-year-old theatre. You can’t just change it any way you want,” said Peter Pastreich, executive director of the Castro Theater Conservancy, a group that was formed three years ago to address concerns about the increasingly dilapidated state of the building.

Castro Theater Conservancy executive director Peter Pastreich at the Castro Theatre.Chloe Veltman/NPR

Pastreich said his group welcomes some of the proposed upgrades, such as putting in wheelchair access and a new HVAC system — as well as touching up the interior’s grand mural’d walls, chandeliers and leather-effect ceiling. He estimates renovating the theater would cost $20-30 million.

“We aren’t opposed to Another Planet or anybody else who will renovate the theater and keep it open,” Pastreich said.

It all comes down to the seating

The activists’ primary point of contention is the operator’s plans for the theater’s seating.

“The plans are to take out the seats and level the floor, which would make the theater no longer appropriate for movies,” Pastreich says.

Thousands of people — including many celebrities like Francis Ford Coppola, Alice Waters and Tilda Swinton — have signed the conservancy’s petition to prevent Another Planet’s renovations from going ahead.

The building is already in part protected. The City of San Francisco gave landmark status to the exterior in 1977. Now these activists are trying to get the city to expand the designation to include the building’s interior. If that happens, it will be much harder for the leaseholder to rip out the theater’s 1,400 seats and flatten the floor.

The Castro Theater’s interior.Andrew Rosas

“Changing the seating is a big deal,” said Matt Lambros, a Boston-based photographer of historic movie theaters who has written several books on the topic. “You could ruin the sight lines.”

There are a few thousand old, single-screen movie palaces like the Castro still in operation in the US today, down from tens of thousands in their pre-World-War-II heyday.

Lambros said in order for these cinemas to survive, the seating has to do more than accommodate movie-goers.

“There’s interest in restoring these places,” he said. “The issue is, you have to find something that will bring people. For the most part, unfortunately, a 1500-or 2000-seat theater showing films, that’s just not viable.”

Those who want the theater’s seating plan to remain intact point out that the Castro has hosted all kinds of non-movie events over the years.

“It is possible to have the theater be conducive to movie-going and concert-going and comedy and spoken word presentations and community meetings,” said San Francisco Silent Film Festival Director Anita Monga. “All of that is possible with the existing seats and same configuration.”

Another planet pushes ahead

Another Planet spokesman, Alex Tourk, said, despite his plan to remove the movie-style seating, the company is committed to honoring the theater’s legacy. “They absolutely want to continue to show film,” Tourk said. “They committed to making sure that 25% of programming would be dedicated to the LGBTQ community.”

He said the company has been shocked by the effort these groups have mounted to preserve the theater, given the company’s solid reputation as a concert and festival producer. His plan is to invest $15 million in renovating the theater.

“Another Planet will continue to work with the city to find consensus and move the vision forward,” said Tourk. “Another planet did expect some opposition,” he said. “But the level of vitriol has been beyond the pale.”

The family that owns the theater, the Nassers, did not respond to NPR’s request for comment.

The post A battle over seats might outline the way forward for an iconic San Francisco movie show appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

If the Castro Theater didn’t exist, then neither would Sophia Padilla.

“I always joke that I was conceived at the Castro Theatre,” said the San Francisco resident, who happened to be passing by the iconic, one-hundred-year-old movie palace on a recent afternoon while out walking her dog.

Padilla said her parents first met in line to see a movie at the theater, 27 years ago.

“Both of them were on dates with other people, actually,” Padilla said. “They fell in love right here. And I’ve been coming to the Castro to see movies for my entire 26-year life.”

Padilla also said the Castro Theater helped to forge her queer identity.

“The Castro really helped me find who I was,” she said.

Located in the heart of one of the country’s most high-profile LGBTQ neighborhoods, the Castro Theater has played a prominent role in San Francisco’s cultural and social evolution for decades.

Besides hosting major film festivals like the San Francisco International Film Festival and the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, the venue has long been a bastion of queer cinema and community events. Highlights include the first ever public screening of the 2008 movie Milk about the pioneering openly gay politician Harvey Milk, the annual Frameline queer movie festival, and an abundance of drag performance nights.

“The Castro Theater is like a sacred temple for the community,” said Castro LGBTQ Cultural District board member Jesse Sanford. “It’s where we gather to laugh together, cry together, learn our history, and mourn our losses.”

But the recent purchase of the theater’s lease by Another Planet Entertainment, which operates a handful of mostly music-oriented venues and festivals around the San Francisco Bay Area, has led to a struggle for the theater’s future.

“Another Planet’s plan will mean that films rarely get shown, and community events rarely happen,” said Sanford.

Conservationists push back

The Castro LGBTQ Cultural District is one of several local groups pushing back against Another Planet’s plans to refocus the venue’s programming and make sweeping renovations.

“This is a hundred-year-old theater. You can’t just change it any way you want,” said Peter Pastreich, executive director of the Castro Theater Conservancy, a group that was formed three years ago to address concerns about the increasingly dilapidated state of the building.

Pastreich said his group welcomes some of the proposed upgrades, such as putting in wheelchair access and a new HVAC system, and touching up the interior’s grand mural’d walls, chandeliers and leather-effect ceiling. He estimates renovating the theater would cost $20-30 million.

“We aren’t opposed to Another Planet or anybody else who will renovate the theater and keep it open,” Pastreich said.

It all comes down to the seating

The activists’ main point of contention is the leaseholder’s plans for the theater’s seating.

“The plans are to take out the seats and level the floor, which would make the theater no longer appropriate for movies,” Pastreich says.

Thousands of people, including many celebrities like Francis Ford Coppola, Alice Waters and Tilda Swinton, have signed the conservancy’s petition to prevent Another Planet’s renovations from going ahead.

The building is already in part protected. The City of San Francisco gave landmark status to the exterior in 1977. Now these activists are trying to get the city to expand the designation to include the building’s interior. If that happens, it will be much harder for the leaseholder to rip out the theater’s 1400 seats, and flatten the floor.

“Changing the seating is a big deal,” said Matt Lambros, a Boston-based photographer of historic movie theaters who has written several books on the topic. “You could ruin the sight lines.”

There are a few thousand old, single-screen movie palaces like the Castro still in operation in the US today, down from tens of thousands in their pre-World-War-II heyday.

Lambros said in order for these cinemas to survive, the seating has to do more than accommodate movie-goers.

“There’s interest in restoring these places,” he said. “The issue is, you have to find something that will bring people. For the most part, unfortunately, a 1500-or 2000-seat theater showing films, that’s just not viable.”

Those who want the theater’s seating plan to remain intact point out that the Castro has hosted all kinds of non-movie events over the years.

“It is possible to have the theater be conducive to movie-going and concert-going and comedy and spoken word presentations and community meetings,” said San Francisco Silent Film Festival director Anita Monga. “All of that is possible with the existing seats and same configuration.”

Another planet pushes ahead

Another Planet spokesman, Alex Tourk, said, despite his plan to remove the movie-style seating, the company is committed to honoring the theater’s legacy. “They absolutely want to continue to show film,” Tourk said. “They committed to making sure that 25% of programming would be dedicated to the LGBTQ community.”

He said the company has been shocked by all the pushback, given its solid reputation as a concert and festival producer, and its plan to put $15 million towards renovating the theater. “Another planet did expect some opposition,” he said. “But the level of vitriol has been beyond the pale.”

Tourk said even if the landmark designation for the theater’s interior goes ahead next year, Another Planet will not, at least for now, be deterred.

“Another Planet will continue to work with the city to find consensus and move the vision forward.” [Copyright 2022 NPR]

The post Struggle over seats might outline way forward for iconic San Francisco movie show appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Besides hosting major film festivals like the San Francisco International Film Festival and the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, the venue has long been a bastion of queer cinema and community events. Highlights include the first ever public screening of the 2008 movie Milk about the pioneering openly gay politician Harvey Milk, the annual Frameline queer movie festival, and an abundance of drag performance nights.

“The Castro Theater is like a sacred temple for the community,” said Castro LGBTQ Cultural District board member Jesse Sanford. “It’s where we gather to laugh together, cry together, learn our history, and mourn our losses.”

But the recent purchase of the theater’s lease by Another Planet Entertainment, which operates a handful of mostly music-oriented venues and festivals around the San Francisco Bay Area, has led to a struggle for the theater’s future.

“Another Planet’s plan will mean that films rarely get shown, and community events rarely happen,” said Sanford.

Conservationists push back

The Castro LGBTQ Cultural District is one of several local groups pushing back against Another Planet’s plans to refocus the venue’s programming and make sweeping renovations.

“This is a hundred-year-old theater. You can’t just change it any way you want,” said Peter Pastreich, executive director of the Castro Theater Conservancy, a group that was formed three years ago to address concerns about the increasingly dilapidated state of the building.

Castro Theater Conservancy executive director Peter Pastreich at the Castro Theatre. (Chloe Veltman/NPR)

Pastreich said his group welcomes some of the proposed upgrades, such as putting in wheelchair access and a new HVAC system, and touching up the interior’s grand mural’d walls, chandeliers and leather-effect ceiling. He estimates renovating the theater would cost $20-30 million.

“We aren’t opposed to Another Planet or anybody else who will renovate the theater and keep it open,” Pastreich said.

It all comes down to the seating

The activists’ main point of contention is the leaseholder’s plans for the theater’s seating.

“The plans are to take out the seats and level the floor, which would make the theater no longer appropriate for movies,” Pastreich says.

Thousands of people, including many celebrities like Francis Ford Coppola, Alice Waters and Tilda Swinton, have signed the conservancy’s petition to prevent Another Planet’s renovations from going ahead.

The building is already in part protected. The City of San Francisco gave landmark status to the exterior in 1977. Now these activists are trying to get the city to expand the designation to include the building’s interior. If that happens, it will be much harder for the leaseholder to rip out the theater’s 1400 seats, and flatten the floor.

The Castro Theater’s interior. (Andrew Rosas)

“Changing the seating is a big deal,” said Matt Lambros, a Boston-based photographer of historic movie theaters who has written several books on the topic. “You could ruin the sight lines.”

There are a few thousand old, single-screen movie palaces like the Castro still in operation in the US today, down from tens of thousands in their pre-World-War-II heyday.

Lambros said in order for these cinemas to survive, the seating has to do more than accommodate movie-goers.

“There’s interest in restoring these places,” he said. “The issue is, you have to find something that will bring people. For the most part, unfortunately, a 1500-or 2000-seat theater showing films, that’s just not viable.”

Those who want the theater’s seating plan to remain intact point out that the Castro has hosted all kinds of non-movie events over the years.

“It is possible to have the theater be conducive to movie-going and concert-going and comedy and spoken word presentations and community meetings,” said San Francisco Silent Film Festival director Anita Monga. “All of that is possible with the existing seats and same configuration.”

Another planet pushes ahead

Another Planet spokesman Alex Tourk said that despite his plan to remove the movie-style seating, the company is committed to honoring the theater’s legacy. “They absolutely want to continue to show film,” Tourk said. “They committed to making sure that 25% of programming would be dedicated to the LGBTQ community.”

He said the company has been shocked by all the pushback, given its solid reputation as a concert and festival producer, and its plan to put $15 million towards renovating the theater. “Another Planet did expect some opposition,” he said. “But the level of vitriol has been beyond the pale.”

Tourk said even if the landmark designation for the theater’s interior goes ahead next year, Another Planet will not, at least for now, be deterred.

“Another Planet will continue to work with the city to find consensus and move the vision forward.”

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

The post Battle Over Seats May Outline Way forward for Iconic San Francisco Film Theater appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Indoor restaurants, cinemas and gyms in San Francisco can reopen within 24 hours, an upbeat Mayor of London Breed announced on Tuesday as the county officially moved to a less restrictive tier as the rate of Coronavirus cases, hospital admissions, and deaths are falling nationwide in California.

San Francisco and Santa Clara counties in the Bay Area are joining five other counties to move to the second most restrictive level of operations. Much of the state’s population remains in the most restrictive purple class, including the Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties.

California reported an additional 2,533 confirmed COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number of known cases in the state to nearly 3.5 million. Officials also announced an additional 303 deaths, bringing the total to just under 52,500 deaths in the state from nearly 40 million.

“This is the beginning of a new day in San Francisco,” said Breed of Pier 39, a popular tourist area in picturesque Fisherman’s Wharf.

However, she warned residents to wear masks and maintain proper social distance, even when encouraging them to explore the city.

“When your waiter comes to your table, put on your mask. When you go to the bathroom, put your mask on, ”she said.

Several counties in the San Francisco Bay Area issued strict home stays almost a year ago before a statewide shutdown. Public health officials have largely been more cautious about reopening the economy than their counterparts in Southern California and other states.

Operations in San Francisco shut down in early December after several Bay Area counties were preemptively locked when the positivity rate rose and the case rate rose. Outdoor dining, outdoor museums, and some indoor and outdoor personal services reopened in late January after the state canceled its regional stay-at-home order, but the economic toll has been grim.

Housing and commercial rents plummeted as technicians who could work from anywhere did just that and fled to other parts of the state and county that were cheaper and had more leeway. Downtown restaurants that once fed crowds of hungry office workers and tourists for lunch have struggled.

Tourism is also struggling, as airline ticket purchases to San Francisco in late October and November fell 80% year-over-year – much worse than the US average – the city’s financial analysts said in a January report.

Residents’ cautious behavior may have further contributed to the economic downturn, financial analysts said, with data showing that San Francisco residents stayed more at home than residents of other California cities and even other Bay Area counties.

San Francisco’s famous cable cars have been out of service for a year and there is no schedule as to when they could return. The mayor said on social media Tuesday that they will be returning this year.

“Cable cars are part of the fabric of San Francisco. They attract tourists, they help our economy, and I’m not going to make them go away,” she said.

San Francisco, a city and county of about 900,000 pre-pandemic residents, has one of the lowest fall and death rates in the country. 34,000 new cases of the coronavirus and 422 deaths were reported on Tuesday.

Most of California’s 58 counties remain in the state’s most restricted tier. In addition to San Francisco and Santa Clara, the counties of El Dorado, Lassen, Modoc, Napa and San Luis Obispo also moved up one place, The Sacramento Bee reported on Tuesday.

For counties in the red row, indoor restaurants and cinemas may reopen with a capacity of 25% or up to 100 people, whichever is less. Fitness studios as well as dance and yoga studios can be opened with a capacity of 10%. Museums, zoos and aquariums can open indoor activities with a capacity of 25%.

Wineries can open outdoors with changes, but bars and distilleries that do not serve food may not. Other retail businesses like clothing stores and florists can increase their capacity from 25% to 50%.

AP reporter Kathleen Ronayne contributed from Sacramento, California.

The post San Francisco to reopen with indoor eating, film theaters | Bay Space appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

ABC7 News was treated to an insider tour of the state-of-the-art facility.

RELATED: Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt Believe the New Movie, “Jungle Cruise” Offers the Kind of “Fear” that kids enjoy

The theater has an immersive Screen-X 270 degree theater that covers the entire field of view of the audience, as well as an interactive 4DX theater with special effects and motion-synchronized seats.

“When you sit in these seats, things move and the environmental impact occurs,” said Cathii Van Riper, Marketing Project Coordinator for Regal Cinemas. “no matter if wind or snow, it takes you with it and you are part of the film.”

RELATED: Activities in the SF Bay Area: Aloha by the Bay, Sonoma County Fair, Pay-What-You-Can-Tacos

All local COVID-19 protocols must be followed. Click here for a list of playing times.

RELATED: ‘Black Widow’ Huge Hit In Theaters On Disney + With Over $ 215 Million In Profits

Copyright © 2021 KGO-TV. All rights reserved.

The post Inside San Francisco’s new state-of-the-art 4DX movie show at Regal Stonestown Galleria Mall appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

With all the multi-hyphenates in Hollywood, it’s no longer surprising to see a movie star doubling up as an executive producer, a writer or even a director on the same title.

But some stars aren’t content with just one billing in the acting credits.

From playing twins to whole families, some stars really prove they’re workaholics by taking on multiple roles in the same project. Here are 20 stars who had us seeing double (or triple, or quadruple…)

Eddie Murphy
The Nutty Professor

Actor Eddie Murphy poses for a composite photograph July14, 2000 in Los Angeles as characters he plays in his new movie, “The Nutty Professor 2, The Klumps”. Murphy plays the parts of Granny, Papa, Sherman, Ernie and Mama in the Universal Studios movie.
2000 Universal Studios via Online USA

In the 1996 remake of The Nutty Professor, Eddie Murphy plays not one, not two, but seven characters in the film, including the main character Sherman Klump, his alter ego Buddy Love, and Sherman’s entire family.

Playing the two main roles plus Papa Cletus Klump, Mama Anna Klump, Grandma Ida Mae Jenson, Ernie Klump Sr. and Lance Perkins gained Murphy positive reviews from the critics, while the makeup used to transform him into seven different characters was widely praised. He also reprised the roles for the sequel.

… and Coming To America

Eddie Murphy stars as Prince Akeem in Coming To America.
Paramount Pictures

This wasn’t Eddie Murphy’s first time playing dual roles, though.

In Coming To America, Murphy played Prince Akeem Joffe, Randy Watson of Sexual Chocolate, Saul, the Jewish barbershop customer, and Clarence, the owner of the barber shop.

He reprised the same four roles in this year’s sequel, Coming 2 America.

Peter Sellers
Dr Strangelove

Peter Sellers (1925 – 1980) in the title role of ‘Dr. Strangelove’, directed by Stanley Kubrick.
Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images

Considered one of the funniest films ever made, Dr Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb saw Peter Sellers playing three iconic characters: group captain Lionel Mandrake, President Merkin Muffley, and the titular nuclear war expert Dr. Strangelove.

Columbia Pictures had only agreed to finance the movie if Sellers played at least four roles, with director Stanley Kubrick agreeing to the demand.

However, Sellers pleaded to drop the fourth role, and the role of Air Force Major T. J. “King” Kong was played by Slim Pickens.

Mike Myers
Austin Powers

Mike Meyers Stars As “Dr. Evil” In “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me.”
Getty Images

Mike Myers played not only the titular British spy in the Austin Powers franchise, but donned a bald cap to play his nemesis, Dr Evil.

However, by the third film, Austin Powers: Goldmember, Myers had also taken on the roles of Fat Bastard and Dutch supervillain Goldmember.

Michael Palin
Monty Python and the Holy Grail

The cast of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, filming.
FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty Images

The whole Monty Python gang played multiple roles in their movies, but perhaps Michael Palin was the one to take on the biggest workload in this classic comedy.

As well as the main role of Sir Galahad the Pure, Palin also played First Swallow-Savvy Guard, Dennis, Peasant 2, Right Head, King of Swamp Castle, Brother Maynard’s Brother and Leader of The Knights Who Say Ni!, as well as voicing the narrator.

Dick Van Dyke
Mary Poppins

Dick Van Dyke, US actor, poses with a variety of kites in a publicity still for the film, ‘Mary Poppins’, USA, 1964. The film musical, directed by Robert Stevenson (1905–1986), starred Van Dyke as ‘Bert’.
Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images

Perhaps you didn’t notice when you first watched Mary Poppins as a child, but Dick Van Dyke doesn’t only play Bert, the chimney sweep with a dodgy Cockney accent.

He also plays Mr. Dawes Sr., the old director of the bank where Mr. Banks works.

The film jokes about the cameo in the credits, as “Navckid Keyd” is first credited as playing the role, before the anagram unscrambles to reveal Van Dyke’s name.

Ralph Fiennes
Sunshine

The 1999 film Sunshine tells a Hungarian-Jewish family’s story through five generations, from the creation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire through to the period after the 1956 Revolution.

Ralph Fiennes plays the three male protagonists in three generations – Ignatz Sonnenschein (Sors), Adam Sors and Ivan Sors.

“There was differences in facial hair and haircut I think, but I thought no…if the storytelling and filmmaking is clear enough, the audience will know,” Fiennes told GQ in April 2019. “It didn’t seem at all the sort of film where the actor completely changes. You’re meant to know it’s me, you’re meant to understand that it’s the same family. The fact that I’m playing all three was the linking element.”

Vanessa Hudgens
The Princess Switch

Vanessa Hudgens stars as Fiona, Margaret and Stacey in The Princess Switch: Switched Again.
Netflix

One of the latest additions to Netflix’s festive fare catalogue, The Princess Switch franchise sees Vanessa Hudgens play the dual roles of American baker Stacy De Novo and Lady Margaret Delacourt, Duchess of Montenaro, who discover they are identical after bumping into each other in the fictional country of Belgravia.

By the 2020 sequel, Switched Again, Hudgens had taken on a third role – Margaret’s evil cousin, Lady Fiona.

A third film is on its way, but Hudgens isn’t taking on a fourth character.

She told The Wrap in November 2019: “No, no, that’s just too outrageous. We’re already at max outrageous here with three characters, we’re just going to keep it at that.”

Michael J Fox
Back To The Future Part II

Michael J Fox stars as Marlene in Back To The Future II.
Universal Pictures

Not content with playing the iconic Marty McFly, Michael J Fox also played his future son and daughter, Marty Jr. and Marlene, in the Back To The Future sequel.

The three characters interacted in the same scene in a complex sequence made possible by new digital compositing technology.

Tom Hanks
Cloud Atlas

Tom Hanks stars in Cloud Atlas.
Warner Bros

Cloud Atlas was notable in that pretty much the entire cast played multiple roles across six different eras: Pacific Islands in 1849, Cambridge / Edinburgh in 1936, San Francisco in 1973, London in 2012, Neo Seoul in 2144, and Big Island in 2321.

Tom Hanks played the main character Zachary in the final era, as well as Dr Henry Goose, Hotel Manager, Isaac Sachs, Dermot Hoggins, and Cavendish Lookalike Actor in the other eras.

Halle Berry, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw, Hugh Grant, Jim Broadbent, Doona Bae, Susan Sarandon, Hugo Weaving, Keith David, James D’Arcy, Zhou Xun, David Gyasi and Robert Fyfe all played at least three roles in the film, which is one of the most expensive independent movies ever made.

Alec Guinness
Kind Hearts and Coronets

Alec Guinness stars in Kind Hearts and Coronets.
FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty Images

This critically acclaimed comedy sees Alec Guinness playing a whopping nine characters—Ethelred, 8th Duke of Chalfont; Ethelred’s four younger brothers, The Reverend Lord Henry, General Lord Rufus, Admiral Lord Horatio and Lord Ascoyne, Banker; Lady Agatha D’Ascoyne, Ethelred’s sister; Ethelred’s nephews, Young Ascoyne and Young Henry, and the seventh duke, Ethelred’s father—in flashback sequences.

Guinness had initially been offered four parts, but said: “I read [the screenplay] on a beach in France, collapsed with laughter on the first page, and didn’t even bother to get to the end of the script. I went straight back to the hotel and sent a telegram saying, ‘Why four parts? Why not eight!?'”

It seems even eight was too few.

Armie Hammer
The Social Network

Armie Hammer plays the Winklevoss Twins in The Social Network.
Sony Pictures

Armie Hammer doubled up in The Social Network playing twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, and delivers one of the film’s best lines: “I’m six foot five, 220 pounds, and there’s two of me.”

Hammer acted alongside body double Josh Pence in his scenes as the twins, and his face was then digitally grafted onto Pence’s body, while other scenes used split-screen technology.

Hammer told Vulture in October 2010: “It’s very fair to say that [David] Fincher likes to push himself and likes to push technology. He likes to be the flagship, I think, and he’s paved his way in this industry by being a peerless visual director who’s willing to do things like replace people’s heads in movies. I mean, I think that’s the reason he does all those commercials, still; he can do all that R&D and test stuff that he can break out later for movies. He’s really one of the most technologically minded guys I’ve ever seen.”

Lily Tomlin
The Incredible Shrinking Woman

Lily Tomlin sitting in an over sized chair holding an over sized drinking glass in a scene from the film ‘The Incredible Shrinking Woman’, 1981.
Universal Pictures/Getty Images

In this parody of the 1957 sci-fi film The Incredible Shrinking Man, Lily Tomlin pulled quadruple duty, playing four characters.

She played Pat Kramer, the titular shrinking woman, her neighbour Judith Beasley, and Tomlin’s Laugh-In characters Ernestine, a telephone operator, and Edith Ann, a little girl.

Edith Ann is only seen in the TV version of the comedy, although her deleted scene was also included on the Blu-Ray collectors’ edition.

Paul Dano
There Will Be Blood

Paul Dano stars in There Will Be Blood.
Miramax

In There Will Be Blood, Paul Dano plays both twins Eli and Paul Sunday, but he had initially only been cast in the smaller role of Paul.

Kel O’Neill had been cast as Eli, but left the project just a couple of weeks on. It was reported that he just wasn’t the right fit, but a Daniel Day-Lewis profile in The New York Times Magazine suggested that O’Neill was “intimidated” by the actor, and left due to the pressure.

O’Neill acknowledged that he was removed from the shooting schedule and fired, but denied it had anything to do with his co-star, telling Vulture: “It wasn’t drinks every night with Daniel on set, but there’s a fundamental decency to the way he comports himself in those environments that gets lost in the shuffle of these rumours.

“After we did our first scene, he came over, shook my hand and said — sort of in character and sort of not — ‘Welcome.’ And that sets a tone where that person isn’t your enemy. I would be cautious now, especially when he’s not going to do this anymore, about making him so mythical that there’s no acknowledgement of the human being there.”

Warwick Davis
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II

Warwick Davis as Griphook in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II.
Warner Bros

Many British actors have starred in the Harry Potter franchise, but only Warwick Davis has the distinction of playing two speaking roles.

Throughout the series, Davis played both Professor Filius Flitwick and Griphook, a goblin who works at Gringotts.

He played both roles in the final movie, and also played a bank teller in the first film, The Philosopher’s Stone.

Hank Azaria
Night At The Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Hank Azaria arrives for the World Premiere of ‘Night at the Museum 2’ at the Empire Leicester Square on May 12, 2009 in London, England.
Jon Furniss/WireImage

Hank Azaria plays three exhibits in the second film in the Night At The Museum franchise.

As well as playing Kahmunrah, a villainous pharaoh, Azaria voices The Thinker, a famous artwork, and a statue of Abraham Lincoln.

Amy Adams also pulls double duty in the film, playing both Tess and Amelia Earhart.

Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale
The Prestige

Actors Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale pose at the premiere of Touchstone Pictures’ “The Prestige” at the El Capitan Theater on October 17, 2006 in Los Angeles, California.
Kevin Winter/Getty Images

The Prestige’s two leading men both played two roles, which must have been rather confusing on set.

Hugh Jackman played Robert “The Great Danton” Angier and magician Lord Caldlow, while Christian Bale played both Alfred “The Professor” Borden and working class magician Fallon.

The multiple roles are very important, as they are the basis of Christopher Nolan’s mind-bending ending for the critically acclaimed film.

Meg Ryan
Joe vs The Volcano

Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in a scene from the film ‘Joe Versus The Volcano’, 1990.
Warner Brothers/Getty Images

Kickstarting a string of 1990s rom-coms with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in the leads, Joe vs The Volcano actually saw Ryan playing three roles.

Using a trio of wigs to differentiate between them, Ryan plays DeDe, Hanks’ character Joe’s shy co-worker (brunette wig), and feuding half-sisters Angelica (auburn) and Patricia (Ryan’s natural blonde hair).

Deborah Kerr
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp

A scene from The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp.
FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty Images

In this wartime comedy, Deborah Kerr played three roles throughout the Boer War, World War I and World War II: Edith Hunter, Barbara Wynne, and Angela “Johnny” Cannon.

Kerr was just 21 when she was given the three roles, after Wendy Hiller pulled out of the film due to being pregnant.

Jason Isaacs
Peter Pan

It is a stage tradition that in productions of Peter Pan, the same actor plays the fearsome Captain Hook and Mr Darling, the father of Wendy, Michael and John.

So in 2003’s big screen adaptation, Jason Isaacs took on the dual roles.

However, Isaacs said it was more than tradition, telling USA Today in December 2003: “It’s much more symbolic than that. Wendy goes to a place where she’s working out what she wants to do about growing up. … When little kids imagine growing up and having a family, they look at their dad.

“It’s a little creepy, but it’s meant to be creepy. There is someone who represents all the worst things and best things about growing up. Hook is this kind of animal character who she’s strangely attracted to, but also repelled by — and he looks a lot like her dad!”

Tom Hardy
Legend

In this 2015’s biographical drama, Tom Hardy played both Reggie and Ronnie Kray, the identical twins that terrorised London’s East End in the 1950s and 1960s.

Various technologies and filming techniques, including a digital face graft onto a stunt double, were used to allow Hardy to play both twins, with the actor even getting into a fist fight with himself.

The post 20 Actors Who Performed A number of Roles within the Similar Film appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

“Life isn’t like in a movie. Life … is a lot harder.”

This is what the wise projectionist said in Giuseppe Tornatore’s film “Cinema Paradiso” from 1988. In March 2020, movie theaters around the world closed as the COVID-19 pandemic spread seriously.

To adapt, many independent theaters switched to a virtual demonstration model.

“Although our theater was closed for most of 2020, surprisingly it was still an extremely busy year for The Roxie,” said Lex Sloan, general manager of the historic, non-profit Roxie Theater, which is more than 100 years old. “Within two weeks of closing, we opened Roxie Virtual Cinema and began programming a dynamic series of films to keep engaging with our audiences.”

By the end of 2020, The Roxie had shown more than 200 virtual titles and engaged 30 artists and filmmakers. “Virtual cinema wasn’t lucrative,” says Sloan, “but it was a great way to keep our members and patrons busy!”

The Roxie has also partnered with the Sundance Film Festival to host screenings at Fort Mason Flix, a series of drive-in films hosted by the Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture.

Meanwhile, giants battled – Cineworld suffered a $ 3 billion loss in 2020 – and sparked skepticism about whether the cinema industry could revive itself, already at risk from the rise of streaming services.

Beloved theaters went dark. The streets grew silent. Fear and sadness stained the air.

Hope was not lost, however.

“STAY HEALTHY AND SAFE”, read the marquee of the Castro Theater. “WE WILL BE BACK SOON.” As promised, The Castro reopened on June 26th and 27th to screen a range of films for the 45th annual Frameline Festival known as “the Bay Area’s most prominent and well-attended LGBTQ + arts program”. The Roxie also hosted multiple frameline functions, as it has been doing every year for over four decades.

When Bay Area favorites like the Balboa Theater and The Vogue reopened in early June, there was good news. Previously in financial freefall, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema emerged from bankruptcy under the new leadership of Altamont Capital Partners, an acquisition managed by Fortress Investment Group LLC and Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League. The dine-in-cinema chain, which used to face a string of layoffs and cuts due to the pandemic, has now announced that it will open five new theaters within the next year. (Mission Street Alamo is scheduled to reopen August 13th.)

Additionally, the COVID-19 closings were not entirely destructive. Traditional theaters like The Roxie took the opportunity to undertake several renovations.

“The lobby has new carpets and tiles, a fresh paint job, and much-needed [Americans with Disabilities Act] Improvements, “says Sloan.” Thanks to a generous grant from the San Francisco Arts Commission, we now have air conditioning and improved air filtration. “

The Roxie also brought its “Take A Seat on 16th St.” on the market. Campaign to replace the used seating (originally from the Coronet Theater) with state-of-art seating from the Irwin Seating Company.

“I believe The Roxie not only survived the pandemic, but found new ways to thrive,” Sloan says.

On May 21st, The Roxie reopened with a screening of “Cinema Paradiso”, the winner of an audience poll. This showing was followed by David Lynch’s “Eraserhead,” which was shown frequently as a Roxie midnight film in the 1970s and 1980s. On May 22nd, “Eraserhead” was presented in all its surreal, eerie glory in 35mm. The first showing opened with a media meltdown drag show, which Sloan described as “jaw trapping”.

On July 17th, Lynch will return to The Roxie with a 35mm screening of “Mulholland Drive”. Further screenings in mid-July include Barbet Schroeder’s “Barfly” and “Linda and The Mockingbirds”, presented by the Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy and the McEvoy Foundation for the Arts.

In early August, The Roxie will show Beth B’s “Lydia Lunch: The War Is Never Over”, with a personal visit from Lunch himself. David Lowery’s “The Green Knight,” a 4K restoration of Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Castle of Cagilostro” and Pablo Larrain’s “Ema” will also be shown this summer.

The Roxie is currently 50 percent full with limited show times. Masks remain required for entry but can be removed while eating and drinking in the theater. In the meantime, the Roxie Virtual Cinema will continue to offer streaming options.

“The doors of the Roxie were closed for 434 days, and despite the difficulties, I never doubted we would open again,” says Sloan.

“The patrons told me that it feels so good to finally be home.”

Copyright © 2021 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, retransmission, or redistribution is prohibited without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service for the greater Bay Area.

Copyright © 2021 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, redistribution, or other reuse is prohibited without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc.

The post The Roxie, Alongside With Different Beloved San Francisco Film Homes, Is Making A Comeback appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Oscar front-runner “La La Land” starts off with a bang, or should we say a burst – of jumps and pirouettes, not to mention bikes hurtling over the roofs of cars. It’s not easy to stage a successful dance scene for the cameras – especially at a motorway junction – but if such a scene works, it can be memorable.Yes it was heavenLOG SPINNING AND ARM WRESTLINGDANCING IN THE RAINMAMBO IN THE GYMTHE MAGIC OF MIKHAILSTEP IN TIMETRAVOLTA TRIFECTAYOU KNOW THAT LIFTA storm of dancing

A secret, says the choreographer of “La La Land”, Mandy Moore, is not to compete with the camera, but to find a way to dance with it, so to speak. “When done right, it’s that perfect marriage between the movement of the camera in conjunction and working with the movement of the dancer,” she says.

Dancing on a stage is three-dimensional; You lose a whole dimension on a screen. But what you can do is use the camera to convey emotions in a dancer in ways that you cannot on stage. “You can see how dance changes the person – that’s a key,” says Wendy Perron, former editor-in-chief of Dance Magazine and author of “Through the Eyes of a Dancer.”

Because everyone has their favorite dance moments in movies, and because the Oscars are coming, and because this stuff is just fun to remember (all available online), here are a few scenes where the cameras helped create dance magic:

___

“I’m in heaven”, Fred Astaire sings to Ginger Rogers and drums Irving Berlin’s “Cheek to Cheek” in the film “Top Hat” from 1935. And so are we. “Fred is so cool and she’s so shy,” notes Moore, adding that the scene is so successful because it tells a story through movement. “They’re almost a little bit icy when they start out and then just as beautiful as they open up through the performance, and they’re just so free and beautiful when they dance together,” she says. Check out those passed out hurricanes towards the end.

___

There is real gymnastics in Michael Kidd’s fast-paced choreography from the 1954 film “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”. The big dance in the barn – with guys fighting for the girls – is a show stopper. Moore loves that this dance story is told without text. “These days we’re so used to being spoon-fed what we’re supposed to feel,” she says. Check out this guy on the spinning log, not to mention what can best be described as a balance beam routine that includes arm wrestling.

___

Of course Kelly’s rain-soaked virtuoso performance in the title song of “Singin ‘in the Rain” (1952) is a miracle – especially when you consider that, according to the film story, he had a bad cold and a fever. Then there’s Donald O’Connor’s athletics – including somersaults to climb the wall – in Make ‘Em Laugh. But let’s look at the late Debbie Reynolds, who had no dance training at age 19 and somehow held her own, knocking with Kelly and O’Connor on the joyous “good morning” – which she believed made her feet bleed.

___

There is no debate about the brilliance of Jerome Robbins’ choreography for “West Side Story” (1961). But which dance scene is rated the best? For Moore, it’s this opening with the jets and sharks and those snapping fingers. “You just take this snap and a little jump and everyone knows right away that it’s ‘West Side Story’,” she says. For Perron, it’s the mambo dance in the gym that Maria (Natalie Wood) and Tony (Richard Beymer) fall in love with. Especially that cinematic moment “when everyone else blurs and Tony and Maria come into focus and it’s just an amazing falling in love moment. The music slows down and it’s inevitable that they’ll come together and ignore the whole world.” . “

___

You can deny the overall quality of the 1985 White Nights, but there is one thing you cannot deny: the dancing skills of Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines. The two who both play defectors (it’s complicated) have silly dialogues but compelling dancing, together and separately. And if you only have two minutes, look for “Baryshnikov” and “11 pirouettes”. For 11 rubles he does a really single pirouette with 11 turns – perfect. In street clothes.

___

They’re making a high profile sequel to “Mary Poppins,” but for many it will be difficult to reconcile some of the memories of the 1964 original, like Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke who featured in “Step in Time” – this joyous one Chimney – dancing sweep scene on the rooftops of London. “It takes the dirty, sooty experience of working on chimneys, and it makes it magical,” says Perron.

___

You have to give it to John Travolta, who has provided more than his share of lasting dance memories. First there was “Saturday Night Fever” (1977), where the actor became famous on screen as Tony Manero, King of Disco and Champion of the Strut. Just a year later, he tore up the gym floor in “Grease” with Olivia Newton-John. And in 1994 there was this understated – but unforgettable – twist competition with Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction.

___

Nobody lets baby off a list. Before Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling made “La La Land”, they made “Crazy, Stupid, Love” (2011), in which they recreated the famous “Dirty Dancing” lift made famous in 1987 by Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Gray A. Enough said.

___

If you watch a dance clip let it be this: the Nicholas Brothers, Fayard and Harold, in their performance in “Stormy Weather” (1943), which must be seen to be believed. It’s not just that the brothers, who have overcome racial hurdles to make a name for themselves for their amazing talent, tap and twirl and jump tables; They also jump in movements that appear to be terribly painful. In the end they jump over each other via a staircase and land in crevices every time. And then they get up and smile. “You can’t be stopped,” says Perron. “And they make it so fun.”

The post Film dance scenes that stole the present appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

To sign up for our daily newsletter with the latest news, goss and other things that should interest you, go HERE. Follow us on Twitter HERE for an ongoing feed with all of our stories. Or bookmark the PEDESTRIAN.TV homepage which you can visit if you need a newsfix.

There’s a fandom for every piece of pop culture. For every movie, TV show, or character, no matter how big or small, there is a loyal legion of fans who are obsessed with burning passion. And no matter how long it’s been since production was a thing, the fandom associated with it will always exist. I am proud to say that I am an active member of the Charmed fandom and not just visited the Charmed mansion, met the actresses (and actors) and interviewed our Guardian Angel. Brain frizz (who plays Leo) but I also follow a lot of fan sites online to keep up with all of the sharp Charmed updates.

Since the show ended in 2006, fans have been looking forward to a revival or a movie, and many years later we were granted a revisit on the witch series, but to our dismay, not only a lackluster restart failed the OG actresses for spiritual advice ask, but also spit in the face of the groundbreaking series.

One of the most frustrating aspects of the reboot is the fact that literally all four actresses who played the pioneer Charmed Ones Shannen Doherty (Prue), Holly Marie is combing Ryan (Piper), Alyssa Milano (Phoebe) and Rose McGowan (Paige) have expressed an interest in visiting their characters again. But instead, are they producing the half-hearted bullshit that is the CW reboot?

In fact, as recently as last year, Holly and Alyssa had spoken to Netflix about the potential of a Charmed movie or TV, so Charmed fans had their ears turned to the bottom of the underworld for a possible tea over a revival.

Then recently, some viral imagery set the Whitelighter world ablaze when a camera crew appeared to be filming ~ something ~ at the almighty Halliwell Manor that exists in Los Angeles rather than San Francisco.

Just look:

Oh, wait, wait, this is a photo of me at the Manor on my LA trip. How did that get in there?

I wanted to embed this footage via a Charmed fansite:

When people started speculating that the power of three might have been restored, fans were disappointed to learn that the camera crew was not related to Charmed.

Apparently a new movie is being made there with the lead role Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, Robert De Niro, Zoe Saldana and Rami Malek and more.

???? David O. Russell’s upcoming film is shooting at Halliwell Manor. pic.twitter.com/ziaMLuaYui

– Charmed_Reunion (@Charmed_Reunion) February 9, 2021

Regards @Charmed_Reunion for the information. If you are a Charmed fan, I recommend that you follow them for news and updates. The name itself manifests the enchanted reunion we have all tried desperately and unable to conjure up for years, much like how Piper tried to call Prue back from the dead in season 4.

We all right now:

More stuff from PEDESTRIAN.TV

The post Large Hollywood Film Feat. Margot Robbie Is Filmed At Charmed Home appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.