Paul Verhoeven grew up in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands and that's why he and his films have such a distaste for authoritarians. Even with years spent working in the U.S., the filmmaker has never adopted the black and white moral framing of America. "I have a hard time believing in all these hero stories," he once told The Independent.
Verhoeven was especially repelled when he tried to read "Starship Troopers," Robert Heinlein's novel where humanity has become an interstellar empire. The director recalled to Empire, "I stopped after two chapters because it was so boring. It is really quite a bad book... It's a very right-wing book." So what did Verhoeven do with the book he couldn't even finish? Why, make a movie out of it, of course.
As /Film's Erin Brady has written about, Verhoeven and his screenwriter Ed Neumeier decided their "Starship Troopers" wouldn't be just an adaptation of the novel,...
Verhoeven was especially repelled when he tried to read "Starship Troopers," Robert Heinlein's novel where humanity has become an interstellar empire. The director recalled to Empire, "I stopped after two chapters because it was so boring. It is really quite a bad book... It's a very right-wing book." So what did Verhoeven do with the book he couldn't even finish? Why, make a movie out of it, of course.
As /Film's Erin Brady has written about, Verhoeven and his screenwriter Ed Neumeier decided their "Starship Troopers" wouldn't be just an adaptation of the novel,...
- 11/14/2022
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
Resurrected almost a year ago as a private production company, DreamWorks finally has its filmmaking financing fully in place.
DreamWorks on Monday announced that it has concluded the arduous process of rounding up a total $825 million in corporate financing for the reborn film company. That sum includes a $325 million Jp Morgan-led bank syndication, a matching amount from DreamWorks principal Reliance Big Entertainment and a $175 million commitment from distribution partner Disney.
"This will allow us to move ahead quickly into production with our first group of films," DreamWorks co-toppers Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider said in a joint statement.
"Our partnership with Stacey and Steven is the cornerstone of our Hollywood strategy as we grow our film interests across the globe," Rbe topper Anil Ambani said. "Given our faith in the business plan that they presented to us -- and despite the current economic climate -- we were...
DreamWorks on Monday announced that it has concluded the arduous process of rounding up a total $825 million in corporate financing for the reborn film company. That sum includes a $325 million Jp Morgan-led bank syndication, a matching amount from DreamWorks principal Reliance Big Entertainment and a $175 million commitment from distribution partner Disney.
"This will allow us to move ahead quickly into production with our first group of films," DreamWorks co-toppers Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider said in a joint statement.
"Our partnership with Stacey and Steven is the cornerstone of our Hollywood strategy as we grow our film interests across the globe," Rbe topper Anil Ambani said. "Given our faith in the business plan that they presented to us -- and despite the current economic climate -- we were...
- 8/17/2009
- by By Carl DiOrio
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Two former top execs of Sony Pictures Entertainment will lead a potentially watershed new Hollywood consulting venture for JPMorgan.
Former SPE president Alan Levine and the studio's one-time co-president Ken Lemberger will be based at the investment bank's longtime headquarters in Century City, where the initiative will complement film-finance operations.
John Miller, veteran managing director of JPMorgan Securities in Los Angeles, will have ultimate responsibility over both the film-finance operations, known as JPMorgan's Entertainment Industries Group, and the new consulting unit, JPMorgan Entertainment Advisors.
"This could be transformative for our business and what we want to accomplish," Miller said.
He declined to project revenue of the new unit but said the startup unit is as much about relationship-building as generating immediate new income for the firm. JPMorgan's entertainment finance operations are known to contribute hundreds of millions of dollars annually to the parent firm's top-line revenue.
"I've been talking to Alan and Ken for literally years to try to do something like this," Miller said. "We have had -- and will continue to have -- the dominant position in the film-finance business. But because of that, the question has been: How do you grow that business?"
Timing of the venture could prove propitious as there has been a recent surge in activity by nontraditional producers in Hollywood.
Former SPE president Alan Levine and the studio's one-time co-president Ken Lemberger will be based at the investment bank's longtime headquarters in Century City, where the initiative will complement film-finance operations.
John Miller, veteran managing director of JPMorgan Securities in Los Angeles, will have ultimate responsibility over both the film-finance operations, known as JPMorgan's Entertainment Industries Group, and the new consulting unit, JPMorgan Entertainment Advisors.
"This could be transformative for our business and what we want to accomplish," Miller said.
He declined to project revenue of the new unit but said the startup unit is as much about relationship-building as generating immediate new income for the firm. JPMorgan's entertainment finance operations are known to contribute hundreds of millions of dollars annually to the parent firm's top-line revenue.
"I've been talking to Alan and Ken for literally years to try to do something like this," Miller said. "We have had -- and will continue to have -- the dominant position in the film-finance business. But because of that, the question has been: How do you grow that business?"
Timing of the venture could prove propitious as there has been a recent surge in activity by nontraditional producers in Hollywood.
- 4/23/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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