Nationalist groups have been suffocating the Oscar winning movie “The Cove” in Japan.  At least three theatres have canceled screening the documentary movie and twenty-three are in limbo trying to decide if they will show it or not. It was also banned from being shown at a U.S. Military base on the grounds of it being too controversial.

The movie documents an annual dolphin hunt that takes place in a Japanese village. The bloody slaughter is captured on hidden cameras and depicts the fishermen as local thugs.The protestors are pointing out that dolphin hunts are not found in only Japan but in other countries as well. They say that it is anti-Japanese and that the movie has links to Sea Shepard, the anti-whaling groups that has regular run-ins with Japanese whalers.

This is not the first time that Nationalist groups have flexed their muscle. “Yaksuni” was a movie that suffered the same fate two years ago. That movie was about a Japanese war shrine which honors Japanese soldiers, regardless of whether they were heroes or war criminals.

The current controversy has taken on overtones of suppression of the freedom of speech. Directors, academics and journalists have come together to write a letter to the theaters, asking them not to succumb to pressure from the Nationalist groups. An event was also held on Wednesday, where the movie was shown and discussions were held after wards on the issues of freedom of speech and theater cancellations.

Anne Carradine, wife of David Carradine is furious with the way the French production company handled his last production. She has launched a lawsuit against the company, MK2 S.A., claiming that they had failed to provide facilities to safeguard him.

The star of the seventies hit series “Kung Fu” was found dead in his hotel suite in June last year. Wild rumors have circulated as to how the star may have died. Although the general word bandied about is “suicide”, the popular theory is that the Carradine died of autoerotic asphyxiation. After two autopsies the cause of death has now settled down to “accidental asphyxiation”.

The star who was in recent times known for his role as the elusive Bill in the “Kill Bill” movies, had arrived in Bangkok for the filming of “Stretch”. The lawsuit accuses staff from the film as well as Carradine’s assistant of abandoning him in his room on their way to dinner when they were not able to contact him in his room. Carradine had contacted his assistant almost an hour later, but he was told that he would have to find his own means that night as the whole group was across town. It was after this incident that he was found dead. The lawsuit does not offer details on the actor’s death and nor does it specify how much is being claimed as damages.

MK2 was not prepared to comment on the lawsuit when they were contacted. They have halted production on “Stretch” and no plans have been made public as to how, if ever, the movie will be released.

Tolkien fans will have to wait a long time for “The Hobbit” to become a reality. The prequel to “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy has hit a massive bump in the road. Director Guillermo del Toro quit the production after being frustrated by continuing delays.

He said that it was one of the hardest decisions of his life, as he had spent almost two years working on the project. However del Toro will still be involved with the movie as a co-writer for the screenplays. He will fulfill this role along with Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. Jackson is function as joint executive producer alongside his wife Fran. He managed to seal a deal with regards to the movie in 2007, after which he got del Toro on board.

The main reason for delays has been the situation at MGM. Reports of near bankruptcy have been hounding the studio since late last year and this has prevented any solid work on “The Hobbit” from going ahead. Contrary to popular belief, the movie has not been green lighted and the 2012 date touted by fans is quite unlikely to happen.

The movie required a long term commitment from the Director, and del Toro had been ready for the long haul. He had agreed to spend three years in New Zealand to bring the two part movie to life. Unfortunately with the delays that period had to be extend to six, which del Toro could understandably not commit to. Jackson is confident that this will not affect the production too much, as the movie is still in the early stages and does not even have a go-ahead from the studio.

British screenwriter Simon Monjack was found dead in his Los Angeles home on Sunday. Monjack was the husband of the late Brittany Murphy.
Although foul play was the conclusion by many, police refuted it and said that they had found no evidence of criminal activity or any foul play. According to Sgt. Louie Lozano, a police spokesman, the screenwriter’s death has been attributed to natural causes. The Los Angeles Coroner’s Office will now take over the investigation as criminal activity as a cause, has been eliminated.

At approximately 9.40 PM on Sunday night, firefighters had rushed to Monjack’s home in Hollywood Hill in response to an emergency call. The call had been made by a woman who is as yet unidentified. Murphy and Monjack did share their home with the Actress’s mother Sharon, but it has not been confirmed yet whether she was indeed the person on the phone.

It was only five months ago when Brittany Murphy was found dead in the same home. A visibly shaken and emotional Monjack spoke at his late wife’s funeral, extolling her virtues and calling her his soul mate and best friend. Murphy’s death was also cleared of foul play at the time, and the coroner’s office declared the death “accidental, but preventable”.

Contrary to speculation, the actress was not loaded with drugs nor did it find any evidence of drug abuse. The autopsy revealed that the she was under medication for a respiratory illness. Both her husband and mother said that she had been ill with flulike symptoms in the days leading up to her death.

The Vampire mania that is sweeping Hollywood seems to have no end in sight. “Twilight” and “New Moon” had boyfriends and husbands alike groaning, moaning and dreading a slew of copycats. But the newest offering from Lucas Foster and Warp Films tries to set things back to the way things were.
The movie is adapted from the book “Blood Oath” by Christopher Farnsworth, which hits stores this week. The plot centers around a vampire named Nathaniel Cade who is captured by the U.S. Army after the end of the civil war. Cade is then made to swear an oath to President Andrew Johnson to protect the Presidency, a task which he has carried out till the present day. His new challenge comes in the form of a biological weapon that somehow has links to the White House.

Foster, the producer responsible for thrillers like “Law Abiding Citizen” and “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”, is very excited by the potential of the story and has great expectations for its success when it comes out in 2011. He is so excited that he has already purchased the movie rights to the unwritten sequel of the book. His decision may be justified as the book has received rave reviews so far. Foster also claims that the book has an excellent mixture of action and different supernatural creatures which keep it lively and exciting. He credits the author with pulling off an excellent job in creating a new vampire saga. Farnsworth has been brought in to help the screenwriters in their work and will receive executive producer credits in the movie.

The summer movie season is expected to kickoff with a bang as Iron Man 2 hits U.S. and Canadian screens this week. The good news for the producers has already started flowing in. The movie has already achieved excellent box office with its advanced overseas release.

The United Kingdom led the way with $12.2 million, followed closely behind by South Korea with $10.8 Million. Overall the movie has grossed over $100 million in its opening weekend overseas. Compare this to 2008’s Iron Man which made $585 million worldwide and you can see why the producers are smiling from ear to ear. The sequel to the 2008 superhero movie is expected to gross over $120 million when it debuts in North America.

This is especially good news for Walt Disney who purchased Marvel last year for a reported $4 billion. The film once again will feature Robert Downing Jr. in his armored suit fighting villains, making snappy comments and generally making the world a safer place. Iron Man 2 will be distributed by Paramount Pictures, which is owned by Viacom Inc., due to a deal that was struck before the Disney acquisition of Marvel.

Iron Man 2 is expected to unseat the current box office leader, “Nightmare on Elm Street”, which is a remake of the classic horror series. “Nightmare” has so far grossed $32 million, ensuring that the $30 million spent on producing the movie is recovered. It also holds the record for the best opening of any horror film in the April-May period.

The Oscar winning war drama “Hurt Locker” is going to war against piracy. The producers of the movie are taking action against thousands of users who took part in actively pirating the movie. The movie’s fancier, Voltage Pictures, has signed up with a group that is actively pursuing a case that targets peer-to-peer BitTorrent users.

The U.S. Copyright Group, which is based in Washington D.C., has already started the ball rolling with regards to several other movies. However, “Hurt Locker” is the only high profile movie on the list. “Call of the Wild 3D” “Far Cry” by German filmmaker Uwe Boll and “Uncross the Stars” are some of the others on the list. So far the group was not taken very seriously by many due to the low profiles of the ten movies that were on the list before “Hurt Locker”. The addition of the Oscar winner has sent ripples through the piracy circles and arrests are one of the options that could be pursued, following a favorable result in the lawsuit.

When the lawsuit is filed, the ISP’s will be subpoenaed for records. These records will then attempt to match IP addresses with unlawful activities on the BitTorrent network. So far the ISP’s have not co-operated fully in handing out the records, but this is mostly because it involves a lot of work for them to do so. The U.S. Copyright Group sends a settlement offer to individuals who are identified. From previous cases, they have a 40% success rate on the offers. Those who did not respond have been sent new offers. The Group said that if they fail to respond to that, lawsuits and arrests will follow. The same procedure is expected to be enacted for the “Hurt Locker” pirates as well.

“Trekkies” have a great opportunity to get their hands on some rare Star Trek memorabilia soon. Personal effects belonging to the creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry, and some show memorabilia will be auctioned off on the 27th of June.

The proceeds from the auction will go to the Roddenberry Foundation. The foundation focuses on helping children, education and the environment. Some of the items on auction include costumes used on the show, hand annotated scripts and even Roddenberry’s studio pass.

William Shatner, who played Captain Kirk in the original series, will also donate a few items towards the auction. He is putting up his custom made Harley-Davidson motorbike, the certificate he received for his Golden Globe nomination and the plaque that was presented to him when his Hollywood Walk of Fame Star was revealed in 1983.

Shatner has made many donations to charity before, but one in particular was extremely curious and begs a mention here. Some time ago, Shatner had kidney stone problems and had to get treatment. An unnamed company actually offered to buy the kidney stone after it passed out from him. The figure? $75,000. Shatner promptly accepted the offer and donated the money to Habitat for Humanity.

The auction is due to take place at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino located in Las Vegas. The bidding process has been extended to the online and phone mediums as well as to on location. Key items will be on display at Ponte 16 which is in Macau, China and later on at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.

In the world of adult entertainment, exotic dancers or strippers are but an extension of a man’s fantasy in the real world. Almost every tourist spot in the world today uses this form of entertainment as a way to attract a large part of its customer base, needless to say, a male-dominated audience.

So if one wants to make a career in exotic dancing, the road to success lies in deft use of the stripper pole as well as in maintaining a body that makes men want you as well as women want to be you. Like the handy workman who uses conventional tools of the trade, the stripper uses ‘equipment’ at her disposal in the art of seduction as a means to an end leading to a lucrative career.

What this means for the budding exotic dancer, just as it applies to everyone wanting to be the best at what they do, is long hours of practice in a place of seclusion that will help create your own style of pole-dancing for your awestruck customers.

For this very purpose, a removable stripper pole can be very useful if you would like to use it for your workout and then dismantle it in minutes. Not only can one purchase this very useful type of pole but they can also rent it as well.

If you are already in the stripper profession, you can also find a wide range of poles that can suit every occasion such as portable stripper poles, spinning poles, glow poles as well as poles with stages.

The Na’vi may not have been involved this time but the story mirrored the movie (somewhat) in the Amazon. Recently, Director James Cameron was on location and in action trying to save a certain part of the Amazon from destruction.

Cameron and the Xingu region’s indigenous people successfully put a stop to the construction of what would have been the third largest dam in the world. If it had been constructed, it would have had severe repercussions on the way of life experienced for countless generations of the indigenous people there. The Indians claimed that the fishing, hunting and co-existence they had with the forest would disappear forever. They also said that they feared that their children and grandchildren would never live in peace.

Although this battle has been won, the war to save the forest is only just beginning. The administration of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has no intention of letting this go quietly. They are intent on appealing the decision by a judge to suspend bidding on construction. This is not the first time that the dam building has been thwarted; back in 1989 musician Sting spearheaded a successful protest that stopped international funding for the dam. But unlike that instance, Brazil does not need any foreign assistance to see the $11 billion Belo Monte dam project through.

As a result, the protestors have a long fight ahead of them if the forest and the way of life of the indigenous people are to be saved.