April 28, 2000

Archived update from Cigarettes & Coffee, run by Greg Mariotti & CJ Wallis from 1999-2005

Well it looks like the elusive Magnolia DVD will be released on July 25, 2000. This according to great DVD File site. Here's their information:

In a first for New Line, they have announced their debut two-disc set, for Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia on 7/25. The set features an anamorphic 2.35:1 transfer & English 5.1 & 2.0 mixes, a making-of feature (no length specified), deleted scenes (after the main 188 minute feature), the trailer & cast & crew biographies. Retail is $29.95, which is higher than New Line's usual $24.95, but given the two discs it certainly seems reasonable. (Note: that no information has been given if the main feature is split over two discs or fully contained on the first disc. 

So there it is! Before I start getting flooded with emails, I don't have anymore specifics at this time. Since it's going to be a two disc set, there are many additional possibilities such as additional deleted scenes, an extensive documentary & more! They don't mention the trailers, TV spots & "Save Me" music video, but I'm sure they will be included. Stay tuned for a subsequent update when any further information is released for this & the Boogie Nights DVD.)

Interview: Total Film

Total Film, Written By Steven Goldman
April 2000

Total Film: Paul Thomas Anderson Interview

Paul Thomas Anderson may be fast on his way to becoming his generation's top auteur, but he doesn't fit the bill when you meet him in the flesh. Sporting a shock of unkempt hair which accents his unshaved face, PT ("Most people call me PT or PTA... PTA for the most part... I just like the way it looks") is an unapologetic all-American gone to seed. A dynamo of motion, tripping over himself, his shoelaces and his sentences, the entire unstudied mess is obscured by a cloud of smoke from a never-ending stream of Camels. Bundled into a green tweed jacket, his wrinkled white shirt half tucked into his trousers, he looks more like your run of the mill 28-year-old scruff than the acclaimed director of Boogie Nights and the forthcoming Magnolia. An Altmanesque ensemble meditation on intersecting LA lives, the latter film has, not surprisingly, been tipped as one of the hottest prospects at this year's Oscars.

Interview: Magnolia Shooting Script Book

Magnolia Shooting Script, Written By Chuck Stephens
January 2000

Writer Chuck Stephens met with Paul Thomas Anderson on October 6th, 1999, for the following interview.

April 21, 2000

Archived update from Cigarettes & Coffee, run by Greg Mariotti & CJ Wallis from 1999-2005

According to a recent book review by The Chronicle ( A Duke University Newspaper), PTA has purchased the movie rights to David Liss's new book, "A Conspiracy of Paper". This is a mystery novel set in eighteenth century England. Obliviously this information has not been confirmed by PTA & it's not clear whether it was purchased by Ghoulardi for PTA to direct or produce. I will add this to the new Unconfirmed Section of Future Projects & Rumors until I have more information.

PTA was listed by Premiere Magazine in their annual Power Elite (Who's Running Hollywood Now) May issue at #100. This is his first time on the list. Here's their comments:

100. Paul Thomas Anderson
 

Rank Last Year: Not Ranked 


Job Title: Cocksure Auteur
 

Status Report: Icon for a new generation of writer-directors. After porn epic Boogie Nights, said next would be intimate film, a 30-day shoot. Instead turned in 190-page Magnolia script to New Line, and got $40 million green light, final cut, control over marketing, and Cruise at a discount. Production company, Ghoulardi, seeking to provide safe haven for virgin talents.
 

Yes. It's True: Scott Rudin passed on Anderson project because of elaborate demands for creative control.

April 3, 2000

Archived update from Cigarettes & Coffee, run by Greg Mariotti & CJ Wallis from 1999-2005

As promised, here's the update on all those rumors floating around (some for years) on PTA's future projects. I asked Paul about these back in December & here's what he had to say:

Lennon
: PTA has never been approached about this & said that he has no intentions to do this. He would love to make a musical & he obviously has an affinity for the Beatles, but expect an original concept that has nothing to do with the Beatles or John Lennon.

Blue Movie
: Total Film, the UK magazine, reported that PTA was interested in reuniting Mark Wahlberg & Heather Graham for an adaption of the Southern novel, Blue Movie, which details how a brother & sister from an American acting dynasty decide to make a porn film as an expression of high art. PTA laughed this off & said, "not a chance." When I originally reported this back in November, I thought it was wishful thinking as PTA has already covered this topic in Boogie Nights.

Rule of the Bone
: PTA did adapt this Russell Bank's book (Sweet Hereafter) for director Carl Franklin (Devil in a Blue Dress) years ago, but the Sony/Columbia Tri-Star project seems to have stalled. I will follow up with PTA the next time we speak, to see if there's been any progress.

Untitled Jonathan Demme Project: 
There still appears to be a collaboration on the horizon that is not related to the Bob Downey, Sr. project I reported last month. I believe the project is with Universal & any updates will appear here!

I will have an image link up shortly to check the latest news on these & other proposed projects. I do not want to become a rumor mill, so anything that is posted will have to come from a credible source & won't gain validity until I have checked with PTA's camp.

April 2, 2000

Archived update from Cigarettes & Coffee, run by Greg Mariotti & CJ Wallis from 1999-2005

News Askew, the site devoted to all things Kevin Smith, turned into a PTA site yesterday (complete with graphics "borrowed" from my site). To see what the site looked like, click here. This was fairly elaborate (& they left it up all day), but when will this idiotic Kevin Smith vs. PTA crap end? It's nice to see PTA take the high road & not comment publicly after all Kevin Smith's remarks regarding Magnolia (See Latest News January Archive if you really want to revisit this). Although the News Askew joke was in jest & did not appear mean spirited, hopefully this is the end of this topic.

The second joke was done through the PTA mailing list/email group by its manager. He redid the Internet Movie Database complete with headlines about PTA's "next project", A Midget Musical starring Adam Sandler. This was quite inspired with "quotes" from Joanne Sellar & PTA. Click here to follow the link: (The story is on the right hand side).