Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #43 :: May 19•25

20th Century Fox

The first half of the century didn’t produce many notable films but 1971 saw the release of the third film in a very popular franchise. 1981 had five new releases that featured stars Charles Bronson, Richard Pryor, Sean Connery, Alan Alda and Carol Burnett, and it also has one of the worst films ever made. 1991 said ‘hold my beer’ and produced two films regarded as some of the worst ever made (by critics, anyway), plus a popular film about firefighters, an Oscar-winning ‘road picture’ and the return to the screen of a Hollywood legend. 2001 saw a musical get a Best Picture Oscar nomination, and divided viewers and critics with a film about a historical event. 2011 gave us the fourth film in a very popular franchise. Know what these films are? Read on and tell us if any of your favorites were released this week.

1921

• No new films were released this week in 1921.

1931

May 22 – Svengali

• Cast: John Barrymore, Marian Marsh, Donald Crisp, Bramwell Fletcher, Carmel Myers, Luis Alberni, Lumsden Hare, Paul Porcasi
• Director: Archie Mayo
• Studio: Warner Brothers-First National
• Trivia: Based on the 1894 George du Maurier novel Trilby. The novel was adapted into a play in 1895, and at least six silent film adaptations were produced between 1908 and 1923. A nude modeling scene cause controversy with teenage actress Marian Marsh appearing nude but actually wearing a body stocking. An older body double filled in for the wide shots. John Barrymore was one of the first actors to wear contact lenses for a role in a film. The hard lenses were uncomfortable but added a supernatural element to the performance. Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd returned from his expedition to Antarctica a national hero and visited the set during filming.

1941

May 19 – The Ghost of St. Michael’s

• Cast: Will Hay, Claude Hulbert, Charles Hawtrey, Raymond Huntley, Felix Aylmer, Elliott Mason, John Laurie, Hay Petrie, Roddy Hughes, Derek Blomfield, Brefni O’Rorke
• Director: Marcel Varnel
• Studio: Ealing Studios
• Trivia: The film premiered in London on April 4, 1941 before its general UK release on May 19. It was re-released in the UK on September 16, 1947.

May 24 – Crook’s Tour

• Cast: Basil Radford, Naunton Wayne, Greta Gynt, Charles Oliver, Gordon McLeod, Abraham Sofaer, Bernard Rebel, Cyril Gardiner, Leo de Pokorny, Morris Harvey, Noel Hood
• Director: John Baxter
• Studio: Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors
• Trivia: The film premiered in London on September 30, 1940, and went into general release in the UK on May 24. Adapted from a BBC radio serial of the same name. The film is available as a supplement on the Criterion Collection release of The Lady Vanishes.

1951

May 24 – Go for Broke!

• Cast: Van Johnson, Lane Nakano, George Miki‡, Akira Fukunaga, Ken K. Okamoto, Henry Oyasato, Harry Hamada, Henry Nakamura, Warner Anderson, Don Haggerty, Gianna Maria Canale, Dan Riss, John Banner
• Director: Robert Pirosh
• Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: The film premiered in Honolulu on May 4, 1951. The film tells the story of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and six of the actors — Nakano, Miki, Fukunaga, Okamoto, Oyasato, Hamada — were veterans of the 442nd. The film is a rarity for the era in that it shows Asian Americans in a positive light, fighting for the country while their relatives were confined in camps. Richard Anderson and Hugh Beaumont appear in uncredited roles. The film’s screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award. The film made its TV premiere on CBS in 1979, 28 years after its release.

May 25 – The Prowler

• Cast: Van Heflin, Evelyn Keyes, John Maxwell, Katherine Warren, Emerson Treacy, Madge Blake, Wheaton Chambers, Robert Osterloh, Louise Lorimer, Sherry Hall
• Director: Joseph Losey
• Studio: Horizon Pictures, distributed by United Artists
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held in Philadelphia on May 23, 1951. The film’s screenplay was written by the then blacklisted Dalton Trumbo and credited to his friend Hugo Butler, who was also soon to be blacklisted. Trumbo also supplied the voice of radio announcer John Gilvray without the studio’s knowledge. The producer credit ‘S.P. Eagle’ is actually Sam Spiegel, who produced with an uncredited John Huston.

1961

May 24 – The Secret Ways

• Cast: Richard Widmark, Sonja Ziemann, Charles Régnier, Walter Rilla, Senta Berger, Howard Vernon, Heinz Moog, Hubert von Meyerinck, Oskar Wegrostek, Stefan Schnabel, Elisabeth Neumann-Viertel, Helmut Janatsch, John Horsley, Walter Wilz, Ady Berber, Reinhard Kolldehoff, Brigitte Brunmüller, Rudolf Rösner, Jochen Brockmann, Raoul Retzer, Georg Köváry
• Director: Phil Karlson
• Studio: Heath Productions, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: Based on Alistair MacLean’s 1959 novel The Last Frontier, which was published in the US as The Secret Ways. Richard Widmark did not like director Phil Karlson’s tongue-in-cheek direction of the screenplay written by Widmark’s wife Jean Hazelwood, so he took over the directing duties without credit.

May 24 – The Young Savages

• Cast: Burt Lancaster, Dina Merrill, Edward Andrews, Shelley Winters, Larry Gates, Telly Savalas, Pilar Seurat, Roberta Shore, Milton Selzer, David J. Stewart, John Davis Chandler, José Pérez, Stanley Kristien
• Director: John Frankenheimer
• Studio: United Artists
• Trivia: Based on a novel by Evan Hunter. The first film featuring Telly Savalas. Burt Lancaster usually collected a $750,000 fee for his work, but was forced by United Artists to make this and three other films at $150,000 because of production cost overruns at his company for which he was personally responsible. Lee Grant had filmed a key scene before she quit the film. Shelley Winters was her replacement.

1971

20th Century Fox

May 21 – Escape from the Planet of the Apes

• Cast: Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Bradford Dillman, Natalie Trundy, Eric Braeden, William Windom, Sal Mineo, Albert Salmi, Jason Evers, John Randolph, Harry Lauter, M. Emmet Walsh, Roy Glenn, Peter Forster, Bill Bonds, James Bacon, Ricardo Montalbán
• Director: Don Taylor
• Studio: APJAC Productions, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film’s Los Angeles premiere was held on May 26, 1971. The film’s original title was Secret of the Planet of the Apes. The film was given a smaller budget than the previous two films in the series, and production was rushed to completion in six weeks. The film’s villain, Dr. Hasslein, had been mentioned in both of the previous films. Roddy McDowall and Natalie Trundy are the only actors to appear in four of the five films. McDowall did not appear in the second, Beneath the Planet of the Apes (except for archival footage from the first film), and Trundy was not in Planet of the Apes. Sal Mineo took the role of ape Dr. Milo because he’d hoped it would kickstart his career, but he found the makeup so uncomfortable and claustrophobic that his character was killed off earlier than planned. Unfortunately, it was Mineo’s final theatrical film before he was murdered in 1976 at the age of 37. Apes Cornelius and Zira were originally to be mauled to death by Dobermans, but it was felt the scene would be too gory so they were shot instead. This was the only one of the five films to be deliberately written open-ended for a sequel.

1981

May 21 – Death Hunt

• Cast: Charles Bronson, Lee Marvin, Andrew Stevens, Carl Weathers, Ed Lauter, Scott Hylands, Angie Dickinson, Henry Beckman, William Sanderson, Jon Cedar, James O’Connell, Len Lesser, Maury Chaykin, August Schellenberg, Dick Davalos
• Director: Peter R. Hunt
• Studio: Golden Harvest, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film screened at the USA Film Festival (March 30, 1981), Calgary (April 15) and Austin (April 24) before its general US release on May 21. The film is a fictionalized account of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) pursuit of a man named Albert Johnson. The film’s original title was Arctic Rampage. Joan Collins was originally cast as the female lead. Angie Dickinson replaced her in a relatively small role because she wanted to work with Bronson and Marvin (whom she’d already worked with twice before) and wanted to see Banff. Bronson and Marvin appeared together in You’re in the Navy Now (1951) and The Dirty Dozen (1967). Dirty Dozen director Robert Aldrich was the original director on this film. He quit after a dispute over the film’s budget. Peter Falk, Telly Savalas, Ron Howard and Strother Martin were all considered for roles in the film.

May 22 – Bustin’ Loose

• Cast: Richard Pryor, Cicely Tyson, Robert Christian, George Coe, Earl Billings, Bill Quinn, Fred Carney, Peggy McCay, Roy Jenson, Angel Ramirez, Nick Dimitri, Gary Goetzman, Paul Mooney, Vern Taylor
• Director: Oz Scott
• Studio: Omar Productions, Northwest Film and Television Consultants, Universal Clearances, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film had been produced in 1979 before Stir Crazy, but after that film was a hit, some sequences were re-shot by Michael Schultz for the film’s release. Schultz pleaded with Universal to re-shoot the film from scratch, but he ultimately ended up re-shooting about 50% of the film without credit. The film was shot before and after Richard Pryor’s accident that left him burned, with physical differences visible in certain parts of the movie. Six years after the film’s release, a TV series based on the film was produced. Cicely Tyson originally turned the film down, not wanting to work with Pryor due to the crude vulgarities used in his stand-up act. She changed her mind after reading the script, appreciating the loving wholesomeness of the storyline. Her character also got to censor his character’s language whenever he’d curse. The film was designed to give Pryor a more family-friendly image. Vincent Price filmed a cameo as a drunk but his scene was deleted, although you can see his back briefly. The film’s original title was Family Dream.

May 22 – Outland

• Cast: Sean Connery, Peter Boyle, Frances Sternhagen, James Sikking, Kika Markham, Nicholas Barnes, Clarke Peters, Steven Berkoff, John Ratzenberger, Manning Redwood, Angus MacInnes, Eugene Lipinski, Sharon Duce, P.H. Moriarty, Angelique Rockas
• Director: Peter Hyams
• Studio: The Ladd Company, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s Canada release on May 1 pre-dates the US release on May 22. The film was developed at Universal but the studio passed and it was taken to The Ladd Company. The film’s original title was Io, which was the setting of the film, but people mistook it for the number 10 or ‘Lo’. The film was the first motion picture to use Introvision, which used front projection to allow foreground, mid-ground and background elements to be combined in camera without using post-production optical processes, allowing actors to convincingly walk around on miniature sets. One of four Warner Bros. films to use the Megasound format, requiring theaters to install extra speakers on the left, right and rear of the theater walls. The film was nominated for the Best Sound Oscar. The company in the film, Con-Amalgamate, is the name of the company in Peter Hyams’ earlier film Capricorn One. The role of Dr. Lazarus was first offered to Colleen Dewhurst. Gene Hackman, James Brolin and Clint Eastwood were considered for the role of Marshall William T. O’Niel. Bruce Dern was considered for the role of Sergeant Montone. Director Hyams has a cameo as a character named Spota. Fans have formulated a theory that the film could be set in the same universe as Alien.

May 22 – The Four Seasons

• Cast: Alan Alda, Carol Burnett, Len Cariou, Sandy Dennis, Rita Moreno, Jack Weston, Bess Armstrong, Elizabeth Aldo, Beatrice Alda
• Director: Alan Alda
• Studio: Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film was screened as the Closing Night Film of the USA Film Festival on April 4, 1981, and as the Opening Night Film at the Denver International Film Festival on April 30, before its general release on May 22. The film draws its title from the four concerti composed by Antonio Vivaldi. The film was nominated for four Golden Globes including Best Picture – Comedy. The vegetable photos in the film were taken by Alan Alda’s wife Arlene. This was the film debut of Bess Armstrong, Beatrice Alda and Elizabeth Alda. It was also Alan Alda’s feature directorial debut. The film spawned a short-lived 1984 TV series. Alda made an appearance in the pilot episode. The film was released six months after the similar A Change of Seasons.

May 22 – The Legend of the Lone Ranger

• Cast: Klinton Spilsbury, Michael Horse, Christopher Lloyd, Matt Clark, Juanin Clay, Jason Robards, John Bennett Perry, John Hart, Richard Farnsworth, Ted Flicker, Buck Taylor, Tom Laughlin, Merle Haggard, Lincoln Tate
• Director: William A. Fraker
• Studio: Eaves Movie Ranch, ITC Entertainment, Wrather Productions, distributed by Universal Pictures, Associated Film Distribution
• Trivia: Producers outraged Lone Ranger fans when they refused to allow previous Lone Ranger actor Clayton Moore wear the signature mask when making public appearances. More bad buzz for the film came when it was learned producers dubbed Klinton Spilsbury’s voice by actor James Keach because they felt it sounded like Spilsbury was just reading his lines. Spilsbury demanded the film be shot in sequence so he could better portray his character’s arc. The film was a massive box office bomb and Spilsbury never made another film. Spilsbury was reportedly difficult to work with on set, and got into brawls at night. Spilsbury also refused to do any publicity for the film. Producers had considered Stephen Collins, Nicholas Guest and Bruce Boxleitner for the title role. Michael Horse had only one other credit, a Raquel Welch TV movie, and would go on to appear in a recurring role on Twin Peaks. The film was nominated for five Golden Raspberry Awards including Worst Picture, Worst Actor and Worst New Star.

1991

May 24 – Backdraft

• Cast: Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Robert De Niro, Donald Sutherland, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Scott Glenn, Rebecca De Mornay, Jason Gedrick, J. T. Walsh, Cedric Young, Jack McGee, Ryan Todd, Johnny Baker, John Duda, Clint Howard, David Crosby
• Director: Ron Howard
• Studio: Imagine Films Entertainment, Trilogy Entertainment Group, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held in Beverly Hills, CA on May 22, 1991. Before filming began, the main actors went out on calls with Chicago firefighters, and attended the Chicago Fire Academy to learn how to be firefighters. The film received three Oscar nominations. A direct-to-video sequel was released 28 years later on May 14, 2019, with Baldwin and Sutherland reprising their roles. Brad Pitt lost out on the Brian McCaffrey role to William Baldwin, who had to be released from his small role in Thelma & Louise, only to be replaced by Brad Pitt. Alec Baldwin had been offered the role, but turned it down and suggested his brother. Robert Downey Jr. and Keanu Reeves screen-tested for the role. Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp, Matt Dillon, and Val Kilmer were offered the role but turned it down. Some sets were built upside-down so the fire could be seen ‘creeping’ across a floor.

May 24 – Drop Dead Fred

• Cast: Phoebe Cates, Ashley Peldon, Rik Mayall, Marsha Mason, Ron Eldard, Carrie Fisher, Tim Matheson, Daniel Gerroll, Keith Charles, Eleanor Mondale, Bob Reid, Peter Thoemke
• Director: Ate de Jong
• Studio: PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Working Title Films, distribtued by New Line Cinema (North America), Rank Film Distributors (United Kingdom), PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (International)
• Trivia: Bridget Fonda makes an uncredited appearance as Annabella as a favor to her friend Phoebe Cates. Tim Burton was offered the job of director, and Robin Williams was offered the role of Fred. Williams turned down the role for Hook. A large part of the film was shot at Prince’s Paisley Park Studios in Minneapolis. It’s said Prince used to visit the set after filming each evening to mess around and admire the props and costumes. A sequel was being prepared soon after the film’s release, but Rik Mayall declined to reprise the role of Fred. It was offered to Jim Carrey, but he had already signed on for Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. A remake with Russell Brand was planned in 2009, but the box office failure of Brand’s Arthur remake killed the project. Winona Ryder was the first choice for Elizabeth, but turned it down because she didn’t want to be typecast in ‘weird comedies’. Molly Ringwald, Julia Roberts, Kerri Green, Martha Plimpton, Jennifer Connelly, Lea Thompson and Uma Thurman were also considered for the role. Carrie Fisher also auditioned for the role but was considered too old so she was offered the role of Janie. Fisher re-wrote some of her dialogue. Geena Davis and Beverly D’Angelo were considered for the role of Janie. The script was originally taken to Disney, who wanted it to star Goldie Hawn, but not Rik Mayall for whom the part of Fred was written. The film was originally set in the UK, but Mayall wanted to do worldwide films so it was moved to the US. Alec Baldwin, John Getz, Jeff Goldblum, Jeffrey Jones and Rick Moranis were considered for the role of Charles. Josh Brolin, Michael J. Fox, Anthony Michael Hall, Matthew Modine, Keanu Reeves and Charlie Sheen were considered for the role of Mickey Bunce. Kevin Kline, Cates’ husband, was meant to have a cameo in the film but it never happened. Gene Siskel called Drop Dead Fred ‘the worst film of 1991.’

May 24 – Hudson Hawk

• Cast: Bruce Willis, Danny Aiello, Andie MacDowell, James Coburn, Richard E. Grant, Sandra Bernhard, Donald Burton, Andrew Bryniarski, David Caruso, Lorraine Toussaint, Don Harvey, Doug Martin, Steven M. Martin, Leonardo Cimino, Frank Stallone, Carmine Zozzara, Enrico Lo Verso, Courtenay Semel, Frank Welker, William Conrad
• Director: Michael Lehmann
• Studio: Silver Pictures, distributed by TriStar Pictures
• Trivia: The film performed well overseas but was a box office disaster in the US. It earned three Razzie Awards for Worst Director, Screenplay and Picture. Willis, Grant and Bernhard also received nominations. Willis received a story credit, to date his first and only. James Coburn plays George Kaplan, which is the name of the fake agent in Hitchcock’s North By Northwest. Isabella Rossellini was originally cast as Anna Baragli, but delays forced her to drop out, replaced by Maruschka Detmers who had to leave filming a few days into production due to back problems. She was replaced with Andie MacDowell. The film lost so much money that TriStar Pictures was forced to merge with Columbia Pictures. This was the final film of William Conrad, who was the narrator. He retired after the film and died in 1994. Minerva Mayflower was not in the original script. The script’s original male villain was reconceived as female to be offered to Audrey Hepburn. When negotiations broke down, Willis suggested making the original male and rewritten female villain a couple. Joss Ackland was considered for the role of Darwin Mayflower. Richard E. Grant and Sandra Bernhard remained good friends after working together on the film. Willis asked that Famke Janssen screen test for a role after seeing her in a Pantene commercial. She did but was not cast.

20th Century Fox

May 24 – Only the Lonely

• Cast: John Candy, Maureen O’Hara, Ally Sheedy, Anthony Quinn, James Belushi, Kevin Dunn, Macaulay Culkin, Kieran Culkin, Milo O’Shea, Bert Remsen, Joe Greco
• Director: Chris Columbus
• Studio: Hughes Entertainment, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film was inspired by the 1953 television production and 1955 film Marty, while the title comes from the song by Roy Orbison. Chris Columbus wrote the part of Rose for Maureen O’Hara but did not know she had retired and was living in the Virgin Islands. Her younger brother was given the script and he sent it to her with the message ‘This you do!’ O’Hara read the script and replied, ‘This I do!’ but would not commit until she met John Candy. When O’Hara was given a small trailer, Candy complained on her behalf and was told the film’s budget was not being spent on trailers for old movie stars. Candy gave her his trailer and went without one until the studio finally agreed to give both stars a trailer. This was O’Hara’s last theatrical film. She did appear in three TV movies between 1995 and 2000. Producer John Hughes had to hastily arrange filming at old Comiskey Park because it was due to be torn down. O’Hara told Candy he reminded her of Charles Laughton, and that underneath his clown character there existed a powerful, complicated actor. She advised him to trust his talent and not always play the clown. Practically the entire crew that worked on Home Alone and Home Alone 2 worked on this film. The train stop at the end of the film is called Willoughby, a reference to The Twilight Zone episode ‘A Stop at Willoughby’. Hughes insisted on the casting of Ally Sheedy because he wanted stars of his ‘brat pack’ films to have romantic relationships with stars of his later adult feature films. The part of Doyle was originally intended for Roddy McDowall.

May 24 – Thelma & Louise

• Cast: Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Christopher McDonald, Stephen Tobolowsky, Brad Pitt, Timothy Carhart, Jason Beghe, Lucinda Jenney, Marco St. John
• Director: Ridley Scott
• Studio: Pathé Entertainment, Percy Main Productions, Star Partners III Ltd., distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 20, 1991. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, winning for Best Original Screenplay. The film also received eight BAFTA nominations, and four Golden Globe nominations, winning the Globe for Best Screenplay. The film was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 2016. Screenwriter Callie Khouri based the film on her friendship with country music singer Pam Tillis. Khouri intended it it be a low-budget film which she directed. When Ridley Scott read the script, he agreed to produce the film and bought the rights. Scott considered for people to direct including Bob Rafelson, Kevin Reynolds and Richard Donner. Scott did not want to direct the film but was persuaded by Michelle Pfeiffer to do so. Pfeiffer and Jodie Foster were originally considered for the lead roles but as pre-production dragged on both had to drop out. Pfeiffer went on to make Love Field and Foster did The Silence of the Lambs. Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn were next in line, but Streep dropped out due to scheduling conflicts and Hawn was considered not right for the part (they eventually appeared together in Death Becomes Her). Davis, who had been vigorously pursuing the role, and Sarandon were ultimately cast. The two took extensive driving and shooting lessons to prepare for their roles. It took so long to cast the role of Louise that it was in Geena Davis’ contract that she could fill either role if needed. The scene where Darryl slips was unscripted as Christopher McDonald actually lost his footing, staying in character and yelling at the workmen as he got into his car. Scott liked it so much he left it in the film. Before Brad Pitt was cast in the role vacated by William Baldwin (to do Backdraft), George Clooney was rejected multiple times, Mark Ruffalo auditioned, and Robert Downey Jr. was cast, but Scott then deemed him too short to play opposite Davis. Christian Slater was almost cast in the role. It was Davis who picked Brad Pitt, and then insisted that no body double was needed for their steamy sex scenes after learning Scott was looking to cast someone (Julie Strain has said that she did double for Davis). Davis split from husband Jeff Goldblum the day after filming wrapped as gossip columnist Liz Smith said she had gone ‘bananas’ for Brad Pitt. This was the last film to date to score two Best Actress Oscar nominations. The film inspired Tori Amos to write the song ‘Me and a Gun’. Catherine Keener was cast as investigator Hal Slocumb’s wife but her one scene was cut. It can be found as a deleted scene on the Special Edition DVD. Marco St. John is credited at the beginning of the movie, but does not appear in the end credits.

May 24 – Truly, Madly, Deeply

• Cast: Juliet Stevenson, Alan Rickman, Jenny Howe, Carolyn Choa, Bill Paterson, Christopher Rozycki, Keith Bartlett, David Ryall, Stella Maris, Ian Hawkes, Deborah Findlay, Vania Vilers, Arturo Venegas, Richard Syms, Michael Maloney
• Director: Anthony Minghella
• Studio: BBC Films, Lionheart, Winston, distributed by The Samuel Goldwyn Company
• Trivia: The film premiered in London on November 10, 1990, then at the USA Film Festival on April 20, 1991 before opening in New York City on May 3 before its general release on May 24. The film’s UK general release was on August 16. Anthony Minghella wrote the script specifically for Juliet Stevenson to showcase all of her talents, including playing the piano and dancing. Stevenson has said it’s her favorite film and the shoot was like a party. The working title for the film was Cello, a reference to the musical instrument in the film, and the Italian word ‘cielo’, meaning ‘heaven’. The film was originally made for the BBC’s Screen Two series. Alan Rickman had to take cello lessons. In the film he holds the bow with his right hand while an actual cellist is hidden behind Rickman with his left arm through Rickman’s armpit.

May 24 – Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken

• Cast: Gabrielle Anwar, Michael Schoeffling, Cliff Robertson, Dylan Kussman, Kathleen York, Frank Renzulli
• Director: Steve Miner
• Studio: Walt Disney Pictures, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures
• Trivia: Based on events in the life of Sonora Webster Carver as told in her memoir A Girl and Five Brave Horses. Carver was dissatisfied with the film’s embellishments and felt it bore little resemblance to her life. This was Michael Schoeffling’s last film, quitting the business to concentrate on his furniture business. Burt Reynolds turned down the role of Doctor F. W. Carver.

May 25 – Rhapsody in August

• Cast: Sachiko Murase, Hisashi Igawa, Narumi Kayashima, Tomoko Otakara, Mitsunori Isaki, Toshie Negishi, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Choichiro Kawarazaki, Mieko Suzuki, Richard Gere
• Director: Akira Kurosawa
• Studio: Shochiku Films Ltd.
• Trivia: The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 12, 1991, then opened in Japan on May 25. Its US premiere was on December 16 before going into general release on December 20. Based on the novel Nabe no naka by Kiyoko Murata. The film was selected as Japan’s entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Awards but was not accepted as a nominee. Richard Gere was earning millions of dollars per role at the time, but Kurosawa’s company was unable to pay his salary. Gere said he’d work for free for Kurosawa, but not wanting to take advantage of the actor, he was paid a moderate sum as well as travel expenses for himself and anyone he wanted to bring to Japan. Among those he brought along was Cindy Crawford. Gere memorized his dialogue phonetically.

2001

May 24 – Moulin Rouge!

• Cast: Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, Jim Broadbent, Richard Roxburgh, John Leguizamo, Jacek Koman, Caroline O’Connor, Kerry Walker, Lara Mulcahy, Garry McDonald, Matt Whittet, Keith Robinson, David Wenham, Kiruna Stamell, DeObia Oparei, Kylie Minogue, Peter Whitford, Linal Haft
• Director: Baz Luhrmann
• Studio: Bazmark Productions, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film had several premieres including the Cannes Film Festival (May 9, 2001), Los Angeles (May 16), New York City (May 17) and Sydney, Australia (May 20). The film first opened in general release on May 24 in Australia, then opened in the US and Canada on June 1. The film is the third of Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Red Curtain Trilogy’ after Strictly Ballroom and Romeo + Juliet. The film was nominated for eight Oscars, winning for Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design. It was the first musical nominated for Best Picture in 10 years. It was nominated for 12 BAFTAs, winning for Best Supporting Actor (Jim Broadbent), Best Sound, and Best Music. It was also nominated for six Golden Globes, winning Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Nicole Kidman) and Best Original Score. The film was inspired by a variety of sources including vaudeville, Puccini’s La bohème, Bollywood, and the Greek tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice. The character of Satine was based on French can-can dancer Jane Avril. Leonardo DiCaprio auditioned for the role of Christian. Also considered were Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal. Courtney Love auditioned for the role of Satine, and helped clear the rights for the song ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ to be used in the film, although objected to Luhrmann hiring Marilyn Manson to sing it, forcing production to find another band six days before the film was to open. Kidman broke a rib while getting into a corset, tightening it as much as possible to achieve an 18 inch waist. The production ran over schedule but had to vacate the Fox Studios in Sydney to make way for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, requiring some pick up shots to be filmed in Madrid. The film was to premiere on Christmas 2020 but Fox delayed the release to Spring 2021 to give Luhrmann more post-production time. The necklace worn by Kidman was the most expensive piece of jewelry made for a film, consisting of real diamonds and platinum, worth an estimated $1 million. John Leguizamo had to endure weeks of physical therapy after playing the role of Toulouse-Lautrec, sometimes walking on his knees to appear shorter and doing the entire climactic scene from a squatting position. The song ‘Come What May’ was written for Romeo + Juliet but not used, which disqualified it from an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song for Moulin Rouge! The Green Fairy was originally conceived as a long-haired muscle man with a giant sitar with Ozzy Osbourne providing the vocals. Osbourne still provides the Fairy’s guttural scream when it turns evil. The original screenplay was told in flashbacks as Christian related the story to Satine’s three-year-old child. Jim Broadbent’s ‘Like a Virgin’ vocals were dubbed by an opera singer mimicking Broadbent’s own vocal performance. The floor was coated with Coca-Cola so the dancers wouldn’t slip. It was Richard Roxburgh’s favorite part of filming. Broadbent based his performance on Baz Luhrmann. It took two-and-a-half hours each day to get Broadbent into his fat suit. The film is dedicated to Baz Luhrmann’s father Leonard, who died just before production was to begin and who told his son to focus on the film. Luhrmann nearly gave up during the hectic pre-production but remembered his father’s words. Before a name was settled on, the Duke of Monroth was called Count Von Groovy — a nickname given to Luhrmann while directing La bohème at the Sydney Opera House in 1990 — during the script writing process. The film was shot over a period of 192 days. The film played in US theaters for 45 weeks.

May 25 – Pearl Harbor

• Cast: Ben Affleck, Jesse James, Josh Hartnett, Reiley McClendon, Kate Beckinsale, Tom Sizemore, Jaime King, Catherine Kellner, Jennifer Garner, William Lee Scott, Ewen Bremner, Greg Zola, Michael Shannon, Matt Davis, Dan Aykroyd, Kim Coates, Sara Rue, Tony Curran, Nicholas Farrell, William Fichtner, Steve Rankin, John Fujioka, Leland Orser, Ted McGinley, Andrew Bryniarski, Brandon Lozano, Eric Christian Olsen, Sean Faris, Cuba Gooding Jr., Jon Voight, Colm Feore, Mako, Alec Baldwin, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Scott Wilson, Graham Beckel, Tom Everett, Tomas Arana, Peter Firth, Glenn Morshower, Yuji Okumoto, Madison Mason, Michael Shamus Wiles, Seth Sakai
• Director: Michael Bay
• Studio: Touchstone Pictures, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on May 21, 2001. Nominated for four Academy Awards, winning Best Sound Editing. The film was also nominated for six Golden Raspberry Awards including Worst Picture, marking the first occurrence of a Razzie nominee winning an Oscar. It also scored two Golden Globe nominations for Song and Score. Michael Bay had some issues with Disney over the proposed $208 million budget and his desire to film for an R-rating, depicting the horrors or war. He realized younger audiences would not get to see the film if it was not rated PG-13. As a compromise, he was allowed to release an R-rated cut on DVD in 2002. A scene of the Japanese attacking a hospital caused an uproar in Pearl Harbor and Japan as it never happened, and the Japanese pilots were under orders to not attack civilian targets. This was the first film Michael Fassbender ever auditioned for. The amount of money spent on production and promotion was close to the total amount of the actual damage caused by the attack. To keep the budget down, Bay, Jerry Bruckheimer and the film’s stars took pay cuts in exchange for a cut of the film’s profits. While scouting for a modern city that most resembled 1942 Tokyo, producers felt Gary, Indiana was the closest match so it was photographed from the air and integrated into the film as a stand in for the bombing of Tokyo. Tennessee farmland scenes were filmed in Somis, California. Corn was planted five months prior to shooting for the look of Tennessee. The shot of the camera sweeping past the U.S.S. Hornet was a combination of real and CGI footage. The ship was actually docked next to a Holiday Inn. An entirely new program had to be written to create CGI smoke effects as the amount of smoke needed was not allowed to be created on set for environmental reasons. Ashton Kutcher lost the role of Danny Walker to Josh Hartnett. The script’s original title was Tennessee. Matt Damon and Clint Walker make cameo appearances. Damon was offered a role in the film but could not accept due to scheduling conflicts.

2011

Walt Disney Pictures

May 18 – Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

• Cast: Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Ian McShane, Geoffrey Rush, Kevin McNally, Sam Claflin, Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Stephen Graham, Richard Griffiths, Greg Ellis, Óscar Jaenada, Keith Richards
• Director: Rob Marshall
• Studio: Walt Disney Pictures, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held in Anaheim, CA on May 7, 2011. The film opened in Russia and many European countries including the UK, France, Italy on May 18, followed on May 19 by more countries including Australia, Argentina, Greece and Israel, before hitting the US, Canada, China and others on May 20. The fourth film in the franchise and a stand-alone sequel. It’s the first of the series to not be directed by Gore Verbinski. Loosely based on the 1987 novel On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers. The film was shot natively in 3D, with just one shot filmed conventionally and post-converted to 3D. Johnny Depp was paid more than $55 million to return, with Disney knowing the film would not succeed without him. Depp and Keith Richards tried to convince Mick Jagger to audition for the role of a pirate elder. Penélope Cruz was the only actress considered for the role of Angelica. Cruz discovered she was pregnant during the shoot, so her sister Mónica Cruz doubled for her in riskier scenes. Casting for the mermaids required the actresses to have natural breasts, no implants since they did not exist in the 1700s. The film required 1,112 special effects shots done by ten different companies, with the 3D process making everything doubly difficult. Alfred Molina was considered for the role of Blackbeard.