It was known as the house that Freddy built ... and now it's gone. Vanished. Absorbed whole into the corporate borg that is Warner Bros. It was announced yesterday that New Line Cinema, as we know it, is now dead. According to former chief Bob Shaye, it seems that WB will still use the New Line name for certain productions and / or pick-ups, but it probably won't be long before that idea is swallowed whole by Warner Independent Pictures.One can only assume that New Line subsidiary Picturehouse (formerly Fine Line) will also be absorbed, which is a shame because they've had a really impressive track record so far.

So while I'll always be grateful to New Line for giving me Freddy Krueger, Blade, Critters, Austin Powers and (of course) The Lord of the Rings, I thought it might be interesting to track back over ALL of the New Line, Fine Line, and Picturehouse releases and maybe even see what doomed the studio. Aside from withholding all those LOTR profits and inspiring a half-dozen very expensive lawsuits, of course. (And let's not forget: They distributed The Evil Dead, funded almost all of John Waters' films AND they bankrolled Boogie Nights, Pleasantville, Seven, and Dark City, so let's not talk too ill of the recently-deceased.) New Line celebrated its 40th anniversary last November, which means they set the "founding" year as 1967. At that point New Line was simply distributing old flicks to college campuses, but that all changed in the early '80s.

As a production company that we know and (sometimes) love, New Line was probably born in 1982, with the production and release of Jack Sholder's Alone in the Dark, a strangely amusing horror flick starring Jack Palance, Martin Landau and Donald Pleasance. From that small success, the die was cast; 1984 saw the arrival of A Nightmare on Elm Street and 1985 saw ... A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge. This would prove to be New Line's m.o. for many years to come: One novel idea followed by several uninspired sequels.

"Last time I visit Cinematical!" "Guess it's a slow news day, huh?" "Cinematical used to be cool, but now they just don't care anymore." Yup, these are just some of the comments I expect to read after writing a post about Britney Spears. But what can I say -- the gal just fascinates me. Like the rest of the world, I managed to catch Britney's VMA performance ... and loved every minute of it. Sure, I've been reading all these stories about how she embarrassed herself, MTV, Jesus, Kanye, what have you, but in my opinion, MTV should freaking pray to her. Without that trainwreck, their show would've been mentioned briefly -- Kid Rock threw a punch, blah blah -- end of story. But Britney. Boy, did she get our attention. The Movie Blog recently wrote a story asking whether folks would be interested in a Britney biopic -- after all, she's shaping up to be the perfect candidate. The consensus is that people are sick of hearing about her; all they want is for Britney to go away. Far away. To the Land of I Can Have Two Kids and Still Party Like A Washed-Up Rock Star. Oh wait, we already live there.

But they're lying. Because we want Britney. We need Britney. With La Lohan in rehab and Paris under publicist arrest, who do we turn to? This guy? I don't think so. So yes, I'm in favor of a Britney Spears biopic -- and I'd like it to happen sooner rather than later, this way everyone (Spears, Lohan, Hilton, K-Fed) can all play themselves. And I'd like a really serious director to helm the thing; someone like Roman Polanski. Oooh, he would be perfect. And he just dropped off Pompeii -- even better! Not to mention he has a thing for ... well, you know. There would need to be a few dance numbers (choreographed by Adam Shankman), while Steve Buscemi and Don Cheadle take on supporting performances -- if only because they're in practically everything these days. I'd like Fox to put it out in late September (with a premiere in Toronto), and I want Cinematical's James Rocchi to conduct all the audio interviews. And then Cinematical gets to premiere the poster; in big, shiny red ink -- it reads: Roman Polanski's Born to Make You Happy (taken from a Spears song, of course). That's what I want. Make it so ...

(image from Planet Bollywood.com)

Up until last week, almost any American writing about Shyam Benegal had to do a great deal of bluffing. Cinematical's Kim Voynar just described viewing Benegal's Goa-set Trikal during the Telluride fest where the master filmmaker (and Indian member of Parliament) was receiving the fest's highest honor, the Silver Medallion. Here we have audio of the ceremony, as well as an interview between Benegal and Godard collaborator J.-P. Gorin.

A person with a Netflix account can see seven other Benegal films, including 2001's Zubeidaa, and that leaves about 14 other films unaccounted for. Here in Berkeley, Benegal is a three-day guest at the Pacific Film Archives. Saturday the 8th he's heading south to Santa Cruz to show Zubeidaa. Benegal was invited down to that small but incomparable college town by the local Satyajit Ray Film and Study collection. That Benegal was following Ray's enormous steps is something even a bluffer knows. He made a documentary about Ray, for example, and like the great Bengali filmmaker, Benegal was an escapee from the rainbow-colored escapism of Bollywood. For me, it took last night's PFA screening of Benegal's early film Ankur (The Seedling) to really explain what the fuss was about.

Nothing could be less like melodrama than this Faulkner-like study of hard living in a rural backwater, a contrast between wretched poverty and wealthy ineffectualness. A callow landowner's son--whose surface layer of sophistication is about as deep as the candy shell on an M & M--makes life miserable through a combination of moral highhandedness and inner blindness. Benegal fleshes out the story with juicy rural-comic anecdotes. Still, the deeply impressive lead performance by Shabana Azmi demonstrates Ankur as one of the most mature and compelling films the Indian cinema has to offer.

Ridley Scott, or Sir Ridley Scott depending on how you feel like addressing him, made a fairly provocative comment at the Venice Film Festival on August 30th. The occasion was the 25th anniversary of the release of Blade Runner, in yet another director's cut, in anticipation of a 5 (five!) disc DVD release of the same this fall by Warner Brothers. (The previous link includes some reviews of the newest version at the Venice festival, including EW's Owen Gliberman's comment that Blade Runner is "the only science-fiction film that can be called transcendental." Hey, Owen, what about this Fritz Lang classic, or this Russian masterpiece, or even this small-scale but extremely effective version of the Ursula K. Leguin novel ... eh, what's the use.) To get back to the original point about sweeping generalizations, Scott was in a no doubt expansive mood, and started to discuss the great films of sci-fi.

Here's how it went down, according to The Times of London on-line. In Scott's opinion, science fiction films are not just dead, they're "as dead as westerns...there's nothing original. We've seen it all before. Been there. Done that." Scott celebrates 2001: A Space Odyssey as the pinnacle of sci-fi and says that "over-reliance on special effects" and weak story lines are the culprit. Responses from the blogosphere came fast and furious; one correspondent, Donald Smith, pointed out that Shane Carruth's small-scale film Primer had been "low-key and highly intelligent" while being completely without high-tech bloat. What I haven't been seeing is someone making the point that Blade Runner is film noir dressed in a sci-fi costume, just like Scott's other famous sci-fi film Alien, is a monster movie set in outer space. When it comes to the essential matter of sci-fi -- what humans are, where we are going, and when will we cease to exist -- Scott is only slightly interested ... especially when compared to the Philip K. Dick novel upon which Blade Runner is based. Watching it, you have to recall Pauline Kael's comment that almost everyone in the film would flunk the Voight-Kampff empathy test that ferrets out skin-jobs. As the director of such a high-tech, low-emotion film, is Scott really in a position to nail shut the coffin of an entire genre?

Have I told you yet how funny and enjoyable Superbad is? I may have already mentioned it -- I dunno -- a gazillion times, but if this is the first you're hearing about it, then might I add that Superbad will go down as one of the best teen sex comedies in years. Yes, years. Not weeks. Not days. Not hours. YEARS! Since films like this one are pretty rare, Cinematical is giving it an extra push this week. Apart from two -- count em' two -- roundtable interviews and a review, I'm also happy to share this very funny Moviefone Unscripted piece with you. I'm a pretty big fan of these Unscripted things -- not because Cinematical and Moviefone hang out at all the same dive bars, but because they happen to be pretty damn amusing. And the one featuring Jonah Hill and Michael Cera asking each other reader-submitted questions is no exception; this thing cracked me up. (These are kind of like VH1's Unplugged, except, well, no one has a guitar.)

But maybe I just have a soft spot for Hill and Cera. These guys play off each other so well, it would be a real shame if they didn't team up on another film in the future. Now, it takes them awhile to answer each question (because they both throw out a ton of pre-question shtick), but when they do, it's gold. My favorite one had to be when Michael asked Jonah what his favorite sandwich is, only Jonah forces Michael to tell this really embarrassing story about how his jaw is all screwed up. Yeah ... I guess you kind of have to watch it yourself. So head on over to Moviefone, and let us know what you think. Superbad (rated R for "Run to your older sibling and beg them to buy you a ticket in") arrives in theaters this Friday.

People tell me I'm nuts, but I absolutely adore long plane rides. Mainly because, over the years, the wife and I have assembled quite an electronics arsenal. I have the personal DVD player, the PSP, the iPod -- not to mention (in the non-electronics department) books, pillows, blankets and -- most importantly -- a big bag of Twizzlers. It doesn't get much better than that. Prior to traveling, I also map out which seat I want (and then bother whomever to make sure I get it), and do plenty of research on which films will be playing on the flight. The other great thing about long plane rides is that no one (except a flight attendant with crummy food) is allowed to bother me. No emails. No phone calls. No taking the dog for a walk. Nothing. Just me, my electronics, my pillow and my movies. This is my heaven.

I mention this because, on Saturday, I leave New York City for a two-week trip to Australia. My cousin is getting married. And I'm so there. Today I started to assemble my movie playlist, which include the actual DVDs I plan to bring, as well as what I plan to watch (all edited and whatnot) on the plane. Since I like to be diverse, here's what I have so far: A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, Wristcutters (a LEGAL copy, mind you -- I'm no pirate), Tale of an Osaka Love Thief (a doc I've heard wonderful things about), The Boys of Summer (another festival-ish doc), Freaks and Geeks: The Complete Series, Weeds: Season 1 (for the wife) and Battlestar Galactica: Seasons 1 and 2.0. (Damn you Heroes for not being out on DVD yet!) I'm also planning to watch Fracture and Zodiac on the plane, although I'm not crazy about them being all chopped up. I'd like to add a tad more comedy and a really great thriller to the lot, so feel free to offer up suggestions. Are you as ridiculous as I am with regards to your in-flight movie planning? How does your inner movie geek go about prepping for a long trip at 35,000 feet? Do tell ...

It has just been a week since Ulrich Mühe died, and the film world is now suffering the loss of more talent. Nine-time Oscar nominee and Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award winner, Ingmar Bergman, died today at the age of 89. One of the biggest directorial names of the 20th century, Bergman rose to fame after a challenging and painful childhood, and used his experiences to carve directorial success "in the way a dream transforms experience and emotions all the time."

After working as a director in Sweden for 10 years, Bergman exploded beyond the bounds of the Scandinavian country in the '50s with four award-winning films -- Smiles of a Summer Night, The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries (Oscar nominee) and The Magician. From there, his success grew, making his name known not only in international film circles, but the world-at-large. His career survived occasional failures and even a huge shift in his personal philosophy -- while his early work was steeped in the search for faith, when he stopped fearing death, salvation became a more tangible, human construct.

He will be missed, but I believe he achieved his goal: "I want to be one of the artists of the cathedral that rises on the plain. I want to occupy myself by carving out of stone the head of a dragon, an angel or a demon, or perhaps a saint; it doesn't matter; I will find the same joy in any case. Whether I am a believer or an unbeliever, Christian or pagan, I work with all the world to build a cathedral because I am artist and artisan, and because I have learned to draw faces, limbs and bodies out of stone. I will never worry about the judgment of posterity or of my contemporaries; my name is carved nowhere and will disappear with me. But a little part of myself will survive in the anonymous and triumphant totality. A dragon or a demon, or perhaps a saint, it doesn't matter!"

When I was a kid, I always hated camp. Part of me was against all the physical activity, and the other despised those cocky councilors who insisted you do what they say, when they say it. Well screw you Tad McMichaels -- what if I don't want to play kickball from three to five? Here's a thought --- what if I want to spend my summer vacation doing things I enjoy? Ah, childhood ... how I miss it so. Leave it up to those hippies in California to begin doing things differently; apparently, The UCLA Armand Hammer Museum has launched a free Screenwriting Camp for kids ages 10-14. Yes, that means you aspirings over the age of 14 will have to find some other way to get your pen on.

Deadline Hollywood provides the following description: "For three weeks in July, adolescent screenwriters will work with Hollywood professionals to write and produce one monster of a short film. Professional screenwriters will teach the students what makes a screenplay tick; later on, the students will cast professional actors (or act themselves), manage props and set equipment, and then shoot their short yet sweet film. Last, but certainly not least, they'll screen their film at a small gala in Venice, CA." Um, sweet! Man do I wish something like this was available back when I was a lonely boy with a vivid imagination forced to play seven hours of dodge ball under the hot, blazing sun. What do you think about this program? Are they simply prepping these kids early for a life in the entertainment industry, or is this a great idea for those youngsters who would rather spend their summer being creative rather than competitive?

I don't know much about Melissa George because I haven't seen the majority of films she's appeared in. Actually, I haven't seen any of the films she's appeared in. I do know that her star is slowly rising, and we'll definitely get a much better look at her when she stars opposite Josh Hartnett in the upcoming vampire thriller 30 Days of Night. Thankfully, I'm not here to announce George's involvement in a sequel to Captivity -- although the two films do share similar themes. Moviehole reports that George has signed on to star in Captive, a new thriller written and directed by Amanda Gusack. Apparently the film is shooting in Canada this month, yet I, personally, haven't heard of it (and nether has IMDb).

In the film, George will play a happily married mother who wakes up after a bad car accident to find herself a hostage in a remote waterfront warehouse. Some dude named Vince (who's also a "masked killer") is holding her, and "shocking revelations are about to turn her formerly safe and orderly existence upside down." I'm not sure what those "shocking revelations" might be, but I'd say waking up in a warehouse next to a masked killer is shocking in and of itself. As Moviehole cleverly points out, George seems fond of this type of material. Either that, or it's all she can get. Aside from Captive, she was stuck in a loony house with Ryan Reynolds in The Amityville Horror remake, she was kidnapped by organ harvesters in Turistas and we'll watch her fending off a vampire attack pretty soon in 30 Days of Night. Is it just me, or does someone like it freaky?

Short-film director Alex Calvo has been working on his first feature film, The Other Side of the Tracks, which Goodnight Film has slipped into production in Connecticut . The supernatural thriller, which comes from Calvo's own script, will star Canadian Brendan Fehr (CSI: Miami) and Tania Raymonde (Lost), with a supporting cast that includes: Top Gun Kelly McGillis, as well as Sam Robards (Life as a House), Chad Lindberg (Adam and Eve), Shirley Knight (Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood), Beatrice Rosen (Cuts), Natassia Malthe (Bloodrayne II: Deliverance) and Stephnie Weir (Mad TV).

While The Other Side of the Tracks might evoke thoughts of the poor and rich, it seems that this film is taking things a touch literally. The film is about a young man whose girlfriend was killed a decade ago in a train accident, and all this time later, he still struggles to move on and escape the memories that haunt him. Over at IMDb, they also have a plot summary that's cut for spoiler content, but I'm not sure what makes it so spoilery. It says what I've typed above, along with one more sentence that very vaguely describes the potential paths that lay in front of the grieving man. I'm also not sure how the "supernatural" part fits in -- maybe he's actually being haunted by his ex's ghost, or maybe one of his paths has a bit of other-worldliness to it.

Whatever the case may be, I'm sure we'll get lots of trademarked Fehr pouting. (Do a Google image search on him, there's tons of serious and pursed-lip Fehr faces out there.) The actor has come a long way since his short stint as Price Montague on Breaker High, and he has gotten a lot of practice with all of his supernatural and thriller fare -- Final Destination, The Forsaken, Roswell... you name it! This is also the second feature thriller in a row for Fehr -- The Fifth Patient, which casts him against names from Marley Shelton to Peter Bogdanovich, just screened last month at CineVegas.