Do you want a reason to hate Harvey Weinstein?

Started by puddnanners, April 09, 2004, 03:34:08 PM

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puddnanners

I was bored and looking for information about Errol Morris, when I came across this:

http://errolmorris.com/images/films/thinblueline_harveyletter.jpg

This is from 1988.  Harvey Fuckstein was an asshole even before he was a bigshot.

MacGuffin

That's nothing. If you really want to hate Harvey, read this:



That Morris memo only takes up one page in the book. Although, "Thin Blue Line" made money at a time when documentaries were box office poison.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks

ono

What Mac said.  I'm reading Down and Dirty Pictures right now, can't put it down.  Probably read like 75-100 pages of it last night alone.  It's a great book.  Really inspirational to indie filmmakers, with the right dose of cautionary tales and a big fucking siren saying "stay the hell away from Miramax!"  I especially like the book for its insights into Soderbergh and Tarantino (though I didn't really learn too much new about Tarantino - I already knew he was an egomaniac).  Really makes me want to run out and see Schizopolis, too.  It's a real filmmakers' film, it seems.

pete

"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton

Sal

I haven't read Down and Dirty (nor will I--inspirational for indie filmmakers my ass; tabloids and gossip should be a hindrance, not an inspiration.  You want inspiration go make a damn movie), but I read that article very carefully.   Not to play devil's advocate, but Weinstein must have been on pretty decent terms with Morris to write that letter.  The main point of it is the way Morris campaigned the movie.  He wasn't being direct.  He didn't give the information that people needed--namely, what the damn thing was about.  So Weinstein wrote a facetious letter and even praised him at the end.  What's the big deal?  Heh.  Weinstein misspelled "media" with an "n" however.  And it's A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, not NIGHTMARE.  That's the biggest fallacy I saw.

pete

no, errol morris kept on talking about it as a documentary--and that was the D word those marketing people were afraid of the most.  It was his fucking film he could say whatever the hell he wanted about it.
"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton

mutinyco

I haven't read it yet, but the vibe I get is that it isn't very accurate. Biskind tends to cling to certain characterizations that play out in the most negative ways. More a book of scandal and rumor than evenhanded fact.
"I believe in this, and it's been tested by research: he who fucks nuns will later join the church."

-St. Joe

pete

I think spike mike slackers and dykes is a pretty good book.
"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton

Ravi

Quote from: mutinycoI haven't read it yet, but the vibe I get is that it isn't very accurate. Biskind tends to cling to certain characterizations that play out in the most negative ways. More a book of scandal and rumor than evenhanded fact.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/answ-man/sho-sunday-ebert22.html

Q: I've been reading Peter Biskind's latest book, Down and Dirty Pictures, about the rise of Miramax and Sundance. He details an alleged encounter between you and Todd Haynes at a film festival where he presented his movie "Poison." The book quotes Christine Vachon (an independent producer) giving her recollection. Apparently, Haynes introduced himself to you, saying, "Hi, I'm Todd Haynes." You said, "Who the hell is Todd Haynes?" at which point he said that he had directed "Poison."

The book quotes Vachon as saying that upon hearing that "Ebert literally snatched his hand back." The thing is, I know that, you liked Haynes' "Safe," and I thought you were a Haynes fan. What's the story here?

Nicholas Jarecki, New York City


A:Biskind has a way of massaging his stories to suit his agenda. Regarding his previous book, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, Steven Spielberg told me, "Every single word in that book about me is either erroneous, or a lie."

I contacted Biskind's source, Christine Vachon, for her memory of that meeting with Todd Haynes. She writes me: "At those Independent Spirit Awards (a million years ago it seems like) we had been told that you were not a fan of the film. Todd did introduce himself to you. I remember you appeared a bit flustered. I did not say that you said 'who the hell is Todd Haynes.' And I certainly do not remember saying 'you pulled your hand away.' I told the story -- innocently, I thought -- in the context of how far Todd and I had come with our little film. We'd heard you didn't like it, so it was an uncomfortable encounter -- but absolutely not in the mean-spirited context Biskind put it in.

"I have not talked to Peter Biskind since the publication of the book. He has not returned my calls. There were several things he quoted me as saying that I felt were taken out of context, like calling my longtime partner Ted Hope a 'thuggish frat boy' -- yikes!

"My biggest disappointment in the book (besides the tedium of one Bad Harvey story after another) was that there was absolutely no sense of the pleasure of seeing the films themselves. I remember seeing some movies at Sundance (like "The Hours and the Times") and being stunned and excited. Seems that the book should have had you rooting for Miramax at least half of the time."

grand theft sparrow

I'm reading Down and Dirty Pictures right now and I forgot from Easy Riders that Biskind is ALWAYS off with dates, etc.  And in DaDP, he mistakenly refers to Nancy Savoca's True Love as True Romance!!!!

"But after the festival, Miramax went after both sex, lies and True Romance."

Come on! That's such a gross oversight. It's very obvious that he's talking about True Love, which played at Sundance in 1989, the same year as sex, lies and videotape.  I mean, sure, Biskind turns truth into trash in his books (in classic Hollywood style) and it does make for interesting reading... but this is just unacceptable.  That's like confusing American Pie with American Beauty.

MacGuffin

Disney in talks to let Harvey Weinstein leave

NEW YORK -- Walt Disney Co. and its Miramax Films unit, which is run by Harvey and Bob Weinstein, are expected to meet this week to discuss letting Harvey Weinstein start a production company, and his brother remain at Disney to make movies, the New York Times said on Tuesday. Citing unidentified people involved in the talks, the newspaper said an agreement is not expected this week, and the sides are far apart on several big issues, but the progress shows that both sides recognize the importance of maintaining a successful relationship, the newspaper said. The two sides would like to reach an agreement before Disney's fiscal year starts on Oct. 1, it said, citing several people involved in the talks.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


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Finn

I always figured Weinstein was a punk. Miramax is a great studio, but Weinstein is not a great guy.
Typical US Mother: "Remember what the MPAA says; Horrific, Deplorable violence is okay, as long as people don't say any naughty words."

bigperm

I've been reading Down & Dirty pictures as well, and I'm not enjoying it that much. True or not, it feels dense and kind of depressing.
Safe As Milk

pete

the booking agent at my theater is passing down a rumor that miramax might totally disband in a few weeks, while still releasing Hero (meaning no ads?) as one of its last releases.
"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton

MacGuffin

Miramax future on Disney agenda

NEW YORK -- The Walt Disney Co. chief Michael Eisner deflected questions about the status of talks with Miramax on Tuesday, but Disney brass will meet with Harvey Weinstein today to continue discussions about the Miramax Films co-topper's future at the studio.

Weinstein's status has been thrown into doubt in recent months, with reports increasing that he will leave Miramax behind while brother and fellow co-head Bob Weinstein could hang onto the reins at Miramax' s genre arm Dimension.

Also on the agenda for Miramax today are cutbacks, which are expected to be unveiled this week after a summer filled with chatter of widespread layoffs. Word of the cuts originally came in June, and a recent New York Post report put the number of staffers receiving pink slips potentially as high as 35% of the Miramax staff.

Sources said that a handful of Miramax staffers have been either quietly leaving the company or are in the process of searching for new jobs. Miramax production topper Meryl Poster has taken an uncharacteristic summer sabbatical to spend time with her family, leading to further buzz about her status.

Just how Harvey Weinstein's arrangement will play out remains unclear for now. Although Miramax has had an uncharacteristically quiet summer -- having blown through its annual budget prematurely -- the mini-major has a slate of high-profile films in the can that need shepherding in the short-term. They include the Oscar hopefuls "Neverland" and "Aviator," as well as the Jennifer Lopez starrer "Shall We Dance?"

Sources have said that the timing of any Harvey Weinstein departure is a bone of contention in the talks. Weinstein and Eisner met last month at Herb Allen's annual Sun Valley, Idaho, conference, where Weinstein told CNBC, "I think this will all be resolved amicably."

While the famously outspoken and opinionated Harvey Weinstein has a long history of needling Eisner and parent company Disney, the war of words between the parties escalated after Disney refused to let Miramax distribute Michael Moore's controversial documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11." That dispute prompted further speculation that the relationship had finally become untenable.

Eisner suggested that Miramax executives had long known that Disney would not allow the company to distribute "Fahrenheit," and were merely seizing an opportunity to hype the film while playing out a trumped-up controversy in the press. In May, Eisner made it clear that Miramax has been a good but not necessarily stellar investment, noting that Miramax "has made money two of the last five years" (HR 5/13).

But speculation that the Weinsteins might raise enough cash to leave and take Miramax's valuable library with them has been largely dismissed, and the possibility that the brothers could split has emerged as a more likely scenario if Harvey Weinstein does leave.

Eisner has insisted all along that the Miramax banner will stay planted at Disney regardless of the outcome of the Weinstein negotiations. Said the Disney CEO when asked this year if Miramax would still be part of the studio in five years: "That's like asking whether Disneyland will be part of Disney in five years. We own 100% of Miramax Films."
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks