Today's Film News: MGM Seeks Cash

By Sarah Sluis

First things first: As you may have noted from the previous few posts, Katey Rich has moved on, so most of the day-to-day blogging on Screener will come from me (Sarah Sluis). I had the honor of knowing Katey pre-blog, back in college, in which she once led a fabulous presentation on Billy Wilder's Sabrina, so I know I have some big shoes to fill. That being said, here is today's film news.

MGM Looking for �Capital Enhancements'
MGM has brought in bank Goldman Sachs to evaluate "capital enhancements," leading some to believe the studio was for sale. MGM countered the speculation by issuing a statement saying they were in fact looking for additional financing--$500 million worth. With a co-production deal with New Line and Warner Brothers for The Hobbit and its sequel in the pipeline, MGM will certainly need funds to finance this and other projects, and I cannot think of a better carrot to dangle in front of investors than the promise of a moneymaker like Lord of the Rings.

Heath Ledger in Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Heath Ledger's Last-Last Performance
With all the hype about The Dark Knight as Heath Ledger's last performance, some will be surprised to learn that Ledger had an unfinished Terry Gilliam movie in the works. Gilliam, a running joke for bad luck and unfinished projects (additional documentation here and here), hired stars Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law to finish the project by "adding a shapeshifting element" to the script (perhaps taking an idea from Todd Haynes' I'm Not There?). Ever since seeing Lost in La Mancha years ago, a documentary assembled by the "Making of" DVD feature people as they watched production of Gilliam's Don Quixote project disintegrate around them, I have been intrigued by the director's chaotic working process. He obviously has an extremely loyal set of actors, with Ledger and Depp appearing in more than one of his films. Even with a fantastic cast, having multiple actors play the same character is a difficult task that challenges plausibility, so I only hope that Gilliam will be able to work his magic once again.