Monthly Archives: September 2009

Omar Sharif in Venice

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Omar Sharif returns to big screen at Venice
Omar Sharif, whose devilishly handsome looks delighted female fans decades ago, has returned to the big screen at the Venice Film Festival Thursday in a film about an elderly man’s encounter with a woman he loved in his youth.
“The Traveler,” an Egyptian film by first-time feature director Ahmed Maher, is vying for the festival’s Golden Lion award.
Maher told reporters he came up with the project nine years ago.
“It’s a dream to have Omar Sharif in the cast,” Maher said.
The film goes over three days in the life of 80-year-old Hassan, played by the 77-year-old Sharif. After a chance meeting with Noura, a woman from his past played by Cyrine Abdel Nour, he meets her daughter, Nadia. Seeking a source of identity, he tries to become one of the family.
Shifting with ease between Italian and French at a news conference, Sharif — who began his film career in Egypt and went on to become an international sex symbol in “Lawrence of Arabia,” his first English-language film, and “Doctor Zhivago” — glanced back at his life.
“I am the only actor in the world that doesn’t have a center to my life. I’ve lived in hotels all my life and I eat in restaurants — always,” he laughed. “I’ve had a happy life, no reason to cry.”
He said he’d had “some adventures with women” but only one “great love” — in his marriage, which ended in 1974.
Sharif said it took years to gain freedom in his career, describing himself as the only Egyptian and Muslim in the Hollywood system when he started out.
by: AP

Omar Sharif returns to big screen at Venice

sharifOmar Sharif, whose devilishly handsome looks delighted female fans decades ago, has returned to the big screen at the Venice Film Festival Thursday in a film about an elderly man’s encounter with a woman he loved in his youth.

“The Traveler,” an Egyptian film by first-time feature director Ahmed Maher, is vying for the festival’s Golden Lion award.

Maher told reporters he came up with the project nine years ago.

“It’s a dream to have Omar Sharif in the cast,” Maher said.

The film goes over three days in the life of 80-year-old Hassan, played by the 77-year-old Sharif. After a chance meeting with Noura, a woman from his past played by Cyrine Abdel Nour, he meets her daughter, Nadia. Seeking a source of identity, he tries to become one of the family.

Shifting with ease between Italian and French at a news conference, Sharif — who began his film career in Egypt and went on to become an international sex symbol in “Lawrence of Arabia,” his first English-language film, and “Doctor Zhivago” — glanced back at his life.

“I am the only actor in the world that doesn’t have a center to my life. I’ve lived in hotels all my life and I eat in restaurants — always,” he laughed. “I’ve had a happy life, no reason to cry.”

He said he’d had “some adventures with women” but only one “great love” — in his marriage, which ended in 1974.

Sharif said it took years to gain freedom in his career, describing himself as the only Egyptian and Muslim in the Hollywood system when he started out.

by: AP

Clooney and Canalis in Venice

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George Clooney goes public with new girlfriend Elisabetta Canalis at Venice Film Festival
George Clooney took his two-month romance with Elisabetta Canalis public for the first time at the Venice Film Festival yesterday.
But the 30-year-old Italian MTV hostess shouldn’t get her heart set on a diamond: Clooney’s been known to stroll women down the carpet, then leave them in the lurch later.
The dashing bachelor escorted Canalis to the top of the stairs at the premiere of “The Men Who Stare at Goats” before he returned to sign autographs for fans, his hand still bandaged from when he shut it in a car door last month.
When asked the obvious by the Daily Mail – whether marriage and children loomed in the future – the notoriously non-committal actor said, “I have been asked the same question every year for 20 years. The answer remains the same – I don’t know.”
Rumors were rife that he would marry former girlfriend Sarah Larson, a Las Vegas cocktail waitress, when she was on his arm at the 2007 Venice Film Festival. The relationship lasted less than year.
The next year he was seen with a mystery blonde at the premiere of “Burn After Reading.”
English model Lisa Snowdon, who enjoyed a five-year romance with Clooney, also strolled the festival red carpet. That ended in 2005.
Clooney, 48, was introduced to Canalis in Rome and has spent time with her on his huge Lake Como spread. The couple had a double date at his villa with Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber. The foursome headed out into the Italian countryside on motorbikes.
But while Canalis may have a current hold on Clooney’s heart, yesterday someone else took aim.
Mauro Casciari, a gay Italian TV reporter, caused a dust-up at the press conference when he stripped down to reveal underpants that read “George Clooney Choose Me.”
“There have been lots of rumors that George is gay,” said Casciari. “So I wanted him to come out and offered myself to him.” Clooney brushed off the incident.
by: www.nydailynews.com

George Clooney goes public with new girlfriend Elisabetta Canalis at Venice Film Festival

clooney_canalisGeorge Clooney took his two-month romance with Elisabetta Canalis public for the first time at the Venice Film Festival yesterday.

But the 30-year-old Italian MTV hostess shouldn’t get her heart set on a diamond: Clooney’s been known to stroll women down the carpet, then leave them in the lurch later.

The dashing bachelor escorted Canalis to the top of the stairs at the premiere of “The Men Who Stare at Goats” before he returned to sign autographs for fans, his hand still bandaged from when he shut it in a car door last month.

When asked the obvious by the Daily Mail – whether marriage and children loomed in the future – the notoriously non-committal actor said, “I have been asked the same question every year for 20 years. The answer remains the same – I don’t know.”

Rumors were rife that he would marry former girlfriend Sarah Larson, a Las Vegas cocktail waitress, when she was on his arm at the 2007 Venice Film Festival. The relationship lasted less than year.

The next year he was seen with a mystery blonde at the premiere of “Burn After Reading.”

English model Lisa Snowdon, who enjoyed a five-year romance with Clooney, also strolled the festival red carpet. That ended in 2005.

Clooney, 48, was introduced to Canalis in Rome and has spent time with her on his huge Lake Como spread. The couple had a double date at his villa with Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber. The foursome headed out into the Italian countryside on motorbikes.

But while Canalis may have a current hold on Clooney’s heart, yesterday someone else took aim.

Mauro Casciari, a gay Italian TV reporter, caused a dust-up at the press conference when he stripped down to reveal underpants that read “George Clooney Choose Me.”

“There have been lots of rumors that George is gay,” said Casciari. “So I wanted him to come out and offered myself to him.” Clooney brushed off the incident.

by: www.nydailynews.com

Venice: a masterpiece

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Venice, Italy a romance as familiar as a masterpiece
The city of Venice has ceased to be an Italian city. It is known as a collective work of European art. If you are wandering the streets for the first time there is a sense of familiarity. The picture perfect scenes of canals lapping around ancient medieval palaces and cobblestone streets do its part in enticing travelers from all over the world.
Each gregarious sight is inviting to newcomers as well as seasoned travelers. Do not let a well talked about place detour you from curiosity. The postcard you hold in your hand can not do justice to the famous fifteen hundred year old ancient world. The place has a lot to offer as far as keeping a restless heart busy.
The historical monuments are abundant starting with the main attraction of Basillica di San Marco. The mausoleum of the city’s patron Saint sits on Piazza San Marco. The most famous of the churches in Venice is adjacent and connected to Doge’s Palace both facing the Venetian lagoon. Most of the city’s treasures remain in the buildings in which they were originally made. However there are many museums worth a visit scattered through out the city’s creative artistic streets. The Academia should not be missed housing some of the most famous Venetian masterpieces available. The streets themselves are as much a collection of masterpieces as the museums display. The years wear their faces on the dilapidated palaces. If the walls could talk they would reveal as much history highlighted in the travelers itineraries. Abandon your travel books for a day and stroll in wonderment around the scenes unlike any you have experienced before or will see ever again.
Venice is where fairytales become real life. Cars are abandoned so the only way to get around is by foot or boat. The clean crisp air tickles your senses to the point that inhibitions are wiped clear. Let your free spirit roam this magical masterpiece. Inhibition will soon become a foreign word to you as well!
by: www.examiner.com

Venice, Italy a romance as familiar as a masterpiece

veniceThe city of Venice has ceased to be an Italian city. It is known as a collective work of European art. If you are wandering the streets for the first time there is a sense of familiarity. The picture perfect scenes of canals lapping around ancient medieval palaces and cobblestone streets do its part in enticing travelers from all over the world.

Each gregarious sight is inviting to newcomers as well as seasoned travelers. Do not let a well talked about place detour you from curiosity. The postcard you hold in your hand can not do justice to the famous fifteen hundred year old ancient world. The place has a lot to offer as far as keeping a restless heart busy.

The historical monuments are abundant starting with the main attraction of Basillica di San Marco. The mausoleum of the city’s patron Saint sits on Piazza San Marco. The most famous of the churches in Venice is adjacent and connected to Doge’s Palace both facing the Venetian lagoon. Most of the city’s treasures remain in the buildings in which they were originally made. However there are many museums worth a visit scattered through out the city’s creative artistic streets. The Academia should not be missed housing some of the most famous Venetian masterpieces available. The streets themselves are as much a collection of masterpieces as the museums display. The years wear their faces on the dilapidated palaces. If the walls could talk they would reveal as much history highlighted in the travelers itineraries. Abandon your travel books for a day and stroll in wonderment around the scenes unlike any you have experienced before or will see ever again.

Venice is where fairytales become real life. Cars are abandoned so the only way to get around is by foot or boat. The clean crisp air tickles your senses to the point that inhibitions are wiped clear. Let your free spirit roam this magical masterpiece. Inhibition will soon become a foreign word to you as well!

by: www.examiner.com

Romero’s ‘Survival’ at Biennale

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To me this is some odd news coming from the Associated Press. George Romero’s latest social commentary infilled living dead film Survival of the Dead made history Wednesday in Venice, Italy at the Venice Film Festival. It is the first Horror film, and also the first zombie film too, to be screened at the festival since Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was screened back in 1932.
Seventy-seven years it has been since a horror film had kissed the lips of that Venice screen. Seventy-seven years! And after all those groundbreaking Italian born giallo film makers, like Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci and Mario Bava, didn’t once get their films viewed at the Venice Film Festival! That is quite a shock and dumbfounding.
On a small island off North America’s coast, the dead rise to menace the living. Yet…the islanders can’t bring themselves to exterminate their loved ones, despite the growing danger from those the once held dear. A rebel among them hunts down all the zombies he can find, only to be banished from the island for assassinating his neighbors and friends. On the mainland, bent on revenge, he encounters a small band of survivors in search of an oasis on which to build a new life. Barely surviving an attack from a mass of ravenous flesh-eaters. They commandeer a zombie-infested ferry and sail to the island. There, to their horror, they discover that the locals have chained the dead inside their homes, pretending to live ‘normal’ lives…with bloody consequences. What ensues is a desperate struggle for survival and the answer to a question never posed in Romero’s Dead films: Can the living ever live in peace with the dead?

Romero’s ‘Survival’ Makes History in Venice

romeroTo me this is some odd news coming from the Associated Press. George Romero’s latest social commentary infilled living dead film Survival of the Dead made history Wednesday in Venice, Italy at the Venice Film Festival. It is the first Horror film, and also the first zombie film too, to be screened at the festival since Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was screened back in 1932.

Seventy-seven years it has been since a horror film had kissed the lips of that Venice screen. Seventy-seven years! And after all those groundbreaking Italian born giallo film makers, like Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci and Mario Bava, didn’t once get their films viewed at the Venice Film Festival! That is quite a shock and dumbfounding.

On a small island off North America’s coast, the dead rise to menace the living. Yet…the islanders can’t bring themselves to exterminate their loved ones, despite the growing danger from those the once held dear. A rebel among them hunts down all the zombies he can find, only to be banished from the island for assassinating his neighbors and friends. On the mainland, bent on revenge, he encounters a small band of survivors in search of an oasis on which to build a new life. Barely surviving an attack from a mass of ravenous flesh-eaters. They commandeer a zombie-infested ferry and sail to the island. There, to their horror, they discover that the locals have chained the dead inside their homes, pretending to live ‘normal’ lives…with bloody consequences. What ensues is a desperate struggle for survival and the answer to a question never posed in Romero’s Dead films: Can the living ever live in peace with the dead?

by: www.horroryearbook.com