Australia

[Mentok]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200512/s1533907.htm

Potential actors sought for Australian epic

Auditions have been held across the Kimberley for an epic Australian motion picture to be filmed next year.

A Sydney casting agent has visited Kununurra, Fitzroy Crossing and Broome over the past few days looking for potential actors to play the role of a young Aboriginal boy and stockmen.

The auditions follow reports Australian director Baz Luhrmann will film a new movie on a Northern Territory cattle station, 200 kilometres from Kununurra, next year.

The Australian blockbuster is expected to star Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe.

Bradley Rosewood was among those who auditioned and says there was a fair bit of competition.

"From all ages and sizes, you see a lot of experienced stockmen, young ones and even some just learning and whatever," he said.

"It's good seeing everyone coming down to do it because it's a good opportunity for Aboriginal people."

Interesting... could be good.

[aaron]

Isnt this old news?

[Two-Face]

Yeah I thought this movie was cancelled.

[HighVoltage]

Isnt this old news?

I have same idea.

[Galactus]

Luhrmann Reveals Title of His Australian Epic
Source: Fan November 22, 2006


The Age reports that Moulin Rouge! director Baz Luhrmann has announced the title of his new epic film starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

"The name is shocking," Lurhmann said with a laugh. "It's called 'Australia.'"

The site says that the film has received the green light from 20th Century Fox. There will be a workshop at Sydney's Fox Studios before Christmas, with the cast working on riding, costumes, the script and test scenes. Filming will start in the Kimberley in March and take five months.

The romantic action-adventure, set in northern Australia prior to World War II, centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier

The title Australia was chosen over "Great Southern Land" and "Faraway Downs," the name of the homestead in the film.

"I'm taking the perspective of the rest of the world to this film how they might view 'Australia,'" Luhrmann said. "When you say 'Casablanca' or 'Oklahoma!' it means big. It means vast... I'm not saying this film is Australia. It's a metaphor for a state of mind, for the faraway.

"What people tend not to know is that more tonnage of bombs were dropped by the same attack force on Darwin as Pearl Harbor. They bombed Darwin 64 times. We were completely lied to in the south about it."

[Catman]

Why does it take Baz Luhrman so long to make a movie? His last movie was like 5 or 6 years ago.

[Backdrifter]

Why does it take Baz Luhrman so long to make a movie? His last movie was like 5 or 6 years ago.
Because he writes and designs the film himself... That is an enoumous undertaking. I have a deep respect for directors who write and direct their own films. The writing process is extremely difficult and involved. Luhrman has a great track record and he seems to have artistic integrity. Kubrick was the same way. The same could be said about Tarantino.

[Catman]

Because he writes and designs the film himself... That is an enoumous undertaking. I have a deep respect for directors who write and direct their own films. The writing process is extremely difficult and involved. Luhrman has a great track record and he seems to have artistic integrity. Kubrick was the same way. The same could be said about Tarantino.

To each his own, I think. There's directors like Clint Eastwood who can do the same quality work and much quicker.

EDIT:

Also, Tarantino is not a good example. The man did three films in 6 years. It took him 7 years to do Kill Bill cause he got lazy or something. While Baz has taken over a decade to make three movies. It shouldn't take you over a decade to make three movies. That's pretty slow.

As for Kubrick...he got slow towards the end. In the beginning he worked fast:

Dr. Strangelove(1964)
Lolita (1962)
Spartacus (1960)
Paths of Glory (1957)
The Killing (1956)

[Galactus]

Baz Luhrmann on His Epic Australia
Source: AAP December 13, 2006


The AAP reports that director Baz Luhrmann will film around a third of his outback epic, Australia, in Bowen, Queensland. Shooting will start in April in Bowen on the film, starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

The romantic action-adventure, set in northern Australia prior to World War II, centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.

"The film we're making is about the way in which the landscape of Australia transforms this English character, and I really want to go 'old school' in a sense of a film like Lawrence of Arabia or Giant, where the landscape transforms. I wanted to express the romance and the beauty of Darwin in the 1930s," Luhrmann said.

The crew of 200, including its two major stars, are expected to stay in Bowen during the 10 weeks of shooting.

Luhrmann, speaking in Brisbane, said he scoured every major coastal city and town around the country to find the perfect location. But it was eventually Bowen's deep water port, "gorgeous water" and historical buildings that clinched the deal.

Luhrmann said more than 100 locals would play roles such as Japanese pearlers and cattlemen, while students would be encouraged to take part in a bid to encourage young talent to stay in Australia.

[Backdrifter]

To each his own, I think. There's directors like Clint Eastwood who can do the same quality work and much quicker.

EDIT:

Also, Tarantino is not a good example. The man did three films in 6 years. It took him 7 years to do Kill Bill cause he got lazy or something. While Baz has taken over a decade to make three movies. It shouldn't take you over a decade to make three movies. That's pretty slow.

As for Kubrick...he got slow towards the end. In the beginning he worked fast:

Dr. Strangelove(1964)
Lolita (1962)
Spartacus (1960)
Paths of Glory (1957)
The Killing (1956)
I think they are more concerned with quality than quantity. Its called artistic intergrity. Who cares if they go slow. They are making films that they are passionate about and not throw away fluff.

[Darth Elektra]

This film could be good.

[vibeke_T]

Because he writes and designs the film himself... That is an enoumous undertaking. I have a deep respect for directors who write and direct their own films. The writing process is extremely difficult and involved. Luhrman has a great track record and he seems to have artistic integrity. Kubrick was the same way. The same could be said about Tarantino.


Uwe Boll does all that too and seems to churn out his stuff too fast

[BloodyWolverine]

Thats old news and Crowe dropped out and Hugh Jackman is playing oppisite Kidman.

[vibeke_T]

really?

[Hunter Rider]

Only thread i could find to put this rather than start a new one

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=18162

Luhrmann's Australia Starts Filming
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald (http://www.smh.com.au/news/film/hollywood-comes-to-town-but-locals-in-the-dark/2006/12/23/1166290786276.html)
December 24, 2006


Filming has already started on Moulin Rouge (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=18162#)!, Romeo + Juliet and Strictly Ballroom director (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=18162#) Baz Luhrmann's Australia, starring Nicole Kidman (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=18162#) and Hugh Jackman (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=18162#), reports The Sydney Morning Herald (http://www.smh.com.au/news/film/hollywood-comes-to-town-but-locals-in-the-dark/2006/12/23/1166290786276.html). Here are some clips from the article:

Two of Hollywood's (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=18162#) biggest stars came to town but even the mayor didn't know they were secretly filming in his neighbourhood.

Camelot, a grand house at Camden on Sydney's outskirts, was the secret location for filming during the week of Baz Luhrmann's Australia, featuring Australian superstars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

A source close to the set revealed that Kidman and Jackman were in Camden for interior and exterior scenes on Wednesday and Thursday. But filming was so secret that Camden Mayor Chris Patterson, who lives four doors away from the house, didn't even know the stars were in town.

But it's understood the house and property were used for early scenes in Luhrmann's movie about an English aristocrat who inherits a property in the Northern Territory during World War II.

Click here (http://www.smh.com.au/news/film/hollywood-comes-to-town-but-locals-in-the-dark/2006/12/23/1166290786276.html) for more on the filming location.

[Karem-Knight]

Is this about Dingos or something?

[Cinemaman]

After news of Crowe not playing in this movie, I lost interest.

But I'll most likely see it only because of Jackman.

[green]

The title of this thread really needs to be changed.

It aint much but first set pic.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v662/markofort/hugh-jackman-australia-01.jpg
http://www.justjared.com/2006/12/25/hugh-jackman-australia/

[Hunter Rider]

Ahh a gun,so at least there will be some action in this:woot:

[Galactus]

Hugh Jackman Previews Australia
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald January 20, 2007


The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Hugh Jackman talked about Baz Luhrmann's epic film Australia at a G'Day USA promotion. Here are several clips from the article:

"This is going to be on a scale never seen before. It's by far the biggest Australian film ever made," Jackman told an Australian gala dinner in New York.

The actor will play opposite Nicole Kidman. Bryan Brown, Jack Thompson and David Wenham will also star in the film, titled Australia.

A promotional clip was shown at the dinner at the end of the week-long G'Day USA promotion

[Hunter Rider]

http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/758/758348p1.html

From Ancient Greece to WWII Australia
300 star Wenham cast in Baz Luhrmann epic.
by IGN Staff (http://uk.movies.ign.com/email.html)

US, January 25, 2007 - Actor David Wenham, soon to be seen fighting against hordes of invading Persians in 300, has been cast in director Baz Luhrmann's long-gestating epic Australia. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wenham will star opposite Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman in the picture.

The on-again, off-again project, which was also written by Luhrmann, takes place in the early 1940s in northern Australia, where Kidman's British rich girl is forced to make a deal with a local cattle driver (Jackman) in order to protect her ranch from the scheming Wenham, who has designs on making the property his own. Amid this drama, the specter of World War II looms as the Japanese bombing of Darwin begins.

The film, which has been developing in fits and starts in recent years (Russell Crowe was cast in the Jackman role at one point, only to later drop out), begins shooting in April in northern Australia.

Wenham, of course, is best known to genre fans as Faramir (the brother who couldn't get a break) in the Lord of the Rings films. He also previously costarred with Jackman in the most unfortunate Van Helsing.

[ultimatefan]

Dunno how this will go, war epics haven´t done great at the BO lately. But the premise seems interesting.

[Galactus]

Baz Talks Australia
The helmer on his new epic.
by Stax
February 6, 2007 - Baz Luhrmann cites classics such as Gone With the Wind, Giant and Lawrence of Arabia as stylistic inspirations for his new film Australia, a historical epic set to star Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, Bryan Brown and David Wenham.

"[Those] films share something in that they take a heightened emotional story and use the landscape to kind of amplify it. They're mythological pieces, and that's what I'm making," Luhrmann informed The L.A. Daily News.

"The film Australia, set in the '30s, is about a woman who thinks that it's all over, thinks that she can't feel anymore. And she's trapped out in the far deserts of northern Australia. Then she gets involved with a rough-hewed cowboy played by Hugh Jackman, and in the quest they go on, she discovers that her life can be reborn. She chooses to feel, but it takes a degree of risk."

When asked if Australia will have more of a traditional score than his last few films have had, Luhrmann revealed, "Australia ends when the attack force that hit Pearl Harbor came down and wiped out the northern city of Darwin. At the time there was a lot of country-and-western influences from America in the music, a lot of folk influences, Hawaiian influences and jazz band music was the rage. But yet it will be a rather lush romantic score."

[matrix_ghost]

Why does it take Baz Luhrman so long to make a movie? His last movie was like 5 or 6 years ago.

I think you're forgetting the failed Alexander project. Baz wanted to do a alexader project with Leo as Alexander and ( i think) Dino De Laurentis producing. It was a race between Oliver Stone's alexander & Baz . In the end Baz lost and he he just stopped work on it , or didn't work o it actively anymore.

Not only that but i think it was with this movie that Baz was starting work but ultimately things stalled because Russel Crowe pulled out causing a severe delay. Now the project is back on track

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21658462-5006013,00.html

First snap: Kidman in new Baz flick

By Brett McKeehan


May 02, 2007 12:00



Article from: http://www.news.com.au/images/sources/h14_dailytelegraph.gif (http://www.dailytelegraph.news.com.au/?from=ni_story)


(http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/email/popup/0,22050,21658462-5006013,00.html)

THIS is the first picture of Nicole Kidman looking grand as cattle queen Lady Sarah Ashley in Baz Luhrmann's sweeping new $120 million epic Australia.

The Oscar-winning beauty, 39, plays an upper-crust English aristocrat who heads Down Under just before World War II to confront her skirt-chasing husband - only to find him dead.


This leaves her in control of a massive Northern Territory cattle station the size of Belgium.


Kidman joins a massive cast of top Aussie talent with Hugh Jackman, David Wenham, Bryan Brown, Jack Thompson, John Jarratt, David Gulpilil and Bill Hunter all hand-picked by Luhrmann.


Filming began in Sydney this week at the 150-year-old Strickland House in Vaucluse, which is doubling as Darwin's Government House.
Kidman and a bearded Jackman were earlier spotted brushing up on their riding skills in Centenntial Park. Riding is an essential part of the film - the pair fall in love as Jackman, playing a rough stockman, helps her drive 1500 cattle across the property.


Shooting takes place over five months with the production moving to the tiny North Queensland mango town of Bowen later this month.
The coastal community is now bustling with construction workers as more than eight town blocks are taken back in time.


Stockyards, shacks, old-fashioned cottages, shops and even a hotel have been erected at the oceanfront site.


A 93-year-old sugar cane locomotive called Homebush has even been enlisted to play a significant role in the flick. The loco started chugging around near Mackay in 1915 and was kept in mint condition by sugar company CSR.


Homebush will stay in Bowen until the end of next month - CSR even had to arrange for train tracks to be laid in the town's main street to complete the illusion.


But getting Bowen ready hasn't been all smooth sailing.
New Idea magazine made a classic blunder when it ran a photo purportedly of Bowen's main street with inset snaps of Kidman and Jackman.
Unfortunately the picture is of the main street of Roma - an inland Queensland town at least 1000km to the southwest. It also features a series of distinctive bottle trees, which can't even be found in Bowen.
Bowen Shire Mayor Mike Brunker was not amused.
"Of all the beautiful photos of Bowen they had to go and use one of Roma,'' he stormed. "(The photo) has even got bottle trees in it."



http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,5468515,00.jpg

THIS is the first picture of Nicole Kidman playing English aristocrat Lady Sarah Ashley in Baz Luhrmann's new movie blockbuster called Australia. See our exclusive picture gallery (javascript:void(0)) on the film set in Sydney and north Queensland or ... / The Daily Telegraph

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=20314

Report From the Australia Set
Source: HF
May 10, 2007


The Daily Telegraph (http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21705638-5006002,00.html) has published a report on the upcoming filming of Baz Lurhmann's epic Australia in Bowen, Queensland. Here's a clip:

With filming due to begin on Monday, the set is currently a flurry of activity - with dozens of workmen hurrying to and fro carrying anything from shop signage to drink containers for the 750 head of cattle making an appearance in the film.

To read the full article and view the photos, click here (http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21705638-5006002,00.html).

Australia is a romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II, centers on an English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Hugh Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=20314#) only months earlier

[Hunter Rider]

http://img484.imageshack.us/img484/3180/07nicolekidmankeithurbapl3.jpg

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/7300/nicolekidmankeithurbanadi3.jpg

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6746/08hughjackmanaustraliasxm6.jpg

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/2571/09hughjackmanaustraliasfd3.jpg

[Cinemaman]

I wonder how Jackman could put on this suit :eek: :D

[Darth Elektra]

New Photos From the Australia Set

http://www.abc.net.au/northqld/stories/s1925852.htm

[Hunter Rider]

http://justjared.buzznet.com/2007/05/24/nicole-kidman-hugh-jackman-australia/

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/760/02nicolekidmanhughjackmye0.jpg

http://i19.tinypic.com/505f60l.jpg

http://i17.tinypic.com/5xoox06.jpg

http://i8.tinypic.com/4zjjhua.jpg

[Darth Elektra]

Kidman/Jackman Film Causes Controversy

Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman's new movie Australia has sparked a storm of controversy on location Down Under over plans to use a World War I memorial for a cattle stampede scene. Moviemaker Baz Luhrmann offended locals in tiny Bowen, where the film is shooting, when he continued shooting as his actors clambered all over the statue. The director has been forced to cut the controversial sequence after a film extra and former serviceman threatened to quit the film if Luhrmann didn't rethink his plans. The upset extra, Brian Germain, says, "We were supposed to be standing along the fences watching the cattle come down the main street and we were waving them along. Later on they changed it and had two guys standing beside the replica and they actually climbed on top of it and I told them that was wrong." Germain contacted a local Vietnam Veterans Federation and urged them to help him fight the plans. A spokeswoman for the film tells the Sydney Daily Telegraph the incident was accidental and would not be used in the final cut of the film.

[danoyse]

I can't wait for this movie...it will be fun to see Hugh actually play an Australian for once. :oldrazz:

[Galactus]

Australia Set Floods
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald July 2, 2007


The Sydney Morning Herald reports that a set for Baz Luhrmann's epic Australia has flooded causing the production to change around the schedule for the Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman-starrer:

It was meant to be the dusty, outback homestead playing host to Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman - but the romantic set of Faraway Downs, the homestead at the heart of Baz Luhrmann's Australia, has been flooded in a remote region of Western Australia.

Because of the flooding Luhrmann has pulled the pin on filming at the homestead, in Kununurra, in the Kimberley Region, within the next fortnight as planned.

Instead, the stars of the film, Kidman and Jackman, will travel from Darwin back to Sydney to shoot interior scenes while waiting for the expensive set to dry out.

[Hunter Rider]

http://uk.rottentomatoes.com/m/australia/photos.php

[Darth Elektra]

Cool photos.

[Galactus]

Baz's epic may premiere in Top End

KASEY BRUNT

12Jul07

THE premiere of Australia may be held in Darwin, director Baz Luhrmann told a local audience last night.

Luhrmann appeared at Darwin's Deckchair Cinema for a question and answer session before a special screening of his film Moulin Rouge.


Speaking to the media before his appearance he said the Australian premiere of Australia could "possibly'' be held in Darwin.


Luhrmann said he would also consider filming a movie in Darwin again.


"I would (work in Darwin) again, for sure,'' he said.


About 300 people turned up to hear Luhrmann speak before the screening of his 2001 film Moulin Rouge, which also starred Nicole Kidman.


Luhrmann said he expected Australia to be released in November 2008.


"Filming finishes in November, and post production takes about a year,'' he said.


"So if I don't fall horrendously behind it should be out in November next year.''


Film-goers quizzed Luhrmann about his film making skills, with most people wanting to know how he came up with the idea of making both Moulin Rouge and Australia.


"You have a passion and that passion becomes your life,'' he said.


"With (Moulin Rouge) it was about how to tell a story using music as the predominant language in this point of time.''


Deckchair Cinema manager Jett Street said she was thrilled Luhrmann spoke to the audience last night.


"He is passionate about his films and the chance to hear him talk about his work is amazing,'' she said.

[Galactus]

Baz Luhrmann's Australia to Wrap Friday
Source: Sunday Herald Sun December 18, 2007


The Sunday Herald Sun reports that director Baz Luhrmann's highly-anticipated Australia, starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman, will wrap filming on Friday.

Shooting on the epic began in Sydney at the end of April. Since then filming has moved to Bowen in Queensland, Darwin, Kununurra in West Australia and back to Fox Studios in Sydney.

According to the newspaper, it is expected more scenes will be shot next year to complete the film.

The film is a romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II. It centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.

Shooting is expected to begin on Jackman's next film, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, in Sydney in less than a month. Pre-production has been underway for the past three months, with filming set to last until June.

[Hunter Rider]

http://i9.tinypic.com/6keep7k.jpg

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41556

http://i30.tinypic.com/2z4zlgy.jpg

http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/4224/australiamoviedotnetscacs4.th.jpg (http://img527.imageshack.us/my.php?image=australiamoviedotnetscacs4.jpg)

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41727

Luhrmann's Australia Set for November
Source: ComingSoon.net
February 7, 2008


http://comingsoon.net/nextraimages/australiadate.jpg20th Century Fox has set a November 14, 2008 release date for Baz Luhrmann's epic Australia (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=20316), starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

Set in northern Australia prior to World War II, the filmhttp://images.intellitxt.com/ast/adTypes/1.gif (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41727#) centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier.

The only other movie scheduled for the date so far is directorhttp://images.intellitxt.com/ast/adTypes/1.gif (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41727#) Tim Story's The Patriots (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=41000), a drama with Forest Whitaker, but a week earlier, on Nov. 7, Madagascar: The Crate Escape (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=11194) and Quantum of Solace (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=15549) open. A week later, on the 21st, comes Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=11750).

[Galactus]

[url] directorhttp://images.intellitxt.com/ast/adTypes/1.gif (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41727#) Tim Story's The Patriots (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=41000), a drama with Forest Whitaker, but a week earlier, on Nov. 7, Madagascar: The Crate Escape (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=11194) and Quantum of Solace (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=15549) open. A week later, on the 21st, comes Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=11750).[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

No doubt that this November will be bigger than November last year when it comes to box office numbers :)

[Catman]

The only other movie scheduled for the date so far is directorhttp://images.intellitxt.com/ast/adTypes/1.gif (http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41727#) Tim Story's The Patriots (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=41000), a drama with Forest Whitaker, but a week earlier, on Nov. 7, Madagascar: The Crate Escape (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=11194) and Quantum of Solace (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=15549) open. A week later, on the 21st, comes Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=11750).[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

In other words...this movie will flop.

[the a1ant]

uh oh...

[Galactus]

In other words...this movie will flop.

I have a feeling it will be one of those movies that are a lot more succesful on the international market than in America. And in its home country I think this can be a contender for biggest movie of the year.

[Hunter Rider]

http://i27.tinypic.com/opb58h.jpg

http://i31.tinypic.com/27zkuvt.jpg

http://i27.tinypic.com/2lafod3.jpg

[danoyse]

There's also an official site now up: http://www.australiamovie.com/

The photography for this movie is beautiful. :wow:

[Gotham]

Looks quite good.

[Gotham]

Beautiful. Downright beautiful.

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=45187

[DBZ2cool]

holy crap!

That looks beautiful in every way possible.

I just realized that everything about this movie is australian. FOX, Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and Baz Luhrman. The movie is titled Australia too.

This is the first big oscar contender of the year.

[Avangarde]

Yes we rock ;)

[Hunter Rider]

It looks stunning, epic and beautiful, the cinematography is the first ive seen so far this year that has "Oscar" written on it.

[Avangarde]

Been looking forward to this movie for some time, I have a couple of friends that are playing extra's in it and from what they have told me there is a lot of heart and soul, everyone on set were just in awe of the way it was being shot.

[green]

Trailer is gorgeous.

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.sendspace.com/file/2ch9ij

Saveable copy if anyone wants it. :)

[Excel]

Absolutley spectacular. Cannot recall the last time a single teaser made my interest jump so high.

[P.B.&Chocolate]

I am a big fan of sweeping dramatic epics and this one looks really great can't wait to see it.

[Octoberist]

man, i'm not a fan of FOX but my god, this loooks like an epic.

[wellsy]

That little bit where she's telling the aboriginal girl (Edit: boy) about the 'story' looks greenscreened.

The rest, is spectacular.

[danoyse]

That little bit where she's telling the aboriginal girl about the 'story' looks greenscreened.


That was a little boy. :cwink:

But the movie looks amazing.

[Hunter Rider]

That was a little boy. :cwink:

But the movie looks amazing.

Really ? :wow:

[Avangarde]

I think it's a girl.

[Hunter Rider]

http://i30.tinypic.com/2ey99ts.jpg

http://i25.tinypic.com/2u63hjs.jpg

http://img377.imageshack.us/img377/2254/australialatimesjpg1221hx3.th.jpg (http://img377.imageshack.us/my.php?image=australialatimesjpg1221hx3.jpg)

http://img381.imageshack.us/img381/1825/australialatimesjpg1221ol8.th.jpg (http://img381.imageshack.us/my.php?image=australialatimesjpg1221ol8.jpg)

[danoyse]

Really ? :wow:

Yep, that's a boy. His name is Brandon Walters. He's in a few of the photos shown on the Australia podcast, and I remember when he was cast in the film.

[wellsy]

I stand corrected (and have edited my post accordingly).

[Laderlappen]

This is so going to win cinematography on the oscars. Be prepared to a Best Picture nomination.

[Cinemaman]

^^^

I can bet it won't get even nomination for the Best Picture, because there will be way more movies deserving it (I mean nothing against the film itself, but usually it's wise to just wait for other projects to get into the buzz).

[Hunter Rider]

^^^

I can bet it won't get even nomination for the Best Picture, because there will be way more movies deserving it (I mean nothing against the film itself, but usually it's wise to just wait for other projects to get into the buzz).

I would say so far it's one of 3 movies that have the potential, however only one of the 3 has amazing reviews so far to actually go on, the other 2 only have a teaser trailer.

[Cinemaman]

^^^

I agree that it may indeed get the nomination, but it's very very unlikely.

[Hunter Rider]

^^^

I agree that it may indeed get the nomination, but it's very very unlikely.

Why ? it's a sweeping epic starring an oscar winning actresess and directed by an Oscar and Golden Globe-nominated director. If Atonement got a nom i don't see how at this stage it's unlikely.

[Cinemaman]

Why ? it's a sweeping epic starring an oscar winning actresess and directed by an Oscar and Golden Globe-nominated director. If Atonement got a nom i don't see how at this stage it's unlikely.

Because every year everything is changing, including taste of academy. Far Away was also going to be hit, but it failed. I just think this year there will be something different.

[Hunter Rider]

Because every year everything is changing, including taste of academy. Far Away was also going to be hit, but it failed. I just think this year there will be something different.

I don't really understand what you mean Cine but we will see, so far there are only 3 movies even making buzz.

[Magneto29]

It's a boy in the trailer ? I thought they were a girl as well.
I hope this movie turns of well. It looks beautiful so far.

[Cinemaman]

I don't really understand what you mean Cine but we will see, so far there are only 3 movies even making buzz.

What I mean is that this year academy will probably choose different kinds of films for the main catagories.

[Hunter Rider]

What I mean is that this year academy will probably choose different kinds of films for the main catagories.

Well last year they missed some of the best ones so hopefully they will.

[terry78]

I feel somewhat cheated with I watch movies where aussies and brits speak in their own regular accents. I don't know why, I just do. Like they ain't putting their all into it. :o

[Dark Donnie]

Well last year they missed some of the best ones so hopefully they will.

Indeed:csad: Into the Wild, The Lookout, and Zodiac ignored.

Btw I loved the teaser, the cinematography was breathtaking. The cast looks great(Bryan Brown with the grey looked real old....oh the cocktail days :). I loved the epic feel to it. Definitely towards the top of my must see list.

I would have loved to see Luhrmann tackle Alexander with DiCaprio instead of Stone :cmad:

[EML]

The Lookout?

[Hunter Rider]

Indeed:csad: Into the Wild, The Lookout, and Zodiac ignored.

Agreed on those 3, ad Jesse James, American Gangster and Rescue Dawn. Also a lot have mentioned Gone Baby Gone.

Btw I loved the teaser, the cinematography was breathtaking. The cast looks great(Bryan Brown with the grey looked real old....oh the cocktail days :). I loved the epic feel to it. Definitely towards the top of my must see list.

:eek: I didn't even notice Bryan Brown in there and i just watched FX: Murder by Illusion the other night. The movie definitely looks like a gorgeous sweeping epic of the old Hollywood style.


I would have loved to see Luhrmann tackle Alexander with DiCaprio instead of Stone :cmad:

I imagine it would have had a lot more flair.

[Dark Donnie]

The Lookout?

Yeah it was great.....one of the more overlooked films of the year...

[EML]

It was good, but Best Picture? Hell no.

[Hunter Rider]

It was better than some of the ones nominated.

[Rac]

Anything is better than Juno.

[Hunter Rider]

I loved Juno.

[danoyse]

I loved Juno too.

They showed the Australia trailer when I saw Indiana Jones this weekend. It looks even better on the big screen. :up:

[Avangarde]

Yes I saw it at Indy 4 as well and noticed it was a different trailer to the one on the net.

[danoyse]

Was it a different trailer? It looked the same to me. :huh:

Of course, I was probably too busy elbowing my dad every time Hugh Jackman showed up on screen that maybe I just didn't notice anything else. :oldrazz:

[cerealkiller182]

This looks like an interesting movie. Ill prolly check it out. Love the classic title cards in the trailer

Has a almost Casablanca vibe

[Dark Donnie]

Someone said this was the extended trailer:

CAveA1jvnqo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAveA1jvnqo

[Sentinel X]

Anything is better than Juno.
I loved Juno. It was smart, funny, and a different comedy. It was worth the full priced ticket but the oscar buzz it got was insane!...it wasn't that good.

[danoyse]

Someone said this was the extended trailer:

CAveA1jvnqo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAveA1jvnqo

That's definitely a different trailer than the one I saw in front of Indy IV.

[Avangarde]

The one I saw infront of Indy had Jackman in a fist fight saying "Welcome to Australia", there were a number of other scene's that are not part of the internet released trailer. It could be an exclusive trailer for the aussies perhaps :grin:

[Hunter Rider]

http://i26.tinypic.com/1ion0k.jpg

http://i28.tinypic.com/10nuixu.jpg

http://i30.tinypic.com/2dhbiuv.jpg

http://i30.tinypic.com/2ds5tu.jpg

http://i27.tinypic.com/2dhsoqu.jpg

http://i32.tinypic.com/hx6ng8.jpg

http://i26.tinypic.com/29fwi0h.jpg

[wellsy]

Sweet find Hunter.

Our Nicole looks the very model of a 40s' English aristocrat, especially on horse with top hat.

[Hunter Rider]

Baz's AUSTRALIA test screens where TITANIC had it's first screening! Same results? Let's see... (http://www.aintitcool.com/node/37283)



Another Reader Is Back From AUSTRALIA!! (http://www.aintitcool.com/node/37290)

[Gotham]

Great reviews. :up: Hopefully they trim the film a bit more. It looks to be a serious Oscar contender.

[That-Guy]

I can't wait for this movie. I saw the trailer and I was instantly hooked. A period epic/western set in the Aussie outback? Hell yeah. Does anyone know if the music in the trailer is actually the score from the film? It's beautiful.

[Hunter Rider]

http://i34.tinypic.com/2iw38cj.jpg

http://i34.tinypic.com/2lnk6bo.jpg

http://i35.tinypic.com/ic0plk.jpg

http://i34.tinypic.com/20roa4g.jpg

http://i37.tinypic.com/veneko.jpg

[Gotham]

The cinematography looks outstanding in this. :up:

[That-Guy]

This film is one I'm most looking forward to this winter, other than Quantum of Solace.

[Hunter Rider]

Empire Article
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/7840/empiremagazineaus200809he1.jpg

http://img93.imageshack.us/img93/1737/empiremagazineaus2mg1.jpg

http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/2633/emp3jy3.th.jpg (http://img137.imageshack.us/my.php?image=emp3jy3.jpg)

[narrows101]

Holey moley! I had NO IDEA this thread was here - I've been spending the past two years on the "Australia" fan forum. We've been following this since pre-production, and all the news while they were filming in Bowen, Darwin, Kununurra and Sydney.

Check it out - tons of audio, video, interviews, LOT of pics in the gallery, etc. and visit the VERY ACTIVE fan forum for all kinds of goodies!

http://www.australiamovie.net

Thanks for the scan (the thumbnail is actually the first page of the article)!

I can do a picspam from this movie all day LOL!

From EW:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/EW.jpg

Bigger:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/australia-scene-3.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/11.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/18.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/normal_australiapodcast3_512.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/Australiapodcastcap7.jpg

[narrows101]

Did you guys know that Baz Luhrmann is doing Podcasts every month until October? They started in May and 6 have been released so far - 3 are left. They are absolutely fabulous. So far it's Baz' Introduction, Photography, Costume Design, Location Shooting, and Cinematography. Download them to ITunes - they are also on YouTube.

http://www.apple.com/education/settoscreen/

[Magneto29]

Lovely photos :)

[narrows101]

Fall preview, Entertainment Weekly:

http://community.livejournal.com/ohnotheydidnt/26889754.html? (http://community.livejournal.com/ohnotheydidnt/26889754.html?)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3155/2766597112_3762b46808_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3243/2766597648_efe4e81235_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3295/2765751543_5cdc4704a0_b.jpg

[Gotham]

Everything I see from this film makes me want to see another trailer more and more.

[Hunter Rider]

We should be a due a full trailer.

[Gotham]

We should be a due a full trailer.

Actually, yeah. I would have expected another trailer with The Mummy.

[narrows101]

Variety blogger - as much as I love that first shot of Hugh, being a girl, I LOVE the second one LOL.

http://www.incontention.com/?p=1360


New (ish) ‘Australia’ images

Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 10:26 pm · August 15th, 2008

This page (http://moviecitynews.com/arrays/2008/australiafull.html) of “Australia” images is a Movie City News exclusive, though at least two of the pics have been on the net in some form for a while (including the saucy rain shot that’s been sitting cropped on our buzz page (http://www.incontention.com/?page_id=1118) for some time). In any case, these look to be an initial set of teaser posters for the film:

http://www.incontention.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/australia.jpg

I dig it. The first shot of Hugh Jackman is the more fetching, though. Fox is gearing up a major campaign for this film, which will likely have the full power of the studio behind it, what with Searchlight’s apparent off-year. I’m looking forward to it, but with an odd sense of anxiety.

[Hunter Rider]

Variety blogger - as much as I love that first shot of Hugh, being a girl, I LOVE the second one LOL.

http://www.incontention.com/?p=1360

Heh, I think they are all stunning, the one you like is very evocative of old Hollywood movies of a bygone era, I get a Casablanca meets Gone with the Wind vibe from it. :woot:

[narrows101]

Heh, I think they are all stunning, the one you like is very evocative of old Hollywood movies of a bygone era, I get a Casablanca meets Gone with the Wind vibe from it. :woot:


I get a Casablanca meets Gone with the Wind vibe from it

Those are two of the movies that have been mentioned when talking about this one.

[Gotham]

The shot with Hugh and the flames is stunning. I need to this film now. :csad:

[Magneto29]

My movie theatre had those 3 posters up the other day. Beautiful! Till they took them down an hour later :( Guess they figured they should put posters up for movies coming out sooner.

[FaT_tONle]

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/australia-scene-3.jpg


Hugh Jackman's wife has to be extrememly thick minded to let this stuff go...

[Armand Z Trip]

Listen to me Barry, listen to me. Listen to me Barry. I'm an iron-man, your brother's an iron-man, your mum's an iron-man. We're all iron-men. And what have we got in common? We've all bagged The Bermagui Bronze! And now it's your turn! Go out there and come third! Come third like a real Australian athlete!

[narrows101]

Hugh Jackman's wife has to be extrememly thick minded to let this stuff go...
You know what - Nicole is one of Deb's best friends! When Nicole first came to Hollywood, she bunked with Deb in her apartment, and Deb was one of the few people that attended Nicole's wedding to Tom Cruise (this was before Deb met Hugh). Don't forget also, Hugh and Deb attended Nicole and Keith Urban's' wedding, and Hugh even sang at it.

There's a famous story told by Hugh that when he was filming SWORDFISH, there's a scene where a girl had her head in his lap (if you get the drift) while he was trying to hack into a computer. She didn't know Deb was on the set and she got all apologetic. Deb's reply: "don't worry, you're getting paid for it."

Hugh has been asked about this before - see his quote below from when he was promoting VAN HELSING (Deb was famous in Australia before they met):

FOR one as talented and good looking as Hugh Jackman, it is inevitable there will be the occasional sex scene while making movies. So, how does his wife and fellow Australian actor, Deborra-Lee Furness, feel about her husband laying one on the lips of English bombshell Kate Beckinsale in his latest film, Van Helsing?

"My wife's done about 30 movies and she says to me she's been naked up more shower walls than I've actually been in movies," he laughs.

"There are some things we don't talk about and we just say that's part of the job."

But they do have a pact which states that each can enjoy one movie sex scene in their lives.

"I'm still reserving mine - I don't even know who it is," Jackman says.

"Hers is with Antonio Banderas - she hasn't done it yet."

Such an open exchange is typical of Jackman. Famous as the dickens yet still down to earth, he is disarming and totally enamoured with his wife and their three-year-old boy, Oscar.

http://www.jackmanslanding.com/news/news-articles/advertiser0404.html

[Hunter Rider]

Hugh Jackman's wife has to be extrememly thick minded to let this stuff go...

Orrrr y'know, an adult with actual confidence in her marriage.......

[Hunter Rider]

http://i34.tinypic.com/15qvzg6.jpg

http://i34.tinypic.com/107t15v.jpg

http://i36.tinypic.com/zss6jn.jpg

[That-Guy]

Jackman for Roland Deschain! There is NO ONE else that can play the role! The pics from this movie convince me of that!

[green]

I absolutely 100% agree.

[Wesley Dodds]

If this is a huge hit, What other countries d'ya think are gonna get the big screen treatment... Sweden? Lichtenstein? I think a movie set in America would be a really cool, original idea...

[narrows101]

Check out this site for a few more pics. And I agree - Hugh is perfect for this role.

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/new_pics_and_posters_from_the_must_see_flick_austr alia/

New Pics and Posters from the Must See Flick, 'Australia'

I am now anxiously awaiting this film
By: Brad Brevet | Wednesday, August 20, 2008

In preparation for Baz Luhrmann's Australia I went ahead and watched Strictly Ballroom, Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge to get acquainted with the director.

I had actually not seen any of those three films and when I judged the Australia teaser trailer based on the CG aspects of it I didn't realize Luhrmann was a director that emphasized style just as much as substance. Moulin Rouge is now one of my favorite films of all-time, that is a film that is just fantastic! On renting it from Netflix I watched it about four times, none of which were to listen to the audio commentary, I will wait until Fox goes ahead and releases it on Blu-ray for that and if they are smart they will do that soon because if any film will benefit from high-definition it is that one.

As for Australia, it stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman and is a romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II. The film hits theaters on November 14 and is certainly a film to watch out for in terms of Oscar consideration.

Check out the new posters below and click here or on any of the thumbnails at the bottom of the article to check out the new stills and the rest of the gallery.

[narrows101]

Baz's AUSTRALIA test screens where TITANIC had it's first screening! Same results? Let's see... (http://www.aintitcool.com/node/37283)



Another Reader Is Back From AUSTRALIA!! (http://www.aintitcool.com/node/37290)


I don't think this review was posted when these two other test screening reviews came out.

Manic Gives Early Praise to Luhrmann's Australia (http://www.mania.com/maniac-gives-early-praise-to-luhrmanns-australia_article_58860.html)

Kidman was stellar, but I've seen her play the role a few times before and that took away from it some. Jackman...I was going to say it's a career defining performance, but I think he'll always be Wolverine. On the serious side, this is at *minimum* as good as he was in Prestige.

On a sidenote, I heard a few people saying "God, he looked just like Clint Eastwood." as a testament to Hugh Jackman's visual likeness in the film.

There's a little boy in it named Brandon Walters who could swipe a supporting actor nod if the academy is feeling generous.

[Gotham]

Wow. Career defining performance? That's awesome.

[Hunter Rider]

http://i37.tinypic.com/259vpn5.jpg

http://i36.tinypic.com/fp4db6.jpg

[Hunter Rider]

High res posters.

http://i35.tinypic.com/2j11v6u.jpg

http://i38.tinypic.com/30u8gnp.jpg

http://i34.tinypic.com/r9llig.jpg

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/3571/fullmovieimage18157lb0.th.jpg (http://img237.imageshack.us/my.php?image=fullmovieimage18157lb0.jpg)

http://img397.imageshack.us/img397/2830/fullmovieimage18158rn7.th.jpg (http://img397.imageshack.us/my.php?image=fullmovieimage18158rn7.jpg)

http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/3828/fullmovieimage18159zg8.th.jpg (http://img520.imageshack.us/my.php?image=fullmovieimage18159zg8.jpg)

[narrows101]

LOL on the Wolverine mention.

http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_ezine&task=read&page=1&category=3&article=5336


More New (High Rez) Images from AUSTRALIA
Written by Stephanie Sanchez (http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=62&Itemid=171)
Thursday, 21 August 2008

Before Wolverine heads out to slash some serious ass in his new film, he's doin' a whole lotta love makin' in AUSTRALIA!

AUSTRALIA is an epic and romantic action adventure, set in that country on the explosive brink of World War II.

In it, an English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) travels to the faraway continent, where she meets a rough-hewn local (Hugh Jackman) and reluctantly agrees to join forces with him to save the land she inherited.

Together, they embark upon a transforming journey across hundreds of miles of the world's most beautiful yet unforgiving terrain, only to still face the bombing of the city of Darwin by the Japanese forces that attacked Pearl Harbor.

With his new film, Baz Luhrmann is painting on a vast canvas, creating a cinematic experience that brings together romance, drama, adventure and spectacle.

From the looks of these images there seems to be an overwhelming "let's make it with the love" theme going on here...

Click on the images below for the high rez versions! For the latest posters from AUSTRALIA, click here (http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5333&Itemid=99) for the article we posted previously.

http://iesb.net/images/stories/productionstills2/AUS-93164r.jpg


http://iesb.net/images/stories/productionstills2/AUS-53379.jpg

http://iesb.net/images/stories/productionstills2/AUS-53247r.jpg

http://iesb.net/images/stories/productionstills2/AUS-28773rv3.jpg

[narrows101]

Well, Sony just moved the new James Bond movie to Nov. 14 - right up against AUSTRALIA.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117990904.html?categoryId=13&cs=1

Sony shifting 'Solace' release
James Bond pic moved to Nov. 14
By PAMELA MCCLINTOCK (http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=bio&peopleID=1578)

Now that the next "Harry Potter" installment won't be opening at Thanksgiving, Sony has jumped on the chance to bow its Bond pic "Quantum Solace" a week later than planned.

Pic will be released on Nov. 14 instead of Nov. 7.

Bond titles have traditionally opened the weekend before Thanksgiving, but "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Price" had been set to open Nov. 21. It's been pushed back until July.

"We believe Nov. 14 is a great date that allows us to play straight through Thanksgiving and right into Christmas," Sony chair of worldwide marketing and distribution Jeff Blake said. "We believe this decision will give the public a wider opportunity to see the film over the holiday."

"Quantum Solace" returns Daniel Craig to the bigscreen as James Bond.
In its new date, "Quantum Solace" goes up against 20th Century Fox's Nicole Kidman-Hugh Jackman epic "Australia," from director Baz Luhrmann, Universal comedy "Role Models" and MGM comedy "Soul Men."
Immediately after "Half-Blood Prince" moved last week, Summit Entertainment announced it will now open Catherine Hardwicke vampire adventure "Twilight" on Nov. 21.

[That-Guy]

Is this a new trend with Bond films? Opening them against another major release so that its sure to take a toll on 007's box office? F**king idiots should have left it where it was.

[danoyse]

Is this a new trend with Bond films? Opening them against another major release so that its sure to take a toll on 007's box office? F**king idiots should have left it where it was.

Well...Casino Royale lost it's opening weekend to Happy Feet. If it had kept it's original release date, it would have been up against Madagascar 2. I doubt they wanted to get beaten at the box office by a cartoon again.

Now I just have 2 movies to see on the weekend of 11/14. :woot:

[narrows101]

You know, it is what it is. Check this out.

http://www.getthebigpicture.net/blog/2008/8/21/even-more-ridiculously-good-imagery-from-australia.html

Even More Ridiculously Good Imagery from 'Australia'

It was kind of a hush-hush thing, but I was privileged to see a two-and-a-half-minute Australia featurette last night. It was kind of an alternate trailer, really, but Fox hasn't released it publicly yet. Hopefully, we'll get that for you pretty soon. I also saw close to 150 production photos for Baz Luhrmann's upcoming epic, and it just looks more and more magnificent with each new picture. Even without the proper context, the photos are staggering, colorful, and full of life. Couple their impact with the short compilation I saw, and its position as a prohibitive Oscar hopeful is pretty much secured, at least in my eyes.

There was one other fascinating nugget I learned last night: Every stitch of Australia has to earn Luhrmann's approval. That means every shot in every trailer, every publicity photo, and every poster gets his seal of approval before it's released to the public. Simply put: This movie is all about Baz Luhrmann's vision, and since he's one of the most visionary directors in the world at the moment, that's probably a good thing.

I wish I could share with you everything I saw last night, but I do have a few a trio of new pictures as well as mammoth high quality versions of the first three teaser posters (they're much better than the versions we had a few days ago).

A followup reply from him:

Oh, this thing reminds me so much of Giant, it's unbelievable.

[JP]

This looks good. :up:

[That-Guy]

Well...Casino Royale lost it's opening weekend to Happy Feet. If it had kept it's original release date, it would have been up against Madagascar 2. I doubt they wanted to get beaten at the box office by a cartoon again.

Now I just have 2 movies to see on the weekend of 11/14. :woot:

Yeah, I may have to do a double feature that day.

[danoyse]

I saw The Dark Knight again tonight and they had one of the Australia posters up in the lobby. It was the Nicole poster.

It was a big theater, so I'm sure the others were up too. :woot:

[DBZ2cool]

This looks good. :up:

Fox gives full control to only 2 directors Baz Luhrmann and James Cameron.

Funny thing is that everything about Australia is australian. Fox+Baz+Hugh+Nicole+movie title

[Timstuff]

Australia fact:

Australia recently banned the videogame "Fallout 3" for release, due to in-game use of the prescription pain killers. A government representative stated emphatically, "We don't want our kids playing a game that promotes sissy pills."

[danoyse]

Australia fact:

Australia recently banned the videogame "Fallout 3" for release, due to in-game use of the prescription pain killers. A government representative stated emphatically, "We don't want our kids playing a game that promotes sissy pills."

Another fact:

This has nothing to do with the movie.

[Timstuff]

Another Australia fact:

The sun does not burn Australians' skin, because the sun does not want to get its @$$ kicked. :D

[Iglius]

Another fact:

According to danoyse, Casino Royale lost its opening weekend to Happy Feet, starring Hugh Jackman.

The latest Bond film, Quantum of Solace, could now possibly lose its opening weekend to Australia, starring Hugh Jackman.


Pwnd!

[BMM]

^ Not anymore.

Australia's release date has been pushed back to November 26.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117991269.html?categoryid=13&cs=1

SYDNEY - Fox is shifting its big-ticket outback romance "Australia" to Nov. 26.

"Australia" was slated to release Stateside Nov. 14, about 48-hours after its November 13 world preem Down Under, but now the Oz date will also shift to tally with the U.S. Recently, Warner Bros. moved its next "Harry Potter" movie from Nov. 21 to next summer.

Saga of an English woman (Nicole Kidman) who comes to remote Australia and falls for a rugged cattle drover (Hugh Jackman) is set against the backdrop of World War II.

Pic lensed in locations around Oz during 2007, and director Baz Luhrmann is currently shooting pick-ups in Australia with lead thesps.

Fox's date shift will buy Luhrmann a little more more time to finish the film.

Summit Entertainment leapt to the space vacated by "Harry Potter" with its highly anticipated vampire pic "Twilight."

Other Thanksgiving pics include Disney toon "Bolt," Cormac McCarthy adaptation "The Road" and another literary adaptation "Time Traveler's Wife."

[Green+Black]

I'm so excited about this movie :-)

[narrows101]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/stay-in-touch/foxs-high-hopes-for-baz-epic/2008/09/02/1220121232180.html?page=fullpage

Hugh also showed a preview of Australia when he went to Amsterdam - and he also told the bath story, but the cocaine one is new LOL. I wonder if this is something new or just the trailer.

Fox's high hopes for Baz epic
Emily Dunn and Elicia Murray
September 3, 2008

IF director Baz Luhrmann needed any more pressure as he finishes the epic film Australia, it came yesterday. The film's distributor, 20th Century Fox, unveiled an ambitious marketing strategy aimed at having it topple Titanic as the highest-grossing film ever. Hugh Jackman, (pictured below) who stars opposite Nicole Kidman, then delivered a passionate speech about the film at the Australian International Movie Convention on the Gold Coast, calling the film "the role of a lifetime" and saying that pulling off such an epic would be "the holy grail, the Mount Everest, of filmmaking".
The head of 20th Century Fox in Australia, Marcos Oliveira, told the Herald's film writer, Garry Maddox, that Australia would have its world premiere in Sydney in "mid-November" before opening on November 26. "We expect to be the biggest [film] of all time," he said. The distributor has marketing deals with the likes of Qantas, the Nine and Ten networks, R.M. Williams, News Corporation newspapers and Australian winemakers, raising the stakes for a film which already has huge expectations to fulfil. To break Titanic's 1997 record, Australia would need to take $57.65 million, equivalent to more than 5 million tickets.

REAL REAL THING

The star of Australia earned his keep at the convention, entertaining the audience with stories from a recent promotional visit to Amsterdam. Searching for a TV channel with his three-year-old daughter, Ava, all he could find were five or six channels of soft porn. "Daddy, they're having a bath," she said innocently. Walking through the city later with their two children, Jackman and his wife, Deborra-Lee Furness, were stunned to be asked, near their hotel, whether they wanted to buy cocaine.

"Do we look like we want to buy cocaine?" they responded. To which the dealer replied, "No, no, not for the children - for you."

[narrows101]

Here's another:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24283772-15803,00.html

Australia star Hugh Jackman presented extended footage and a scene from the film and admitted that while watching footage when recently re-voicing scenes, "I constantly found myself watching the screen (and) going, 'Wow, I'm in one of those movies."' Jackman said he had doubts about Luhrmann appropriating his homeland's name, but "I really think Baz has earned the title". An early scene, featuring Nicole Kidman, Jackman, Jack Thompson and a terrific David Wenham, suggests a comic, Chips Rafferty-style tone, although an extended highlights reel indicates the film slips easily into Gone with the Wind and Lawrence of Arabia territory. Those close to Reel Time know what a cynic he is, but Luhrmann and Catherine Martin's film appears to be a visual and emotional feast. And a long one: some exhibitors have been told to expect the film to be at least 2 1/2 hours long. Reel Time hears Luhrmann has delivered a three-hour cut which his studio wants snipped to two hours and 20 minutes. But local exhibitors are willing to take whatever they are given, after Jackman's charming and convincing presentation. He then returned to introduce the trailer to his dark, impressive X Men Origins: Wolverine, which opens in May.

[wellsy]

Well, they're certainly aiming high. I think it would be fitting for Australia to be the highest grossing movie ever in Australia (although I must ask if that value is inflation-adjusted).

[TheComicbookKid]

It certainly has homefield advantage.

[jmc]

Well, they're certainly aiming high. I think it would be fitting for Australia to be the highest grossing movie ever in Australia (although I must ask if that value is inflation-adjusted).

It would be fitting, but even with names such as Kidman, Jackman and Luhrmann attached to it, it's a film about Australia and Aussie audiences are generally fickle when it comes to home made films about our country. To put it simply, the way Aussie audiences are, it is nowhere near guaranteed of even challenging Titanic as biggest grossing film domestically in Aus.

[Poeman]

this movie is not topping the domestic all time mark....of the TITANIC.

Not a movie with the name Austrailia...On the other hand, if the Dark Knight re-releases

;)

[narrows101]

this movie is not topping the domestic all time mark....of the TITANIC.

They're actually referring to TITANIC in Australia, not the US or worldwide. Here's another article about the Australian marketing plans:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,24290123-7582,00.html?from=public_rss

Tidal wave of marketing for Baz Luhrmann movie
Michael Bodey | September 04, 2008

AUSTRALIA is about to be assaulted by a film called Australia in the biggest marketing blitz in local cinema history.

Twentieth Century Fox executives announced this week at the Australian International Movie Convention a relentless campaign to brand the film directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

One Fox executive says it is "the most anticipated film of all time". Another, Fox marketing director Marc Wooldridge, says: "No one will be able to escape the fact that Australia will be in cinemas from November 26."

In a "TV network takeover", Australia will also be integrated through Nine network IDs and programming, including Getaway and 60 Minutes.

The deal with Nine, which is a minor slap in the face to the top-rating Seven network, is said to have been brokered by Nine chief executive David Gyngell.

"It's a balancing act but it's about getting the widest coverage possible," Wooldridge says.

"We've got to find a way to reach all Australians."

Next week Qantas will launch its Australia campaign, the airline's biggest promotion since the Sydney Olympics, Wooldridge says. "We've literally taken over the airline," he says, with Australia images and logos incorporated into most Qantas branding, including boarding passes.

Previously announced promotional partners Tourism Australia and RM Williams are joined by Coopers, Kirks, Natio, Telstra BigPond, News Limited and Jacob's Creek. Obviously, commercial tie-ins with a period movie -- Australia is set in rural Australia in the late 1930s and 1940s -- are problematic but "all of them are really authentic Australian companies", Wooldridge says.

"Even Kirks, part of Coca-Cola Amatil, is essentially an old-fashioned Australian soft drink. Coopers is the last family-owned Australian brewery, with 16 per cent of the premium beer market.

"It's interesting because promotional partners are not something that would naturally align with a Bazmark film, but there's this acceptance at the production company that to get to the widest audience possible they've got to look at these marketing challenges, and they've been great".

All partners were suggested by Fox to Luhrmann and his Bazmark production company.

"We can definitely stand up and say these are all really great Australian companies with great heritage, and while they don't necessarily strike you immediately as a perfect fit, they've come together brilliantly.

"It has been a learning process because there are so many great things you can do with our content to reach out, but you have to do it so there's no talent endorsement," Wooldridge says.

"Nicole Kidman won't be holding a Telstra phone endorsing it -- it's the movie. As much as they'd love to have Nicole going 'Hello, how ya going', it's not going to happen."

No one will put a figure on the total marketing budget and benefits from such commercial integration, Wooldridge concedes, but "I can't imagine we've spent more than this in the past".

There are serious hopes the film will out-gross Titanic as Australia's most popular movie, with a box office take beyond $55 million, or roughly 5 million admissions.

Fox's decision to move Australia's release back a fortnight to clash with Sony's new James Bond film, Quantum of Solace on November 26 has generated much animosity among Australian cinema exhibitors and distributors. Sony is expected to move Quantum of Solace's release forward.

In some quarters there are fears that saturation coverage of Australia might generate public cynicism.

[Poeman]

If it makes me cry like titanic and celine deon did..then its got a shot

;)

[narrows101]

Anyone a Qantas frequent flyer? A contest to attend the premiere and after party in Sydney.

http://www.qantas.com.au/info/australia?int_cam=au:australia_movie

[narrows101]

Latest Podcast is up - Sound Design. Love Hugh's "welcome to Australia" line!

http://www.apple.com/education/settoscreen/soundrecording.html

[narrows101]

An article about Hugh and the movie in the NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/07/movies/moviesspecial/07barnes.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

A Wolverine Finds His Romantic Side
20th Century Fox

Hugh Jackman is a rugged drover wooing Nicole Kidman in the romance “Australia.”
By BROOKS BARNES
Published: September 4, 2008

HUGH JACKMAN is a big, macho movie star. Got it?

In talking up Mr. Jackman in advance of “Australia,” his coming romantic epic, three executives at 20th Century Fox all described the actor as a “rough-hewn” throwback to Hollywood’s classic leading-man types, a “young Clint Eastwood.”

Baz Luhrmann, the director of “Australia,” which co-stars Nicole Kidman as an aristocratic cattle owner, also talked up Mr. Jackman’s manliness. “There are not many actors who have an ability to pick up a Nicole Kidman, throw her on the bed and ravish her with believability,” Mr. Luhrmann said.

Perhaps feeling that description was not vivid enough, Mr. Luhrmann added, “He is also excellent with a cattle whip.”

Here’s what Mr. Jackman’s bosses and colleagues are trying to say: Mr. Jackman, 39, is on the verge of megastardom, the kind that comes with Oscar nominations and demands for script approval. But to join the short A-list of male movie stars he must move past all that girly singing and dancing stuff on his résumé.

In Hollywood, where typecasting remains very much a force, Mr. Jackman retains a slight stigma. Isn’t he the guy who won a Tony Award for playing a flamboyant gay songwriter in “The Boy From Oz” on Broadway? Didn’t he host the Tony Awards for three years running? And didn’t he also produce and star in “Viva Laughlin,” that campy CBS musical series that bombed last year?

With “Australia,” which Fox plans to release on Nov. 26 in North America, Mr. Jackman will get the chance to prove that he can play a big-time romantic lead in a big-time movie. And with any luck, the film will be part of a one-two punch erasing any lingering worries about his ability to open a movie. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” in which he reprises his “X-Men” role as a hirsute mutant in need of a nail file, opens on May 1.

“I think it will surprise people,” Mr. Jackman said of his performance in “Australia” during an interview on the Fox lot. “I’m never that worried about positioning myself, and I don’t like labels personally or professionally. But this is definitely the straight-down-the-line, classic, old-school leading-man role I’ve been waiting for.”

Mr. Jackman was not Mr. Luhrmann’s first choice. Mr. Luhrmann intended for Russell Crowe to play the character, a brooding drover with no name who helps Ms. Kidman’s aristocrat drive cattle across a barren homestead during World War II. But Mr. Crowe and Fox sparred over money. (At the time the combative actor fumed to a reporter, “I do charity work, but I don’t do charity work for major studios.”)

Mr. Luhrmann, the director of critical darlings like “Moulin Rouge!” “William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet” and “Strictly Ballroom,” said Mr. Jackman was initially under consideration for the smaller role of a greedy land manager. “I was keen to have Hugh in the film, but I didn’t immediately see him as the drover,” Mr. Luhrmann said, adding that Fox worried about Mr. Jackman’s marketability.

Fox grew more comfortable with Mr. Jackman’s star status after “X-Men: The Last Stand” opened in 2006 with strong results (it ended up making more than $450 million worldwide), and Mr. Luhrmann had become impressed with Mr. Jackman’s gung-ho attitude. Ms. Kidman, a friend of Mr. Jackman’s wife, the Australian actress Deborah-Lee Furness, gave her approval at a party in Los Angeles.

“Nicole came bounding in and said she heard I was talking to Baz,” Mr. Jackman recalled. “I said: ‘Yes, I’m very excited. But I haven’t yet seen a script. Tell me, what is it like?’ And she responded: ‘Oh, I haven’t read the script. It’s Baz. Just sign on.’ ”

Not long after, Mr. Jackman found himself enduring intense horse training in Texas. For the role he would need not only to woo Ms. Kidman’s character, who inherits an enormous cattle ranch in a remote part of Australia, but also to ride herd over 2,000 cattle and rope horses. In one scene he would need to jump off his horse and grab a stampeding cow by the tail. Another scene called for him to stand in the center of a corral and lasso a wild horse.

Mr. Jackman played down the rigor required by most of the wrangling work. But even he was impressed with the lassoing. “The horse went ballistic when I got that rope around his neck,” he said. “My gloves ripped, the rope peeled skin off my hands. I just remember being so happy that I did it that I didn’t care at all.”

Filming took place in Australia’s barren Northern Territory. (In the film Ms. Kidman’s character owns a sprawling desert property near Darwin, a small Australian city bombed by the Japanese during World War II.) The shoot came with dust storms, scorpions and, down the side of a cliff from Mr. Jackman’s trailer, a lagoon slithering with crocodiles. The shoot lasted 157 days in total, an epic period even for an epic drama.

“I almost fainted on the first day,” Mr. Jackman said. “Incredibly hot, incredibly remote.”

It was a long way from his days starting out in musical theater in Sydney, a time when he worked as a part-time clown at children’s parties. (In another job around that time, a pre-muscled Mr. Jackman was paid to stand in the lobby of a local gym as the “before” model.)

One early role came from the Sydney production of Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast.” He played the prince. He went on to a starring role in a local tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Sunset Boulevard,” and eventually landed the role of Curly in an acclaimed London revival of “Oklahoma!” in 1998.

During that production, a permed Mr. Jackman had his first professional encounter with Mr. Luhrmann. It didn’t go well: he auditioned for the romantic lead in “Moulin Rouge” and was passed over for Ewan McGregor.

Mr. Jackman came out O.K., though. During the same time, he was a backup choice for the Wolverine character in “X-Men” and got the part after the original actor, Dougray Scott, backed out because of a conflicting film commitment. Aside from the “X-Men” movies, Mr. Jackman’s movie career has mostly included films that missed expectations, including “The Prestige.” Whether “Australia” will work is unclear. Fox hopes it will be an Oscar force, and the footage is lavish. Mr. Luhrmann said he was influenced by sweeping classics like “Gone With the Wind,” “The African Queen” and “Out of Africa,” which Mr. Jackman says is one of his favorite films.

But the film is commercially risky. Historical epics can be a tough sell, as “Troy,” “Kingdom of Heaven” and “King Arthur” have recently proved to the studios’ dismay. And Ms. Kidman’s recent track record at the box office (“The Stepford Wives,” “Bewitched,” “The Invasion,” “The Golden Compass”) has been scanty. (The film also represents a big departure for Mr. Luhrmann, who has developed a passionate following for his colorful visual style, which often places characters in over-the-top worlds bordering on fantasy. But “Australia” is darker and more realistic looking, and includes a subplot about the government’s forced removal of Aboriginal children from their families.)

Mr. Jackman always has a backup in “Wolverine.” Judging from his reception in July at Comic-Con, the huge comic book and movie marketing convention, the action film will be a blockbuster. More than 6,500 fans at Comic-Con greeted him like a deity when he made a surprise appearance to plug the movie. People were screaming and chanting; one woman burst into tears. “It was my little rock-star moment,” Mr. Jackman said.

People who work with Mr. Jackman gush about him, too, to the degree that one starts to wonder just how badly other stars are behaving. “He is the most centered, incredibly focused actor I’ve ever worked with,” Mr. Luhrmann said. “I know everybody always says that in Hollywood, but I really mean it.”

Nina Tassler, the president for entertainment at CBS, said she had no regrets about “Viva Laughlin” because of Mr. Jackman’s involvement. “Working with him was one of the highlights of my entire life,” she said. Mr. Jackman, she added, was intimately involved in aspects of the project like script writing and marketing — rare for movie stars moonlighting in television — and said she found him humble and unassuming, an opinion echoed by others.

In wielding his charm, Mr. Jackman, whose offices on the Fox lot are located in Shirley Temple’s former dance studio and who watches “Judge Judy” in his spare time, likes to use humor. “You can’t cut my hair or my beard — but you can trim my nose hair if you like,” he said to a stylist readying him for a photo shoot.

And his looks — five appearances on People magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful” list and counting — don’t hurt his bankability either, as the director Bryan Singer, who hired Mr. Jackman for “X-Men,” helpfully pointed out in an interview.

As for that “rough-hewn” label? “That’s studio-speak for a lot of chest hair,” Mr. Singer said.

[Hunter Rider]

Thanks for the updates narrows. :up: hopefully we'll get a new trailer soon.

[That-Guy]

I think this film, the new Wolvie movie, and Jackman's eventual casting as Roland in the Dark Tower films (which will happen...I just know it will, haha)will cement Jackman's status as a major force in Hollywood.

[danoyse]

And I don't care if Hollywood got cranky over it...he was hot in The Boy From Oz. I saw that show 5 times on Broadway. :up:

I can't wait for this movie.

[That-Guy]

It amazes me that they rip on him for that, and yet everytime a big name actor turns a half-assed performance in a watered down movie version of a musical, they act like they've found God.

[narrows101]

It amazes me that they rip on him for that, and yet everytime a big name actor turns a half-assed performance in a watered down movie version of a musical, they act like they've found God.
No kidding!!!!!! This is what you call a "triple threat" where someone can sing, dance and act, and he's getting some flack for it (supposedly - who knows about the author of the piece) from the movie world! I do wonder if it's because he played Peter Allen and not actually because he can sing and dance.

[narrows101]

Would love this movie to get nominated for a few Oscars - I think cinematography is a given.

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24309961-5006301,00.html (http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24309961-5006301,00.html)

ANDREW FENTON, FILM WRITER
September 06, 2008 11:30pm

GROUNDWORK for an Academy Award campaign for the Baz Luhrmann epic Australia has begun even though the movie is yet to be finished.

The 20th Century Fox marketing team is on its way to Los Angeles tomorrow to begin Oscar lobbying.

The long-awaited $120 million movie starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman is seen as potential "Oscar bait", despite production not being completed.

Wallis Cinemas program manager Bob Parr told The Advertiser from the Australian International Movie Convention on the Gold Coast the head of the Fox marketing team had informed him the campaign was on.

"They're confident they'll get Oscar nominations and are setting up their campaign," he said. "(They) head over to the U.S. on Monday to do the campaign there."

Given that a Best Picture award can boost a film's box office by $30 million, studios have been known to spend as much as $1 million on publicity, materials and celebrity-hosted screenings for their Oscar campaigns. Fox marketing director Marc Wooldridge said his trip to LA today was not specifically to set up Australia's Oscar campaign, but confirmed the studio would be campaigning in earnest from November.

"All good films released at this time of year have Oscar aspirations," he said. "It's definitely a prestige, quality film."

Earlier in the week, managing director of 20th Century Fox in Australia Marcus Oliveira predicted the film would overtake Titanic's 1997 $57.65 million box office record in Australia.

While that's extremely unlikely, the film has much going for it.

It's the biggest movie ever made locally, with Australians in all the key creative and cast positions, and it will open on more than 400 screens nationwide.

The marketing effort, with seven major brand partners including Qantas, Telstra, Bigpond, Jacobs Creek and Coopers, is described by Wooldridge as "the most ambitious and extensive campaign we've ever had".

The film will premiere in Sydney in mid-November and open in Australia and the U.S. on November 26. That's Thanksgiving in America, traditionally one of the biggest days at the box office.

But while Australia's success may revitalise the local film industry, could its failure destroy it?

Mr Wooldridge doesn't think so.

"If the movie is successful it will have a halo effect for local industry, but I don't think people will stop making films in Australia (if it's not)."

[danoyse]

It amazes me that they rip on him for that, and yet everytime a big name actor turns a half-assed performance in a watered down movie version of a musical, they act like they've found God.

Exactly. I saw that show 5 times, Hugh was getting standing ovations during the show. I've been going to B'way shows since 1980 and I've never seen anyone get those kind of responses from an audience. He was just phenomenal in that show.

But the industry looks at it as...oh, he was playing a gay guy. :whatever:

[Avangarde]

From my local newspaper:


GROUNDWORK for an Academy Award campaign for the Baz Luhrmann epic Australia has begun - even though the movie is yet to be finished.
The 20th Century Fox marketing team is on its way to Los Angeles tomorrow to begin Oscar lobbying.
The long-awaited $120 million movie starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman is seen as potential "Oscar bait", despite production not being completed.
Wallis Cinemas program manager Bob Parr told The Advertiser from the Australian International Movie Convention on the Gold Coast the head of the Fox marketing team had informed him the campaign was on.
"They're confident they'll get Oscar nominations and are setting up their campaign," he said. "(They) head over to the U.S. on Monday to do the campaign there."
Given that a Best Picture award can boost a film's box office by $30 million, studios have been known to spend as much as $1 million on publicity, materials and celebrity-hosted screenings for their Oscar campaigns. Fox marketing director Marc Wooldridge said his trip to LA today was not specifically to set up Australia's Oscar campaign, but confirmed the studio would be campaigning in earnest from November.
"All good films released at this time of year have Oscar aspirations," he said. "It's definitely a prestige, quality film."
Earlier in the week, managing director of 20th Century Fox in Australia Marcus Oliveira predicted the film would overtake Titanic's 1997 $57.65 million box office record in Australia.
While that's extremely unlikely, the film has much going for it.
It's the biggest movie ever made locally, with Australians in all the key creative and cast positions, and it will open on more than 400 screens nationwide.
The marketing effort, with seven major brand partners including Qantas, Telstra, Bigpond, Jacobs Creek and Coopers, is described by Wooldridge as "the most ambitious and extensive campaign we've ever had".
The film will premiere in Sydney in mid-November and open in Australia and the U.S. on November 26. That's Thanksgiving in America, traditionally one of the biggest days at the box office.
But while Australia's success may revitalise the local film industry, could its failure destroy it?
Mr Wooldridge doesn't think so.
"If the movie is successful it will have a halo effect for local industry, but I don't think people will stop making films in Australia (if it's not)."


http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24309961-5006346,00.html

[That-Guy]

No kidding!!!!!! This is what you call a "triple threat" where someone can sing, dance and act, and he's getting some flack for it (supposedly - who knows about the author of the piece) from the movie world! I do wonder if it's because he played Peter Allen and not actually because he can sing and dance.

Exactly. I saw that show 5 times, Hugh was getting standing ovations during the show. I've been going to B'way shows since 1980 and I've never seen anyone get those kind of responses from an audience. He was just phenomenal in that show.

But the industry looks at it as...oh, he was playing a gay guy.

Yeah, seriously. The majority of musical theater actors out there can't do convincing film work and vice versa. Yet here is an actor who can do both and they criticize him for it. Jackman is one of the most versatile actors out there. And as for him playing a gay guy... seriously, what actor HASN'T these days? I guess they think that if you play a superhero, you can only play badass hero roles. Well, Christian Bale played a gay guy. So did Christopher Reeve, Tobey Maguire, etc.

[The Amazing Lee]

don't forget Heath Ledger. ;)

[narrows101]

Two new interview articles (too long to post):

http://www.la.com/movies/Fall_Movies_Preview-_Australia.html (http://www.la.com/movies/Fall_Movies_Preview-_Australia.html)


http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article4731651.ece

[narrows101]

People magazine, Sept. 22 issue:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/AustraliaPeople.jpg

[narrows101]

Posters for sale - all different sizes. The bus shelter size:

http://www.moviegoods.com/Assets/product_images/1020/413813.1020.A.jpg

http://www.moviegoods.com/Assets/product_images/1020/413816.1020.A.jpg

Ten for sale:

http://www.moviegoods.com/movie_product_static.asp?cmio=&sku=413816&master%5Fmovie%5Fid=37957

[narrows101]

Australia Women's Weekly, 75th anniversary edition - scans of the whole thing may be on the 'net soon but this is from the magazine website:

http://aww.ninemsn.com.au

http://www.magshop.com.au/images/products/114_080827_xl.jpg

On sale Wednesday, September 24

Nicole's labour of love:
'I never thought in my lifetime that I would get pregnant and give birth to a child, but it happened on this move,' an emotional Nicole Kidman tells The Australian Women's Weekly. Nicole reveals her elation at the birth of Sunday Rose, and fascinating detail about her lead role in the film Australia.

Hugh Jackman's family act:
Australia co-star Hugh Jackman reveals his pride at watching his son, Oscar, in his first major film. 'There's my son, the first one in the front,' he tells The Weekly. 'He's looking very serious because he's been told the story and he knows its wartime. His school room is also around the corner and he knows when he finishes there he's back to school, so bring on the extra takes basically.'

http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=633417 (http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=633417)



http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/img/article/1008nicole_150.jpg

Labour of love

In the glow of new motherhood, Nicole Kidman speaks to Jenny Cooney Carrillo about her joy at being a mother and the pride she feels in her role in the much-anticipated epic Australia..

Australia is not only the movie that Nicole Kidman dreamed of making as a little girl. The Baz Luhrmann epic, due to be released next month, will now also be remembered as the movie that gave Nicole something much more unexpected and precious – her baby daughter, Sunday Rose.

"I never thought that I would get pregnant and give birth to a child, but it happened on this movie," an emotional Nicole says. The 41-year-old actress is talking to us exclusively from London, where she is rehearsing the musical film Nine, inspired by the 1963 Fellini movie 8½ and starring Daniel Day-Lewis.

During our chat and previous interviews on the set of Australia in Kununurra, WA, and Sydney, Nicole touches on everything from her great Australian movie role opposite Hugh Jackman and the challenges that came with this labour of love, to the occasional revelation about her other new role as Sunday's mum.

The fiercely protective and surprisingly shy actress can't help but let us in on how she's feeling at this blessed time in her life. "It's exhausting," she acknowledges, "but I think at this age it's more like" — she lets out a huge, satisfied sigh — "spellbinding for me. To be given this again is a beautiful thing. To have raised Bella and Connor since I was 25 and now to be able to do it again at 41...wow!"

But I'm ready and I love children, and love the connection and to be needed. Who doesn't want to be needed?" she muses. "And that's the thing for my character, Lady Sarah Ashley, in the film, because she also finds there is a place in the world where she is really needed by these two males."

The two males Nicole is referring to are her ruggedly handsome Aussie co-star Hugh Jackman, who plays the drover that sweeps her character off her feet, and 11-year-old Aboriginal actor Brandon Walters, who plays her surrogate son, Nullah, and became like a son to her during filming.

Set in northern Australia just before World War II, Australia follows the journey of Lady Ashley, an English aristocrat who inherits a sprawling cattle station in the outback and reluctantly makes a pact with a cattle drover (Hugh) to protect her new property from a takeover plot by cattle baron King Carney (played by Bryan Brown). The pair band together with an unlikely group, including her alcoholic accountant (Jack Thompson) and young Nullah, to drive 2000 head of cattle over unforgiving terrain to Darwin, where they experience the bombing of the city by the Japanese.

"As a kid, I grew up watching Australian films that were accepted around the world, like Gallipoli, The Man from Snowy River and My Brilliant Career — all those films and actors moulded and inspired me," Nicole reflects. "I really wanted to make a film like that as a kid, so when we were filming this one, I'd look at Baz and Hugh sometimes and go, 'Look, we're doing it!'

"Hopefully, the next generation will watch our movie and feel the same way because it is very much a celebration of our country and our landscape, and the pain and love and survivor aspect of what we are as Australians."

Nicole has certainly had more than her fair share of pain, love and survival, and much of it she's experienced in the glare of the public eye as the world watched the roller-coaster of her life unfold — her marriage to superstar Tom Cruise in 1990, the adoption of their two children Bella, now 15, and Connor, 13, her split with Tom in 2001, her Oscar for The Hours, her love story with singer Keith Urban, their fairytale Sydney wedding in 2006 and the arrival of Sunday Rose on July 7.

[narrows101]

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/normal_australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_1.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_2.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_3.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_4.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_5.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_6.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_AWWSep2008_7.jpg

Source:

http://www.australiamovie.net/2008/09/australia-co-stars-feature-on-cover-of-aww-75th-anniversary-edition/

Australia Co-Stars Feature on Cover of AWW 75th Anniversary Edition
September 24th, 2008

This month, the magazine Australian Women’s Weekly (http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/) turns a whopping 75 years old! To celebrate this occasion in style, who more iconic and stylish than Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman could grace this special cover?

Taken from the editor’s letter, “It’s no surprise that we are all fascinated by our heritage - it makes us who we are and shapes our lives. As our covergirl, Nicole Kidman, says in her birthday message, The Weekly’s heritage is “comforting”. We are extremely proud that Nicole and Hugh Jackman - two of Australia’s most iconic stars - agreed to be on the cover of our historic birthday issue and chose to talk for the first time to The Weekly about their roles in Baz Luhrmann’s highly anticipated film ‘Australia’.

The issue features a nice six page spread, with multiple images from Australia. Copies are available at Australian newsagents as of today, 24th September.

The full HQ scans are now available in our extensive gallery (http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=12&page=1&sort=na).

[narrows101]

The US morning show Good Morning America announced yesterday that the are going to Australia in November to do the show from there, with an emphasis on promoting Australia. No dates set yet. That should be really good.

[DarthSkywalker]

Nice big standy in one of the theaters I attend, Can't wait for this.

[narrows101]

Nice big standy in one of the theaters I attend, Can't wait for this.
A lot of people have been reporting this. I just want to see the next trailer instead of the teaser that's been up since May!

[Hunter Rider]

A lot of people have been reporting this. I just want to see the next trailer instead of the teaser that's been up since May!

Me too, It seems a lot of trailers are arriving right now so hopefully we get the new Australia one soon.

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=49208

New TV Trailer for Baz Luhrmann's Australia
Source: MSN (http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&vid=1926c08f-ac4c-4748-99fc-6e252eb79a01)
September 29, 2008


MSN (http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&vid=1926c08f-ac4c-4748-99fc-6e252eb79a01) has revealed a new TV trailer for Baz Luhrmann's Australia (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=20316), starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. In the epic, opening November 26th, an English aristocrat (Kidman) travels to the faraway continent, where she meets a rough-hewn local (Jackman) and reluctantly agrees to join forces with him to save the land she inherited. Together, they embark upon a transforming journey across hundreds of miles of the world's most beautiful yet unforgiving terrain, only to still face the bombing of the city of Darwin by the Japanese forces that attacked Pearl Harbor.

You can watch the trailer here (http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&vid=1926c08f-ac4c-4748-99fc-6e252eb79a01)!

[narrows101]

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=49208

New TV Trailer for Baz Luhrmann's Australia
Source: MSN (http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&vid=1926c08f-ac4c-4748-99fc-6e252eb79a01)
September 29, 2008


MSN (http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&vid=1926c08f-ac4c-4748-99fc-6e252eb79a01) has revealed a new TV trailer for Baz Luhrmann's Australia (http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=20316), starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. In the epic, opening November 26th, an English aristocrat (Kidman) travels to the faraway continent, where she meets a rough-hewn local (Jackman) and reluctantly agrees to join forces with him to save the land she inherited. Together, they embark upon a transforming journey across hundreds of miles of the world's most beautiful yet unforgiving terrain, only to still face the bombing of the city of Darwin by the Japanese forces that attacked Pearl Harbor.

You can watch the trailer here (http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&vid=1926c08f-ac4c-4748-99fc-6e252eb79a01)!

That was fantastic! Loved the sex scene blip at the end LOL.

You can download the trailer plus there are 110 screencaps from it at the Australia fan website:

http://www.australiamovie.net/2008/09/full-length-australia-trailer-online/

[narrows101]

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/screencaps/FullTrailersml/normal_australiamoviedotnet_fulltrailer_106.jpg

http://www.australiamovie.net/gallery/albums/screencaps/FullTrailersml/australiamoviedotnet_fulltrailer_57.jpg

[Galactus]

Hopefully this movie will be everything that Pearl Harbor wished it was...

Hmm, a big budget movie from Fox that looks promising? It is still possible to be surprised... :)

[danoyse]

This looks amazing. :up:

[Hunter Rider]

This is certainly the most visually impressive movie this year, and I like the little interplay we saw between Jackman and Kidman.

[narrows101]

November Men's Journal magazine found on Ebay (not at the magazine website as I post this yet):

http://imagehost.vendio.com/bin/imageserver.x/00000000/jackensack/MENSJOURNALNOV2008A.JPG


http://imagehost.vendio.com/bin/imageserver.x/00000000/jackensack/MENSJOURNALNOV2008B.JPG

[narrows101]

Grazia magazine (UK):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v663/mourou/australia/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_UKGraz-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v663/mourou/australia/scans/australiamoviedotnet_scan_UKGraziaO.jpg

[DarthSkywalker]

He really is Roland....

[narrows101]

Another screening review:

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/38635

Baz Luhrmann's AUSTRALIA Screens Again!

Beaks (mrbeaks@yahoo.com) here...


Whew! My brain is finally back online after getting severely overtaxed at the 5D: The Future of Immersive Design (http://www.5dconference.com/news.html) in Long Beach this weekend. More on that later. Right now, let's check out our first reader review in a while for Baz Luhrmann's 'roo-boxing epic, AUSTRALIA. The reactions we posted last June were very enthusiastic. How's it playing closer to release? Read on...

Well that was interesting; I just had a rather unusual and incredibly cool screening experience here in lovely Aliso Viejo getting to see a pre-release cut of Australia by Baz Luhrmann. Unusual in that the guy handing out the invite had no idea what the film was. And cool in that I will go see this AGAIN when it's playing for real.

This isn't the movie you might expect from Baz Luhrmann. It isnt Moulin Rouge and certainly isn't Romeo and Juliet, instead it's (at least to me) an epic, dramatic story of love set against a visually stunning backdrop with a surprisingly strong performance from Kidman and a refreshing change of pace performance from Jackman. That's quite a mouthful and fitting because this movie is quite a mouthful, actually a stomach full that I'm sure will take me a couple days to fully digest…and it's GREAT!!

Even though this isn't necessarily a special effects kind of movie, some of them (especially the war scenes in the second half) are important because they convey the scope and scale of the story. Makes it feel bigger than just a love story between the rugged, outdoorsy, horseman and the sophisticated city lady.

I found the aboriginal kid (who facilitates the thawing of Kidman's character through latching on to her as a mother figure) very genuine and believable, in fact that could be said of the whole cast. I really got into the story.

One side note …Lurhman, Kidman, and Jackman are all Aussie natives and because of that I had the sense that this film meant a little more to them than their standard work. I think this is especially true of Kidman who (fairly or not) has been criticized for coming off as an emotionless automaton or just bad in her recent films. Granted there is a nice symmetry between the chillier aspect of her personality and her character in the early parts of this film, but what separates this from other things I've seen her in is that this character's turn or evolution away from the cold British aristocrat is incredibly believable and arguably her best work. Jackman is fantastic as a brawler cowboy with a bad attitude, the cattle drive and bombing scenes are really well done, and I laughed out loud a couple times when Jackman/Kidman first meet and he takes great pleasure in messing with the city priss. It's a complete film and real cinematic experience, and one of the best times I've had at the movies since I can remember.

[narrows101]

Poster:

http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/images/column/101008/australia227.jpg


Bigger (too big to post):

http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/images/column/101008/australiabig.jpg

[Hunter Rider]

Great poster, thanks narrows.

http://i33.tinypic.com/2yvo1dx.jpg

[Octoberist]

what an awful poster. looks so cheap for an epic like this.

[Avangarde]

We (Australia) got another exclusive what I believe to be the final trailer for Australia last night. It was the best trailer yet, so epic when Darwin is bombed by the Japanese. I would load it up but I put it on TiVo and cannot do it :csad:

Edit: Apparently I'm behind the ball and it has already been shown before, don't know why they said on the Tv that it was an exclusive premier. Perhaps it's the first time shown on TV *shrugs*.

kx2KLYdnfRc

[Laderlappen]

It always looks weird when actors appears twice on a poster.

[That-Guy]

It always looks weird when actors appears twice on a poster.

Agreed. But I like the poster, regardless. I can't wait for this movie. And sorry to beat this point to death but damn, I hope J.J. Abrams has noticed this film and is looking at Jackman for the role of Roland whenever The Dark Tower gets off the ground.

[TNC9852002]

what an awful poster. looks so cheap for an epic like this.
I've seen way lousier.

-TNC

[DarthSkywalker]

It always looks weird when actors appears twice on a poster.

What I was about to write. Makes no sense.

[TNC9852002]

But, a lot of posters don't make much sense to begin with. They just need to look cool and get the message across..

-TNC

[DarthSkywalker]

Yes. And I guess you can say the same for the films as well. It doesn't need to be an artistic endeavor, just make money.

Or you could put time, effort, and talent into creating a piece which not only represent the film as a whole, but is also a beautiful piece of art.

[Avangarde]

http://i33.tinypic.com/2yvo1dx.jpg

Heh, they left out Tasmania on that little pic of the country.

[Galactus]

Heh, they left out Tasmania on that little pic of the country.

It will be there for the sequel. ;)

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

For some reason, this movie has been slipping pass my notice... But this looks really good.

It's also nice to see Hugh Jackman branch out from Wolverine. Color me excited.

[TNC9852002]

Yes. And I guess you can say the same for the films as well. It doesn't need to be an artistic endeavor, just make money.

Or you could put time, effort, and talent into creating a piece which not only represent the film as a whole, but is also a beautiful piece of art.
I had a long response to this, but I'll just summarize it here:

Agree to disagree.

-TNC

[Doctor Jones]

Not to sound negative or anything, I think this film looks stunning. But does anyone think this film will not be a success?

[Poeman]

if good reviews come thru..itll prolly win best picture

[DarthSkywalker]

I had a long response to this, but I'll just summarize it here:

Agree to disagree.

-TNC

So you prefer mediocrity in your entertainment?

[narrows101]

FilmInk Magazine (Australia) - Wolverine mentioned in the article a bit.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-4.jpg (http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-4.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-3.jpg (http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-3.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-2.jpg (http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-2.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-1.jpg (http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmIn-1.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmInkAU.jpg (http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/australiamoviedotnet_scan_FilmInkAU.jpg)

Source: http://www.australiamovie.net/2008/10/filmink-dusty-drover-on-the-november-cover/

[narrows101]

More on the Men's Journal website:

http://www.mensjournal.com/jackman

http://celebritytoday.today.com/files/2008/10/jackmanmj1.jpg

[Galactus]

"Australia" Hits Last Minute Hiccups
By Garth Franklin
Thursday, October 23rd 2008 2:54am
20th Century Fox isn't showing any signs of nerves today despite reports that Baz Luhrmann's "Australia" is still unfinished.

For several months it had been widely speculated that perfectionist Luhrmann may not have the film ready in time for its simultaneous US, UK and Australian releases on November 26th as he had regularly asked Fox executives to delay the release over the past year.

He then revealed to The Sydney Morning Herald two weeks ago that he'll make the date, but due to timing being so tight he will deliver the film reel by reel to the studio rather than altogether - something almost unheard of.

Luhrmann says that the structure and story are locked and ready, what remained to be tweaked were various post-production elements including some visual effects and sound mixing and while they will be finished, it will be "very close to the wire".

Fox Australia's Marcos Oliveira tells SMH today that he's not concerned - "What I know is the film is getting very beautiful and it's getting ready very soon. He's a perfectionist. I'm assuming that he's taking care of every reel perfectly. As long as I've got an entire film to sell, everything is fine."

There has been one minor issue - the film's poster has had to be reprinted because Tasmania was apparently missing from a small map of Australia positioned in the title.

Details of the film's premiere, media screenings and press junket are currently being sorted out.

[That-Guy]

I think that they should delay this movie until year's end and spend the next month upping the marketing. I haven't seen the trailer in front of any films, nor have I seen any TV spots. I really don't think that many people know about it, and if its as good as it looks that that's a shame.

[Avangarde]

There has been one minor issue - the film's poster has had to be reprinted because Tasmania was apparently missing from a small map of Australia positioned in the title.



Hah, I called that





:csad:

[wellsy]

Well, it's been getting a good run in the various metropolitan newspapers, not to mention they're using the movie to launch some tourism ads too.

Besides, there's a month to go. They'll start to pop up.

[DarthSkywalker]

I don't want the delay obviously. Been quite the wait for it, but I don't want it undone either.

[narrows101]

In Australia at least, there's advertising everywhere - in airports, magazines, TV, contest tie-ins, etc. In the US the trailer has been seen in front of movies and posters are in movie theaters. Hugh has been in Men's Journal and Cowboys & Indians magazines this month, Nicole has been in Elle and Vogue, and both of them have been in Australian Women's Weekly, among other magazines.

The list:

http://www.australiamovie.net/2008/10/month-of-magazines/

Our gallery has had a massive influx of scans this week, with the November publications already hitting some news stands. In addition to those previously mentioned on this site, we’ve compiled a small list of magazines with significant features of which we’re currently aware.

- Travel and Leisure, Nov 2008 [USA]
- Cowboys and Indians, Dec 2008 [USA]
- Men’s Vogue, Nov 2008 [USA]
- Vogue, Nov 2008 [USA]
- Cinema, Nov 2008 [GERMANY]
- TV Spielfilm, Nov 2008 [GERMANY]
- Australian Traveller, Nov 2008 [AUS]
- Vogue Living, Nov 2008 [AUS]
- House and Garden, Nov 2008 [AUS]
- InStyle, Nov 2008 [AUS]
- OK, Oct 2008 [AUS]

All of these items are currently available in our gallery. We appreciate any visitor contributions so if you have a magazine with an Australia feature, please contact us, we’d love to have your scans!

Hugh and Nicole taped an episode of Oprah last week so look for that. Plus apparently Good Morning America will be traveling to Australia next month.

Speaking of Cowboys & Indians:

Part 1:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CICover.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CICover.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg1-1.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg1-1.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg2.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg2.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg3.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg3.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg4.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg4.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg5.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg5.jpg)http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg7.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg7.jpg)

[narrows101]

Part 2 Cowboys & Indians:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg8.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg8.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg9.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg9.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg9-1.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg9-1.jpg) http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/th_CIPg11.jpg (http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Magazines/?action=view&current=CIPg11.jpg)

And for good measure:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/narrows101/Australia/australia_new7.jpg

[That-Guy]

Yeah, I guess I don't want a delay either. I just really want this movie to be good and if it is, I obviously want it to do well at the box office.

[ord0g]

I'm definitely going to be watching this film when it comes out. Free tickets from work, woot for me.

[narrows101]

Hugh and Nicole taped an episode of Oprah - that will air on November 10.

[narrows101]

New trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kL-2q-bg5s (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kL-2q-bg5s)

[danoyse]

I cannot wait to see this!!!! :wow: :woot:

[narrows101]

Hugh and Nicole are going to be on the Oprah Winfrey Show for the full hour on November 10.

Meanwhile, the premiere:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24602285-12377,00.html

Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman to attend Australia premiere
November 04, 2008

NICOLE Kidman and Hugh Jackman will step onto the red carpet in Sydney for the world premiere of Baz Luhrmann's highly anticipated epic movie Australia on November 18.

Luhrmann and his wife, production designer Catherine Martin, young indigenous actor Brandon Walters and other Australian celebrities will join them at the George Street Greater Union cinemas in Sydney's CBD.
Simultaneous screenings will be held in Darwin and Bowen, in Queensland, to celebrate key shooting locations from the film.

A separate celebration of the film will be held in the fourth shooting location, Kununurra, in Western Australia's East Kimberley region, with details to be announced shortly.

"With the huge anticipation for this film, these events will be the first chance for people to discover what promises to be Baz's next cinematic masterpiece,'' said Marcos Oliveira, managing director of 20th Century Fox Australia.

NT Chief Minister Paul Henderson welcomed the local screening of Australia.

"It is great that Darwin is being recognised by having an important role in the premiere of the film,'' Mr Henderson said.

"Darwin and the Northern Territory play an important role in the movie which will provide a great boost for the Northern Territory tourism industry.''

Whitsunday Regional Council Mayor Michael Brunker added: "I'm sure it will be an unforgettable night for the people of Bowen.''

The $130 million romantic action-adventure film, set in northern Australia, follows the story of Lady Sarah Ashley, played by Kidman, who inherits a remote cattle station called Faraway Downs in the mid-1930s, before World War II.

When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle drover (Jackman) to drive 2000 head of cattle across hundreds of kilometres of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin by Japanese forces.

The film will be released nationally on November 26.

[narrows101]

Hugh and Nicole are on the Oprah Winfrey Show on Monday, Nov. 10.

More (so far):

Nov. 20 - Hugh is on Jay Leno
Nov. 21 - Baz is on Jimmy Kimmel
Nov. 24 - Nicole is on Letterman
Nov. 28 - Nicole is on The View
Dec. 4 - Hugh is on Jimmy Kimmel
Dec. 5 - Hugh is on The View

[terry78]

I keep seeing the commercial and people always ask, "what is this movie about, Austrailia?" :oldrazz:

[Hunter Rider]

New trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kL-2q-bg5s (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kL-2q-bg5s)

I think this is the best trailer of the bunch, it gives more dialogue and feels like it's presenting more than a beautiful painting come to life. :up:

[green]

major spoiler...







http://www.darkhorizons.com/news08/081110q.php


Get A Happy Ending In "Australia"
By Garth FranklinMonday, November 10th 2008 12:34am
***** SPOILER ALERT: Information regarding the ending of the upcoming Baz Luhrmann epic "Australia" is contained below, proceed at your own risk. *****

"Romeo & Juliet", Nicole dying at the end of "Moulin Rouge" - Baz Luhrmann certainly likes his romance films to have tragic endings. Unfortunately audiences don't seem to agree with him.

According to The Daily Telegraph, early cuts of the film were tested in the US earlier this year and included scenes where Hugh Jackman’s character, The Drover, dies. Test screening audiences, who responded the most to Jackman's character, felt that ending was "too gloomy".

So, with a $130 million budget and looming deadline fast approaching - 20th Century Fox asked Luhrmann to alter the scenes to make the ending more positive. Despite initial difficulties convincing Luhrmann to do so, he ultimately conceeded and claims "the quality of the film had not been compromised".

The change however was apparently one of the big reasons the film was pushed back two weeks. Pressure is now overwhelmingly on Luhrmann to have the film ready in time for the local Australian press screenings and the multi-city premieres on the night of November 18th.

With no time for early word-of-mouth screenings, an intense publicity tour for the film kicks off in Oz early next week before quickly moving to Los Angeles later that week (LA press screenings on the 20th, an NYC premiere on the 24th), and then Europe throughout much of the rest of the year (it premieres in London on December 10th).

The potential downside of this highly secretive, last-minute approach is that if the film fails to meet expectations the reaction will hit fast and it will hit hard around mid-week next week.

[Dylan17]

Not to sound negative or anything, I think this film looks stunning. But does anyone think this film will not be a success?There's a part of me that keeps saying this, I'm certainly afraid slightly that it may be a disappointment, it just looks so great. But whenever I watch the trailer, I get excited again. If it doesn't disappoint, this movie will certainly be one of the best of the year.

[narrows101]

That "spoiler" thing is all over the net. Who knows what the real story is, and isn't that what test audiences are for? It's not the first movie that's happened to.

The movie has just been given a rating of PG-13:

Running Time of 157 minutes.

"Austraila" is rated PG-13:Parents Strongly Cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Contains scenes of war violence,disturbing images,nudity,and language.

Hugh and Nicole were on Oprah today and Oprah called Hugh's performance "breakthrough" and she and the audience couldn't stop gushing about the movie since they saw it.

[danoyse]

I'm not reading spoilers. :cmad:

Loved the Oprah interviews today. The movie looks amazing.

[Octoberist]

If it's true about the happy ending, then it show that Fox indeed is out of touch

[The Dark Defender]

My friend told me about this about a month ago when I knew virtually nothing about it, I love Kidman and this is directed by the same guy that did my favorite film of hers, and the more footage I see the more excited I'm getting about it.
It looks very epic, should be the best work her or Jackman have ever done.

[DBZ2cool]

If it's true about the happy ending, then it show that Fox indeed is out of touch

Don't blame fox here. Fox actually didn't pressure the director at all. They just told him that they were getting a lot of complains about the ending. Baz Luhrmann is a final cut director i.e. he has the final say on the cut of the movie. So it was his choice to change it or not to change it. He decided to change it. Fox didn't make him change it purposely.

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/brand-new-poster-for-australia-and-a-note-on-the-ending-controversy/

[narrows101]

Baz was honored at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in NYC Monday (hosted by Hugh) and had this to say (Hugh was on Good Morning America this morning and he and Nicole are on tomorrow):

http://news.stv.tv/entertainment/39246-baz-luhrmann-up-against-it-to-finish-australia/

Baz Luhrmann "up against it" to finish "Australia"

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oscar-nominated director Baz Luhrmann's $130-million (84 million pounds) epic film "Australia" is due to make its world premiere in Sydney on Tuesday -- but the director says he has not finished it yet.


Luhrmann, who was honoured at The Museum of Modern Art's Film Benefit in New York on Monday, is flying back to Sydney with a day to spare to complete the film he has spent four years working on.

"I'm going back to the mixing desk to finish it in 24 hours," the Australian director told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday just before he left for the airport.

"It's right on the edge, we're right up against it. I literally have to on Friday night push that button," he said. "This is really dangerous, I hope there's no problem with the plane going back."

Luhrmann said a rough cut of the film, starring Australian actors Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, had so far only been shown to U.S. talk show host Oprah Winfrey and her audience, and "Good Morning America" host Diane Sawyer.

Kidman and Jackman appeared on an episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on Monday that was dedicated to the film and Winfrey praised the film, saying: "I have not been this excited about a movie since I don't know when."

"Our hearts are all swelling because, my God, it's just the film we needed to see," she told Luhrmann, who appeared on the show via the Internet.

"Australia" is Luhrmann's fourth film. "Strictly Ballroom" (1992), "Romeo + Juliet" (1996) and "Moulin Rouge!" (2001), which was nominated for a best picture Academy Award, have earned $390 million worldwide.

The film tells the tale of an English aristocrat, played by Kidman, who inherits a sprawling Outback property and falls in love with a rugged "drover" or cowboy, played by Jackman.

They join forces to drive 1,500 head of cattle hundreds of miles across stunning yet brutal landscape in a bid to save her property and find themselves caught in the Japanese wartime bombing of Australia's tropical northern city of Darwin.

Luhrmann scoffed at recent media reports that Twentieth Century Fox, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., had forced him to change the ending of the movie so Jackman's character didn't die because audiences didn't like it.

"You really think that on my films people tell me what to do? I don't think so," he said. "On my films I decide."

"I wrote six endings and I shot three," said Luhrmann, adding
that he decided not to use the ending where Jackman's character dies.

"There is a death at the end of this film, but it's a surprise how that works."


"Australia" opens in the United States and Australia on November 26 and in Britain on December 26

[danoyse]

As long as they don't cut out that shower scene, I'm happy...

From GMA this morning:
http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=6228333

[narrows101]

The official website is live - fabulous stills and even some background speaking and clips if you click on the right little circles (I've found 17 clips so far).

www.australiamovie.com (http://www.australiamovie.com)

[wellsy]

Baz kills off deathly rumours about Hugh
Claims that the final scenes of Australia were re-shot to spare Hugh Jackman's character from a tragic death have been vigorously denied by the film's director, Baz Luhrmann.

"Are you kidding?" said Luhrmann when asked to comment on rumours that 20th Century Fox had forced him to change the ending. "It's really simple: on a Baz Luhrmann film, I decide."

The director said a story suggesting that he had been instructed to resurrect Jackman's character, The Drover, after the studio backing the film was spooked by negative test screenings was "naive" and " profoundly misinformed".

"You're talking about a studio [20th Century Fox] that has the highest-grossing film of all time [in which] the guy dies at the end," he said. "It's called Titanic.

"Do you think they came to me and said 'whatever you do, please don't have an ending like Titanic? That'll never make any money? To be honest, it's rubbish."

Luhrmann was speaking from New York where he attended a tribute dinner in his honour at the Museum of Modern Art. He flies to Sydney today where he will spend about seven hours in a mixing suite completing Australia.

The film will have its world premiere in Sydney on November 18 and goes on general release on November 26.

Luhrmann said he shot three endings, screening two of them for test audiences - one happy, the other featuring The Drover's tragic death. While both recorded almost identical test results, he had already decided on a third ending three months ago.

"There was always a struggle within me," he said. "There's the way Titanic ends and there's the way Gone With The Wind ends.

"It's neither of those. It's an ending specific to this moment and it's what I want the film to give out and what I need in my own life. It's what I want to feel. On that level, it's completely personal."

Luhrmann said he also dictated the length of the film, which he estimates at about 2½ hours.

"I think the credits run for an hour and 20 minutes," he joked. "That's because everyone in Australia is in the movie."

Luhrmann conceded the budget had run significantly above $US100 million ($148 million), but had been cushioned by the federal government's 40 per cent rebate on film production. "It's been an epic experience and life-changing and very, very testing." he said.



http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/film/baz-kills-off-deathly-rumours-about-hugh/2008/11/12/1226318740844.html

[narrows101]

Go Hugh! People's Sexiest Man Alive:

http://www.people.com/people/package/article/0,,20237714_20241213,00.html

"Australia" premiered in Australia Tuesday and is generally getting pretty good reviews (which are all over the net).

Hugh is on Jay Leno Thursday night and you can bet he's going to give him grief for this SMA thing.

[matrix_ghost]

Hmph. Why am i not surprised :

http://www.imdb.com/news/ns0000003/#ni0609628
Australia Not So Awesome, Say Critics
19 November 2008 1:31 AM, PST


Baz Luhrmann's 165-minute epic Australia has received mixed reviews following its premiere in Sydney. The notoriously tough Australian critics agreed that the cinematography was magnificent -- and ought to entice tourists to the country -- and that the performances by Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman were outstanding. The Sydney Daily Telegraph's critic observed that Luhrmann "treats the Australian outback as if it were a monumental theater. It doesn't let him down." But critic David Stratton wrote in The Australian that it was "not the masterpiece we hoped it might be." (The Australian, like 20th Century Fox, which produced the movie, is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.) In Melbourne's The Age, Jim Schembri wrote that it was "fine and never boring, but, boy, is it overlong. ... The film often has the pace of a steamroller with engine trouble." It is due to open in the U.S. on November 26.

[narrows101]

So far it's 86% on Rotten Tomatoes. I've read sooo many positive reviews and only a very few negative ones. And this Schembri guy I've read never had a good thing to say about any movie - and he actually asked Nicole a very rude question IMO at the press conference.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/australia/

[DBZ2cool]

You know if this movie turns out bad then I won't blame fox because as far as I know they gave Baz Luhrmann all the freedom he wanted to make this movie. They might have given him some suggestions but he does whatever he pleases to do.

[jmc]

So far it's 86% on Rotten Tomatoes. I've read sooo many positive reviews and only a very few negative ones. And this Schembri guy I've read never had a good thing to say about any movie - and he actually asked Nicole a very rude question IMO at the press conference.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/australia/

Positive reviews, but not glowing.

[danoyse]

Who cares? It's only 8 reviews so far, but they're mostly positive. That's a good thing.

[Octoberist]

but I've heard, for one reason or another, that the CGI sucks in this movie. When CGI sucks in a realistic period piece, they stick out like a sore thumb.

[jmc]

Who cares? It's only 8 reviews so far, but they're mostly positive. That's a good thing.

Not if Fox was hoping for an Oscar.

[matrix_ghost]

but I've heard, for one reason or another, that the CGI sucks in this movie. When CGI sucks in a realistic period piece, they stick out like a sore thumb.

Is this also in the recent reviews :huh:
I can't be bothered to read all the current reviews but i do know that AICN had a early report of a rought cut that was screened. IN that rough cut they were mentioning the CG cattle and how it was incomplete

Edit :
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/37283
And not to be *****y (as I said some of the effects were not done yet), but there is a stampede scene in the middle of the cattle drive that was SOOOOO unfinished it was laughable, in fact I heard some chuckles rising up around me. But whatever, I would have been pissed if it weren't free.

[matrix_ghost]

Oh man i laughed out so hard when i read this quote of Garth Franklin's review :

Armed with a thicker than usual accent and Jackman's natural charisma, Baz isn't afraid to play up the actor's roguish charm or physical beefcake - notably displayed in a truly gratuitous bathing scene that plays out like an ad for a gay men's body wash.

[danoyse]

Not if Fox was hoping for an Oscar.

I'm just hoping for a good movie.

[narrows101]

Hugh interview - he talks about both Australia and Wolverine.

http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5804&Itemid=99

Also, he was on Leno last night - here's the episode:

http://www.nbc.com/The_Tonight_Show_with_Jay_Leno/video/episodes/#vid=846507

[xwolverine2]

but I've heard, for one reason or another, that the CGI sucks in this movie. When CGI sucks in a realistic period piece, they stick out like a sore thumb.

thats a shame...

from the trailers the cgi and cinematography looks gorgeous.

[narrows101]

Oh man i laughed out so hard when i read this quote of Garth Franklin's review :
Which is exactly the scene the women in Oprah's audience went ga-ga over!

[That-Guy]

Ouch... even the POSITIVE reviews seem to be taking shots at this movie.

Still, a bunch of critics ripped apart Quantum of Solace, and I loved that film.

[Octoberist]

Quantum of Solace though, as much as you enjoyed it, is also divided with the fans/movie goers too.

But I'm sure that Molin Rouge got the samething.. The 'hate it or love it' thing.

[I SEE SPIDEY]

This movie looks eh to me and I don't think that it's making back that 130mil budget. But oh boy is Hugh hot. Too bad Kidman face looks like crap now.

[Octoberist]

yeah, Nicole is looking weird.

That's why we have Naomi Watts (who has always been hotter IMO)

[I SEE SPIDEY]

yeah, Nicole is looking weird.

That's why we have Naomi Watts (who has always been hotter IMO)ha ha, agreed.

[That-Guy]

Actually, I think Nicole has held up very well over the years.

As for QoS, yeah, the fans seem to love or hate it. One of my best friends thought the story was terrible, and she and I usually see eye-to-eye on superhero/action movies. But then I dragged my pretentious, I-only-see-arthouse-films-where-people-stare-at-each-other-and-look-sad ex-girlfriend to see QoS and she loved it. So go figure.

[TNC9852002]

I can already tell why the audiences are gonna be divided on this one.

The movie is 165 minutes! Not counting previews!

-TNC

[That-Guy]

You're probably right. That's something that I'll never understand. If a movie is really good, it could be 6 hours for all I care. People b**ch when a movie is too long because they're used to the 87 minute schlock that Hollywood has been crapping out for years.

[danoyse]

You're probably right. That's something that I'll never understand. If a movie is really good, it could be 6 hours for all I care. People b**ch when a movie is too long because they're used to the 87 minute schlock that Hollywood has been crapping out for years.

Agreed. I'm hoping to see Australia tomorrow...and if it's good, I'm sure I won't mind the running time at all.

Besides, I never complain when I get to see Hugh Jackman for nearly 3 hours.

[GhostPoet]

I'll rent it. I'm sure it's awesome...but I don't feel like being depressed at the movies. =P