Number 411 September 10-17, 1983 UK/90p US/$1.50 $120m action alleges Taurus blocked programming deal LONDON'S Contents LETTERS TOP 10 In Confidence, Parker page 4 US NEWS 1 (1) WarCames (U1P) Odeon "Eddie And The Cruisers" Leicester Square £48,906 feature page 6 2 (2) Oclopussy (UIP) Odeon I MGM/UA SUES IN WORLD NEWS Kensington, Odeon 2 Swiss Bergen, Knokke-Heist, Cottage. Odeon 3 Westboume Germany page 8 Grove. Classic I Chelsea, Odeon Australia, Canada, Spain Marble Arch, Empire 2 £40,914 page 9 3 (3) Merry Christmas Mr New Zealand, Argentina Lawrence (Palace) Classic 3 page 10 Haymarket, ABC 2 Shaftesbury GERMAN TV ROW Avenue, ABC 2 Bayswater, ABC 1 PRODUCTION Fulliam Road, Camden Plaza IN AIM EFFORT to protect its establishment of direct access firm is difficult, in this case Taurus "noncompetitive, collusive and Filming in UK page 12 £39,814 to German network Channel 1 in the licensing of its film is said to have assets in the US rigged bids", and of treating "the Features on "Another 4 (—) Twilight Zone (Col-EMI- product, MGM/UA has filed a $120-million antitrust lawsuit which could be tied up if majority of major American film Country", "The Last Days War) Warner West End 2, Classic against Munich-based Taurus Films, Taurus chief executive MGM/UA wins the case. suppliers" in this manner. Of Pompeii" page 13 2 Haymarket, Classic 1 Tottenham Leo Kirsch and Milton (Mickey) Rudin, Taurus' US agent. MGM/UA accuses Taurus of Taurus has acted as the middle- Post-production page 14 Court Road, ABC 1 Shaftesbury The suit charges that the " maintaining a virtual monopoly in man in licensing the product to REVIEWS page 15 Avenue, ABC 1 Bayswater, ABC 1 defendants used their muscle to By BJ Franklin representing US features, TV German TV, and reportedly is near UK NEWS page 16 Edgware Road, ABC 2 Fulham block an almost-completed deal programmes and cartoons for the end of a licensing agreement licensing to German-language TV with MGM/UA which, of course, TV & VIDEO Road, Studio 2 £24,732 between the American major and Taurus and refuse to perform an Cable franchise applications 5 (5) Return Of The Jedi (20th the German Degeto Films, which agreement with the plaintiff. in Europe, and audio-visual usage. Taurus would like to continue. If Taurus, the suit further states, has MGM/UA had been successful in page 17 Fox) Leicester Square Theatre, buys programming for Channel I. MGM/UA said the aborted deal US news page 18 Odeon 3 Kensington, Classic 3 The suit alleges that Taurus, was worth more than the SI20 eliminated price competition and making the direct sale to Degeto, it Chelsea, Studio I £21,465 Kirsch and Rudin are guilty of un- million it is asking in damages and, kept prices at below market value. would have been a breakthrough CABLE & SATELLITE 6 (4) Blue Thunder (Col-EM l-War) reasonable restraint of trade; in addition, the company is asking The 16-page complaint accuses for the American studios toward SUPPLEMENT . page i-viii the defendants of submitting dealing directly with German TV. Warner West End 3, Classic I monopoly, control and fixing for $60 million in punitive BOOKS page 32 Haymarket, Classic 1 Oxford prices; interference with and dis- damages from each of the three Street, Classic 2 Chelsea, Odeon 2 ruption of an economic relation- defendants. (Rudin is an enter- BOX OFFICES Kensington, Odeon I Swiss ship (between MGM/UA and tainment lawyer well-known in NEXT WEEK London page 2 Cottage, Odeon I Westbourne Degeto) and of threatening Degeto the US as Frank Sinatra's attorney UK provincial page 33 Grove £17,826 with various business injuries if and friend.) London Multi-Media US and international. page 34 7 (6) Monty Python's The Meaning Degeto did not enter into anti- Although collecting US court- Market supplement CLASSIFIED ADS . page 35 Of l.ife (UIP) Plaza I, ABC 4 competitive agreements with directed damages from a foreign Fulham Road. ABC 2 Edgware Road £13,724 8(7) Superman III (Col-EM l-War) Warner West End 4, ABC 4 Edgware Road, ABC 5 Fulham Altman 'Streamers' Road £13,131 9(8) Flashdance (UIP) Empire I £12,770 10 (—) Meal And Dust to UA Classics (Curzon/Enterprise) Curzon £10,559 FOR THE newcomer to Venice, that the international industry is Screen International the first 24 hours are disconcert- present. Meetings take place by the • Production arrangements mean ing. pools of the Excelsior or the Des that the London Box Office is Bains Hotels, or in the elegant brought forward to page 2 this By Anne Head beach huts that line the Adriatic week. shore. There is little apparent Carole Myer, in charge of organisation. Poster and foreign sales for the BFl and here Davies for hoardings are absent. All activity with "Ascendancy" (shown in a Dear Bill,, takes place in the lobby of the side-bar information section), Excelsior Hotel. The new director, says, "This festival gives a second Waterloo Gian Luigi Rondi, has won the go for territories that might have WATERLOO Films has started first round of his battle with been missed. It is extremely / always knew production on its first TV feature bureaucracy. This year screenings important in terms of press and art film, "Return To Waterloo", a have, so far, taken place at the film distributors." musical drama featuring eight new time and in the theatre indicated, The same refrain is heard all songs written by Ray Davies of the not the case in previous years. over. Douglas Amaya, in charge of you had something Kinks. It takes time to become aware • Continued on page 2 Currently on location in Wimbledon and Surrey, "Return To Waterloo" is scheduled for a in store. three week shoot. New England shoot Written and directed by Ray Davies, the film stars Kenneth Colley in the title role and is produced by Dennis Woolf. UIP set 'Gate' UIP UK are to release the full- c^iU length version of Michael Cimino's "Heaven's Gate". This follows the highly- successful screening of the film in a sold-out season at the National Film theatre recently. Running at three hours and 40 minutes, it will be shown in Dolby stereo at 70mm JAMES IVORY (left) directs Christopher Reeve in the Merchant Ivory at the Plaza 2 in London, opening production of Henry James's "The Bostonians", which is currently on Sept 15. shooting in New England. The film is written by regular collaborator Deputy md UK Duncan Clark Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and also stars Vanessa Redgrave and newcomer commented, "This engagement is Madeline Potter. Directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail inspired entirely by the good press Merchant, "The Bostonians" marks the second time the team has notices and public reaction at the tackled a Henry James story — the first being their successful "BILL" - BILL INGRAM OF FILMB0ND. SEE SUPPLEMENT STARTING PAGE 19. NFT. We all think it's a terrific adaptation of "The Europeans". MIP's most successful film to date, piece of film-making and we're "Heat And Dust", opens in the US on Sept 14. (Production report on delighted to give it another "The Bostonians" to follow shortly). opportunity." Saturday 10th September 1983 Screen International Page 19 Filmbond provides an answer to industry service headaches JUST AS a super-efficient film The first thing that strikes the servicing done by a completely crew does no! always get the merit casual observer of the Filmbond reliable outside agency, rather than employ full lime staff in-house to ii deserves for behind the scenes set-up is the experience packed into do ihe same job. work, so the service aspects of the the management team. And as they film industry are sometimes arc all anxious to stress, it is "If you take on the full forgotten for the more glamorous experience in the right area. Filmbond service, the most you'll aspects. "The whole point we try to ever need is one person at your Yet as everyone working within emphasise is that the experience we end, simply for liaison. We'll do the industry acknowledges, the have, which goes back over more the rest. We reckon that could be a importance of solid back-up is years than 1 care to talk about," saving of anything up to four or crucial to any successful smiles Ingram, "is all solid film five salaries, and anyway we enterprise. experience. reckon we can do il belter. Filmbond, along with its "Everybody here is a film man affiliates Fleetfilm and PBS through and through. We think Dedicated Services, is in the back-up game thai is unique. Of course there are with a vengeance and, according to a number of other companies who "So you are getting the best the experienced management team offer all the services we do, but service we can offer, and a very that put the whole set-up together, nobody docs them with our back- economical way of doing it. There they are fast becoming the answer ground of experience or with our are many peaks and valleys in to any producer or distributors overall control. servicing and also a limited complete set of service headaches. "There is no aspect of servicing number' of experts around to Filmbond arc now celebrating thai we don't cover. And being employ, whereas we maintain an their second year of successful film people we like to think we organisation dedicated lo service, operation, expanding at a pace understand the needs of film and we take all ihe overheads and which amply backs the judgement people.