Brehany writes: For those of you that are a die-hard fan of the original Kong like I am, at spiderwebart.com, you can buy copies of Byron Crabbe's and Mario Larrinaga's production art from 1932! But if you plan on buying them, you better have some spare money reaching from $200.00-$800.00! [More]

Buena Vista Home Entertainment`s 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' easily topped the national DVD sales chart for the week ended April 9, while the previous week`s top seller, Universal Studios` 'King Kong,' remained perched in the No. 1 slot on the video rental chart for the second consecutive week. With first-day sales pegged at 4 million units, 'Narnia' didn`t have much competition for First Alert dominance. 'Brokeback Mountain,' another Universal title, finished a distant second its first week in stores, barely outselling third-ranked 'Kong,' which was still in high demand during its sophomore week out. Universal said 'Brokeback Mountain' sold 1.4 million DVDs its first day in stores. [More]

As long as he makes movies about giant monkeys or larger-than-life Mexican wrestlers, Jack Black knows that he can find ways to make people see them. Things have been more complicated for "60 Spins Around the Sun," a documentary Black produced more than five years ago. "The market is a little flooded now," Black admits. "There are so many great documentaries out there and with reality TV taking off so strong, it's kind of doubled that phenomenon of the documentary fever. But if it's something you believe in, you just keep on plugging away and looking for different ways to show your work." [More]

Cliff Baldridge writes: I have recently interviewed Naomi Watts. She is a real inspiration for all her hard work to get to be so accomplished in the industry. I have live online A Short Film I created of the interview I did for her during her Santa Barbara International Film festival Montecito Award Red Carpet. Can you please tell all your reader to please watch the video and then, I have other videos listed under more from this provider. I am soon going to make a long film of the awards ceremony evening and tribute to Naomi Watts with a special message from Peter Jackson. I am also going to release soon the 2004 party from SBIFF for Peter Jackson. [More]

Actor Andy Serkis was languishing in showbiz obscurity until he landed the role of Gollum in Lord of the Rings. He provided the character's voice and movements but only briefly appeared on screen himself. He repeated his CGI antics as the great big monkey in King Kong, out on DVD now. [More]

Earlier this morning I was allowed access to the coolest place on earth, WETA Workshop. Located in a non-descript area of Wellington near the airport, this small groupings of offices and warehouses has produced some of the best practical and special effects seen in this century (and the last one too). Not only that, but it is also a digial studio, miniatures unit, production facility and more. If you've seen, held, or heard anything from Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Narnia and a few other films in the last few years, chances are it was made here. [More]

Celebriel attended Ray Harryhausen’s sold-out presentation, book signing, and screening of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad Saturday night at the Rafael Film Center in San Rafael, CA. Harryhausen, an energetic, youthful and still traveling 85, was joined onstage by producer Arnold Kunert and “younger generation” special effects masters Phil Tippett (founder of Tippett Studio) and Craig Barron (founder of Matte World Digital). Both Tippett and Barron have special effects credits longer than several arms, having started “a long time ago” in the galaxy of Industrial Light & Magic. Sinbad is the film that inspired Tippett to enter the industry. [More]

Director PETER JACKSON is outraged NAOMI WATTS failed to bag an Oscar nomination for her performance in his KING KONG remake, because she had to work alongside an invisible co-star. Watts only had the giant ape in her imagination when she played heroine ANN DARROW, while the Academy Awards nominees for last month's (MAR06) ceremony - REESE WITHERSPOON, KEIRA KNIGHTLEY, CHARLIZE THERON, FELICITY HUFFMAN and DAME JUDI DENCH - acted in less challenging scenarios. [More]

Ernest Schoedsack's extraordinary life was the stuff movies are made of. He found success by combining his love of adventure with his talent for nontraditional filmmaking. With his longtime collaborator and friend, Merian Cooper, Schoedsack put the original "King Kong" on movie screens in 1933 to instant acclaim. Today, the movie is considered a classic, ranked by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 best movies ever made. [More]

Director Peter Jackson almost made blockbuster remake King Kong a comedy - but studio bosses snubbed the idea and shelved the project. The movie, which finally got made last year after nine years gathering dust, was originally planned to be more farcical than frightening. However, Jackson insists he's glad he was forced to re-work his ideas, because a funny giant ape movie may not have been so successful. Jackson says, "Our 1996 draft was written as a very Hollywoody sort of tongue-in-cheek adventure story, full of gags and one-liners. [More]

When King Kong comes out on DVD this week, two of its top stars will be at the front of the queue. Gorgeous Aussie Naomi Watts and Oscar-winning Adrien Brody are hanging out for the chance to finally see its special features. Watts starred as Ann Darrow in the Peter Jackson epic, in his follow-up to The Lord of the Rings trilogy. And New Zealander Jackson has proved himself a master of the DVD format as well as the big screen, coming up with longer versions of the theatrical releases. [More]

Hollywood director and Kiwi multi-millionaire Peter Jackson is adding another flourish to his Wairarapa mansion - his own railway track. The region's most famous local bought the $5 million, 30ha property with his partner, Fran Walsh, seven years ago and has been transforming it into a fairytale property, with castle-like buildings and ornamental lake. Train enthusiast Ian Welch, of Mainline Steam Trust, told the Sunday Star-Times Jackson had bought a replica of a 1900s steam train from Canada. Welch supported Jackson's venture and the train was "beautiful... a gorgeous replica of an early period of steam. It's very American, like a cowboy train". [More]