This week Neil Calloway looks at the possibility of owning shares in Hollywood stars… Have you heard of Fantex? Unless you’re a fan of American Football or the financial markets, or both, the chances are you haven’t. That may be about to change, however. Fantex was set up about a year ago, enabling people to […]
The Callow Way – On Politicians and Films
With less than two weeks before the UK General Election, Neil Calloway looks at the connections between politicians and the film industry… They say politics is show business for ugly people, but some people have crossed the line between the two, with varying degrees of success over the years. Whoever wins the UK General Election, […]
The Callow Way – The Death Of The Mid Budget Film
This week, Neil Calloway looks at the recent collapse of two films, and the wider implications for Hollywood… Imagine if you’d secured Bruce Willis, or Robert De Niro and Robert Pattinson to star in your film, sorted out financing and actually started shooting; you’d be pretty happy. You wouldn’t be guaranteed a hit – in […]
When a Flop Film Isn’t a Flop Film
This week, Neil Calloway looks at how public perceptions can affect how a movie is thought of… Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past ten days, you’ll know about the fallout from the Fantastic Four movie, which bombed at the box office during its opening weekend, and was on the receiving end […]
The Callow Way – Why Stars Are Worth Their Huge Salaries
This week, Neil Calloway argues that a $25 million salary for a movie might not be as ridiculous as it first seems… This week the latest salaries of Hollywood stars were revealed; the top earner recently was Leonardo DiCaprio, who earned $25 million up front for The Wolf of Wall Street. Your first thought might […]
The Callow Way – Where Are The British Comic Book Movies?
This week Neil Calloway wonders why Britain doesn’t make films based on comics… As someone who usually bemoans the apparent abundance of sequels and comic book adaptations, I was disappointed to hear Alex Garland’s announcement this week that there would not be a sequel to the 2012 film Dredd. Not just because I liked the […]
Why Banning and Cutting Films is a Mistake
This week, Neil Calloway argues that far from increasing revenues in conservative countries, by allowing censored versions of their movies to be shown, Hollywood will ultimately lose out… This week brought the news that transgender period drama The Danish Girl has been banned in Qatar. I doubt Working Title will be too upset that their […]
The Callow Way – Why We Need Product Placement
This week Neil Calloway looks at the benefits of brands appearing in films… I thought the peak of award season was always the Oscars, and I imagine you did too. Turns out I’m wrong; there is also the Brandcameo Product Placement Awards. Given out yearly, the awards “honour” films for their use of brands, and […]
The Callow Way – Why Jack Black Was Right…
This week Neil Calloway unexpectedly finds himself in agreement with the guy from Tenacious D… It pains me to say it, but Jack Black had a point. During his interjection into the opening song of last week’s Oscars, Black jokingly bemoaned the current state of cinema, complaining about sequels, prequels and comic book movies. It’s […]
The Callow Way – Why Awards Season Doesn’t Matter
Neil Calloway says that whoever wins this award season, it might not make a difference to their career… The Directors Guild of America Awards and the BAFTAs were last weekend, the Oscars are next weekend, we are right in the middle of award season. I hope you’re keeping your best dress or tuxedo clean. Whether […]
