Vive Le Spielberg!
Call it a close encounter of the French kind.
Steven Spielberg was feted with France’s highest award on Sunday when President Jacque Chirac named the Oscar-winning filmmaker a knight in the French Legion of Honor.
"In this difficult time when intolerance, racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism and fanaticism are on the rise again, it is essential that cinema, which touches each one of us deep inside, recalls the horror of what is unutterable," Chirac said at a ceremony in the presidential Elysee Palace.
The French leader went on to praise Spielberg’s Holocaust drama Schindler’s List for its message of hope and humanity.
"It is essential that this form of eminently popular expression and creativity reminds everyone of the disastrous effects of hatred, intolerance and rejection of others."
Spielberg, 57, used his acceptance speech to extol France for combating anti-Semitism.
"We have to work very, very hard to make people understand that we have to celebrate people’s differences and not condemn them," the Jewish director said. "Sometimes the minorities have the most to contribute to a society."
Spielberg also fondly recalled legendary French auteur Francois Truffaut, who starred in Spielberg’s 1977 sci-fi classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind and died 20 years ago.
On hand to witness the occasion was family friend Gwyneth Paltrow, as well as French film stars Sophie Marceau, Nathalie Baye and Patrick Bruel.
The Legion of Honor was established by Napoleon Bonaparte to honor military, cultural, social and scientific contributions to France, including those by non-citizens. There are five levels, with knight being the tops. Former MPAA honch Jack Valenti was named a commander of the Legion of Honor, the third-highest rank, on Monday.
This is the latest prestigious prize for Spielberg. Three years ago, the man behind such memorable films as E.T., the Indiana Jones trilogy, Jurassic Park, and Jaws was granted an honorary knighthood, one of Britain’s highest honors, for his contributions to cinema and society.
A day before receiving the French accolade, Spielberg traveled to Deauville, where he joined pal Tom Hanks to attend the French premiere of their latest flick, The Terminal, at the town’s American Film Festival, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.
Once he gets back to the States, Spielberg’s due to start filming a big-budget remake of H.G. Wells The War of the Worlds starring Tom Cruise. That film is set to hit theaters next summer.
Trivia: Dan Aykroyd and the Temple of Doom
When I was re-watching the Indiana Jones trilogy in preparation of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, I discovered something I never noticed before - Dan Aykroyd.
That’s right, the SNL star turned Ghostbuster has a very small cameo in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Unlike Raiders and Last Crusade, I had only seen the film once or twice since I was a kid, which might explain how I passed him by. The 18-second cameo is easy to miss and comes just after the conclusion of the car chase with Lao Che’s men in the film’s opening sequence. Aykroyd plays a character named “Weber”, who sports a mustache and an even worse fake British accent. He explains to Indy that he’s arranged for last minute transportation just before Jones, Short Round and Willie board the plane. Turns out that Aykroyd was friends with Spielberg, going back to working on 1941.
Even harder to spot is the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameos of George Lucas, Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy, and Steven Spielberg as a group of missionaries in the background of the same airport scene.
The newspaper clipping below shows the group in costume wearing long black cassocks and tropical helmets.
New Indiana Jones Trilogy DVDs
Paramount Home Entertainment have announced they will be releasing new Special Edition DVDs for the Indiana Jones Trilogy on May 13th, to coincide with Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’s release. Most of you, like me, probably already own the Indiana Jones box set which was released a few years back. The new set features a bunch of new extra features, none of which I’m hugely excited about. Still missing are commentary tracks from Lucas/Spielberg (can we expect that be in the fourth release on the trilogy on Blu-ray or is it just never going to happen?) or the incredibly fun Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation (a seven year shot for shot remake recreated by a group of kids). Here are the details on the rerelease:
Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark Special Edition DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround, French 2.0 Surround and Spanish 2.0 Surround and English, French and Spanish subtitles. The disc includes the following special features:
– Raiders of the Lost Ark: An Introduction by Steven Spielberg & George Lucas
– Indiana Jones: An Appreciation–The cast and crew of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull pay tribute to the original trilogy.
– The Melting Face–A recreation of the amazing physical effect of the villain’s melting face in Raiders of the Lost Ark, including Steven Spielberg and George Lucas commenting on the evolution of visual effects and CGI.
– Storyboard Sequence–The Well of Souls
– Galleries
– Illustrations & Props
– Production Photographs & Portraits
– Effects/ILM
– Marketing
– Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures Game Demo and Trailer
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom Special Edition DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround, French 2.0 Surround and Spanish 2.0 Surround and English, French and Spanish subtitles. The disc includes the following special features:
– Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: An Introduction by Steven Spielberg & George Lucas
– Creepy Crawlies–Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and Frank Marshall reminisce about snakes, bugs and rats.
– Locations–Travel across the world to discover where the films take place and where they were shot.
– Storyboard Sequence–The Mine Cart Chase
– Galleries
– Illustrations & Props
– Production Photographs & Portraits
– Effects/ILM
– Marketing
– Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures Game Demo and Trailer
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Special Edition DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround, French 2.0 Surround and Spanish 2.0 Surround and English, French and Spanish subtitles. The disc includes the following special features:
– Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: An Introduction by Steven Spielberg & George Lucas
– The Women: The American Film Institute Tribute–The three Indiana Jones women (Karen Allen, Kate Capshaw and Alison Doody) reunite for a discussion.
– Friends and Enemies–Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and Indiana Jones writers discuss how they created the most iconic characters in film history, including a look at new faces in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
– Storyboard Sequence–The Opening Sequence
– Galleries
– Illustrations & Props — Production Photographs & Portraits — Effects/ILM — Marketing — Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures Game Demo and Trailer
Retro Movie Trailers: The Indiana Jones Trilogy
With the release of the Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull movie trailer, I thought a look back at the original films is in order. So below you will find the trailers that made up the original Indiana Jones trilogy. Step into the Delorean, and take a trip back in time with me…
Raiders of the Lost Ark Teaser Trailer
Raiders of the Lost Ark Movie Trailer
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Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom Movie Trailer
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Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Teaser Trailer
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Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Movie Trailer
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