Week Ending 9th December, 2001	Page 2 1
The Irresistible Rise Of Naked News	posted 8 Dec 2001
The success of NakedNews.com, the website on which presenters of both sexes read the news in various states of undress, should come as no surprise. After all, it perfectly encapsulates what the web is all about for a lot of people - news and porn... It's already made the transition from web to cable TV in its native Canada, and this week it makes its debut in the US cable market. Hopefully, a version for Australian pay-per-view will follow soon. (As an interesting aside, the only time the presenters opted to read the news fully clothed was when they reported the WTC attack.)
Lord Of The Rings Creates Strange Bedfellows...	posted 8 Dec 2001
The big question for online film buffs this week is: how will the fundamentalist Christian critics take to Lord Of The Rings? Considering their recent savaging of Harry Potter for its satanic occult content, one might expect a similar burning-at-the-stake for the Tolkein epic, but early signs are that the fundies might actually embrace it as the wholesome alternative to the evil boy wizard - primarily because Tolkein was a devout Christian himself... Interestingly enough, the other group who are celebrating LOTR as a boost to their cause is the gay rights lobby - primarily because Ian McKellen (who plays Gandalf) is an open homosexual. (They've even published a "gay" guide to the movie.)
Redneck Vampire	posted 8 Dec 2001
So you thought vampires were all effete gothic types, huh? Well, think again... Micheal Ray Vanmeter may seem like your typical inbred Alabaman good-ole-boy, but in reality he is a 224 year old, bloodsucking member of the legions of the undead! His remarkable life story is documented in Mike W Anderson's Redneck Vampire... Yet another vid for my xmas list!
More Celebrity "Body Parts" Go Under The Hammer	posted 8 Dec 2001
Auction World Dot TV, the UK digital TV channel that recently auctioned off Jack Nicholson's teeth, is at it again... This time, they're giving you the chance to bid for a one centimetre wide kidney stone that Robert De Niro supposedly passed in 1981... Where will it end? How soon before we have auctions of Julia Roberts' used tampons or the ABBA faeces so coveted by Guy Pearce in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert? (Thanks to James for the link)
Boy Wizard No Match For Flatulent White Witch-Doctor	posted 8 Dec 2001
In a way, it's gratifying to see that there is at least one place in the world where Harry Potter's box-office-record-smashing magic is no match for the local cinematic witchcraft... In South Africa, Mr Bones, a locally-produced comedy about a white witch-doctor, has outgrossed the boy wizard's blockbuster. Unlike the kiddie-friendly American import, Mr Bones comes across like a South African version of a Farrelly Bros film, complete with fiery lion-repelling flatulence and jokes about body parts getting stuck in elephants' arses.
Hollywood Is Still A Boys' Club	posted 8 Dec 2001
The Hollywood Reporter recently released its list of the 10 most powerful women in Hollywood and although it does show that women have made it into top executive positions at studios like Paramount and Universal, the sad fact is that these are the exceptions in an industry where the glass ceiling is very rarely shattered. As the Guardian's Duncan Campbell points out, only 17% of producers on top-grossing films and 24% of producers, directors, writers, cinematographers and creators of primetime television shows are women.
Photoshopping : Can't Write? Can't Draw? Doesn't Matter!	posted 8 Dec 2001
From This is London comes this article about photoshopping, a new Web craze in which netizens use Adobe Photoshop to doctor images and create surreal juxtapositions (eg Sesame Street's Bert peeking over Osama Bin Laden's shoulder). Originally borne out of the creative frustration of corporate Web designers, it has emerged as an ideal vehicle for satire in our image-saturated world. And indeed, in the days immediately following S11, it was one of the few areas where people were not afraid to use humour to engage with the horror of that event... And, as Fark.com's Drew Curtis points out, all this from a bunch of people who often can't even write or draw!
Which James Bond Villain Are You Most Like?	posted 5 Dec 2001
Find out with this quiz on the web site of some wag from Sydney University. While we're on the subject, here's a checklist to help you work out if your child is a Bond villain, along with a number you can call to find the nearest clinic or Bond Villain Support Centre.
Jesus The Asylum Seeker	posted 5 Dec 2001
Last week, you may remember that I mentioned the attempt by a group of concerned citizens to get funding to make a TVC about the plight of asylum seekers... Well, the funky folks at the Christian Television Association have beat them to it with an ad featuring footage of burning cars and asylum seekers being hustled on to planes, and the slogans 'Jesus was a refugee' and 'loved by God'... If he was a refugee today, though, God would probably be the only one who did love him. With those temple-wrecking tendencies of his, he'd be labelled a "potential terrorist" by the Ruddocks of this world and sent straight back out to sea.
Blame Canada! (And Australia)	posted 5 Dec 2001
In Hollywood right now, workers in the film industry are on the verge of burning effigies of boxing kangaroos... Why? Because they accuse Australia - along with Canada - of luring big productions offshore with tax breaks and subsidies, and thus jeopardising their jobs... Nice to see that that America's resurgent patriotism hasn't stopped the big studios from turning their backs on American workers. (Thanks To James for the link)
Rated T For Terrorism	posted 5 Dec 2001
This is old news but it's still worth posting... In response to America's 'heightened sensitivity to terrorist themes', Blockbuster have decided to place warning stickers on videos that deal with such themes. The first video to get slapped with one of these labels was Swordfish. (Although, as Anthony points out, "T for Turd" rather than "T for Terrorism" would be a far more appropriate and useful classifiaction for that stinker.) Execs from the studio that produced Swordfish were predictably outraged but really they should be grateful as hirings of films about "T" have skyrocketed since the attack. (Thanks to James for the link and the title.)
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