• Throwing a wrench into the WGA talks that neither side really needed, SAG has started talking shit about the recently-cemented DGA/AMPTP deal. SAG’s Alan Rosenberg wrote a letter to his guild warning them that the publicized details of the DGA pact were too vague to put much faith in, and that the pact may not actually be a victory on the digital download front. The DGA’s Michael Apted responded (and I’m paraphrasing), “If you don’t know the details, how come you’re sending letters, gettin’ all up our shit?”
• Variety has scant new details on Mark Romanek’s exit from Universal’s Wolfman remake: in this case, “creative differences” seem to translate to “money.”
• Oliver Stone’s not just talking about making a George Bush movie––he’s now found someone to fully finance the thing, so that it can be fast tracked into production by April, and possibly in theaters in time for the November election. Chris previously did a double take on this project here.

• Michael Apted, who was recently hired to direct one of two upcoming Narnia films, has been elected to a third term as president of the Director’s Guild of America. If Apted should become unable to perform his duties, DGA VP Steven Soderbergh will have to step off the remake train and step up.
• Richard “Shaft” Roundtree will join Christina Ricci, Emile Hirsch and Susan Sarandon (!) in the Wachowski Brothers’ Speed Racer adaptation.
• Via Brian Lowry’s review of License to Wed, we learn that Robin Williams is still annoying, Mandy Moore is still pretty enough to escape real criticism, and Variety readers still need to be reminded why John Krasinski looks so familiar: “Unleashing Robin Williams in the least flattering possible manner, License to Wed squanders the modest chemistry between its appealing central couple — Mandy Moore and The Office’s John Krasinski — uniting its elements in an astonishingly flat romantic comedy, filled with perplexing choices.”

More on these films on Spout:

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Speed Racer
License to Wed

***Music video icon Mark Romanek (see his infamous clip for Fiona Apple’s “Criminal” above) is set to direct Ben Stiller in a comedy called In Deep. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Dreamworks is resurrecting the project, which crashed and burned in the late 80s (!) when the prodution company behind it went bankrupt. Steve Conrad has been hired to do a “Page One rewrite/reconceive” on the ancient script, which has something to do with unpaid parking tickets.

***In another high-profile partnership, Frank Miller is turning Raymond Chandler’s noir Trouble is My Business into a star vehicle for Clive Owen. Miller and Owen are apparently BFF since Sin City, and with Trouble Miller will be taking cues from that project, shaping the script around narration to be delivered by Owen.

***Michael Apted, the mastermind behind the 7 Up documentary series, will direct the next Narnia pic.

***The Los Angeles Film Festival will screen a program of celebrity-directed shorts this Sunday to celebrate Live Earth Day, including clips helmed by Casey Affleck and Madonna.

Just when I thought I had a grasp of what kind of movies are sure to get a sequel or two, and which ones won’t, all my assumptions are being turned upside down. Spider Man? Sure. Pirates? Of course. But a sequel to An Inconvenient Truth? And one for Hal Hartly’s Henry Fool (which, incidentally is one of my favorite films)? Go figure.

Yes, it appears to be true. We’re going to be treated to a sequel of an informative (if slightly slow) documentary about global warming, and another for a high quality film with very little action and rather unpleasant characters. For An Inconvenient Truth Part 2 (I know, it gets your heart beating faster, doesn’t it?), director Davis Guggenheim is scheduled to meet with Paramount next week, so it’s too soon for details. (Will the original film’s star, Al Gore, agree to a sequel? The suspense…)

For the Henry Fool sequel, Hartly made Fay Grim, which picks up seven years later and focuses on the Parker Posey character by the same name. Somehow, Hartly manages to take a movie based entirely in a Queens neighborhood, and move its sequel to Paris, where the CIA also plays a role. Not your typical sequel (but I can’t wait to see it–check out the trailer at Spout).

So do these new developments tell us anything about the future of the sequel? Probably not. Some of the best documentary sequels (although most people don’t call them that) have been around for a while–director Michael Apted’s Up Series (28 Up, 35 Up, etc.), which he began filming in 1963. (Apted began chronicling the lives of 14 seven year olds that year, following up with “sequels” every seven years after.) It’s a brilliant series, but it hasn’t shifted the way most studios think about doing sequels. Neither did Smoke or its sequel (of sorts) Blue in the Face, another example of an atypical movie sequel set. No, it seems the decision to make your average sequel is generally all about what made a lot of money the first time around and might have enough buzz surrounding it to sustain another go. Wouldn’t it be great if the decision to create a sequel was based on the story, and whether it was worthy of another go?

Politics & Period Flicks: Kristin interviews Michael Apted, his new film Amazing Grace opens tonight. Kevin and Paul discuss Cint Eastwood’s Oscar nominated Letters from Iwo Jima. Dodd Alley (moviedodd from spout.com) reviews the movie Smokin’ Aces.

Download FilmCouch #4 or subscribe to it in the iTunes store (search for “filmcouch” or click here to launch iTunes) and a new free episode will download every Friday.

So we went a little nuts at the Denver Film Festival–just shy of 50 podcasts went up on SpoutBlog and the Denver sitelet. But unless you’re really bored this Thanksgiving weekend, we realize you won’t have time to sit down and listen to them one by one. We thought we would help out by highlighting a handful of our favorites. Like all greatest hits albums, it’s not going to provide the full experience, but it at least gives you a good sense for what was going on in Denver. Listen in…

- Academy Award-winning director Anthony Minghella talking about his newest film, Breaking and Entering.

- Angie Avarez discussing her mockumentary about high school teachers, Chalk.

- Brothers and ultimate collaborators Aaron and Adam Nee talking about their film The Last Romantic.

- Filmmaker David Gow and the two impressive male leads in Steel Toes.

- Sister team Amy and Andrea Doe talking about making Saucy Flyer UFO P.I..

- Filmmaker Matthew Porterfield discussing being a kindergarten teacher and how he made his documentary Hamilton.

- Samira Goetschel and her controversial film Our Own Private Bin Laden.

- The November 15 Roundtable Recap with Bill, Kevin and Dave, talking about nine or so films they had just watched.

- The unexpected interview with Will Ferrell and his wife Viveca Paulin, focusing on Paulin’s work on the film Nail Polish.

- Richard Berge and his documentary The Rape of Europa, which explores the plunder of Europe’s art treasures during WWII.

- Our first conversation with Canadian cinema verite treasure Allan King.

- One amazing question and one amazing answer from Tim Robbins.

- The November 17 Roundtable Recap with Dave, Paul, Kristin and Kevin, who shares a great story about the Tim Robbins event.

- Another great director with an impressive list of films, Michael Apted, discussing the inspirational aspects of his new historical film Amazing Grace.

Friday night at the Starz Denver Film Festival. Kristin talked with Michael Apted about his film, Amazing Grace. Paul saw two docs, The Trials of Darryl Hunt and Allan Rich’s Memory…. Dave saw Heath Ledger’s new film, Candy. And Kevin saw We Like to Drink, We Like to Play Rock and Roll preceded by the short film, Moosecock.

Starz Denver Film Festival, spout.com podcast

I went to Friday evening’s Red Carpet event to talk to British director Michael Apted about his new film, the historical drama Amazing Grace. Although Apted’s name might not be familiar to everyone, many of his films are, including Coal Miner’s Daughter, Nell, Gorillas in the Mist, and Blink.

His newest film, which was screened at the festival last night, tells the true story of one man’s long, hard efforts to abolish slavery and the slave trade in late 1700s Britain. Before the film, Apted talked to me about what drew him to this story, the important ways the film speaks to world issues today, and how The Up Seriesis especially close to his heart.

Starz Denver Film Festival, spout.com podcast