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Carolco
Carolco Pictures, Inc. was an American independent film studio that existed from 1976 to 1995, founded by Mario Kassar and Andrew G. Vajna. Kassar and Vajna ran Carolco together until 1989, when Vajna left to form Cinergi Pictures. Carolco hit its peak in the 1980s and early 1990s, with blockbuster successes including the first three films of the ''Rambo'' franchise, '' Total Recall'', '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', ''Basic Instinct'', '' Universal Soldier'', ''Cliffhanger'' and '' Stargate''. Nevertheless, the company was losing money overall and required a corporate restructuring in 1992. The 1995 film ''Cutthroat Island'', intended to be a comeback for the studio, instead lost $147 million and brought the company to an end. History Early years The company was founded through the partnership of two film investors, Mario Kassar and Andrew Vajna. The two were hailed by ''Newsweek'' as some of the most successful independent producers. By the age of 25, Vajna went from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Total Recall (1990 Film)
''Total Recall'' is a 1990 American science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven, with a screenplay by Ronald Shusett, Dan O'Bannon, and Gary Goldman. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Ronny Cox, and Michael Ironside. Based on the 1966 short story "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale" by Philip K. Dick, ''Total Recall'' tells the story of Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger), a construction worker who receives an implanted memory of a fantastical adventure on Mars. He subsequently finds his adventure occurring in reality as agents of a shadow organization try to prevent him from recovering memories of his past as a Martian secret agent aiming to stop the tyrannical regime of Martian dictator Vilos Cohaagen (Cox). Shusett bought the rights to Dick's short story in 1974 and developed a script with O'Bannon. Although considered promising, the ambitious scope kept the project in development hell at multiple studios over sixteen years, seei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mario Kassar
Mario F. Kassar ( ar, ماريو قصار; born October 10, 1951) is a Lebanese film producer and industry executive who produced the first three films of the ''Rambo'' series, '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', '' Total Recall'', ''The Doors, Angel Heart'', ''Jacob's Ladder, Rambling Rose, Basic Instinct, Universal Soldier, Chaplin, Showgirls,'' and ''Stargate,'' among other films. He founded the now-defunct Carolco Pictures with Andrew G. Vajna. Early life Kassar was born on October 10, 1951, in Beirut, Lebanon. Like him, his father was also an independent movie producer. Kassar is of Lebanese and Italian descent. At the age of 15, Kassar had purchased several Italian and French films for distribution in the Far East. Carolco Pictures 1970s and Vajna Kassar met Andrew G. Vajna at the 1975 Cannes Film Festival. A year later, Kassar and Vajna founded Carolco Pictures. "Carolco" was a name they had taken from a long-defunct company based in Panama. "We just bought the n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cliffhanger (film)
''Cliffhanger'' is a 1993 American action thriller film directed and co-produced by Renny Harlin and co-written by and starring Sylvester Stallone alongside John Lithgow, Michael Rooker and Janine Turner. Based on a concept by climber John Long, the film follows Gabe (Stallone), a mountain climber who becomes embroiled in a heist of a U.S. Treasury plane flying through the Rocky Mountains. The film premiered at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival, and was released in the United States on May 28, 1993, by TriStar Pictures. It earned $255 million worldwide. Plot Rangers Gabriel "Gabe" Walker and Jessie Deighan are dispatched to rescue their friend Hal Tucker and his girlfriend, Sarah, after Hal suffered a knee injury and stranded them on a peak in the Colorado Rockies. As they try to rescue Sarah, part of her harness breaks. Although Gabe is initially able to grab her, her gloved hand slips out and she falls to her death. Hal blames Gabe for Sarah's death and Gabe is overcome wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cutthroat Island
''Cutthroat Island'' is a 1995 adventure swashbuckler film directed by Renny Harlin and written by Robert King and Marc Norman from a story by Michael Frost Beckner, James Gorman, Bruce A. Evans and Raynold Gideon. It stars Geena Davis, Matthew Modine and Frank Langella. It is a co-production between the United States, France, Germany and Italy. It had a notoriously troubled and chaotic production involving multiple rewrites and recasts. It received generally negative reviews from critics, who praised its high production values, action sequences, shooting locations and musical score, but criticized its script, acting, and unrealistic stunts. It was one of the biggest box office bombs in history, with losses of $147 million when adjusted for inflation. It is listed in the Guinness World Records as the biggest box-office bomb of all time, and significantly reduced the bankability and Hollywood production of Pirate film#Films, pirate-themed films until 2003's ''Pirates of the Cari ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cinergi Pictures
Cinergi Pictures Inc. was an American independent film production company founded by Andrew G. Vajna in 1989, after he had sold his interest in his first production company, Carolco Pictures, Carolco International Pictures. The company had a number of major hit films, most notably ''Tombstone (film), Tombstone'', ''Die Hard with a Vengeance'' and ''Evita (1996 film), Evita''. However, the majority of their films lost money. A string of Box-office bomb, box office bombs – including ''Renaissance Man (film), Renaissance Man'', ''Color of Night'', ''Judge Dredd (film), Judge Dredd'', ''The Scarlet Letter (1995 film), The Scarlet Letter'', ''Nixon (film), Nixon'', ''Shadow Conspiracy'', ''Deep Rising'' and ''An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn'' – ultimately did the company in, and it was dissolved on February 27, 1998. Cinergi Pictures' library is now owned by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Disney. Pre-founding Andrew G. Vajna, a Hungarian native, launched his car ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Basic Instinct
''Basic Instinct'' is a 1992 neo-noir erotic thriller film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas. The film follows San Francisco police detective Nick Curran (Michael Douglas), who is investigating the brutal murder of a wealthy rock star. During the investigation, Curran becomes involved in a torrid and intense relationship with the prime suspect, Catherine Tramell (Sharon Stone), an enigmatic writer. Eszterhas developed the script in the 1980s. It became a subject of a bidding war until Carolco Pictures acquired the rights to the film. From there, Verhoeven signed on to direct and Douglas and Stone joined the project, after many actresses were considered for the role of Tramell. Before its release, ''Basic Instinct'' generated controversy due to its overt sexuality and violence, including a rape scene. Gay rights activists criticized the film's depiction of homosexual relationships and the portrayal of a bisexual woman as a murderous psychopath. Most infamou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
First Blood
''First Blood'' (also known as ''Rambo: First Blood'') is a 1982 American action film directed by Ted Kotcheff, and co-written by Sylvester Stallone, who also stars as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo. It co-stars Richard Crenna as Rambo's mentor Sam Trautman and Brian Dennehy as Sheriff Will Teasle. It is the first installment in the ''Rambo'' franchise, followed by '' Rambo: First Blood Part II''. The film is based on the 1972 novel '' First Blood'' by David Morrell, which many directors and studios had unsuccessfully attempted to adapt in the 1970s. In the film, Rambo is a troubled and misunderstood Vietnam veteran who must rely on his combat and survival skills when a series of brutal events results in him having to survive a massive manhunt by police and government troops near the fictional small town of Hope, Washington. ''First Blood'' was released in the United States on October 22, 1982. Initial reviews were mixed, but the film was a box office success, grossing $156 mi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
StudioCanal
StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., Canal+ Production, and Canal+ Image and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film production and distribution company that owns the third-largest film library in the world. The company is a unit of the Canal+ Group, owned by Vivendi. Background The company was founded in 1988 by Pierre Lescure as a spin-off of the Canal+ pay-TV network. The original function was to focus on French and European productions, but later made strategic deals with American production companies, such as Carolco Pictures. StudioCanal's most notable productions from its early years include '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', '' JFK'', ''Basic Instinct'', ''Cliffhanger'', '' Under Siege'', ''Free Willy'', and the original ''Stargate'' movie. In those days, it was known as either Le Studio Canal+ or simply Canal+. Other films the company financed include '' U-571'', ''Bully'', and '' Bridget ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Universal Soldier (1992 Film)
''Universal Soldier'' is a 1992 American military science-fiction action film directed by Roland Emmerich, produced by Allen Shapiro, Craig Baumgarten, and Joel B. Michaels, and written by Richard Rothstein (screenwriter), Richard Rothstein, Christopher Leitch, and Dean Devlin. The film tells the story of Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme), a former U.S. Army soldier who was killed in the Vietnam War in 1969, and returned to life following a secret military project called the "Universal Soldier" program. However, he finds out about his past, though his memory was erased, and escapes alongside a young TV journalist (Ally Walker). Along the way, they have to deal with the return of his archenemy, Sgt. Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren), who had lost his sanity in the Vietnam War, and became a psychotic megalomaniac, intent on killing him and leading the Universal Soldiers. ''Universal Soldier'' was released by TriStar Pictures on July 10, 1992. The film has a 35% approval rating on Rott ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daniel Melnick
Daniel Melnick (April 21, 1932 – October 13, 2009) was an American film producer and movie studio executive who started working in Hollywood as a teenager in television and then became the producer of such films as ''All That Jazz (film), All That Jazz'', ''Altered States'' and ''Straw Dogs (1971 film), Straw Dogs''. Melnick's films won more than 20 Academy Awards out of some 80 nominations. Early life and education Melnick was born on April 21, 1932, in New York City, the son of Celia and Benjamin Melnick, Jewish immigrants from Russia. His father was killed in a car crash when Melnick was a child. His mother remarried. Melnick attended the High School of Performing Arts. After high school, Melnick attended New York University.Martin, Douglas"Daniel Melnick, Hollywood Producer, Dies at 77" ''The New York Times'', October 16, 2009. He served in the United States Army during the 1950s, where he produced entertainment for troops while stationed at New Jersey's Fort Dix and in Ok ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rambo (franchise)
''Rambo'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of action films featuring John J. Rambo. The five films are '' First Blood'' (1982), '' Rambo: First Blood Part II'' (1985), ''Rambo III'' (1988), ''Rambo'' (2008), and '' Rambo: Last Blood'' (2019). Rambo is a United States Army Special Forces veteran played by Sylvester Stallone, whose Vietnam War experience traumatized him but also gave him superior military skills, which he has used to fight corrupt police officers, enemy troops and drug cartels. ''First Blood'' is an adaptation of the 1972 novel '' First Blood'' by David Morrell. The film series has grossed $819 million in total, $300 million of which is from the most successful film, ''Rambo: First Blood Part II''. Stallone co-wrote the screenplays of all five films, and directed ''Rambo''. The franchise also spawned an animated television series, '' Rambo: The Force of Freedom'', and comic books, novels, video games, and a Bollywood remake. Films ''First Bl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stargate (film)
''Stargate'' is a 1994 Science fiction film, science fiction adventure film directed and co-written by Roland Emmerich. The film is the first entry in the Stargate, ''Stargate'' media franchise and stars Kurt Russell, James Spader, Jaye Davidson, Alexis Cruz, Mili Avital, and Viveca Lindfors. The plot centers on the premise of a "Stargate (device), Stargate", an ancient ring-shaped device that creates a wormhole, enabling travel to a similar device elsewhere in the universe. The film's central plot explores the theory of Extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial beings Ancient astronauts, having an influence upon human civilization. Originally theatrically released on October 28, 1994, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), the film received mixed reviews, with its atmosphere, story, characters, and graphic content both praised and criticized. The film grossed $196.6 million worldwide against a production budget of $55 million. Plot In 1928 in Giza, Egypt, Catherine Langford's fathe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
