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The Official 2010 SXSW Line-Up Has Been Unleashed

By Dustin Rowles | Posted Under Trade News | Comments (11)

macgruber.jpg

It’s been the kind of post-Oscar, glacially slow news day that made something like the potential of a MacGyver vs. MacGruber lawsuit a top story on the movie blogs today. Lee Zlotoff, who created the TV series “MacGyver,” is contemplating a suit to enjoin MacGruber from theaters, arguing that fair use laws don’t extend to a full-length movie. He may actually have a point, and in presenting an argument for damages, he could rightly argue that MacGruber would damage the reputation of his franchise, since Zlotoff actually has his eye set on making a big-screen version of MacGyver.

Still, it’ll all probably disappear in a few weeks — an undisclosed sum, a non-disclosure agreement, and it’ll all go away, I imagine. And MacGruber will open in theaters on April 23rd, as planned.

However, assuming that things don’t work out for Lorne Michaels and Co., and the lawsuit moves ahead, preventing the wide release of MacGruber, many of you still have an opportunity to see a movie the rest of the world may not ever be able to see. That’s because, strangely, it’ll be premiering at SXSW this March. The festival has released the full slate of movies playing at this year’s festival, and — as always — it’s a fairly eclectic and exciting bunch. That one week in Austin will be the only time you could watch MacGruber, Kick-Ass and Harmony Korine’s Trash Humpers in the span of a few days or even hours.

A few of us will also be in attendance this year, bringing you reviews and news from the festival. You can check out the website for a full list of the movies playing this year (as well as information on how to attend), but here are a few of the highlights (or at least the films I’m most looking forward to, in addition to Kick-Ass).

  • Cyrus: The Duplass Brothers family comedy featuring John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill, and Marisa Tomei — we showed you the trailer a couple of weeks ago, and the movie got a lot of positive coverage at Sundance.

  • Get Low: Bill Murray and Robert Duvall star in a film about a “mysterious, 1930s Tennessee hermit who plans his own rollicking funeral party… while still alive.”

  • The Runaways: The biopic about the influential girl punk band; also the movie that flagrantly sexualizes the hell out of a 16-year-old Dakota Fanning.

  • Barry Munday: With Patrick Wilson, Judy Greer, Chloë Sevigny, about a man who wakes up after an attack and realizes he’s missing his family jewels and learns that he’s facing a paternity suit by a woman he doesn’t remember having sex with.

  • Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee: It stars Paddy Considine, and that’s all I or anyone else needs to know.

  • Leaves of Grass: Tim Blake Nelson’s writing and directing project about twin brothers (both played by Ed Norton). The trailer looks pretty great.

  • The People vs. George Lucas: Describes itself as a “no-holds-barred cultural examination of the conflicted dynamic between George Lucas and his fans over the past three decades.”

  • Saturday Night: James Franco’s doc about the behind-the-scenes of putting together an episode of “SNL.”

  • And Everything Is Going Fine: Steven Soderbergh’s documentary about Spalding Gray.

  • Tucker & Dale vs. Evil: A parody horror flick that suggests that rednecks are just misunderstood goofs who, through accident, sociological misunderstanding, and circumstance, lead a group of dimwitted college kids to think they’re hideous killers.

    There are also docs on The White Stripes, Motorhead’s Lemmy, and even comedian Bill Hicks, as well as a Michel Gondry film about his own aunt and her relationship with her son. It’s a pretty solid line-up, to say the least. Plus, it’s Austin, which really is one of the greatest cities in the United States. Their burritos are the size of a goddamn baby. And tastier!









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    Comments

    Maybe there's a perfectly logical reason here that I'm missing, not being involved much in the movie industry, but it seems more than a little convenient to me when people wait to sue until AFTER the movie's done and set to be released. Surely Zlotoff had 8 million chances to sue at the time of the announcement, in pre-production, during production...? What, other than the greed of wanting a nice fat settlement and/or the pettiness of wanting the opposition to waste a ton of money, made him wait until the movie was all done and ready to screen?

    Like I said, maybe I'm just missing something about the industry there, but eh.

    Posted by: Nat Kittyface at February 4, 2010 1:32 AM

    • I must say how excited i am! no so much for macgruber, but for the thought of a chance at debatchury with pajibittes in my own town! I must confess, i think i moved to austin with just this in mind... ohh and all of the delicious tacos!

    Posted by: Betty at February 4, 2010 1:32 AM

    MacGyver movie starring RDA! I don't care who I have to kill to make this happen!

    Posted by: Chugga at February 4, 2010 5:25 AM

    MacGuyver was a joke while it was on television, Lorne Michaels is simply taking the franchise to it's logical conclusion.

    Posted by: admin at February 4, 2010 9:46 AM

    Thanks to you Dustin, I've now seen Paddy Considine break-dancing on YouTube (as Le Donk) and thus my faith in the world's capacity to be awesome endures.

    Posted by: Brittany at February 4, 2010 10:08 AM

    Hey, MacGuyver rules and you know it, admin! Can YOU make a blow torch out of a rusty bicycle and fertilizer? Or a nuclear weapon out of an ice cream cone, pantyhose and lighter fluid? A little respect, please.

    Posted by: TWoP_Fan at February 4, 2010 11:08 AM

    Some good points TWoP_Fan, but I bet MacGuyver couldn't make a vibrating sex toy out of some moose antler, two rocks and some cat gut, so my criticism stands. I think about practicality when creating my gadgets.

    Posted by: admin at February 4, 2010 11:32 AM

    Nat Kittyface,

    I think the reason is a legal one, which means it's kind of an oxymoron if you're looking for perfectly logical. It makes sense in a legal context, otherwise no.

    If the McGuyver folks sent a demand letter pre-production, MacGruber probably wouldn't get the greenlight, there would be no damages to claim. If they sent the demand letter during production, MacGruber could tweak and fine tune and do everything they could to strengthen the argument that it's a fair use and limit the exposure (and limit the possibility of MacGuyver getting damages).

    If MacGuyver waited until after the release, it would for all practical purposes be too late for an injunction, taking away a lot of the leverage of the lawsuit.

    Bringing the claim now means they can threaten to block distribution and (kind of) legitimately claim that it's the first time they're really certain the MacGruber movie is going ahead and is likely to infringe their trade-marks, or trade on their goodwill or whatever other claims they want to make. MacGruber also has incurred the costs, so has the maximum incentive to settle and just get the movie out. In other words, in response to your analysis, yes it's the perfect time to maximize the value of the settlement.

    I guess that might mean that some people in the television industry are in fact greedy whores. I think I'm starting to lose my faith in TV.

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