Zane
Right after Titanic came out I remember reading a great story about Billy Zane which I'm really hoping is true.

Dan, I think every catholic school kid in these islands who caught ITV's fairly regular broadcasts of those movies reacted similarly. I remember my classmates annoying the bejaysus out of the priests in my Catholic boys school with endless questions.

Oh, it's all about that evil Satanic nexus where forced anal penetration, fox-hunting, and TV journalism intersect.

Added Hilarity for UK Viewers
I'll always have a soft spot for the first Omen film and part two might have been tolerable if itsoriginal director Miek Hodges hadn't been kicked off the project mid-shoot but FInal Conflict is indeed abominable. Still, there's extra hilarity for viewers in Blighty.

Actually if memory serves correctly creator John Sullivan was pretty heavily involved in the US version of Dear John as well. My recollections aren't perfect but I remember it being surprisingly good. Judd Hirsch did seem authentically unhappy.

In Defence of Kingdom Hospital…please don't kill me.
Actually, though it is full of annoying Kingisms and pinches most of its better moments from Lars, Kingdom Hospital is not without its charms.

Was a throw-away gag in Little Britain - that character who's always pitching hilariously inappropriate products was pitching it so Theatre Impresario .

Amen
"The Wrong Kid Died!" I mean it'd be impossible to meet Jim and not scream those words at him…

Nope, no Stars and Stripes flapping in the breeze. Which is probably just as well, it would only have gotten covered in the viscera and brain matter of evil-doers…..

Greatest Exploitation movie of the decade…
My other half and I caught a matinee showing of this with the express intention of mocking it. Yet somehow its combination of bone-headed simplicity and jaw-droppingly insane violence won us over.

Amen to that. He hits some really nice emotional beats, especially when showing how the Grey Ghost more or less killed his career…. It's a sterling piece of work.

The Big Silence
Well no discussion of snowbound cinema is complete without mention of Sergio Corbucci's splendidly bleak spaghetti western The Big Silence.

Hey Now!
Yeah, but Elvis really needs is Jeffrey Tambor in Hank Kingsley mode to act as a sounding board and whipping boy.

There's a quasi-legal German release. Can't vouch for the quality but it's available on Amazon.de and seems to be in the correct aspect ration and with English language options. And only about 20. Yay!

Screen Test
There's a wee clip up on You Tube about Screen Test. Not overly comprehensive but it does focus on one of the more notable young film-makers featured, Pixar's Jan Pinkava

And it's not Rambo: First Blood Part II…
Scot's in error here I'm afraid. They're inspired by the original First Blood rather than its sequel. Though the latter would make more sense given some of the odd anachronisms on display….

UK Perspective
One aspect of this movie which I think is certainly going to be lost on American critics is our heroes' desire to enter their film into the "Screen Test" film competition.

On a quasi-related note has anyone seen that LA Confidential TV pilot with Keifer Sutherland? I suspect long form is probably the single best way of adapting Ellroy.

Of course ironically Mars Attacks was a project Cox was attached to way back Tri-Star Columbia had the rights. Ah, man that would have been something…