USA: THE FILM 'COLLATERAL DAMAGE' GETS ITS WORLD PREMIERE AFTER BEING DELAYED BECAUSE OF SIMILARITIES WITH THE TERRORIST ATTACKS OF SEPTEMBER 11TH

Record ID: 392447

  • Title: USA: THE FILM 'COLLATERAL DAMAGE' GETS ITS WORLD PREMIERE AFTER BEING DELAYED BECAUSE OF SIMILARITIES WITH THE TERRORIST ATTACKS OF SEPTEMBER 11TH
  • Date: 4th February 2002
  • Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (FEBRUARY 4, 2002) (REUTERS) (NIGHTSHOTS) GV: MANN VILLAGE MOVIE THEATRE, SITE OF THE FILM'S WORLD PREMIERE LA: COLLATERAL DAMAGE MOVIE POSTER ALONGSIDE THE THEATRE PULL FOCUS: ENTRANCE OF THE MOVIE THEATRE HA: RED CARPET AS CO-STARS AND OTHER SPEAK WITH THE MEDIA VARIOUS ARRIVALS SV: STEVEN REUTHER, PRODUCER OF THE FILM ON RED CARP
  • Embargoed: 19th February 2002 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES AND VARIOUS FILM LOCATIONS
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA5RFEG5KUTXU932IVTHL03ABRL
  • Story Text: "Collateral Damage," the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie famously held back from its autumn release because of its similarity to the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center had its world premiere on Monday (February 04) in Los Angeles.
    Among those who attended was the film's star Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife, NBC television journalist Maria Shriver.
    Schwarzenegger told Reuters that the message remained the same in the wake of September 11th. "It is the same message -- it was a very clear message from the beginning when we got the script - which was collateral damage is horrible. That innocent people die when there are military strikes, when there is war, when there is a strike by terrorists like the September 11th situation."
    Only days before the attacks on New York and Washington, posters of an heroic Arnold Schwarzenegger were seen on billboards in major US cities. The posters touted "Collateral Damage," and the tag line was, "What would you do if you lost everything?" To drive home the point that this was a story straight from the news, a faint impression of newspaper articles could be seen in the background, proclaiming such headlines as "Veteran Firefighter Wife and Child Killed in Bomb Blast."
    On September 11th, as the twin towers collapsed from attack, that headline hit too close to home.
    In the wake of Sept. 11, major studios immediately postponed a number of high-profile films with topics they deemed inappropriate for a stricken nation. Among them were "Big Trouble," a comedy that featured a nuclear bomb on an aeroplane; "Bad Company," a comedy in which Chris Rock is involuntarily enlisted into the CIA; and "Collateral Damage,"
    an action film about a veteran fire fighter whose family is blown up by a Colombian terrorist. In "Collateral Damage," the US government has come to an agreement with the Colombian government designed to end drug trafficking; in order to keep that agreement intact, the government must allow the terrorist bomber to escape capture, even though he's responsible for countless injuries and deaths on US soil. It's up to Schwarzenegger to head south of the border to seek revenge.
    Along the way, he picks up a Colombian woman and son, whom he saves from a bombing in their country. Ultimately, the hunter becomes the hunted, as the terrorist pursues Schwarzenegger back to the US, looking to slay his antagonist and do some more bombing while he's at it.
    The postponement of "Collateral Damage" drew more attention than other terrorist-themed film releases, partly for the title, which refers to the accidental killing of civilians during war. Also, it was a film with Schwarzenegger, who, even though born in Austria, has for almost two decades been seen as an icon of American might.
    With the vanquishing of the Taliban, America has apparently been deemed ready for Arnold Schwarzenegger again.
    "Collateral Damage" is scheduled to premiere open on February 8, and the rest of the postponed films will dribble out over the spring and summer.
    Although not a frame of the film has been changed, the marketing campaign has been tinkered with to present Schwarzenegger in a more familiarly Terminator mode. The tag line now reads: "Nothing is more dangerous than a man with nothing to lose."
    For Schwarzenegger, September 11th might just be the bridge that closes the gulf between the empowerment fantasies perpetuated by Hollywood and the nervous realities of the world from here on in. "I think if someone does a movie about terrorism, I think they will re-think it and make sure to bring as much realistic stuff into the movie rather than making it just entertainment because a movie about terrorism, it's not any more entertainment alone, it is reality. And I think that's one thing I think that this country has come to grips with. Is that it is reality."
    The film also stars Elias Koteas, Francesca Neri and Cliff Curtis, with John Leguizamo and John Turturro.
    "Collateral Damage" is directed by Andrew Davis, whose other credits include "The Fugitive."
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