- Title: USA: STEVEN SPIELBERG'S NEW FILM, "AMISTAD", HAS ITS AMERICAN PREMIERE
- Date: 15th November 1997
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (DECEMBER 8, 1997) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF PREMIERE THEATER/ DIRECTOR STEVEN SPIELBERG WITH PHOTOGRAPHERS STEVEN SPIELBERG, SAYING "REALLY IT'S IMPORTANT FOR AUDIENCES TO KNOW A LOT MORE ABOUT HISTORY THAN WE SORT OF EVER GIVE THEM CREDIT FOR KNOWING OR EVER BOTHER IN HOLLYWOOD TO TELL THEM, PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING AHEAD TO WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO US AND FOR US TOMORROW AND YOU'VE GOT TO LOOK BACK AND APPRECIATE THE PAST TO REALLY BE ABLE TO CAPITALIZE ON THE FUTURE." (ENGLISH) DEBBIE ALLEN SAYING, "IT'S BEEN A 15 YEAR PROCESS FOR ME TRYING TO GET THE MOVIE MADE AND A VERY FRUSTRATING LONG JOURNEY, BUT I THINK THE TIME IS RIGHT NOW AS MUCH AS I WANTED TO DO IT BEFORE, THIS IS THE RIGHT TIME, RIGHT NOW." (ENGLISH) MORGAN FREEMAN POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS MORGAN FREEMAN SAYING (OF THE FILM'S PARALLELS WITH "SCHINDLER'S LIST"), " PARALLELS? UH, YOU CAN MAKE PARALLELS, YEAH, I MEAN, YOU COULD PUSH IT TOWARDS THAT BUT IT'S A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SUBJECT, DIFFERENT ALTOGETHER HISTORICAL EVENT SO MAKING PARALLELS IS MERELY THE FACT THAT STEVEN SPIELBERG IS DOING IT." (ENGLISH) MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY AND DJIMON HOUNSOU ON ARRIVAL LINE DJIMON HOUNSOU SAYING, "IT'S IMPORTANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE, YOU KNOW, WHO YOUR ANCESTORS WERE, YOU KNOW, IT'S IMPORTANT AND IT'S IMPORTANT FOR AFRICAN-AMERICANS TO, YOU KNOW, SOME OF US IN AMERICA TO MAYBE UNDERSTAND WHERE WE CAME FROM OR TO KNOW WHERE WE CAME FROM." (ENGLISH)
- Embargoed: 30th November 1997 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK AND LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES/ FILM LOCATIONS
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA5Q5CFRUW2LJEHIT5J30WKP1IT
- Story Text: - Despite a plagiarism lawsuit, Steven Spielberg's historical epic "Amistad" has opened on limited release in the U.S. following its world premiere in Los Angeles.
Spielberg, his screenwriter David Franzoni and film producer Debbie Allen won a court ruling on the morning of the premiere (December 8) allowing the release to go ahead.
The court battle began when author Barbara Chase-Riboud alleged the story was stolen from her 1989 novel, "Echo of Lions." Despite the ruling allowing the film's release, the 10 million U.S. dollar copyright infringement lawsuit will continue in the courts.
Chase-Riboud will now have to wait for her case to go to trial sometime in mid-1998.
"Amistad" is based on a real-life event in 1839 when a group of Africans held captive in the cramped cargo holds of a Spanish slave ship "La Amistad" broke free of their shackles.
Led by Cinque, played by newcomer Djimon Hounsou, they arm themselves, take control of the ship and reclaim their freedom.
But rather than returning to Africa, they're tricked by the ship's crew and are captured by an American naval ship off the coast of Long Island. They are taken into custody and charged with murder and piracy.
At first, the Africans are championed by abolitionists Theodore Joadson, played by Morgan Freeman, and Lewis Tappan, played by Stellan Skarsgard. They're soon joined in their court battle by a young real estate attorney named Roger Baldwin, played by Matthew McConaughey.
However, as the case becomes the symbol of a nation divided, two great Americans lock horns in the debate.
Pro-slavery President Martin Van Buren, played by Nigel Hawthorne, wants to return the Africans to Spain, but he's opposed by former President John Quincy Adams, played by Anthony Hopkins.
Adams comes out of retirement to fight the Africans' case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.
The film's producer Debbie Allen is best known for her role in "Fame," and for choreographing dance numbers at the Academy Awards for the past five years. She discovered the story of Amistad - a long-buried piece of American history -in 1984, and has fought for the past 13 years to bring it to the big screen.
Allen said she found little support when approaching people with her film idea. "Resistance? It was like, 'Honey, bring us another dance movie child.' You know, people know a certain side of Debbie Allen...but there's a part of me that's very well developed.
Literacy has always been a very important part of my life," she said.
Her project gained ground when Steven Spielberg displayed an interest. He originally planned to film "Amistad" in 1998, but scheduling conflicts forced him to bring production forward.
Spielberg said knowledge of history was an important feature of human life. "You've got to look back and appreciate the past to really be able to capitalize on the future," he said.
Spielberg's work this past year parallels his big year of 1993, when his back-to-back films "Jurassic Park" and "Schindler's List" won box office records and a handful of Oscars. This year, "The Lost World" topped box offices in May, and now "Amistad" is positioned for Oscar consideration.
Actor Morgan Freeman said Spielberg was very involved in the movie's content during its making. "He feels like all of us feel," he said.
The film's main role goes to newcomer Djimon Hounsou, a West African Benin native who moved to Paris when he was 13 years old in order to get a better education. When he was 22, he was discovered by fashion designer Thierry Mughler.
Hounsou was subsequently spotted by director David Fincher who cast him in three music videos with Steve Winwood, Madonna, and Paula Abdul. He came to Los Angeles in 1990 and had small roles in the thriller "Unlawful Entry" and the science fiction hit "StarGate." Hounsou said the most difficult part of filming was aboard the slave ship where you could really get into the atmosphere. "One can only imagine how it felt then. This is probably the closest I ever want to get to being a slave," he said. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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