Over the past few months, at least two Hollywood professionals who work with underage actors have faced charges involving sexual offenses against children. The incidents have prompted a bill that would require all adults who work with kids in the entertainment industry to submit to a background check, reports the LA Times, and would prevent registered sex offenders from working with kids. more ›

Is it too late for public apologies? It seems fugitive director Roman Polanski doesn't think so, as a new documentary film about his life and work includes his offering of apology to Samantha Greimer, the woman he was convicted of sexually assaulting 33 years ago. more ›

Yesterday's announcement of the Academy Awards nominees leave you scratching your head? Laemmle's got your back. From heavy hitters like Black Swan & True Grit to lower-profile offerings like Ozarks noir Winter's Bone & Aussie crime drama Animal Kingdom, pretty much everything that wasn't already playing there is coming back this week. Blockbusters Inception & Toy Story 3 are notable exceptions, but there are redboxes on every corner & sales in every big box for those. more ›

Kick-Ass didn't do nearly as well as I hoped and expected. Still, it's a hell of a lot of fun and Chloe Moretz found the role she was born to play (albeit at an incredibly young age which probably spells disaster for her career). To all the Nic Cage haters out there, I point you to the wonderful character that is Big Daddy! ... more ›

Swiss authorities today announced that director Roman Polanski will not be extradited to Los Angeles to face charges for having sex with a 13-year-old girl and will no long be under house arrest, according to the New York Times. more ›

Bear witness to loads of laughs as the cult of comedy continues at Cinefamily! Friday, celebrate 40 years of National Lampoon (the National Lampoon of Harvard days, NOT the National Lampoon of Dorm Daze) with side-splitting satires Lemmings... more ›

Roman Polanski must physically be in Los Angeles when he gets sentenced for 1977 incident of having sex with a 13-year-old girl. The director was hoping to be sentenced in absentia while in Switzerland, where he is currently under house arrest, but an appeals court yesterday ruled against that. A Swiss judge said he wouldn't force Polanski to the U.S. until a court ruled. Now that it has, Polanski may finally set foot in California after leaving for France in 1978. more ›

Shutter Island destroyed all comers this weekend, bringing in a huge $40.2M to easily win the box office crown. The debut was a personal best for both Martin Scorcese and Leo Di Caprio...which is kind of tragic actually. Last week's champ, Valentine's Day collapsed in its second frame (yay!), but still brought in a shameful $17.1M ($87.4M) while Avatar doesn't appear to be going anywhere anytime soon ($16.1M | $687.8 Fucking Million Dollars!). Percy Jackson & The Olympians: World's Longest Title ($15.3M | $58.7M) did much better in its second weekend than the unterrible The Wolfman ($9.8M | $50.3M). more ›

I love Martin Scorcese, but frankly I'm just ready for him to collaborate with an actor other than Leo. Their latest joint effort is Shutter Island which, by all impressions, is a meticulously crafted mind-fuck. Will I see it? Yes. Will I love it? That would surprise me. What I could love, though, is Ghost Writer. Edited from his chalet prison in Switzerland, it's Polanski's latest film. Considering how much I've been watching Chinatown in the last year (at least ten times in its entirety), I'm very much in the mood for new Roman. Reviews have been pretty solid, so I'm excited. Trust me on this one -- most of you will resist seeing The 2010 Oscar Nominated Short Films. Trust me on this one, too -- everyone who does will love them. Can we put a stop to Brian Greenberg? I'm just not getting the appeal, folks. The Good Guy is his latest. Alexis Bledel and Trini Alvarado are great, though so maybe it's worth a look. Nah! more ›

Despite a U.S. judge's ruling that director Roman Polanski cannot be sentenced in absentia, his extradition from Switzerland could take up to a year, reports the LA Times: "After an extradition decision by the Swiss justice ministry, Mr. Polanski has the possibility of appealing to the Federal Criminal Court and then the Federal Supreme Court," a Swiss justice ministry official said. "It's hard to say how long [an appeal] would take, but it could be from several months to a year." Polanski was found guilty of having sex with a 13-year-old girl. more ›

"I choose to insist on the integrity of the judicial system that he appear. The motion is denied," ruled L.A. Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza today in court about a request to sentence director Roman Polanski in absentia. A lawyer for Polanski said Espinoza's ruling was media influced. "Why should he show up? For what -- a show? ... The case gets down to one question: Should a promise of a judicial officer of this court be honored?" asked Chad Hummel. more ›

Director Roman Polanski remains under house arrest in a Swiss town, having already pledged to fight his extradition to the United States to face sentencing in a 32-year-old case. Today, however, lawyers are scheduled to meet here in Los Angeles to continue discussing what "future legal moves that could resolve the marathon prosecution," according to the Daily News. This type of meeting is called a "status conference" and will be heard by Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza. more ›

Roman Polanski's bid to have his case thrown out was rejected today by panel of judges in the Court of Appeal 2nd District. Polanski's lawyers said the case should to be dropped due to prosecutorial and judicial misconduct. "We conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in applying the fugitive disentitlement doctrine and refusing to consider dismissing the action," Justice Laurie D. Zelon wrote. The director currently awaits extradition, which will likely happen next year, in a Swiss chalet. more ›

Here in Los Angeles, the County DA's office has long-hoped to bring director Roman Polanski back to face the sentencing he evaded by fleeing the country back in 1978, however the Swiss government indicated today that they "won't begin the extradition process [...] until sometime next year," reports LA Now. more ›

Director Roman Polanski is now confined to a chalet in a Swiss resort town, having posted the $4.5 million bail to release him from prison, but the next steps in his criminal case remain undetermined. Yesterday in Los Angeles the wish to have the original charges against him of sexual misconduct dropped was discussed in court, as the lawyer representing his victim, Samantha Geimer, presented arguments in favor of dropping the 32-year-old case, according to an AP report published on CBS2.com. more ›

Director Roman Polanski is expected to be released on bail from a Swiss prison, and will be living in an Alpine chalet equipped with extensive security mechanisms, reports LA Now. The 76-year-old French citizen has been held in Switzerland since his arrest in late September on a warrant from Los Angeles associated with a 1977 rape case. more ›

E-mails obtained by the LA Times indicate that director Roman Polanski is likely to be extradited to the U.S. to face sentencing in his thirty-year-old child sex case. “While the Swiss officials cannot speak for the judge, the extradition will likely be ordered based upon the facts submitted in our papers,” read an e-mail between two employees in the district attorney's office from two weeks ago. That package may have also included information about judicial misconduct, as alleged by Polanski ad his lawyers and requested by Swiss officials. more ›

It's easy to write off Warning!!! Pedophile Released sight unseen as cheap exploitation. Besides all those exclamation marks in the title, there's the convenient release on the heels of Roman Polansky's high-profile arrest for child-rape, an appearance by porn star Joanna Angel & a lead actor coming off of Silent Night, Zombie Night and (ahem) Vaginal Holocaust. Never mind the accompanying Dakota Fanning vehicle Father Xmas (at one point rumored to be Fanning's own child-rape film Hounddog). But the film's trailer tells a different story, of disturbed teens, real tragedy & raw emotion that's more Larry Clark than Larry Cohen. Make up your own mind, and then fawn or fight with the cast and crew at the evening showings. more ›

Director Roman Polanski may be sitting in a Zurich jail cell facing extradition to the United States, but that's not stopping him from finishing his film, The Ghost. He is giving instructions so that the film will be finished by February when it will premiere at the Berlin Film Festival. more ›

Yesterday, Swiss officials refused to grant a bail request for the release of notorious film director Roman Polanski, who has been detained there since late last month following his arrest in Zurich on a thirty-year-old warrant from Los Angeles County. Feeling the flee-friendly and famed French citizen was a flight-risk, the Swiss are not bowing to pressure from members of foreign governments or cinema power-players to let the septuagenarian go. more ›

A wise man was once misquoted: "Beer is proof that God loves us". May I further bastardize: "And so are horror movies!" It's no coincidence both are celebrated in October, the most wonderful month of the year. Par ejemplo: long-awaited horror anthology Trick 'r Treat. Scheduled for release years ago, the film was instead shelved in a nasty trick, despite a bankable cast (headlined by the fang-banging, award-winning Anna Paquin & all-around-awesome character actors Dylan Baker & Brian Cox) and unanimous acclaim from the few who have seen it. Which is why it's such a treat that there are two screenings this week before its descent into direct-to-DVD hell. The Cinefamily has Trick 'r Treat's writer-director Michael Dougherty as special guest on Friday, while the New Bev unearths Stephen King's Creepshow on Sunday. Be scared or be square! more ›

Director Roman Polanski remains confined in a Swiss prison following his arrest this weekend while traveling to Zurich to receive a prestigious award for his film career. The 76-year-old Polish-born French citizen has been in exile in Europe since fleeing Los Angeles following his conviction in the rape case that found him guilty of engaging in sex with a 13-year-old girl. more ›

Tonight and tomorrow mark the 40th anniversary of two nights of murders in Los Angeles that forever changed the cultural landscape. Instructed by the head of their "family" one young man and three young women crept onto the property of a home atop Cielo Drive, and ruthlessly initiated a bloodbath that cost the lives of all who were present: Sharon Tate, Abigal Folger, Wojciech Frykowski, Jay Sebring, and Steven Parent. The following night a similar group replayed a similar scene, this time on Waverly Frive in Los Feliz, taking the life of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca. more ›

Like many aspiring tranny space aliens, I worked Rocky Horror shows in college, and through many, many weeks of rehearsals have probably seen the show a dozen times. That being said, even though there are two shows every weekend down here, I've yet to see it in L.A. Now might be a good time to check out Midnight Insanity's show at the Warner Grand Theatre. Yes, it's all the way out in San Pedro, but it's cast-member Bill's 20th year with the show, which means lingerie night and the ghosts of Janets past (one of whom, Danielle, is tapped to be Fangoria's next Spooksmodel)! Once/if you wake up on Sunday, the party continues at Rockystock in Huntington Central Park, wedged between the public library & the bathrooms. Oh, Brad! more ›

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Considering the downward-trending turbulence of our current economic environment, now might not be the best time to release a movie that so glories in conspicuous consumption like Confessions of a Shopaholic. Then again, it has the winsome Isla Fisher so it might be worth a look. Clive Owen rules. Naomi Watts sort of rules. Considering that, why can't I get excited about The International. It just feels so...generic. Oh, great. Another classic horror film is getting raped, er, re-packaged, er, re-made for today's audiences. The new Friday the 13th "film" better have copious amounts of gore and pointless nudity. And when are they re-doing Leprechaun? more ›

There's something incredible at the corner of Olympic and La Cienega. Something shocking. And inspiring. Everything in this town traces back to the cinematic, and yet truly independent film promotion is rare (mini-majors like Fox Searchlight don't count). Which is why I'm entranced with Polanski, opening this Valentine's weekend at Laemmle's Sunset 5. Taking its cue from The Room, the brazen billboard sports writer/producer/director/actor Damian Chapa (of Street Fighter & Under Siege fame) gazing deep into the viewer's soul as he forces himself onto a little girl. It's doubtful the production will help the tragic auteur's legal situation (there's a reason this gift is wrapped with "Unauthorized"), it should make for quite the Valentine. Go with someone you love. more ›

The Oscar winning director fled to France, who does not extradite anyone for any reason, 30 years ago after admittedly having sex with a 13-year-old at Jack Nicholson's house. So he chose: jail for France? But now he wants to be back stateside as a free man, the LA Times finds: "Lawyers for Polanski, a French citizen, cited misconduct by prosecutors and a judge in papers filed in L.A. County Superior Court today. The attorneys said that a recent HBO documentary about the case, 'Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired,' 'revealed a pattern of misconduct and improper communications between the Superior Court and the district attorney’s office in violation of the rule of law and without the knowledge' of the director and his defense." more ›

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