Pushing Tin


Will Gwyneth's airplane comedy hit turbulence? The ''Shallow Hal''
star's spring movie will test if audiences are prepared for touchy
subject matter by Liane Bonin

http://www.ew.com/ew/report/0,6115,184751~1~~,00.html

When Gwyneth Paltrow signed on to play a sassy flight attendant
whose short skirts and big dreams fuel the humor in ''A View from
the Top'' (opens April 19, 2002), it seemed like an opportunity
for high times. After all, the airborne comedy allowed the Oscar
winner to poke fun at stewardess stereotypes and join the mile-
high club (on screen, at least) with ''West Wing'' star Rob Lowe.

But Paltrow -- who's now playing an overweight Peace Corps
volunteer in ''Shallow Hal'' -- is wondering if her next comedy
may be too flighty in the aftermath of Sept. 11. ''There are
scenes in the movie that address airline safety and stuff like
that,'' she explains. ''I definitely don't think it's the right
time to bring it out.''

Miramax execs are also wondering if ticketbuyers will have a
fear of onscreen flying this spring. ''We're still [editing] it,
but are we going to be sensitive to recent events? Absolutely,''
says Miramax spokesman Dennis Higgins. ''Regretfully the world
changed on Sept. 11, and there's a new sensitivity that people
have.''

So far, audiences seem to be leaving that new sensitivity at
the door of their local cineplex. Though studios rushed to trim
scenes and reschedule films that might remind audiences of the
Sept. 11 attacks, ticketbuyers haven't shied away from violent
or sensitive themes. ''We've been a bit surprised at how well
tougher movies have done,'' Higgins admits. ''Just look at the
two biggest films of the fall,'' adds ReelSource box office
analyst Adam Farasati. ''One's about corrupt cops [''Training
Day'']; the other's about a kidnapping [''Don't Say A Word''].
This has been a bigger deal to the press and the studios than
it's been to the average ticketbuyer.''

The ultimate test of whether or not audiences have completely
recovered from Sept. 11 will come this spring. In addition to
''A View from the Top,'' other movies will hit theaters after
being bumped from the fall schedule because of their subject
matter. Arnold Schwarzenegger's ''Collateral Damage,'' about
a man hunting for the terrorists who killed his family, and
Tim Allen's ''Big Trouble,'' a comedy with an airplane bomb
subplot, seem like tough sells.

But their success, according to ReelSource's Farasati, will
depend on overall quality, not on the sensitivity of the
subject matter. ''Even if they don't perform well, to blame
it on the attacks is just an excuse,'' he says. ''These days,
if my shoelaces become untied, a studio executive would try
to blame it on anthrax.''
(Posted:11/19/01)