Hip Hop Hits the Boston Movie Scene

From Boston based Gone Baby Gone to The Town, hip hop artist Slaine is filming again in the city. Funny, I just watched Gone Baby Gone the other night and was thinking how great the casting was.

Slaine will be playing a bank robber in Ben Affleck’s The Town, a movie based on Chuck Hogan’s novel “Prince of Thieves.

Affleck's 'The Town' begins filming in Charlestown

Ben Affleck has been busy in Boston this summer. After shooting The Company Men in May, he has started production for his next starring role in The Town yesterday. This will also be his second directorial effort after 2007's Gone Baby Gone also filmed all over Boston.

The movie is based on the book Prince of Thieves by fellow Massachusetts native Chuck Hogan about a bunch of regular guys from Charlestown who pull off a successful bank robbery in Kenmore Square.

According to Loaded Gun Boston, they were filming at a triple decker home on the corner of Bunker Hill St. and Mead St. yesterday and today. Plans to continue filming in Charlestown for the rest of the week. Blake Lively who plays Ben's ex-girlfriend in the movie was also on set this week. Affleck's The Company Men costar and Kingston resident, Chris Cooper, is currently in negotiations to play his father in the movie. Rapper Slaine, who played gangster "Bubba Rogowski" in Gone Baby Gone will be playing one of the bank robbers. The cast will be rounded out with Mad Men star Jon Hamm who will be playing an FBI agent investigating the robbery.

If you have any tips about The Town please email me at npistorino@bostonmovietours.net

Press Release: Movie Tour Highlights Boston’s Emerging Hollywood Scene

Movie Tour Highlights Boston’s Emerging Hollywood Scene
Now Open: 21, Gone Baby Gone and The Game Plan Highlight Newly Featured Films

Boston, April 17, 2008 – With numerous movies currently filming in Boston and Boston's 21 leading the box office charts, Boston Movie Tours announces a revamped Movie Tour highlighting Boston's blossoming movie industry.

Boston Movie Tours has updated the experience to give guests the complete lowdown on all things movies and celebrity in Boston. “The amount of recent filming in Boston is unlike anything we have seen in the past. We are excited to bring many of these new movies to life.” says Jeff Coveney, Boston Movie Tours President.

Read the Full Release

Back, Baby, Back!

One movie just wasn't enough. Like Pringles, once you pop, this Boston boy just can't stop.

Boston's own Ben Affleck is back and directing with his Gone Baby Gone partner in crime, Sean Bailey, (who co-produced Gone Baby Gone) to produce The Blade Itself for Miramax. Like Gone Baby Gone, The Blade Itself will be a film adaptation of a novel. Boston Herald reports that Somerville native Aaron Stockard, who co-wrote the Gone Baby Gone script with Ben, will adapt the screenplay. The movie will detailthe story of two Chicago childhood friends who commit petty crimes together before going their separate ways. Years down the road, each of the friends is forced to confront the crimes they committed years ago. Keep an eye out for this one...we are sure Ben and his team will make cinematic magic again!

Kimmel's Retalliation

Not too long ago, Comedy Central's Sarah Silverman created a music video letting her boyfriend, Jimmy Kimmel know that she was *$@&^!%'ing Matt Damon.

Once he got over the bon-bons and cheesy romantic comedy movie phase, Kimmell retalliated with Damon's Boston best bud and Gone Baby Gone director, Ben Affleck. The all-star cast of A-listers he called on to help included Lance Bass, Cameron Diaz, Josh Groban, and Robin Williams, who starred with both Damon and Affleck in the award winning Good Will Hunting.

Here they are, making Boston proud.

Gone Baby Gone is In!

The Golden Globe(R) nominations were announced yesterday and Boston is well represented with at least six nominations depending on how you want to count them.

Gone Baby Gone
Our prediction of Amy Ryan earning a Best Supporting Actress nod was dead on.

In Gone Baby Gone, Ryan's character seems like she is straight from the streets of Dorchester. Her Boston accent and portrayal of a down-on-her-luck mom is as authentic as it gets. If there is one nomination that picks up the hardware, this is the one we are rooting for.

Some other notable Boston nominations...

• Local Casey Affleck was a long shot for a nomination for Gone Baby Gone but he did get a nod as Best Supporting Actor for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford. How about them apples?
  

• Best Picture. Partially filmed in Boston, The Great Debaters with Denzel Washington earned a nomination.
  

• BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL. Inspired by life of Boston local Mark Wahlberg, ENTOURAGE is HBO's new staple replacing The Sopranos as a "must see." Wahlberg is also the Executive Producer.

• Boston Legal earned a nod with William Shatner picking up a nomination for BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION.
  

• Local funnyman Steve Carell got on the nomination board for the hit NBC show The Office. Carell grew up just outside Boston in the Acton/Concord area. The official nomination....BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL.

South Boston Sees Real Men Cry

Ethan Hawke's new movie rolled into South Boston this week. Filming started this past Monday on Real Men Cry in the M Street area in Southie. The gritty crime flick, written and directed by Southie native Brian Goodman, also stars Mark Ruffalo, and Amanda Peet.

Murphy's Law, Boston's latest filming hotspot (Gone Baby Gone) almost got involved in the flick serving as a place for the cast and crew to eat between takes. But apparently Murphy's was just under the size requirements.

More Real Men Cry Info
http://bostonmovietours.net/blog/2007/11/another-movie-filming-in-southie-real.html

Gone Baby Gone Boston Scenes

Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck and Dennis Lehane all give their views on the importance of filming the riveting new crima drama Gone Baby Gone in Boston.

See Video

Stars are out for Gone Baby Gone Premiere

We were fortunate to see a sneak peak of Gone Baby Gone last week (SEE FULL REVIEW) with author Dennis Lehane introducing. But tonight was the OFFICIAL Boston premiere and the stars were out in full force along with just about every Boston media outlet.

Let me start out by saying these may be the WORST movie premiere pics you will ever see. That’s what happens when you leave your camera home and have to resort to a camera phone. If any of you have some good ones, please send them along to info@bostonmovietours.net.

First on the scene was Matt Damon, long time friend of Ben Affleck. After arriving in a SUV, he worked the red carpet (in reality, just a sidewalk) for 10 minutes or so. Lehane then made the rounds. But the big applause was saved for the last guests; star Casey Affleck and director Ben Affleck. Ben was there wife Jennifer Garner who looked spectacular.

Other actors in attendance: Robert Wahlberg, Amy Ryan, Matthew Maher, Trudi Goodman, Jay Giannone and others. Ben’s co-producer Sean Bailey was also on hand.

Gone Baby Gone is Terrific

“Wow” is the first word that pops into my mind after seeing Gone Baby Gone, a Boston based crime drama about an abducted girl starring Casey Affleck, Ed Harris and Morgan Freeman.

Last night, I got a chance to see a sneak peak at the AMC Boston Common hosted by Eckerd College alumni Dennis Lehane. Lehane, of course is famous for writing crime dramas such as Mystic River, Shutter Island and Gone Baby Gone.

When Gone Baby Gone was being filmed around Boston, there were definitely some question marks. Sure, the screenplay was adapted from the author who wrote one of the best Boston movies of all time (Mystic River). But we also had Ben Affleck making his directorial debut and Casey Affleck starring. Would Ben bring us his moments of excellence as he did with Good Will Hunting or show us the flipside as he did with Jersey Girl? Would Casey use this as his breakout role or would we see he works best playing supporting parts (Ocean’s series)?

Well I am happy to report Boston brought out the best in both Affleck brothers. Casey shined in his role as the detective hired to find the little girl. He definitely stepped it up a notch and may get some consideration for a Best Actor nomination. And Ben worked his magic keeping the audience engaged the entire movie. Harris, Freeman and Michelle Monaghan also gave excellent performances.

Without giving away the plot, there were plenty of twists and turns throughout the experience. Along the way, Ben weaves in a number of moral quandaries about the two sides of right and wrong. I call it an “experience” because the movie is terrific but pretty emotionally draining. Watching a movie about a kidnapped child is not exactly like watching an episode of Saturday Night Live. But if you love crime dramas, Gone Baby Gone needs to top your list for movies to see in 2007.

From a Boston perspective, Boston made for a spectacular backdrop. It is rare for a studio released movie to properly hit the authenticity of Boston. But Gone Baby Gone hit a homerun in that aspect thanks to Affleck’s strong Boston ties. From the supporting cast hand picked for their Boston flavor to the accents, Boston was right on in terms of the movie’s theme.

Gone Baby Gone gets 4.5 out of 5 stars and is one of the best dramas of the year.

Art Heist Caper Comes to Town in November

According to today's Boston Herald, another major motion picture is coming to Beantown in November. The Long Maiden is a comedy set around 3 security guards who devise a plan to steal artwork at the museum they work at. William H. Macy, Morgan Freeman and Christopher Walken are set to star in the flick.

For Walken, this is his first Boston flick. Macy appeared in A Civil Action in 1997. But for Freeman, this will be his 5^th Boston appearance. Others include Glory, Amistad, Dreamcatcher, and Ben Affleck’s upcoming Gone, Baby, Gone.

Read Inside Track article

New Mass Tax Incentive = More Movies

Massachusetts just added another chip to sweeten the pot for Hollywood filmmakers. Yes, Massachusetts instituted a 1st round of tax incentives in late 2005 but this new round bumps up that commitment. That only spells good things for the future of Boston Movie Tours and future filming hotspots.

If you are into the details, here's the press release.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 17, 2007

CONTACT:
Kyle Sullivan
Cyndi Roy
Jose Martinez
617-725-4025

Governor, Legislative Leaders Unveil New Film Tax Credit Proposal
Plan would make Massachusetts an attractive home for motion picture films, television

BOSTON – Thursday, May 17 –Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi today unveiled a series of tax incentives to make Massachusetts a more attractive destination for motion picture and television production projects, a plan that will make the Commonwealth more competitive with other states and could bring millions of dollars in new investment and economic activity.

“Massachusetts has a lot going for it—fabulous locations, a gifted and experienced crew base, and a long tradition of great movies made here,” said Governor Deval Patrick. “But the creative economy is extremely mobile and we cannot stand still in the face of stiff challenges from other states. Supporting an expansion of the film tax credit is one major step we can take in attracting the kind of businesses we need to keep our economy vibrant and competitive.”

The legislative package announced today expands a highly-successful law passed in 2005 that offers production companies a series of tax credits and exemptions to encourage film production. In the 15 months since the credits took effect, Massachusetts has attracted three films to shoot and locate here, including Disney’s Game Plan and Gone Baby Gone and 21 by Sony. Prior to the law’s passage, Massachusetts had only four studio films in seven years.

"The film tax credit has been one of the Legislature's most successful methods for motivating the industry to make Massachusetts the backdrop for numerous movies," said Senate President Murray. "With larger productions waiting in the wings, this modest investment will be a greater enticement for the film industry to choose Massachusetts over other states."

“For Massachusetts, it is not just pride we feel when Oscar-winning movies are filmed here – it means millions of dollars pumped into our economy, local jobs for local workers and a worldwide boost to our thriving tourism industry,” said Speaker DiMasi. “This bill will help Massachusetts stay competitive with states trying to woo the movie industry and will produce immediate and long-term benefits for our economy.”

The proposed legislation increases the percentage of payroll that companies can apply for income tax credits against from 20 percent to 25 percent, and allows credits of up to 25 percent of other production expenses.

Under the current law, credits are limited to $7 million per film and apply only to films costing $250,000 or more. The proposal released removes the cap and lowers the $250,000 floor to $50,000, for purposes of both the income tax credit and the sales tax exemption.

Thirty-nine other states have enacted film tax credits of their own, including Rhode Island and Connecticut.

The legislation also adds “digital media project” to the definition of “motion picture” and requires the Commissioner of Revenue to report annually on motion picture production activity generated by the revised film tax credit and its net revenue effect.