Writer loses job over Wolverine

[Omega]

Sounds like a Fox publicity stunt. Except for dudes getting canned.

BBC NEWS
Writer loses job over Wolverine

A US columnist is out of a job after posting an online review of an illegally downloaded copy of X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Roger Friedman, who wrote the piece on his regular column, had worked at the Fox news website for 10 years.

Fox News said that the company's representatives and Friedman "mutually agreed to part ways immediately".

It said that Friedman's behaviour was "reprehensible" and that it "condemned this act categorically".

The journalist wrote in his column on Thursday that downloading the 20th Century Fox film was "so much easier than going out in the rain".

'Exceeds expectations'

He added: "I doubt anyone else has seen this film. But everyone can relax. I am, in fact, amazed about how great Wolverine turned out. It exceeds expectations at every turn."

He also joked he might decide to catch up on some other recent films via illegal downloads.

The review of the film, which 20th Century Fox described as a "stolen, incomplete and early version," was later removed from the site on Friday.

The leaked copy of the film was downloaded an estimated 100,000 times in the 24 hours since it was first posted on file sharing websites, a month before its cinema release.

Fox promised that the source of the film would be prosecuted and said the FBI and Motion Picture Association of America were investigating the leak.

The film is due to be released in UK cinemas on 29 April.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/e ... 987136.stm

[Omega]

BBC NEWS
Jackman 'heartbroken' over leak

X-Men Origins star Hugh Jackman has called the leaking of his film a month before release a "serious crime".

An unfinished version of the film was downloaded an estimated 100,000 times from file-sharing websites last week and is now being investigated.

The Australian actor said it had left him "heartbroken" and amounted to a "Ferrari without a paint job".

He was promoting the Wolverine film at Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour and arrived by swooping from a helicopter.

The star unveiled 20 minutes of finished footage to around 600 fans at the location where much of the film was shot.

He said there would still be huge interest in its release later this month, despite the "upsetting" leak.

"There's no doubt it's very disappointing. Obviously people are seeing an unfinished film," Jackman added.

The star, who hosted the Oscars earlier this year, is embarking on a world tour to promote the film, which delves into the back story of his character Wolverine.

The illegal copy of the film is being looked into by the FBI, which could result in criminal proceedings.

The rough cut did not contain CGI special effects and frequently showed green screens and wires attached to actors.

A journalist for Fox News was dismissed earlier this week for posting a review of X-Men Origins based on a viewing of the illegal download.

Roger Friedman joked that he might watch other films using the same method.

The network condemned Mr Friedman's action as "reprehensible".

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/e ... 989319.stm

Published: 2009/04/08 09:15:53 GMT

[katied]

Apparently there are a TON of illegal copies of Wolverine out there.Howard Stern expressed an interest in seeing it early and immediately got a ton of people saying they would send him copies.

[Kristatos]

What an idiot. He's probably not the only person in his office guilty of watching illegally downloaded movies, but for a Fox employee to openly write about watching an illegal copy of a Fox movie on the Fox website takes a special kind of stupid.

[Dr. No]

What the hell was he thinking! Was he stoned?

[carl stromberg]

Why can't people wait to see the finished version?

[Dr. No]

I like the Wolverine :d But I don't think an unfinished version is worth seeing. It be like seeing star wars witht eh original black adn white WWII fighter plane footage Lucas put in there to demonstrate what the finsehd product should look like.

Sounds like a studio copy was lifted and put on the internet. If the Wolverine does poorly at the Box office I'm sure they will say piracy had a big part in it. On the other hand if wolverine does great anyway they won't mention it did in spite of or perhaps becasue of the piracy.

I remember a few years ago studies used to let you download the first 10 minuets fo a film.

[Mazer Rackham]

To a lesser extent I think it did.

Maybe! EW is reporting that, despite being leaked online and downloaded by thousands a full month before its release date, X-Men Origins: Wolverine is still tracking strong, with consumer-research data showing a "high 'wanna see' rating for the film, which is said to be the No. 1 choice for young men and guys aged 31 and older." By any logic, the fact that an unfinished work print of the movie — featuring hilarious unfinished special-effects shots that you won't see in the less-exciting theatrical version — is freely available on the Internet should spell disaster for Wolverine's tracking polls and eventually its opening weekend. So what the hell is going on here?

Had it not leaked, this is the time when people on the Internet (including us, no doubt) would've been wildly speculating on the film's quality based on its trailer, publicity campaign, promotional pizza tie-in, and reported reshoots. Instead, though, the very bloggers who'd probably be writing this thing off are refusing to post reviews of an unfinished product and shaming downloaders.

Additionally, the larger media outlets, which would probably have otherwise held all Wolverine coverage until the week of its release, have been breathlessly reporting on every new development since it leaked, declaring the movie a would-be "tentpole" and a "blockbuster," even though the pre-leak buzz was that it looked more like a potential loser.

A search on Twitter reveals that — apart from those actively watching the leaked work print while tweeting — more than a few people actually seem to be genuinely excited to see Wolverine in a theater.

So will this thing be a hit? Tracking numbers have certainly been wrong in the past, so who knows! But if it's a money loser, Fox probably won't be able to blame that on negative publicity or bad word of mouth.

'Wolverine' tracking data: Interest in the film remains high, despite Internet leak [Hollywood Insider/EW]
http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/20 ... erine.html

[Mazer Rackham]

This guy does have a point in defense of the moron Fox fired .

The dismissal of Fox News' Roger Friedman for downloading and reviewing a copy of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" is not too surprising. However, it does reek of double standards. Back in January, the Sunday Times of London, which, like Fox, is owned by Rubert Murdoch, published an article headlined "Pirate-sharing Films Throttle Hollywood" that offered a primer on downloading movies.

That January piece in the Sunday Times began : "Fancy watching the latest Hollywood film in the comfort of your own home tonight, free of charge?"

Despite reiterating that downloading is naughty, the article details how easy it to download movies and tempts readers with a selection of what's available. "The films they post on the web are not the grainy versions filmed in cinemas with shaky camcorders and marred by the occasional member of the audience walking in front of the camera, but can be DVD-quality versions, sometimes even in high definition, the new crystal-clear format."

Now, this is the best part: the story even recommends the equipment that's needed -- with illustrations -- for stealing from Hollywood: "Some drives even have torrent software built in. Once instructed, the £150 Freecom Network Drive Pro will download films to its 1TB drive on its own." And don't overlook a disc burner: "Downloaders of larger files will have invested in something like the £140 LG GGW-H20L, which will burn a high-definition (HD) Blu-ray disc in 20 minutes."

In addition, the report goes on, "It's no longer necessary even to burn a disc to watch a downloaded film on a big TV. Last year software updates to the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 allowed them to handle DivX files beamed to them over a home network. Then there's Western Digital's £80 HD Media Player (left); connected to a TV's HDMI input it will play just about any digital video format fed to it, including full HD files, from a computer or an external USB-based hard drive."

Thankfully, the Sunday Times does not neglect the legality of downloading, but reassures its readers: "The law exists to protect producers, writers and artists and ensure they get a fair reward for their work. That said, there is no record of a film downloader being prosecuted in the U.K."

And, in answer to the question "Will I be taken to court?" the story says, "The music industry initially went after filesharing consumers but was accused of heavy-handedness and last week announced it had dropped the practice in the U.S. Hollywood is likely to fare no better. In Britain, Fact magazine says the film industry is trying to "educate, not prosecute", but it is "looking at a number of targets" among sites hosting pirate copies.

So, if any Britons get caught with "Wolverine" they can thank Mr. Murdoch for his advice -- technical and legal -- and sleep soundly knowing the host site will carry the can.
http://www.thewrap.com/blog-entry/2339