Who among us hasn't wanted to get Nicole Kidman in a similar pose? But I digress. The February issue of Vanity Fair is boasting an exclusive photo and a jam-packed sidebar promoting the November release of Australia, but there's not a hell of a lot of new information here. Anyone who has been following the progress of the film since its filming began last year already knows the basics of the plot and characters, and that's mostly what gets re-hashed in the sidebar. Baz Luhrmann is quoted as saying that his ambition was to make a movie with "big emotions, big comedy, big stars, big stories and big landscapes." In a word, big. The sidebar then goes on to insult Kidman by declaring her character to be "a middle-aged (!) and childless British aristocrat." Come on now -- it may be true, but was that necessary?

This is one of the first Australia teases since a December 23 piece in the Herald Sun that detailed the conclusion of filming and talked up a sex scene between Kidman and co-star Hugh Jackman, for which Jackman helpfully reports that he "brushed his teeth five times" before commencing. Even though the big summer blockbusters are presumed to own the advertising airwaves over the next few months, Fox has so much money tied up in Australia that I would imagine you'll start seeing posters and teaser trailers -- and get more info on that rumored Elton John soundtrack -- over the next two months.

[via Australiamovie.net]

On the same day filming on Baz Luhrmann's Australia wrapped, the production released the first three official stills from the movie. Of course, clever photographers haven't been sitting around on their hands waiting for anything official -- they've been shooting candid photos all along, of everything from action shots of Nicole Kidman on horses and riding dinghies at sea to detailed photos of the set. But there's something to be said for photos that the director actually wants you to see. After looking at these three pictures, I can't say I'm discerning anything special though, except maybe for the one of Kidman seemingly about to twirl around while standing on a gazebo of some kind. It looks very 'Gone With the Wind' if you ask me. The other two are just a double headshot of the two leads and one gentleman who I'm going to guess is playing a native.

Meanwhile, perhaps sensing that The Golden Compass wasn't going to be all it was cracked up to be, Kidman was recently circumspect when talking to journalists about why she chooses her film roles. "I just choose off the cuff a lot of times, but primarily this was because Philip Pullman wrote me an amazing letter telling me that when he was writing the novels, he had me in mind," she said. "So that's hard to turn down. He's such a good novelist." Oh, so it's all his fault, huh? Let's hope she has a better answer for the studio bosses, next time they ask why they should continue forking over $15 mil per film.

A massive wrap party took place on Saturday night for Baz Luhrmann's romantic war epic Australia, which began its long filming schedule back in April and will finally wrap this coming Friday. The film tells the story of Lady Sarah Ashley's (Nicole Kidman) journey from England to the Australian outback to visit her husband's ranch, Faraway Downs. Once there, she meets a rough cattle driver played by Hugh Jackman and an ensuing love triangle situation ultimately culminates with the Japanese bombing of Darwin during the war. (I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that someone dies.) The film shoot is coming in around a month over schedule and also reportedly well over budget, The Herald Sun reports. There are also apparently still some interiors that will be shot during the coming year, but Jackman and Kidman both have new commitments that they must attend to first, he Wolverine and she that movie with Ralph Fiennes.

Also, several outlets are reporting that Luhrmann is courting Elton John to contribute to the movie's soundtrack. John is known to have visited the Australia set last week to watch some filming and while there, he was taken to a screening room to see an early assemblage of footage. When asked for comment, he reportedly declared that the film could be "like Titanic on dry land." John's visit to the set coincided with the filming of some kind of big ballroom sequence and Luhrmann arranged to have the band play one of John's old songs, as part of this musical seduction dance. Australia is currently scheduled to arrive in theaters in November, 2008.

Fox411's Roger Friedman is reporting that Julia Roberts could be joining Nicole Kidman in the romantic comedy, Monte Carlo. Fox spoke with Kidman during the NYFF premiere for Margot at the Wedding (read Ryan's review here) when the actress confirmed Roberts involvement. Monte Carlo centers on three schoolteachers that pose as socialites in the glamorous city to snag a rich husband. Kidman signed on for the project back in July with The Family Stone director, Tom Bezucha, who is also co-writing the script with Maria Maggenti. The story is based on the novel Headhunters by Jules Bass and the movie was inspired by the Marilyn Monroe classic, How To Marry a Millionaire.

Roberts has relatively absent from the screens for the last few years, with only the odd role here and there, but she appears to be returning to work full time. The gal will next appear in the political drama Charlie Wilson's War, followed by the dramatic weepy, Fireflies in the Garden. Last but not least, she has just signed for another romantic role in the Friday Night Knitting Club with actor and writer Mike Binder (Reign Over Me). Kidman is busy back at work on Baz Luhrmann's epic, Australia, as well as the period drama, The Reader with Ralph Fiennes. So in spite of some rather low blows in the press, Kidman has no shortage of work, and has already lined up the drama, Need, with long-time friend Naomi Watts. Although, judging from Kidman's past attempts with comedy, she could probably use the help from a veteran like Roberts.

Baz Luhrmann showed up recently at a special screening of his film Moulin Rouge in Darwin, Australia, the town that's currently hosting the produciton of Australia. He spoke to the media for a bit and dropped a few details about Australia, such as the fact that Darwin could be the location of the film's worldwide premiere. Frankly, this sounds like the kind of thing you say to the media when they put the question to you, point-blank. Could Darwin be the location for the film's premiere? Well, ummm... sure, why not! More concrete, perhaps, is the film's release date: Luhrmann said that November 2008 is when the film is expected to be released. "Filming finishes in November, and post-production takes about a year," he said. "So if I don't fall horrendously behind it should be out in November next year."

On Thursday of last week, the movie's main fan site Australiamovie.net posted some new images from the filming that's been taking place in the waters around Darwin. They are a lot like the pics we brought you last time, only these mostly focus on Hugh Jackman's drover character instead of Nicole Kidman. The pics aren't terribly interesting, but feel free to check them out anyway. More interestingly is the site's message board, which I recently noticed has a spoiler thread. I couldn't resist taking a look at, and now I wish I hadn't, because the people on there seem to have pieced together the entire plot of the movie, including some of the final moments. If you want to go into the movie blind, the worst thing you could do is visit that thread, so fair warning.

Don't tell 20th Century Fox, but Cinematical is currently arranging to rent a hot air balloon and fly it over the Australia set so that we can get some exclusive footage of the action down there. More on that to come. For now, here are some new shots of the action, which has apparently gone ocean-bound, courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes. The pics were apparently shot in the waters around Darwin, Australia, a key filming area for the production. Unfortunately, RT was not able to piece together exactly which sequence is being filmed here, and not enough of the plot has leaked for me to do it myself, so we'll have to just let our imaginations do the work. It's basically a bunch of shots of Nicole Kidman in her period garb as the English aristocrat Lady Sarah Ashley, being ferried around by some common Aussie folk.

In most of the shots, she's standing under the shade of a dainty umbrella that's held by a male companion. The man has microphone cords falling out of his sleeve, and if you look closely, you can see that he's also wearing some kind of ear-piece. I guess he's receiving constant instructions from Baz Luhrmann not to let the sun come in direct contact with Kidman's alabaster skin, lest she burst into flames and cause serious problems for the production. In a couple of shots, she's holding the umbrella herself and seems to be pointing down at something in the water below -- a shark? With all the attention this film is getting, it seems like Fox would be well-served by getting the marketing machine in gear early -- get us a teaser or something to hold us over. What's the hold up?

The homestead known as Faraway Downs, which will serve as a key set in Baz Luhrmann's Australia, has been unexpectedly flooded to such an extent that Luhrmann has pulled up stakes and moved shooting to another part of Australia. "It's like rain in the Sahara, it's as unexpected as that," the film's location manager told the Sydney Morning Herald. "But we're making an epic and if you're making an epic you're going to have setbacks. That's the way [Baz] sees it, I guess." Because of the flooding, Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman have been re-routed to Sydney to shoot some interiors while things get under control. All of this re-shuffling will have a financial impact, the location manager admitted. "There will be a cost involved but we did have to shoot in Sydney, so we'll go back there and regroup, and wait for it to brown off again," he said. I think that's Aussie-speak for dry out.

The paper's article contains a good pic of the destruction, and the location manager also made sure to point out to the paper that he wasn't to blame for this situation. "We looked at the records which have existed since 1889 and there has never been anything like this in June," he said. Okay, okay, we believe you. The main site for the film, Australiamovie.net, has nothing on this latest development. In fact, they haven't even bothered to update the site since June 20. And they call themselves a movie site? Not to worry -- the main Australian papers are picking up the slack, staying on top of every possible news item. Stay tuned to Cinematical for all the latest Australia madness.

Australia mania 2007 continues! I realize it may seem like we just can't get enough of Baz Luhrmann's upcoming epic of self-reliance here at Cinematical, but darn it if it doesn't keep looking better and better all the time. When you take the unique directing talents of Baz Luhrmann, combine them with the alluring screen presence of Nicole Kidman and the he-manesque qualities of Hugh Jackman, you surely seem to have a film that should ignite not only the screen but the box office as well. But before I get too ahead of myself, let's recap a little for those of you just joining us here at Australia mania 2007.

Previously, we brought you word about the film and featured its many virtues, including the director, cast and several sets of pictures -- each more fantastic and revealing than the last. And now, thanks to the folks down under at the Sydney Morning Herald, we have some great set visit details and more pictures to share with you. Among the info reported in the article is the dedication and attention to detail of director Luhrmann -- so dedicated, supposedly, that he rarely eats or sleeps -- how the cast and crew are working very hard but also seem to be enjoying themselves and that the script, according to the film's producer Mac Brown: "makes you laugh and makes you cry and makes you cry again, and makes you cry again." Good stuff.

In addition to the Herald piece, there's also some interesting info provided at the Australia Movie site as well. According to the site, some residents of Bowen, the town in Queensland where Australia is currently filming, are becoming a little, shall we say, "disillusioned" with the whole fimmaking process. The excitement of having a big Hollywood movie shooting in their town is apparently now over and they are starting to get annoyed with the film and its disruption of life in their quiet town. Reading the article, I can sympathize with them -- but only a little. If they think they're having a tough time with disruptive film crews, try living in LA sometime.