A rumor is just a rumor, until it becomes fact. Whenever I see one of these sorts of stories, my inner core of movie fandom shudders. What if THIS is the one that's not a rumor?

The Daily Mail claims that Madonna is looking to remake Casablanca -- not as a copy-cat Psycho redo, but modernized and set in Iraq. Their studio source says: "She is still determined to make it in the movies. She and her representatives have been touting around a project which is a remake of Casablanca. The reception has been lukewarm to say the least. No one can understand why she wants to redo what many people consider the greatest film of all time." Maybe because she's crazy? Perhaps Swept Away ... swept away more than just her remaining movie cred.

To top this off, she also wants to star in it, regardless of the fact that's she's nearing the big 5-0, and Ingrid Bergman was much, much younger. Then again, this is supposed to be modernized, so anything could happen! (If a studio is nuts enough to say yes. There's a good chance every studio will run, and keep this just a rumor, but all you need is one interested person with enough money...)

Casablanca should stay in the ranks of history, and especially away from Madonna. However, what I would be interested in seeing is daughter Isabella taking on one of her mother's iconic roles, even in a simple short film.

What do you think? Are you super-excited about seeing Casablanca: Iraq Style?

What goes around comes around. Back when the wonderful laserdisc was just beginning to find its stride, and the serious movie buff could actually find most of the titles he or she was longing to see, the DVD came along and all but wiped out this entire format, this entire subculture. Now, at the dawn of 2008, it looks as if the war between Blu-Ray and HD-DVD may be coming to a close. Will one or the other format catch on? Will the regular DVD become extinct? No one can say. But when it comes to movies I'd like to see, none of this matters. 2007 brought us some amazing DVDs and DVD box sets, and the following is my wish list for titles I'd like to see produced in 2008.

(Note: I deliberately left off titles that are already available on import DVDs, such as Satantango, Celine and Julie Go Boating, Man of the West, Johnny Guitar, Lost Highway, Napoleon, The Dead, the Jean Vigo collection, and many more.)

1. Othello: 3-Disc Special Edition
In 1992, Orson Welles' daughter Beatrice authorized a "restored" version of the film that played in theaters. But purists claimed that her film deviated from what her father originally intended, and so the Criterion Collection released a laserdisc edition of Welles' original cut, the one that played at Cannes in 1952. Beatrice apparently blocked this earlier version, and so now only the 1992 cut is on DVD (and out of print besides). My fantasy DVD would be a three-disc box set (from Criterion, of course), collecting both the 1952 and 1992 cuts, as well as Orson's impossible-to-find documentary Filming Othello (1978), which is the last of his completed films I have yet to see. (There are clips of it on the Criterion Othello laserdisc.) On a side note, of Welles' thirteen completed films, seven are available on U.S. DVDs and four others are available overseas. That leaves only Othello and Filming Othello. Let's get on it!

Casablanca is pretty much a perfect film, but the making of it was anything but smooth. If you pick up the 2003 DVD of the movie, there's documentaries and great commentaries by Roger Ebert and Rudy Behlmer that can attest to this. But a new biography gives us a more inside perspective. The info comes from one of its stars, and one of the most beautiful women ever to grace the big screen: Ingrid Bergman. The book, cleverly titled Ingrid, was written by Charlotte Chandler and looks to be chock full of fascinating stories for fans of the classic movie. In one, Bergman remembers sharing a lunch with Humphrey Bogart before filming began, where "the only subject they found in common was how much they both wanted to get out of Casablanca." Thank God they didn't!

Chandler has written several other Hollywood biographies, and like her books on Bette Davis, Alfred Hitchcock, and Billy Wilder, Ingrid is referred to on the cover as a "personal biography." "It's because I knew the person and spoke with the person and (the book) is based on what they said to me," she says. "It's almost autobiographical. I wanted to keep the voice of the person." Sounds like a great read, and don't worry gossip hounds, the book also explores her personal life. That includes her scandalous relationship with Roberto Rossellini which rocked Hollywood in the 1950s and resulted in the lovely Isabella Rossellini. If you haven't seen Casablanca at this point, shame on you! It almost always ranks in the Top 10 on "Best Movies of All Time" lists, and righfully so. And for more top-notch Bergman, let me recommend the incredible Notorious, one of my favorite films and for my money, the best movie Hitchcock ever made.

Movie tourism is nothing new; there have been tours of studios for years, and recently tours have sprung up in New Zealand for Lord of The Rings and Harrow, England for Harry Potter aficionados. The Folklore Society of Stode Sweden is on the hunt for an Ingrid Bergman look-alike to re-enact the actresses' first marriage to Petter Aron Lindstrom 70 years ago. The Society intends to officially marry a couple in name and deed, providing the dress and a reception for free to the lucky winner. In a somewhat humiliating side note, the event organizers aren't bothered about finding a look-alike for Lindstrom for the event. Bergman's most famous romance was with Italian Neo-realist director Roberto Rossellini, not Lindstrom -- who was from Stode and the inspiration for the event. Bergman's daughter, Pia Lindstrom, will be in attendance and guests will get to dine on the original wedding china at the reception. Stode's event sounds a little obscure even for a die-hard fan, and with Bergman's daughter in attendance, it all sounds just the slightest bit creepy.

Nostalgia is one thing, but this is taking it a little far don't you think? Although, if you happen to have a relative in Sweden that bears an uncanny resemblance to Ingrid Bergman with a mounting wedding bill, this might be her lucky day.

[via topix.net]