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It's been clear for several weeks now that the independent distribution company THINKfilm has been suffering from some money troubles. Around the time the Cannes Film Festival kicked off this month, blogger AJ Schnack assembled reports from various sources that the company owed a lot of money to many different places. Now, Nikkie Finke reports that Allied Advertising Ltd. filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court today against THINKfilm owner David Bergstein, claiming that THINKfilm failed to pay for Allied's advertising services in a timely manner, while the distributor pretended that wasn't the case. A serious problem indeed.

It's a little unfair, however, for Allied to complain about THINKfilm's decision to continue doing what they do best -- buying films. The lawsuit says that the company embarked on a "lavish film licensing buying spree at various film festivals around the world," rather than exclusively focusing on paying off debt. It's worth noting that THINKfilm remained fairly withdrawn at Cannes this year, and while they did pick up theatrical rights for Marina Zenovich's Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired at Sundance, the film already had a television deal in place with HBO. Meanwhile, the company has dropped Battle in Seattle, which it originally purchased at the Toronto Film Festival. The "buying spree" sounds like needless exaggeration on Allied's part. Whatever the case, given THINKfilm's track record (they did guide Ryan Gosling to his Half Nelson Oscar nod), one hopes they'll survive this nasty legal snafu.

This just in from Deadline Hollywood: Though an official word has not hit the internets just yet, DH is reporting through their sources that NBC has indeed gone ahead and canceled the Golden Globes telecast currently scheduled to air live on January 13. Instead, what they are going to do is air a news broadcast announcing the winners. DH says: "It will consist of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association handing out Golden Globes to the winners, who will then pick up the awards and pass through a press room for photos and interviews." Sounds sort of lame, but at least the media will get their photos of the actors and actresses all dolled up (should they decide to dress for the event), which will come along with quotes and what have you.

By the sounds of it, there won't be any sort of ceremony whatsoever; kind of like a high school graduation where you walk up to the podium, shake hands with the Principal, and walk off stage. (Only instead of walking off stage to your parents smiling faces, you get a room full of media asking all sorts of boring questions.) Fun! Score one for the WGA -- they've brought down one awards show, now let's see if this thing carries over to the Oscars, which, once the whole Globes thing is over, will probably become a very hot topic. We here at Cinematical will still go ahead with our Globes prediction post later this week, and we'll bring you the winners as soon as they're announced. See the full list of Golden Globe nominees over here, or head on over to Moviefone's official Golden Globes page.

UPDATE: It's official.

When I was a kid, I always hated camp. Part of me was against all the physical activity, and the other despised those cocky councilors who insisted you do what they say, when they say it. Well screw you Tad McMichaels -- what if I don't want to play kickball from three to five? Here's a thought --- what if I want to spend my summer vacation doing things I enjoy? Ah, childhood ... how I miss it so. Leave it up to those hippies in California to begin doing things differently; apparently, The UCLA Armand Hammer Museum has launched a free Screenwriting Camp for kids ages 10-14. Yes, that means you aspirings over the age of 14 will have to find some other way to get your pen on.

Deadline Hollywood provides the following description: "For three weeks in July, adolescent screenwriters will work with Hollywood professionals to write and produce one monster of a short film. Professional screenwriters will teach the students what makes a screenplay tick; later on, the students will cast professional actors (or act themselves), manage props and set equipment, and then shoot their short yet sweet film. Last, but certainly not least, they'll screen their film at a small gala in Venice, CA." Um, sweet! Man do I wish something like this was available back when I was a lonely boy with a vivid imagination forced to play seven hours of dodge ball under the hot, blazing sun. What do you think about this program? Are they simply prepping these kids early for a life in the entertainment industry, or is this a great idea for those youngsters who would rather spend their summer being creative rather than competitive?

Before I present you with the situation, here's a question to think about: Is it okay for someone to label Hostel: Part II "disgusting" prior to seeing the film? Think about that; we'll get back to it. The always-opinionated Nikki Finke recently wrote a story for her Deadline Hollywood site which talked about the various bootleg copies of Hostel: Part II that are showing up on streets and online. Now, in reporting on this story, Finke said the following: "I say, fine: Lionsgate deserves to feel the effects of piracy (not to mention the wrath of mankind) for distributing such a disgusting film." It's her belief that no business should profit off the "uber-violence" apparently featured in the Hostel sequel.

Okay, everyone has the right to their opinion -- except, when you dish it, you need to be able to handle whatever backfire heads your way. Case in point: Brendon from Film ick wasn't happy about how Finke called Hostel: Part II "disgusting" when she hadn't even seen the film yet. During an odd back-and-forth between Brendon and Finke (in which all of Finke's emails were subsequently removed and summarized at her request), it appears Brendon's biggest problem is that Finke "a) declared a film 'disgusting' and insinuated it is without merit, without even seeing it first, and b) attempted to prejudice other people similarly." Finke, on the other hand, felt she had every right to "be offended by 'torture porn'" and shouldn't be persecuted for urging people not to watch the film. Following that exchange, it appears emails were blocked, filtered into spam folders and the call went out for readers to send Finke an email telling her why she's wrong.

In defense of Finke, calling Hostel: Part II "disgusting" (which, in all reality, it probably is -- and even director Eli Roth wouldn't disagree with you there) is no different than assuming the latest Lindsay Lohan film sucks because she's in it. I'm not saying it's right to assume things, but those of us in the movie blog business do it all the time. It's our job to assume; we get paid to offer an opinion. And so it goes. Should Finke have re-worded it to read, "Hostel: Part II is probably disgusting," just as Brendon said Prince of Persia "sounds like quite a dreadfully dull film?" Probably. Then again, Finke urging people not to see it will probably help the film more than it hurts -- "Finke said not to go. I'm there!" What do you think?

Finke Blasts Clerks 2 for its Never Ending Credit Roll!

A while back, we told you how The Weinstein Company partnered up with MySpace to draw more attention to Clerks 2 by awarding 10,000 fans a spot in the film's credit roll. Odd? Yes. Brilliant way to market your film for practically nothing? Hell yes. While this maneuver opened up new doors in the world of movie marketing, giving your average movie fan something to brag about, others felt the whole thing was just plain wrong. In her Deadline Hollywood blog, Nikki Finke blasts the marketing move, saying "This could very well be the most insulting thing I've ever heard, a huge diss, to anyone who's ever legitimately earned a credit on a film. It's the sort of shenanigan that, if the guilds in this town had spines, they should stop immediately." Look, I understand her point, but Kevin Smith is who he is because of his fans. They deserve the recognition. I mean, let's be real here Nikki -- these are minor credits in an indie film and Clerks 2 isn't exactly Academy Award material. Why the beef? Personally, I applaud the Weinsteins and Smith for getting the fans more involved, instead of just plastering posters here, there and everywhere. Should every film follow a similar path? No. But I do like the creative thinking.

Baby Shiloh Turned Into Wax!

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's first-born child will become the first baby to be transformed into wax for Maddam Tussaud's historic wax museum in New York City. That's right, baby Shiloh will join her parents in what appears to be an odd re-creation of the Nativity scene. I kid you not. According to the story, Shiloh will lie before her parents inside a woven bassinet "in her very own African-themed nursery." Aww, that's wonderful news -- but what about their other adopted children? I can totally picture it now: "Mommy, why does Shiloh get to be in wax and not me?" "Well Maddox, that's because adopted children aren't important enough to become wax statues. It's true. I read about it in People Magazine."

Samuel L. Jackson Hates Snakes!

While shooting Snakes on a Plane, Samuel L. Jackson was so freaked out by the slithering creatures, he had a clause put in his contract stating all motherf**kin reptiles were to be kept 20 motherf**kin feet away from him at all times. Jackson says, "My agent was insistent: 'No snakes within 20 feet.' In the beginning they were talking about having rattlesnakes they had taken the venom sacks out of them, but I was like, 'Hell, no. That don't work for me.'" Ha. You gotta love Sam Jackson. However, the actor later went on to say he wasn't afraid of snakes. In fact, when he was growing up, he'd capture the poor things and beat them to death. Hmm, perhaps that would make the perfect premise for an eventual Snakes on a Plane prequel?