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February 12, 2002
JP3 Nominiated for Razzie Award
It's Razzie Award nomination time again, and yes, our favorite summer rampaging dinosaur movie is among the films recognized for the "dis-honor" of winning a Golden Rasberry trophy. The semi-good news? While JP3 was nominated in the "Worst Remake or Sequel" category this year, it's in good company with none other than POTA, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, Pearl Harbor, and Sweet November. And it's also worth mentioning that JP3 received only one nominiation while TLW received 3 back in '97 (it did not "win" in any categories, however). The Razzies will be handed out one day before the Oscars, on March 23.
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JP3 Not Nominated for Oscar
Speaking of nominiations, the films in the running for the 74th Academy Awards were announced this morning, and despite making it to the list of films considered for nomination for Best Visual Effects a few weeks back, JP3 was not among the three films selected, which includes only LOTR, "Pearl Harbor", and "A.I.".
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Server Trouble
You might be noticing difficulty in posting comments or messages this morning, as the server the site has been hosted on went kablooey yesterday. Me and the boys at Net Access Corp (the finest ISP on the east coast, btw) are working to get the site moved to a new server and up and running again, so please bear with us.
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February 8, 2002
JP3 Arcade Modified for US/Europe?
Good news/bad news time: The good news is that while we had originally thought the upcoming JP3 Arcade game would not make it to Europe at any time in the future due to the cost of the unit, 'T-Rex' sends along this flyer advertising the game to European arcade owners. The bad news? It looks like the game has been modified substantially from the original prototype version we saw a few months ago, and one of the most innovative features of the Japanese version may have been removed: Instead of a motion sensor which actually allowed the player to physically move to avoid the dinos in the game, it's been replaced by a much lamer-sounding "escape lever", which can be used to "turn and run". Of course, it's not known if the US version will have sensors or be the obvious cost-cutting "lever" version. I'm still trying to get release date info for everyone, so stay tuned and keep checking those arcades! [Update: Slight false alarm: 'T-Rex' reports arcade owners will actually have a choice between purchasing the larger version with the motion sensors, or this cheaper version without them.]
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February 7, 2002
Read JP3 Deleted Scenes
While it looks like the news that JP3 pay-per-view would contain extra footage turned out to be a fluke, site regular 'Malcolm' has typed up a list of a few scenes that were cut or reduced in the final film (taken from his copy of the JP3 script), and posted them on the message board here. Nothing earth-shattering, but I did like the extended "good-bye" scene between Alan and Ellie. I ask you once again: Is the love still there?!
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Buy Your Own JP3 Bouncy Castle
If you're in the market for your own bouncy play-thing (and really, who isn't?), make sure you check out the selection from ABC Jumps and their new JP3 Bouncy Castle, reports JPAftermath. "The 'JP Jumper' has a surface of 25x25 ft., and comes equipped with a convertable roof -- the entire jumpter is 16 feet high, and retails at a cheap $3,595 bucks."
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Dino News
Not much happening these days JP3-wise, so how about some dinosaur news?! The scientifc journal Nature revealed last week that our old friend the T-rex could actually "accelerate from a walking pace...to a top speed of almost 20 mph", "faster than previously thought". Of course, if you've watched JP, you'd know this already, but it's always good to have scientific fact to back up the movie. A story on JPInstitute.com details the discovery of "Paralititan stromeri" in Northern Africa, which scientists believe may be the second largest dinosaur ever discovered. And another story on JPInstitute.com has news from Paul Sereno that he has discovered another close relative to Spinosaurus in Africa, which he calls a "dinosaur trying hard to be a crocodile". (Thanks David)
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February 1, 2002
Extra Scenes on JP3 DirectTV?
I thought this was crazy when one person sent it in, but a second confirmed it: A TV advertisement for pay-per-view JP3 on DirectTV claims their airing of the film contains "bonus footage". Whether this means bonus scenes or (more likely) a "Behind the scenes" clip at the end is unknown: If you watch JP3 on your DirectTV system, please let me know what you see! (Incidentally, if you buy JP3 on pay-per-view in many cable markets, you can send away for a "4ft by 1ft JP3 Dino Chart" -- like the one that comes with the JP3 DVD -- check your cable bill for a mail-in form). Thanks 'Spinoboy11', 'JPWonderboy', and Seba.
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Universal Super Bowl Commercial Features JP
Be on the lookout for a 60-second commercial advertising Universal Studio's theme parks during this Sunday's Super Bowl, according to a Universal press release. In the spot, "people are shown experiencing everything from the resort's innovative thrill rides...to riding away with 'E.T.' and more." The JP ride, of course, will be featured, along with other attractions that let guests "wish for what they want". Umm, right. This will be Universal Studio's first Super Bowl spot, obviously meant to drive-up attendance at the Orlando and Hollywood theme parks.
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Happy 2 Year Anniversary to Us
Man, has it already been two years?! According to the archive, yes, indeed, it has. So after more than 1,100 stories, more than 1.5 million visitors, scoops, interviews, chats with the director, the film's release, and the film's release on DVD, here we are, waiting for.. uh.. what are we waiting for again? Anyway, while the news may be less these days, I can't help say thanks once again to everyone who made it all possible. I've had a great time.
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January 28, 2002
JP3 Nominated for Moviegoer Award
JP3 is among the films nominated for the 2001 "Orange Film of the Year", an award given out by the British Academy of Film and Television but voted upon by the film-going public (aka the "Audience Award"). Along with JP3, the other films in the category include "American Pie 2", "Cats & Dogs", "Hannibal", "Mummy 2", "Moulin Rouge", "Shrek", "Bridget Jones's Diary", "LOTR", and "Harry Potter". (Also worth noting is that JP3 was snubbed in the main awards in the SFX category). Winners will be announced February 24, 2002.
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'Beyond JP' Arriving
I received a few emails from people reporting that their copy of the "Beyond Jurassic Park" DVD, which they sent away for by mail after buying the JP3 DVD, has started to arrive. So if you've been anxiously awaiting the bonus fourth JP disc, check your mailbox! (Thanks 'Mr. Goodbytes' and Brandy)
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Neill Receives Award
JP Aftermath is reporting that everyone's favorite Dr. Grant actor, Sam Neill, will receive an award at the annual "Qantas Australia Day Ball" this weekend for his "25 year contribution to film". Hollywood stars will shine that night, and Steven Spielberg and Tea Leoni reportedly have taped video messages for the New Zealand native. The article even mentions that Sam's "Two Paddocks" wine will be served at a coctail party prior to the presentation. I guess my invitation got lost in the mail. ;)
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Alan and Billy
When I started this site, I promised myself and my readers I'd report on everything JP3-related, no matter how odd. But after almost two years of running tihs page, this next story takes the cake in terms of sheer strangeness: I present to you, the "Alan and Billy" Yahoo! Group and accompanying Homepage, a collection of indivuduals who, uh, delve into Alan and Billy's supposed homosexual relationship in discussions, chats, and fan fics. Apparently this is not a new thing on the Internet (there are similar sites about LOTR's Frodo and Sam), but if you decide to enter these pages, be prepared for content most unlike this site's fan fiction section. "Not that there's anything wrong with that...."
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January 22, 2002
JP3 Loses SFX Award to LOTR
Old wise man ask: If a Hollywood press group decides to give out movie awards, but no one seems to care, are they really awards? Apparently the International Press Academy ponders that question every year, announcing the "6th Annual Golden Satellite Awards" last week -- to absolutely no press coverage at all. They finally got around to posting the winners on their website today, however, and while JP3 was nominated for Best Special Effects, it did not win, being beaten by Academy favorite LOTR (it won 4, including the dubious award for "Best Picture, Animated or Mixed Media").
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January 21, 2002
Johnston's Next
Our man Joe Johnston is apparently back from his dino-dig in Montana and ready to take on a new project, according to tomorrow morning's Hollywood Reporter. He'll be helming "Hidalgo", a horse racing flick based on a "true story of a Pony Express courier" and penned by the writer of "Young Guns". "The film is an underdog tale of a cowboy who travels throughout the world with his mustang, Hidalgo, to compete against Arabian thoroughbreds in a dangerous race," the article states. Joe will have $50 million from Disney this time around, a tad shy of the $83 he had to play with on JP3. It's been scheduled for Summer 2003. Good luck Joe!
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Various DVD Bits
'Big_Razzie' did some digging to try and get to the bottom of the DVD situation in the UK. Apparently, while we've heard that the JP3 DVD would go on sale today, Razzie reports that may not happen until February 11th. The featureless DVD is out for rent though, says JP Aftermath, who reports it's been spotted on rental shelves earlier this month. As for DVD news from Australia, the JP3 DVD debuted big in the rental market there last week, coming in at #1. (Thanks 'Embryo'). Back in the US, JP3 sales are still hanging on, currently at #3 (behind "Princess Diaries" and "Pearl Harbor" -- interestingly, "Rush Hour 2" is now at #5, and POTA has already dropped off the charts....)
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January 10, 2002
JP3 "Considered" for Oscar
While it's not officially "nominated" yet, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences included JP3 on list of 8 films in consideration for nomination for the "Achievement in Visual Effects" Oscar, to be handed out at the 74th Academy Awards on March 24th. According to the press release, "Fifteen-minute clip reels from each of the films will be screened for the Visual Effects Award Nominating Committee on February 6. The members will then nominate three films for Oscar consideration. They will be announced along with nominations in 23 other categories on Tuesday, February 12, at 5:30 a.m. PST." JP3 faces some stiff competition in this first round of voting, which includes "AI", "Black Hawk Down", "Cats and Dogs", "Harry Potter", "Fast and the Furious", "Lord of the Rings", and "Pearl Harbor". (Thanks 'Vader')
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JP3 on Pay-Per-View
JP3 will be making it's way to the world of pay-per-view starting January 25th, according to a press release from PPV service iN DEMAND. The iN DEMAND site also gives details on a contest you can enter by watching the film to win a "custom designed home entertainment iNvironment", but poking around will let you enter without actually paying for the PPV movie (go to "How to Enter" then click "Alternate Means of Entry").
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Buy JP3 (Finally) in Australia
'Embryo' sends word that according to EZDVD.com.au, JP3 will be available for purchase in the land down under on March 27th. And unlike the bare-bones version with no special features now available for rent in Australia, this one looks like it will have all of the features of the US version. Incidentially, fans of the "Back to the Future" movie trilogy will be pleased with an exclusive trailer on the Australian version of JP3 -- it contains the first official word that the BTTF DVD's will finally arrive this summer. (Thanks BTTF.com)
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More Toys
Ok, I don't know much about toys or action figures, but let me know if this is right: Hasbro re-programs their toy making machines to re-paint the same exact figures with different colors schemes, calls it another "series" or "wave", and everyone runs out and buys the same figures again? Oookayyy... Hasbro has updated their JP3 page with pics of the "Series II, wave I" toys. (Thanks 'Raptor1982')
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January 7, 2002
JP3 Arcade "Soon"?
It looks like we may not have to wait until March to play the JP3 arcade game after all, according to Jack of industry website Cashboxcentral.com, who reports that the title "should be just about ready for release in the USA now." (It wasn't at my local big arcade yesterday, though be on the lookout!) Jack added that according to Konami, there will also be at least one major change in the Japanese and US versions of the game, with Konami doing away with the reported curved screen. "The curved screen made the game too expensive for the US market and they would only be doing it as a pretty standard upright shooting game."
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EW Reviews Hop-On Phone
Anyone out there lucky enough to receive one of those odd credit-card-sized telephones in their copy of the JP3 DVD (story)? Anyway, the staff of Entertainment Weekly seems to have been quite amused by the "world's first disposable cell phone", evidenced by this write-up from this week's issue:
"Unlike the yellow satellite phone that saves Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill)
from becoming dinosaur chow in Jurassic Park 3, the rectangular red
cellular JURASSIC PARK SURVIVAL PHONE - which is being given away with
thousands of JP3 DVDs and videos - doesn't receive incoming calls or have
a keypad (much less distinctive, dino-altering musical ring). Calls are
instead made by voice command, and a computerized operator attempts to
decipher the number - which works only if your shrouded in silence. Granted
background noise isn't going to be your biggest problem if your making an
emergency call from Isla Sorna. But why save the 60 minutes of free
nationwide talk time included with the phone for the day when your fighting
for your life? "Hi, mom, just waiting for the rescue helicopter and though
I'd call..." No, the Jurassic Park Survival Phone is simply a prepaid
calling card with a built-in antenna. And, just like the film, its greatest
attribute is that its both disposable and recyclable. -- Noah Roischon"
(Thanks 'Rexoraptor')
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DVD Petition
Unhappy with the JP3 DVD? Want even more special features, commentaries, and the like for the next version? Well 'Embryo' certainly does, and wants to send a message to Universal Home Video with his 'JP3: Ultimate Edition' Petition, which you can add your electronic signature to by clicking right here. Will it work? Maybe! But either way, who among us can honestly pass up a good ol' American-style petition!
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January 5, 2002
JP3 Arcade Game by March
Look for the new JP3 Arcade Game in US arcades by March "at the latest", according to a Konami representitve, who doesn't provide too many other details on the upcoming game other than the fact that "a decision [has not been made] on whether or not to release this game in the UK." Pretty much the very last JP3-related event we're looking forward to now is the release of this game, which until November was kept tightly under wraps by Konami Japan. The game is said to be a 1st person light gun title like the TLW arcade game, but with new high-tech sensors that allow the player to duck and dodge to avoid attacks by the dinos. While the game has already been spotted in Japanese arcades, due to the large size of the unit, the high cost to owners (certainly in the high thousands), and negative feelings towards anything with a gun following 9/11, the JP3 game may only appear in the most select arcades.
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December 28, 2001
VHS/DVD Sales Fun
Summarizing JP3's performance on home video this week, Reuters is reporting JP3 fell three spots to #5 in the rental market this week, pushed down by "The Princess Diaries" and "Scary Movie 2". On the sales front, however, JP3 is holding its own against Jackie Chan's "Rush Hour 2", according to the Hollywood Reporter: While the article doesn't mention numbers (odd), the author does comment "[The Rush Hour 2] DVD narrowly beat out JP3 in head-to-head competition during their first week of sales." VHS did even better, beating Rush Hour 2 on tape but falling to the #2 spot, behind "Pearl Harbor".
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More JP3 DVD Problems
If the widescreen/fullscreen problems with the JP3 DVD (mentioned a few weeks ago) weren't enough, here are a few more:
- I've received several reports from people (David among them) who were quite peeved to crack open their JP3 DVD case any find that the promised included forms to send for the bonus "Beyond Jurassic Park" and free Universal discs were -- you guessed it -- not inserted into their case. Presumably calling Universal customer service might resolve this problem, but still, it's a pain in the ass.
- Yvonne sends along a bizarre issue with the JP3 DVD from movie wholesaler Ingram Video. According to them, the JP3 DVD has been confirmed to cause some select brands of surround sound receivers (Onkyo, Kenwood and Denon) to crap out, causing "mutes" in the audio track when watching the film. But since this is a problem with the receiver and not the disc, customers will have to contact their receiver manufacturer to correct this issue.
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[JP3 News from December 4th through December 22nd]
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