Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 15, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE C3 C3TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2022 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM T RIBUTES are pouring in for Toronto-raised filmmaker and producer Ivan Reitman, who reshaped comedic cinema with a distinctly Canadian sensibility. The Ghostbusters director died peacefully in his sleep Saturday night at his home in Montecito, Calif., his family told The Associated Press. He was 75. His son, director Jason Reitman, mourned the loss of his “hero” on Monday. “All I want is the chance to tell my father one more story,” tweeted the younger Reitman, who inherited his fa- ther’s supernatural comedy franchise as the director of 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife. “He came from a family of (Holo- caust) survivors and turned his legacy into laughter… Enjoy his movies and remember his storytelling gifts. Noth- ing would make him happier.” Born in Slovakia to a mother who survived Auschwitz and a father who escaped from a concentration camp, the elder Reitman and his family came to Canada as refugees in 1950 when he was four. He studied at Hamilton’s McMaster University, where he started directing several short films before moving to Los Angeles. A director and producer of screen and stage, Reitman first made his mark on the big screen as a producer of two films by Canadian horror master David Cronenberg, 1975’s Shivers and 1977’s Rabid. But Reitman’s impact was most pronounced in Hollywood’s comedy scene. He rose to prominence produc- ing 1978’s National Lampoon’s Animal House and then directing a string of other comedies, including Meatballs, Stripes, the first two Ghostbusters films, and Kindergarten Cop. Kumail Nanjiani, Mindy Kaling and Paul Feig were among the comedy no- tables to pay their respects to Reitman on Twitter. “I had the honour of working so closely with Ivan and it was always such a learning experience,” wrote Feig, who helmed the 2016 reboot of Ghostbusters. “He directed some of my favourite comedies of all time. All of us in come- dy owe him so very much.” Toronto International Film Festival CEO Cameron Bailey remembered Re- itman on Monday as a Canadian legend whose brand of humour transcended borders and the bounds of what was considered good taste at the time. “I think he always saw the films that he was making, whether it was directing or producing, as movies for the whole world,” Bailey said in an interview. “(His) was a particular brand of comedy, very anarchic, kind of wild, unruly, but it was exactly what that generation wanted… A lot of the movies that we see now and style of comedy coming out of Hollywood can be traced back to Ivan Reitman.” Bailey also touted Reitman as a champion of Canadian cinema, noting that he contributed the land on which TIFF Bell Lightbox sits. “He understood what we were trying to do, to show movies beyond the com- mercial mainstream,” said Bailey. “He understood the value of film culture, and we’re able to show movies every day thanks to him.” Reitman was inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2007 and has been nominated for an Emmy, Oscar and BAFTA, among other honours. His legacy lives on as the patriarch of a Canadian entertainment dynasty whose influence has been felt across genres. He was married to Quebec actress Geneviève Robert, with whom he had three children — Jason, Catherine and Caroline. Jason Reitman honed his own cinematic blend of comedy and drama with award darlings including 2007’s Juno and 2009’s Up in the Air, which he produced with his father. His other directing credits include Young Adult, Tully and The Front Runner. His younger sister, Catherine Reit- man, is an actress, comedian, producer, writer and director. She is the creator and star of CBC’s parenting comedy Workin’ Moms, which debuted in 2017 and has been nominated for several Canadian Screen Awards and an Inter- national Emmy. — The Canadian Press ARTS ● LIFE I ARTS ROME — A pair of terracotta lovers caught in a tender embrace for 2,500 years are getting some Valentine’s Day TLC from Italian cultural officials. One of the most famous lovers’ statues in the art world, the reclining spouses fashioned out of terracotta are being offered high-tech protec- tion from the threat of earthquakes and lesser tremors from passing traf- fic outside, officials said Monday as they unveiled the 18-month project. The Sarcophagus of the Spouses, made by an unknown artisan, is ac- tually an urn constructed to hold the remains of the deceased. It is a top attraction at the National Etruscan Museum at Villa Giulia. “The sarcophagus is threatened on a daily basis by the vibrations produced by the tramway and the railroad Rome-Viterbo” said Valenti- no Nizzo, the museum’s director. The 18-month project includes the construction of an anti-seismic plat- form for the sarcophagus that will help reduce vibrations that threaten it. The Sarcophagus, dating to the 6th century BC, was discovered in 1881 in a necropolis in Cerveteri, a former Etruscan settlement near Rome. It was reconstructed from approxi- mately 400 terracotta fragments. — The Associated Press DOMENICO STINELLIS / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The Sarcophagus of the Spouses dates to the 6th century BC. ONLY GOOD VIBRATIONS FOR TERRACOTTA LOVERS DOMENICO STINELLIS / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Rome’s La Sapienza University professor Luigi Sorrentino shows the ultrasonic thickness gauge he uses on the steel structure supporting the showcase of the terracotta Sarcoph- agus of the Spouses. Legacy of laughter Director Ivan Reitman remembered as comedy heavyweight, champion of Canadian film SADAF AHSAN AND ADINA BRESGE DAMIAN DOVARGANES / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES Producer and director Ivan Reitman (centre, with Nastassja Kinski, Billy Crystal, and Robin Williams) is honoured with a star on the the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1997. MATT SAYLES / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES Ivan Reitman, the influential filmmaker and producer behind beloved comedies from Animal House to Ghostbusters, has died. He was 75. There’s a new prince in Bel-Air ALICIA RANCILIO NEW YORK — Jabari Banks knew he was close to getting the starring role of Will in Bel-Air, the dramatic take of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, but his confidence started to wane when he was asked to do one more Zoom audition with show director Morgan Cooper. “I’m like, ‘I don’t know what he wants to see, but I’m gonna give him everything I got,’ recalled the 23-year- old in a recent interview. “I was like, ‘I’m gonna put everything into this audition.’” Banks found a quiet place — a friend’s closet — and logged in, only to see a very familiar face staring back at him: Will Smith. “I didn’t think it was real,” Banks said. “He’s like, ‘I want to congratulate you. You got the part of Will in Bel-Air. And then with true Smith exuber- ance, the superstar directed Banks to invite those with him to join the Zoom. “He was like, ‘Where is everybody? Go get them,’ said Banks. “So a lot of my friends met Will.” And that’s how Banks became the (new) prince of Bel-Air. The series is streaming on Peacock (in Canada, it airs on Showcase on Mondays at 8 p.m. and streams on the Global app). Cooper says searching for the actor to play the new Will was not an easy task, and that he was looking “for a unicorn.” “Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of auditions poured in. We needed a guy who had the swagger, the charisma, but also the pure acting chops, who uses his eyes,” he said. “Ja- bari Banks is such a star and he shines so bright.” The parallels between Smith and Banks seem tailor-made for Holly- wood. Like Smith, Banks is from west Philadelphia. He’s also a musician working on his own EP, which he says is a mix of R&B, hip-hop and alterna- tive genres, and plans to release it later this year. He also loves fashion and The Fresh Prince was a trend-setting show. Banks says he’s taking this huge opportunity “one day at a time,” and cites an anecdote from Smith’s autobi- ography, Will, about his father assign- ing him and his brother to build a wall brick by brick. “I’ve been following that motto and going about my day to day like that,” he said. The series was immediately given a two-season order. Bel-Air was conceived by Cooper, a filmmaker in Kansas City who taught himself to shoot film on a camera bought at Best Buy. He grew up loving The Fresh Prince and believed the premise of the show could still work today — but also reflect the times. “If you remove the laugh track from the sitcom and really look at the sce- nario from a bird’s-eye view, the story really lends itself to drama.” Cooper famously made a trailer for this idea using local actors and upload- ed it to YouTube. Not even 24 hours later, Smith’s production company, Westbrook, reached out for a meeting. Two weeks later Cooper flew to Miami to meet Smith where he was filming Bad Boys for Life. Things took off, two seasons were ordered, and the first three episodes dropped Sunday after the Super Bowl. In Bel-Air, a 16-year-old high school basketball star named Will is play- ing at a local court when he gets into a scuffle with a gang. The situation escalates quickly, and Will is arrested. Once he’s released, his mother takes him directly to the airport to catch a flight to Los Angeles. In real life, Banks found himself at a crossroads his junior year of high school. He loved basketball but low grades made him ineligible to play. Banks’ mom told him, “You have to find something to do after school,” so he joined a theatre group. That’s where he says he fell in love with performing. — The Associated Press CHRIS PIZZELLO/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Bel-Air director Morgan Cooper calls novice actor Jabari Banks, above, ‘a star.’ C_03_Feb-15-22_FP_01.indd 3 2022-02-14 5:16 PM ;