'Killshot' slated for Nov. 7 theater release

The wait for a chance to see Cape Girardeau in the movies could be over soon.

The Weinstein Co. posted Nov. 7 as the premier date for "Killshot," the film adaptation of an Elmore Leonard novel, on its company website. The movie, starring Diane Lane and Mickey Rourke, has been delayed repeatedly since production crews spent a week filming in Cape Girardeau in January 2006.

"Oh good," Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle said when told of the new release date. "I sort of got disappointed thinking it was going to be on video."

Another star of the movie, Thomas Jane, had recently told a website the film might skip a theatrical release and go straight to video.

Swingle, author of three books, is friendly with Leonard and spent a lot of time watching the film crew under director John Madden at close range.

When crews were in town, the projected release date for the film was the fall of 2006. Earlier this year, the Weinstein Co. listed an April release date, but the movie never appeared.

The lack of a release and refilming of some scenes have led to speculation on some blogs that the production did not turn out well and that dialogue and action scenes in Cape Girardeau have been cut from the final product. For example, actor Johnny Knoxville, who played a creepy U.S. marshal, is not mentioned as appearing in the film in the blurb on the Weinstein Co. website.

Other reports have said that outdoor shots of Cape Girardeau were retained in the final cut.

Whether the film will actually be released in November is questionable. The blog on Leonard's website also noted the posting by Weinstein but added: "A well placed source told me the release date is" a sham.

At Wehrenberg Theaters' office in St. Louis, spokeswoman Kelly Hoskins said the company was unaware of the film or its Cape Girardeau connection and could not say whether the movie would be booked into its 14-screen Cape Girardeau cineplex. That decision will be made based on the likely box office revenue and what split of that revenue was demanded by Weinstein, she said.

A call to Weinstein's office was relayed to Joe Moskus of Allied Advertising and Publicity in St. Louis. Moskus said he needed to research several questions that ranged from whether the release date is a firm commitment or if it could be changed and how much of the Cape Girardeau-filmed scenes would appear when the movie is finally screened.

Moskus did not reply to the written questions by press time Friday.

rkeller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126

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