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Russell Crowe wanted a papal blessing for ‘Noah’ but Pope Francis blew him off

Russell Crowe wanted a papal blessing for ‘Noah’ but Pope Francis blew him off

خليجية
Here are some new photos
of Russell Crowe at the Moscow photocall for Noah, his bloated, water-logged Biblical epic. Russell’s been relatively MIA from promotional duties thus far, which… considering he’s the lead, that does not bode well. As for these photos… even though I’m pretty sure he’s an angry wanker, I still have some residual affection for Russell. I think he looks chubby and cute here. The Daily Mail was making fun of his (obvious) dye job, but that might be for a film…?

Anyway, one of the few “promotional” things Crowe has done thus far is try to get some kind of Vatican screening for Noah. He’s been tweeting the Vatican (seriously!) and the studio has been trying to get Mr. Good Guy Pope Francis to say something, anything about the film. But it’s a no go.

Pope Francis has nixed a meeting with the creative team behind “Noah,” including star Russell Crowe, director Darren Aronofsky and Paramount vice chair Rob Moore, which studio executives had been scrambling to schedule as a photo-op, Variety has learned.

The meeting was never fully confirmed, but tentatively on the calendar for Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. in the VIP section so the Pope could figuratively lend a blessing to the $125 million Biblical epic. The reason the Vatican cancelled it, according to a source, is over concerns word would leak, causing a spectacle as Crowe and Aronofsky landed in Rome.

When reached by Variety last week, Aronofsky said the meeting had been proposed, but it wouldn’t happen if any**** reported or Tweeted about it.

“Noah,” scheduled for U.S. release on March 28, has been criticized by some religious groups for taking too many liberties with the story of Noah’s Ark.

Even though the Pope doesn’t normally screen movies, he recently met with Philomena Lee, the subject of the Weinstein Co’s “Philomena” at the height of Oscars season in February.


[From Variety]


My guess is that the Pope heard some of the bad reviews as well. And the film has already been banned in several countries, including Qatar, Bahrain, and the UAE. Paramount is bracing for more bans across the Middle East. There’s also an outcry from American evangelicals too, because there are some derivations from the Biblical story. So, boycotts all over the place. Which might work to give the film some added “danger” and some cool caché… if only the film was high art or something. But it’s not. It’s just a bloated Biblical mess. Stay away, Pope Francis!

Cele|bitchy | Russell Crowe wanted a papal blessing for ‘Noah’ but Pope Francis blew him off

Man killed by Pope John Paul II

Man killed by Pope John Paul II

Man crushed to death by giant crucifix dedicated to Pope

Tragedy happens only days before canonisation of Pope John Paul II who had had crucifix dedicated to him

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The man, ****d as Marco Gusmini, was posing for a photograph with a group of friends in front of the 100ft-high cross when it suddenly collapsed Photo: NEWSFOTO
By Nick Squires, Rome

7:45PM BST 24 Apr 2024

An Italian man was crushed to death on Thursday by a giant crucifix dedicated to the late Pope John Paul II, just days before the Polish pontiff will be made a saint in a ceremony at the Vatican.

In a bizarre coincidence, the 21-year-old man was reported to have been living in a street ****d after Pope John XXIII – who will also be canonised in the ceremony on Sunday, in an event that is unprecedented in the 2,000 year history of the Catholic Church.

The man, ****d as Marco Gusmini, was posing for a photograph with a group of friends in front of the 100ft-high cross when it suddenly collapsed.

A large, 20ft-high statue of Christ the Redeemer was attached to the crucifix, which was created for John Paul II’s visit to Brescia, in the northern region of Lombardy, in 1998.

It was subsequently removed from Brescia and re-erected in the mountain village of Cevo in 2024.

The massive cross was unusually shaped – it bowed and bent downwards and was held in place by steel cables.
In what one Italian newspaper called “a tragedy full of disturbing coincidences”, the victim lived with his parents in a town called Lovere in Via Papa Giovanni XXIII – Pope John XXIII Street.

Man crushed to death by giant crucifix dedicated to Pope – Telegraph