Legal News

Variety's film review a heavy 'Cross' to bear as suit gets tossed

By Richard Binder

Variety Magazine was sued in March by the producers of the film "Iron Cross," which features the last film appearance of Roy Scheider.  Calibra Pictures and the trade magazine had agreed to an advertising campaign including DVD inserts, front-page ads, and inclusion in Variety's screening series. This campaign cost Calibra in excess of $220,000.

But then the magazine ran a review that panned "Iron Cross" so heavily that the chances of the film getting any kind of distribution deal were next to nothing, according to the suit, even though Variety pulled the review from its Web and print versions.

Calibra sought unspecified damages of more than $25,000 as well as a jury trial. 

Yesterday a Los Angeles Superior Court judge tossed out the suit, ruling that Variety's review was an exercise of the magazine's First Amendment rights. Timothy McGonigle, Calibra's attorney, plans an appeal.

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Full post as published by Legal Pad | LA on May 18, 2010 (boomark / email).