SHOOTING STARS: ‘Middle Men’ in the middle
There’s a scene in “Middle Men” that shows two characters driving into Las Vegas for (can you believe it?) some wild times.
This week’s when those wild times wind up on film, as the big-screen feature checks into Glitter City for a four-day shoot.
The driving scene will include an aerial shot to be filmed near Apex. Most of the action, however, takes place near the heart of the Strip.
Among the locations: the Las Vegas Country Club’s golf course and the Hard Rock hotel.
Mallick’s experiences as a straight-arrow businessman whose company begins processing credit-card payments for the fledgling online porn industry inspired the project.
The movie’s characters, who include James Caan as a shady lawyer, “are coming to Las Vegas to have a little fun,” Sherak says.
To that end, “Middle Men” also is filming in a Hard Rock penthouse suite — the one with the bowling alley.
Watching his experiences re-created, even in “highly fictionalized” form, “is surreal at moments,” Mallick admits — but in a good way.
Your faithful Shooting Stars correspondent hopes to stop by the “Middle Men” set during the movie’s visit … so check the Vegas Voice blog later this week for an on-the-set update.
Cirque du PBS: Las Vegas’ brief tenure as a family destination has come and gone, but that’s not keeping the Emmy-winning PBS Kids show “Design Squad” from visiting Las Vegas Wednesday and Thursday.
Nate Ball, the mechanical engineer and young inventor who hosts the show (which also has received a prestigious Peabody Award), will visit Cirque’s “Ka” at the MGM Grand for a segment of a “Design Squad” spinoff (produced by Boston PBS affiliate WGBH) expected to air in 2010.
The British documentary “Five US,” which explores five different cities, will gather footage of Las Vegas life at the Fremont Street Experience Tuesday.
“Xposé” — a daily dish of celebrity and entertainment news that airs weeknights on Ireland’s TV3 network— is shooting a Las Vegas special reportedly pitched to them by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Among the scheduled stops: Mandalay Bay’s Minus5 ice bar and The Hotel’s Bathhouse spa.
And the documentary “Plietsch,” from Germany’s NDR network, is scheduled to follow a German flight crew member for three days.
Catching up: The Food Network’s “Iron Chef” visited Bellagio’s Michael Mina restaurant last week to shoot introductory footage of executive chef Anthony Amoroso, who’ll be a challenger on an upcoming episode of the cooking competition.
And CBS News’ “Early Show” hit Doc Romeo Skate Park last week for a future feature on Aaron “Wheels” Fotheringham, pictured at right, the 17-year-old wheelchair athlete who does flips and other BMX-style moves.
Sweet 15: From “The Real World” to “Making the Band,” MTV loves Las Vegas.
The affection continues as MTV’s Latin-flavored channel, MTV Tr3s, shoots footage for an episode of “Quiero Mis Quinces,” about behind-the-scenes preparations for coming-of-age quinceañera bashes. The show’s scheduled to shoot through Dec. 17 at a Summerlin home and other venues, from stores to salons, then return in early January.
As always, stay tuned for more details in next week’s Shooting Stars.
