People talk 04/23/03

DiCaprio receives Russian film award

LOS ANGELES -- The Russian International Film Festival has awarded actor Leonardo DiCaprio its Tower Award for his contribution to world cinema.

DiCaprio, a Russian film aficionado, accepted the award from festival director Stas Namin before an intimate gathering including his grandmother, Yelena Smirnova, who emigrated from Russia 40 years ago, and his father, George DiCaprio.

The "Gangs of New York" and "Catch Me If You Can" star said he was a fan of Sergei Eisenstein and introduced one of his favorites from the director, "Battleship Potemkin," at the festival.

"I respect Russian culture and Russian cinema, especially Eisenstein, (Andrei) Tarkovsky, and (Sergei) Paradzhanov," the 28-year-old actor said. "I'm definitely going to catch some more movies at this festival."

The festival began Friday at the ArcLight Hollywood theaters and runs through Thursday. It includes Russian movie artwork, photography and posters. Among the films being screened is Eisenstein's classic, "Ivan the Terrible."

"By showing these movies together in a single exhibition, students, filmmakers, industry leaders and cinema lovers will discover the unique vision and artistry of Russian masters of moviemaking," Namin said.

The festival was organized by the Stas Namin Cultural Center in Russia, the American Film Institute and Seven Arts Productions.

MTV offers new take on 'Wuthering Heights'

NEW YORK -- First, MTV updated "Carmen." Now, the cable music channel is offering a modern take on "Wuthering Heights."

Erika Christensen, who played a high school stalker in last year's "Swimfan" and a drug-addicted teen in 2000's "Traffic," will star as Cate in a musical version of the Emily Bronte novel.

Mike Vogel will play a homeless musician named Heath with whom Cate falls in love, and Chris Masterson (Fox's "Malcolm in the Middle") will play Edward, whom Cate agrees to marry instead.

Christensen, Vogel and Johnny Whitworth, as Cate's brother, Hendrix, will make their on-screen singing debuts in the film, which is scheduled to begin production in May in Puerto Rico, MTV said Monday. It's set to air during the third quarter of this year.

-- From wire reports