Is Arnold changing his tune?

http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/p...nusa02009.html Terminator calls for film ceasefire Christopher Goodwin, Los Angeles FEW Hollywood actors have amassed a body count as im-pressive as Arnold Schwarzenegger's. But the former body-builder - best known for violent epics such as the Terminator series - is now urging film-makers to staunch the flow of blood, because of his concern at the harmful effect of screen violence on young people. Schwarzenegger, 53, the father of four young children, has emerged as an unlikely supporter of calls for voluntary restraint that are sweeping the industry. To drive home his point, he demanded a cut in violence and bad language in his latest offering, The 6th Day. The film, in which the Austrian-born actor plays a man who arrives home one day to find he has been cloned, will be given a PG-13 rating - allowing it to be seen by children - rather than the more restrictive "R" classification that would have confined it to adults. "We could say to all those marketing people, 'Look, we know that if you sell an R-rated movie to 12-year-olds, they will want to go and see it," Schwarzenegger said. "But is it really good to let them in? Do I want my children watching incredible violence? No. You have to be much more careful with these things." The actor, who has recently suffered from a heart problem, has suggested that his second thoughts on screen violence were inspired by the onset of middle age. "At 30 you go around saying, 'I want to do the biggest blow-ups, the biggest shootings and I want to have the biggest body count'," he said recently. "But when you get over 50 and you have a family, you should broaden out and do other things." Sceptics say his stance may not be unconnected with his political ambitions: an avowed Republican, he is said to be considering a run for the governorship of California in 2002. "Oh, yeah, I think about it many times," he told Talk magazine. Not everyone accepts the apparent change of heart by a star whose credits include Predator, a bloody 1987 film in which Schwarzenegger leads a team of commandos hunted by an extraterrestrial warrior and personally kills 47 people. Nor is his reputation as a celluloid killing machine likely to be undermined by his next two movies, Collateral Damage and Terminator 3. "It seems pretty bizarre coming from the man who made his fortune by commercialising ultra-violence," said Alix MacGregor, a Los Angeles-based film writer. Whatever inspired Schwarzenegger's comments, they chime with a kinder, gentler mood that has settled over Tinseltown recently, partly in response to attacks on Hollywood values from presidential candidates and other politicians. While the screens this time last year were filled with dark films such as Fight Club and Magnolia, cinema-goers are now being treated to a wave of old-fashioned feelgood movies. Many feature stars such as Robert De Niro, Nicolas Cage and Denzel Washington who, like Schwarzenegger, made their names in action films. "Y2K was all people were talking about last year and there were a lot of apocalyptic, heavy themes," said Brian Callaghan, a director of one of America's largest cinema chains. "With the new century there's a more optimistic approach." Nor is any reduction in violence and foul language attributable solely to political pressure. Hollywood is being encouraged in its new sense of responsibility by the box office draw of the feelgood factor. Remember the Titans, starring Denzel Washington, is the story of a smalltown football team that learns to win by setting aside its racial differences. Made for £18m, it has taken more than £55m in the month since its release and is likely to be Disney's highest grossing non-animated film of the year. Much of its success is being attributed to Disney's insistence that the film's producers tone down strong language in the script, which allowed the studio to release it with a PG-13 rating, broadening its audience. Audiences have also responded well to the British film Billy Elliot, a hot Oscar tip, and to Pay It Forward, starring Kevin Spacey as a teacher who inspires a young boy to perform random acts of kindness. Several other films in the same heartwarming vein will be released over the next few weeks. They include The Legend of Bagger Vance - featuring Matt Damon as an emotionally damaged war veteran given a new lease of life by a stranger - and Finding Forrester, with Sean Connery as a reclusive writer who encourages a young basketball player. Drew Barrymore, who stars in and co-produced the new big-screen version of the 1970s television hit, Charlie's Angels, insisted that she and her fellow angels, Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu, should not carry guns in the £60m film. However, not everyone is convinced that the kinder, gentler Hollywood will last long. "Just wait until the election is out of the way," quipped one independent film producer. Terminator 3 goes into production in early March. Mavi forum