Melanie Griffith and Patrick Swayze Rediscover Love in STARZ! Pictures' FOREVER LULU

Melanie Griffith and Patrick Swayze Rediscover Love in STARZ! Pictures' FOREVER LULU

		STARZ! PICTURES FOREVER LULU A schizophrenic woman (Melanie Griffith) tracks down her college soulmate (Patrick Swayze) and takes him on a powerful journey to find their child that she secretly gave up for adoption almost two decades earlier, in the STARZ! Pictures World Premiere presentation of FOREVER LULU, exclusively on STARZ!, March 3 at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT). (PRNewsFoto)[TC] ENGLEWOOD, CA USA

'I Think of Lulu as a Kind of Angel. She Comes and Heals.' Sometimes a Little Madness Helps the Journey to Truth and Healing ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- STARZ! Pictures(R) presents the world premiere of FOREVER LULU on STARZ!(R) Saturday, March 3, 2001 (with subsequent plays throughout the month). The inspiring romantic drama stars Academy Award(R) nominee and Golden Globe-winning actress Melanie Griffith as psychiatric patient Lulu, and Golden Globe nominees Patrick Swayze and Penelope Ann Miller as writer Ben Clifton and his psychiatrist wife Claire. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010122/LAM026 ) According to Producer Diane Sillan, "FOREVER LULU is a big journey about Ben and what he has to go through to face his demons. Along the way it's Lulu who instigates, provokes and brings him back in touch. She's a kind of road map to his soul." While the character of Lulu has a certain outrageousness to her, Penelope Ann Miller has the tough task of playing the restrained Claire. "She's challenging in that I have to keep it very contained. As a psychiatrist trying to help other people, Claire's a classic example of someone not necessarily practicing what she preaches. Maybe she's no crazier than Lulu, or just as crazy, she just handles it differently." Griffith notes, "I think of Lulu as a kind of angel. She comes and heals, and at the same time, she's a fragile woman who realizes her own power again." To research her part, Griffith spent time with four schizophrenic women who were in different stages of the disease and battling different problems. However, she also points out that "it's never just about the characters. It has to be about the story, and this is a beautiful love story." Veteran actor Swayze offers this about Ben and Lulu, "They are like two meteors that would just burn each other out. I have a feeling that this movie could communicate some wonderful things to the world." FOREVER LULU is the heartfelt story of warm and engaging Lulu McAfee, a patient in long-term psychiatric treatment who suddenly leaves the institution to track down her old college soulmate, Ben Clifton. Lulu, although emotionally fragile and potentially suicidal, has never lost her wild, romantic, youthful spirit. Ben is a television writer, living in Los Angeles, whose stagnant marriage to psychiatrist, Claire Clifton, has never fully recovered from the recent loss of their 5-year-old son, Andrew, to leukemia. Despite being separated for more than 16 years, hundreds of miles and personal tragedies, Lulu and Ben share a rare lifelong bond and the passion of their youthful romance has not faded over time. Ben is shocked when he finds out that Lulu is in Los Angeles, but reluctantly agrees to meet with her. He tries to convince her to return to the safety of the institution, but wavers when she pleads with him "to go back to where it can start again." Lulu stuns Ben by telling him that she was pregnant when they broke up and was forced to put their child up for adoption. What follows is a poignant, cross-country trek in search of their son. Meanwhile, an upset Claire rushes after them in an effort to thwart Lulu and save her marriage. The three unexpectedly meet in a hotel in Madison, Wisconsin, setting off a series of heartrending, surprising, yet emotionally healing events. Lulu acts as a catalyst prompting Ben, Claire and several others to courageously face their self-imposed demons. Following this chance encounter the story draws to a dramatic climax that changes everyone's life for the better. For veteran screenwriter John Kaye (WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM), the ensemble production was intensely personal. "It was essentially a story about my wife who was a schizophrenic and killed herself. It's like a love poem to her in a lot of ways." Kaye goes on to say that the movie is a fairly complex story, but in its simplest terms, it's a road picture. "I think it's about people taking risks with their lives ... people that get an opportunity to get a second chance and go for it." FOREVER LULU marked the feature film directorial debut of Kaye, who also penned the original screenplay. Beginning her career at age sixteen in Arthur Penn's NIGHT MOVES, Melanie Griffith (CRAZY IN ALABAMA, WORKING GIRL) is one of today's most sought-after and versatile actresses, who has collaborated with some of the film industry's most important directors. Patrick Swayze (GHOST, POINT BREAK), made his film debut in 1979's SKATETOWN U.S.A. In 1987 he gained worldwide recognition when he starred as Johnny Castle in the box office hit DIRTY DANCING. Showcasing unusual versatility, Penelope Ann Miller (KINDERGARTEN COP, RHAPSODY IN BLOOM) has amassed an acclaimed, yet diverse, resume of performances in both film and television. The cast also features Emmy-winning actor Richard Schiff ("The West Wing," DR. DOLITTLE), Joseph Gordon-Levitt ("3rd Rock From The Sun," A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT), Lee Garlington (DANTE'S PEAK, SNEAKERS), Annie Corley (CIDER HOUSE RULES) and Steven Bauer (TRAFFIC). Diane Sillan (CRAZY IN ALABAMA), Abra Edelman (UNDERWORLD), Boaz Davidson (GUINEVERE) and John Thompson (GUINEVERE) produced the film, with Willi Baer (VIRGIN SUICIDES), Avi Lerner (OPERATION DELTA FORCE), Danny Dimbort (OPERATION DELTA FORCE) and Trevor Short (OPERATION DELTA FORCE) acting as executive producers. FOREVER LULU was filmed entirely on location in-and-around Los Angeles and San Francisco. STARZ!(R) regularly plays never-before-seen STARZ! Pictures(R) films that feature some of Hollywood's most outstanding talent. Recent STARZ! Pictures include: THE WHITE RIVER KID starring Bob Hoskins, Antonio Banderas and Ellen Barkin; BRUNO directed by and starring Shirley MacLaine, Kathy Bates and Gary Sinise and RELATIVE VALUES starring Julie Andrews. Starz Encore Group LLC (Starz Encore) is the largest provider of cable and satellite-delivered premium movie channels in the United States. Starz Encore owns 15 domestic channels and currently counts approximately 88 million pay units. Starz Encore offers up to 14 channels of the Starz Super Pak(SM), which comprises STARZ!(R), Encore(SM), Action(SM), Mystery(SM), BET Movies(SM), Westerns(SM), STARZ! Family(R), Love Stories(SM), True Stories(SM), STARZ! Theater(R), WAM!(R), STARZ!(R) Cinema(SM) and, to be offered in 2002, STARZ!(R) Comedy(SM) and STARZ!(R) Kidz(SM). Additionally, Starz Encore has the only low priced movie pak for price-sensitive consumers, the Encore Movie Pak(SM), featuring up to seven theme channels. Find programming information on the Web at http://www.starzencore.com and archived press releases at http://www.prnewswire.com/micro/NCOR. Starz Encore is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Media Group (NYSE: LMGa, LMGb). For further information, please contact Marc McCarthy of STARZ! Pictures, (303) 267-5851, marc.mccarthy@starzencore.com; or Richard Hoffman of Warren Cowan & Associates, (310) 275-0777, rhhoffman@warrencowan.com, for STARZ! Pictures.