The Weinstein brothers had a dream. It was to become movie producers. Not just any movie producers, but the creme de la creme of Hollywood. They also wanted to do it with passion and intelligence. Of course, like all Hollywood business types/creatives, they were known for huge egos and monstrous tempers, but they didn’t have a patch on somebody like Don Simpson (who would?).

In terms of content, they were the anti-Simpsons and Bruckheimers and their type of movie defined a new type of American cinema for the 1990s. Sure, Hollywood continued producing its usual stuff, but the Weinsteins, who cutely named their studio after their mother and father, forged a first rate reputation. They began the company over 31 years ago and it reached the zenith of its success in the mid 1990s.

One of the great things about Miramax was its occasional daring amidst all the high-brow pap they produced. They gave Quentin Tarantino his first shot. Doug Liman, Anthony Minghella, John Madden, Kevin Smith, Steven Soderbergh have all profited from their relationship with the Weinsteins. They distributed foreign language movies and challenging fare to wider audiences and scored big at the Oscars. And therein lies one of the problems. They got too big for their boots and their advertising campaigns became a laughing stock as the years went by.

Disney have announced Miramax’s New York and Los Angeles offices will close down with a loss of eighty jobs. They have up to six movies waiting for distribution, including Julie Taymor’s The Tempest.

Now operating under the Weinstein Company, the brothers are continuing on with their moviemaking business. The sun has set on Miramax, but their legacy will endure.

This Christmas, the first installment of Doctor Who: The End of Time will be screened in the UK. Featuring the well publicized demise of the tenth Doctor, David Tennant and the birth of a new, younger model in Matt Smith, the two-parter is sure to be a ratings winner.

But what do we actually know about Tennant’s swansong? Four knocks will signal his doom, the Ood have also predicted his demise and of course The Master will be making his long awaited comeback also, but still, actual details about the plot remain scarce.

Also bowing out this year is Russel T. Davies as the show’s writer and executive producer, so expect all bets to be off in the first episode, to be screened on Dec 25th. Speaking to Wales Online, Davies was clear that the story would be kept under wraps until the big day, and that fans should appreciate that fact:

“We do like keeping secrets. You should always watch it without knowing what’s going to happen and watch it unfold, brand new in front of you.”

“If you want to go online and look for all the spoilers then go ahead, but I know for a fact you are depriving yourself of enjoyment, which I think says a lot about the online experience. It ruins it when you know too much.”

So with little to go on in the way of plot spoilers, how about those images? Released today by the BBC, we have pictures of The Master, gagged and bound and flanked by armed guards. However, knowing The Master, one would assume that it’s all part of a far grander plan.

Twilight fans can now breathe a sigh of relief as The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn has been green-lit by Summit Entertainment!

According to sources, the fourth and final story in Stephanie Meyer’s series will be released in two parts and production will once again take place in Portland, Oregon. In addition a new production company, Sunswept Entertainment, has been brought in for Breaking Dawn, which is due to shooting in September 2010.

Creator of Sunswept Entertainment, Karen Rosenfelt will produce, Rosenfelt also served as Producer on “Twilight” and “The Twilight Saga: New Moon“. A director has not yet been attached to the project.

According to sources there will likely be heavy censoring of Breaking Dawn’s explicit sex and birth scenes in order to avoid an ‘R’ rating. Although Summit have not confirmed that the film will be shot in two parts, author Stephanie Meyer has stated:

“It would have to be made into multiple movies because it’s hard to imagine it fitting into ninety minutes”.

Fans have recently shown concern over the fate of the movie, which was the only part of the series not to have a confirmed production schedule. The second film in the series, “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” is due in theatres on 20th November 2009 and the third story in the series, “ ” is currently in production in Vancouver.