On location 'Phenomenon' proved a hit for Auburn

Next Tuesday marks the 10th anniversary of the start of filming in Auburn for the John Travolta-Robert Duvall-Forest Whitaker movie "Phenomenon."On-location shots started in the Machado apple orchard in Bowman then quickly set up shop in Old Town Auburn. More filming followed next to the Auburn Recreation Park gymnasium.This week's Media Life - the third and final in our look back at "Phenomenon" - plays catch-up with people who made the movie, as well as the movie itself.The buzz around Auburn and Hollywood following the wrap in Auburn was, well, phenomenal for a picture that was bereft of car chases and special effects. Leading up to the July 3, 2006, release, Travolta would add to his list of laurels when he won the Best Actor award at the Golden Globes for "Get Shorty." While the Oscar would elude him, there was some talk that his "Phenomenon" role might put him over the top.EXPECTATIONS HIGHExpectations were high as the summer movie season approached. Auburn held a premiere with actor Tony Genaro, who played "Tito" in the movie, dropping by to add a little tinsel to the proceedings. What audiences saw that first night was a romantic fantasy with plenty of Auburn on the screen and a plot that older audiences lapped up but critics tossed off as too corny. The bad press didn't hurt "Phenomenon's" box office, with its success resting comfortably on the back of star Travolta and his assembly of respected supporting players. It was a pretty good story well told by director John Turteltaub. In the days when a movie could still be a success with steady word-of-mouth through the summer months, "Phenomenon" would eventually pull in $104 million at the box office.Here's how the "Phenomenon" principals have fared since cast and crew wrapped the shoot up in Auburn in early December 2005.Travolta continued to ride the crest of a wave of stardom from comeback roles in "Pulp Fiction" and "Get Shorty." But while the movies like "Broken Arrow" continued to bring him popular success, 1995 would be a watershed for the personable actor. "Be Cool" was his latest movie, reprising his Chili Palmer role from "Get Shorty." Last year, he had another hit, in "Ladder 49." There have been a few misses along the way, most notably the universally panned "Battlefield Earth" from 2000. And then there are all those unsubstantiated rumors that he's bought land and building a home in Placer County. TRAVOLTA WINS AWARDSTravolta did pick up some awards for his "Phenomenon" role as everyday Joe, George Malley. The 1997 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards found him accepting the favorite actor in a drama award for the movie. That same year, he was nominated for best male movie performance for "Phenomenon" at the MTV Movie Awards. And a smoldering onscreen kiss with leading lady Kyra Sedgwick was a nominee for best movie kiss of the year.Duvall, who played the kindly country doctor in "Phenomenon," turned 74 this year with no sign of slowing down. This summer he completed a four-hour miniseries for AMC called "Daughters of Joy." It's a continuum of Old West movies and series he started with "Lonesome Dove" and is slated to air next summer.Already an Oscar winner for 1983's "Tender Mercies," Duvall had settled into a supporting actor mode by the time he took the low-profile "Phenomenon" role. Two years after "Phenomenon" faded from screens, he picked up his second Academy Award for "A Civil Action." Duvall also found a role that hit close to home in the 2003 Civil War epic "Gods & Generals." A direct descendent of General Robert E. Lee, he played the Confederate leader in the movie.Sedgwick, who played Malley's love interest in "Phenomenon," continues to get plenty of respect for her acting but has never found that breakthrough role. A regular in independent movies, she played opposite her husband, Kevin Bacon, in 2004's critically acclaimed but little-seen "The Woodsman." But she hit her stride this summer as the edgy Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief Brenda Johnson on TNT's "The Closer." The series debuted in June, picking up an audience of 7 million, one of the best showings for a scripted series on basic cable. A second season has already been ordered. Sedgwick turned 40 last August.WHITAKER ON TVWhitaker, the shy second banana Nate Pope in "Phenomenon," has also found his way onto the TV screen. He recently joined the cast of "The Shield," an FX Channel crime drama now in its fifth season. Like Sedgwick's edgy Johnson, Whitaker's Detective Jon Kavanaugh is working for the LAPD. He's also been busy on movies, producing and appearing in "American Gun." Whitaker won a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for best supporting actor for his "Phen-omenon" role. He appeared with Travolta in "Battlefield Earth." He was also the host of the "Twilight Zone" TV series revival in 2002.Turteltaub directed "Phenomenon" with precision and heart. While Oscars didn't flow his way, the movie was a Best Fantasy Film nominee in 1997 with the Academy of Science Fiction Fantasy and Horror Films. He was back earlier this year directing Nicholas Cage in "National Treasure."One of the sleeper hits of "Phenomenon" was its haunting score. Thomas Newman was the composer. He's gone on to compose music for more recent films "Cinderella Man," "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events," and "The Horse Whisperer."Principal cinematographer Phedon Papamichael's atmospheric "Phenomenon" work can be seen transferred to last year's "Sideways," a wine country romp, and "1998's "Patch Adams."Screenwriter Gerald DiPego tried transferring "Phenomenon" to the small screen in 2003, with a TV movie that set things up for a potential "The Fugitive" type series. Christopher Shyer played the George Malley role but it didn't catch on with audiences. Brent Spiner played Dr. Bob Nedorf but gained fame as Lt. Commander Data in both the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" TV series and several of the spinoff movies. If you look closely, he's also in last year's "The Aviator."As for Auburn, the city keeps on keeping on. Old Town Auburn has seen its share of bumps along the road in recent months, with the Mercantile Building seen in "Phenomenon" background shots severely damaged by fire and the Shanghai Bar, where interior filming took place, closed since the summer.But as Malley would say, "Everything is on its way to somewhere."The Journal's Gus Thomson can be reached at gust@goldcountrymedia.com or (530) 852-0232.