To Live (2006 film)

To Live is a 2006 Comedy-drama film directed by Carl Andy, his last film before retiring in 2008, it is a loose remake of Akira Kurosawa's 1952 Japanese film Ikiru, (translated as To Live) in turn based on Leo Tolstoy's 1886 novella The Death of Ivan Ilycha and stars Tony Curtis as a dying music executive finding the meaning of life during his last days, the film was produced by DreamWorks Pictures and was released on November 24, 2006 by Paramount Pictures.

Plot
Ivan Lewis (Tony Curtis) is an ageing music executive responsible for managing iconic acts in his lifetime but is now past his prime and tries to live a simpler life. after noticing blood in his urine stream while at the bathroom, he visits his doctor one day to check, Ivan gets news that he has prostate cancer, with only 3 months to live. Ivan loses his will to continue with his daily life before getting a knock on the door, meeting his estranged Granddaughter and Aspiring musician Cheryl Lewis (Kirsten Dunst) who has long been wanting to meet him.

More TBA

Development
Development on an Ikiru remake began in 2003 when DreamWorks acquired the rights from Toho, originally it was to be a more traditional adaptation with Tom Hanks in the lead role. Jim Sheridan agreed to direct in 2004 but it was later scrapped.

Later that year, DreamWorks announced it was now working with Carl Andy to helm the project, Andy who had long wanted to work with DreamWorks after their formation in 1994, saw this as a dream come true. soon after Andy was given creative control to change the story to how he saw fit. given the then current political climate, Andy felt it would it be better to make a more uplifting take on the story and reflect more on his own life. Andy soon approached Hanks to see if he was still interested but after some discussions, Hanks felt it would be better if it was an older actor in the role, to which Andy agreed. after which he casted his idol Tony Curtis in the role of Ivan Lewis.

Filming
Filming began in late 2005 in Santa Monica, California. for the opening dream scene where Ivan imagines himself sleeping in bed on a river was filmed at Kern River. the crew had to film the scene in the early mornings of January 2006 to avoid dealing with tourists who visited during the day. due to the temperatures and having to wear pajamas, actor Curtis said in an interview that it felt "So Freezing Cold that Andy had to give me Hot Chocolate and some coats to keep me warm in-between takes".

Filming completed in March with additional reshoots taking place in the summer.

Marketing
Following Paramount Pictures' purchase of DreamWorks in December 2005, To Live became one of the first releases under the new ownership, given the date of June 2, 2006 but was later changed to November 24 to give more time as per Andy's requests.

The first trailer was released June of 2006 and was attached to screenings of Bob Adams: Final Fate, Superman Returns, Nacho Libre and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. another was released in the Fall of 2006 and was attached to screenings of Jackass Number Two, Idiocracy, The Guardian, The Departed and Paramount/DreamWorks' own The Last Kiss.

Home Media releases

 * 2007 DreamWorks Home Entertainment DVD/HD-DVD/Blu-ray (distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment)
 * 2013 Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Blu-ray (Reprint of 2007 release)
 * 2017 Paramount Home Entertainment Blu-ray (Reprint of 2007 release)