Nintendo sued over Paper Mario ads

[keithlewis]

Nintendo sued over Paper Mario ads



Last week, a John McCain ad made gaming headlines for incorporating the work of Medal of Honor: European Assault composer and Barack Obama supporter Christopher Lennertz. At the same time, Nintendo was wrapping up a brief legal tussle with Morgan Creek Productions over audio appropriation of its own.

As reported by Game Politics, a suit filed on June 12 by Morgan Creek alleged that Nintendo had illegally used music from the 1993 Christian Slater film True Romance to promote its 2004 GameCube game Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. The piece--Hans Zimmer's "You're So Cool"--plays in the background of the 30-second spot, which can be seen on Google Video.

While the bouncy song may seem a good match for the charming style of the Paper Mario series, the movie it is pulled from is thematically at odds with the popular mascot. Written by Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, From Dusk Til Dawn) and directed by Tony Scott (Man on Fire, Days of Thunder), True Romance is a love story about a guy who falls in love with a prostitute, kills her pimp, and goes on the run while trying to sell a significant stash of cocaine.

Morgan Creek had been seeking damages related to the song's use, at least until it voluntarily dismissed the case on June 18. Neither the film company's lawyers nor Nintendo's representatives had returned GameSpot's requests for comment as of press time.


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