Michael Lucas of Lucas Entertainment has been sued in U.S. District Court by International Media Films, Inc., owners of the copyright to Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita, over the release of Michael Lucas' La Dolce Vita. The suit alleges trademark and copyright violations and seeks unspecified damages and to stop sales of the films, which were released in December.
An Associated Press article quotes the lawsuit as claiming the "good name and dignity of the 1960s film...is being stripped away by two pornographic movies using the same name" and that the films will ''infringe, tarnish and dilute" the trademark. International Media Films bought the copyright to Fellini's La Dolce Vita in 2001.
Lucas told the Associated Press, "Nobody can be confused and think they're buying Fellini's movie by buying mine." In a longer version of the AP article, Lucas said the lawsuit was "completely out of line. I think they're making fools of themselves. I don't think Fellini would like that...It's a sex flick. This movie's taking place in New York today and has absolutely nothing to do with Fellini's."
Michael Lucas' La Dolce Vita was recently nominated for 14 GAYVN Awards. The winners are set to be revealed Feb. 24 in San Francisco.
