LATEST: Movie maker BRETT RATNER was banned for life from top hotel the Hotel du Cap in Cannes, France, after flouting its stringent room-hire policies.
The X-MEN: THE LAST STAND director had the ban revoked last month (MAY06) at the Cannes Film Festival, and has since explained why he once dubbed the posh hotel the Hotel du Crap in a scathing Internet blog. Ratner recalls paying a hotel staff member a 500 Euro ($625/£375) tip to secure him a waterfront villa - but he decided to wreak his revenge when he ended up in a tiny room with no view.
He says, "To pay at the Hotel du Cap you have to pay all cash for 12 nights, upfront. If you leave after two nights, they keep all 12 nights (money) and they re-rent it (the room).
"So I go up to every billionaire I see in the building, which I know is only going to be there for two or three days and I say, 'Do you mind, can I get your room after you leave?' "I get four different rooms and this guy that I gave the 500 Euros to (says), 'Mr Ratner, there's a mistake, there must be some misunderstanding... You have four rooms.' "I said, 'I need a room to sleep in, I need a room to go to the bathroom in, I need a room to dress in and I need a room that I'm just gonna eat breakfast in every morning. It was the sweetest revenge ever." When Ratner visited the Cannes Film Festival for the second time this year, the hotel's management put him up in their five-bedroom villa, which comes complete with a 24-hour butler.