Film News (15/05/10)

Cannes is on. The glamour, the glitz, the stars, the sex, the back-stabbing trades and so on. It must be an absolute whirl out there with paparazzi staking out the croisette whilst some has been B-movie actor waxes lyrically about their latest passion project. Saying that the Palme D'or candidates are the most muted they've been for years. Not that this has meant the rumour mill has been quiet - in fact I've picked up on 11 different films that have led news stories in the past week. So without any further delay lets wade into it:

The Tiger

Sounding a little like The Ghost and the Darkness 2, this non-fiction tale concerns a conservationist who is forced to confront a tiger that's got a taste for human flesh in a Siberian settlement. The man versus nature theme is as old as time, but given the main (human) character is having to go against his life's work as well adds a little more potency to the mix. Darren Aronofsky is attached to direct with Brad Pitt tempted by the role (marking the third time they've both been interested in a project a the same time - and hopefully the first time it actually happens) and Guillermo Arriaga (21 Grams) developing the script.


That is a tiger in Siberia, people being eaten not including in pic.

Read on for Norma Jean, peirced Channing Tatum, limosines, Mexican, Brazilian and Sudanese gangsters, computer programming, a far Eastern city of love, collectable minatures and misplaced fish.




Blonde

There are two Marilyn Monroe (left) projects currently working their way through pre-production, and of these the more interesting to me is Andrew Dominik's adaptation of her biography written by Joyce Carol Oates. Dominik (The Assassination of Jesse James) is planning to seperate Marilyn from the myths that surround her, to fully concentrate on the individual caught in the maelstrom of Old Hollywood. Expect it to be a slow burner with beautiful cinematography and some obvious symbology.

Cheaters

Ron Howard's Vince Vaughn collaboration continues to add cast members, with Queen Latifah signing on for an unnamed role and Channing Tatum as the tattooed and peirced man Winona Ryder cheats on her husband with. Can't say I blame her - he may not be much of an actor, but he does have abs of solid rock.

Cosmopolis

David Cronenburg may be prepping for The Dangerous Method, but he's already set his sights on the project to follow, the adaptation of Don DeLillo's limo set drama (right). Colin Farrell has signed on to play the millionaire losing everything in a 24 period, with Marion Cotillard as his cheated wife.

The Jesuit

This is a new title, about a man wrongfully inprisoned who finds his wife and son are kidnapped by a mexican drug cartel and he must fight to get them back. So far so Man on Fire. But the cast list is looking interesting with Willem Dafoe, Paz Vega, Michelle Rodriguez and Oscar Isaac all signing on - not sure if any of those will be the lead though so perhaps there's another big name due to be added any day now.

Machine Gun Preacher

The Sam Childers (Hell's Angel turned freedom fighter) biopic moves forward with the confirmation that Gerard Butler has been cast in the lead role and that Michelle Monaghan and Michael Shannon will be supporting. Odd that there's been no mention of a Sudanese cast member yet, and you'd have thought that would be the core of the film.

Moneyball

Are you still holding out for the computer modelling/baseball picture first conceived by Steven Soderbergh then dropped by the studio on the day filming was due to commence? The good news is that Bennett Miller is confident the script issues have been sorted and that filming will commence later this year. The even better news is he may be casting his Capote alumni Philip Seymour Hoffman in a supporting role. On the left, by the eay, is a baseball - just in case you've forgotten what they look like.

Monsterpocalpyse

Definitely to be taken with a pinch of salt but it's alleged on the croisette that Palm D'Or president Tim Burton will be heading to Dreamworks for his next assignment, to adapt the collectible minitures game (with monsters fighting in a major metropolis). Sound like complee garbage - possibly, but with Burton around it may just be entertaining garbage.

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Bill Condon's abandoned project, from the Simon Beaufoy script (it's a humorous look at the fictional decision to create a Salmon farm in the Middle East), has not just been left to disappear. Instead Lasse Hallstrom has stepped in to direct the Kristen Scott Thomas picture, even bolstering the cast with Emily Blunt and Ewan MacGregor. Hallstrom has proved in the last couple of months that he is an extremely hit and miss director, so we'll just have to wait to see which side of the fence this one ends up on.

Shanghai, I Love You

The next in the cities of love short film collections (following the very successful Paris and the still awaiting a UK release date New York) is set to begin principle photography later this year in the beautiful and historic Chinese city of Shanghai (below). Included in the directors attached so far are Jim Sheridan and Gabriele Muccino, which looks more interesting on paper than Shekhar Kapur and Joshua Marston who were involved in the last episode. The next 2 cities planned to locate in are Rio and Jerusalem. They will need to start showing it mind (harumph).


Triple Frontier

Kathryn Bigelow is causing a diplomatic outrage - and I'm talking about Sigourney Weaver's bizarre comments about the Oscar win. Her next project, due to be the second collaboration with The Hurt Locker scribe Mark Boal, has been villified by the tourist boards of Argentine and Paraguay who, together with Brazil, form the border of the title. The story revolves around drug smuggling and funding of terrorism so I guess they may have a reason to take offence. Brazil, in a wise move, have yet to condemn the film, which may just mean thats where Bigelow will spend most of her budget!