2012. Dir: Christopher Nolan. Starring: Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anne Hathaway. ●●●○○
Last week I admitted to being lazy, this week I'm going to admit to being a coward. I've been holdign back on my The Dark Knight Rises review because my opinion may be unpopular. So here we are, three weeks too late, I didn't much like the closing chapter to Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy. I felt it to be an ambitious, glorious piece of film-making sadly let down by an overstuffed, incoherent and dull plot. It is both an improvement and a let down compared to Nolan's previous work and I only hope he pares down his narrative fancies for whatever non-chiropteran project he works on next.
Seven years have past since the thrilling climax of The Dark Knight when Bale’s Batman took the fall for Harvey Two-face Dent’s murderous rampage and Gotham has radically changed. The Dent act, which allows draconian charging for organised syndicates has virtually destroyed the Falcone family interests and created a crime free zone, whilst an arrest warrant sits over Batman’s head. Bruce Wayne, with no crime to fight, has sunk into a deep depression, brooding over the death of Rachel Dawes and shut off from all society; an effort to create a cold fusion generator macguffin was thwarted when a Hungarian scientist pointed out how easy it was to turn it into a bomb and the entire R&D budget has been sunk in keeping the device, handily stored under the city, leaving Wayne industries close to insolvency, all in all things are not looking good for Batman.
Yet something under the city is stirring, gangs of youths are disappearing into the sewers, lulled by the promise of jobs still denied to the Gotham underclass. A few switched on cops led by aging Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) and angry young pup (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) are imagining the worst and wondering when the bat signal will once again need to be turned on. Even sophisticated jewellery thief Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) knows enough to spout warnings of a war coming, an inexorable tide that will bring the rich and powerful of the city tumbling to the streets. Yet even Kyle isn’t completely prepared for the changes, because it’s no campaigning Victorian with concerns about social harmony, nor is it the financial meltdown the real world has experienced, Gotham has a more substantial foe, international terrorist and towering brute Bane (Tom Hardy in a mask) is about to reveal himself as Gotham’s reckoning.
Two paragraphs of exposition on and I’ve yet to mention other key characters brought forward from previous movies (Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Cillian Murphy) and new batch (Marion Cotillard, Matthew Modine, Tom Conti, Ben Mandelsson) all of whom almost have story arcs of their own to get through, even if the arc precludes the possibility of character development. Inevitably many of actors get shafted in the screen play, we've seen plenty of Morgan Freeman's witty and taciturn technogeek, and not just in this trilogy, but Marion Cotillard who really should make an impact in order to justify her ropey romance with Bale and her third act journey, yet Miranda Tate is always a cypher to the audience, seemingly there only to give the fanboys something to shout about at the end.
Instead of the supporting cast Nolan turns the camera back on the Batman, returning to the story of a scared orphan falling down in order to learn how to get up, an angry child emotionally scarred by his parents untimely death and his battle to clean up the streets. It's thematically linked to the first film in that examination of Bruce Wayne's psyche and the surrogate parental relationships formed with butler, Alfred, and Liam Neeson's Ra's al Ghul and the infamous League of Shadows.
Against this most introspective of comic book hero's it takes a really special performance to steal the limelight, and alas Tom Hardy's Bane whilst superficially fulfilling the flipside to Wayne - a man who started with nothing intent on destroying the world order rather than protecting it not to mention the yin and yang of their masks - is given so little to do about from a couple of rousing, only just decipherable speeches and a chance to pummel the Batman. Indeed Bane is able to build an army and mount a revolution yet the audience aren't given a chance to understand what makes his men follow him, not just into battle but also to a sacrificial alter.
When considering the film I find myself constantly returning to Bane, his plan and his motives. Each time I confuse myself more and more, did Bane want to stir up a revolution to overturn corrupt capitalist society, or was the whole thing a ruse to get Batman so riled up he crawls out of a hole? Doesn't Bane and his key accomplices know the bomb will explode? Did Nolan not think it would be interesting to see the results of Bane's tyrannical overthrow, or was a montage of the rich being thrown out of their hotels enough to satisfy? It's not even as if the politics of the film hit the zeitgeist, Bane doesn't represent the 99% as he's pushing not for equality of opportunity and social justice but another kind of inequality. Even the attack on Gotham's own stock exchange isn't to break the bank but to make some high value transactions of his own. It's the filmic equivalent of Robespierre and Idi Amin keeping the masses in place by routinely executing the old order and redistributing wealth with reckless abandon.
Thank God for Anne Hathaway, from the moment she appears on screen her cat-burglar (geddit???) steals every scene, by turns vulnerable, playful and vindictive, she's the proof Nolan could help create significant, rounded female characters (sorely missing from most of his back catalogue).
Technically this film delivers in spades. Wally Pfister knows how to use IMAX cameras like no-one else in the business, there were times I was as giddy as a school-girl watching the camera work. Lindy Hemmings costumes, always a highpoint of the series once again impress, from the stylish duds of Gotham's partying rich to Gary Oldham's cardies and from the utilitarian suggestion of cat to Anne Hathaway's suit to Bane's coat, which I fully expect to see everywhere this winter.
Overall though I have to say it doesn't matter how much I try to big up the successes in The Dark Knight Rises, the bar was simply too high to climb. Flawed and unwieldy this is not the closing episode any of us wanted and I can really only recommend it to fans of the Batman.
Thursday, 9 August 2012
The Dark Knight Rises
Sunday, 22 July 2012
To what end? (Out this week - 20/07/12)
As I type this I find that words are impossible to describe the collective shock and outrage felt by cinema-goers in the wake of Thursdays horrific incidents in Aurora, Colorado. We obviously don't know James Holmes' motives or influences at this point but hopefully with his arrest a full investigation can be made and we hope to understand, if never able to forgive or forget, his actions. Ultimately to ensure this tragic, meaningless slaughter will never happen again. My thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives and the other patrons, injured or otherwise, who survived this horrific ordeal.
The runs like a gay film of the week is, unsurprisingly, The Dark Knight Rises. 
July seems to be the easiest month of 2012 in terms of predicting box office performance, so last weekend Ice Age: Continental Drift reasserted itself at the top of the chart with Amazing Spider-Man and Magic Mike (the highest new entry) following close behind. This weekend Bruce and his dark alter ego should smash records and easily dominate the multiplexes.
The Dark Knight Rises
I have already seen Christopher Nolan's third and final instalment in the Batman franchise, and it's surprisingly difficult to maintain the levels of anticipation that I had earlier in the year. Even so the excitometer level is fixed and done well before seeing the picture, so 9 out of 10 is the joint highest for the year. Christian Bale would almost certainly growl at me if I tried to change it retrospectively.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●●●●●○
Read on for Stockholm syndrome, sex games and fisher price musical instruments as well as all of this weeks trailers.
This certainly has all the hallmarks of epic film-making, even in the comic book sphere. Tune in later this week for my review (hopefully).
In Your Hands
Kristen Scott Thomas is such a fantastic performer most of us would pay to see her read the Parisien phonebook. In this French movie from sophomore director Lola Doillon Scott Thomas stars as a gynaecologist kidnapped by a former patient (or relative of lets not try to pretend this is that weird a film) and focusing on the shifting relationship between kidnapper and nappee.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Lola Versus
Greta Gerwig gets dumped, has sex with a friend as a coping mechanism then does it again, whilst at least one of her conquests feels down as a result of being used. Famously the producer had a big strop following it's US release, blaming white middle class male critics for it's poor reception and attendance, failing to note that female reviewers were equally unimpressed. Debra Winger co-stars.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Rest
Wibbly American movie which takes a really promising sketch concept and somehow stretches it out over 90 minutes with a couple of singer song-writers putting together the bizarre combo of lead guitar and childrens toy musical instruments, which somehow breaks out with unexpected success. Ryan O'Nal and Michael Weston are the "brothers" and Melissa Leo takes a minor role.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Thattathin Marayathu
Brave Bollywood release trying desperately to find a foothold in a crowded market, although this romance between a hindu and a muslim (can you see the Romeo and Juliet comparisons) is only showing in one Birmingham cinema.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Interview with a Hitman
Luke Goss, formerly of Bros. has a really odd shaped head. I couldn't help but notice that when watching the trailer for this almost straight to DVD thriller. Goss is the titular assassin trying to eliminate his past, whilst chatting to a reporter about his job. Just look at the trailer and tell me he doesn't have an odd shaped head.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Morgan Freeman
Happy Birthday to
Morgan Freeman
74 today
The Memphis born Freeman has one of the most delicious voices in Hollywood, so much so that an obvious impersonator is currently doing the rounds in the UK with the More Than Insurance adverts (see after the jump if you must). He has a couple of plum roles on the way: the return of Lucius Fox in The Dark Knight Rises where hopefully he will have more opportunity to question Batman's motives and as a writer suffering a block in Rob Reiner's Third Act.
Saturday, 21 May 2011
Do the Can(nes)-Can('t) (Film News - 21/05/11)
Cannes continues, for everyone except Lars von Trier that is. And yes I'm going to briefly mention that elephant in the room before moving onto the real film news. Seriously what do the Cannes bigwigs think they're doing and what they're going to achieve. Lars von Trier has always been a joker, with every film he makes you know he's courting for controversy, desperate to chase the headlines from the festival. The critics seemed to like Melancholia and not find it headline grabbing other than it's quality so of course they had to bait him in the press conference and of course he positively glowed when he started on the Nazi comments, knowing the effect that would have. The Committee should have just told him off whilst ensuring they are aware it was poor taste humour not a real political diatribe. Why not watch it here and let me know what you think:
And now onto the real news...
Byzantium
Vampires remain inexplicably popular right now, largely due to the Twilight franchise, although that doesn't seem to explain why so many non-teenage projects are getting the green light and basically picking up middling box office receipts. Never mind because the latest project coming out of the blocks will a mother/daughter vampire tale starring Saoirse Ronan and Gemma Arterton (they're both fine actresses and worth the ticket price but surely the age difference isn't enough, although the synopsis includes the suggestion they sometimes pretend to be sisters). The script, an original piece by Moira Buffini (Jane Eyre), has caught the attention of experience vampire filmmaker Neil Jordan (remember the faintly unsettling Interview with the Vampire) and producer Stephen Wooley. With that group of talent involved it's hard to resist even when the genre is so overdone.
Here is Kirsten Dunst in Neil Jordan's last foray into the world of Vampires, which is lovely as it links nicely to Lars above, and if Jordan can get performances as good as he gets from Kiki that Byzantium will definitely be one to watch.
Read on for Martial Arts competitions, fairy tale private eyes, evil step mothers, treks from Egypt, Court intrigues, Cold war meetings, school buses and Audrey Tatou as well as a minor casting story. 
Bloodsport
Certainly the most bizarre story to come out of Hollywood this week is the proposed remake of the 1988 Jean-Claude van Damme martial arts vehicle (left). Essentially a disaster on release the win or death knockout adventure gained a whole new lease of life on DVD, emerging as a cult favourite for the van Damme nuts out there. It's hard to imagine this sort of bruiser hero taking the box office lead today either, even after The Expendables proved there's still a market for pumped up leads. That said I am fascinated by whoever will want this potential albatross around the neck of their career.
The Defective Detective
Can Terry Gilliam catch a break in the fickle world of film financing? With The Man who Killed Don Quixote spiralling once more into the history of abandoned projects there's been little news from the former Python. Never one to let it get him down Terry's hinted that he may return to a Richard LaGravenese script they worked on around The Fisher King and 12 Monkeys and which never gathered the necessary funding. The story is curiously close to the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus following a detective on the hunt for a missing girl in a fantasy world. If it has the same manic energy and resourceful plotting as those other films from that period then I will certainly be booking a ticket should it ever gets made!
Maleficent/Moses
This week saw the high profile departure of Tim Burton from Disney's live action origin story for Melficent, the evil step-mother from Sleeping Beauty (right), which is set to star Angelina Jolie. There doesn't seem to be a big fight with blame and recrimination about the tone or content or directorial vision just a run of the mill scheduling issue. It's partly a shame because I'd love to see Burton handling a villain front and centre, although maybe the studio would constrain him too much and keeping it firmly in the PG wheelhouse. So the potential replacements are being discussed on the net with David Yates (Harry Potter) currently the favourite, but Darren Aronofsky also being linked by Badass Digest - I suspect it's bunkum, if we consider Burton as being held back in his relationship with Disney then surely Aronofsky would be ever more so. They also say Warner Bros. are interested in recruiting him for the upcoming Exodus picture which might be more interesting form an audience point of view but isn't he more concerned with the earlier Biblical story, that of Noah and his Ark?
Music and Silence
Danish director Lone Scherfig will be returning to her roots with the latest literary adaptation she's taking on. Set in the 17th Century Danish court the story charts an illicit romance between two servants, one of whom works for the noble King Christian IV, the other for his philandering wife. The script is being written by Martin Sherman, based on Rose Tremain novel, with BBC films stumping up the cash.
Reykjavik
Every once in a while a high profile director known for big cast, big budget movies takes on an unlikely character pieces. Ron Howard did it a couple of years ago with the powerful Frost/Nixon and now, jumping a few Presidents into the future, Ridley Scott will be helming a reconstruction of the head to head between Reagan and Gorbachev that paved the way for the end of the cold war - that's them on the left but I'm not sure of the location. Ridley has already got a massively overcrowded slate but this could be a quickie to be filmed in between the more complex productions he's currently working on including the single film adaptation of the excellent Red Riding trilogy that he's been mentioned with again this week.
The We and The I/Untitled Michel Gondry/Audrey Tatou collaboration
Visionary director Michel Gondry is currently serving on the short film Jury in Cannes and has been chatting to the New York Times about all the projects hanging around on his plate. Next up is The We and the I which appears to to be inspired by his previous Be Kind Rewind and features a child only cast on a school bus, seems slight but it could be interesting. On the new film front he's been courting Audrey Tatou - for a French language picture - by making short films and animations or her. Obviously I'm holding back the vomit as I type, but at least the combo of Tatou and Gondry seems like it could be worth a look.
Casting News
I'm always fascinated when additional cast members, especially quite famous ones, appear in the press releases after the camera has started rolling - have there been drop outs, were their agents not ballsy enough to force a comment on their casting? - who knows. Anyway Stanley Tucci and Cloris Leachman have both been added to the cast of the Coen brothers scripted Gambit. Just when you thought Christopher Nolan's third Batman film The Dark Knight Rises couldn't possibly pick up more characters stand by for Matthew Modine, Tom Conti and Joey King joining in - so at least we now know Modine is still alive.
Obviously I couldn't mention The Dark Knight Rises without having the first publicity shot released, showing Tom Hardy in full Bane look. One picture down, 14 months to go:
Monday, 14 March 2011
Michael Caine
Happy Birthday to
Michael Caine
78 today
He's the son of a fish market porter and a charlady yet has steadily climbed the greasy pole to the top of British box office and has earned a knighthood for his trouble. Still as busy as ever it's his fifth collaboration with Christopher Nolan, and the third Batman film (Dark Knight Rises) which is most interesting me.
Saturday, 19 February 2011
An Englishwoman abroad - (Film News - 19/02/11)
It's been a funny week. On the one hand there have been a number of news stories that could fascinate the potential cinema patron in the future, on the other hand none of those are really jumping out shouting "I'm the best story! Put me first!" Lots to see, not necessarily lots to get excited about. We've also been inundated with casting news which gives a reason to go beyond the jump.
Lady who Went too Far
Tom Hooper and David Seidler are currently on top of the world. The director and writer of The King's Speech are likely to come away with a number of Academy awards next weekend, and for both of them the collaboration seems to be the highpoint of their careers so far. With that in mind it's hardly surprising they are planning to work together again with the biopic of 19th century explorer and humanitarian Lady Hester Stanhope (below).
The niece of British Prime Minister Pitt the Younger, she travelled extensively across the Middle East treasure hunting and offering sanctuary to refugees, often whilst facing powerful opposition for her unconventional lifestyle from home and the largely Islamic local tribes.
It's a great role for a woman so expect a powerhouse performer snapping up the central part before long, especially given the additional budgetary clout the project may have due to the below the line talent involved. From the director of Oscar winning... works wonders for accountants.
Read on for spies, submarines, gang violence, reincarnation choices and fat cats acting outrageously (it's OK, I don't mean Garfield).
Agent Zigzag
As well as the return of Bond we have this non-fiction counterpart that may just be hitting our muliplexes in the next few years. Based on the life of Eddie Chapman, with the titular codename, it will focus on how his British spymasters and conveyor belt of lovers learn whether to trust him. It's being written by Brighton Rock scribe Rowan Joffe, son of Roland, and might be directed by Mike Newell once he's completed Great Expectations.
Hunter Killer
Submarine based movies are few and far between even though there have been some excellent examples (Red October (right), Crimson Tide). Notably both of these involved gung-ho Americans and mysterious Ruskies, and so it is with this latest script likely to go into production. It focuses on an American sub commander and a Navy SEAL team that must rescue the Russian president and defeat a renegade admiral who’s attempting a coup, which sounds utterly barmy will have some underwater action scenes as well as (hopefully) some torpedo dodging action.
The Knife
Curiously connected to Agent Zigzag above in both it's true story premise and scope this project looks at the modern version of spies: the snitch, the criminal who wants to get out but can only do so with the FBI so sings like a canary. Based on the 2008 GQ article by Guy Lawson it focuses on a South Central gang member who turns states to such a great effect it sends it's leaders into a panicked attempt to kill all snitches. Kimberly Peirce (Stop-Loss, Boy's Don't Cry) is the slightly unlikely director attached.
Ubik
Philip K. Dick's work is currently undergoing a film adaptation revival. Next month we'll see The Adjustment Bureau and a remake of Total Recall is in pre-production. Next will be his highly praised metaphysical comedy about death and salvation centering on a cabal of dead characters looking for their next physical manifestation. I'm not sure what the relevance of the aerosol can on the book cover is, really must read it, but if anyone can enlighten me I'd be very grateful. Michel Gondry is working on the script and planning to direct, let's just hope he's given enough rope to make a fun Gondry but not allowed to indulge his every whim a la The Science of Sleep.
Wolf of Wall Street
Formerly reported here as a potential project for Ridley Scott the biopic of investment banker Jordan Belfort has now moved to the schedule of Martin Scorsese an will mark his fifth film with Leonardo DiCaprio who's already signed on for the lead. However we will have quite a long time to wait as Franciscan monk movie Silence is still planned as Marty's next move.
Casting News
There have been another full wave of casting announcements made this week including Jude Law joining the love across class divide drama 360, Juliette Binoche and Matthieu Almaric will be helping to ruin Robert Pattinson's day in Cosmopolis, Rachel Weisz will learn to love her husband even after she becomes the first transgendered woman in Danish Girl. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard are the latest rumoured cast members for Dark Knight Rises, and talking of Batman alumni Michelle Pfeiffer is set to play the matriarch at the centre of the Dark Shadows with Helena Bonham Carter also set to join Tim Burton's movie (surprise, surprise). Colin Firth looks to be the next Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady and finally after sorting out her painful divorce (who says I don't pay attention to celeb culture) Halle Berry is back on for New Years Eve, although in a different role.
Anne Hathaway may be a better Catwoman than Halle Berry but she's got a lot to do to out Miaow Michelle Pfeiffer (above).
Sunday, 6 February 2011
Dinner fit for a bride (Film News - 05/02/11)
There's been some interesting headlines this week with a couple of new titles coming our way which look very watchable, in fact the beauty of my first title is it will provide casting opportunities to hundreds. This is on top of the usual rounds of casting rumours and our monthly check of upcoming movies on imdb.
Great Expectations
If watching Derek Jacobi intone a few lines of Little Dorrit in the third act of Hereafter made you salivate for more Charles Dickens then you're in luck. It's looking like a version of his classic tale of class envy and redemptive guilt is set to make a foray into the big screen. Naturally this isn't the first time Pip, Magwitch and Miss Haversham have been in cinemas, most notably in the 1946 David Lean version with John Mills, Finlay Currie and Martita Hunt in those memorable roles.
I won't go into the plot details here, like all Dicken's it's long and meandering and with characters disappearing and reappearing with alarming regularity. There are also some magical moments of descriptive writing including fog shrouded escaped convicts and uneaten wedding cakes that could easily become iconic shots from the film.
The key thing is to try to imagine the casting. It's a film that practically begs for the brightest and best of British acting talent to be assembled. I'm saying Andrew Garfield for Pip and Helen Mirren as Miss Haversham. You heard it here first. Any casting ideas you have?
An early illustration of Miss Haversham's Wedding feast.
Read on for an unlikely true story, an surprising director says his next film will be an epic and the usual News segments.
Argo
The hunt for Ben Affleck's next directorial task continues with this bizarre true-life tale set to be produced by Men who Stare at Goats colleagues George Clooney and Grant Heslov. Like Goats it's an expose on one of the weirder moments in US military history focusing on the CIA operation to release the American Embassy hostages in 1979. Their ultimate plan involved disguising the operatives as a film crew scouting for locations. Whether Affleck can produce the satirical edge a project like this might need remains to be seen but if he pulls it off this could be hilarious.
Place beyond the Pines
Derek Cianfrance has been talking up his follow up to Blue Valentine to almost epic proportions. In an interview with indiewire he used terms like "the transformative power of fatherhood", "a Darwinistic idea of survival through ancestry" and (if that wasn't enough "I’ve had people tell me they feel like its ‘The Deer Hunter’ meets ‘The Godfather." Proof that he's certainly willing to enthuse about the project. The story focuses on a motorcycle stunt driver (Ryan Gosling's already practising in Cage's of death like this one to our right) who has to learn how to be a father and will cross generations. If it taps into even half as much honest human emotion as his latest then it will definitely be one to watch.
Casting News
The usual suspects have been hogging the casting rumours with Javier Bardem and Ralph Fiennes both close to signing on for Bond 23 - which could just become the starriest Bond ever - and Eva Green and Jackie Earle Haley may be hiding in Tim Burton's Dark Shadows. Robin Williams continues to be a possibility for Hugo Strange in Dark Knight Rises, although the main issue seems to be are three villains too many for the film to cope with. David O. Russell may be inviting Amy Adams back for his next project, the big screen adaptation of Playstation 3 game Uncharted: Drake's Progress although Scarlett Johannsson is another name in the mix. Finally Samuel L. Jackson has surprised nobody by exclusively revealing he'll cameo in Thor, frankly I was surprised when it was rumoured he wasn't going to.
Production News
Every month I like to update on the latest films moving into the pre-production stage, essentially as a way of monitoring which of the stories I've previously covered have actually come to fruition. This time we're seeing movement on David Cronenberg's limousine set thriller Cosmopolis, 60's crimecaper remake Gambit, hyperlink love story 360, and big budget big effects movies The Wolverine, Prometheus, Oz, Th Great and Powerful and 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. The last four of which are bound for box office glory if nothing else. One movie though caught my eye even though I hadn't imagined it would.
Playing the Field
Gerard Butler obviously believes he's a big star, and I expect the studios think the same, why else would he continue to get high profile roles. So to follow his "acting" turn in Machine Gun Preacher there will be this black comedy about a soccer coach working his way through the Mums from his son's team. Whilst this doesn't scream high quality there's something intriguing about the notion and I expect they'll be some fun to be had when they start joining the dots. 
You get some very odd results if you search for Soccer Moms on google, but this pic's relatively tame. Apparently there's a whole subculture relating to the term. Anyone want to clue me up on it?
Sunday, 30 January 2011
Christian Bale
Happy Birthday to
Christian Bale
37 today
And a very hearty congratulations on your Academy Award nomination in the best supporting actor category for The Fighter. I expect it's a well earned nom for an actor who always gives his all to a role. Of course the film we're all looking forward to seeing Bale in next is The Dark Knight Rises.
Sunday, 23 January 2011
Never marry an aspiring star (Film News - 22/01/11)
We're definitely back in the throes of real news now, with more stories hitting the headlines than can be comfortably described, although let's face I'm going to try. And that's not to mention the continuation of the awards season stories like the Golden Globes results and Ricky Gervais's career changing performance.
A Star is Born
It's a timeless story of changing fortunes in the world of entertainment that's been memorably played out on three occasions on the big screen (with countless others that use it as a starting point) and a tidy reminder that in la-la-land there can only be a limited number of stars, for every on that rises to the top another must make way for the to shine. It's no surprise to anyone that a new incarnation is on it's way, and Beyonce has been set to take the title role for several months, and whilst Russell Crowe was considered as the alcoholic has-been who marries and then is surpassed by his latest find the latest reports don't mention Crowe so I suppose he's out.
This week we also learnt that Clint Eastwood is set to direct the latest version. This seems like a bizarre choice, mainly because I would've thought they wanted a studio hack to take the reins. No offence to whoever does direct the piece, but A Star is Born, or at least both the 1954 and 1976 versions, were star vehicles designed to highlight the prespective talents of Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand. Eastwood, as a director, has shown little interest in allowing his leading actresses room to manouvre themselves into the spotlight, and how will this fit into his overarching themes of natural justice and redemption unless this version focuses more on the waning talent. 
Judy is surprised as I am by Eastwood's news.
There's a touch of sceptism about this news for another reason: Eastwood is not a young man anymore. Does he need to be making films unless he really believes in them? What do you think?
Read on for title changes, Italian Singers, underused States and Darren Aronofsky's very big plans.
American Bullshit
Ben Affleck still has the pick of projects coming off his success with The Town, the latest rumour sees him picking up this Black List entry from Eric Warren Singer (for anyone who doesn't know the Black List is an annually publised list of promising unproduced scripts knocking around the studios). It's about a convoluted FBI sting in the late 1970's which aimed to root out corruption in the US political system. Sounds like it's the sort of multi-character crime thing that Affleck likes and it might be an opportunity to get some mates like Matt Damon involved. By the way I can't see this title lasting long.
Mina
After the quasi-horror of The Skin I Inhabit it looks like Pedro Almodovar is returning to more familiar terrain with his next picture, a biopic of Italian singer Mina who gave it all up to have a child with a married man. You just know Almodovar does his best work wih female leads so I can't wait to see what he does with a story already in the public eye.
Nebraska
I'll be honest I know little about most of the States except what I've seen in movies, so when a film comes along with the state in the title I know I'll have to watch it for general geography research purposes (see map below if you weren't aware of it's location). To be fair Alexander Payne's road movie is mostly set in Montana (go North two then West one) with the destination of an overly optimistic prize draw winner in the titular state. Payne's been planning this project for years, but only now he's taken a break from road movies (the forthcoming Descedents) does he feel he can give it the justice it deserves.
Untitled Comic Book Adaptation for Darren Aronofsky
Aronofsky's been rustling some feathers this last week with anti-method acting comments and admitting a dislike for Robert Altman's The Company but he's also let slip that the next film he's planning to make after The Wolverine has such a complex script he's turning it into a comic book in order to sell it to executives. Frankly that seems bizarre, but I guess that's the nature of the business right now. I'm not sure if this comic book is any of the seven different projects he was circling last year, or even a Batman movie as some sites have suggested, is unclear.
Casting News
Anne Hathaway has been confirmed as the Catwoman in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Rises which whilst fine casting does beg the question of whether she'll be able to eradicate any memories of Michelle Pfeiffer's puurfect (sorry) performance in the role. It's all change at Cosmopolis with Colin Farrell and Marion Cotillard stepping out of the limosine for Robert Pattinson and Keira Knightley. The supporting cast of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, the 9/11 influenced family drama, has swelled following the addition of Viola Davis and Jeffrey Wright. Dianne Wiest has joined The Odd Life of Timothy Green and Johnny Depp now looks to be the eponymous wizard in Oz: The Great and Powerful. Shudder.
Sunday, 16 January 2011
Unreasonable punishment (Film News - 15/01/11)
Movie news isn't quite back to full throttle following the New Year break, but some interesting side stories are beginning to come out as well as fevered rumour mongering over the stars in big ticket films due to come out in 2012. Let's dive straight in.
Prometheus
For months we've thought Ridley Scott was wog primarily on a prequel to his highly successful 1979 haunted house in space flick Alien but it seems the scrpt has taken a numbef unusual turns and is now so far apart from the original concept it can no longer carry the Alien moniker in the title. He's settled for Noomi "Dragon Tattoo" Rapace in the lead role with Charlize Theron (or maybe Anjelina Jolie) supporting.
Of course we don't know how close to what we've already heard this film will be now there's no xenomorph, clearly the space jockey will be out but what of the rumoured mind controlling sex-obsessed Aliens or the bio-weapon cautionary tale that featured in some script versions?
The title may shed some clues, in classical mythology The Titan Prometheus (which literaly translates to Forethought) stole fire from Zeus and gave it to mankind, he was then punished by being chained to a rock where an eagle would eat his liver every day (being a deity it regrew overnight). Prometheus has been famously painted over the years, including the below by Jacob Jordaens. Mankind were punished too, as a direct result they were give women, in the form of Pandora who came with an ominous box. Whether Scott plans to riff on any section of the mythology or simply nod to the translation that could be an interesting premise for a sci-fi epic. 
Read on for in-your-face orgies and more hopeless selling out from Hollywood.
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice Remake
Director Paul Mazursky's been stirring up the batter this week. In an interview in the Wal Street Joural he said he was willing, at 80, to remake his 1969 swingers comedy but only if the studio would give him the budget for a orgy scene filmed in 3D. Doesn't bare thinking about. 
The original's "orgy" scene.
Pirates of the Caribbean 5
Disney are so confident that On Stranger Tides, the fourth installment in the bloated cash-cow franchise that is Captain Jack, that work has already begun on the fifth film. Both Depp and number 4 director Rob Marshall are being courted to return to the series. It's enough to make you want to boycott the next one in protest to the flagrant profiteering, but I am really looking forward to seeing it come May (as you'll see very soon....)
Casting News
The female cast of Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Rises have been dominating the coverage this week, there have even been articles in The Inependent and Guradan about the possible roles and the significance of them. Frankly it's a bit of a poisoned chalice as the love interest for Bruce Wayne always seems to ge the fuzzy end of the lollipop, added to which Nolan repeatedly leaves his female characters underwritten, all of which makes it surprising that women in the frame include Eva Green, Anne Hathaway, Keira Knightley, Natalie Portman, Naomi Watts and Rachel Weisz! Naomi is also set to get into a catfight with Amy Adams over the role vacated by Charlize Theron in J. Edgar, which proves Clint still has it.
Peter Yates
This last week we also saw the passing of veteran British director Peter Yates, his best known works are probably Breaking Away (left) which captured small town America in a way no native could've done and stage to screen adaptation The Dresser which garnered Academy Award nominations for it's co-stars Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay. He also is responsible for unleasing Cliff Richard into cinemas with 1962's Summer Holiday which proves no-one's perfect. I shall be re-watching some of the better films this weekend, I hope you get a chance to do the same.
Sunday, 7 November 2010
Amnesia again (Film News - 06/11/10)
It's not been the busiest week for news, only a couple of new projects kicking off, but there has been an avalanche of casting rumours and with our monthly scour of IMDb there are a load more potential movies that have begun the production process.
Trap for Cinderella
Loss of memory has been a plot standby of thrillers since cinema began, no matter how unlikely it actually is it's amazingly how many characters wake up next to a corpse with no idea of how they got there. So whilst this latest take on the subgenre may lack originality it's good to see it's going to be taken seriously.
Iain Softley is directing and producing this production which sees it's main character (Micky) wake up terribly burned after a house fire in which her childhood friend (Do) has been killed. But is Micky really Do and is she really involved in the attempted murder of herself. Or something like that.
Sure this sounds like first class tosh, but we're a little short on new films this week so bare with me.
I'm not completely sure how Cinderella is involved with this story. I suspect there's a major subplot I've not picked up on yet...
Read on for recurring nightmares and literally half a dozen casting moves.
Darkchylde
John Carpenter may have spent the last eight years or so hiding in a box (I know that isn't true but he may as well have been) but it seems he's returned with a new vigour. The Ward, his latest horror, is set to hit cinemas early in the new year and he's also signed up for this comic book adaptation. It concerns the recurring nightmares of Ariel Chylde (pictured right, I don't think this is a comic for kids), nightmares about strange demonic beasts, and nightmares that reach a whole new level when she begins to transform into the beasts during the day times.
I don't know whether this is part of a planned franchise or a stand alone movie but expect Ariel to be investigating the background of the creatures whilst fighting for control of her own psyche.
Casting News
I said it was mainly casting didn't I? So the latest dogged rumours are as follows: both Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck are interested in reuniting with Jesse James director Andrew Dominik for his next crime thriller, now entitled Cogan's Child, the hunt for the next batman female lead goes on with Charlize Theron and Vera Farmiga both in talks with Christopher Nolan, the long list for Daisy in Baz Luhrmann's Great Gatsby with Keira Knightley, Natalie Portman and Michelle Williams all in contention, the follow up to Valentine's Day (New Years Eve) does have a growing cast list including Halle Berry, Abigail Breslin and Reese Witherspoon - but why does that seem such a boring trio of actresses, Judi Dench is apparently due to snog Johnny Depp in a Pirates of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides cameo and Francis Ford Coppola's horror project, Twixt now and sunrise, is picking up more names with Alden Ehrenreich and David Paymer both linked.
Depp wonders which way to tip his head when kissing Dame Judi.
Production News
And if all those castings weren't enough here's a long line of new films that have kicked into production (most of which we already knew about). Francis Ford Coppola gets his second mention of the post as Twixt now and Sunrise is not only in production but already filming. Cameron Crowe's We Bought a Zoo and Garry Marhall's New Year's Eve have finally shifted from in development to pre production (even though they both already had release dates). World War 2 Native American story Bless Me, Ultima has started filming, Bryan Singer is moving on with Jack the Giant Killer, The Hobbit (parts 1 and 2) look like they will be happening soon, filming has begun on The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Spielberg has decided that his next project will be Robopocalypse and James Cameron is putting all of his efforts into Avatar 2 and Avatar 3.
The following two movies were surprises though when I looked them up:
Ghost of Munich
Milos Forman (One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest) has been mulling over adapting Georges-Marc Benamou's novel about a postwar journalist's investigation into the 1939 Munich conference (famously attended by Hitler and Neville Chamberlain) for several years so it's a pleasant surprise to see it's back on his things to do list.
Too Big to Fail
I originally thought this look at the collapse of the banking system was going to be made for TV, hence I ignored the earlier news stories, but looking at the details it looks like a cinematic release may be on the cards. With Curtis Hanson directing a cast that includes James Woods, Michael O'Keefe, Paul Giamatti and William Hurt that has to be a good thing. 
Wall Street financial markets - collapse not included.
