November 20th, 2009
Colin Firth stars as “A Single Man” in Tom Ford’s first film which opens next month. The cast includes Julianne Moore, Matthew Goode and Nicholas Hoult.
Bill Nighy reveals to Patrick Barkham of The Guardian that “I am not suddenly the greatest actor in the world.”
Willem Dafoe, Chloë Sevigny, Brad Dourif and Michael Shannon appear in Werner Herzog’s “My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done.” Inspired by a true crime event, the film reaches theaters in North America beginning next month.
Min Lee of The Associate Press writes about Lou Ye and his latest film, “Spring Fever” as “Banned director brings romance film to Hong Kong.” Strand Releasing will present the film in the United States.
One Film Wonder: The exceedingly influential French director Jean Vigo had a brief film career totaling only four projects. He directed his first short film, “À propos de Nice” at the age of 25 in 1930. The following year he shot an experimental film recording the movements of French swimming sensation Jean Taris in the water. In 1933, he made “Zero for Conduct,” a 41-minute boarding school drama. The next year, he released his only feature-length film, “L’Atalante,” the cinematically important tale of a jealous canal barge captain and his new bride. (The film’s cinematographer was Boris Kaufman, who twenty years later would begin a Hollywood career which included filming “On the Waterfront,” “12 Angry Men,” and “The Pawnbroker.”) In October 1934, a month after the release of “L’Atalante,” Vigo died, aged 29, of complications from tuberculosis. Both France and Spain bestow annual directing awards in his name. In France, the Prix Jean Vigo has been given to directors such as Alain Resnais, Jean-Luc Godard and Olivier Assayas.
Posted in Beyond the Reel |
Tagged 12 Angry Men, À propos de Nice, A Single Man, Alain Resnais, Bill Nighy, Boris Kaufman, Brad Dourif, Chloë Sevigny, Colin Firth, Jean Vigo, Jean-Luc Godard, Julianne Moore, L'Atalante, Lou Ye, Matthew Goode, Michael Shannon, Min Lee, My Son My Son What Have Ye Done, Nicholas Hoult, Olivier Assayas, On the Waterfront, One Film Wonder, Patrick Barkham, Spring Fever, Strand Releasing, The Associated Press, The Guardian, The Pawnbroker, Tom Ford, Werner Herzog, Willem Dafoe, Zero for Conduct |
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June 26th, 2009
Adapting her own novel, director and author Rebecca Miller presents “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,” starring Robin Wright Penn in the title role as a woman of 50 who uses the unraveling of her marriage to reminisce about the path her life has taken. The large ensemble cast includes Alan Arkin, Julianne Moore, Monica Bellucci, Maria Bello, Blake Lively, Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves. Apparently, “Pippa Lee” will be released throughout the world beginning next month, but the film is still searching for an American distributor.
IFC interviews “Precious” director Lee Daniels and discovers “The World According to Lee Daniels.”
Released in March in the UK, “The Damned United,” the biopic of famed football manager Brian Clough starring Michael Sheen, will be released stateside in September.
The Globe and Mail believes that director David Bezmozgis’s debut film “Victoria Day” Smells Like Teen Spirit.
One Film Wonder: Until he snagged the role of Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks in “West Side Story,” George Chakiris had been cast almost exclusively in the previous decade as an unnamed “dancer.” Following the film which earned him the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for 1961, Chakiris worked primarily on Broadway and in European films for the remainder of the decade, then spent the 1970s and 80s guest starring on American television. Since the mid 90s, he has been retired from the entertainment industry and reportedly crafts sterling silver jewelry.
Posted in Beyond the Reel |
Tagged Alan Arkin, Blake Lively, David Bezmozgi, George Chakiris, IFC, Julianne Moore, Keanu Reeves, Lee Daniels, Maria Bello, Michael Sheen, Monica Bellucci, One Film Wonder, Precious, Rebecca Miller, The Damned United, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, Toronto Globe and Mail, Victoria Day, West Side Story, Winona Ryder |
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