Ralph Fiennes returns to 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' just in time for awards season

HIT FIX
By Gregory Ellwood  @HitFixGregory | Tuesday, Nov 11, 2014 4:16 PM



Eight months after it hit theaters, "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is back in business, and here's hoping Hollywood is paying attention.

Ralph Fiennes joined co-stars Tony Revolori and Jeff Goldblum for a final SAG nominating committee Q&A Monday night in Los Angeles that this pundit was lucky enough to moderate. Most in the packed theater had already seen "Budapest" but wanted a chance to hear the film's stars discuss their journey into Wes Anderson's latest creation in person.

Fiennes, who plays the indomitable M. Gustav, discussed how little he cared to look at Anderson's detailed animatic of the picture and how a friend of the director's gave him slight inspiration for the role (will the real M. Gustav please stand up?). Revolori, who plays Zero the faithful Lobby Boy, recalled how nervous he was meeting Fiennes for the first time during a fitting and how the Oscar nominee reassured him with a hug. And Goldblum, who plays the unfortunate lawyer Kovacs, could not stop praising Anderson's vision and the "humanity" he brought to such a precise creative endeavor. We also learned that Fiennes tried to convince Anderson to pick a few current colognes as the infamous L'Air de Panache, but the Francophile would have none of it (what it really smells like is still a mystery). Fiennes also revealed Mendel's pastry concoctions were actually too sweet for him to eat and the audience was somewhat shocked to discover that Revolori is severely allergic to chocolate and never took a bite of any of the film's numerous deserts.

Q&As live and die on the talent and this trio made sure the audience realized just how specific their performances were (i.e., it wasn't Anderson dictating), while still providing some wonderfully entertaining anecdotes. They also heaped praise on their co-stars, who helped fill out one of the most memorable acting ensembles in recent memory with Tilda Swinton, Willem Dafoe, Edward Norton, Tom Wilkinson and F. Murray Abraham earning individual praise. It was a fun and fast conversation with a lot of love from the SAG members on hand.

The quick trip to Los Angeles for Fiennes featured a whirlwind of "Budapest" awards-themed photo shoots and interviews (look for a special one-on-one with Christoph Waltz soon), an hour-long career retrospective for BAFTA members and a solo American Cinematheque Q&A hosted at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica. The legendary actor may have an outside shot at earning a Best Actor nomination (he's in good company this year if he doesn't), but he is still keeping the doors open for "Budapest's" awards prospects overall. Will it be enough? Let's review, shall we?

At this date, the film is still one of the best reviewed films of the year with an 88 on Metacritic (for comparison: "Boyhood" has a rare 100, "Birdman" an 89 and "Foxcatcher" currently has an 87), as well as a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes (for comparison: "Boyhood" has 99%, "Whiplash" is at 97%, "Birdman" is at 94%, and "Nightcrawler" is at 94%). The film is also, considering its audience, a global smash, earning almost $60 million domestic and $172.2 million globally. Those are career-best numbers for Anderson and you can debate whether or not it's his best reviewed film to date (it might be splitting hairs at this point). Needless to say, "Budapest" is a huge success that is trying to break the recent Oscar curse that finds the Academy ignoring early releases in the qualifying calendar.

In theory, with so many potential contenders falling by the wayside (and you know who you are), "Budapest's" slot should already be solidified. That being said, benchmarks like a SAG ensemble nomination, a Golden Globes nomination for Best Comedy or Musical (a given), landing on AFI's top 10 list, earning a spot in the National Board of Review's top 10 and, most importantly, a slew of top 10 critics list mentions are key. Searchlight will campaign "Budapest" as best they can, but they also need the awards media to stop somehow pretending it's not in the game because it came out before Cannes (Sundance titles seem to get a pass because they are usually released in June).


Read more at http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/ralph-fiennes-returns-to-the-grand-budapest-hotel-just-in-time-for-awards-season#1THDYKSvxDURDHZq.99

Hugh Bonneville, Matt Damon and Bill Murray on Graham Norton - hilarious

Ralph Fiennes breaks out as a comedy genius in Anderson's new film, now in limited release - Wes Anderson's 'Grand Budapest Hotel'

MTV
By Josh Wigler
March 7, 2014

Ralph Fiennes breaks out as a comedy genius in Anderson's new film, now in limited release.



Just as Liam Neeson has become an unlikely action hero through films like "Non-Stop," it appears that Ralph Fiennes has been born anew as a comedic genius, all thanks to Wes Anderson.

Fiennes' funny-man chops are on full display in Anderson's new film, "The Grand Budapest Hotel," or so the reviews indicate. His work as hotelier Gustave H. has earned high praise from the critics, as has Anderson's humorous but heartfelt vision of a fictional country torn apart by war, as viewed from many generations and vantage points.

Read on for what the critics are saying about "The Grand Budapest Hotel," currently in limited release:

Get More: Movie Trailers, Celebrity News

The Fiennes Point
"One of the many surprises in Wes Anderson's rich, layered and quirkily entertaining new film, 'The Grand Budapest Hotel,' is the emergence of a new comic actor, one with impeccable timing and just the right mix of gravitas and utter zaniness. Ladies and gents, meet Ralph Fiennes.

You might not immediately think the man who played the tragic count in 'The English Patient,' an evil war criminal in 'Schindler's List,' a violent Coriolanus, and oh yes, Voldemort, would be a natural in comedy. But he proves a deft, daft partner to Anderson in this, their first collaboration. ... His stylized, rapid-fire delivery, dry wit and cheerful profanity keep the movie bubbling along. Here's to further Fiennes-Anderson collaborations." — Jocelyn Noveck, Associated Press

MOVIE RELEASE DATE AND LOCATIONS HERE

READ MORE HERE: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1723595/the-grand-budapest-hotel-reviews.jhtml

Benedict Cumberbatch, George Clooney, Tom Hanks read out mean tweets

DIGITAL SPY
By Ben Lee
Friday, Feb 7 2014, 11:30am EST



Benedict Cumberbatch, George Clooney and Tom Hanks are among the latest to take part in Jimmy Kimmel's 'Mean Tweets' series.

Jon Hamm, Cate Blanchett, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bill Murray also appeared in last night's (February 6) segment, in which celebrities read aloud hateful messages directed at them on Twitter.

READ MORE HERE:http://www.digitalspy.com/celebrity/news/a549803/benedict-cumberbatch-george-clooney-tom-hanks-read-out-mean-tweets.html 

Hugh Bonneville: Matt Damon is Front and Center in First 'Monuments Men' Poster

ROPE OF SILICON

BY: BRAD BREVET PUBLISHED: SUNDAY, AUGUST 25TH 2013 AT 10:30 AM

The film is based on the true story of an unlikely World War II platoon, tasked by FDR with going into Germany to rescue artistic masterpieces from Nazi thieves and returning them to their rightful owners. It would be an impossible mission: with the art trapped behind enemy lines, and with the German army under orders to destroy everything as the Reich fell, how could these guys – seven museum directors, curators, and art historians, all more familiar with Michelangelo than the M-1 – possibly hope to succeed? But as the Monuments Men, as they were called, found themselves in a race against time to avoid the destruction of 1000 years of culture, they would risk their lives to protect and defend mankind's greatest achievements.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/first-monuments-men-poster/

‘Downton Abbey’ season 4: Hugh Bonneville back after filming with George Clooney (CARTER)

While the entire cast of “Downton Abbey” is understandably bound to secrecy until season 4 premieres on ITV this fall, we are at least hearing some interesting news now that has to do with the world of scheduling. When you have a show with so big a cast, this can be a nightmare, especially when there are people looking to take on as many different projects as possible.

However, what we are hearing now is that the show is certainly as accommodating as possible, and even arranged the schedule of star Hugh Bonneville so he could spend a week filming in a different part of Europe. The actor has a part in the film “The Monuments Men” written and directed by George Clooney, which has been filming in Germany ever since the end of the Academy Awards. In a new post on Twitter, Bonneville’s on-screen wife Elizabeth McGovern confirmed that the actor had just returned to start up “Downton Abbey” work following his time away:


READ MORE: http://cartermatt.com/56638/downton-abbey-season-4-hugh-bonneville-back-after-filming-with-george-clooney/

Jude Law - Jude Law drops hints about The Grand Budapest Hotel (CONTACT MUSIC)

Jude Law has confessed he plays an author in Wes Anderson's new comedy drama and says the plot is based on layers of ''storytelling'' in different time frames.

Jude Law has revealed he will play an author in 'The Grand Budapest Hotel'.

The 'Anna Karenina' actor dropped hints about his new role in Wes Anderson's comedy drama - which has thus far simply been billed as a ''European story'' - and admitted the film will be constructed around several layers of ''storytelling'' involving his character.

He told Collider: ''I play an author. And there are sort of several sections. It's about storytelling. There's someone who plays me at an older age, and they're recounting how they were first told a certain story, and then you cut to me being told that story, and then you cut to the story. It's sort of layers of storytelling.''

Ralph Fiennes has already been confirmed to play M. Gustave, the hotel's ''perfectly composed'' concierge, while Bill Murray is thought to be attached.


READ MORE: http://www.contactmusic.com/news/jude-law-drops-hints-about-the-grand-budapest-hotel_3473950

Daniel Craig, John Goodman & Hugh Bonneville Join George Clooney's 'The Monuments Men,' Bill Murray & Cate Blanchett Confirmed NEWS BY OLIVER LYTTELTON OCTOBER 29, 2012 11:24 AM (INDIEWIRE)

After a busy few years (six movies in three years, from "Up in the Air" to "The Descendants"), George Clooney's been taking things a little easier in 2012. That's not to say that he hasn't been busy: the actor wrapped Alfonso Cuaron's "Gravity," and is a producer on Ben Affleck's "Argo," a role which is all but certain to see him pick up an Oscar nomination in a record-breaking sixth different category (having previously got nods in Actor, Supporting Actor, Director, Adapted Screenplay and Original Screenplay). But with the former being delayed from its original berth in November to an unknown date next year, 2012 marks the first calendar year since Clooney's ascension to stardom in the early 90s that the actor hasn't appeared in a film in theaters.

But Clooney's on the way back, with his fourth directorial effort "The Monuments Men," and he's bringing along pretty much everyone in Hollywood with him. The WW2 drama, penned by Clooney and writing/producing partner Grant Heslov, is set in the dying days of the war, as an international team of curators and art historians come together to salvage priceless works of art from the Nazi regime. Names like Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray and Jean Dujardin were kicked around as possibilities for the film, but now the cast has solidified, and it's an even more exciting selection than previously thought.

Deadline confirm that Clooney will star in the film, with Blanchett, Murray and Dujardin all confirmed to be participating, while Daniel Craig, riding high with the international success of "Skyfall," is the highest-profile new name on board. Also joining them are "Argo" man John Goodman, "Downton Abbey"'s Earl of Grantham, Hugh Bonneville, and veteran character actor Bob Balaban. That's a pretty badass cast right there.

READ MORE: http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/daniel-craig-john-goodman-hugh-bonneville-join-george-clooneys-the-monuments-men-bill-murray-cate-blanchett-confirmed-20121029

Colin Firth a no show so far at Toronto International Film Festival JIM SLOTEK, QMI AGENCY

Colin Firth and Emily Blunt in Arthur Newman

Robert Redford's not doing a press conference at TIFF (and darned little else) for his directing/starring turn in The Company You Keep, and star Shia LaBeouf is a no-show.

There's no presser for Bill Murray's much-talked-about turn as FDR in Hyde Park on the Hudson (loveable flake Murray will supposedly be here for the red carpet, but he's more likely to crash your golf tournament or birthday party than do an interview).

And what about Oscar winner Colin Firth (The King's Speech)? So far, no appearance and no promotion at TIFF for his latest film Arthur Newman.

Co-star Emily Blunt -- who IS talking a lot about her part in the Bruce Willis/Joseph Gordon-Levitt movie Looper -- admits she's disappointed not to be doing press for Arthur Newman.

"I guess it's because it's not very big -- it only cost about $7 million -- and we found out rather late that the film would be in Toronto," she says about its non-promotion.

"But people will see it and it's very strange and beautiful. My sweet friend Colin and I play kind of social outcasts who try and escape their miserable pasts and identities. And they find solace in each other in the most unconventional love story.


READ MORE: http://jam.canoe.ca/Movies/Film_Festivals/Toronto/News/2012/09/09/20181571.html