Kenneth Branagh battles doubt as actor

THE BULLETIN
By Luaine Lee / Tribune News Service
Published May 4, 2016 at 12:02AM

TV SPOTLIGHT “WALLANDER” 9 P.M. SUNDAYS, PBS

PASADENA, Calif. — Though Kenneth Branagh is perched at the top of his game — both in directing and acting — 10 years ago he had serious doubts.

The star of such films as “My Week with Marilyn” and “Hamlet,” and the director of movies like “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit,” “Cinderella” and “Thor,” Branagh could paper his house with accolades, throw in a knighthood, a theater company and a panoply of memorable performances.

But he says, “I found in my 40s a time when I found acting extremely difficult and very pressurized. And I didn’t want to quit, but I had to get over the hump of it. It began when I was playing in ‘Conspiracy’ for HBO.”

“Conspiracy” was about the meeting of Nazi officials held to determine the “final solution for the Jewish question.” Branagh played SS Gen. Reinhard Heydrich, the leader of the conference.

“It lasted for quite a few years where it was much harder to lose yourself in a character,” he says. “It started there because I didn’t want to be part of that man’s psyche, and it felt like one became rather self-conscious about what one was doing. And really, where I rediscovered joy with acting was when ‘Wallander’ began.”

“Wallander” is the PBS series on “Masterpiece Mystery!” about a melancholic Swedish detective, filled with quiet desperation as he observes the worst among us. The final three episodes begin airing Sunday.

“In a way it was because you stripped artifice away, and you became very comfortable with being uncomfortable,” he says. “You realized that to play something like this it just wouldn’t or couldn’t be easy. Just trying to present the truth under the unflinching gaze of the film camera, you had no choice but to commit. And somehow it put me out of the other side of a period where I’d been just not enjoying it for a long time, still committed to it, but finding it very, very difficult.”

He says he began to ponder the meaning of his work. “Sometimes you have to shake yourself down to understand how a piece of entertainment can be quite meaningful to people, or at the very least, enjoyable and diverting. And this is not a bad thing to be able to do. I think during that time, I lost a little that sense of purpose, in a way that sounds like it’s ego-led about legacy, but it’s more about finding a purpose.”

Branagh was born in Belfast. His mother worked in a tobacco factory, his dad was a plumber and carpenter. “It was a working class district of Belfast,” he says. “We lived in a very small house. We were working class rather than poor. We always had clothes and food. There were tangible moments in my childhood when I knew there wasn’t — that they were having a tough time.”


READ MORE HERE: http://www.bendbulletin.com/entertainment/4275679-151/kenneth-branagh-battles-doubt-as-actor#

Kenneth Branagh Explains What Makes Tom Hiddleston's Loki So Appealing

COMICBOOK.COM
By Jay Jayson
03/19/2015



Five-time Oscar-nominated actor-director Kenneth Branagh, who directed the first Thor (2011) film, shares his thoughts on what makes Tom Hiddleston's Loki a fan-favorite.

"People like villains. People like damaged villains," Branagh told IGN when asked about Loki's appeal. "He was always an enormous part of the comics. A much loved villain, much of the way that happens on those big legacy pieces. They happened to find a great actor in Tom Hiddleston, who again brought depth to it the same way Cate Blanchett did with this stepmother role in Cinderella. Why people go to the dark side is always fascinating. The survival instinct makes them very inventive. It means they're always surprising you. So, when you have that dark, damaged quality and literally a box of tricks to play with that kind of character is going to be around for a long time."

read more here:  http://comicbook.com/2015/03/19/kenneth-branagh-explains-what-makes-tom-hiddlestons-loki-so-appe/

Kenneth Branagh Says 'Cinderella' (with Lily James and Sophie McShera of Downton Abbey) is 'Not About a Man Rescuing a Woman' (Q&A)

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
by Alex Ritman 2/5/2015 10:00pm PST

Cinderella’s rags-to-riches fairy tale is not the sort of project many might expect to be helmed by someone with the more Shakespearean skill set of Kenneth Branagh, recently seen flitting between Norse gods (Thor), Chris Pine-fronted Tom Clancy actioners (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit) and Swedish TV dramas (Wallander). But 64 years after Walt Disney’s animated version of the tale won the Berlinale’s very first audience award in 1951, Branagh, 54, is about to unveil the world premiere of his live-action retelling, with Downton Abbey’s Lily James in the title role and Cate Blanchett doing her best wicked stepmother.

THR caught up with the five-time Oscar-nominated actor-director, who lives with his film art director wife just outside London, to find out how a filmmaker noted more for his Henry V and Hamlet has taken on Cinderella and her ugly stepsisters.

Was making Cinderella something of a departure for you?

The fairy tale element was a surprise to me in that, although I’ve read them and enjoyed them, I didn’t ever think this was a subject I was likely to make a film about. But when you go back to the original source material, you become aware of how all-pervasive this Cinderella myth is. How many times do you read about “the Cinderella story,” the story of the underdog, the story of the ordinary human being, often subjected to cruelty and ignorance and neglect, who somehow triumphs?

How much did you deviate from the original Disney cartoon?

The animation actually took a number of liberties with the original story, which of course has been told and retold across every type of culture, with different names and even different types of cruelty. There are some in which the stepsisters cut their toes off in order to force their feet into the slipper. What we put front and center was a level of reality and psychological truth in the performances that would be surprising in the context of a fairy tale.

Did you feel much pressure when dealing with one of Disney’s prized characters?

Anybody who goes into the Disney world and takes on one of these live-action versions of an animated classic is always up against that kind of ancestry. But my entire filmmaking career and indeed my entire career has been in and around classics. Probably 90 percent of the stuff I make has inevitably been done before. … Whether it’s playing Hamlet, which has been on the go for 400 years, or pieces from the cinematic world that also have been essayed before, I feel released by that. What I think it confirms when people come back to the stories again is not that they’re tired, but that the themes and the stories and the character are ageless, and that they have a different kind of resonance for each passing generation.


READ MORE HERE: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cinderella-trailer-watch-a-very-750238

Helena Bonham Carter to Play Fairy Godmother in Disney's 'Cinderella' (Exclusive) 3:56 PM PDT 6/20/2013 by Borys Kit (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER)

Kenneth Branagh is directing the live-action fantasy, which already has Cate Blanchett playing the role of the wicked stepmother.

Helena Bonham Carter has nabbed the plum role, or perhaps it’s the pumpkin role, of the fairy godmother in Disney’s live-action version of Cinderella.

Kenneth Branagh is directing the movie project, which sees Lily James in the title role, Cate Blanchett as the wicked stepmother and Game of Thrones' Richard Madden as the prince. Sophie McShera (Downton Abbey) and Holliday Granger (The Borgias) are playing the stepsisters.

The fairy godmother will be getting more screen time in this version than in Disney’s classic animated movie, with the character disguised as an old beggar who watches over Cinderella before revealing herself as the magical being she truly is.

READ MORE:http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/helena-bonham-carter-boards-cinderella-572595

Downton Abbey's Sophie McShera In Talks For Kenneth Branagh's Cinderella Author: Kelly West - (CINEMA BLEND)

Kenneth Branagh's Cinderella is filling up with familiar faces from the small screen. The live-action re-imagining is set to star Downton Abbey's Lily James as the title character, with Game of Thrones' Richard Madden set to play the Prince. Yesterday, we learned that The Borgias beauty Holliday Grainger signed on to play one of the wicked stepsisters, and today comes word that Downton Abbey's Sophie McShera is set to play the other one.

THR reports that negotiations are underway for McShera to team up with Grainger to play mean stepsisters Drisella and Anastasia in the film. For those unfamiliar with the tale, Cinderella's an orphaned character who lives with her "wicked stepmother" and nasty stepsisters, who regularly ridicule her. Cate Blanchett will play the mentioned stepmother, and when considering all of these TV stars, the Oscar winner seems to be the odd-woman-out... unless we count her pre-Elizabeth miniseries work in the 90s. -

See more at: http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Downton-Abbey-Sophie-McShera-Talks-Kenneth-Branagh-Cinderella-38011.html#sthash.PYFJ9CEN.dpuf

The Borgias' Holliday Grainger Will Ridicule Cinderella In Kenneth Branagh's Adaptation Author: Nick Venable (CINEMA BLEND)

Kenneth) Branagh already has a strong cast lined up for Cinderella, with Downton Abbey’s Lily James in the lead role and Robert Madden as her Prince Charming. As a stepsister, Grainger would be playing the daughter of Cate Blanchett, who will star as the wicked stepmother Lady Tremaine. Something tells me someone equally beautiful is going to nab the other sisterly role. Call me crazy.

I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if Cinderella turned into a period piece, since it seems like Grainger has become the new Keira Knightley in that respect. She currently stars in the 15th century-set, soon-to-wrap-up Showtime drama The Borgias, and will soon star as Bonnie Parker in Lifetime’s upcoming miniseries Bonnie and Clyde. In the past two years, she’s starred in Cary Fukunaga’s Jane Eyre, Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod’s Bel Ami, Joe Wright’s Anna Karenina and Mike Newell’s Great Expectations. I wonder if she’ll ever appear in a movie with a cellphone in it.

READ MORE: http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Borgias-Holliday-Grainger-Ridicule-Cinderella-Kenneth-Branagh-Adaptation-37987.html

Emily Blunt Replaces Emma Watson In Your Voice In My Head 1 Comment published: 2013-03-12 11:09:14 Author: Sean O'Connell (CINEMA BLEND)

So, Emma’s out and Emily’s in. The story follows writer/journalist Emma Forrest as she develops a relationship with a New York therapist (played by Tucci). Harry Potter director David Yates is on board to helm the adaptation, which is part of the reason why we believed Watson would be a great choice. No word on why she passed on the part, though Blunt’s an outstanding reserve for any role, if you can get her. We’ll find out if the casting change affects when we might see Voice in theaters. More on that as it develops.

READ MORE:http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Emily-Blunt-Replaces-Emma-Watson-Your-Voice-My-Head-36324.html

Emma Watson In Talks To Star In Kenneth Branagh's Cinderella comments published: 2013-02-28 19:52:38 Author: Kelly West (CINEMA BLEND)

Tonight seems to be the night for Harry Potter stars in talks to play classic roles. Earlier, we shared news that Daniel Radcliffe was in final negotiations to play Igor in Fox's Frankenstein-inspired feature, and now comes word that Emma Watson is in talks to star in Kenneth Branagh's take on Cinderella for Disney. (Coincidentally, Branagh starred in and directed an adaptation of Frankenstein in 1994.)

Variety reports that Watson is in "very early talks" with Disney to play the lead in a live action adaptation of Cinderella, to be directed by Kenneth Branagh. Mark Romanek was previously set to helm the film, which is based on a script by Aline Bosh McKenna, rewritten by Chris Weitz. Should Watson lock down the role, she'll be starring opposite Cate Blanchett, who's on board to play the wicked stepmother.


READ MORE: http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Emma-Watson-Talks-Star-Kenneth-Branagh-Cinderella-36089.html

'Thor' director Kenneth Branagh in talks to direct 'Cinderella' Mark Romanek recently exited the fairy tale film starring Cate Blanchett BY HITFIX STAFF THURSDAY, JAN 31, 2013 4:18 PM (HIT FIX)

"Thor" director Kenneth Branagh may help "Cinderella" live happily ever after at Disney.

Just three weeks after original director Mark Romanek ("Never Let Me Go") exited the project, Disney is reportedly in talks with Branagh to come aboard the fairy tale film.

It's scheduled to begin production this fall in London, and the studio is understandably in a hurry to ink a deal with Branagh, according to Vulture.

Cate Blanchett is still attached to play the wicked stepmother, although the search for Cinderella herself is still on. The film has been in the works since 2011, following the massive success of Tim Burton’s "Alice in Wonderland."  The initial script was by Aline Brosh McKenna ("Devil Wears Prada"), but Vulute reports that "Twilight: New Moon" director Chris Weitz has since re-written it.


Read more at http://www.hitfix.com/news/thor-director-kenneth-branagh-in-talks-to-direct-cinderella#RQEBWFKUOacKAuJZ.99 

Colin Firth: Meryl Streep warns off Colin Firth’s wife after Cinderella Bafta moment Meryl Streep warned Colin Firth's wife Livia that she shouldn't hog her limelight after the star came to her rescue at the Bafta Awards when her high heel slipped off. (METRO)

The US star, 62, quipped that she was waiting for the chance to get Firth alone at the film bash after he gallantly picked up her Jimmy Choo stiletto after it fell off when she climbed the stairs to collect her award for Best Actress.

She joked later backstage: 'Livia Firth better not stand at the top of the stairs when I'm there.' Streep saw off competition from from Berenice Bejo, Michelle Williams, Tilda Swinton and Viola Davis to be named Best Actress for her performance as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady.

Firth chivalrously got down on one knee to place Streep's shoe on the floor so she could put it back on just before delivering her acceptance speech. Streep gave him a kiss on the lips as thanks. 

Afterwards, an teary-eyed Streep revealed she had forgotten to thank J Roy Helland, her make-up and hair assistant, in her acceptance speech. She said: 'I forgot to say his name, and all because of my f***ing shoe.'





Read More:  http://www.metro.co.uk/film/890174-meryl-streep-warns-off-colin-firth-s-wife-after-cinderella-bafta-moment