JAMES MCAVOY: Movie Review: In Danny Boyle's Trance, McAvoy, Dawson and Twisted Memories Posted: 04/04/2013 6:28 pm CARYN JAMES (HUFF POST)

Playing a sophisticated London auctioneer, James McAvoy gazes into the camera with cool, nerveless clarity as his voiceover gives us the inside tricks of protecting and stealing a painting. This opening sequence of Danny Boyle's Trance is no more than exposition with a dash of red herring, and shouldn't work at all. Yet it does because McAvoy's voice is so captivating, already layered with deception and delusion, and because Boyle's visual creativity sweeps us along.

We zoom into the auction room; we're in a van with a gang of mercenaries hired by the auction house in case of trouble; a black and white flashback shows us the good old days when it was easy to steal a Rembrandt. Keep in mind how well McAvoy and Boyle save this opening; that will be extremely relevant to the ending of Trance, a film that looks like a heist movie wrapped in a memory puzzle, but is itself a kind of red herring.

For a good long time, it is also fun to watch, with Simon (McAvoy) in the middle of the action when robbers rush in to steal a Goya painting that has just sold for over 27 million pounds. As he has been trained to do, Simon grabs the painting to carry it to a safe place, but is thwacked on the head by the mastermind behind the crime, Franck (Vincent Cassel), and loses his memory of what he did with the Goya. Maybe a hypnotherapist, Elizabeth (Rosario Dawson), can help?

Very quickly, we're led to wonder who was really involved in the theft, then who's double or triple-crossing whom. This is Boyle from an excellent vintage: his first feature, the delicious dark comedy Shallow Grave (1994) plays the same game of whom do you trust? Is there any honor or truth among thieves? In Trance, we also wonder about the weird coincidences and lapses in Simon's recovered memories. At first, the looping, Rococo plot unfolds with such ease that we barely have time to realize there's a French robber and an American hypnotist in London, as if they were the U.N. of thugs and therapists.

Flitting back and forth between present-day scenes and memories, Boyle and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle (their many films together include Slumdog Millionaire) create a sleek, almost photorealist London, with flashbacks and memories so sharp and bright it's deliberately hard to know what's real and what's not.

READ MORE: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/caryn-james/movie-review-danny-boyles_b_3009779.html

Alan Rickman As Hilly Kristal On Set ... Or Is That Rupert Grint? (PHOTO) (HUFF POST)The Huffington Post | By Crystal Bell Posted: 06/29/2012 1:59 pm Updated: 06/29/2012 1:59 pm

It's hard to imagine Alan Rickman as anyone other than Severus Snape, but after seeing the British actor on the set of the upcoming "CBGB" film, we're starting to think that he could have made an excellent Mr. Weasley.

"CBGB," which chronicles the famous New York City music venue during the burgeoning punk rock scene of the 1970s, is currently filming in Savannah, Ga. Lucky residents have had the pleasure of spotting Rickman, sporing a curly red wig, on set. Now, you may need to squint your eyes -- and grab a magnifying glass -- but one Twitter user tweeted the following photo of Rickman, as legendary CBGB owner Hilly Kristal, from the set:

James Forrest@ForrestJim
A friend just snapped a pic of Alan Rickman filming new movie #CBGB in savannah, also starring Rupert Grint twitter.com/ForrestJim/sta…
26 Jun 12


Sure, he may be 50 feet away -- and could possibly be mistaken for his "Harry Potter" and "CBGB" co-star Rupert Grint (or is that really Rupert Grint?) -- but we think Rickman has expertly captured Kristal's signature style. Time will tell if he can nail down Kristal's punk rock swagger as well.

READ MORE: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/29/cbgb-movie-alan-rickman-set-hilly-kristal_n_1637939.html?utm_hp_ref=entertainment

Benedict Cumberbatch In 'Star Trek 2': Villain Role For 'Sherlock' Star (Huff Post)

First Posted: 1/5/12 06:25 AM ET Updated: 1/5/12 07:45 AM ET

Benedict Cumberbatch is going from solving crimes in London to perpetrating them in space.

The "Sherlock" star has joined JJ Abrams' upcoming "Star Trek" sequel in a villain role, Variety reports. While it was reported late in 2011 that the second film would see classic baddie Khan do battle against the crew of the USS Enterprise, there is no indication which character Cumberbatch will play.

A supporting star in this winter's "War Horse" and "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," Cumberbatch's filmography has been growing in leaps and bounds. In a recent interview with the Radio Times, he worried that his privileged childhood -- he is the son of two British actors -- was keeping him typecast in pompous, unlikable roles; he's voicing the evil Smaug in Peter Jackson's upcoming "Hobbit" movies, and playing another villain will probably do little to disprove his notion. Still, working in massive franchises with Jackson and Abrams is probably worth the tradeoff.

Cumberbatch joins a cast that returns Chris Pine as Captain Kirk, Zachary Quinto as Spock, Zoe Saldana as Uhura and Simon Pegg as Scotty. Edgar Ramirez is reported to have auditioned for the villain role, while Benicio Del Toro was rumored to be playing Khan late last year before that was shot down.

For more, click over to Variety.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/05/benedict-cumberbatch-in-star-trek-2_n_1185654.html

Michael Fassbender, “The Artist” win big in Rome – AWARDS ALLEY (Hollywood News)

By: Sean O'Connell

By Sean O’Connell
hollywoodnews.com: Busy week on the books here at Awards Alley, with several guilds expected to single out their choices for “Best of 2011” as we inch closer to the Oscar nominations on Jan. 24. The Producers Guild will be up first, and we’ll cover those 10 selections once they are revealed.

In the meantime, we have noticeable wins from the Capri, Hollywood – the International Film Festival in Rome for contenders who hope to hear their names called on Oscar morning. And as we have been saying, every little bit of recognition leading up to Oscar nominations matters.

Best Actor at the fest went to Michael Fassbender, who delivered an amazing performance in Steve McQueen’s “Shame” but still needs to overcome the film’s controversially frank approach to hardcore sex.

Best Actress winner Berenice Bejo, meanwhile, continues to ride a wave of goodwill for her involvement in her husband’s winning picture, “The Artist” (which also claimed the Best Picture prize at the fest).

Elsewhere, “Hugo” star Ben Kingsley was given the festival’s Legends career honor, and Emanuele Crialese earned the Capri Peace prize for his work as the director of “Terrafirma,” Italy’s candidate for the foreign language Oscar this year.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:

- Harvey Weinstein
- The cast of “The Artist.”
- Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
- Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
- Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
- Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
- David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
- Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
- Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
- Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
- Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
- Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
- Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
- Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
- Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

Follow Hollywood News on Twitter for up-to-date news information.
Hollywood News, Hollywood Awards, Awards, Movies, News, Award News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Music News


http://www.hollywoodnews.com/2012/01/03/michael-fassbender-the-artist-win-big-in-rome-awards-alley/

Daniel Craig: James Bond Five More Times? (Huffington Post)

First Posted: 12/19/11 07:23 AM ET Updated: 12/19/11 10:03 AM ET

Celebrities , Video , 007 , Bond 23 , Daniel Craig , Daniel Craig James Bond Movies , James Bond Daniel Craig , James Bond Skyfall 23 , Roger Moore , Sean Connery , Daniel Craig Skyfall , James Bond , James Bond 007 , James Bond Skyfall , Entertainment News

 

   

Looks like the current 007 could soon become 008.

Daniel Craig is in the midst of filming "Skyfall," his third outing as the iconic British agent James Bond, and if the franchise's producer has his way, Craig will shoot five more 007 films beyond this one. That would put the star at eight total Bond films -- one more than Roger Moore, whose seven turns as the spy are the most ever.

"Filming has gone very well so far and I'd love Daniel to surpass Roger's record and do eight pictures," Michael G. Wilson told the UK's Sunday People. "Daniel's been an absolute pleasure to be around because he takes the role so seriously. There's really no one more passionate about making these films work than him - he's a filmmaker's dream."

Craig's first turn as James Bond, 2006's "Casino Royale," was critically acclaimed and made nearly $600 million in global box office. The 2008 followup, "Quantum of Solace," was less universally praised but nearly hit $600 million in sales, as well. "Skyfall," due out in 2012, is being directed by Oscar-winner Sam Mendes and is being eagerly anticipated by 007 fans. The 23rd film in the official Bond canon will be released during the 50th anniversary of the film franchise.

Asked at the film's announcement press conference in November about fears of being typecast as an action spy, Craig said, "Look, I like to work. All I know is doing a third one [Bond film], and being given the chance to do a third, means I just want to make the best possible Bond film ever. I want it to be Bond with a capital B."

Craig will appear this week in the American adaptation of "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo," in which he plays a journalist with similar investigative rigor as Bond -- but a lot less physical power.
Sean Connery played James Bond a total of six times, depending on adherence to official canon, some say he was in seven as well, thanks to the independent "Never Say Never Again." Timothy Dalton had the part in two films and Pierce Brosnan, who preceded Craig, played Bond four times. George Lazenby played Bond once, following Connery's brief retirement from the role.

For more, click over to The People.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/19/daniel-craig-james-bond-five-more-times_n_1157492.html

Daniel Craig: "Dragon Tattoo" film paints Sweden in darkest shades- A - Z ANIMALS

December 14, 2011 By Reuters 

By Daniel Dickson


STOCKHOLM | Wed Dec 14, 2011 7:36am EST

(Reuters) – Violence, a sexually abused heroine and the forbidding wintry landscape of director David Fincher’s new “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” film may alter any pre-conceived notions of Sweden as a socialist paradise.

Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgard, who plays the corporate executive of a family firm with a terrible secret, said that although the film explores a very fictional dark side of society its portrayal of feminine strength was particularly Swedish.

“Such a strong female hero as we have in this film and such a soft male hero as we have in this film, I think that is typical Swedish,” he told reporters when he hit the red carpet for the Stockholm premiere of the Hollywood version of Swedish author Stieg Larsson’s best-selling thriller.

Sweden is known for its cradle-to-grave welfare system and IKEA department stores. The film and books paint another picture, more in tune with its bleak and cold winters and a dark side found in a number of Swedish crime novels that have taken the publishing world by storm in the last decade.
Skarsgard said foreigners in general did not know much about the small Scandinavian country and hoped that Sweden would not be too associated with the crime wave genre that has put Swedish Noir at the top of the modern world’s literary map.

“I hope they don’t think that the way Sweden is portrayed in those books and films is the way Sweden is, because it is still a very peaceful and lovely and very nice country to live in,” he said.

The film received solid early reviews [ID:nN1E7BC0JM] and critics especially praised Rooney Mara’s appearance as the fearless sexual abuse survivor and punkish computer hacker Lisbeth Salander. Mara said it was essential that much of the film was made in Sweden.

“Some people questioned why we came to Sweden to make the film and why we did not just make our American version in America but I don’t think you can really tell the story without telling it in Sweden. I think it is a very Swedish story, I think all the characters are very Swedish,” she said.
“HUGE STORY-TELLING TRADITION”

In the story, Salander teams up with journalist Mikael Blomkvist in search of a killer. Blomkvist is played by British actor Daniel Craig, best known for the role of James Bond.

“What it tells about Sweden for me is that there is a huge story-telling tradition here and it is a sort of dark tale, something that we can all relate to in Northern Europe. They have worldwide mass appeal it seems,” Craig said.

“Dragon Tattoo” is the first of the late Larsson’s best-selling Millennium trilogy of books, which has sold more than 60 million copies in 48 countries worldwide.

Helena Lindblad, a film critic at the Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter, said the huge success of the books and the films had opened the world market for other Scandinavian authors and actors, for example Noomi Rapace who played Salander in the Swedish adaption of the trilogy for the screen.
“This success of Stieg Larsson’s is definitely the icebreaker. It is quite unreal and has opened doors for Swedish Crime or Swedish Noir or whatever you want to call it and that it has become a term associated with these films and books,” Lindblad, who attended the Swedish premiere late on Tuesday, said.

Lindblad said she really liked the film. And though remakes in general were “not particularly exciting” cinematically, director Fincher, whose credits include “Seven” and “Fight Club,” added qualities, not the least visually.

She also said the interaction between the main characters was stronger in the Hollywood adaption than in the Swedish original. She said Fincher captured Sweden in an excellent way.

Salvador Munoz, a fan who was celebrity spotting at the premiere, said that Fincher could add “more of Stieg Larsson-darkness” to the film. He said Evil was Fincher’s signature.

“It is man’s other side, the dark side of people. He portrays it so well,” Munoz said.

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” opens in the United States on December 20.

(Editing by Paul Casciato)
http://news.doddleme.com/news-room/dragon-tattoo-film-paints-sweden-in-darkest-shades/

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy debuts with "scorching" numbers, even in limited release

By Scott Mendelson
Hollywood News

HollywoodNews.com: In what one might call ‘the calm before the storm’, two middling wide releases debuted to relatively middling numbers. Next week sees a flurry of major wide releases over the last two weeks of the year, so this frame was a bit of a breather. The top film was New Year’s Eve, which debuted with $13.8 million. That’s one of the weakest #1 debuts of the year, and about $1 million less than Valentine’s Day grossed on its first day back in February 2010. That film scored the record for a romantic comedy debut with $56 million over Fri-Sun. Of course, that film had romantic comedy heavyweights like Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway, Queen Latifah, and Jennifer Garner. This film had a slightly lower-wattage cast, with only Katherine Heigl and Zac Efron qualifying as box office draws. The newbies this time around (Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro, Hillary Swank, Jon Bon Jovi, Halle Berry, Lea Michele, etc) are names, but not actual ‘bring them to the theater’ movie stars.

Oddly enough, the film opened significantly lower than what Heigl, Efron, and Ashton Kutcher (who was also the lead in Valentine’s Day) bring in on their own (Jessica Biel was also in both, but she’s never been a draw). Which leads one to believe that this was a problem of ‘fool me once, shame on you’. Valentine’s Day was not very popular in the long run, earning $110 million after scoring $63 million in its four-day opening (that’s Green Lantern/Watchmen/Twilight Saga ‘legs’). The first film was somewhat of a novelty, a Love Actually with Americans and a massively star-packed romantic comedy about Valentine’s Day that opened over Valentine’s Day weekend. This just looked like a cash-in, which is what it probably was. The original cost $52 million while this sequel/spin-off/etc cost $56 million. Warner is going to have to hope for some holiday legs on this one, but as the only romantic comedy in the marketplace it may have some luck with that.

The only other wide release was David Gordon Green’s The Sitter. The Jonah Hill comedy, which was sold as an R-rated and more ‘extreme’ version of Adventures In Babysitting, debuted with just $10 million. This was the first real test of Jonah Hill’s ‘by himself’ star power, and as such it’s a merely mediocre debut. It’s a cheap ($25 million) comedy that received horrible reviews and frankly didn’t look all that good. It was an allegedly bad film that opened poorly but didn’t cost much. Not much else to report. Hill’s next film, the high-concept 21 Jump Street (which is basically a comic sequel to the 1980s television cop drama) should have better luck for Hill (and co-star Channing Tatum). More disconcerting is the continual box office decline of David Gordon Green. After being heralded as the next Terrence Malick for a serious of (correctly) acclaimed low-key character dramas (George Washington, Snow Angels, etc), he took a crack at the mainstream with The Pineapple Express, which earned a scorching $87 million three years ago. This year saw the unfortunate box office failure of Your Highness (which wasn’t ‘good’, but deserved a better fate) and this cheaper, but equally mediocre performance won’t help. I don’t want to arrogantly give career advice, but I might suggest a retreat at wherever M. Night Shyamalan is currently staying (the “Get my Artistic Mojo Back Resort”).

The real news was once again in limited release openings. Two of the best films of the year both debuted with scorching numbers. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy earned $301,000 on just four screens, for a huge $75,000 per-screen average. That’s one of the best per-screen averages for any opening on any amount of screens this year. I do not know when the all-(British)-star John le Carre adaptation goes wide, but do check it out when you have the opportunity (in a just world, Gary Oldman would be among the front-runners at the Oscars this season). Opening with $320,000 on eight screens was Young Adult, the also terrific Diablo Cody-penned, Jason Reitman-directed Charlize Theron vehicle. The film earned a solid $40,000 per-screen, and it expands wide next weekend. How the film will play to mainstream audiences is an open question, as films starring explicitly unsympathetic females are all-too rare. Objectively speaking, aside from its somewhat unique protagonist, the film is a clear example of the kind of film that would be absolutely mainstream just several years ago but now must start out in the art-house circuit. While it’s unrealistic to think that the film has much hope of reaching the $100 million+ gross of Juno or the $87 million gross of Up in the Air, it’s a damn good film and even $30-50 million would be a big win for this $12 million drama. Oh, and Charlize Theron probably deserves not just a nomination but the win this year, so there’s that. Also among the year’s best, We Need To Talk About Kevin had a one-screen, one-week qualifying debut where it grossed $24,000 on that one screen. Tilda Swinton should also be in the running, by the way, so do catch this devastatingly sad horror drama when it opens wide early next year. Also chugging along is The Descendants, which is expanding quite successfully over the last month. The film now sits with $23 million while still under 1,000 screens.

In wide-release holdover news, Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn part I sits at $259 million, with a fourth weekend ($7.9 million) on par with the last two Twilight sequels. It’s catching up to New Moon ($267 million at this point) but Eclipse had $279 million by the end of weekend four. The Muppets now has $66 million, meaning it has now out-grossed The Muppet Movie to become the highest-grossing Muppet movie of all-time. Of course, the first Muppet adventure grossed over $200 million in today’s dollars, but The Muppets sits at number three on the adjusted list while the $90 million adjusted-gross for the number two film (The Great Muppet Caper) may be in reach. The other two major kids flicks held on strong. Arthur Christmas dropped just 11% and now sits with $33 million, with $91 million worldwide. Martin Scorsese’s Hugo grossed $6 million and also has $33 million in the bank. Happy Feet Two barely eked out $3 million and won’t reach $65 million. Frankly, all Happy Feet Two has accomplished is losing tons of money while making just enough to screw over the other family films (such as Puss In Boots, with $141 million) in the marketplace. Happy Feet Two – cinematic cock-blocker! Oh, and The Adventures of Tintin opened in Canada this weekend with about $8 million, bringing the international total to $233 million just over a week before its US debut.

To read more go to Mendelson’s Memo

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http://www.hollywoodnews.com/2011/12/11/tinker-tailor-soldier-spy-and-young-adult-open-huge-in-limited-release/

Michael Fassbender and Kenneth Branagh win big at British Film awards

Posted on Monday, December 05, 2011 at 04:02 AM

Irish actors Michael Fassbender and Kenneth Branagh swept the major awards at the British Independent Film Awards on Sunday.

Fassbender received the Best Actor award for his role as a sex addict in Steve McQueen's movie 'Shame', and Belfast born Kenneth Branagh won the Variety Award for lifetime achievement.

Fassbender, who hails from Killarney, paid tribute to director Steve McQueen who also worked with him on his breakthrough role as Bobby Sands in 'hunger."

"I love the man. He is great.

"We seem to have a pretty good shorthand when we're on set.

"The passion he arouses in all members of the crew, on camera and behind it, that is the really inspiring thing to be around."

Branagh said: "It is very exciting and thrilling.

"It is very nice to have a prize that has the words 'variety' and 'independence' attached to it because it is what I like to pursue in my work and to be in an atmosphere that people say is the Christmas party for the film industry."

He said he loved his time with the Harry Potter series.

"I've just done a film, My Week With Marilyn, with Emma Watson, who was this size when I first worked with her, and to see her maturing, and Dan [Daniel Radcliffe] and everyone, that's exacting."

Read more: http://www.irishcentral.com/story/ent/amyandrews_gossipgirl/135012668.html#ixzz1fl2BSwnv

IRISH CENTRAL

Video: Immortals Stars Henry Cavill and Luke Evans Talk Sex Scenes and Superman!

Video: Immortals Stars Henry Cavill and Luke Evans Talk Sex Scenes and Superman!

Description:Earlier this month at WonderCon, we spoke with Henry Cavill (aka the new Superman) and Luke Evans about their upcoming Greek mythology movie, Immortals. The handsome actors got buff for their roles, but Henry also dealt with another challenge on the set: a Hollywood sex scene. Watch as he shares behind-the-scenes scoop about his experience and talks about taking on the iconic role of Superman! (4:41)

Source:PopSugarRush

Tags: entertainment news

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Actor Domhnall Gleeson says Irish men are sexually repressed - Video from Sensation

Irish central

New film tells story of an Irish farmer who’s a virgin

By

KERRY O'SHEA,

IrishCentral Intern

Published Friday, October 28, 2011, 9:11 AM

Updated Friday, October 28, 2011, 9:11 AM

Domhnall Gleeson at the premiere of 'Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows'

Photo by Google Images

In an interview on TV3 with Orla Barry, Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson says that he believes Irish men are sexually repressed.

His upcoming film, ‘Sensation’, draws attention to the theory by telling the story of an Irish farmer who is a virgin, but spends a good portion of time on sex sites on the web and eventually becomes involved with a sex worker from New Zealand.

While Gleeson, son of famed Irish actor Brendan Gleeson, notes that the character he portrays is not based on anyone in particular, he does say that “I can imagine there are plenty of Irish men like this character who have seen too much but experienced not enough.”

‘Sensation’ will be released in Ireland shortly, and has already received notable praise from several film festivals. Up next for Gleeson is a film version of ‘Anna Karenina,’ directed by ‘Atonmenet’ director Joe Wright and co-starring Keira Knightly and Jude Law.

Below, catch the trailer for ‘Sensation’:

Topics:Domhnall Gleeson , Movie news , Entertainment news , Irish celebrity news

Read more: http://www.irishcentral.com/ent/Actor-Domhnall-Gleeson-says-Irish-men-are-sexually-repressed---VIDEO-132776508.html#ixzz1c5VaLKhJ

Trailer for Colin Farrell, Keira Knightley movie ‘London Boulevard’ released – VIDEO

London based movie finally set for release in U.S.

By

BUZZ BRADY,

IrishCentral.com Staff Writer

Published Thursday, October 20, 2011, 9:09 AM

Updated Thursday, October 20, 2011, 10:40 AM

Colin Farrell

Photo by Robin Wong / PR Photos

The trailer for Colin Farrell’s new action movie, “London Boulevard”, has been released. The upcoming movie sees the Dublin born actor play the part of a London ex-con who is trying to stay on the right side of the law.
In a bid to stay under the radar he takes a job as bodyguard for a paparazzi-hunted retired actress, played by Keira Knightley
__________
From William Monahan, the screenwriter of “The Departed”, the flick combines an action plot and of course there is romance involved, with Farrell falling for the leading lady.
The film was released in the UK last year and opens on limited release in the U.S. on November 11.

Topics:Entertainment news , Irish celebrity news

Read more: http://www.irishcentral.com/ent/Trailer-for-Colin-Farrell-Keira-Knightley-movie-London-Boulevard-released--VIDEO-132232903.html#ixzz1bMw8Tp4z