Laughter on the Orient Express: Judi Dench tells BAZ BAMIGBOYE why she's working with Kenneth Branagh on film adaptation of Agatha Christie classic

Daily Mail
BAZ BAMIGBOYE
Updated October 20, 2017

Judi Dench would like her future contracts to include a clause stipulating that she will refuse to work with grumpy co-stars.

'I don't want to work with anyone who hasn't got a sense of humour,' she insisted, with a hint of merriment behind those blue eyes.

'It's essential! I simply am not interested in working with them if they're miserable by nature.

'It's like the froth on the top of Guinness. You have to have the froth, and then you get to the real thing.

You discover people through larks,' the actress told me, while explaining why she has worked with Kenneth Branagh ten times over the years.

'I always get into trouble with Ken — and I like that!'

The two pillars of the British acting establishment are together again in the Fox 70mm extravaganza of Agatha Christie's Murder On The Orient Express.

Branagh directs, and also plays the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot; while Judi plays the imperious Princess Dragomiroff.

In the film, the Princess arrives with her personal maid (played by Olivia Colman) and two Shih Tzus.

'She's horrible to Olivia. She's a very autocratic princess. So bossy. And Russian. She's just rude; and you wouldn't want to work for her,' Judi said when we met in Soho.

We had the most glorious time,' she said, of her time on set with co-stars Johnny Depp, Derek Jacobi, Penelope Cruz, Daisy Ridley, Josh Gad, Willem Dafoe, Michelle Pfeiffer and dancer Sergei Polunin, as well as newcomers Lucy Boynton and Tom Bateman.

'Not only that: he stayed in the hotel I use when I am up in London. He's ruined my reputation!'One reason why everyone got on so well, she told me, was because filming took place in the interior of a luxury train. 'You had to be part of the company, because nobody could get off!'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-4998840/Judi-Dench-s-working-Kenneth-Branagh-AGAIN.html#ixzz4w9rLucCq
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Depp, Dench and Kenneth Branagh: Behind the scenes of the star-studded Murder on the Orient Express

Telegraph
 Sally Williams
19 OCTOBER 2017 • 7:00AM

Agatha Christie ‘had always been allergic’ to cinema adaptations of her books, her husband Max Mallowan was quoted as saying. ‘She didn’t like her characters to be portrayed on book covers either,’ says James Prichard, her great-grandson.

Christie, who wrote 66 detective novels between 1920 and 1976, translated into around 45 languages, is the most widely read novelist in history, with sales of more than two billion copies worldwide.

There have been 23 film adaptations of her books in the UK alone, not to mention the multiple TV series. And now we have Murder on the Orient Express. Directed by Kenneth Branagh (who also plays Belgian detective Hercule Poirot), it features a parade of towering greats from stage and screen including Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench and Derek Jacobi.

The 2017 version, co-produced by Ridley Scott, with a screenplay by Michael Green (the writer of Blade Runner 2049 and Alien: Covenant)  sets up the classic whodunnit with 14 strangers boarding the long-distance  passenger train that connects Istanbul with Paris.

These include Caroline Hubbard, an American widow (Michelle Pfeiffer), the Russian Princess Dragomiroff (Judi Dench) and her maid, Hildegarde Schmidt (Olivia Colman).

A businessman named Ratchett (Johnny Depp) is murdered at night in the compartment next to Poirot. The train gets marooned in an avalanche (a snowdrift in the book) and the plot follows Poirot’s interrogation of each of the passengers in the hunt for the killer.

The appeal of the film is clear: stars are not being asked to play anything run-of-the-mill. They are showcased in sumptuous 1930s glamour, dressing for dinner (even on a train), and the cooks produce delicious  fancies such as walnut soufflés.

‘I liked the sense that I could let the audience escape into that world,’ says Branagh, ‘where the details of what the characters are touching, seeing, eating, drinking, wearing are a significant part of the pleasure.

‘We live in a world where everything is so transient and quick, it  seemed to me a period in which, from a piece of linen to a glass of water to an arrangement of flowers, there could be a way of evoking a parenthesis of calm in an incredibly rushed life.’

An ‘avid reader of crime fiction’, he last read the book years ago, but admits to being surprised when he reread it. ‘I’d forgotten how it worked out! ‘I liked the ensemble [nature] of it,’ he continues, ‘I like it being enclosed in snow, the claustrophobia. And it’s a tale that sums up the golden age of travel: a world in which you feel the miles under your feet.

Read more here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2017/10/19/depp-dench-kenneth-branagh-behind-scenes-star-studded-murder/

Why Michael Fassbender’s Sex Scene With Penelope Cruz Was Awkward

CELEBRITY NEWSIE
October 8, 2013

Michael Fassbender and Penelope Cruz participate in a sex scene in Ridley Scott’s new film, “The Counselor,” and in a new interview with E! Online, Fassbender confirms that the pretend intercourse was as uncomfortable as one might imagine.

“It’s always a bit awkward, really. Doing scenes like that, especially cause Javier [Bardem] was sitting at the end of the bed. That was really weird,” Fassbender joked to the network. (Bardem and Cruz are married.) “You just wanna make sure that the other person is comfortable and that the other person doesn’t feel like you’re taking advantage of any situation. And then to just try and feel safe with one another really and then you can really hopefully sell what needs to be sold.”

In the new film, which is based on an original script by Cormac McCarthy, Fassbender plays a lawyer who gets caught up in the drug trade (Cruz, Bardem, Brad Pitt and Cameron Diaz round out the all-star cast). “The Counselor” is out in theaters on Oct. 25, giving Fassbender two high-profile releases in the month of October (the other being “12 Years A Slave”).

READ MORE HERE: http://celebritynewsie.com/why-michael-fassbenders-sex-scene-with-penelope-cruz-was-awkward/

Irish dreamboat Michael Fassbender admits that Oscar would be the 'icing on the cake'.

E Entertainment
October 7, 2013



Finally, an actor who is honest enough to admit that receiving an Oscar nod would not be the worst thing in the world. With two major movies coming out this year, our very own Michael Fassbender admitted to Sky News that receiving a nomination would in fact be 'the icing on the cake'.

Fassbender enters dark territory in both movies and it's widely believed that the roles that he has taken on are bona fide Oscar bait. In The Counselor he plays a lawyer who finds himself in the world of organised crime while in 12 Years a Slave, which sees him reunited with Shame director Steve McQueen, he plays an, ahem, morally corrupt slave owner.

READ MORE HERE: http://entertainment.ie/cinema/news/Irish-dreamboat-Michael-Fassbender-admits-that-Oscar-would-be-the-icing-on-the-cake/218109.htm

Michael Fassbender Blushes at The Counselor U.K. Premiere

By DAVID WEINER October 03, 2013

ET

A cool Michael Fassbender is surrounded by cheetahs, trip wires, a slick Brad Pitt, a slinky Cameron Diaz, Javier Bardem with crazy hair and a lot more in director Ridley Scott's new movie based on the Cormac McCarthy's first screenplay, The Counselor. Watch the highlights from the film's world premiere in London, and see why ET's Rocsi Diaz made Fassbender blush!

READ MORE HERE:  http://www.etonline.com/movies/139142_The_Counselor_London_Premiere/

Brad Pitt and Michael Fassbender talk things over in a new clip from The Counselor

FLIX 66
September 26, 2013 | Written By: Brad Sturdivant

Another clip from THE COUNSELOR has been released and although it’s not anything spectacular, it is great to see two heavyweight actors give a little back and forth in a short clip.  The clip features Brad Pitt advising Michael Fassbender to not do what he’s about to do.  This one is pretty high on my radar of movies to see this fall and we’re only a month away from catching it in theaters.  THE COUNSELOR stars: Michael Fassbender, Javier Bardem, Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz, Penelope Cruz, Natalie Dormer, Goran Visnjic, Dean Norris, John Leguizamo and Rosie Perez. The Ridley Scott directed film hits theaters on October 25th, 2013.





READ MORE HERE:http://flix66.com/brad-pitt-michael-fassbender-talk-things-new-clip-counselor/

Michael Fassbender Seduces Penelope Cruz In 'The Counselor', with Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz, Javier Bardem

ET
By JACKIE WILLIS August 07, 2013

The first trailer for The Counselor came out today (watch) and in addition to showcasing the full force of the film in two relentless minutes, three clips were also released from director Ridley Scott's film that stars Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, Cameron Diaz, Penelope Cruz and her husband Javier Bardem. Are you ready to be bad?

The Counselor, hitting theaters Oct. 25, 2013, is about a lawyer who finds himself in over his head when he gets involved in drug trafficking. Here's a look at the newly released clips (WARNING: some scenes are NSFW):


1. Fassbender's character requests of Cruz, "Tell me something sexy."

See the rest here: http://www.etonline.com/dailyfirst/136935_Michael_Fassbender_Seduces_Penelope_Cruz_In_The_Counselor/

Michael Fassbender: New 'The Counselor' Clip with Brad Pitt

JUST JARED 
August 6, 2013 

 Check out Brad Pitt in this brand new clip from his upcoming film The Counselor.

The 49-year-old actor is featured in the clip alongside his co-star Michael Fassbender.

Javier Bardem, Cameron Diaz, and Penelope Cruz also star in the Ridley Scott-helmed movie, which is set to be released in theaters on October 25.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.justjared.com/2013/08/06/brad-pitt-new-the-counselor-clip/

Micheal Fassbender: New Counselor Stills Show Off Brad Pitt In A Big Hat

30 July 2013

Written by Ali Plumb

EMPIRE

Blessed with a strong cast (Michael Fassbender, Penélope Cruz, Cameron Diaz, Javier Bardem, Brad Pitt), a strong director (Ridley Scott) and perhaps one of the strongest writers to ever write (Cormac McCarthy), The Counsellor is, it's safe to say, a strong bet for Oscar contention come early next year.

To whet your appetite for such a fortuitous event, here are several more stills from the set, featuring both Cameon Diaz and Brad Pitt in helluvabig hats.

Pitt, who spoke to Empire in Cannes last year after the premiere of Andrew Dominik’s crime thriller Killing Them Softly, said the following about his role in The Counsellor.

 “I’m only doing a few days on that,” he explains. “Andrew and I are both Cormac McCarthy fans — I mean, I’ve read every word the guy’s published and most of them more than once. So this was a chance to do something of his and also to work with Ridley again. Ridley gave me my first break into the big leagues [with 1991’s Thelma & Louise]. And I’m a Fassbender fanatic too.”

 McCarthy (author of No Country For Old Men, The Road and All The Pretty Horses) delivered the spec screenplay for The Counsellor to his surprised publishers in January last year, and Scott was signed as director only weeks later.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=38297

Michael Fassbender’s been ‘bad’ in new trailer, for ‘The Counselor’: must-see?

 CELEBITCHY

JULY 19, 2013

http://www.celebitchy.com/311018/michael_fassbender_has_been_bad_in_new_trailer_for_the_counselor_must-see/

Several weeks ago, we got to see the Russian-language version of the trailer for The Counselor. It was enough to get me going, although when Michael Fassbender is involved, it really doesn’t take much for me. Just one look at those blue eyes and that ginger hair and I’m committed. But now the English-language version of the trailer has come out and OMG. Keep in mind – this is just a teaser. We can’t really see much of the plot beyond “Fassy is engaged to Penelope Cruz’s character, Javier Bardem has crazy hair, Brad Pitt is a sleazy money man and Cameron Diaz wants to bang Penelope Cruz.” And I’m down with ALL of it.

Ridley Scott deserves some kind of special recognition for making Cameron Diaz look that beautiful and sexy. I mean, she’s an attractive woman with a great figure all the time, but she’s been messing with her face the past few years, but you really can’t tell here. And the role Camy is playing… that’s the one Angelina Jolie was thinking about doing, right? But Angelina had other commitments, which is too bad because casting Angelina in that role would have been very, very interesting.

Michael Fassbender: 'The Counselor' Teaser Trailer (GMA NETWORK)

From Academy Award nominee Ridley Scott comes "The Counselor" starring Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem, John Leguizamo, Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz.  

 Written by Pulitzer Prize winner Cormac McCarthy, "The Counselor" follows lawyer (Fassbender) who he decides to get involved in a drug deal worth millions.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/316364/cbb/the-counselor-teaser-trailer

Michael Fassbender: First Trailer For Ridley Scott’s ‘The Counselor’ With Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, Javier Bardem & More Written by Jack Cunliffe, on June 25, 2013 at 9:37 am

Following last year’s blockbuster Prometheus, Ridley Scott will return to the world of R-rated, adult fare with the Cormac McCarthy-penned drama, The Counselor. Featuring one of the finest ensembles of the year, Michael Fassbender stars as a counselor who gets himself into a world of trouble after entering the drug trade, coming in contact with some strange characters (Brad Pitt) and outright villainous types (Javier Bardem) as things only get worse and worse.

READ MORE: http://thefilmstage.com/trailer/first-trailer-for-ridley-scotts-the-counselor-with-brad-pitt-michael-fassbender-javier-bardem-more/

Did Michael Fassbender & Cameron Diaz hook up in London last week? (CELEBITCHY)

If there’s one thing I know about Michael Fassbender, it’s that 6-foot-tall blondes will do anything to throw themselves into the path of L’Fassdong. It happened with Charlize Theron, and maybe it happened with Jennifer Lawrence too (although I doubt it). And now it apparently happened with Cameron Diaz, at least according to Us Weekly’s sources. Cameron and Fassbender worked together on Ridley Scott’s The Counselor, which also stars Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem and Brad Pitt. Cameron and Fassy were in London last week doing some reshoots (the production took a hiatus when Ridley’s brother passed away), and Us Weekly’s sources claim Fassy & Camy were looking very flirty and friendly.

Kissing costars? Multiple witnesses tell Us Weekly’s Hot Stuff that Cameron Diaz, 40, and her Counselor leading man, Michael Fassbender, dined together on February 7 at London’s Soho Hotel – and then made their way upstairs to a suite!

“They acted very flirty throughout dinner,” says a witness of the two, who were in the UK for reshoots on their crime drama. Later, at 12:30 am, another guest saw the pair step into a hotel room: “It looked like they were going to hook up!”

READ MORE: /http://www.celebitchy.com/280473/did_michael_fassbender_cameron_diaz_hook_up_in_london_last_week/

Michael Fassbender Pics from 'THE COUNSELOR"

The next day, Penelope‘s costar Michael Fassbender looked dashing while braving through the rain with an umbrella on set. Penelope‘s husband Javier Bardem is also starring in the film. Also pictured: Michael Fassbender and actress Natalie Dormer having dinner with friends on Thursday (September 27) in Alicante. 45+ pictures inside of Penelope Cruz and Michael Fassbender on the set of The Counselor

SEE ALL OF THE PICTURES HERE ON JUST JARED http://www.justjared.com/2012/09/29/michael-fassbender-penelop-cruz-umbrellas-counselor-set/?ref=partnerew

Would You Rather: Michael Fassbender vs Javier Bardem On The Set Of ‘The Counselor’ [PHOTOS] (SOCIALITE LIFE)

I will take any opportunity to stare at Michael Fassbender, so thankfully there are new photos to oogle over.  Today in East London, Fassbender shot The Counselor alongside Javier Bardem (sweet costume).

The film, also starring Cameron Diaz, Penelope Cruz, Brad Pitt, and John Leguizamo, follows the story of a lawyer who gets involved in drug trafficking.

Fans of Fifty Shades of Grey really wanted Fassbender to play the lead role of Christian Grey, but Fassbender says “hells no.”

READ MORE: http://socialitelife.com/would-you-rather-michael-fassbender-vs-javier-bardem-on-the-set-of-the-counselor-photos-09-2012

Colin Firth, Anna Karenina, Cloud Atlas, Arthur Newman: Stars align as full list of celebrities and filmmakers revealed for TIFF 2012 By W. Andrew Powell • August 21, 2012 • Category: News (THE GATE)

Once again, some serious star power is headed to Toronto for the 37th Toronto International Film Festival, and today the full list of expected stars and filmmakers has been announced.

Some of the expected guests this year include Joss Whedon, Penelope Cruz, Marion Cotillard, Colin Firth, Neil Jordan, Ben Affleck, Sally Potter, Dustin Hoffman, Francois Ozon, Rob Zombie, Ice-T, Selena Gomez, Zhang Yuan, Mike Newell, Noah Baumbach, and Bruce Willis.

TIFF 2012 runs from September 6 to 16. For more information visit www.tiff.net. The GATE will have ongoing coverage from this year’s festival as we celebrate our 12th year covering TIFF, so stay tuned to interviews, reviews and more.

READ THE LIST OF STARS AND FILMMAKERS EXPECTED: http://www.thegate.ca/news/012482/stars-align-as-full-list-of-celebrities-and-filmmakers-revealed-for-tiff-2012/

First images of Michael Fassbender in The Counselor surface (ENTERTAINMENT)

The first images of Michael Fassbender in Cormac McCarthy's first ever written-for-the-screen story, The Counselor, have surfaced (via Digital Spy). 

http://entertainment.ie/cinema/news/First-images-of-Michael-Fassbender-in-The-Counselor-surface/133240.htm

Colin Firth, David Beckham: How some of the hot Hollywood romances began (WHERE TO BE SCENE)

Ever wondered how the loved-up A-list managed to hook-up in the first place? We reveal all…
By Gemma White, Editor, Scene magazine Published: 00:00 March 15, 2012

Colin Firth and Livia Giuggioli

"It was love at first sight," says Colin of setting eyes on his wife-of-15-years on a film set in Italy back in 1996, calling her "this Italian beauty and smartest woman on the planet." And marrying her the following year in Umbria, the Oscar winner admits it wasn't easy winning over his in-laws, revealing of his job and the fact he came with a son from a previous relationship, "I'd shown up as this very, very dodgy commodity, attached to their darling daughter… I had a mountain to climb to win everyone over."

David and Victoria Beckham 

David admits to having had Posh on his radar for a while when she was at the height of her Spice Girls fame. After watching a cat-suited Victoria in the group's Say You'll Be There video, David spilled, "I saw Victoria and I told myself, ‘I'm going to marry that girl.'" Adding, "I think it was both love and lust. Well, it was probably lust." And Victoria reveals of their first meeting, "It was after a soccer match, and all of the players were in the players' lounge. David was sitting in the corner with his family. From the moment I met him, I knew that he wasn't a bloke-y bloke."

READ ABOUT THE OTHER ROMANCES, INCLUDING GEORGE CLOONEY, BEN AFFLECK, MATT DAMON:  http://gulfnews.com/arts-entertainment/celebrity/how-some-of-the-hot-hollywood-romances-began-1.993306