Public Enemies - What Did You Think?
Jonah Hill Has Already Finished His Movie With the Duplass Brothers
Posted on Friday, July 3rd, 2009 by Russ Fischer
Jonah Hill evidently really digs the movies by Mumblecore auteurs Jay and Mark Duplass. Their film The Puffy Chair, about two brothers on a road trip to pick up a replica of an odd family heirloom, is one of his favorites. So the three did a movie together, and according to MTV the project just finished a six-week LA shoot. In the untitled film (formerly called Safety Men) Hill is the son of Marisa Tomei, who has just begun a relationship with John C. Reilly. Read More »
Amelia Earhart may have had quite a presence in the second Night at the Museum movie earlier this summer, where she was played by a spunky Amy Adams, but she’s also getting her own biopic called Amelia, starring Hilary Swank, Richard Gere and Ewan McGregor. The first trailer has debuted at Yahoo, and it’s pretty standard biopic stuff. Which is too bad, because if there was ever a great adventurous biopic meant for young girls, this would be it. See the footage from the Mira Nair-directed film after the jump. Read More »
Danny Boyle And Fox Searchlight Sign Three-Year Deal
Posted on Thursday, June 11th, 2009 by Russ Fischer
Danny Boyle has drawn up a three-year production deal with Fox Searchlight and Pathe Pictures, according to Variety. Both companies were involved in Slumdog Millionaire; through this deal the two companies will co-finance and co-produce Boyle’s next project(s) over the next three years, with Pathe handing distribution in much of Europe and Fox Searchlight controlling the US and other territories. The filmmaker has a long history with Fox Searchlight, as the company produced and/or distributed 28 Days Later, Sunshine and Millions. Read More »
A Must Watch Video Clip From 500 Days of Summer: Expectation vs. Reality
Posted on Wednesday, June 10th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
One of the many reasons I loved 500 Days of Summer is the clever screenwriting. And by clever writing I don’t mean overwritten dialogue ala Diablo Cody, but fantastic story beats that take full advantage of the film medium. Fox Searchlight has released a new clip which perfectly illustrates what I’m talking about. As you might already know, the film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom, a hapless greeting card copywriter and hopeless romantic, who is blindsided after his girlfriend Summer (Zooey Deschanel) dumps him (this is how the movie begins), he shifts back and forth through various periods of their 500 days “together” (hence the title) to try to figure out where things went wrong.
The video clip after the jump takes place after Tom and Summer reconnect after the breakup, and Tom is invited to a party at his ex-girlfriend’s house. Tom, of course, thinks this is an opportunity to rekindle their relationship, but as you might expect, expectations and reality diverge. Screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber have expertly crafted a scene that I believe is so brilliant, that it makes you wonder why no one had come up with this concept prior. Everyone has encountered this situation at one point in their life, and everyone knows how it feels - yet I’ve never seen a movie portray the feeling so accurately, visually, without employing a ton of exposition before hand. The scene in the movie goes on a bit longer, and has more of a dramatic effect on the story (as you might expect, reality gets worse). The sequence works better in the context of the film, but you’ll get the point. Watch the clip embedded after the jump.
Orange UK has released an international trailer for 500 Days of Summer, which presents the movie as a much more traditional romantic comedy about a couple falling in love. And I’m not saying that the film isn’t a love story, it is, but if anything it isn’t traditional.
The movie is told in flashbacks and flash forwards, the film begins with Summer and Tom’s break up, and the story is also largely about Tom trying to figure out what went wrong, trying to reestablish a connection, trying to get over the break-up…etc. And that story seems to be completely absent from this new trailer. That said, its not a bad trailer, its just a bit misleading. Fox Searchlight is releasing the film in the US starting on July 17th, I highly recommend it! Watch the trailer after the jump.
Slumdog Millionaire Deleted Scene: Prem Visits the Police Station
Posted on Friday, May 29th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
Fox Searchlight has provided us with a deleted scene from Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire to promote the UK DVD release on June 1st 2009. The scene, which can be viewed after the jump, features Prem Kumar (Anil Kapoor), host of the Indian version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire, visiting the police station where Jamel (Dev Patel) is being interrogated.
Fox Searchlight will be holding a bunch of advance word of mouth promo screenings for (500) Days of Summer. This is the film I really fell in love with this year at Sundance. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom, a hapless greeting card copywriter and hopeless romantic, who is blindsided after his girlfriend Summer (Zooey Deschanel) dumps him, he shifts back and forth through various periods of their 500 days “together” to try to figure out where things went wrong.
Searchlight is holding screenings in New Orleans, Memphis, Denver, Houston, Austin, Kansas City, Cleveland, Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany, Seattle, San Antonio, Minneapolis and Chicago. Head on over to FoxSearchlight.com to RSVP. And remember, an RSVP is not as good as a normal ticket. You need to show up early to ensure you get in.
Fox Searchlight has released a new clip from 500 Days of Summer. This is the film I really fell in love with this year at Sundance. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom, a hapless greeting card copywriter and hopeless romantic, who is blindsided after his girlfriend Summer (Zooey Deschanel) dumps him, he shifts back and forth through various periods of their 500 days “together” to try to figure out where things went wrong. This clip is from a sequence early on in their relationship as they visit an IKEA furniture store. Watch the clip after the jump.
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Fox Searchlight To Release Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox?
Posted on Monday, May 11th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
It looks like Wes Anderson’s animated adaptation of Fantastic Mr. Fox will actually be released under Fox’s Fox Searchlight “indie”-focused label. The film has recently test screened with the Fox Searchlight titlecard in front of the print. What does this mean? It could mean that Fox doesn’t have enough faith in the film financially to release it under the 20th Century Fox banner. On the other hand, Searchlight has a great track record of quality films and great marketing, while many would say the complete opposite about their big brother, 20th Century Fox.
Fox Searchlight to Release Drew Barrymore’s Whip It! in October
Posted on Thursday, April 30th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
Ropes Of Silicon has received word that Fox Searchlight has picked up Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut Whip It!, and will release it on October 9th 2009. Searchlight is the best possible distributor for a film like this. And while October isn’t the best month to be released, the mid-October slot has done well for the studio in the past: Boy’s Don’t Cry and Sideways.
Based on the book Derby Girl by Shauna Cross, the film stars Ellen Page as Bliss, “an indie-rock loving misfit” who finds a way of dealing with her small-town misery after she discovers a roller derby league in nearby Austin Texas. Marcia Gay Harden plays Bliss’ disapproving mother, Jimmy Falon plays a cheesy hungover announcer named Hot Tub Johnny, while Kristen Wiig, Juliette Lewis, Zoe Bell and Eve play roller-derby stars.
Fox Searchlight’s big purchase at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival is a wonderful little relationship film called Adam. Searchlight has just released the film’s trailer on Yahoo. Written and directed by television director Max Mayer, Adam tells the story of a lonely 20-something-year-old man (a wonderful performance from Hugh Dancy) living with aspergers syndrome who forms a friendship with a new-ly moved in neighbor named Beth (Rose Byrne). But with Adam’s mental disability, can their friendship develop into more?
At Sundance, I called the film “extremely touching and sweet,” adding that “the film hits all the right notes without crossing the lines of cheesiness.” That said, it might be too middle of the road for some people, especially those who enjoy Fox Searchlight’s more indie/quirky films. Check out the trailer after the jump, and let me know what you think in the comments below.
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Kenneth Lonergan is the playwright behind This is Our Youth, The Waverley Gallery and Lobby Hero; the script-fixer that lent a hand to Gangs of New York and - incredibly - Rocky and Bullwinkle; and the writer-director of You Can Count on Me and Margaret. Not to put too fine a point on it, Lonergan is a very accomplished writer and, as displayed by You Can Count on Me, a fine director.
What, then, has happened to Margaret? Filmed in late 2005, Lonergan’s second film was to star Anna Paquin, Mark Ruffalo and Matt Damon. The shoot seemed to go very well, and early signs were fantastic. Then, Lonergan stepped into the editing room and things started to wobble somewhat. Thanks to a series of legal documents that have come into the possession of The LA Times, the horror stories of what seems to be one of the most absurdly protracted post production nightmares, can finally come to light.
