Sometimes there’s no way to make a casting roundup conform to any sort of sense. Such is the case here, as we’ve got info on a wild reality-based political thriller set in 1979, an animated sequel, and an indie family drama with a very unlikely cast. In other words, after the break you’ll find info on:
- Monsters star Scoot McNairy joining Ben Affleck’s Argo,
- Nick Frost and seven hundred other actors doing voices for the fourth theatrical Ice Age movie,
- and an indie called Little Boy, which has Kevin James and Emily Watson set to star.
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The official movie trailer for Steven Spielberg‘s big screen adaptation of Michael Morpurgo‘s World War I novel War Horse has been released online. Watch it now embedded after the jump. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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Three years have passed since we last saw a Steven Spielberg-directed film and it’s been six since we saw a good one. After such a long layoff, it’s insane to think that, come this December, we’ll have two Spielberg films in theaters at the same time. First we’ll get his 3D, motion capture film The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn on December 23 and then, December 28 brings the equine period epic War Horse. The first eight official photos from the latter film, which is based on a novel by Michael Morpurgo about a horse who travels far and wide to reunite with his owner during World War I, have just surfaced. Check them out after the break. Read More »
While it has yet to be picked up for U.S. distribution, Oranges and Sunshine is opening in the United Kingdom in April and has already played a few festivals to generally positive reviews. It stars Emily Watson in the true story of a social worker who discovers that tens of thousands of children in the United Kingdom were forced to migrate away from their families and then struggles trying to reunite the broken families. Directed by Jim Loach, first time director son of Ken Loach, Oranges and Sunshine also stars Hugo Weaving and David Wenham both of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Watch the trailer for this tear jerker and read the official plot description after the jump. Read More »
While the 2010 Holiday Movie season has been a little lackluster, 2011 is looking amazing. Sure this year we get a sequel to TRON and a new film by the Coen Brothers but next December alone we get new films from Martin Scorsese, Cameron Crowe, Brad Bird, David Fincher, Guy Ritchie as well as two new films by Steven Spielberg.
Slowly but surely, we’re learning more about each of those projects and today we’ve got a minor update on Spielberg’s live action Oscar contender, War Horse. Set for release on December 28, just five days after Spielberg’s The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn, War Horse stars David Thewlis, Emily Watson and others and is based on a novel by Michael Morpurgo. It’s probably a safe bet that most of us haven’t read that book, so definitely check out the official plot description of the film after the jump. Read More »
Over the past week there have been several rumors about the possible lead casting for Steven Spielberg‘s new film War Horse, which is based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo and the successful play based upon the book. English actor Eddie Redmayne was said to have one of the lead roles, and Tom Hiddleston the other. Based on current info, it looks like Hiddleston is in the mix, but has yet to sign. Rather than going to Redmayne, however, the lead role of Albert has gone to relative unknown Jeremy Irvine. Read More »
The Sundance Institute has announced the first half of the line-up for the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Included in the first press release are the films in competition in the Drama and Documentary segments. 3,661 feature-length films were submitted this year, which is 37 more films than last year. For the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, 118 feature-length films were selected including 87 world premieres, 19 North American premieres, and 4 U.S. premieres representing 21 countries with 42 first-time filmmakers, including 28 in competition. Before we get into the full list, I would like to point out some of the films that particularly interest me. Also, now should be the time for me to admit that I focus more on English-language films, so my foreign picks will probably be lacking.
The Wrestler screenwriter Robert Siegel makes his directorial debut with Big Fan, which stars Patton Oswalt as a parking garage attendant and hardcore New York Giants football fan who struggles to deal with the consequences when he is beaten up by his favorite player. Michael Rapaport also stars. I loved the humor that Siegel brought to The Wrestler, and with Oswalt in the lead – this one is a no brainer.
The Office star John Krasinski makes his directorial debut with a big screen adaptation of David Foster Wallace‘s book Breif Interviews with Hideous Men. The story follows Julianne Nicholson as a doctoral candidate in anthropology who “tries to remedy the heartache” of being dumped with little explanation, by interviewing men about their behavior. Krasinski, Dominic Cooper and Timothy Hutton also star.
In Cold Souls, Paul Giamatti stars as a famous American actor who in the midst of an existential crisis, “explores soul extraction as a relief from the burdens of daily life.” Okay, doesn’t have the best plot description but Giamatti is involved, as well as David Strathairn, Emily Watson, and Lauren Ambrose.
Emmy Rossum stars in Adam Salky‘s feature directorial debut Dare, about “three very different teenagers discover that, even in the safe world of a suburban prep school, no one is who she or he appears to be.” IMDB also provides a different teaser synopsis: “The good girl, the outsider and the bad boy…like you’ve never seen them before.” This is a feature length adaptation of Salky’s 2005 short film which was met with acclaim at film festivals. I’m a sucker for coming of age films.
Everyone is talking about Paper Heart, the film that Michael Cera made under the raydar with his girlfriend Charlyne Yi. The film is apparently a meta-love story with the stars playing themselves (?). The pre-festival hype aside, I would see this film based on Cera’s involvement alone.
Teeth star Jess Weixler returns to Sundance opposite Jason Ritter in a big screen adaptation of Peter and Vandy, the Drama Desk Nominated Best Play that was lauded for its “almost embarrassing intimacy and killer comic timing.” The film tells the story of a contemporary Manhattan love story, told out of order, with no beginning and no end. Festival programer Geoffrey Gilmore says that “One of the themes” of this year’s festival is “the kind of new-generation love story,” … a new “way of telling love stories right now by a new, younger generation that’s different, that’s fresh, that’s original.” This and the Cera film Paper Heart seems to fit into this statement.
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Jeff Daniels stars as the title character Arlen Faber, a reclusive author of a groundbreaking spiritual book awakens to new truths when two strangers enter his life. The film also stars Kat Dennings (Nick and Norah), Olivia Thirlby (Juno, Wackness), and Lauren Gram. The film was formerly titled “The Dream of the Romans“, which is a much better title if you ask me.
In Good Hair, Comedian Chris Rock turns documentary filmmaker when he sets out to examine the culture of African-American hair and hairstyles. I’m not sure if it will be good, like many of Chris Rock’s films, but I’ll always be there for anything the guy creates.
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Documentary filmmaker R.J. Cutler was given unprecedented access for a film titled “The September Issue“. Cutler and crew shot Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour and her team over the corse of nine months as they prepared the 2007 VogueSeptember issue, widely accepted as the “fashion bible” for the year’s trends. I’ve always been interested in the world of journalism, even if the Fashion world might be a very different realm. And I must admit that The Devil Wears Prada has me very interested to catch this one.
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You can read the full press release (which includes a listing of all the films announced today) after the jump.
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Sorry Joss Whedon fanboys, I’m not talking about THAT Firefly.
I’m talking about a new ensemble drama starring Julia Roberts and Carrie-Anne Moss.
Written are directed by Academy Award Winner Dennis Lee (for his student short film Jesus Henry Christ), Fireflies in the Garden is loosely based on Lee’s life and “explores the complexities of love and commitment in a family torn apart when faced with an unexpected tragedy.” Sounds about right for a Julia Roberts chick flick. SNORE.
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