South Australian Anthony Frith’s close encounter with “Sharknado” prodco The Asylum in “Mockbuster” is among five handpicked titles to be showcased at the Adelaide Film Festival Goes to Cannes showcase, held at Cannes Marché du Film on May 17.
The five works in progress range from queer adult anime, comedic doc, and traditional non-fiction to family dramas, helmed mostly by newcomers, and reflect the dynamic filmmaking community of Southern Australia, set to tempt potential co-financiers in Cannes.
So far two titles have received international backing. “Mockbuster” has been pre-sold to Giant Pictures and Drafthouse Films for North America, on top of domestic distribution in Australia via Umbrella Entertainment; Kelly Schilling’s drama “With or Without You,” handled locally by Icon Film Distribution, has been picked up by global sales agent LevelK.
Aimed at bringing together selected South Australian creators and producers with global industry delegates and to promote South Australia as a filmmaking hub,...
The five works in progress range from queer adult anime, comedic doc, and traditional non-fiction to family dramas, helmed mostly by newcomers, and reflect the dynamic filmmaking community of Southern Australia, set to tempt potential co-financiers in Cannes.
So far two titles have received international backing. “Mockbuster” has been pre-sold to Giant Pictures and Drafthouse Films for North America, on top of domestic distribution in Australia via Umbrella Entertainment; Kelly Schilling’s drama “With or Without You,” handled locally by Icon Film Distribution, has been picked up by global sales agent LevelK.
Aimed at bringing together selected South Australian creators and producers with global industry delegates and to promote South Australia as a filmmaking hub,...
- 4/24/2024
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
‘Maya the Bee 3: The Golden Orb.’
While most live-action production has shutdown, an army of more than 250 animators from Flying Bark Productions are working remotely across Sydney and in other states on a TV series and two feature films.
The production company owned by Belgium-based Studio 100 delivered the 100% Wolf feature to Universal Pictures at the end of last year and is working on the eponymous series which will premiere on the ABC and Germany’s Super Rtl after the film is released in cinemas.
Flying Bark is doing the service work on two other features, Maya The Bee 3 – The Golden Orb and Mia & Me – The Hero of Centopia, both co-productions between Brian Rosen and Su Armstrong’s Studio B Animation and Studio 100 Media.
“This is a terribly challenging time for everyone in the screen industry; however we are fortunate to be able to relocate our business to a remote pipeline,...
While most live-action production has shutdown, an army of more than 250 animators from Flying Bark Productions are working remotely across Sydney and in other states on a TV series and two feature films.
The production company owned by Belgium-based Studio 100 delivered the 100% Wolf feature to Universal Pictures at the end of last year and is working on the eponymous series which will premiere on the ABC and Germany’s Super Rtl after the film is released in cinemas.
Flying Bark is doing the service work on two other features, Maya The Bee 3 – The Golden Orb and Mia & Me – The Hero of Centopia, both co-productions between Brian Rosen and Su Armstrong’s Studio B Animation and Studio 100 Media.
“This is a terribly challenging time for everyone in the screen industry; however we are fortunate to be able to relocate our business to a remote pipeline,...
- 4/6/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Zak Hilditch, Alison James and infant.
Expat Australian filmmakers in Los Angeles and London are coping as best they can through the Covid-19 pandemic, including supporting each other.
Zak Hilditch was gearing up to shoot Airborne (formerly Celestial Blue), a prescient thriller about a mid-flight pandemic, in Bulgaria mid-year, produced by Liz Kearney and Ross Dinerstein, backed by Xyz Films.
“Like everything else, it’s all a huge grey area as to whether that’s even remotely feasible,” he tells If. Alexandra Daddario is attached to play a flight attendant who struggles to contain the infected passengers and against the odds land the aircraft safely.
Zak’s wife Alison James, who signed with Wme and Grandview after directing the short Judas Collar, is focused on writing and developing her own projects and collaborating with others in the Us and Australia.
I Am Mother’s Grant Sputore and his wife moved...
Expat Australian filmmakers in Los Angeles and London are coping as best they can through the Covid-19 pandemic, including supporting each other.
Zak Hilditch was gearing up to shoot Airborne (formerly Celestial Blue), a prescient thriller about a mid-flight pandemic, in Bulgaria mid-year, produced by Liz Kearney and Ross Dinerstein, backed by Xyz Films.
“Like everything else, it’s all a huge grey area as to whether that’s even remotely feasible,” he tells If. Alexandra Daddario is attached to play a flight attendant who struggles to contain the infected passengers and against the odds land the aircraft safely.
Zak’s wife Alison James, who signed with Wme and Grandview after directing the short Judas Collar, is focused on writing and developing her own projects and collaborating with others in the Us and Australia.
I Am Mother’s Grant Sputore and his wife moved...
- 4/1/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘It Chapter Two.’ (Photo credit: Warner Bros.)
Warner Bros/New Line’s It Chapter Two and Roadshow’s Chinese-American dramedy The Farewell gave the flagging Australian box office a much needed jolt last weekend while two new Oz releases struggled.
Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine and Alan Lindsay’s romantic comedy The Naked Wanderer faced the same challenge which has bedeviled most Australian films this year: Opening on limited screens with minimal P&a, which means low visibility in the marketplace. So relying primarily on reviews, publicity and word of mouth is no guarantee to draw audiences.
Starring Noomi Rapace, Yvonne Strahovski, Annika Whiteley, Finn Little, Luke Evans, Richard Roxburgh and Rob Collins, Farrant’s follow-up to Strangerland grossed $26,000 on 42 screens and $43,000 including festival screenings for R&r Films.
As If reported, the movie co-funded by Screen Australia and Film Victoria has been sold by Fortitude International to...
Warner Bros/New Line’s It Chapter Two and Roadshow’s Chinese-American dramedy The Farewell gave the flagging Australian box office a much needed jolt last weekend while two new Oz releases struggled.
Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine and Alan Lindsay’s romantic comedy The Naked Wanderer faced the same challenge which has bedeviled most Australian films this year: Opening on limited screens with minimal P&a, which means low visibility in the marketplace. So relying primarily on reviews, publicity and word of mouth is no guarantee to draw audiences.
Starring Noomi Rapace, Yvonne Strahovski, Annika Whiteley, Finn Little, Luke Evans, Richard Roxburgh and Rob Collins, Farrant’s follow-up to Strangerland grossed $26,000 on 42 screens and $43,000 including festival screenings for R&r Films.
As If reported, the movie co-funded by Screen Australia and Film Victoria has been sold by Fortitude International to...
- 9/9/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘Angel of Mine.’
Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine began its theatrical journey in the Us last weekend, opening in 12 key cities and on demand.
The distributor Lionsgate did not share any Bo figures for the movie starring Noomi Rapace, Yvonne Strahovski and Annika Whiteley, which are typically modest for a multi-platform release.
The upside will come from the October 22 release on Blu-Ray, DVD and digital followed in February by the premiere on Hulu, Disney’s streaming platform which has 28 million subscribers in the Us.
Produced by Brian Etting, Josh Etting and Su Armstrong, the movie adapted by Lion’s Luke Davies and David Regal from the 2008 French film L’Empreinte de L’Ange had its world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival. It will open here this Thursday on 41 screens via Robert Slaviero and Richard Becker’s R & R Films.
Rapace plays Lizzie, a grieving...
Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine began its theatrical journey in the Us last weekend, opening in 12 key cities and on demand.
The distributor Lionsgate did not share any Bo figures for the movie starring Noomi Rapace, Yvonne Strahovski and Annika Whiteley, which are typically modest for a multi-platform release.
The upside will come from the October 22 release on Blu-Ray, DVD and digital followed in February by the premiere on Hulu, Disney’s streaming platform which has 28 million subscribers in the Us.
Produced by Brian Etting, Josh Etting and Su Armstrong, the movie adapted by Lion’s Luke Davies and David Regal from the 2008 French film L’Empreinte de L’Ange had its world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival. It will open here this Thursday on 41 screens via Robert Slaviero and Richard Becker’s R & R Films.
Rapace plays Lizzie, a grieving...
- 9/1/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘Angel of Mine.’
Lionsgate will release Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine, which stars Noomi Rapace and Yvonne Strahovski, in North America.
Adapted by Lion’s Luke Davies and David Regal from the 2008 French film L’Empreinte de L’Ange, the film will open on August 30 as a multi-platform release.
Produced by Brian Etting, Josh Etting and Su Armstrong, it will have its world premiere on August 14 at the Melbourne International Film Festival.
Rapace plays Lizzie, a grieving mother who lost her infant daughter seven years earlier. When she sees Nola (Annika Whiteley), a young girl at a neighbour’s party, she starts to believe she is her daughter.
As her obsession grows, she becomes more and more entwined in the girl’s life and loses touch with reality.
Strahovski, who stars in Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, plays Claire, the girl’s mother, in her first...
Lionsgate will release Kim Farrant’s psychological thriller Angel of Mine, which stars Noomi Rapace and Yvonne Strahovski, in North America.
Adapted by Lion’s Luke Davies and David Regal from the 2008 French film L’Empreinte de L’Ange, the film will open on August 30 as a multi-platform release.
Produced by Brian Etting, Josh Etting and Su Armstrong, it will have its world premiere on August 14 at the Melbourne International Film Festival.
Rapace plays Lizzie, a grieving mother who lost her infant daughter seven years earlier. When she sees Nola (Annika Whiteley), a young girl at a neighbour’s party, she starts to believe she is her daughter.
As her obsession grows, she becomes more and more entwined in the girl’s life and loses touch with reality.
Strahovski, who stars in Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, plays Claire, the girl’s mother, in her first...
- 7/15/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Anni Browning and Dan Read.
Film Finances Australasia managing director Anni Browning today announced that she will step down from her position, and will be succeeded by Dan Read, who joined Film Finances in 2013 and was appointed as CEO in 2017.
However, Browning will continue in an advisory position for the completion guarantor company into the foreseeable future.
“Dan will do a wonderful job. He knows the people and the business really well. Under his care the company will continue to thrive.
“I have had a fabulous 22 years at Film Finances. But now it is time to hand over the tiller so I can go sailing. It has been a complete privilege to work with so many talented and ingenious filmmakers and help realise so many really wonderful films and TV shows,” Browning said.
“I am not going far and will continue to be available to Dan and our great team.
Film Finances Australasia managing director Anni Browning today announced that she will step down from her position, and will be succeeded by Dan Read, who joined Film Finances in 2013 and was appointed as CEO in 2017.
However, Browning will continue in an advisory position for the completion guarantor company into the foreseeable future.
“Dan will do a wonderful job. He knows the people and the business really well. Under his care the company will continue to thrive.
“I have had a fabulous 22 years at Film Finances. But now it is time to hand over the tiller so I can go sailing. It has been a complete privilege to work with so many talented and ingenious filmmakers and help realise so many really wonderful films and TV shows,” Browning said.
“I am not going far and will continue to be available to Dan and our great team.
- 7/1/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Upcoming Noomi Rapace-starring psychological thriller “Angel of Mine” is set as the first acquisition by R & R Films, a new Australian distributor. The company was recently established by industry veterans Richard Becker and Robert Slaviero.
The film goes into production this month in Melbourne, Australia. It is the story of intuition and obsession featuring a couple coming to terms with the untimely death of their daughter. The woman becomes convinced that another girl is her own. The script is adapted by Luke Davies (“Lion”) and David Regal from the French film “L’Empreinte,” by Safy Nebbou.
Alongside Rapace, the film stars Yvonne Strahovski (“The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Dexter”) and Luke Evans. Other cast includes Richard Roxburgh, Finn Little (“Storm Boy”) and Rob Collins (“Cleverman”), alongside Tracy Mann, Pip Miller and Rachel Gordon.
Richard Becker is a veteran who for years headed the sales, production and distribution group Becker Film.
The film goes into production this month in Melbourne, Australia. It is the story of intuition and obsession featuring a couple coming to terms with the untimely death of their daughter. The woman becomes convinced that another girl is her own. The script is adapted by Luke Davies (“Lion”) and David Regal from the French film “L’Empreinte,” by Safy Nebbou.
Alongside Rapace, the film stars Yvonne Strahovski (“The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Dexter”) and Luke Evans. Other cast includes Richard Roxburgh, Finn Little (“Storm Boy”) and Rob Collins (“Cleverman”), alongside Tracy Mann, Pip Miller and Rachel Gordon.
Richard Becker is a veteran who for years headed the sales, production and distribution group Becker Film.
- 5/8/2018
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
“The Handmaid’s Tale” star Yvonne Strahovski has come on board to star opposite Noomi Rapace in the Australian psychological thriller “Angel of Mine,” with Kim Farrant directing.
Rapace was attached to the project in early February and Fortitude International began pre-selling the picture at the European Film Market in Berlin. “Angel of Mine” is a remake of 2008 French film “L’Empreinte de L’Ange,” which follows a woman’s descent into madness after she loses her daughter and becomes convinced that another woman’s child is in fact her own. Strahovski, a native of Australia, will play a woman accused of stealing the daughter.
Farrant, whose first film was the Nicole Kidman-starring “Strangerland” in 2015 will direct from a script by Luke Davies (“Lion,” “Candy”) and David Regal. Production is scheduled to begin in April.
Production companies are SixtyFourSixty and Garlin Pictures. Producers are Brian Etting, Josh Etting, and Su Armstrong.
Rapace was attached to the project in early February and Fortitude International began pre-selling the picture at the European Film Market in Berlin. “Angel of Mine” is a remake of 2008 French film “L’Empreinte de L’Ange,” which follows a woman’s descent into madness after she loses her daughter and becomes convinced that another woman’s child is in fact her own. Strahovski, a native of Australia, will play a woman accused of stealing the daughter.
Farrant, whose first film was the Nicole Kidman-starring “Strangerland” in 2015 will direct from a script by Luke Davies (“Lion,” “Candy”) and David Regal. Production is scheduled to begin in April.
Production companies are SixtyFourSixty and Garlin Pictures. Producers are Brian Etting, Josh Etting, and Su Armstrong.
- 3/28/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Yvonne Strahovski is set to star opposite Noomi Rapace in the Kim Farrant-directed thriller Angel Of Mine, which follows a mother Lizzie (Rapace) who, still struggling to cope with the loss of her daughter several years earlier, becomes convinced that a stranger’s daughter is, in fact, her own.
Strahovski, who will star in the soon-to-be-released second season of Hulu’s acclaimed series The Handmaid’s Tale, will play Claire, the woman who Lizzie alleges has stolen her daughter.
The film, from SixtyFourSixty and Garlin Pictures, is based on French feature, L’Empreinte with the adaption penned by Lion scribe Luke Davies. Brian Etting, Josh Etting, and Su Armstrong are producing the projects. Exec producers include Robert Ogden Barnum and Nadine de Barros of Fortitude International as well as Davies and Brian Rosen.
Screen Australia, in association with Film Victoria, provided the principal production investment.
Strahovski, next seen...
Strahovski, who will star in the soon-to-be-released second season of Hulu’s acclaimed series The Handmaid’s Tale, will play Claire, the woman who Lizzie alleges has stolen her daughter.
The film, from SixtyFourSixty and Garlin Pictures, is based on French feature, L’Empreinte with the adaption penned by Lion scribe Luke Davies. Brian Etting, Josh Etting, and Su Armstrong are producing the projects. Exec producers include Robert Ogden Barnum and Nadine de Barros of Fortitude International as well as Davies and Brian Rosen.
Screen Australia, in association with Film Victoria, provided the principal production investment.
Strahovski, next seen...
- 3/28/2018
- by Amanda N'Duka
- Deadline Film + TV
Screened out of competition at the Venice International Film Festival
VENICE -- Movies with the name Casanova in the title have almost always been stinkers so it's bold of Lasse Hallstrom to call his film simply "Casanova" but it turns out to be a welcome exception to the rule as it's a smart and sophisticated comedy romp.
It has been a while since a sensible sex comedy of this entertaining sharpness has been around, but Hallstrom's film is a genuine crowd-pleaser that should have exhibitors everywhere smiling along with huge numbers of moviegoers.
The city of Venice has never looked so scintillating on screen and the glorious setting is the perfect background for a tale of love and lust and mistaken identity that never stoops to the ludicrous posturing and leering typical of most period farces.
Richard Lester's excellent Musketeer movies come to mind along with a little Monty Python but the screenplay by Jeffrey Hatcher and Kimberly Simi, from a story by Simi and Michael Cristofer, borrows cleverly from Shakespeare too in its pleasing symmetry.
The film delights in a time when even in so flourishing a city as Venice, individuals are known only by their names and not their faces. It's happily foreign to today's world where image is everything and it allows for deception at the highest level, which the film exploits to the full.
Many of the principal characters in "Casanova" pretend to be someone else for assorted reasons, mostly lust, and it's a source of great merriment that their undoing is an early version of one of the most ubiquitous institutions of modern times: advertising.
It is 1753 and Casanova (Heath Ledger) is so celebrated a lover that he is lampooned by players in St. Mark's Square and puppet shows all over Venice. The Inquisition has him on its most-wanted list for debauchery and when they raid a nunnery in pursuit of him, Casanova flees his complicit novitiate and every nun in the place blows him a kiss on his way out.
His protector, the Doge (Tim McInnerny) tells him that to be saved from the Inquisition, he must leave Venice forever or get married, and so Casanova and his manservant Lupo (Omid Djalili) go in search of the perfect bride.
Meanwhile, Francesca Bruni (Sienna Miller) is awaiting the arrival of her fiance, Paprizzio, the lard mogul of Genoa, whom she has never met but must marry at the desperate wish of her mother (Lena Olin). Francesca's brother Giovanni (Charlie Cox) spends his time ogling the local virgin, Victoria (Natalie Dormer), but cannot bring himself to approach her.
When Casanova and Victoria meet, she blossoms with a lust so pulsating that she snaps thick wood with her fingers, and the two become engaged. Annoyed by this development, Giovanni challenges Casanova to a duel although not realizing he is the notorious seducer.
Knowing her brother is not a good with a sword, at least not one with a blade, Francesca takes his place and fights Casanova to a draw. Only when the duel ends is she revealed as a beautiful woman and Casanova is immediately smitten. When he discovers that she favors the writing of a philosopher whose books espouse a woman's point of view, he employs that philosophy to pursue her, little knowing that she is in fact the writer of those books using a nom-de-plume.
In the tradition of great farces, the story then tumbles delightfully along its eccentrically logical path with wonderful figures showing up including Paprizzio (Oliver Platt) and the chief inquisitor Pucci (Jeremy Irons), and there's many a twist before the tale is finally told.
Ledger provides a well-measured comic counterbalance to his grimly gay cowboy in "Brokeback Mountain", and Miller finally emerges from the publicity furor of her relationship with Jude Law to show that she is a beautiful and highly capable screen actress for whom stardom clearly beckons.
Irons is an Ice Pick of drollery and Pratt has great fun mimicking Orson Welles in his Mr. Creosote period, while the remainder of the cast -- including veteran Paddy Ward, with a couple of lovely Edward Everett Horton moments -- take advantage of a clever script and a director having the time of his life.
CASANOVA
Touchstone Pictures presents a Mark Gordon Company-Hallstrom/Halleran production.
Credits: Director: Lasse Hallstrom; Screenplay: Jeffrey Hatcher and Kimberly Simi; Story: Kimberly Simi and Michael Cristofer; Producers: Mark Gordon, Betsy Beers, Leslie Holleran; Executive producers: Su Armstrong, Adam Merims, Gary Levinsohn; Director of photography: Oliver Stapleton; Production designer: David Gropman; Editor: Andrew Mondshein; Music: Alexandre Desplat. Cast: Casanova: Heath Ledger; Francesca Bruni: Sienna Miller; Andrew: Lena Olin; Victoria: Natalie Dormer; Giovanni Bruni: Charlie Cox; Pucci: Jeremy Irons; Paprizzio: Oliver Platt; Guardi: Phil Davies; Donato: Stephen Greif; Lupo: Omid Djalili; Vittorio: Paddy Ward; Dalfonso: Ken Stott; Doge: Tim McInnerny; Casanova's mother: Helen McCrory; Mother's lover/Tito: Leigh Lawson.
No MPAA rating. Running time: 108 min.
VENICE -- Movies with the name Casanova in the title have almost always been stinkers so it's bold of Lasse Hallstrom to call his film simply "Casanova" but it turns out to be a welcome exception to the rule as it's a smart and sophisticated comedy romp.
It has been a while since a sensible sex comedy of this entertaining sharpness has been around, but Hallstrom's film is a genuine crowd-pleaser that should have exhibitors everywhere smiling along with huge numbers of moviegoers.
The city of Venice has never looked so scintillating on screen and the glorious setting is the perfect background for a tale of love and lust and mistaken identity that never stoops to the ludicrous posturing and leering typical of most period farces.
Richard Lester's excellent Musketeer movies come to mind along with a little Monty Python but the screenplay by Jeffrey Hatcher and Kimberly Simi, from a story by Simi and Michael Cristofer, borrows cleverly from Shakespeare too in its pleasing symmetry.
The film delights in a time when even in so flourishing a city as Venice, individuals are known only by their names and not their faces. It's happily foreign to today's world where image is everything and it allows for deception at the highest level, which the film exploits to the full.
Many of the principal characters in "Casanova" pretend to be someone else for assorted reasons, mostly lust, and it's a source of great merriment that their undoing is an early version of one of the most ubiquitous institutions of modern times: advertising.
It is 1753 and Casanova (Heath Ledger) is so celebrated a lover that he is lampooned by players in St. Mark's Square and puppet shows all over Venice. The Inquisition has him on its most-wanted list for debauchery and when they raid a nunnery in pursuit of him, Casanova flees his complicit novitiate and every nun in the place blows him a kiss on his way out.
His protector, the Doge (Tim McInnerny) tells him that to be saved from the Inquisition, he must leave Venice forever or get married, and so Casanova and his manservant Lupo (Omid Djalili) go in search of the perfect bride.
Meanwhile, Francesca Bruni (Sienna Miller) is awaiting the arrival of her fiance, Paprizzio, the lard mogul of Genoa, whom she has never met but must marry at the desperate wish of her mother (Lena Olin). Francesca's brother Giovanni (Charlie Cox) spends his time ogling the local virgin, Victoria (Natalie Dormer), but cannot bring himself to approach her.
When Casanova and Victoria meet, she blossoms with a lust so pulsating that she snaps thick wood with her fingers, and the two become engaged. Annoyed by this development, Giovanni challenges Casanova to a duel although not realizing he is the notorious seducer.
Knowing her brother is not a good with a sword, at least not one with a blade, Francesca takes his place and fights Casanova to a draw. Only when the duel ends is she revealed as a beautiful woman and Casanova is immediately smitten. When he discovers that she favors the writing of a philosopher whose books espouse a woman's point of view, he employs that philosophy to pursue her, little knowing that she is in fact the writer of those books using a nom-de-plume.
In the tradition of great farces, the story then tumbles delightfully along its eccentrically logical path with wonderful figures showing up including Paprizzio (Oliver Platt) and the chief inquisitor Pucci (Jeremy Irons), and there's many a twist before the tale is finally told.
Ledger provides a well-measured comic counterbalance to his grimly gay cowboy in "Brokeback Mountain", and Miller finally emerges from the publicity furor of her relationship with Jude Law to show that she is a beautiful and highly capable screen actress for whom stardom clearly beckons.
Irons is an Ice Pick of drollery and Pratt has great fun mimicking Orson Welles in his Mr. Creosote period, while the remainder of the cast -- including veteran Paddy Ward, with a couple of lovely Edward Everett Horton moments -- take advantage of a clever script and a director having the time of his life.
CASANOVA
Touchstone Pictures presents a Mark Gordon Company-Hallstrom/Halleran production.
Credits: Director: Lasse Hallstrom; Screenplay: Jeffrey Hatcher and Kimberly Simi; Story: Kimberly Simi and Michael Cristofer; Producers: Mark Gordon, Betsy Beers, Leslie Holleran; Executive producers: Su Armstrong, Adam Merims, Gary Levinsohn; Director of photography: Oliver Stapleton; Production designer: David Gropman; Editor: Andrew Mondshein; Music: Alexandre Desplat. Cast: Casanova: Heath Ledger; Francesca Bruni: Sienna Miller; Andrew: Lena Olin; Victoria: Natalie Dormer; Giovanni Bruni: Charlie Cox; Pucci: Jeremy Irons; Paprizzio: Oliver Platt; Guardi: Phil Davies; Donato: Stephen Greif; Lupo: Omid Djalili; Vittorio: Paddy Ward; Dalfonso: Ken Stott; Doge: Tim McInnerny; Casanova's mother: Helen McCrory; Mother's lover/Tito: Leigh Lawson.
No MPAA rating. Running time: 108 min.
This review was written for the theatrical release of "Queen of the Damned".
One of the most ambitious vampire movies since Warner Bros.' "Interview With the Vampire" and likewise adapted from best-selling author Anne Rice's series "The Vampire Chronicles", "Queen of the Damned" features the late singer-actress Aaliyah in the title role as a sexy, not-to-be-messed-with ancient who comes to life in turn-of-the-millennium America.
Directed with goth pizzazz and brains by Michael Rymer ("Perfume"), the film premiered Sunday at the closing night of the 2002 Hollywood Black Film Festival. Preceded that evening by a short tribute to Aaliyah Dana Haughton, who was posthumously awarded the fest's first Inspirational Spirit Award, the loud and entertaining "Queen" could rule the boxoffice when it opens Feb. 22.
While one watches her scenes in the latter half of the film with admiration for Aaliyah's charisma and team spirit (all those bloody-fanged smiles, the skimpy Egyptian costumes), there's a whiff of real sadness to a scenario that is preoccupied with the loneliness of the immortal undead. But it's also a little camp around the edges, and one doesn't have to be a Rice fan to follow the vampire histrionics, of which "Queen" has more than its share.
The heavy metal music-fueled blood fest actually centers on Rice's charismatic rebel vamp Lestat (Stuart Townsend of "About Adam") and a fetching investigator of the paranormal, Jessie (Marguerite Moreau of "Wet Hot American Summer"). With Aaliyah not appearing in full glory until 50 minutes into "Queen", the often-narrated story follows Jessie's learning about Lestat's past after he wakes up from a self-imposed slumber and becomes a major pop star.
Indeed, devilish Lestat calls himself a vampire and almost overtly goes about his natural routine, knowing that he will anger all the other vampires who strictly adhere to a code of silence. Thousands of years old and infamous for drinking rivers of blood, Akasha (Aaliyah) is the "mother" of all the vamps and has the ability to burn them (and mere mortals) into blobs of molten matter.
The plot and many characters of "Queen" get a bit complicated. But Jessie's fascination with New Orleans-based Lestat makes sense when it becomes clear that her aunt (Lena Olin) is a vampire. Vincent Perez is Marius, whom we see "make" Lestat in a period flashback and who keeps track of Akasha in statue form. There is much jumping around in time until awakened Akasha starts to show off her power, leading to a climactic rock concert in Death Valley that turns into a vampire slaughter.
The costumes -- Aaliyah is adorned in headdresses, shell skirts and gold-plated bodices -- and special effects are major elements in the film's most crowd-pleasing moments. With a blistering heavy rock soundtrack and several original songs by Jonathan Davis (lead singer of Korn) and Richard Gibbs that are performed by Lestat and his band, "Queen" is a change of pace for Rymer, and the widescreen production shows affection for the genre and some respect for the viewer.
QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
Warner Bros.
In association with Village Roadshow Pictures
and NPV Entertainment
A Material production
Credits:
Director: Michael Rymer
Screenwriters: Scott Abbott, Michael Petroni
Based on the novel by: Anne Rice
Producer: Jorge Saralegui
Executive producers: Su Armstrong, Andrew Mason, Bill Gerber, Bruce Berman
Director of photography: Ian Baker
Production designer: Graham "Grace" Walker
Editor: Danny Cooper
Costume designer: Angus Strathie
Visual effects supervisor: Gregory L. McMurry
Music: Richard Gibbs, Jonathan Davis
Casting: Kristy Sager, Greg Apps
Cast:
Lestat: Stuart Townsend
Jessie: Marguerite Moreau
Queen Akasha: Aaliyah
Marius: Vincent Perez
Maharet: Lena Olin
David Talbot: Paul McGann
MPAA rating: R
Color/stereo
Running time -- 101 minutes...
One of the most ambitious vampire movies since Warner Bros.' "Interview With the Vampire" and likewise adapted from best-selling author Anne Rice's series "The Vampire Chronicles", "Queen of the Damned" features the late singer-actress Aaliyah in the title role as a sexy, not-to-be-messed-with ancient who comes to life in turn-of-the-millennium America.
Directed with goth pizzazz and brains by Michael Rymer ("Perfume"), the film premiered Sunday at the closing night of the 2002 Hollywood Black Film Festival. Preceded that evening by a short tribute to Aaliyah Dana Haughton, who was posthumously awarded the fest's first Inspirational Spirit Award, the loud and entertaining "Queen" could rule the boxoffice when it opens Feb. 22.
While one watches her scenes in the latter half of the film with admiration for Aaliyah's charisma and team spirit (all those bloody-fanged smiles, the skimpy Egyptian costumes), there's a whiff of real sadness to a scenario that is preoccupied with the loneliness of the immortal undead. But it's also a little camp around the edges, and one doesn't have to be a Rice fan to follow the vampire histrionics, of which "Queen" has more than its share.
The heavy metal music-fueled blood fest actually centers on Rice's charismatic rebel vamp Lestat (Stuart Townsend of "About Adam") and a fetching investigator of the paranormal, Jessie (Marguerite Moreau of "Wet Hot American Summer"). With Aaliyah not appearing in full glory until 50 minutes into "Queen", the often-narrated story follows Jessie's learning about Lestat's past after he wakes up from a self-imposed slumber and becomes a major pop star.
Indeed, devilish Lestat calls himself a vampire and almost overtly goes about his natural routine, knowing that he will anger all the other vampires who strictly adhere to a code of silence. Thousands of years old and infamous for drinking rivers of blood, Akasha (Aaliyah) is the "mother" of all the vamps and has the ability to burn them (and mere mortals) into blobs of molten matter.
The plot and many characters of "Queen" get a bit complicated. But Jessie's fascination with New Orleans-based Lestat makes sense when it becomes clear that her aunt (Lena Olin) is a vampire. Vincent Perez is Marius, whom we see "make" Lestat in a period flashback and who keeps track of Akasha in statue form. There is much jumping around in time until awakened Akasha starts to show off her power, leading to a climactic rock concert in Death Valley that turns into a vampire slaughter.
The costumes -- Aaliyah is adorned in headdresses, shell skirts and gold-plated bodices -- and special effects are major elements in the film's most crowd-pleasing moments. With a blistering heavy rock soundtrack and several original songs by Jonathan Davis (lead singer of Korn) and Richard Gibbs that are performed by Lestat and his band, "Queen" is a change of pace for Rymer, and the widescreen production shows affection for the genre and some respect for the viewer.
QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
Warner Bros.
In association with Village Roadshow Pictures
and NPV Entertainment
A Material production
Credits:
Director: Michael Rymer
Screenwriters: Scott Abbott, Michael Petroni
Based on the novel by: Anne Rice
Producer: Jorge Saralegui
Executive producers: Su Armstrong, Andrew Mason, Bill Gerber, Bruce Berman
Director of photography: Ian Baker
Production designer: Graham "Grace" Walker
Editor: Danny Cooper
Costume designer: Angus Strathie
Visual effects supervisor: Gregory L. McMurry
Music: Richard Gibbs, Jonathan Davis
Casting: Kristy Sager, Greg Apps
Cast:
Lestat: Stuart Townsend
Jessie: Marguerite Moreau
Queen Akasha: Aaliyah
Marius: Vincent Perez
Maharet: Lena Olin
David Talbot: Paul McGann
MPAA rating: R
Color/stereo
Running time -- 101 minutes...
- 2/12/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
"Good Will Hunting" equals good certain Oscaring.
Once again put Miramax smack dab in the midst of the best-picture race with this jarringly powerful film about a working- class kid with a genius IQ who can play stump-the-professors and win big but can't muster a passing score in the one category that counts -- his personal life.
Likely to garner critics group honors, this Gus Van Sant-directed film will score not only with the intelligentsia on an abstract as well as emotional level, but its multiple heart-wrenching and heartfelt story lines will win over mainstream audiences in the manner of "Mr. Holland's Opus".
The shortest distance between two points is not a straight line, and that's especially true for young Will Hunting (Matt Damon) in this personal saga. Geographically, Will's trek is but a short distance, from his working-class South Boston neighborhood to the patrician elitery of Cambridge and M.I.T. But emotionally, it's an infinite and unattainable distance for Will, despite the fact that he has a gift for finite math, a photographic memory and a capacity to assimilate knowledge and then to synthesize it to reach new dimensions of understanding.
Although Will can factor in math of the highest theoretical level, his own life, in mathematical terms, is governed by chaos theory. By day, he slogs away as a janitor at M.I.T.; by night, he prowls the bars with his Southie buddies, chugging beers and provoking fights.
In between these parallel and never-meeting courses, Will devises a proof of a highly complex mathematical theorem that M.I.T. poses as a challenge to the brightest graduate students. The head of the math department, Professor Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard) is daunted by the genius of Will's solution. Even his brainiest graduate students can barely fathom its pristine brilliance.
To say the least, the M.I.T. intellectual establishment is dumbfounded when it is discovered that a mere janitor solved the "unsolvable" problem. In the meanwhile, Will hasn't given it much thought, beering and brawling with his working-class buddies.
Indeed, it's his temper, rather than his intelligence, that dominates his life and, not surprisingly, Will is arrested for assault (not his first offense). He's an unbalanced equation emotionally and jail-time looms. But Will is offered an unusual deal by the court, courtesy of Professor Lambeau's intervention. He will be granted probation if he meets two conditions: (1) he studies math at M.I.T. with Professor Lambeau and, (2) attends therapy sessions. In the annals of jurisprudence, that's not exactly cruel (cruel would be studying government at Harvard) but it's certainly highly unusual.
On a purely linear, visceral level, Ben Affleck's and Matt Damon's brainy scenario balances out as an appealing, anti-establishment, underdog movie, but "Good Will Hunting" is no mere formulaic equation of the outsider triumphing over the establishment. The narrative calculus is far more complex and in Will's personal case, he simply cannot integrate his life beyond the arithmetical predictability of hanging with his buddies.
The most remarkable and rousing aspects of this ornately differentiated story line are the varied, wisely textured subplots. Affleck and Damon have created, not calculated, a story line that encompasses and embraces a rich multitude of personal demons through the supportive characters.
Although the story clearly rotates around Will, the narrative is packed with an array of touching subplots, all catalyzed by Will's vexing complexities. Most powerful among these is the torment of Will's therapist (Robin Williams), a fellow Southie who, in his own measured way, faces debilitations as staggering as Will's.
We feel also for a silver-spoon, pre-med student (Minnie Driver) who falls in love with Will but finds his is a closed universe. There's even an "Amadeus" motif, achingly played out by Professor Lambeau who must face the immutable fact that he is, in movie terms, only a Salieri.
Add to this the boys back in the neighborhood who, beneath it all, are tormented by Will's inability to leave the roost. He is their vicarious idol and his hanging with them is a conundrum -- they enjoy it but they feel let down because he will not seek out what they can only dream.
The best thing about "Good Will Hunting" is not in its well-crafted, psychological symmetries but in the just-plain messiness of its humanity. It's rowdy, it's funny, it's heartbreaking -- it rings of life.
Director Van Sant ( "To Die For", "My Own Private Idaho") has distilled the personal stories to breath-gasping dimension and he has layered in the philosophical themes in correct perspective -- as subsets to the human stories.
The acting is brilliant overall, with special praise to Matt Damon for his ragingly tender portrayal of the boy cursed with genius.
As the physician who must first heal himself before he can heal Will, Williams is brilliant. He plumbs levels of pain and love rarely seen on screen. It's far and away the best supporting performance of the year. High grades also to Driver for her portrayal of Will's embattled girlfriend and to Affleck for his Southie characterization.
Technically, the film is well-realized, from costume designer Beatrix Pasztor's perceptive clothings to cinematographer Jean Yves Escoffier's visualizations of the huge dichotomies in the world of troubled Will Hunting.
GOOD WILL HUNTING
Miramax Films
A Lawrence Bender production
A film by Gus Van Sant
Producer: Lawrence Bender
Director: Gus Van Sant
Screenwriters: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon
Executive producers: Su Armstrong, Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Jonathan Gordon
Co-executive producers: Kevin Smith, Scott Mosier
Co-producer: Chris Moore
Director of photography: Jean Yves Escoffier
Production designer: Melissa Stewart
Editor: Pietro Scalia
Music: Danny Elfman
Music supervisor: Jeffrey Kimball
Costume designer: Beatrix Pasztor
Casting: Billy Hopkins, Suzanne Smith, Kerry Barden
Color/stereo
Cast:
Will Hunting: Matt Damon
Sean McGuire: Robin Williams
Chuckie: Ben Affleck
Skylar: Minnie Driver
Lambeau: Stellan Skarsgard
Morgan: Casey Affleck
Billy: Cole Hauser
Running time -- 122 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
Once again put Miramax smack dab in the midst of the best-picture race with this jarringly powerful film about a working- class kid with a genius IQ who can play stump-the-professors and win big but can't muster a passing score in the one category that counts -- his personal life.
Likely to garner critics group honors, this Gus Van Sant-directed film will score not only with the intelligentsia on an abstract as well as emotional level, but its multiple heart-wrenching and heartfelt story lines will win over mainstream audiences in the manner of "Mr. Holland's Opus".
The shortest distance between two points is not a straight line, and that's especially true for young Will Hunting (Matt Damon) in this personal saga. Geographically, Will's trek is but a short distance, from his working-class South Boston neighborhood to the patrician elitery of Cambridge and M.I.T. But emotionally, it's an infinite and unattainable distance for Will, despite the fact that he has a gift for finite math, a photographic memory and a capacity to assimilate knowledge and then to synthesize it to reach new dimensions of understanding.
Although Will can factor in math of the highest theoretical level, his own life, in mathematical terms, is governed by chaos theory. By day, he slogs away as a janitor at M.I.T.; by night, he prowls the bars with his Southie buddies, chugging beers and provoking fights.
In between these parallel and never-meeting courses, Will devises a proof of a highly complex mathematical theorem that M.I.T. poses as a challenge to the brightest graduate students. The head of the math department, Professor Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard) is daunted by the genius of Will's solution. Even his brainiest graduate students can barely fathom its pristine brilliance.
To say the least, the M.I.T. intellectual establishment is dumbfounded when it is discovered that a mere janitor solved the "unsolvable" problem. In the meanwhile, Will hasn't given it much thought, beering and brawling with his working-class buddies.
Indeed, it's his temper, rather than his intelligence, that dominates his life and, not surprisingly, Will is arrested for assault (not his first offense). He's an unbalanced equation emotionally and jail-time looms. But Will is offered an unusual deal by the court, courtesy of Professor Lambeau's intervention. He will be granted probation if he meets two conditions: (1) he studies math at M.I.T. with Professor Lambeau and, (2) attends therapy sessions. In the annals of jurisprudence, that's not exactly cruel (cruel would be studying government at Harvard) but it's certainly highly unusual.
On a purely linear, visceral level, Ben Affleck's and Matt Damon's brainy scenario balances out as an appealing, anti-establishment, underdog movie, but "Good Will Hunting" is no mere formulaic equation of the outsider triumphing over the establishment. The narrative calculus is far more complex and in Will's personal case, he simply cannot integrate his life beyond the arithmetical predictability of hanging with his buddies.
The most remarkable and rousing aspects of this ornately differentiated story line are the varied, wisely textured subplots. Affleck and Damon have created, not calculated, a story line that encompasses and embraces a rich multitude of personal demons through the supportive characters.
Although the story clearly rotates around Will, the narrative is packed with an array of touching subplots, all catalyzed by Will's vexing complexities. Most powerful among these is the torment of Will's therapist (Robin Williams), a fellow Southie who, in his own measured way, faces debilitations as staggering as Will's.
We feel also for a silver-spoon, pre-med student (Minnie Driver) who falls in love with Will but finds his is a closed universe. There's even an "Amadeus" motif, achingly played out by Professor Lambeau who must face the immutable fact that he is, in movie terms, only a Salieri.
Add to this the boys back in the neighborhood who, beneath it all, are tormented by Will's inability to leave the roost. He is their vicarious idol and his hanging with them is a conundrum -- they enjoy it but they feel let down because he will not seek out what they can only dream.
The best thing about "Good Will Hunting" is not in its well-crafted, psychological symmetries but in the just-plain messiness of its humanity. It's rowdy, it's funny, it's heartbreaking -- it rings of life.
Director Van Sant ( "To Die For", "My Own Private Idaho") has distilled the personal stories to breath-gasping dimension and he has layered in the philosophical themes in correct perspective -- as subsets to the human stories.
The acting is brilliant overall, with special praise to Matt Damon for his ragingly tender portrayal of the boy cursed with genius.
As the physician who must first heal himself before he can heal Will, Williams is brilliant. He plumbs levels of pain and love rarely seen on screen. It's far and away the best supporting performance of the year. High grades also to Driver for her portrayal of Will's embattled girlfriend and to Affleck for his Southie characterization.
Technically, the film is well-realized, from costume designer Beatrix Pasztor's perceptive clothings to cinematographer Jean Yves Escoffier's visualizations of the huge dichotomies in the world of troubled Will Hunting.
GOOD WILL HUNTING
Miramax Films
A Lawrence Bender production
A film by Gus Van Sant
Producer: Lawrence Bender
Director: Gus Van Sant
Screenwriters: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon
Executive producers: Su Armstrong, Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Jonathan Gordon
Co-executive producers: Kevin Smith, Scott Mosier
Co-producer: Chris Moore
Director of photography: Jean Yves Escoffier
Production designer: Melissa Stewart
Editor: Pietro Scalia
Music: Danny Elfman
Music supervisor: Jeffrey Kimball
Costume designer: Beatrix Pasztor
Casting: Billy Hopkins, Suzanne Smith, Kerry Barden
Color/stereo
Cast:
Will Hunting: Matt Damon
Sean McGuire: Robin Williams
Chuckie: Ben Affleck
Skylar: Minnie Driver
Lambeau: Stellan Skarsgard
Morgan: Casey Affleck
Billy: Cole Hauser
Running time -- 122 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 12/1/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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