Amazon is bringing an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's international best-selling novel Anansi Boys to its streaming service.
The six-episode limited series will begin shooting in Scotland later this year.
Based on Gaiman's novel of the same name, Anansi Boys follows Charlie Nancy, a young man who is used to being embarrassed by his estranged father. But when his father dies, Charlie discovers that his father was Anansi: trickster god of stories.
And he learns that he has a brother. Now his brother, Spider, is entering Charlie's life, determined to make it more interesting but making it a lot more dangerous.
Gaiman, Sir Lenny Henry, Douglas Mackinnon, Hanelle M. Culpepper, Hilary Bevan Jones (Endor Productions), and Richard Fee (Red Production Company) are executive producers.
Gaiman and Henry will also write for the series along with Arvind Ethan David, Kara Smith, and Racheal Ofori. Gaiman and Mackinnon will serve as co-showrunners.
The six-episode limited series will begin shooting in Scotland later this year.
Based on Gaiman's novel of the same name, Anansi Boys follows Charlie Nancy, a young man who is used to being embarrassed by his estranged father. But when his father dies, Charlie discovers that his father was Anansi: trickster god of stories.
And he learns that he has a brother. Now his brother, Spider, is entering Charlie's life, determined to make it more interesting but making it a lot more dangerous.
Gaiman, Sir Lenny Henry, Douglas Mackinnon, Hanelle M. Culpepper, Hilary Bevan Jones (Endor Productions), and Richard Fee (Red Production Company) are executive producers.
Gaiman and Henry will also write for the series along with Arvind Ethan David, Kara Smith, and Racheal Ofori. Gaiman and Mackinnon will serve as co-showrunners.
- 7/21/2021
- by Paul Dailly
- TVfanatic
CBS Studios has begun rolling cameras in the Netherlands on its series “Bestseller Boy” for Dutch broadcaster Avrotros.
The contemporary comedy drama is inspired by the eponymous best-selling novel and the real life of rising literary star Mano Bouzamour, and his struggles as a Dutch-Moroccan millennial navigating two cultures, overnight success and identity in Amsterdam. Emerging talent Shahine El-Hamus, who starred in “Promise of Pisa” and recently won the Golden Calf Award for best actor at the Netherlands Film Festival, will play the lead role of Momo Zebbi.
Created by producer Robert Alberdingk Thijm (“A’dam & Eva”) and Bouzamour, “Bestseller Boy” is written by Thijm and Bouzamour and directed by Norbert ter Hall and Sharif Abdel Mawla. Alon Aranya (“Tehran”) serves as executive producer alongside Hall and Bouzamour.
The series is produced by CBS Studios and Willy Waltz International in association with Paper Plane Productions. CBS Studios has remake and...
The contemporary comedy drama is inspired by the eponymous best-selling novel and the real life of rising literary star Mano Bouzamour, and his struggles as a Dutch-Moroccan millennial navigating two cultures, overnight success and identity in Amsterdam. Emerging talent Shahine El-Hamus, who starred in “Promise of Pisa” and recently won the Golden Calf Award for best actor at the Netherlands Film Festival, will play the lead role of Momo Zebbi.
Created by producer Robert Alberdingk Thijm (“A’dam & Eva”) and Bouzamour, “Bestseller Boy” is written by Thijm and Bouzamour and directed by Norbert ter Hall and Sharif Abdel Mawla. Alon Aranya (“Tehran”) serves as executive producer alongside Hall and Bouzamour.
The series is produced by CBS Studios and Willy Waltz International in association with Paper Plane Productions. CBS Studios has remake and...
- 7/15/2021
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions has partnered with newly formed outfit NoneMore Productions to produce an adaptation of Charlie Mackesy’s illustrated book “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse.”
The 30-minute short will feature hand-drawn animation capturing the look and spirit of the book, and will see a team of artists work alongside Mackesy to bring the project to the big screen.
The book tells the tale of a young boy who encounters a mole, a fox and a horse on a walk in the countryside, sharing with each of them profound conversations about love, life and companionship.
Mackesy teamed with “Pear Cider and Cigarettes” producer Cara Speller to form NoneMore Productions to extend the world of Mackesy’s book into new media. NoneMore will work with the author and additional partners to develop his stories for film, television and other formats.
Abrams and Bad Robot...
The 30-minute short will feature hand-drawn animation capturing the look and spirit of the book, and will see a team of artists work alongside Mackesy to bring the project to the big screen.
The book tells the tale of a young boy who encounters a mole, a fox and a horse on a walk in the countryside, sharing with each of them profound conversations about love, life and companionship.
Mackesy teamed with “Pear Cider and Cigarettes” producer Cara Speller to form NoneMore Productions to extend the world of Mackesy’s book into new media. NoneMore will work with the author and additional partners to develop his stories for film, television and other formats.
Abrams and Bad Robot...
- 12/16/2020
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
The producer of Narcos takes us on a walk through some of the movies that made him.
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Contagion (2011)
Panic In The Streets (1950)
Rififi (1955)
Night And The City (1950)
Thieves’ Highway (1949)
Never on Sunday (1960)
The Karate Kid (1984)
The Game (1997)
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
The Great Escape (1963)
Children of Men (2006)
Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory (1971)
If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969)
Charlie And The Chocolate Factory (2005)
The Wild Bunch (1969)
The Godfather (1972)
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Animal House (1978)
An American Werewolf In London (1981)
Trading Places (1983)
Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004)
Fellini Satyricon (1969)
The Beastmaster (1982)
Sheena (1984)
High Risk (1981)
Ghostbusters (1984)
The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
Piranha (1978)
Gallipoli (1981)
Witness (1985)
The Killing Fields (1984)
Mad Max (1980)
Max Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
Picnic At Hanging Rock (1975)
The Last Wave (1978)
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
The Lord of the Rings (1978)
The Hobbit (1977)
The Return of the King (1980)
Class (1983)
The Great Santini (1979)
Fast Times At Ridgemont High...
Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode
Contagion (2011)
Panic In The Streets (1950)
Rififi (1955)
Night And The City (1950)
Thieves’ Highway (1949)
Never on Sunday (1960)
The Karate Kid (1984)
The Game (1997)
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
The Great Escape (1963)
Children of Men (2006)
Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory (1971)
If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969)
Charlie And The Chocolate Factory (2005)
The Wild Bunch (1969)
The Godfather (1972)
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Animal House (1978)
An American Werewolf In London (1981)
Trading Places (1983)
Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004)
Fellini Satyricon (1969)
The Beastmaster (1982)
Sheena (1984)
High Risk (1981)
Ghostbusters (1984)
The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
Piranha (1978)
Gallipoli (1981)
Witness (1985)
The Killing Fields (1984)
Mad Max (1980)
Max Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
Picnic At Hanging Rock (1975)
The Last Wave (1978)
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
The Lord of the Rings (1978)
The Hobbit (1977)
The Return of the King (1980)
Class (1983)
The Great Santini (1979)
Fast Times At Ridgemont High...
- 6/16/2020
- by Kris Millsap
- Trailers from Hell
Brian Dennehy, the winner of two Tonys in a career that also spanned films including “Tommy Boy,” “First Blood” and “Cocoon,” and television roles including “Dynasty” and “Death of a Salesman,” died on Wednesday night in New Haven, Conn. He was 81.
“It is with heavy hearts we announce that our father, Brian, passed away last night from natural causes, not Covid-related. Larger than life, generous to a fault, a proud and devoted father and grandfather, he will be missed by his wife, Jennifer, family and many friends,” his daughter, actress Elizabeth Dennehy, tweeted on Thursday.
His agency ICM also confirmed the news.
In the 1995 comedy “Tommy Boy,” Dennehy was Big Tom, the father of Chris Farley’s character Tom, who takes over the family’s auto parts business with David Spade after his father dies. In Ron Howard’s 1985 hit “Cocoon,” Dennehy played the leader of the alien Antareans who...
“It is with heavy hearts we announce that our father, Brian, passed away last night from natural causes, not Covid-related. Larger than life, generous to a fault, a proud and devoted father and grandfather, he will be missed by his wife, Jennifer, family and many friends,” his daughter, actress Elizabeth Dennehy, tweeted on Thursday.
His agency ICM also confirmed the news.
In the 1995 comedy “Tommy Boy,” Dennehy was Big Tom, the father of Chris Farley’s character Tom, who takes over the family’s auto parts business with David Spade after his father dies. In Ron Howard’s 1985 hit “Cocoon,” Dennehy played the leader of the alien Antareans who...
- 4/16/2020
- by Carmel Dagan
- Variety Film + TV
November 25, 1960: "The Day Radio Drama Died""The best prophet of the future is the past."
― Lord Byron
"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.
On this date in...
1960: Often referred to by aficionados as "the day radio drama died" or "the day the radio soap opera died," this day has been identified as a watershed moment in broadcasting. CBS Radio aired the final episodes of the last network radio soap operas: Ma Perkins, Young Doctor Malone (which also aired on NBC-tv), The Right to Happiness (a spin-off of The Guiding Light), The Second Mrs. Burton, The Couple Next Door, Whispering Secrets and Best Seller.
Virginia Payne played Ma Perkins for the
show's entire 27-year run.
― Lord Byron
"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.
On this date in...
1960: Often referred to by aficionados as "the day radio drama died" or "the day the radio soap opera died," this day has been identified as a watershed moment in broadcasting. CBS Radio aired the final episodes of the last network radio soap operas: Ma Perkins, Young Doctor Malone (which also aired on NBC-tv), The Right to Happiness (a spin-off of The Guiding Light), The Second Mrs. Burton, The Couple Next Door, Whispering Secrets and Best Seller.
Virginia Payne played Ma Perkins for the
show's entire 27-year run.
- 11/27/2018
- by Roger Newcomb
- We Love Soaps
He's known by millions of fans as the lead guitarist for the heavy metal band Metallica, but Kirk Hammett also has a deep passion for horror and sci-fi, which is reflected in his massive collection of posters for classic and cult films from both genres. Currently on display at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, Hammett's impressive collection is also featured in a new hardcover book called It's Alive that's out now from Skira Rizzoli, and we have a look at some of the eye-popping posters included within the pages of the treasured collection.
Press Release: Uttered in several Frankenstein films since 1931, and titling Larry Cohen’s 1974 horror classic, “It’s alive!” is one of those kitschy, catchy phrases that become part of the vernacular.
It’S Alive: Classic Horror And Sci-fi Movie Posters From The Kirk Hammett Collection—in both exhibition and book form—offers an unconventional look...
Press Release: Uttered in several Frankenstein films since 1931, and titling Larry Cohen’s 1974 horror classic, “It’s alive!” is one of those kitschy, catchy phrases that become part of the vernacular.
It’S Alive: Classic Horror And Sci-fi Movie Posters From The Kirk Hammett Collection—in both exhibition and book form—offers an unconventional look...
- 10/18/2017
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Creator and Host of the six-time Emmy Award winning “Sport Science” and author of the New York Times Best Seller “The Perfection Point”, John Brenkus, and thirteen-time Pro Bowl, two-time Super Bowl Champion and Super Bowl Mvp, Ray Lewis, have announced that the Ray Of Hope Foundation will be holding a kick-off fundraising event on Monday, September 18th at SignatureFD Headquarters in Atlanta, Ga.
The financial planning corporation, SignatureFD and SignaturePRO, whose purpose is to help empower athletes to live with purpose and confidence in their relationships and actions, has partnered up with the Ray of Hope Foundation for the event.
Longtime friends Brenkus and Lewis bonded over one common principle: sending positive energy to those in need. It all started one day when Brenkus asked Lewis to record a short encouraging video for a friend who was fighting stage 4 brain cancer. The very next day, a friend of Brenkus...
The financial planning corporation, SignatureFD and SignaturePRO, whose purpose is to help empower athletes to live with purpose and confidence in their relationships and actions, has partnered up with the Ray of Hope Foundation for the event.
Longtime friends Brenkus and Lewis bonded over one common principle: sending positive energy to those in need. It all started one day when Brenkus asked Lewis to record a short encouraging video for a friend who was fighting stage 4 brain cancer. The very next day, a friend of Brenkus...
- 9/18/2017
- Look to the Stars
Forced to live together in a confined space and depending on each other for survival, the Dollanganger siblings from 1987’s Flowers in the Attic have always reminded me of the kids from The Boxcar Children book series I grew up reading, although instead of solving mysteries on fun adventures, they were busy dealing with a scissors-wielding grandma, a murderous mother, and some intense incestual feelings—not exactly the type of material you’d find next to Gertrude Chandler Warner’s books in the library.
Published in 1979 and featuring evil parental figures, inter-family violence, and sibling incest, V.C. Andrews’ Flowers in the Attic was a sought-after page-turner for readers drawn to its controversial elements, and its viability in the bookstores paved its way to the cinemas in the mid-’80s. A story about four siblings—two brothers and two sisters—locked away in a gothic mansion’s upstairs room (and the...
Published in 1979 and featuring evil parental figures, inter-family violence, and sibling incest, V.C. Andrews’ Flowers in the Attic was a sought-after page-turner for readers drawn to its controversial elements, and its viability in the bookstores paved its way to the cinemas in the mid-’80s. A story about four siblings—two brothers and two sisters—locked away in a gothic mansion’s upstairs room (and the...
- 7/17/2017
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Ron Howard is directing and producing a movie adaptation of Hillbilly Elegy, J.D. Vance's best-selling 2016 memoir. The filmmaker will produce alongside Imagine Entertainment's chairman, Brian Grazer, and president, Erica Huggins. A writer has not been hired, Variety reports.
Vance's acclaimed book, which topped The New York Times Best Seller list in both August 2016 and January 2017, chronicles the daily challenges of living in the Rust Belt – from drug addiction to financial hardships.
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance Harper Collins
Vance, a native of Middletown, Ohio, survived his rough...
Vance's acclaimed book, which topped The New York Times Best Seller list in both August 2016 and January 2017, chronicles the daily challenges of living in the Rust Belt – from drug addiction to financial hardships.
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance Harper Collins
Vance, a native of Middletown, Ohio, survived his rough...
- 4/10/2017
- Rollingstone.com
Last week it was revealed that at least a couple of eras were at an end: one, America’s new immigration policies diminishing our reputation here and around the globe, and the New York Times no longer including a list of best selling graphic novels. As much as I would love to discuss the former, this is a site about comics and pop culture, so I’ll focus on the latter.
After eight years of having best seller lists featured weekly at the New York Times, it was announced with little warning that this week would be the last featuring such a list. This information was confirmed with little to no logical reason by Nyt editor Pamela Paul via Twitter. Graphic novels will be folded back into fiction, making it more difficult to make the list and preventing many graphic novels from ever being able to obtain status.
Many creators,...
After eight years of having best seller lists featured weekly at the New York Times, it was announced with little warning that this week would be the last featuring such a list. This information was confirmed with little to no logical reason by Nyt editor Pamela Paul via Twitter. Graphic novels will be folded back into fiction, making it more difficult to make the list and preventing many graphic novels from ever being able to obtain status.
Many creators,...
- 1/31/2017
- by Joe Corallo
- Comicmix.com
A.A. Milne’s beloved children’s creation Winnie the Pooh is celebrated every year on Jan. 18, Milne’s birthday.
The children’s icon got its start via a black bear named Winnie (apparently the former mascot of the Winnipeg regiment of the Canadian army, hence the name, according to the New York Public Library) living at the London Zoo during World War I. Milne’s coincidentally named son, Christopher Robin, visited the animal often and named his own stuffed bear after the real Winnie — and, oddly enough, a swan named Pooh.
Milne, who served in the front lines of Wwi...
The children’s icon got its start via a black bear named Winnie (apparently the former mascot of the Winnipeg regiment of the Canadian army, hence the name, according to the New York Public Library) living at the London Zoo during World War I. Milne’s coincidentally named son, Christopher Robin, visited the animal often and named his own stuffed bear after the real Winnie — and, oddly enough, a swan named Pooh.
Milne, who served in the front lines of Wwi...
- 1/18/2017
- by alexheigl
- PEOPLE.com
Daniel Clowes’ graphic novel “Patience” was praised by critics and spent 19 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller List. Now, Focus Features has announced that it has acquired the film rights to the book, with Clowes to pen the script.
“Patience” follows Jack, a man whose wife Patience is murdered and then falls into a deep pit of anger, grief and guilt. After ten years go by, he discovers a time machine that will allow him to fix the past and then plunges himself into a psychedelic journey through Patience’s past and the events that shaped her into the woman he knew and loved.
No additional details about the film were announced.
Read More: ‘Hard Boiled’: Tom Hiddleston and Ben Wheatley to Reunite on Frank Miller Comic Adaptation
Clowes is an Academy Award nominee in the Best Adapted Screenplay category for 2001’s “Ghost World,” based on his comic,...
“Patience” follows Jack, a man whose wife Patience is murdered and then falls into a deep pit of anger, grief and guilt. After ten years go by, he discovers a time machine that will allow him to fix the past and then plunges himself into a psychedelic journey through Patience’s past and the events that shaped her into the woman he knew and loved.
No additional details about the film were announced.
Read More: ‘Hard Boiled’: Tom Hiddleston and Ben Wheatley to Reunite on Frank Miller Comic Adaptation
Clowes is an Academy Award nominee in the Best Adapted Screenplay category for 2001’s “Ghost World,” based on his comic,...
- 12/13/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
Wilson and Ghost World writer Daniel Clowes will adapt his own graphic novel.
Focus Features has acquired the film rights to the graphic novel Patience.
Focus has attached the writer of the book, Daniel Clowes (Ghost World), to pen the screenplay adaptation.
The novel was published by Fantgraphics in March this year, and spent 19 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List.
The story depicts the efforts made by the main character, Jack, to overcome the grief of losing his murdered wife, Patience, through the use of a time machine and a psychedelic journey through her past.
Focus president of production Jim Burke commented: “Daniel’s story is beautifully imagined. As with all of his works, it is vivid and affecting. Patience will be a thrilling, funny, and moving exploration of emotions we’ve all experienced.”
Clowes’ debut script, Ghost World, was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 2002 Academy Awards. He has also...
Focus Features has acquired the film rights to the graphic novel Patience.
Focus has attached the writer of the book, Daniel Clowes (Ghost World), to pen the screenplay adaptation.
The novel was published by Fantgraphics in March this year, and spent 19 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List.
The story depicts the efforts made by the main character, Jack, to overcome the grief of losing his murdered wife, Patience, through the use of a time machine and a psychedelic journey through her past.
Focus president of production Jim Burke commented: “Daniel’s story is beautifully imagined. As with all of his works, it is vivid and affecting. Patience will be a thrilling, funny, and moving exploration of emotions we’ve all experienced.”
Clowes’ debut script, Ghost World, was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 2002 Academy Awards. He has also...
- 12/13/2016
- ScreenDaily
"I understand why you're afraid. I have plans... you're part of them" Quentin Coldwater and company must stand together to survive fear, fantasy, and malevolent forces in the new trailer for The Magicians Season 2, premiering on Syfy in January.
"Based upon Lev Grossman's best-selling books, The Magicians stars Jason Ralph (A Most Violent Year, Aquarius) as Quentin Coldwater, a brilliant grad student who enrolls in Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy, a secret upstate New York university specializing in magic. He and his 20-something friends soon discover that the magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real— and poses grave danger to humanity. Stella Maeve (Chicago P.D.), Hale Appleman (Teeth), Arjun Gupta (Nurse Jackie) and Summer Bishil (Towelhead, Lucky 7) also star in this one hour drama.
Groundswell Productions' Michael London and Janice Williams (Milk) will executive produce. John McNamara (Aquarius) and Sera Gamble (Supernatural), writers of the pilot,...
"Based upon Lev Grossman's best-selling books, The Magicians stars Jason Ralph (A Most Violent Year, Aquarius) as Quentin Coldwater, a brilliant grad student who enrolls in Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy, a secret upstate New York university specializing in magic. He and his 20-something friends soon discover that the magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real— and poses grave danger to humanity. Stella Maeve (Chicago P.D.), Hale Appleman (Teeth), Arjun Gupta (Nurse Jackie) and Summer Bishil (Towelhead, Lucky 7) also star in this one hour drama.
Groundswell Productions' Michael London and Janice Williams (Milk) will executive produce. John McNamara (Aquarius) and Sera Gamble (Supernatural), writers of the pilot,...
- 11/10/2016
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
When Joey Graceffa released his debut memoir In Real Life last May, it promptly soared to the top of the Amazon Humor charts. And now, with his follow-up literary effort, a dystopian young adult novel titled Children Of Eden, it looks like Graceffa has another hit on his hands.
After launching on Oct. 4, Children Of Eden debuted at the top of the most recent New York Times Best Seller list within the Young Adult Hardcover category, according to the Times. Children Of Eden, which Graceffa announced on his YouTube channel in July, follows heroine Rowan -- a twin born in a future society where families are only allowed to have one child apiece. After being hidden away in her family’s compound for years, she escapes for one night of adventure, which sets into motion a world-changing chain of events.
Visit Tubefilter for more great stories.
After launching on Oct. 4, Children Of Eden debuted at the top of the most recent New York Times Best Seller list within the Young Adult Hardcover category, according to the Times. Children Of Eden, which Graceffa announced on his YouTube channel in July, follows heroine Rowan -- a twin born in a future society where families are only allowed to have one child apiece. After being hidden away in her family’s compound for years, she escapes for one night of adventure, which sets into motion a world-changing chain of events.
Visit Tubefilter for more great stories.
- 10/14/2016
- by Geoff Weiss
- Tubefilter.com
Best seller adaptations don't always equal big opening weekends (see Light Between Oceans) but The Girl on the Train was one of the lucky ones opening strong despite middling reviews. Was Emily Blunt the top draw or the book itself? Perhaps it was just excellent timing with few adult thrillers in the marketplace, most of the Oscar contenders waiting for November and December launches, and The Birth of a Nation struggling with a weak launch that's making Fox Searchlight's $17 million Sundance bet look like a losing hand.
What'cha think? And what did you see this weekend?
Top Ten Wide
01 The Girl on the Train $24.6 New Review
02 Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children $15 (cum. $51)
03 Deepwater Horizon $11.7 (cum. $38.5)
04 The Magnficent Seven $9.1 (cum. $75.9) Review
05 Storks $8.4 (cum. $50.1)
06 The Birth of a Nation $7.1 New More
07 Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life $6.9 New
08 Sully $5.2 (cum. $113.4) Review
09 Masterminds $4.1 (cum. $12.7)
10 Queen of Katwe $1.6 (cum. $5.3) Review...
What'cha think? And what did you see this weekend?
Top Ten Wide
01 The Girl on the Train $24.6 New Review
02 Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children $15 (cum. $51)
03 Deepwater Horizon $11.7 (cum. $38.5)
04 The Magnficent Seven $9.1 (cum. $75.9) Review
05 Storks $8.4 (cum. $50.1)
06 The Birth of a Nation $7.1 New More
07 Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life $6.9 New
08 Sully $5.2 (cum. $113.4) Review
09 Masterminds $4.1 (cum. $12.7)
10 Queen of Katwe $1.6 (cum. $5.3) Review...
- 10/9/2016
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Ghosts
By Raina Telgemeier
Scholastic Graphix, 240 pages, $10.99/$24.99
Raina Telgemeier has built a fine career for herself as a graphic novelist, she cut her teeth on adapting four of the Babysitter’s Club novels before creating her own original works, beginning with Smile. Now, with her fourth offering, she is an acclaimed New York Times Best Seller and this work is receiving a 500,000 copy first printing.
The secret to her justified success is that her work is accessible and identifiable. She takes the basic elements of teen life, such as receiving braces or dealing with siblings, and turns them into refreshing stories that can ease discomfort or bring simple entertainment. Her fluid, cartoon-style also make the characters fun and easily identifiable, her worlds recognizable, and her pages flow easily from one to the next, never losing the narrative thread.
This time around, she uses inspiration from the time she lived in...
By Raina Telgemeier
Scholastic Graphix, 240 pages, $10.99/$24.99
Raina Telgemeier has built a fine career for herself as a graphic novelist, she cut her teeth on adapting four of the Babysitter’s Club novels before creating her own original works, beginning with Smile. Now, with her fourth offering, she is an acclaimed New York Times Best Seller and this work is receiving a 500,000 copy first printing.
The secret to her justified success is that her work is accessible and identifiable. She takes the basic elements of teen life, such as receiving braces or dealing with siblings, and turns them into refreshing stories that can ease discomfort or bring simple entertainment. Her fluid, cartoon-style also make the characters fun and easily identifiable, her worlds recognizable, and her pages flow easily from one to the next, never losing the narrative thread.
This time around, she uses inspiration from the time she lived in...
- 9/1/2016
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
Having ignited a huge debate over how The Legend of Zelda‘s convoluted timeline fits together with their encyclopaedic Hyrule Historia book released back in 2014, Dark Horse Books has announced a follow-up to that fantastic tome of knowledge with The Legend of Zelda: Arts & Artifacts.
Due to release in February next year as per the product page over on Amazon, it appears as if this collection of artwork spanning the entirety of the Zelda series’ history is already deemed a must-have collectable for Link fans; the 400-page, hardcover book has risen to #1 Best Seller status on the retailer’s site.
“Illustrations from the entire thirty-year history of The Legend of Zelda” will be found within the pages of Arts & Artifacts, as well as artwork from next year’s highly-anticipated Breath of the Wild, according to the product description.
The Legend of Zelda™: Art and Artifacts contains over four...
Due to release in February next year as per the product page over on Amazon, it appears as if this collection of artwork spanning the entirety of the Zelda series’ history is already deemed a must-have collectable for Link fans; the 400-page, hardcover book has risen to #1 Best Seller status on the retailer’s site.
“Illustrations from the entire thirty-year history of The Legend of Zelda” will be found within the pages of Arts & Artifacts, as well as artwork from next year’s highly-anticipated Breath of the Wild, according to the product description.
The Legend of Zelda™: Art and Artifacts contains over four...
- 8/23/2016
- by Joe Pring
- We Got This Covered
If you thought the YouTuber book trend was a mere flash in the pan, think again. After launching on July 19, It Gets Worse, the second book by YouTube megastar Shane Dawson, has debuted at No. 1 on The New Times Best Seller list in the Paperback Nonfiction category.
Dawson tweeted out the news yesterday -- with the appropriate expletives an endless succession of exclamation points. The book’s publisher, Keywords Press, also noted that the book debuted at No. 1 on a second list for combined print and e-book sales. “I'm speechless,” Dawson wrote on Instagram. “Thank you guys for supporting my book and for being my backbone. I love you so much I can't explain it.”
Visit Tubefilter for more great stories.
Dawson tweeted out the news yesterday -- with the appropriate expletives an endless succession of exclamation points. The book’s publisher, Keywords Press, also noted that the book debuted at No. 1 on a second list for combined print and e-book sales. “I'm speechless,” Dawson wrote on Instagram. “Thank you guys for supporting my book and for being my backbone. I love you so much I can't explain it.”
Visit Tubefilter for more great stories.
- 7/28/2016
- by Geoff Weiss
- Tubefilter.com
The man who claimed to know Donald Trump better than anyone outside his immediate family regrets ghostwriting “Art of the Deal” for the billionaire businessman-turned-gop nominee for president, saying he “put lipstick on a pig.” The memoir, which undoubtedly helped catalyze Trumpmania in the late 1980s, offered an inside look at the mogul’s rise. The book received heaps of praise and held the No. 1 spot on the New York Times Best Seller list for almost a year. “It’s a terrifying thing, Schwartz told ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “I haven’t slept a night through since Donald Trump announced for president.
- 7/18/2016
- by Rasha Ali
- The Wrap
First comes summer then comes VidCon. And among the YouTube royalty descending upon the Anaheim Convention Center in California this week will be last year's King of VidCon, Tyler Oakley. Even if you think you've never heard of Oakley, you've probably seen him before. As one of the most visible YouTube personalities (and with over 8 million subscribers) he often appears in viral videos and has even stopped by talk shows. But, if you're still confused as we head into VidCon, here are five things you need to know about the uber upbeat YouTube star who redefined the word Bff. 1. He gets SnervousOakley,...
- 6/20/2016
- by Jennifer Heyde, @jenniferheyde
- PEOPLE.com
This Cannes, the Marché du Film and Cinando handed out their first-ever prize: the Cinando Best Seller Award.
Thirteen sales agents from all horizons were invited to participate in a pitching contest that took place on May 17th at the Marché du Film. Selected pitchers were given details of a real project, “Codename Madeleine”, inspired by historical events, from an original idea by Pan Nalin, its director. They then had 48 hours to prepare a 5-minute pitch that would convince the Cinando Awards jury composed of three distributors: Norio Hatano from Longride (Japan), Ira von Gienanth from Prokino (Germany), Dylan Leiner from Sony Pictures Classics (USA) and producer-sales agent Raphaël Berdugo from Cité Films (France).
The jury announced the contest winners at an event at the Plage des Palmes on May 18th, alongside Jérôme Paillard, Market exec director, Nicolas Brigaud-Robert from Films Distribution and John Hopewell from Variety.
Awardees were announced as follows:
- Winners Ex aequo: Chantal Chateauneuf, Mongrel International (Canada) and Georgia Poivre, Films Distribution (France)
- Second Prize: Rahmat Adam, Creative Content Malaysia (Malaysia)
- Honorable Mention: Emmanuel Pisarra, Doc & Film International (France)
The 2 top winners got their portrait and interview in Variety.
Here their profiles written by John Hopewell.
Georgia Poivre, Films Distribution, France
From a an internship in acquisitions with Wild Bunch, based out of New York over 2012-13, to a gig in the home entertainment marketing department at Paris-h.Q.-ed Studiocanal in 2014, to international sales manager at Wide in 2015, Poivre has come a long way fast. She joined Paris-based Films Distribution – one of Europe’s highest-profile sale companies with subsids or affiliates in Berlin, Brussels and now London – as international sales manager in April.
Pitching, Poivre said Wednesday, “I tried to do what I’ve seen [Films Distribution partners] Nicolas [Brigaud-Robert] and Francois [Yon] do: Get to the passion of the story, its essence, the characters. Without motivation, there’s no character, no conflict, no story.” She was one of the only sales agents to key into what really – in part – might have driven Khan: Her desire to be an Indian “superhero,” in Poivre’s words, serving Britain in WWII so that Britain would serve India’s interests, granting it independence.
Also, her Jewish fiance was deported. “Sometimes, romantic motivation can be above all the rest,” Poivre said. “Dynamic,” in one juror’s words, the ex-Boston U alum, majoring in film and TV, was born and raised in Paris. She was also one of the only sales agents to give ‘Codename: Madeleine’ an industrial context.
“She talked about the timeline, when delivery would be, which kind of festivals the film was suited for,” said Gienanth.
“I try to get very passionate about what I’m selling, communicate not only the story but my excitement about it,” Poivre said.
“She takes pride and joy in getting people to agree with her, convincing a buyer to see a movie or buy it. By the same token, she’s kind and gentle, she doesn’t bully her buyer. If you push people too much, they get scared. It’s like hunting,” said Brigaud-Robert.
Chantal Chateauneuf, Mongrel International
“A good seller is not the person that tells you the entire story but is a person who tells you enough in order for you to want to engage with the story,” Leiner argued.
Chateauneuf was a case in point. With “a flow in her pitch,” said Gienanth, she captured the essence of the story concisely in very few minutes, no easy task.
“It important the sales agent knows about the director they’re pitching,” Gienanth added. Here Chateauneuf was in her element, Mongrel Intl. having sold “Codename: Madeleine’s” director Pan Nalin’s latest film, “Angry Indian Goddesses”: “He looks at women in India with a fresh, contemporary lens, focusing on the average woman, who is moderately educated, dealing with real female problems: Work-life balance, sexuality,” Chateauneuf enthused.
Like Poivre, Chateauneuf also keyed in what deep motivation” “Part of it is her father’s influence, her religious inclination, which inspired her to fight injustice around the world.”
Very together, Chateauneuf studied at Montreal’s McGill U, started at Mongrel as sales coordinator in 2014 and, when it launched an international sales division under Charlotte Mickie, moved to a sales position. “She’s efficient, astute and passionate. An amazing combination! We’re so lucky to have her on our team,” a proud Mickie glowed.
Thirteen sales agents from all horizons were invited to participate in a pitching contest that took place on May 17th at the Marché du Film. Selected pitchers were given details of a real project, “Codename Madeleine”, inspired by historical events, from an original idea by Pan Nalin, its director. They then had 48 hours to prepare a 5-minute pitch that would convince the Cinando Awards jury composed of three distributors: Norio Hatano from Longride (Japan), Ira von Gienanth from Prokino (Germany), Dylan Leiner from Sony Pictures Classics (USA) and producer-sales agent Raphaël Berdugo from Cité Films (France).
The jury announced the contest winners at an event at the Plage des Palmes on May 18th, alongside Jérôme Paillard, Market exec director, Nicolas Brigaud-Robert from Films Distribution and John Hopewell from Variety.
Awardees were announced as follows:
- Winners Ex aequo: Chantal Chateauneuf, Mongrel International (Canada) and Georgia Poivre, Films Distribution (France)
- Second Prize: Rahmat Adam, Creative Content Malaysia (Malaysia)
- Honorable Mention: Emmanuel Pisarra, Doc & Film International (France)
The 2 top winners got their portrait and interview in Variety.
Here their profiles written by John Hopewell.
Georgia Poivre, Films Distribution, France
From a an internship in acquisitions with Wild Bunch, based out of New York over 2012-13, to a gig in the home entertainment marketing department at Paris-h.Q.-ed Studiocanal in 2014, to international sales manager at Wide in 2015, Poivre has come a long way fast. She joined Paris-based Films Distribution – one of Europe’s highest-profile sale companies with subsids or affiliates in Berlin, Brussels and now London – as international sales manager in April.
Pitching, Poivre said Wednesday, “I tried to do what I’ve seen [Films Distribution partners] Nicolas [Brigaud-Robert] and Francois [Yon] do: Get to the passion of the story, its essence, the characters. Without motivation, there’s no character, no conflict, no story.” She was one of the only sales agents to key into what really – in part – might have driven Khan: Her desire to be an Indian “superhero,” in Poivre’s words, serving Britain in WWII so that Britain would serve India’s interests, granting it independence.
Also, her Jewish fiance was deported. “Sometimes, romantic motivation can be above all the rest,” Poivre said. “Dynamic,” in one juror’s words, the ex-Boston U alum, majoring in film and TV, was born and raised in Paris. She was also one of the only sales agents to give ‘Codename: Madeleine’ an industrial context.
“She talked about the timeline, when delivery would be, which kind of festivals the film was suited for,” said Gienanth.
“I try to get very passionate about what I’m selling, communicate not only the story but my excitement about it,” Poivre said.
“She takes pride and joy in getting people to agree with her, convincing a buyer to see a movie or buy it. By the same token, she’s kind and gentle, she doesn’t bully her buyer. If you push people too much, they get scared. It’s like hunting,” said Brigaud-Robert.
Chantal Chateauneuf, Mongrel International
“A good seller is not the person that tells you the entire story but is a person who tells you enough in order for you to want to engage with the story,” Leiner argued.
Chateauneuf was a case in point. With “a flow in her pitch,” said Gienanth, she captured the essence of the story concisely in very few minutes, no easy task.
“It important the sales agent knows about the director they’re pitching,” Gienanth added. Here Chateauneuf was in her element, Mongrel Intl. having sold “Codename: Madeleine’s” director Pan Nalin’s latest film, “Angry Indian Goddesses”: “He looks at women in India with a fresh, contemporary lens, focusing on the average woman, who is moderately educated, dealing with real female problems: Work-life balance, sexuality,” Chateauneuf enthused.
Like Poivre, Chateauneuf also keyed in what deep motivation” “Part of it is her father’s influence, her religious inclination, which inspired her to fight injustice around the world.”
Very together, Chateauneuf studied at Montreal’s McGill U, started at Mongrel as sales coordinator in 2014 and, when it launched an international sales division under Charlotte Mickie, moved to a sales position. “She’s efficient, astute and passionate. An amazing combination! We’re so lucky to have her on our team,” a proud Mickie glowed.
- 5/24/2016
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Lisa Loven Kongsli (upcoming Wonder Woman, Force Majeure), Sophie Cookson (Kingsman: The Secret Service), and Peter Franzen (History Channel’s ‘Vikings’, The Gunman) have joined 2016 BAFTA Rising Star nominee Bel Powley (upcoming Carrie Pilby, The Diary Of A Teenage Girl), Jonah Hauer-King, and Martin Wallstrom (FX series ‘Mr. Robot’) in Marius Markevicius’ riveting Ashes In The Snow, it was announced by Radiant Films International President and CEO, Mimi Steinbauer.
Rounding out the newly announced cast are Sam Hazeldine (The Huntsman: Winter’S War, Monuments Men), James Cosmo (HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones’, upcoming Ben-hur), Adrian Schiller (The Danish Girl, Suffragette) and Tom Sweet.
Currently in production, Radiant will present the project to international buyers at the upcoming Marche du Film in Cannes.
Ashes In The Snow is the poignant story of a 16-year-old heroine Lina Vilkas (Powley) who is separated from her family amidst Stalin’s reign of terror in the Baltic region during WWII.
Rounding out the newly announced cast are Sam Hazeldine (The Huntsman: Winter’S War, Monuments Men), James Cosmo (HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones’, upcoming Ben-hur), Adrian Schiller (The Danish Girl, Suffragette) and Tom Sweet.
Currently in production, Radiant will present the project to international buyers at the upcoming Marche du Film in Cannes.
Ashes In The Snow is the poignant story of a 16-year-old heroine Lina Vilkas (Powley) who is separated from her family amidst Stalin’s reign of terror in the Baltic region during WWII.
- 5/13/2016
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
That’s right. Hulu.
I’m here to tell you that there’s a cinematic streaming goldmine available on Hulu that includes recent hits, older classics, domestic releases, and foreign imports. It’s even home to hundreds of Criterion titles. Sure there’s plenty of filler and seemingly thousands of titles that can’t possibly be real, but I’m here to recommend some good movies to watch this month on Hulu.
Pick of the Month — Hwayi: A Monster Boy (2013)
South Korean cinema features no shortage of brilliant and brutal action thrillers, but while everyone knows about the likes of I Saw the Devil and Memories of Murder there are more than a few gems that have slipped through the cracks. Jang Joon-hwan’s long overdue follow-up to Save the Green Planet is a fast-moving, creatively violent mix of dark deeds and beautifully choreographed fights and stunts. There’s a wicked sense of humor running through it...
I’m here to tell you that there’s a cinematic streaming goldmine available on Hulu that includes recent hits, older classics, domestic releases, and foreign imports. It’s even home to hundreds of Criterion titles. Sure there’s plenty of filler and seemingly thousands of titles that can’t possibly be real, but I’m here to recommend some good movies to watch this month on Hulu.
Pick of the Month — Hwayi: A Monster Boy (2013)
South Korean cinema features no shortage of brilliant and brutal action thrillers, but while everyone knows about the likes of I Saw the Devil and Memories of Murder there are more than a few gems that have slipped through the cracks. Jang Joon-hwan’s long overdue follow-up to Save the Green Planet is a fast-moving, creatively violent mix of dark deeds and beautifully choreographed fights and stunts. There’s a wicked sense of humor running through it...
- 5/10/2016
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
“You learn to love the rope. That’s how you beat ’em. That’s how you beat people who torture you. You learn to love ’em. Then they don’t know you’re beatin’ ’em.”
Rolling Thunder (1977) screens Midnights next weekend (April 8th and 9th) at The Moolah Theater and Lounge (3821 Lindell Blvd, St. Louis, Mo 63108) as part of Destroy the Brain’s monthly Late Night Grindhouse film series.
Paul Schrader followed his Taxi Driver screenplay with the one for Rolling Thunder, a gritty revenge thriller directed by John Flynn in 1977. Similarities abound as both are about Vietnam vets who are ticking time bombs pushed to the brink by the violence they’ve come home to. But Rolling Thunder’s plot eventually veers from character study into a Death Wish-style vigilante thriller. Like Taxi Driver, it leads slowly toward a cathartic bloodbath finale. Rolling Thunder is highly regarded by fans and critics alike,...
Rolling Thunder (1977) screens Midnights next weekend (April 8th and 9th) at The Moolah Theater and Lounge (3821 Lindell Blvd, St. Louis, Mo 63108) as part of Destroy the Brain’s monthly Late Night Grindhouse film series.
Paul Schrader followed his Taxi Driver screenplay with the one for Rolling Thunder, a gritty revenge thriller directed by John Flynn in 1977. Similarities abound as both are about Vietnam vets who are ticking time bombs pushed to the brink by the violence they’ve come home to. But Rolling Thunder’s plot eventually veers from character study into a Death Wish-style vigilante thriller. Like Taxi Driver, it leads slowly toward a cathartic bloodbath finale. Rolling Thunder is highly regarded by fans and critics alike,...
- 3/30/2016
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Ransom Riggs' Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children gets translated to the big screen in the peculiar way only Tim Burton knows how. The New York Times Best Seller from Quirk Books was originally meant to be mostly a collection of pictures but the debut author's editor urged him to create a narrative around it and Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was born as a young adult novel. The screenplay was written by Jane Goldman who previously worked on Stardust, Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class, Kingsman: The Secret Service and more. The film features the amazing lineup of Eva Green as Miss Peregrine, Asa Butterfield, Samuel L. Jackson, Allison Janney, Terence Stamp, Rupert Everett, and Dame Judi Dench. Check out the first trailer! Here's the official synopsis of the film: From visionary director Tim Burton, and based upon the best-selling novel, comes an unforgettable motion picture experience. When Jake...
- 3/15/2016
- by Jill Pantozzi
- Hitfix
Last year, The CW ordered a pilot for a rebooted Tales From the Darkside show, with author Joe Hill writing and executive producing the new take on George A. Romero’s beloved 1980s anthology series. A few months later, the network passed on the project, but Joe Hill is now re-teaming with Locke & Key artist Gabriel Rodríguez and Idw Publishing for a four-issue Tales From the Darkside comic book series.
The modern day-set Tales from the Darkside comic book series debuts this June and will feature standalone stories that are ultimately linked together in one all-encompassing arc. Rather than adapt specific episodes of the TV show, the comic books will instead be inspired by their source material and will have a meta vibe as well.
The comics are written by Hill and brought to life on the paneled page by artist Rodríguez, who previously worked with Hill on the acclaimed...
The modern day-set Tales from the Darkside comic book series debuts this June and will feature standalone stories that are ultimately linked together in one all-encompassing arc. Rather than adapt specific episodes of the TV show, the comic books will instead be inspired by their source material and will have a meta vibe as well.
The comics are written by Hill and brought to life on the paneled page by artist Rodríguez, who previously worked with Hill on the acclaimed...
- 2/19/2016
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Some of the best Christmas gifts I received as a youth were graphic novels. Before the days of digital comics this was the only way for me to have a complete story set, and since they were expensive I would put two or three on my Christmas list. Here is part 1 of what I consider important comic graphic novels for collectors and new readers.
Daredevil: Man Without Fear
For those who are fans of the Netflix series or want to be introduced to Frank Millers best work this is the series to start with. Frank Miller and John Romita Jr. worked collaboratively together to bring Daredevil to the forefront of the Marvel Universe. This is a reincarnation of Matt Murdocks origin story that makes him a flawed hero.
A fire burns deep within Matt Murdock. He was raised by a single father, an over-the-hill prizefighter with one last chance...
Daredevil: Man Without Fear
For those who are fans of the Netflix series or want to be introduced to Frank Millers best work this is the series to start with. Frank Miller and John Romita Jr. worked collaboratively together to bring Daredevil to the forefront of the Marvel Universe. This is a reincarnation of Matt Murdocks origin story that makes him a flawed hero.
A fire burns deep within Matt Murdock. He was raised by a single father, an over-the-hill prizefighter with one last chance...
- 12/9/2015
- by Michael Connally
- LRMonline.com
Here is a look at Marvel's lineup for new comic series during the month of November. Looks like we are getting reintroduced to some important characters in the Marvel universe. Could we be seeing the new lineup of superhero's for Infinity Wars Part II in the Marvel cinematic universe? Only time will tell. Check out below the synopsis along with cover art of the new comics coming out in November. Which series are you going to pick up?
The Mighty Thor #1!
The New York Times #1 Best Seller Returns!
This November, the lightning returns. Today, Marvel is pleased to present your new look at The Mighty Thor #1 – the new ongoing series from blockbuster creators Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman! Now is your chance to jump on-board the popular storyline of the new Thor as it charges headlong into the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe! Her identity has finally been revealed as Dr.
The Mighty Thor #1!
The New York Times #1 Best Seller Returns!
This November, the lightning returns. Today, Marvel is pleased to present your new look at The Mighty Thor #1 – the new ongoing series from blockbuster creators Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman! Now is your chance to jump on-board the popular storyline of the new Thor as it charges headlong into the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe! Her identity has finally been revealed as Dr.
- 10/27/2015
- by Michael Connally
- LRMonline.com
Broad Green Pictures will adapt Christina Baker Kline’s novel "Orphan Train" into a movie. Michael London and Janice Williams of Groundswell Productions will produce with screenwriter Christopher Monger ("Temple Grandin," "The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain"). Published in 2013, "Orphan Train" has sold more than 2 million copies in 35 countries and has spent over 100 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list, including five weeks at #1. Between 1854 and 1929, "orphan trains" ran regularly from cities on the East Coast to the farmlands of the Midwest, carrying thousands of abandoned children to an unknown fate. "Orphan Train" weaves together the stories of Vivian Daly, a 91-year-old Irish immigrant who as a child was shipped from New York City to Minnesota and Molly Ayer, a 17-year-old who is on the verge of aging out of the foster care system in present-day Maine. A friendship develops...
- 10/14/2015
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
“Big things have small beginnings.” That’s a line from Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus,”* but it also aptly describes his latest movie, “The Martian,” starring Matt Damon as an astronaut stranded on Mars. “The Martian” was a New York Times #1 Best Seller before it became a big budget Hollywood film helmed by one of the greatest sci-fi directors of all time. But even before it was a popular novel, “The Martian” had this surprisingly humble beginning: Its writer, a software engineer named Andy Weir, published the book in serial format, chapter by chapter on his blog in 2011. What if someone had told Weir in 2011 of “The Martian”’s big screen destiny? “I would not have believed it,” Weir assured HitFix. “It’s just ridiculous.” *and yes, before Michael Fassbender spoke those words in the “Alien” prequel, that line belonged to Mr. Dryden in “Lawrence of Arabia.” Weir’s book is...
- 9/30/2015
- by Emily Rome
- Hitfix
Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies that have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Laura Antonelli (1941-2015) - Italian Actress. She starred in Luchino Visconti's L'innocente, Salvatore Sampieri's Malicious and Mario Bava's Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs. She died of a heart attack on June 22. (THR) William Bronder (1930-2015) - Character Actor. He memorably appears in Stand By Me as the junkyard owner (see below), plus Return to Me and Best Seller. He died on May 6. (THR) Jack Carter (1923-2015) ...
Read More...
Read More...
- 7/3/2015
- by Christopher Campbell
- Movies.com
Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies that have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Laura Antonelli (1941-2015) - Italian Actress. She starred in Luchino Visconti's L'innocente, Salvatore Sampieri's Malicious and Mario Bava's Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs. She died of a heart attack on June 22. (THR) William Bronder (1930-2015) - Character Actor. He memorably appears in Stand By Me as the junkyard owner (see below), plus Return to Me and Best Seller. He died on May 6. (THR) Jack Carter (1923-2015) ...
Read More...
Read More...
- 7/3/2015
- by Christopher Campbell
- Movies.com
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has headlined five WrestleMania matches, debuted his autobiography at No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller List, and has played Luke Hobbs in The Fast in the Furious franchise, but there's one job that stands out for the multi-hyphenate: Dad. Largely keeping his family life private, the San Andreas actor, 43, opens up for a candid conversation with Esquire about the women he loves. "I've lived with my longtime girlfriend, Lauren Hashian, going on, like, eight, nine years now," Johnson explained [...]...
- 6/30/2015
- Us Weekly
20th Century Fox and their upcoming film Paper Towns have announced “Night On The Towns”, a very Special Event where fans will be the first to see the film and be included in a live simulcast experience of an exclusive Q&A with Paper Towns stars Cara Delevingne, Nat Wolff, Jaz Sinclair, Halston Sage and Justice Smith, as well as author John Green, director Jake Schreier and producer Wyck Godfrey.
There will also be special acoustical performances by Saint Motel and Nat & Alex Wolff, Plus a few more surprises will be unveiled throughout the evening! All attendees will receive a beautiful commemorative locket and an exclusive poster from the film.
Find Out Where to Get Your Tickets Here: http://NightOnTheTowns.com
The special Night On The Towns event is in theaters only on July 23, 2015
Adapted from the bestselling novel by author John Green (“The Fault in Our Stars”), Paper Towns...
There will also be special acoustical performances by Saint Motel and Nat & Alex Wolff, Plus a few more surprises will be unveiled throughout the evening! All attendees will receive a beautiful commemorative locket and an exclusive poster from the film.
Find Out Where to Get Your Tickets Here: http://NightOnTheTowns.com
The special Night On The Towns event is in theaters only on July 23, 2015
Adapted from the bestselling novel by author John Green (“The Fault in Our Stars”), Paper Towns...
- 6/24/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
This summer, Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, John Green, and friends are going on tour to support their new movie Paper Towns, and fans get to decide where they go! Fans can vote for their state to be a destination of the ‘Get Lost Get Found’ tour on the movie’s official Tumblr, PaperTownsMovie.com.
All 50 states (and DC!) will be represented by a Tumblr post which fans can like and reblog to vote for their state – one note on Tumblr equals one vote. Voting begins today at Noon Pst and ends Monday, June 15th. Winning states will be announced June 22nd and the tour will kick off on the week of July 13th. Get lost. Get found. Go vote!
Vote for your state Here: http://papertownsmovie.com/tour
The film stars Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin Abrams, Halston Sage, Justice Smith.
Adapted from the bestselling novel by author John Green...
All 50 states (and DC!) will be represented by a Tumblr post which fans can like and reblog to vote for their state – one note on Tumblr equals one vote. Voting begins today at Noon Pst and ends Monday, June 15th. Winning states will be announced June 22nd and the tour will kick off on the week of July 13th. Get lost. Get found. Go vote!
Vote for your state Here: http://papertownsmovie.com/tour
The film stars Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin Abrams, Halston Sage, Justice Smith.
Adapted from the bestselling novel by author John Green...
- 6/8/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
20th Century Fox and Fox 2000 Pictures has debuted the second trailer for Paper Towns. The film stars Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin Abrams, Halston Sage, Justice Smith.
Adapted from the bestselling novel by author John Green (“The Fault in Our Stars”), Paper Towns is a coming-of-age story centering on Quentin and his enigmatic neighbor Margo, who loved mysteries so much she became one.
After taking him on an all-night adventure through their hometown, Margo suddenly disappears–leaving behind cryptic clues for Quentin to decipher. The search leads Quentin and his quick-witted friends on an exhilarating adventure that is equal parts hilarious and moving. Ultimately, to track down Margo, Quentin must find a deeper understanding of true friendship–and true love.
Paper Towns was Green’s third novel and debuted in 2008 at number five on The New York Times Best Seller list for children’s books, and the movie rights...
Adapted from the bestselling novel by author John Green (“The Fault in Our Stars”), Paper Towns is a coming-of-age story centering on Quentin and his enigmatic neighbor Margo, who loved mysteries so much she became one.
After taking him on an all-night adventure through their hometown, Margo suddenly disappears–leaving behind cryptic clues for Quentin to decipher. The search leads Quentin and his quick-witted friends on an exhilarating adventure that is equal parts hilarious and moving. Ultimately, to track down Margo, Quentin must find a deeper understanding of true friendship–and true love.
Paper Towns was Green’s third novel and debuted in 2008 at number five on The New York Times Best Seller list for children’s books, and the movie rights...
- 6/3/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Exclusive: The producers behind the upcoming adaptation of the Norwegian fantasy book series will present the project to buyers tomorrow [May 16].
Gudrun Giddings and Christian Arnold-Beutel are taking part in the Best Seller to Box Office literary adaptations programme at the International Village.
Phenomena is based on the seven-book series by Ruben Eliassen that centres on two elf children who learn they may hold the key to saving the world.
Giddings optioned the series and brought on Christian Limmer to adapt the books. The producers have earmarked an autumn shoot in Ireland and Bernd Schlötterer’s Palatin Media handles sales.
Phenomena is a co-production between Filmed Imagination, G4C Innovation and Magicworx.
The producer roster includes Marius Haugan and Daniel Marc Dreifuss.
Gudrun Giddings and Christian Arnold-Beutel are taking part in the Best Seller to Box Office literary adaptations programme at the International Village.
Phenomena is based on the seven-book series by Ruben Eliassen that centres on two elf children who learn they may hold the key to saving the world.
Giddings optioned the series and brought on Christian Limmer to adapt the books. The producers have earmarked an autumn shoot in Ireland and Bernd Schlötterer’s Palatin Media handles sales.
Phenomena is a co-production between Filmed Imagination, G4C Innovation and Magicworx.
The producer roster includes Marius Haugan and Daniel Marc Dreifuss.
- 5/15/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
From anime to pitch-black thrillers, here's our pick of the underappreciated movies of 1987...
Sometimes, the challenge with these lists isn't just what to put in, but what to leave out. We loved Princess Bride, but with a decent showing at the box office and a huge cult following, isn't it a bit too popular to be described as underappreciated? Likewise Joe Dante's Innerspace, a fabulously geeky, comic reworking of the 60s sci-fi flick, Fantastic Voyage.
What we've gone for instead is a mix of genre fare, dramas and animated films that may have garnered a cult following since, but didn't do well either critically or financially at the time of release. Some of the movies on our list just about made their money back, but none made anything close to the sort of returns enjoyed by the likes of 1987's biggest films - Three Men And A Baby, Fatal Attraction...
Sometimes, the challenge with these lists isn't just what to put in, but what to leave out. We loved Princess Bride, but with a decent showing at the box office and a huge cult following, isn't it a bit too popular to be described as underappreciated? Likewise Joe Dante's Innerspace, a fabulously geeky, comic reworking of the 60s sci-fi flick, Fantastic Voyage.
What we've gone for instead is a mix of genre fare, dramas and animated films that may have garnered a cult following since, but didn't do well either critically or financially at the time of release. Some of the movies on our list just about made their money back, but none made anything close to the sort of returns enjoyed by the likes of 1987's biggest films - Three Men And A Baby, Fatal Attraction...
- 5/13/2015
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
Our look at underappreciated films of the 80s continues, as we head back to 1988...
Either in terms of ticket sales or critical acclaim, 1988 was dominated by the likes of Rain Man, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Coming To America. It was the year Bruce Willis made the jump from TV to action star with Die Hard, and became a star in the process.
It was the year Leslie Nielsen made his own jump from the small to silver screen with Police Squad spin-off The Naked Gun, which sparked a hugely popular franchise of its own. Elsewhere, the eccentric Tim Burton scored one of the biggest hits of the year with Beetlejuice, the success of which would result in the birth of Batman a year later. And then there was Tom Cruise, who managed to make a drama about a student-turned-barman into a $170m hit, back when $170m was still an...
Either in terms of ticket sales or critical acclaim, 1988 was dominated by the likes of Rain Man, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Coming To America. It was the year Bruce Willis made the jump from TV to action star with Die Hard, and became a star in the process.
It was the year Leslie Nielsen made his own jump from the small to silver screen with Police Squad spin-off The Naked Gun, which sparked a hugely popular franchise of its own. Elsewhere, the eccentric Tim Burton scored one of the biggest hits of the year with Beetlejuice, the success of which would result in the birth of Batman a year later. And then there was Tom Cruise, who managed to make a drama about a student-turned-barman into a $170m hit, back when $170m was still an...
- 5/6/2015
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
I would say that you’ve got time to get reading, but if you’re going to be interested in the fact that Syfy has picked up The Magicians, you’ve probably already done the reading.
On the other hand, if the series is handled well it could easily take off like a rocket when released, so maybe this is a good time to tell you to make sure you know what everyone will be talking about.
Following Quentin Coldwater, the story will unfortunately be compared to the Harry Potter series by anyone who only gets the most cursory summary of what happens. It’s an edgier, darker spin on the general idea of going to school and learning magic really does exist, and the series of books tackle themes that are not only more relevant to adults, but in ways that create a far richer world.
It’s going...
On the other hand, if the series is handled well it could easily take off like a rocket when released, so maybe this is a good time to tell you to make sure you know what everyone will be talking about.
Following Quentin Coldwater, the story will unfortunately be compared to the Harry Potter series by anyone who only gets the most cursory summary of what happens. It’s an edgier, darker spin on the general idea of going to school and learning magic really does exist, and the series of books tackle themes that are not only more relevant to adults, but in ways that create a far richer world.
It’s going...
- 5/4/2015
- by Marc Eastman
- AreYouScreening.com
This week, Zach Braff shows off the fruits of his hardcore gym labor with one super sexy shot of his ripped abs, Kris Jenner hangs out with Miley Cryus' parents and Derek Hough lands himself in the hospital! Elsewhere, Gigi Hadid takes a bite out of a lime to support her mama Yolanda Foster's battle with Lyme Disease, Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara continue to kill it on their promotional tour for "Hot Pursuit" and Jason Derulo takes a pic in front of his private jet. Must be nice. Plus, Crystal Hefner shows off her booty in a sexy lingerie-clad selfie, Giuliana Rancic jumps for joy after her memoir "Going Off Script" makes it on the New York Times' "Best Seller" list and Candace Cameron-Bure chops off her hair! Click "Launch Gallery" above to see these stars' personal pics and even more celeb selfies in this week's best celebrity TwitPics!
- 4/25/2015
- by tooFab Staff
- TooFab
Tumblr
John Green: arguably the saviour of young adult literature, shifting the focus from sparkling vampires to intelligent, nuanced teenagers. Green’s characters aren’t battling totalitarian states or councils of disgruntled bloodsuckers – they’re dealing with real-word issues, navigating sophisticated relationships and complex emotions.
Since 2005 Green has written four novels and co-written one with David Leviathan; he has also contributed to a short story collection titled Let It Snow. Green’s popularity truly exploded with the release of his most recent novel The Fault In Our Stars, a tale of two cancer-stricken teens who meet at a cancer support group and subsequently fall in love. The novel topped the New York Times Best Seller list and was even made into an incredibly successful film.
Like many great writers, one of the appeals of Green’s novels is the “world” they’re set in – a place of eloquent teens and humorous interactions,...
John Green: arguably the saviour of young adult literature, shifting the focus from sparkling vampires to intelligent, nuanced teenagers. Green’s characters aren’t battling totalitarian states or councils of disgruntled bloodsuckers – they’re dealing with real-word issues, navigating sophisticated relationships and complex emotions.
Since 2005 Green has written four novels and co-written one with David Leviathan; he has also contributed to a short story collection titled Let It Snow. Green’s popularity truly exploded with the release of his most recent novel The Fault In Our Stars, a tale of two cancer-stricken teens who meet at a cancer support group and subsequently fall in love. The novel topped the New York Times Best Seller list and was even made into an incredibly successful film.
Like many great writers, one of the appeals of Green’s novels is the “world” they’re set in – a place of eloquent teens and humorous interactions,...
- 4/6/2015
- by Brian Wilson
- Obsessed with Film
Hemdale became one of the largest indie studios of the 80s with films like The Terminator and Platoon. Ryan charts its turbulent history...
When Platoon won four Oscars in 1987, it marked not only a new chapter in Oliver Stone's career as a filmmaker, but also the end of a decade-long battle. Since the 1970s, Stone had been struggling to make his harrowing account of the horrors he'd seen firsthand as a soldier in the Vietnam conflict, but was famously turned down by every major studio in Hollywood.
Platoon, and Stone, finally found sanctuary at a small independent studio with a grand-sounding name: the Hemdale Film Corporation. It was Hemdale, and its co-founder John Daly, that had taken a chance on Stone, and when Platoon came out in 1986, the gamble proved to be a shrewd one: its $6m investment was covered by the first month's ticket sales, and the film...
When Platoon won four Oscars in 1987, it marked not only a new chapter in Oliver Stone's career as a filmmaker, but also the end of a decade-long battle. Since the 1970s, Stone had been struggling to make his harrowing account of the horrors he'd seen firsthand as a soldier in the Vietnam conflict, but was famously turned down by every major studio in Hollywood.
Platoon, and Stone, finally found sanctuary at a small independent studio with a grand-sounding name: the Hemdale Film Corporation. It was Hemdale, and its co-founder John Daly, that had taken a chance on Stone, and when Platoon came out in 1986, the gamble proved to be a shrewd one: its $6m investment was covered by the first month's ticket sales, and the film...
- 4/2/2015
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
Larry Cohen hasn’t directed a film since 1996 (Original Gangstas), but he’s stayed busy as a writer with thrillers like Phone Booth, Best Seller and Cellular. It’s a bit of a shame as the man’s directorial touch is usually a guarantee that a movie is going to be a fun ride — think It’s Alive, The Stuff, The Ambulance — and one of his best is 1982’s flying monster movie, Q the Winged Serpent. Scream Factory released the film to Blu-ray in 2013 complete with a new commentary track from Cohen, and we decided it was time to give it a spin. It was a smart decision as the track is a fun, informative and occasionally surprising listen. Keep reading to see what I heard on the commentary track for Q the Winged Serpent. Q the Winged Serpent (1982) Commentator: Larry Cohen (writer/director) 1. They had an early preview of the film prior to distribution, and...
- 3/30/2015
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Framework TV Review
The reality competition series genre is losing some of its steam, but Spike TV is taking a shot on something you haven’t seen before, furniture. Sure, you’ve seen design, but I mean actually building furniture. Framework, ten weeks of furniture design challenges, may not seem like it fits exactly with what you’re used to from Spike TV, a seriously niche network if ever there was one, but somehow it makes for a good fit as a branch toward a broader audience.
One of the reasons the show can work a broader appeal is that while it is hosted by Common, the furniture expert judges are Nolen Niu and Brandon Gore. That works for the show, and the very general idea of the show, because though I’m told they are seriously interesting people in the world of furniture design, I have no idea who they are,...
The reality competition series genre is losing some of its steam, but Spike TV is taking a shot on something you haven’t seen before, furniture. Sure, you’ve seen design, but I mean actually building furniture. Framework, ten weeks of furniture design challenges, may not seem like it fits exactly with what you’re used to from Spike TV, a seriously niche network if ever there was one, but somehow it makes for a good fit as a branch toward a broader audience.
One of the reasons the show can work a broader appeal is that while it is hosted by Common, the furniture expert judges are Nolen Niu and Brandon Gore. That works for the show, and the very general idea of the show, because though I’m told they are seriously interesting people in the world of furniture design, I have no idea who they are,...
- 1/8/2015
- by Marc Eastman
- AreYouScreening.com
A24’s A Most Violent Year will dominate the Specialty Box Office New Year’s weekend. The feature began as director J.C. Chandor was releasing his previous feature, All Is Lost. A Most Violent Year will begin its limited run in the New Year, but the title will have a wide release by the end of the month. Also opening this weekend is IFC Films’ doc The Search For General Tso, which has its roots from a New York Times Best Seller. Well Go USA will bow China’s The Taking Of Tiger Mountain in exclusive engagements. The title opened number one at home when it rolled out ahead of Christmas. And Magnolia’s genre label, Magnet, will open Spanish thriller [Rec] 4: Apocalypse in five locations January 2. the title is already available via ultra-vod.
A Most Violent Year
Director-writer: J.C. Chandor
Cast: Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, David Oyelowo, Alessandro Nivola,...
A Most Violent Year
Director-writer: J.C. Chandor
Cast: Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, David Oyelowo, Alessandro Nivola,...
- 1/1/2015
- by Brian Brooks
- Deadline
One of the year's best movies (if not The best film fo the year) is set to hit blu-ray in January. 20th Century Fox has announced the home entertainment release of Gone Girl so you can enjoy the film again and again, while also detailing all the bonuses that come included on the disc.
I thoroughly enjoyed Gone Girl, and soon after the credits were rolling I wanted to watch it again. There's a lot going on in the film, and it needs to be seen more than once. Fortunately, on January 13, 2015, I'll get my chance when it comes to blu-ray:
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will bring you to the edge of your seat when Gone Girl hits Blu-ray™ and DVD January 13. Based on Gillian Flynn’s New York Times Best Seller, Gone Girl delivers critically-acclaimed performances from Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike and the entire all-star ensemble.
Gone Girl...
I thoroughly enjoyed Gone Girl, and soon after the credits were rolling I wanted to watch it again. There's a lot going on in the film, and it needs to be seen more than once. Fortunately, on January 13, 2015, I'll get my chance when it comes to blu-ray:
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will bring you to the edge of your seat when Gone Girl hits Blu-ray™ and DVD January 13. Based on Gillian Flynn’s New York Times Best Seller, Gone Girl delivers critically-acclaimed performances from Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike and the entire all-star ensemble.
Gone Girl...
- 12/10/2014
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Jordan Maison)
- Cinelinx
In anticipation of the premiere of Jon Stewart’s critically acclaimed directorial debut, "Rosewater", SydneysBuzz recently joined an exclusive media call hosted by BoomGen Studios with Jon Stewart and Maziar Bahari.
SydneysBuzz congratulates Jon Stewart for his directorial debut “Rosewater”, based on the 2011 memoir and New York Times Best Seller Then They Came For Me, by Iranian-born journalist Maziar Bahari, played by Gael Garcia Bernal. The film is a fictional telling of Bahari’s experience in solitary confinement in Tehran for accusations of espionage after filming Iranian protests after the country’s 2009 corrupt elections.
"Rosewater" is more than a noble act intending to expose one of countless stories about journalists worldwide who have been wrongly accused and tortured for alleged spying. It is a work of personal connection born out of Stewart’s friendship with Bahari and given a Stewart-like twist of absolute absurdity. As seen in the film, Bahari’s captor uses a satirical clip of The Daily Show's Jason Jones interviewing him in Tehran as evidence against him for conspiring with American spies:
Bahari: He’s not a spy. It’s a show… a comedy show. He’s a comedian pretending to be a spy.
Captor: So can you tell me why a American pretending to be a spy had chosen to interview you?”
Bahari: And why would a real spy be on a TV show?”
Stewart’s bold move into drama is not easy and deserves recognition – especially for venturing out of his established identity as one America’s most talented comedians and satirists. Although there are moments of lightness sparsely peppered throughout the film, it is an outrageous and surreal account that exposes the plight of journalists who risk their freedom and lives for the voices and truth of many.
Jon Stewart and Maziar Bahari share their experience of making “Rosewater” and share their views on the film’s impact:
Stewart: We felt that this story is really crucial and relevant, and should be seen as a part of events, and not as an artifact of history. I think that was our frustration with the more glacial elements of filmmaking, and is what I think spurred us to try and expedite the project… so that it could be seen in the context of the timeframe in which the whole Green Movement and the election took place.
Bahari: The film tells the timely story in terms of what is happening to journalists today, not only in Iran, but around the world. The film is inspired by my story and the book, but it is really the story of thousands of journalists around the world. I think because of the portrayal of Iran in the media – especially the American media and Hollywood films – it’s very important for people to see this film in order to have a more nuanced image of Iran, to understand Iran better.
Do you see this film as having an impact with not just the way that Americans view Iran, but the policy we have towards Iran?
Stewart: It’s hard to say, because obviously those types of issues occur incrementally. In America, they (Iran) are referred to by some as “The Axis of Evil”. In Iran, America is referred to by some as “The Great Satan”. It’s a very low bar of conversation for us to try and clear in terms of nuance. I think anything that you can add to the dialog that increases our ability to see each other as human is an important contribution to the conversation. That, in and of itself, we hope is just something to consider.
Hopefully, the American audience will see certain things within that are a reflection of our own culture, of our own issues, and not just be able to dismiss it as the singular extremity of one eccentric regime. In terms of actual progress of things - you just don’t know - but in terms of what we hope it contributes to the conversation is that.
Bahari: Some people within the Iranian government watch the film and they see it and can see how ridiculous their actions are, how brutal some of the other people within the government are. I think even if one person changes his behavior within the Iranian government, I’ll be happy.
I think for the people in the United States, it’s very important to see this film because they can see human beings, young people, enlightened, open-minded people in the first half of the film who are part of the Green Movement. And if they ever want to attack or bomb Iran, these people are going to suffer much more than the Revolutionary Guard and the Iranian government.
What is the trickiest part of portraying a real portrait of the Iranian people in “Rosewater”?
Stewart: I don’t think it’s that tricky, because it’s true. It is a very complex, nuanced and interesting society. I think in general, I had to own a little bit of my inauthenticity. I’m not Iranian, and although it’s based on the memoir of someone who is and is very familiar (and Maziar was collaborating throughout the script), I’m not one of the great Iranian directors that you see. And if they were to do it, it would have an inherent nuance to it that I could never provide. The hope is that for a western audience to have a more nuanced version than what they’re accustomed to.
Some see “Rosewater” as the first American film to humanize Iranians. Stewart responds:
Stewart: We didn’t need to make a contrived attempt at humanizing, because they’re human. So as long as we tried to paint people and consider what their daily burdens were, whether it was his interrogator, or what his mother was going through, or what Davood was going through, and the younger people of Robat Karim… As long as we tried to be authentic and honest about what their daily struggle would be, they would be inherently humanized, because ultimately, that’s just the truth of who they are.
What would you like Iranians to know about why you made this film?
Stewart: I would hope that they just view the project for its qualities and that it’s not a political statement. Maziar’s memoir is an impression of his experience. This film is an impression of that memoir, so it’s already sort of twice removed, but I hope that Iranians would see it as a universal story - that somebody outside of Iran is trying to understand the cost of oppression, the cost of suppression to their culture, but also to all cultures. I can’t stress that enough.
Governments everywhere have their pressure points that they try and apply to their people, to keep information that they don’t want to get out from getting out. I think if there’s a point or a subtext to the movie that would be important, it is the idea that to build those apparatuses within governments, to do that to their people, is far more damaging to that government and to that country than what any piece of information could ever be. That’s for western countries, non-allied countries, enemies, the United States, any of them.
What did you learn about the Iranians and the Muslim world that you didn’t understand before “Rosewater”?
I don’t think my view was skewed to the point of, “Wait a minute… They eat with their mouths? This is insane!” There wasn’t anything sort of earthshattering with that. For me, it was more about being impressed by the hospitality. There wasn’t a moment when you could go past somebody where they wouldn’t immediately invite you to their house for two to three dinners.
Did you have intentions of directing before “Rosewater”?
Stewart: It grew very organically when Maziar had gotten out of prison and we had become friendly. He would come through New York, and we would have breakfast and talk about writing his memoir. We talked about how to make it into a film, but more as producers, and as we sent it around to various writers who were already more gainfully employed than how we could employ them… We just got frustrated that it was a year and a half and there was very little movement. That’s really what drove the initial impulse to write it. Directing grew out of becoming slightly territorial at that point.
Stewart discusses the casting of Gael García Bernal:
We cast a pretty wide net as far as actors are concerned… I think for me, knowing Maziar, he has such an interesting way of being able to compartmentalize the duress and still retain a sort of sense of mischief and humor. The actor had to really bring agility to those scenes. You know, there’s one scene where in the span of two and a half minutes, he goes from being terrified that he’s going to be beaten, to being incredulous that he gets to call his wife, to being overcome with joy when he finds out that he has a daughter, to being pummeled against a wall, to laughing in his interrogators face… He had a likeness and a subtlety about the way he could shift those gears in a non ostentatious way that I thought really captured what we would need to capture to make this thing feel authentic.
Maziar (on Gael and how Iranians feel about him playing an Iranian): They complained much less than I expected. Many Iranians watched the film in different places (London, Toronto and La) and actually congratulated Gael on his performance, and it’s an amazing performance.
To learn more, visit the “Rosewater” official website.
SydneysBuzz congratulates Jon Stewart for his directorial debut “Rosewater”, based on the 2011 memoir and New York Times Best Seller Then They Came For Me, by Iranian-born journalist Maziar Bahari, played by Gael Garcia Bernal. The film is a fictional telling of Bahari’s experience in solitary confinement in Tehran for accusations of espionage after filming Iranian protests after the country’s 2009 corrupt elections.
"Rosewater" is more than a noble act intending to expose one of countless stories about journalists worldwide who have been wrongly accused and tortured for alleged spying. It is a work of personal connection born out of Stewart’s friendship with Bahari and given a Stewart-like twist of absolute absurdity. As seen in the film, Bahari’s captor uses a satirical clip of The Daily Show's Jason Jones interviewing him in Tehran as evidence against him for conspiring with American spies:
Bahari: He’s not a spy. It’s a show… a comedy show. He’s a comedian pretending to be a spy.
Captor: So can you tell me why a American pretending to be a spy had chosen to interview you?”
Bahari: And why would a real spy be on a TV show?”
Stewart’s bold move into drama is not easy and deserves recognition – especially for venturing out of his established identity as one America’s most talented comedians and satirists. Although there are moments of lightness sparsely peppered throughout the film, it is an outrageous and surreal account that exposes the plight of journalists who risk their freedom and lives for the voices and truth of many.
Jon Stewart and Maziar Bahari share their experience of making “Rosewater” and share their views on the film’s impact:
Stewart: We felt that this story is really crucial and relevant, and should be seen as a part of events, and not as an artifact of history. I think that was our frustration with the more glacial elements of filmmaking, and is what I think spurred us to try and expedite the project… so that it could be seen in the context of the timeframe in which the whole Green Movement and the election took place.
Bahari: The film tells the timely story in terms of what is happening to journalists today, not only in Iran, but around the world. The film is inspired by my story and the book, but it is really the story of thousands of journalists around the world. I think because of the portrayal of Iran in the media – especially the American media and Hollywood films – it’s very important for people to see this film in order to have a more nuanced image of Iran, to understand Iran better.
Do you see this film as having an impact with not just the way that Americans view Iran, but the policy we have towards Iran?
Stewart: It’s hard to say, because obviously those types of issues occur incrementally. In America, they (Iran) are referred to by some as “The Axis of Evil”. In Iran, America is referred to by some as “The Great Satan”. It’s a very low bar of conversation for us to try and clear in terms of nuance. I think anything that you can add to the dialog that increases our ability to see each other as human is an important contribution to the conversation. That, in and of itself, we hope is just something to consider.
Hopefully, the American audience will see certain things within that are a reflection of our own culture, of our own issues, and not just be able to dismiss it as the singular extremity of one eccentric regime. In terms of actual progress of things - you just don’t know - but in terms of what we hope it contributes to the conversation is that.
Bahari: Some people within the Iranian government watch the film and they see it and can see how ridiculous their actions are, how brutal some of the other people within the government are. I think even if one person changes his behavior within the Iranian government, I’ll be happy.
I think for the people in the United States, it’s very important to see this film because they can see human beings, young people, enlightened, open-minded people in the first half of the film who are part of the Green Movement. And if they ever want to attack or bomb Iran, these people are going to suffer much more than the Revolutionary Guard and the Iranian government.
What is the trickiest part of portraying a real portrait of the Iranian people in “Rosewater”?
Stewart: I don’t think it’s that tricky, because it’s true. It is a very complex, nuanced and interesting society. I think in general, I had to own a little bit of my inauthenticity. I’m not Iranian, and although it’s based on the memoir of someone who is and is very familiar (and Maziar was collaborating throughout the script), I’m not one of the great Iranian directors that you see. And if they were to do it, it would have an inherent nuance to it that I could never provide. The hope is that for a western audience to have a more nuanced version than what they’re accustomed to.
Some see “Rosewater” as the first American film to humanize Iranians. Stewart responds:
Stewart: We didn’t need to make a contrived attempt at humanizing, because they’re human. So as long as we tried to paint people and consider what their daily burdens were, whether it was his interrogator, or what his mother was going through, or what Davood was going through, and the younger people of Robat Karim… As long as we tried to be authentic and honest about what their daily struggle would be, they would be inherently humanized, because ultimately, that’s just the truth of who they are.
What would you like Iranians to know about why you made this film?
Stewart: I would hope that they just view the project for its qualities and that it’s not a political statement. Maziar’s memoir is an impression of his experience. This film is an impression of that memoir, so it’s already sort of twice removed, but I hope that Iranians would see it as a universal story - that somebody outside of Iran is trying to understand the cost of oppression, the cost of suppression to their culture, but also to all cultures. I can’t stress that enough.
Governments everywhere have their pressure points that they try and apply to their people, to keep information that they don’t want to get out from getting out. I think if there’s a point or a subtext to the movie that would be important, it is the idea that to build those apparatuses within governments, to do that to their people, is far more damaging to that government and to that country than what any piece of information could ever be. That’s for western countries, non-allied countries, enemies, the United States, any of them.
What did you learn about the Iranians and the Muslim world that you didn’t understand before “Rosewater”?
I don’t think my view was skewed to the point of, “Wait a minute… They eat with their mouths? This is insane!” There wasn’t anything sort of earthshattering with that. For me, it was more about being impressed by the hospitality. There wasn’t a moment when you could go past somebody where they wouldn’t immediately invite you to their house for two to three dinners.
Did you have intentions of directing before “Rosewater”?
Stewart: It grew very organically when Maziar had gotten out of prison and we had become friendly. He would come through New York, and we would have breakfast and talk about writing his memoir. We talked about how to make it into a film, but more as producers, and as we sent it around to various writers who were already more gainfully employed than how we could employ them… We just got frustrated that it was a year and a half and there was very little movement. That’s really what drove the initial impulse to write it. Directing grew out of becoming slightly territorial at that point.
Stewart discusses the casting of Gael García Bernal:
We cast a pretty wide net as far as actors are concerned… I think for me, knowing Maziar, he has such an interesting way of being able to compartmentalize the duress and still retain a sort of sense of mischief and humor. The actor had to really bring agility to those scenes. You know, there’s one scene where in the span of two and a half minutes, he goes from being terrified that he’s going to be beaten, to being incredulous that he gets to call his wife, to being overcome with joy when he finds out that he has a daughter, to being pummeled against a wall, to laughing in his interrogators face… He had a likeness and a subtlety about the way he could shift those gears in a non ostentatious way that I thought really captured what we would need to capture to make this thing feel authentic.
Maziar (on Gael and how Iranians feel about him playing an Iranian): They complained much less than I expected. Many Iranians watched the film in different places (London, Toronto and La) and actually congratulated Gael on his performance, and it’s an amazing performance.
To learn more, visit the “Rosewater” official website.
- 11/25/2014
- by Erin Grover
- Sydney's Buzz
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