Posts with tag thandie newton
Posted Aug 19th 2008 1:03PM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Warner Brothers, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips
Empire Online has an
exclusive new tv spot for
RocknRolla -- you would swear you were watching the beginning of
Snatch with this bit, but even if it is the typical Guy Ritchie, I'm ok with that. There are movies that I demand innovation in, and then there are comfort films where I know I'm going to have a good time.
RocknRolla looks like it may fit that. And frankly, it looks a bit sexier than any of Guy Ritchie's previous outings. I love the little moment between
Thandie Newton and
Gerard Butler at the end of this one. (Is it that easy to get into Butler's place?)
But remember, readers,
this movie is very English and therefore you probably won't understand any of it. I know I don't -- what with their teatime biscuits, bangers and mash, toad-in-a-hole, and warm beer. It's just such an alien culture. We know there's no gangsters there, just jolly chimney sweeps and flying nannies. And we all know Scotsmen only wear kilts and blue paint -- I don't know what this Butler's playing at.
RocknRolla (may) open in a theatre near you on October 31st. I've also embedded the American trailer below, seeing as it hit the wires while I was scribbling notes at the panel. Not that you'll understand such a European thing, anyway.
Continue reading Check Out the 'RocknRolla' UK TV Spot
Posted Jun 25th 2008 12:32PM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Thrillers, Warner Brothers, Movie Marketing, Images, Posters
After the trailer comes the first poster for Guy Ritchie's
RocknRolla. It originated on
Film1 (Erik posted
some cool posters from them yesterday), and was then sent to me by one of the delightful chicks at
Gerard Butler GALS. They will be my new best friends if they keep this up.
Compared to the trailer, it's a pretty subdued affair. It's a little bit
Smokin' Aces, and a little bit
The Boondock Saints, but stylish and badass all on its own. Despite Gerard Butler's torso being so prominent in the trailer, it seems Warner Bros found it a distraction when it came to the poster. They decided to let another actor show off his six-pack, but I think they should have let Tom Wilkinson show off his bald pate instead.
RocknRolla comes to American theatres October 31st. But if you're going to San Diego ComicCon, the rumor is that you'll get a footage fix before then. I'll be there front and center. I need a fix to tide me over until fall.
Posted Jun 2nd 2008 5:02PM by Jessica Barnes
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Casting, Sony
Considering the
critical reception that a
Roland Emmerich film usually receives, I am always a little surprised by the actors who are willing to sign on for one of his films. Although to be fair, it wouldn't be the first time that John Cusack had signed on the dotted line for a
less-than-stellar project.
The Hollywood Reporter has now
announced that
Thandie Newton,
Danny Glover, and
Oliver Platt are all in talks to join Cusack in Emmerich's apocalyptic thriller,
2012. According to
THR, "Glover is in talks to play the President, with Newton in discussions to play his daughter. Platt is in negotiations to play the president's chief of staff."
Thanks to Erik, we now have a few more
details about the story, and that it centers on an academic researcher (Cusack) who "opens a portal into a parallel universe and makes contact with his double in order to prevent an apocalypse predicted by the ancient Mayans." Emmerich co-wrote the script with fellow
10,000 B.C. scribe,
Harald Kloser -- which is probably not a great selling point for most audiences. Columbia has projected a budget of $200 million for the end-of-the-world flick -- I guess all that destruction doesn't come cheap. But, Columbia has also stated that they're hoping to bring the thriller in under budget. Emmerich has promised to start production by July, barring any hiccups from a possible
SAG strike.
2012 is scheduled to arrive in theaters on July 10, 2009.
Posted Apr 9th 2008 6:32PM by Erik Davis
Filed under: Casting, Deals, RumorMonger, Newsstand, Politics
Oh Ari Fleischer -- the
David Cross of Press Secretaries. Wait a minute -- why didn't they get David Cross for this role? He'd be perfect. Anyway,
MTV tells us that
Rob Corddry (
The Daily Show, Semi-Pro ... and a bunch of other random comedies) has signed on to play former Press Secretary Ari Fleischer in Oliver Stone's
W. Corddry joins a cast that continues to get larger by the minute, and includes Josh Brolin (George W. Bush), Elizabeth Banks (Laura Bush), James Cromwell (George Bush Sr.), Ellen Burstyn (Barbara Bush), Thandie Newton (Condi Rice), Ioan Gruffudd (Tony Blair) and 50 Cent (as Colin Powell).
Yes, I'm kidding about that last one.
Earlier today,
we clued you into a script review of
W currently circulating the internets. According to some, the film seems to be taking the Bush is a moronic alcoholic fratboy route, which, if you watch, well,
The Daily Show, is kinda old news. As Eugene put it, "Most people -- whether or not they accept it -- have already absorbed the meme that Bush is an arrogant, reckless, hard-drinking buffoon, and I'm not sure that this perception merits its own movie." I completely agree -- and I'd much rather have watched Stone return to Vietnam with
Pinkville than sit down for a feature-length version of a joke that's way past its prime.
Posted Apr 6th 2008 12:32PM by Eugene Novikov
Filed under: Casting, Politics
I'll say one thing for
Oliver Stone's
W: it makes for some fun casting updates. Watching this movie come together has had much more novelty value than I would have thought. I guess that's what happens when you set out to make a movie about the most controversial figures in the world
right now, instead of decades ago.
Anyway, here's what we have so far:
And you may now take Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair off your to-cast lists. Those roles
have been filled with
Thandie Newton and
Ioan Gruffudd (respectively, though I think it would have been much more interesting in reverse order). Both actors are British, but this won't be the first time Newton has played an American. My worry about her isn't her accent so much as the fact that she seems too damn
nice. I think they should have followed the lead of the
ultraconservative 2006 TV miniseries and cast
24's
Penny Johnson Jerald (a.k.a. the terrifying Sherry Palmer). That's about as on-the-nose as it gets.
Posted Mar 25th 2008 2:32PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Drama, RumorMonger, Remakes and Sequels
According to the tabloid rags,
Guy Ritchie has his hands full with his marriage to Madonna, but he's also been busy trying to reinvigorate his career. We've got
RocknRolla on the way, the story of a Russian mobster doing shady land deals and attracting the attention of London's crime world, and it stars Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson,
Thandie Newton, Ludacris, and Idris Elba. But before we even see if that helps rip him from the sinking world of
Swept Away, Thandie tells
MTV that the new film will be one of three.
The actress says: "
RocknRolla is one of three films and Guy's keen to get going on that straight away." It will include Newton, who makes it through this first film, but she says many others have not, and that the sequel "will follow whoever's left." Apparently the shoot was swift, with only three weeks of pre-production, so Ritchie could get going on this at any time.
That being said, since this is a story where only some survive for the sequel, Ritchie might want to wait for 2 and 3 until after the first one premieres, to prevent potential spoilers and all. But maybe he just wants to get these in the bag before the verdict lands on the first. It could go either way, but since Tom Wilkinson has been on a hotter than hot roll lately, I'm hoping for good things. How about you?
Posted Mar 9th 2008 9:32AM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Comedy, SXSW, New Line, Theatrical Reviews
When I refer to
David Schwimmer's Run Fatboy Run as "a modern-day screwball farce," that's a nice way of saying it's outrageously predictable, unabashedly sappy, and completely formulaic through and through. You know where the movie is going from frame one, and it sure doesn't take a lot of detours getting there. But the phrase "screwball" probably wouldn't have come to mind if
Run Fatboy Run wasn't at least a little bit funny. Which it is. So if you don't mind an amiable-yet-seriously familiar 90 minutes -- and you're a big fan of British actor
Simon Pegg -- I'd have no problem recommending the flick. Even if I'd never come close to calling it something brilliant.
The effortlessly likable Simon Pegg stars as one of those lovably lazy sad-sack types that you only come across in comedic films: Despite the fact that he left his pregnant fiancee (
Thandie Newton) at the altar five years earlier, Pegg's "Dennis" is one of those losers we love to root for. (How a doofus like this ever scored a catch like Thandie Newton -- and then abandoned her! -- is one of the film's sillier conceits.) So when his former flame's smarmy new boyfriend (
Hank Azaria) mentions that he'll be running in an upcoming marathon, Dennis senses a shot at redemption.
Continue reading SXSW Review: Run Fatboy Run
Posted Jan 2nd 2008 4:32PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: SXSW
It seems like just a few months ago we were enjoying the sights, the sounds, the smells and the cinema of
South By Southwest 2007, but guess what? Now that it's January, the festival's only about nine weeks away! Awesome! So today we caught some slightly early news on what SXSW is cooking up for this March, and I must say I'm pretty impressed with what they snagged for their opening night film.
And that film is:
Robert Luketic's 21, which is based on the book
Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions. (You may remember Mr. Luketic from flicks like
Legally Blonde,
Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, and
Monster-in-Law.) Adapted by Ben Mezrich's book by screenwriters
Peter Steinfeld and
Allan Loeb,
21 stars
Kevin Spacey,
Laurence Fishburne,
Kate Bosworth and
Jim Sturgess. (Check out the trailer
right here.)
And if that world premiere isn't cool enough, festival chief
Matt Dentler has also divulged the following titles for
SXSW '08:
At the Death House Door (
Steve James &
Peter Gilbert) "A sobering and powerful story of the wrongful execution of Carlos DeLuna and the Death House Chaplain, Pastor Carroll Pickett, who spent the last day of DeLuna's life with him."
Dreams with Sharp Teeth (
Erik Nelson) "A documentary portrait of acclaimed author
Harlan Ellison, as he looks back on his fabled and influential career as one of the world's top science fiction writers."
Flawless (
Michael Radford) "In 1960s London, a talented but overlooked diamond executive (
Demi Moore) is convinced to participate in a jewelry heist when a veteran janitor (
Michael Caine) hatches a plan."
Run Fatboy Run (
David Schwimmer) "An out-of-shape divorced father (
Simon Pegg) makes one last attempt to win back the respect of his son, his ex-wife (
Thandie Newton), and the community around him. All he has to do is finish his first marathon."
Wild Blue Yonder (Celia Maysles) "Celia Maysles had no idea her father and his brother
Albert were pioneers of verite documentary filmmaking. Determined to uncover the secrets surrounding her background, Celia sets out on a quest to rediscover her father by using his own artistic process."
Expect a few more flashy surprises before the full SXSW slate is announced on February 5! Until then, feel free to browse through
the SXSW website and decide if THIS is the year you're finally going to take my advice and attend the dang festival. (You do know it's a
movie AND
music fest, right?
Interactive, too, and I do believe I've mentioned the indigenous BBQ more than once.)
Posted Oct 11th 2007 3:32PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Action, Drama, Casting, Fandom, Newsstand
With his first feature,
Guy Ritchie made one heck of a name for himself amongst moviegoers itching for crime, action, and lots of testosterone. In the late '90s,
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels was the quintessential guy movie -- every man I knew raved about it with the passion usually saved for religious zealots. Many of those same moviegoers followed along with
Snatch, but then slammed into the cinematic wall with his
Swept Away. One might think this had something to do with Ritchie's attempt to have a female lead, and that he wouldn't dare enter those waters again. Nevertheless, he has with
RocknRolla, which found its deal
in May, and was cast
in June.
If co-star
Thandie Newton is to be believed, we shouldn't worry about her presence in the crime feature. She recently talked to
MTV and said: "I was the only girl for miles around. I thought I'd have to struggle to be a woman in that scenario. [But] Guy was so open to me having ideas." Perhaps because of his inexperience writing ones that live up to the male characters he creates? Her character, Stella, is an "accountant who becomes more and more cooked as the story goes on. I think [Guy] was surprised at how dirty I played this character. I just kept pushing it and he loved it. He loves surprises." Maybe this will be the big breakthough for Ritchie -- female characters that don't have sap that dies on the big screen, but rather, sass that rivals his memorable male characters. What do you think? Will
RocknRolla re-inspire the admiration of his old fanbase with a lead like Newton and much less romance?
Posted Sep 6th 2007 5:02PM by James Rocchi
Filed under: Comedy, Theatrical Reviews, Festival Reports, Toronto International Film Festival, Cinematical Indie, Picturehouse
After
Spaced,
Shaun of the Dead and
Hot Fuzz, it's widely believed that
Simon Pegg can do no wrong; appearing as if custom-made to test that contention is the new comedy
Run, Fat Boy, Run.
Run, Fat Boy, Run gets approving nods from comedy connoisseurs when you mention Pegg's in the lead; mention the presence of
David Schwimmer in the director's chair and their expressions change subtly ...
After the success of
Friends, Schwimmer could have devoted himself to any number of pastimes -- stick-fighting, model rocketry, leisurely laps in a Scrooge McDuck-style pool of Sacagawea dollar coins. Instead, Schwimmer starred in
Duane Hopwood -- which saw Schwimmer playing a barely-functioning alcoholic, as if a brief crawl through the gutter would get the Ross off him -- and here he makes his directorial debut.
Run, Fat Boy, Run stars Pegg as Dennis; five years ago, Dennis left his pregnant girlfriend Libby (
Thandie Newton) at the altar. Now, he's living in a basement flat, working as a security guard, occasionally being a good dad to his son Jake (Matthew Fenton) -- and confronted with Libby's relationship with Whit (
Hank Azaria), a well-to-do, can-do American. In a moment of weakness -- motivated by pride, or idiocy, or both -- Dennis reacts to Whit's bragging about his upcoming athletic endeavors by saying that he, too, is going to run the London Marathon ...
Continue reading TIFF Review: Run, Fat Boy, Run
Posted Aug 30th 2007 9:02AM by Kim Voynar
Filed under: New Releases, New Line, Movie Marketing, Posters
Just a few days from the Toronto International Film Festival, and the posters are coming out of the woodwork. Picturehouse was kind enough to provide us with an exclusive first peek at the spandy-new poster (click the image for a bigger view) for former
Friend David Schwimmer's feature directorial debut (he has quite a bit of TV stuff under his belt),
Run, Fatboy, Run. The film stars
Simon Pegg as Dennis, a chunky, uninspired loser who gets cold feet and dumps his hot girlfriend, Libby (
Thandie Newton) on their wedding day -- and then spends the next five years regretting it. He finally decides to win Libby back from her new, wealthy and handsome love, Whit (
Hank Azaria), but first he has to get in shape and win a marathon to prove to Libby that he's a changed man.
Sounds like a great date flick to me. Like
Knocked Up and
40 Year Old Virgin, it has the appeal of an average-looking Everyguy with a very attractive woman -- guys like to cheer for guys like that, and women clearly find them appealing as well, if
Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow are any indication. The geek factor could definitely give the film a box office edge, especially if there's good buzz at TIFF. I've always like Schwimmer as an actor, and I'm really curious to see how he directs this film. What do you think of the poster? The film opens in the US on October 26; until then, you'll have to satisfy your curiousity with the
film's official website, which has a trailer for the film, and
Posted Jun 25th 2007 6:33PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Action, Casting
If I really scour my memory, I can vaguely remember the excitement that
Guy Ritchie used to incite with his films. God, it has been seven years since I last went to the theater to see one of his movies --
Snatch. Yet no matter what cinematic pitfalls he has suffered since then, he's got one heck of a cast lined up for his next film --
RocknRolla.
Variety has just announced the cast, which consists of
Gerard Butler (
300),
Tom Wilkinson (
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind),
Thandie Newton (
Crash),
Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges (
Hustle & Flow) and
Idris Elba (
The Reaping). (No, surprisingly, there's no
Jason Statham anywhere to be seen.) Not only is this cast much better than Madonna, but it's pretty great in its own regard!
Erik Davis first posted about
RocknRolla last month, when word hit that Ritchie was writing and directing another feature in the vein of his big successes --
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and
Snatch. The film is about a Russian mobster who coordinates "a crooked land deal, putting millions of dollars up for grabs and attracting all of London's criminal underworld." If this cast is the collection of criminals, this is looking to be a group reminiscent of the pirate kings in the latest
Pirates of the Caribbean, but with much more recognizable faces. The budget on this puppy is under $20 million, it has already started production and will be done in his classic "fast-paced, low-budget style." Now, will it
sweep away that really bad offering and get him back on track as the guru of bad arses, or will Dark Castle Entertainment and Warner Bros. have a stinker on their hands?
Posted Nov 10th 2006 7:00PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Comedy, Romance, Casting, Scripts
David Schwimmer hasn't had an easy time after Friends. Since the popular series wrapped, he's had one completely-off-the-radar release, one new release, and the voice of a giraffe. There have been no well-publicized romantic exploits, or a television show. Maybe it's the curse of the Gellars, as Courtney Cox has also been out of the spotlight. Schwimmer's comedic goofiness seems to have carried him as far as it can, at least on-screen. Now, he will Schwim behind the camera with the new film, Run, Fat Boy, Run. It is a first for Material Entertainment -- the joined forces of Entertainment Film Distributors and New Line Cinema.
Our own Martha Fischer originally covered the film when Simon Pegg was in negotiations to play the "fat boy." An original screenplay by Michael Ian Black (
Reno
911!), Run tells the tale of an overweight man who wants to win back the fiancé he left at the alter five years earlier by running in a marathon and somehow upstaging her dapper new fiancé. With casting complete, Pegg will be joined by Thandie Newton, Hank Azaria, and Dylan Moran. Is it safe to assume that Azaria will be the new man in her life? For a man who still has charisma as a tight pants Lancelot, the script must make him really undesirable.
The cast looks promising, although we all know that great casts don't necessarily make great movies. The title? Well, I think they could have come up with something a little more original, but we're talking about the guy who writes about over-the-top cops in
Reno
. Basically, it follows the usual supportive formula when you can't think of your own words of encouragement. My first memory of it is in Forrest Gump with the whole "Run, Forrest, run!" And, my favourite use would be the juvenile, yet funny, chiding "Fly, fat ass, fly!" from Mallrats.
Can you think of earlier uses of the "Action, Name, Action" formula? What are your favourites?
Posted Apr 18th 2006 5:09PM by Martha Fischer
Filed under: Comedy, Casting, Newsstand
Hey, alright! Now that all the excitement about
Big Momma's House 2 and
Madea's Family Reunion has
worn off, I've really been itching for another movie in which the star is in drag. And now, thanks to
Eddie Murphy, there's one on the way. Thank goodness, huh? His effort is
called
Norbit, and offers the added wrinkle of the non-drag
Eddie marrying the drag version. That's right: the hilarity never stops. According to
Variety's summary,
Norbit (that's Murphy #1) is "a meek guy," who is somehow forced to marry "a monstrous woman"
(Eddie #2) just before, wouldn't you know it, he meets the woman of his dreams. Damn that luck.
Norbit's
dream girl will be played by
Thandie Newton, so despite the monstrous
wife, he does appear to have some taste. Also just added to the cast were Eddie Griffin, who will play a retired pimp
(The word "retired" makes it sounds so official, like he's actually getting social security checks and
everything.), box office poison Cuba Gooding, in the role of Newton's boyfriend, and Terry Crews, who will play one of
Norbit's in-laws.
The movie is shooting right now in LA; release is scheduled for some time in 2007.
Posted Feb 14th 2006 10:03PM by Martha Fischer
Filed under: Action, Thrillers, Casting, RumorMonger, James Bond, Remakes and Sequels
If only because we haven't posted a
Casino
Royale Bond Girl Update lately, I feel it's important to share the latest word from one of the many
alleged
Vesper Lynds,
Thandie Newton. According to Newton, she's totally not
doing it. Though this news will greatly sadden those of you who think
the Russian looks like a
man and for some reason aren't into the
fake lesbian,
Thandie herself actually rather liked our collective, rumor-mongering attention because it "gave [her] an
opportunity to fantasize about something that wasn't ever going to happen." Ah well. Bygones.
Meanwhile, of course, the movie shoots away in Prague, totally chick-free (
Judi Dench might be there, but come on - she's a Dame, not a chick).
It's getting so late that I'm starting to wonder if they're not just going to go out on the street and cast the first
hot Czech number who walks by.
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