Memento International has boarded “The Ugly Stepsister,” the ambitious feature debut of Norwegian director Emilie Blichfeldt. The company will kick off sales at this year’s Cannes.
Combining comedy and horror, the film is a daring and unexpected take on the world-famous tale, seen through the eyes of the Cinderella’s stepsister, Elvira.
The gory film follows Elvira as she battles to compete with her insanely beautiful stepsister in a kingdom where beauty is a brutal business. She will go to any lengths to catch the prince’s eye.
“The Ugly Stepsister” is produced by Maria Ekerhovd in Norway for Mer Film, and is co-produced by Lizette Jonjic for Zentropa Sweden (“Another Round”), Mariusz Włodarski for Poland’s Lava Films (“The Girl With The Needle”), Theis Nørgaard for Denmark’s Motor (“The Dead Don’t Hurt”), Zefyr and Film i Väst. With support from the Norwegian Film Institute, the Polish Cash...
Combining comedy and horror, the film is a daring and unexpected take on the world-famous tale, seen through the eyes of the Cinderella’s stepsister, Elvira.
The gory film follows Elvira as she battles to compete with her insanely beautiful stepsister in a kingdom where beauty is a brutal business. She will go to any lengths to catch the prince’s eye.
“The Ugly Stepsister” is produced by Maria Ekerhovd in Norway for Mer Film, and is co-produced by Lizette Jonjic for Zentropa Sweden (“Another Round”), Mariusz Włodarski for Poland’s Lava Films (“The Girl With The Needle”), Theis Nørgaard for Denmark’s Motor (“The Dead Don’t Hurt”), Zefyr and Film i Väst. With support from the Norwegian Film Institute, the Polish Cash...
- 4/29/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Like the cinematography sector overall this year, the profession’s prime annual festival, Poland’s Camerimage, has come through major challenges in 2023, says the event’s founder, Marek Zydowicz.
Launching in the historic town of Torun on Nov. 11, the 31st edition of the fest was organized in a time of nearby crises in Europe plus record levels of inflation hitting the region, and fallout from the Hollywood actors strike.
“It’s hard to say these things were really helping us,” notes Kazik Suwala, one of the festival’s key organizers and director of its most ambitious project, the construction of the European Film Center, which broke ground in October. “It was a tough year to work,” as he puts it. “The preparations were much harder than usual. Getting movies programmed involved much more time.”
Thus, Zydowicz and Suwala confess to feeling a bit of extra pride in pulling off a...
Launching in the historic town of Torun on Nov. 11, the 31st edition of the fest was organized in a time of nearby crises in Europe plus record levels of inflation hitting the region, and fallout from the Hollywood actors strike.
“It’s hard to say these things were really helping us,” notes Kazik Suwala, one of the festival’s key organizers and director of its most ambitious project, the construction of the European Film Center, which broke ground in October. “It was a tough year to work,” as he puts it. “The preparations were much harder than usual. Getting movies programmed involved much more time.”
Thus, Zydowicz and Suwala confess to feeling a bit of extra pride in pulling off a...
- 11/6/2023
- by Will Tizard
- Variety Film + TV
The western genre has been so pervasive throughout the entire history of the movies, and it is hard to imagine doing anything in it that hasn’t already been done. Viggo Mortensen, in writing, directing, producing and co-starring in only his second film behind the camera (after 2020’s Falling) finds a moving, if tragic, love story to play against the stunning landscape of the circa-1860s West, and somehow it all feels new. John Ford and Howard Hawks would love this movie.
The Dead Don’t Hurt is a title that promises something else, but without giving away spoilers, it ultimately feels right for this story of Holder Olsen (Mortensen), a Danish immigrant who falls hard for Vivienne Le Coudy (a luminous Vicky Krieps), who he meets in San Francisco. Wanting some quiet peace in his life, they move together to Elk Flats, Nevada, and start what appears to be an idyllic life together.
The Dead Don’t Hurt is a title that promises something else, but without giving away spoilers, it ultimately feels right for this story of Holder Olsen (Mortensen), a Danish immigrant who falls hard for Vivienne Le Coudy (a luminous Vicky Krieps), who he meets in San Francisco. Wanting some quiet peace in his life, they move together to Elk Flats, Nevada, and start what appears to be an idyllic life together.
- 9/9/2023
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
With “I Shot Andy Warhol” in 1996, Mary Harron launched her filmmaking career by depicting an artist with a complicated legacy, and that fixation never left her. Her latest effort, “Dalíland,” follows that trajectory with a trenchant look at the later years of Salvador Dalí. While the legacies of many legendary creators have been reevaluated in modern times, Harron’s own fixations haven’t kept from appreciating her troubled subjects.
“There are a lot of artists’ work that I do not want people to cut themselves off from,” the director told IndieWire in a recent interview. “I love reading Dostoyevsky, who was anti-Semitic and had crazy political ideas. I was very influenced as a young person by Polanski, who did terrible things and really should’ve been in prison for them. But that doesn’t mean his films didn’t continue to inspire.”
As for Dalí: The Surrealist may have been...
“There are a lot of artists’ work that I do not want people to cut themselves off from,” the director told IndieWire in a recent interview. “I love reading Dostoyevsky, who was anti-Semitic and had crazy political ideas. I was very influenced as a young person by Polanski, who did terrible things and really should’ve been in prison for them. But that doesn’t mean his films didn’t continue to inspire.”
As for Dalí: The Surrealist may have been...
- 6/16/2023
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
The award comes with 38,000, making it one of the world’s largest film prizes.
Goteborg’s lucrative Dragon Award for best Nordic film has gone to Danish director Malou Reymann’s second feature Unruly.
The drama premiered at Toronto and had its Swedish premiere at Goteborg. TrustNordisk handles sales and the Danish cinema release is planned for spring 2023.
Reymann previously directed Rotterdam Big Screen winner A Perfectly Normal Family.
Unruly is about the Sprogø Women’s Institution in the 1930s, when “morally feeble” girls and women were sent to the island to become more compliant. The story focuses on Maren,...
Goteborg’s lucrative Dragon Award for best Nordic film has gone to Danish director Malou Reymann’s second feature Unruly.
The drama premiered at Toronto and had its Swedish premiere at Goteborg. TrustNordisk handles sales and the Danish cinema release is planned for spring 2023.
Reymann previously directed Rotterdam Big Screen winner A Perfectly Normal Family.
Unruly is about the Sprogø Women’s Institution in the 1930s, when “morally feeble” girls and women were sent to the island to become more compliant. The story focuses on Maren,...
- 2/6/2023
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Viggo Mortensen is set to star in, write and direct “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” a Western love story set in the 1860s.
The film also stars Vicky Krieps and is slated to begin shooting Oct. 12 in Canada.
“The Dead Don’t Hurt” is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano (“Los Reyes del Mundo”), Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (“Eo”) and Mortensen.
Also Read:
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Talipot Studio is fully funding the film that will shoot predominantly in Durango, Mexico, where Talipot will manage the production. It is also shooting in Ontario and British Columbia, Canada. HanWay Films will handle worldwide sales and distribution.
Krieps and Mortensen are the two leads and star alongside Solly McLeod (“House of the Dragon”), Danny Huston (“Worlds Apart”), Garret Dillahunt (“Blonde”), Tom Bateman (“Death on the Nile...
The film also stars Vicky Krieps and is slated to begin shooting Oct. 12 in Canada.
“The Dead Don’t Hurt” is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano (“Los Reyes del Mundo”), Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas (“Eo”) and Mortensen.
Also Read:
‘The View’ Host Ana Navarro Taunts Ron DeSantis on Hurricane Relief: ‘You Need Daddy Biden’ (Video)
Talipot Studio is fully funding the film that will shoot predominantly in Durango, Mexico, where Talipot will manage the production. It is also shooting in Ontario and British Columbia, Canada. HanWay Films will handle worldwide sales and distribution.
Krieps and Mortensen are the two leads and star alongside Solly McLeod (“House of the Dragon”), Danny Huston (“Worlds Apart”), Garret Dillahunt (“Blonde”), Tom Bateman (“Death on the Nile...
- 10/6/2022
- by Umberto Gonzalez
- The Wrap
Click here to read the full article.
Viggo Mortensen has lined up another stint behind the camera following his well-received directorial debut Falling.
The Lord of the Rings actor, most recently seen in David Cronenberg’s Cannes-bowing body horror movie Crimes of the Future alongside Léa Seydoux, is set to direct the Western love story The Dead Don’t Hurt, in which he’ll star alongside Vicky Krieps.
The film is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano (Los Reyes del Mundo), Jeremy Thomas (Eo) and Mortensen.
Alongside Krieps (Bergman Island, Corsage, Phantom Thread) and Mortensen (Thirteen Lives, Crimes of the Future) in the lead roles, The Dead Don’t Hurt will also star Solly McLeod (House of the Dragon), Danny Huston (Worlds Apart), Garret Dillahunt (Blonde), Tom Bateman (Death on the Nile), Lance Henriksen (Falling, Aliens) and W. Earl Brown (The Unforgivable). The...
Viggo Mortensen has lined up another stint behind the camera following his well-received directorial debut Falling.
The Lord of the Rings actor, most recently seen in David Cronenberg’s Cannes-bowing body horror movie Crimes of the Future alongside Léa Seydoux, is set to direct the Western love story The Dead Don’t Hurt, in which he’ll star alongside Vicky Krieps.
The film is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano (Los Reyes del Mundo), Jeremy Thomas (Eo) and Mortensen.
Alongside Krieps (Bergman Island, Corsage, Phantom Thread) and Mortensen (Thirteen Lives, Crimes of the Future) in the lead roles, The Dead Don’t Hurt will also star Solly McLeod (House of the Dragon), Danny Huston (Worlds Apart), Garret Dillahunt (Blonde), Tom Bateman (Death on the Nile), Lance Henriksen (Falling, Aliens) and W. Earl Brown (The Unforgivable). The...
- 10/6/2022
- by Alex Ritman
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Viggo Mortensen is set to direct and star alongside Vicky Krieps in the western love story The Dead Don’t Hurt. The film will start shooting on October 12 in Canada.
The film is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture, and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano (Los Reyes del Mundo), Academy Award® winner Jeremy Thomas (Eo), and Mortensen, who also wrote the screenplay.
Talipot Studio is fully funding the film, which will shoot predominantly in Durango, Mexico, where Talipot will manage the production. The pic will also shoot in Ontario and British Columbia, Canada. HanWay Films will handle worldwide sales and distribution.
Set in the 1860s, the film stars Krieps stars as the fiercely independent French Canadian Vivienne Le Coudy who embarks on a relationship with Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Mortensen). After meeting Olsen in San Francisco, Vivienne agrees to travel with him to his home near the quiet town of Elk Flats,...
The film is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture, and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano (Los Reyes del Mundo), Academy Award® winner Jeremy Thomas (Eo), and Mortensen, who also wrote the screenplay.
Talipot Studio is fully funding the film, which will shoot predominantly in Durango, Mexico, where Talipot will manage the production. The pic will also shoot in Ontario and British Columbia, Canada. HanWay Films will handle worldwide sales and distribution.
Set in the 1860s, the film stars Krieps stars as the fiercely independent French Canadian Vivienne Le Coudy who embarks on a relationship with Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Mortensen). After meeting Olsen in San Francisco, Vivienne agrees to travel with him to his home near the quiet town of Elk Flats,...
- 10/6/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Viggo Mortensen is set to write, direct and act in the period western “The Dead Don’t Hurt,” which will also star Vicky Krieps.
The movie will begin shooting on Oct. 12 in Canada. Billed as a “western love story” set in the 1860s, the film is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano, HanWay Films founder and Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas and Mortensen.
“The Dead Don’t Hurt” stars Krieps and Mortensen in the lead roles.
Krieps stars as fiercely independent French Canadian Vivienne Le Coudy who embarks on a relationship with Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Mortensen). After meeting Olsen in San Francisco, Vivienne agrees to travel with him to his home near the quiet town of Elk Flats, where they start a life together. However, the Civil War separates them, leaving Vivienne to fend for herself in a place controlled by powerful rancher...
The movie will begin shooting on Oct. 12 in Canada. Billed as a “western love story” set in the 1860s, the film is a Talipot Studio, Recorded Picture and Perceval Pictures production, produced by Regina Solórzano, HanWay Films founder and Oscar-winning producer Jeremy Thomas and Mortensen.
“The Dead Don’t Hurt” stars Krieps and Mortensen in the lead roles.
Krieps stars as fiercely independent French Canadian Vivienne Le Coudy who embarks on a relationship with Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Mortensen). After meeting Olsen in San Francisco, Vivienne agrees to travel with him to his home near the quiet town of Elk Flats, where they start a life together. However, the Civil War separates them, leaving Vivienne to fend for herself in a place controlled by powerful rancher...
- 10/6/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Title is Danish filmmaker Tea Lindeburg’s debut feature.
LevelK has boarded international sales rights to Danish filmmaker Tea Lindeburg’s debut feature, As in Heaven, which has been confirmed for Toronto’s Discovery section and will also screen in the main competition at San Sebastian.
Writer/director Lindeburg has previously worked in television and is the creator and writer of the Danish Netflix production Equinox.
As in Heaven follows 14-year-old Lise, the eldest of her siblings, who experiences the harsh reality of farm life in the 19th century. She is poised to become the first in her family to go away to school,...
LevelK has boarded international sales rights to Danish filmmaker Tea Lindeburg’s debut feature, As in Heaven, which has been confirmed for Toronto’s Discovery section and will also screen in the main competition at San Sebastian.
Writer/director Lindeburg has previously worked in television and is the creator and writer of the Danish Netflix production Equinox.
As in Heaven follows 14-year-old Lise, the eldest of her siblings, who experiences the harsh reality of farm life in the 19th century. She is poised to become the first in her family to go away to school,...
- 7/28/2021
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Viggo Mortensen directed his first film this past year, “Falling,” about a middle-aged gay man dealing with his aging father. The actor also wrote, produced, composed music for and stars in the film.
Mortensen recently spoke with Gold Derby editor Rob Licuria about what inspired him to create “Falling,” how the story relates to his own life and the key argument scene towards the end of the film. Watch the exclusive interview above and read the complete transcript below.
SEELance Henriksen interview: ‘Falling’
Gold Derby: Viggo, remarkably, this is your first feature. I didn’t know that. I had to look it up. So much of the film, then, rests on your shoulders in terms of its success. What drove you to bring the story to life?
Viggo Mortensen: Well, I’ve been trying to direct a movie from a script that I’ve written for many years. I’ve written several screenplays.
Mortensen recently spoke with Gold Derby editor Rob Licuria about what inspired him to create “Falling,” how the story relates to his own life and the key argument scene towards the end of the film. Watch the exclusive interview above and read the complete transcript below.
SEELance Henriksen interview: ‘Falling’
Gold Derby: Viggo, remarkably, this is your first feature. I didn’t know that. I had to look it up. So much of the film, then, rests on your shoulders in terms of its success. What drove you to bring the story to life?
Viggo Mortensen: Well, I’ve been trying to direct a movie from a script that I’ve written for many years. I’ve written several screenplays.
- 3/1/2021
- by Kevin Jacobsen
- Gold Derby
‘Ammonite’, ‘Nomadland’ to play in main competition.
Poland’s EnergaCamerimage Film Festival has revealed the main competition lineup for its 28th edition, which is set to go ahead as a mix of physical and online events.
Scroll down for full list of titles
A total of 12 films will compete for the festival’s Golden Frog, which will take place in Torun, Poland from November 13 to 21.
They include Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland, Francis Lee’s Ammonite and Woody Allen’s Rifkin’s Festival.
The festival, which focuses on the art of cinematography, also announced that Andrew Levitas’ war photographer drama Minamata...
Poland’s EnergaCamerimage Film Festival has revealed the main competition lineup for its 28th edition, which is set to go ahead as a mix of physical and online events.
Scroll down for full list of titles
A total of 12 films will compete for the festival’s Golden Frog, which will take place in Torun, Poland from November 13 to 21.
They include Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland, Francis Lee’s Ammonite and Woody Allen’s Rifkin’s Festival.
The festival, which focuses on the art of cinematography, also announced that Andrew Levitas’ war photographer drama Minamata...
- 10/27/2020
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Johnny Depp will be awarded the Camerimage Award for “an actor with unique visual sensitivity” at the EnergaCamerimage Film Festival. “Minamata,” starring Depp, will be the closing film of the 28th edition of the event, which focuses on cinematography.
Due to the pandemic, Depp will be unable to accept the award in person, but will connect to the ceremony remotely from the U.S. Depp has appeared in person at other fall festivals, including Zurich and San Sebastian, but Covid-19 levels have now risen across Europe.
The screening of “Minamata,” which was directed by Andrew Levitas and shot by cinematographer Benoît Delhomme, will take place on Nov. 21 in Toruń’s Jordanki Festival Center, following the closing gala and awards ceremony. The festival announced its competition lineup at the weekend, which includes critics’ favorites “Ammonite” and “Nomadland.”
“Minamata,” Levitas’ sophomore feature, tells the story of how war photographer W. Eugene Smith...
Due to the pandemic, Depp will be unable to accept the award in person, but will connect to the ceremony remotely from the U.S. Depp has appeared in person at other fall festivals, including Zurich and San Sebastian, but Covid-19 levels have now risen across Europe.
The screening of “Minamata,” which was directed by Andrew Levitas and shot by cinematographer Benoît Delhomme, will take place on Nov. 21 in Toruń’s Jordanki Festival Center, following the closing gala and awards ceremony. The festival announced its competition lineup at the weekend, which includes critics’ favorites “Ammonite” and “Nomadland.”
“Minamata,” Levitas’ sophomore feature, tells the story of how war photographer W. Eugene Smith...
- 10/27/2020
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Europe’s leading celebration of cinematography, the EnergaCamerimage Film Festival, based in Torun, Poland, kicks off its 28th edition Nov. 14 in hybrid form, but with as much glitz and glam as ever, fest director Marek Zydowicz tells Variety.
Having moved back last year to the historic, Gothic-spired city where it was founded, the festival plans to run its trademark showcase of the latest filmmaking technology in online 3D form this year, but will open with live appearances by Viggo Mortensen, as director and lead actor, and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind kicking things off with their intimate father-son drama “Falling,” screening at the Jordanki fest center.
Zydowicz and Kazik Suwala have recently secured funding for a much grander festival center, featuring year-round film studies and studios, the European Film Center, which Suwala heads. For now, Zydowicz says, Camerimage will continue its focus on outstanding lensing, keeping up the tradition that has made...
Having moved back last year to the historic, Gothic-spired city where it was founded, the festival plans to run its trademark showcase of the latest filmmaking technology in online 3D form this year, but will open with live appearances by Viggo Mortensen, as director and lead actor, and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind kicking things off with their intimate father-son drama “Falling,” screening at the Jordanki fest center.
Zydowicz and Kazik Suwala have recently secured funding for a much grander festival center, featuring year-round film studies and studios, the European Film Center, which Suwala heads. For now, Zydowicz says, Camerimage will continue its focus on outstanding lensing, keeping up the tradition that has made...
- 10/26/2020
- by Will Tizard
- Variety Film + TV
“Falling” will be the opening film of the 28th edition of the EnergaCamerimage Intl. Film Festival, which focuses on the art of cinematography. The film’s director Viggo Mortensen and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind will attend the opening, which takes place on Nov. 14 in Toruń, Poland.
The film, which will compete for Camerimage’s Golden Frog, centers on John, who lives with his partner, Eric, and their daughter, Mónica, in California, far from the traditional rural life he left behind years ago. John’s father, Willis, a headstrong man from a bygone era, lives alone on the isolated farm where John grew up. Willis’s mind is declining, so John brings him West, hoping that he and his sister, Sarah, can help their father find a home closer to them. Their best intentions ultimately run up against Willis’s angry refusal to change his way of life in any way.
The film stars Mortensen,...
The film, which will compete for Camerimage’s Golden Frog, centers on John, who lives with his partner, Eric, and their daughter, Mónica, in California, far from the traditional rural life he left behind years ago. John’s father, Willis, a headstrong man from a bygone era, lives alone on the isolated farm where John grew up. Willis’s mind is declining, so John brings him West, hoping that he and his sister, Sarah, can help their father find a home closer to them. Their best intentions ultimately run up against Willis’s angry refusal to change his way of life in any way.
The film stars Mortensen,...
- 10/14/2020
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Viggo Mortensen’s feature directorial debut Falling will open the 28th edition of the EnergaCamerimage international film festival on cinematography.
Mortensen—who wrote, directed and stars in the drama—will be in attendance at the festival’s opening ceremony, Nov. 14 in Torun, Poland. The film’s cinematographer, Marcel Zyskind (A Mighty Heart), will also be in attendance. From Camerimage, they will travel to Warsaw for the film’s Polish premiere.
Falling will be screened as part of Camerimage’s main competition; this is Zyskind’s first nomination for the festival’s Golden Frog. In the film, an aging man moves from his farm to ...
Mortensen—who wrote, directed and stars in the drama—will be in attendance at the festival’s opening ceremony, Nov. 14 in Torun, Poland. The film’s cinematographer, Marcel Zyskind (A Mighty Heart), will also be in attendance. From Camerimage, they will travel to Warsaw for the film’s Polish premiere.
Falling will be screened as part of Camerimage’s main competition; this is Zyskind’s first nomination for the festival’s Golden Frog. In the film, an aging man moves from his farm to ...
- 10/14/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Viggo Mortensen’s feature directorial debut Falling will open the 28th edition of the EnergaCamerimage international film festival on cinematography.
Mortensen—who wrote, directed and stars in the drama—will be in attendance at the festival’s opening ceremony, Nov. 14 in Torun, Poland. The film’s cinematographer, Marcel Zyskind (A Mighty Heart), will also be in attendance. From Camerimage, they will travel to Warsaw for the film’s Polish premiere.
Falling will be screened as part of Camerimage’s main competition; this is Zyskind’s first nomination for the festival’s Golden Frog. In the film, an aging man moves from his farm to ...
Mortensen—who wrote, directed and stars in the drama—will be in attendance at the festival’s opening ceremony, Nov. 14 in Torun, Poland. The film’s cinematographer, Marcel Zyskind (A Mighty Heart), will also be in attendance. From Camerimage, they will travel to Warsaw for the film’s Polish premiere.
Falling will be screened as part of Camerimage’s main competition; this is Zyskind’s first nomination for the festival’s Golden Frog. In the film, an aging man moves from his farm to ...
- 10/14/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Despite having never shot a movie, even a short film, Green Book star Viggo Mortensen recalled first pitching his directorial debut, Falling, to poker-faced international distributors.
“It’s one thing to know me as an actor, but I hadn’t directed anything,” Mortensen recounted while appearing virtually at the Toronto Film Festival as part of a co-production panel.
Early on, Mortensen and production designer Carol Spier and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind had shot and edited some footage set around a farm in Ontario to give potential investors confidence around the Hollywood actor finally getting into the director’s chair.
And in ...
“It’s one thing to know me as an actor, but I hadn’t directed anything,” Mortensen recounted while appearing virtually at the Toronto Film Festival as part of a co-production panel.
Early on, Mortensen and production designer Carol Spier and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind had shot and edited some footage set around a farm in Ontario to give potential investors confidence around the Hollywood actor finally getting into the director’s chair.
And in ...
- 9/12/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Despite having never shot a movie, even a short film, Green Book star Viggo Mortensen recalled first pitching his directorial debut, Falling, to poker-faced international distributors.
“It’s one thing to know me as an actor, but I hadn’t directed anything,” Mortensen recounted while appearing virtually at the Toronto Film Festival as part of a co-production panel.
Early on, Mortensen and production designer Carol Spier and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind had shot and edited some footage set around a farm in Ontario to give potential investors confidence around the Hollywood actor finally getting into the director’s chair.
And in ...
“It’s one thing to know me as an actor, but I hadn’t directed anything,” Mortensen recounted while appearing virtually at the Toronto Film Festival as part of a co-production panel.
Early on, Mortensen and production designer Carol Spier and cinematographer Marcel Zyskind had shot and edited some footage set around a farm in Ontario to give potential investors confidence around the Hollywood actor finally getting into the director’s chair.
And in ...
- 9/12/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Filmmaker Chris Morris has kept audiences waiting for quite some time since his ambitious movie Four Lions hit theaters. That was almost a decade ago, with only four episodes of Veep under his belt since then, and nothing in the past five years or so. All this is to say that Morris’ satirical voice has been missing from cinemas. That changes this week when his sophomore flick The Day Shall Come opens. Having debuted earlier this year the South by Southwest Film Festival, it now ventures out, hoping to catch on. While some will no doubt be put off by some of the content, Morris is telling a deeply American story that’s as enraging as it is humorous. The movie is a comedy about the tragic way things work in America. Based on hundreds of true stories (as the film states), The Day Shall Come introduces us to a...
- 9/23/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
As much a character study as it is a murder mystery, “A Dark Place” is a little under-complicated in both departments. This drama (formerly shown as “Steel Country”) stars Andrew Scott as a small-town Pennsylvania man on the autism spectrum who becomes obsessed with a local child’s seemingly accidental death, ruffling feathers as he conducts his own guileless “investigation.”
One of three top-billed Irish thespians capably playing Yanks here for Brit director Simon Fellows, Scott offers a compelling turn that easily carries the film, as it must. Still, the generally well-acted and competently crafted film should have more depth and punch, given the inherently powerful themes it places center-stage. The result is diverting enough, yet ends up more a mildly offbeat time-filler than something memorable.
Donnie Devlin (Scott) is a 30-ish sanitation worker in Harburgh, Pa., spending days driving a garbage truck, and nights at home with his elderly...
One of three top-billed Irish thespians capably playing Yanks here for Brit director Simon Fellows, Scott offers a compelling turn that easily carries the film, as it must. Still, the generally well-acted and competently crafted film should have more depth and punch, given the inherently powerful themes it places center-stage. The result is diverting enough, yet ends up more a mildly offbeat time-filler than something memorable.
Donnie Devlin (Scott) is a 30-ish sanitation worker in Harburgh, Pa., spending days driving a garbage truck, and nights at home with his elderly...
- 4/8/2019
- by Dennis Harvey
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Three-time Oscar nominee Laura Linney (Kinsey), Hannah Gross (Mindhunter), and Terry Chen (House Of Cards) have joined the cast of Viggo Mortensen’s directorial debut Falling, which is now underway in Toronto.
Green Book star Mortensen wrote the script and leads cast alongside previously announced Lance Henriksen (Aliens) and Sverrir Gudnason (The Girl In The Spider’s Web). The Captain Fantastic and Eastern Promises star will play John Peterson, a gay man whose conservative father moves from his rural farm to live with his son’s family in Los Angeles.
Ozark and Tales Of The City star Linney will play Peterson’s sister, Gross has been cast as his mother and Chen will play his partner. Henriksen plays the father.
Producers are Daniel Bekerman (The Witch) of Scythia Films and Chris Curling (The Bookshop) of Zephyr Films together with Mortensen, who previously produced Everyone Has A Plan, Far From Men...
Green Book star Mortensen wrote the script and leads cast alongside previously announced Lance Henriksen (Aliens) and Sverrir Gudnason (The Girl In The Spider’s Web). The Captain Fantastic and Eastern Promises star will play John Peterson, a gay man whose conservative father moves from his rural farm to live with his son’s family in Los Angeles.
Ozark and Tales Of The City star Linney will play Peterson’s sister, Gross has been cast as his mother and Chen will play his partner. Henriksen plays the father.
Producers are Daniel Bekerman (The Witch) of Scythia Films and Chris Curling (The Bookshop) of Zephyr Films together with Mortensen, who previously produced Everyone Has A Plan, Far From Men...
- 3/21/2019
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Here’s a first trailer for thriller A Dark Place, starring Andrew Scott (Sherlock), Bronagh Waugh (The Fall), and Denise Gough (Colette). Shout! Studios is releasing stateside on April 12 after the film played at Edinburgh, Galway and Busan.
Scott plays a local sanitation truck driver in a sleepy backwoods town who plays detective when a local boy goes missing.
Simon Fellows (Malice in Wonderland) directs from a script by Brendan Higgins. DoP was Marcel Zyskind (The Killer Inside Me). Producers are Gareth Ellis-Unwin (The King’s Speech), Leon Clarance (Sense8), Tai Duncan (Proud Mary), and Mark Williams (The Accountant). Pic is a Zero Gravity Management, Bedlam Film, Motion Picture Capital, and Cuckoo Lane production.
Scott plays a local sanitation truck driver in a sleepy backwoods town who plays detective when a local boy goes missing.
Simon Fellows (Malice in Wonderland) directs from a script by Brendan Higgins. DoP was Marcel Zyskind (The Killer Inside Me). Producers are Gareth Ellis-Unwin (The King’s Speech), Leon Clarance (Sense8), Tai Duncan (Proud Mary), and Mark Williams (The Accountant). Pic is a Zero Gravity Management, Bedlam Film, Motion Picture Capital, and Cuckoo Lane production.
- 3/1/2019
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Viggo Mortensen is to make his directorial debut on feature Falling, which is being described as an intimate drama about a son’s relationship with his ageing father.
The Green Book and Captain Fantastic star wrote the screenplay and will play one of the two leading roles. Cast also includes Lance Henriksen (Aliens) and Sverrir Gudnason (The Girl In The Spider’s Web).
HanWay Films will handle international sales and will launch the movie at the American Film Market. UTA Independent Film Group will oversee the U.S. sale. Pic is produced by Daniel Bekerman (The Witch) of Scythia Films together with Mortensen who has previously produced movies through his Perceval Pictures label. Production leads include cinematographer Marcel Zyskind (The Two Faces of January) and production designer Carol Spier (Eastern Promises).
Mortensen will play John Petersen who lives with his partner Eric and their adopted daughter Monica in Southern California.
The Green Book and Captain Fantastic star wrote the screenplay and will play one of the two leading roles. Cast also includes Lance Henriksen (Aliens) and Sverrir Gudnason (The Girl In The Spider’s Web).
HanWay Films will handle international sales and will launch the movie at the American Film Market. UTA Independent Film Group will oversee the U.S. sale. Pic is produced by Daniel Bekerman (The Witch) of Scythia Films together with Mortensen who has previously produced movies through his Perceval Pictures label. Production leads include cinematographer Marcel Zyskind (The Two Faces of January) and production designer Carol Spier (Eastern Promises).
Mortensen will play John Petersen who lives with his partner Eric and their adopted daughter Monica in Southern California.
- 10/15/2018
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Close-Up is a feature that spotlights films now playing on Mubi. Harmony Korine's Mister Lonely (2007) is showing March 24 - April 23, 2018 and Trash Humpers (2009) from March 25 - April 24, 2018 on Mubi in the United States. The schizoid characters populating Harmony Korine’s very literally titled Trash Humpers are too busy fornicating with trees and trash cans to talk, but when they do, they speak in thought-provoking tongues. As the writer/director’s 2009 feature comes to an end, a character interrupts a late-night vandalism spree to deliver a subdued monologue: “When I drive here at night I can smell the pain of people… smell how they are just trapped… it hurts me to think they’re all living such balanced lives.”Should there be a manifesto to the grotesque philosophy embraced by the humpers, this will probably be it. Premiered at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival (and winner of the Dox award...
- 3/20/2018
- MUBI
Exclusive: First look at Sherlock and Pride star in Afm-bound thriller from The King’s Speech producer.
Screen can reveal the first look at Afm-bound crime-thriller Steel Country, starring Andrew Scott.
Scott, known for his villainous roles in Sherlock and Spectre, leads cast in the movie, which shot in the Us last month.
Written by Brendan Higgins and directed by Simon Fellows (Malice In Wonderland), the film is produced by The King’s Speech producer Gareth Ellis-Unwin. Editor is Oscar-winner Chris Dickens (Slumdog Millionaire), DoP is Michael Winterbottom regular Marcel Zyskind (The Killer Inside).
Bankside Films will be touting the project on promo at the Afm.
In Steel County, Scott plays a small town truck driver who turns detective when a young boy is found dead in a sleepy part of Western Pennsylvania. His investigations turn into an obsession to prove the boy has been murdered, leading to harrowing consequences.
The BAFTA-winner...
Screen can reveal the first look at Afm-bound crime-thriller Steel Country, starring Andrew Scott.
Scott, known for his villainous roles in Sherlock and Spectre, leads cast in the movie, which shot in the Us last month.
Written by Brendan Higgins and directed by Simon Fellows (Malice In Wonderland), the film is produced by The King’s Speech producer Gareth Ellis-Unwin. Editor is Oscar-winner Chris Dickens (Slumdog Millionaire), DoP is Michael Winterbottom regular Marcel Zyskind (The Killer Inside).
Bankside Films will be touting the project on promo at the Afm.
In Steel County, Scott plays a small town truck driver who turns detective when a young boy is found dead in a sleepy part of Western Pennsylvania. His investigations turn into an obsession to prove the boy has been murdered, leading to harrowing consequences.
The BAFTA-winner...
- 10/25/2016
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
The Two Faces of January
Written & Directed by Hossein Amini
UK/France/USA, 2014
Guilt is a powerful motivator. Its nagging voice can corrupt even the noblest of intentions. In the case of The Two Faces of January, a son’s guilt leads him into a questionable alliance in which he becomes inextricably trapped. There are twists and turns, jealousy and lust, but the real pleasure of a film like this is watching how far people will go to silence those nagging voices. Even if it means losing everything they care about.
It’s a misnomer to call the characters in January ‘con artists.’ Chester MacFarland (Viggo Mortensen) is simply a crooked stock broker with a long list of duped investors. He and his scandalously young wife, Colette (Kirsten Dunst), have been throwing around some serious cash on their European getaway. Serious enough to draw the attention of an American expatriate...
Written & Directed by Hossein Amini
UK/France/USA, 2014
Guilt is a powerful motivator. Its nagging voice can corrupt even the noblest of intentions. In the case of The Two Faces of January, a son’s guilt leads him into a questionable alliance in which he becomes inextricably trapped. There are twists and turns, jealousy and lust, but the real pleasure of a film like this is watching how far people will go to silence those nagging voices. Even if it means losing everything they care about.
It’s a misnomer to call the characters in January ‘con artists.’ Chester MacFarland (Viggo Mortensen) is simply a crooked stock broker with a long list of duped investors. He and his scandalously young wife, Colette (Kirsten Dunst), have been throwing around some serious cash on their European getaway. Serious enough to draw the attention of an American expatriate...
- 9/26/2014
- by J.R. Kinnard
- SoundOnSight
The Two Faces of January is the directorial debut of Hossein Amini, screenwriter of Wings of the Dove and Drive. The film is an old fashioned thriller, much in the vein of Hitchcock and Antonioni, and while it is gorgeously rendered and bursting with acting talent, it is a slightly uncertain debut, despite some interesting layers of subtext.
Oscar Isaac plays Rydal, a young American living in Athens giving tours of the Parthenon and conducting a little petty larceny on unsuspecting tourists. Along come well-to-do ex-patriots Chester (Viggo Mortensen) and Colette (Kirsten Dunst) and they become fast friends. Although, it is not long before Rydal is forced by circumstance to help Chester cover up a murder he has just committed. The three of them flee Athens and sail off to Crete to wait until the heat dies down. It is here that tensions rise between the group and jealousy and...
Oscar Isaac plays Rydal, a young American living in Athens giving tours of the Parthenon and conducting a little petty larceny on unsuspecting tourists. Along come well-to-do ex-patriots Chester (Viggo Mortensen) and Colette (Kirsten Dunst) and they become fast friends. Although, it is not long before Rydal is forced by circumstance to help Chester cover up a murder he has just committed. The three of them flee Athens and sail off to Crete to wait until the heat dies down. It is here that tensions rise between the group and jealousy and...
- 5/15/2014
- by Liam Dunn
- We Got This Covered
Trishna
Written and directed by Michael Winterbottom
UK, 2011
Among contemporary cinema’s more versatile and prolific directors, one of the few sources of inspiration Michael Winterbottom has repeatedly returned to is the work of Thomas Hardy. Jude, his 1996 adaptation of Hardy’s Jude the Obscure, was effectively his breakthrough film; 2000’s The Claim, meanwhile, was loosely based on The Mayor of Casterbridge, applying content from that novel’s Victorian England setting to an American western. Winterbottom’s latest Hardy adaptation, Trishna, has more in common with that latter film in that it transfers the source material of Tess of the d’Urbervilles to a different setting and culture. Set in India, Trishna differs from both of the director’s previous Hardy adaptations in that it tries to apply the source’s themes and narrative to the contemporary version of its setting. The result is not very successful.
While it would...
Written and directed by Michael Winterbottom
UK, 2011
Among contemporary cinema’s more versatile and prolific directors, one of the few sources of inspiration Michael Winterbottom has repeatedly returned to is the work of Thomas Hardy. Jude, his 1996 adaptation of Hardy’s Jude the Obscure, was effectively his breakthrough film; 2000’s The Claim, meanwhile, was loosely based on The Mayor of Casterbridge, applying content from that novel’s Victorian England setting to an American western. Winterbottom’s latest Hardy adaptation, Trishna, has more in common with that latter film in that it transfers the source material of Tess of the d’Urbervilles to a different setting and culture. Set in India, Trishna differs from both of the director’s previous Hardy adaptations in that it tries to apply the source’s themes and narrative to the contemporary version of its setting. The result is not very successful.
While it would...
- 7/22/2012
- by Josh Slater-Williams
- SoundOnSight
This is the truth.
The truth love has taught me.
My love, you showed me how the world really is.
(from one of Amit Trivedi’s very fine original songs from Trishna)
Michael Winterbottom’s latest film, Trishna, is an adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles. Winterbottom, of course, is no stranger to Hardy’s stories, having previously adapted both Jude the Obscure (Jude) and The Mayor of Casterbridge (The Claim). Whereas Jude was a fairly faithful retelling of the book, at least as far as the setting was concerned, The Claim played with the setting, moving it to California during the 19th century gold rush. And such is the case with Trishna, too. Winterbottom retains the essential theme, that of a young woman whose life is controlled by social constraints and the vagaries of fate, but he takes the brilliant step of moving it...
The truth love has taught me.
My love, you showed me how the world really is.
(from one of Amit Trivedi’s very fine original songs from Trishna)
Michael Winterbottom’s latest film, Trishna, is an adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles. Winterbottom, of course, is no stranger to Hardy’s stories, having previously adapted both Jude the Obscure (Jude) and The Mayor of Casterbridge (The Claim). Whereas Jude was a fairly faithful retelling of the book, at least as far as the setting was concerned, The Claim played with the setting, moving it to California during the 19th century gold rush. And such is the case with Trishna, too. Winterbottom retains the essential theme, that of a young woman whose life is controlled by social constraints and the vagaries of fate, but he takes the brilliant step of moving it...
- 7/13/2012
- by Katherine Matthews
- Bollyspice
Movie: Trishna Director: Michael Winterbottom Screenwriter: Michael Winterbottom (adapted from Thomas Hardy's "Tess of the d'Urbervilles") Lead Cast: Freida Pinto and Riz Ahmed Theatrical Release Date: July 13, 2012 Festival Date: Friday, May 18 and Sunday, May 20 Synopsis: Trishna (Freida Pinto) lives with her family in a village in Rajasthan, India's largest state. As the eldest daughter, she works in a nearby resort to help pay the bills. Jay (Riz Ahmed) is the wealthy son of a property developer. When he takes up managing a resort at his father's request, he meets Trishna at a dance and their fates cross. Jay finds every opportunity to win Trishna's affection and she accepts his efforts with shy curiosity. But when the two move to Mumbai and become a couple, Jay's deep family bond threatens the young lovers' bliss. Quick Thoughts: Beautiful cinematography from Marcel Zyskind combined with vibrant costumes and scenery. An enriching...
- 5/7/2012
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
While in India managing a hotel, Jay (Riz Ahmed) meets Trishna (Freida Pinto), a soft-spoken, hard-working young woman living in one of the country’s poorest areas. In a bid to spend more time with her, and improve her situation, Jay invites Trishna to work at his hotel. As they spend more and more time together, their feelings develop and the opportunity to relocate to Mumbai becomes irresistible. However, when Jay’s father (Roshan Seth) suffers a heart attack and they’re forced back to where they started, they discover that their relationship isn’t exactly as it appears.
Adapted from Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Trishna sees the well known story relocated. The changes accentuate not only the novel’s main theme – class discrepancies, but also acts as a beautiful backdrop with the rolling landscapes of open wasteland bringing the two unlikely souls together and the bustling cityscapes driving them apart.
Adapted from Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Trishna sees the well known story relocated. The changes accentuate not only the novel’s main theme – class discrepancies, but also acts as a beautiful backdrop with the rolling landscapes of open wasteland bringing the two unlikely souls together and the bustling cityscapes driving them apart.
- 2/17/2012
- by Jamie Neish
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
A new generation of western directors are bringing their outsider perspective to India. But can films such as The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel avoid the cliches of poverty and spiritualism, chaos and capitalism?
Making films in India is hard not because of the heat, or the bureaucracy, or the traffic. Not even, says Liz Mermin, the director of Bollywood underworld exposé Shot in Bombay, because its superstar subject Sanjay Dutt grew nervous about the project. "The hardest thing for a film-maker is that you fly there, look around, take out your camera – and everything is a cliche. Poverty, chaos, cows, flowers: I was going around desperately looking for a shot I hadn't seen before."
That difficulty – to say nothing of the challenge of depicting India in more than just western terms – led Louis Malle to name the first section of his six-hour Phantom India (1969) "The Impossible Camera". Yet, even though...
Making films in India is hard not because of the heat, or the bureaucracy, or the traffic. Not even, says Liz Mermin, the director of Bollywood underworld exposé Shot in Bombay, because its superstar subject Sanjay Dutt grew nervous about the project. "The hardest thing for a film-maker is that you fly there, look around, take out your camera – and everything is a cliche. Poverty, chaos, cows, flowers: I was going around desperately looking for a shot I hadn't seen before."
That difficulty – to say nothing of the challenge of depicting India in more than just western terms – led Louis Malle to name the first section of his six-hour Phantom India (1969) "The Impossible Camera". Yet, even though...
- 2/17/2012
- by Sukhdev Sandhu
- The Guardian - Film News
A trailer has dropped for the very prolific Michael Winterbottom's (24 Hour Party People, A Mighty Heart) latest dramatic endeavor ahead of its Toronto premiere next month. Set in India, the film stars Freida Pinto of Slumdog Millionaire fame alongside Riz Ahmed who you might remember from Four Lions. The pair play doomed lovers and if the trailer is any indication, their beautiful looks might just be rivaled by the lush Jaipur visuals from Dp Marcel Zyskind. This one has just moved to the top of my list. Look for more when the fest ramps up September 8th....
- 8/19/2011
- Screen Anarchy
Michael Winterbottom works very fast, but don't think he skimps on production values. Even though the film was shot on location in Jaipur, India earlier this year, Winterbottom has it all locked up and ready to premiere at Tiff next month, and we have to admit, we weren't expecting this. The trailer has arrived for "Trishna" and it's lush, deeply romantic and beautifully shot. Winterbottom's longtime cinematographer Marcel Zyskind is the man responsible for some of the truly great work here, and that equally standout music comes courtesy of Indian film composer Amit Trivedi, who wrote original songs for the…...
- 8/18/2011
- The Playlist
Chicago – At age 50, Michael Winterbottom is still one of the freshest talents on the block. His ability to reinvent himself is almost unparalleled at a time when many of the world’s most respected filmmakers go to the same well once too often. Granted, some of Winterbottom’s experiments pay off more than others, but when they succeed, they do so on a grand scale.
“A Summer in Genoa” is one of the best films Winterbottom has ever made. Americans audiences already seem to have forgotten the picture, which debuted to little fanfare in 2008 (a year after the director’s Angelina Jolie vehicle, “A Mighty Heart”). Since Winterbottom’s prolific work ethic parallels that of filmmakers half his age, he approached “Genoa” as yet another shoestring experiment, baring several stylistic similarities to the documentary realism in his 2004 effort, “9 Songs.”
DVD Rating: 5.0/5.0
Yet “Genoa” proves to be a riveting example of...
“A Summer in Genoa” is one of the best films Winterbottom has ever made. Americans audiences already seem to have forgotten the picture, which debuted to little fanfare in 2008 (a year after the director’s Angelina Jolie vehicle, “A Mighty Heart”). Since Winterbottom’s prolific work ethic parallels that of filmmakers half his age, he approached “Genoa” as yet another shoestring experiment, baring several stylistic similarities to the documentary realism in his 2004 effort, “9 Songs.”
DVD Rating: 5.0/5.0
Yet “Genoa” proves to be a riveting example of...
- 4/11/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Rating: 3.5/5.0
Chicago – Michael Winterbottom’s ’50s-era neo-noir “The Killer Inside Me” creeps up on you in the creepiest possible way. Just as I was ready to write it off, I ended up caving in to its charms, or lack thereof. This film often seems as utterly cuckoo as its central antihero, and that’s what makes it so darn mesmerizing. Sure, it’s sort of a mess, but boy is it engrossing, with a strong emphasis on the gross.
Casey Affleck’s role as deputy sherif Lou Ford isn’t a million miles removed from his Oscar-nominated channeling of “the coward Robert Ford,” a role he played to perfection opposite Brad Pitt in Andrew Dominik’s woefully underrated 2007 western. Yet while Robert’s bloody deeds were motivated by relatable human emotions (jealousy being the most prominent), Lou is inspired, or rather controlled, by an inner-voice. The urge to kill washes over him like a dark,...
Chicago – Michael Winterbottom’s ’50s-era neo-noir “The Killer Inside Me” creeps up on you in the creepiest possible way. Just as I was ready to write it off, I ended up caving in to its charms, or lack thereof. This film often seems as utterly cuckoo as its central antihero, and that’s what makes it so darn mesmerizing. Sure, it’s sort of a mess, but boy is it engrossing, with a strong emphasis on the gross.
Casey Affleck’s role as deputy sherif Lou Ford isn’t a million miles removed from his Oscar-nominated channeling of “the coward Robert Ford,” a role he played to perfection opposite Brad Pitt in Andrew Dominik’s woefully underrated 2007 western. Yet while Robert’s bloody deeds were motivated by relatable human emotions (jealousy being the most prominent), Lou is inspired, or rather controlled, by an inner-voice. The urge to kill washes over him like a dark,...
- 6/27/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Directed by Michael Winterbottom
Based on the novel by Jim Thompson
Featuring Casey Affleck, Kate Hudson, Jessica Alba, Elias Koteas, Simon Baker
Be afraid. The Killer Inside Me is a true story.
No, the events may not have happened just like this. The maze-like descent into manipulation and murder that director, Michael Winterbottom and the novel’s author, Jim Thompson detail likely never occurred...
It’s true all the same, because The Killer Inside Me is a tight, stark anatomical study of a garden-variety sociopath’s mind. Men like Casey Affleck’s character, Lou Ford, are out there. They seem so normal, so charming, so interested in you. That’s one of the tricks they play that gets them off on their own power. Then they get you in the bedroom or slip a ring on your finger, and it’s time for the sickness to come out and play.
Based on the novel by Jim Thompson
Featuring Casey Affleck, Kate Hudson, Jessica Alba, Elias Koteas, Simon Baker
Be afraid. The Killer Inside Me is a true story.
No, the events may not have happened just like this. The maze-like descent into manipulation and murder that director, Michael Winterbottom and the novel’s author, Jim Thompson detail likely never occurred...
It’s true all the same, because The Killer Inside Me is a tight, stark anatomical study of a garden-variety sociopath’s mind. Men like Casey Affleck’s character, Lou Ford, are out there. They seem so normal, so charming, so interested in you. That’s one of the tricks they play that gets them off on their own power. Then they get you in the bedroom or slip a ring on your finger, and it’s time for the sickness to come out and play.
- 6/20/2010
- by M C Funk
- Planet Fury
The Killer Inside Me Directed by: Michael Winterbottom Written by: John Curran and Michael Winterbottom (screenplay), Jim Thompson (novel) Starring: Casey Affleck, Jessica Alba, Kate Hudson, Ned Beatty, Elias Koteas and Bill Pullman Michael Winterbottom's The Killer Inside Me has created a furor in the debate about violence with mixed reactions and claims of immorality in its use -- which is a shame as this complex character portrait has a lot more to it than simply depicting graphic on-screen violence. Told from the perspective of its serial killer lead, the story is an exploration of descent into madness. Set in the late 50's, Lou Ford (Casey Affleck) is deputy sheriff in Central City, a small West Texas town. Ford is the son of the town's only doctor and lives alone in his father's house following his death. To everyone who knows him he's the archetypal country boy who listens...
- 5/25/2010
- by Charlotte
- FilmJunk
Chicago – Is Michael Winterbottom’s 2004 curiosity little more than art house porn? It certainly would seem that way to any consumer who happens to glimpse at the film’s Blu-Ray case, which boasts that the disc contains the “full uncut explicit version” of “9 Songs.” There’s also a disclaimer warning that the film “contains sexually explicit content.” In the words of “Family Guy”’s Quagmire, “Oh…right.”
Like Soderbergh, Winterbottom is a versatile risk-taker who doesn’t shy away from courting controversy. From 1995’s “Butterfly Kiss” to this year’s “The Killer Inside Me,” the fearless filmmaker has utilized uncompromising depictions of violence and sexuality in order to plunge the audience headfirst into the psyche of his characters. In two of his best recent efforts, “Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story” and “The Road to Guantanamo,” Winterbottom has also proven his gift for blurring the line between documented reality and scripted fiction.
Like Soderbergh, Winterbottom is a versatile risk-taker who doesn’t shy away from courting controversy. From 1995’s “Butterfly Kiss” to this year’s “The Killer Inside Me,” the fearless filmmaker has utilized uncompromising depictions of violence and sexuality in order to plunge the audience headfirst into the psyche of his characters. In two of his best recent efforts, “Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story” and “The Road to Guantanamo,” Winterbottom has also proven his gift for blurring the line between documented reality and scripted fiction.
- 5/20/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
[Our thanks to Ryland Aldrich for the following review.]
The buzz going into Michael Winterbottom's cowboy noir was all surrounding Casey Affleck's brutal on screen violence perpetrated against costars Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson. After viewing the film, it is easy to see why. The film is extremely graphic (reports are that Alba got up and left part way through the film's premier - reports her publicist denies). But if one can stomach the violence, the film is an impressive trip inside the mind of a mad man.
Casey Affleck plays Lou Ford, a sheriff's deputy in a small Texas town circa 1957. When the son of the town's richest man starts up an affair with a prostitute Joyce (Alba), Lou is tasked with running her right out of town. Instead he falls hard for Joyce, mostly because of the violent sex the two share. Without much in the way of an obvious reason, Lou comes up with...
The buzz going into Michael Winterbottom's cowboy noir was all surrounding Casey Affleck's brutal on screen violence perpetrated against costars Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson. After viewing the film, it is easy to see why. The film is extremely graphic (reports are that Alba got up and left part way through the film's premier - reports her publicist denies). But if one can stomach the violence, the film is an impressive trip inside the mind of a mad man.
Casey Affleck plays Lou Ford, a sheriff's deputy in a small Texas town circa 1957. When the son of the town's richest man starts up an affair with a prostitute Joyce (Alba), Lou is tasked with running her right out of town. Instead he falls hard for Joyce, mostly because of the violent sex the two share. Without much in the way of an obvious reason, Lou comes up with...
- 1/27/2010
- Screen Anarchy
- It’s been several sunrises since Gummo creator Harmony Korine’s last feature film, but all you fans out there (that includes Sly Stallone) can soak up the view – we’ve got a couple of production pics for Mister Lonely.Co-written by his brother Avi Korine, the film offers a smorgasbord of Hollywood walk of fame alumni. This is a yarn about a young American lost in Paris, eking out a living as a Michael Jackson (Luna) lookalike. By co-incidence, he meets Marilyn Monroe (Morton). He follows her to a commune in Scotland, joining her husband Charlie Chaplin (Lavant) and her daughter Shirley Temple. Fellow residents include The Pope, The Queen of England (Pallenberg), Madonna and James Dean. The drama is also partly set In a Brazilian forest where a community of missionary nuns bring aid to the locals. Michael Winterbottom’s cinematographer Marcel Zyskind lensed the film produced by Nadja Romain.
- 2/26/2007
- IONCINEMA.com
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