Dennis Haysbert Tagged Articles at Cinematical

One day he's getting tortured by the Taliban and then heads home to discover that his bad-boy brother is getting saucy with his wife. The next, he's taking part in a modern War of the Roses. Variety reports that Tobey Maguire is taking on more marital dysfunction by starring in Jacob Estes' new indie black comedy called The Details alongside Elizabeth Banks.

The pair (which was once set to be Banks and James McAvoy) will play a troubled married couple struggling with infidelity and other marital issues. But here's where things get strange: "their lives [are] further complicated by ravenous raccoons burrowing under the sod in their back yard. A disagreement over how to dispatch the pests creates a chain reaction of mishaps that include a murder by bow and arrow." There's nothing like a few coonies to ruin a marriage! Just in case that insane plot isn't enough to whet your appetite, the cast also contains Ray Liotta, Dennis Haysbert, Anna Friel, and Laura Linney, the latter playing an eccentric neighbor. (You can also check out many details of the plot here.)

Maguire reportedly decided to hop onto this project before heading back to Spider-Man land, and I say: "Huzzah!" As much as the webbed wonder is great, it's nice to see us one more reminder that Maguire has talents outside of comic superheroes.

We've got two portrayals of U.S. Presidents vying for Oscars this year: Josh Brolin as W in W. and Frank Langella as Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon. I've yet to see either one, though I did see Langella in the Broadway play, which I hear the movie faithfully replicates. On the eve of W.'s release, it seemed like a good time to get a discussion going on Best Screen Presidents, real or fictional. Here's my list, which is surely missing some obvious choices -- but that's part of the fun.

1. President Jackson Evans (Jeff Bridges) - The Contender
For the past couple of elections, pollsters have asked people which of the two presidential candidates they would rather "have a beer with." Inevitably it is pointed out that the person you would rather have a beer with is frequently not the person you would want to run the country. Jeff Bridges's President Jackson Evans, though, wins at life: he's the guy I'd want to have a beer with, and the guy I'd want running the country. Seriously, I would vote for Jackson Evans over either John McCain or Barack Obama. He's charming, and funny, and a bit of a jerk when called for, but he stands up for what's right and gives the best Rod Lurie Speech to date. My favorite movie president -- though for the record, I think The Contender is only pretty good.

Yes, Nelson Mandela is still alive, despite what President Bush said (I know it was taken out of context). And now the previously announced Mandela biopic is also very much alive, and may even get a multiple Oscar-winner as its director. According to Variety, Clint Eastwood is interested in helming The Human Factor, an adaptation of the same-titled book by John Carlin (with subtitle: Nelson Mandela and the Game that Changed the World). The film won't actually be a full biopic, though; instead, it focuses on the former President of South Africa post-imprisonment, on the eve of apartheid's end. It also deals with the 1995 Rugby World Cup and how it aided in the post-apartheid healing of South Africa. The adaptation has been scripted by South African screenwriter Anthony Peckham (Don't Say a Word).

We've already learned that Mandela will be portrayed by Morgan Freeman (perfect choice), who will also be producing with his company Revelations Entertainment (10 Items or Less). Now possibly joining Freeman on screen is Matt Damon, who is in talks to play the captain of rugby team the Springboks. Although both Freeman and Damon contributed to the 3D IMAX documentary Magnificent Desolation, the two have never acted together. Freeman and Eastwood, though, have collaborated a few times, and it was due to working with the actor-director on Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby that Freeman reportedly requested Eastwood's filmmaking talents for this project. My guess is that Eastwood appreciates the opportunity, as it sounds like something that will garner him yet another Oscar nomination. However, it won't be the director's next film; that has already been announced as The Changeling, with Angelina Jolie.

For those looking for a Mandela movie in the meantime, perhaps someone will finally pick up U.S. distribution rights to Bille August's new film, Goodbye Bafana, which features Dennis Haysbert as the iconic prisoner-turned-leader. Erik caught the pic in Berlin earlier this year and called it, "a perfect movie -- one that gets it all right," and it is very surprising that there's no plans yet to release the film here. Perhaps someone is waiting until they can pit it against The Human Factor, in order to fulfill the new Hollywood law that all biopics must have a dueling competitor.

You've heard his voice a million times, and now you can actually see what he looks like. Don LaFontaine, who has provided the "This summer, one man fights injustice and tyranny ..." voiceovers for over 3,500 different projects appears in this video, along with a sleigh-load of other voiceover talent reading "The Night Before Christmas." Aside from the Blockbuster commercials a few years ago, and the bizarre yet funny short film Five Men and a Limo which was made for the 26th Annual Hollywood Reporter Key Art Awards from 1997 (that's a mouthful), you've probably never seen this guy's face.

Now's your chance to see him, Eddie Deezen, Dennis Haysbert, Jim Cummings and a load of other voice over actors (hey, you throw the voice of Pooh and Tigger into anything, and I'm a sucker for it) instead of just hearing them. They do a great job of it, and even throw in some Hanukkah cheer. After the jump, gather your friends and family around the warm glow of the computer screen, and let them soak in the wonderment of something you never see: the face of voiceover artists.

Curious to see if Ryan Phillippe can hold his own against old-school pros like Laura Linney and Chris Cooper? Well, I don't seem to detest Phillippe as much as most movie fans do, and based on the new trailer for an upcoming espionage thriller called Breach, I'm beginning to think that Mr. Reese Witherspoon could soon be coming into his own, respect-wise.

Or maybe he's awful. I've no idea.

I do know that Breach is the first film from Billy Ray since he directed 2003's Shattered Glass, although he did (co-)write the screenplays for Suspect Zero and Flightplan in the interim. Based on true events, Breach tells the story of, no not a Caesarian section, but of the biggest security breach in United States history. Phillippe is the young agent tasked with spying on the treasonous Chris Cooper; Ms. Linney plays a high-level security chief of some sort. Also on board are Gary Cole, Dennis Haysbert, Bruce Davison and Kathleen Quinlan. The cast alone feels worthy of eight bucks.

Universal has Breach scheduled for a February 16 release date.

Continuing the long string of real-life inspired films that have been rolling into theaters recently, Danish director Bille August is set to direct a movie about Nelson Mandela's relationship with the white prison guard who was his personal warden during Mandela's long incarceration on Robben Island. Entitled Goodbye Bafana, the film is based on a memoir of the same name by the guard, James Gregory (adapted for the screen by Greg Latter). 'Bafana Bafana' is the nickname by which the South African soccer team is known; one assumes the word 'Bafana' is a fond general reference to the country itself, but if someone knows for sure, please let us know in the comments.*

The multinational cast will be anchored by the wonderful Dennis Haysbert as Mandela, with Joseph Fiennes as his guard and German actress Diane Kruger in the role of Gregory's wife. Playing an icon like Mandela is an unimaginably huge responsibility - I can't even fathom the pressure that Haysbert must feel. He is, however, one of the must dignified, underrated screen presences we have right now (not to mention by far the best spokesman an insurance company has ever had); if anyone can do it, he's probably up to the task.

The film has a budget of about $25 million, and is expected to start shooting next month in South Africa.

*Thanks to Serena for clearing things up: "Eh, the name Bafana, in the context of this story, has nothing to do with football or the nation. This is supposed to be James Gregory's story, and when he was a kid he had a zulu friend named Bafana. When Mandela was released, Gregory embraced him and said, "goodbye, Bafana", recalling the friend from his childhood."

[via Dark Horizons]