Fernando Meirelles's new film Blindness begins with the rush and push of urban life; traffic, crowds, activity, purpose. And then, one man cries out: "I'm blind." He eventually makes it to an ophthalmologist, but there's nothing physically wrong with his eyes; he simply can't see. "It feels like I'm swimming in milk," he explains, and we see, through his eyes, the blank, empty swirl of what used to be the world. And then another person says they are blind, and then another, and soon those few, frightened voices form a chorus of chaos as "the White Sickness" spreads like wildfire and leaves a ruined world in its wake.

Adapting Nobel Prize winner Jose Saramago's novel, Blindness feels like a curious mix of highbrow literary aspirations and lowbrow genre fiction; as the White Sickness spreads from person to person in a clear chain of connection and things fall apart, it'd be easy to dismiss Blindness as Dawn of the Dead for NPR listeners or Outbreak for grad students. Meirreles has taken a similar two-pronged approach before -- The Constant Gardener is an excellent critique of the failings of modern capitalism that also works as a strong, suspenseful thriller -- and while Blindness may not work as well as that film, it's also a clear case of a film, and filmmaker, failing to hit the mark occasionally only because they've set the bar so high for themselves.

Cinematical has received two brand new exclusive Blindness images ahead of the film's world premiere tonight at the 2008 Festival de Cannes. Directed by Fernando Meirelles (The Constant Gardener), Blindness was selected as the opening night film for this year's Festival de Cannes, and it stars Julianne Moore as the wife of a doctor (Mark Ruffalo) who suddenly becomes the only one who can see in a town where everyone is struck with a mysterious case of blindness. Based on the novel by José Saramago (adapted by Don Mckellar), Blindness also stars Gael García Bernal, Alice Braga and Danny Glover.

Cinematical is on the ground in Cannes, and both James and Kim have already seen Blindness. We'll have our review of the festival's opening night film later on in the day. Check out our second exclusive photo below, then head to the gallery for more. Blindness arrives in theaters on September 19.

We thought this looked awesome last summer, and now we have some confirmation. MSN has posted a teaser trailer for Blindness, Fernando Meirelles' apocalyptic thriller based on the novel by José Saramago, and it creeps me out. The movie is about a blindness epidemic that sweeps through a city, afflicting everyone except one woman (Julianne Moore) who is apparently immune. She's then forced to feign blindness (Why? If no one else can see, what's the difference?) to care for her husband (Mark Ruffalo) as everything around them goes to hell. The tonal shift at the beginning of the teaser is genuinely startling, maybe because the upbeat music doesn't stop playing as you'd expect, or maybe because it deals with something that is one of this cinephile's worst nightmares.

I like Meirelles' City of God as much as the next guy, but the real reason I'm excited for this is that the screenplay is written by Don McKellar, whose previous stab at depicting the end of the world, Last Night, is one of my favorite films (with one of the most perfect endings of all time). Blindness is expected to play the Toronto Film Festival this September, with a US release slated for October. Can anyone who's read the book give us some (non-spoiler) hints of what to expect?

[hat tip: comingsoon.net]

Less than a month ago, I brought you word that Julianne Moore was going to star in a new horror thriller called Shelter -- a project that has been in the works for a good 4 years now. With a star in place, and production to begin late next month in Pittsburgh, Variety reports that she's got a co-star; none other than Henry the VIII himself, Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

Now Variety says that the logline (one-sentence film summary) is "being kept under wraps," but as I mentioned last time, this project has been around for ages, and MovieWeb put up a summary back in 2004 (the original THR link is dead). Unless there's been a major rewrite, Michael Cooney's script "follows a female forensic psychiatrist who specializes in debunking multiple personality disorder. When she discovers that her latest patient's various personalities are all murder victims, she struggles to find a logical explanation for the man's delusion."

You might remember that back in October, a new project started to gear up called The Private Lives of Pippa Lee. Based on Arthur Miller offspring Rebecca Miller's upcoming novel (that she adapted and will direct), the pic will focus on "a dutiful wife whose husband falls for a younger woman, freeing her to explore her buried sensuality and leading to a very quiet nervous breakdown."

I was ouching just at the thought of sensual exploration leading to a nervous breakdown, but now I have two reasons: along with the added cast just posted by The Hollywood Reporter, it's been confirmed that Robin Wright Penn is the wife, and Winona Ryder is the younger woman. For frak's sake, there's only a handful of years between the two women. Are they planning to age Wright Penn, or do they just think she looks that much older?

Anyway, adding to the tasty cast is Keanu Reeves, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Alan Arkin, and Monica Bellucci. Arkin will, of course, play the husband who leaves Wright Penn in the dust, and Bellucci will play his first wife -- so he's a dude who loves those May-December romances. Gyllenhaal will get the honor of appearing in flashbacks as Pippa Lee's "diet pill-addicted mother." Julianne Moore is some "lesbian novelist." And finally, Reeves gets to explore Wright Penn's sexuality. Now it all makes sense -- fool around with Keanu and you'll go crazy!

Once everyone finishes up their current gigs, production will kick into gear this April in Connecticut.

I think what I like best about Julianne Moore is that she is this reliable actress that never really changes -- in a good way. She's usually in good movies (only some stinkers now and then); she gives great performances; she's comfortable in her own skin (her lips haven't double in size, nor has her skin gotten really taut*); and she's known but not sensationalized. Now she's headed for Shelter.

Variety reports that she will be starring in the upcoming supernatural horror thriller, which is being produced by Nala Films. Film details are being kept under wraps, but the project is coming from a script by Michael Cooney (Identity), and will be directed by Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein (Storm) this March in Pittsburgh -- for a solid $22-$25 million price tag.

Now, while they're trying to keep plot details a secret, the project has been around for years and according to MovieWeb back in 2004: "Shelter follows a female forensic psychiatrist who specializes in debunking multiple personality disorder. When she discovers that her latest patient's various personalities are all murder victims, she struggles to find a logical explanation for the man's delusion." As long as it's better than Hannibal, I'll be happy.

*Typo corrected thanks to Cath.

The germs are coming! The germs are coming! Life pretty much took the lead this week in determining what would make a good double feature. For the first time in eons, I've been sidelined with a hellish cold, while some other friends suffer colds and fevers, and two tykes I know fight off pneumonia. This just hasn't been a healthy holiday season. So, in honor of colds, coughing, and other temporary maladies, I give you two films about dastardly killer germs. One is serious, one is goofy, and both should make you feel better about your present sickly condition. On the one hand, we've got a woman allergic to life in Safe, and on the other, a young cutie with no immunities with Bubble Boy. So, grab your popcorn and tissues, curl up, and let your body fight off the killer common cold while you watch these flicks.

Safe



The trailer certainly amps up the camp, but Todd Haynes' 1995 film is a smidge more serious than its retro trailer would have you believe. Julianne Moore stars as a soft-spoken California housewife, Carol White, who becomes increasingly ill. While her doctor finds nothing wrong, her symptoms get worse and she discovers that she's environmentally ill. Basically, everything about our chemical life is making her sick. Or, that is what she believes. In an attempt to get better, she moves to a New Age center housed in the desert for people like her.

Coming from Haynes, who also directed Moore in Far From Heaven, and is generating a lot of Oscar buzz with his Bob Dylan flick, I'm Not There, this isn't a germy thriller with a typical path and neatly wrapped-up ending. It's a movie of maybes and strangeness, with an eerie buzz to remind you that there's always something to make us sick out there.

A Barbie video introduction to the film by Todd Haynes.

Carol White chokes on all those darned toxins.

And for something a bit different...

Haynes' Barbie-riffic Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story Pt. 1

Three of Hollywood's most beautiful and talented actresses -- Winona Ryder, Robin Wright Penn, and Julianne Moore -- are teaming up for a comedy/drama called The Private Lives of Pippa Lee. That title makes it sound like a sitcom doesn't it? According to Variety, the story "centers on a dutiful wife whose husband falls for a younger woman, freeing her to explore her buried sensuality and leading to a very quiet nervous breakdown." Explore her buried sensuality? OK, now this sounds like something you'd see on Cinemax.

Rebecca Miller will direct the film, which will be adapted from her upcoming novel of the same name. The book's release date is listed as October 5th, 2008, and filming is scheduled to start this April. Maybe they're going for a simultaneous release? Miller also wrote and directed The Ballad of Jack and Rose and co-wrote the snoozefest Proof, which starred Gwyneth Paltrow. The Variety article doesn't give many plot specifics, but I'd imagine Ryder plays the younger woman and Moore's the one having the "very quiet nervous breakdown?" And perhaps she "explores her buried sensuality" with Penn? Wishful thinking? Here's hoping Ryder is bringing up the comedy side, I thought she was hilarious in The Ten.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, IFC Films is going to release two new star-driven movies in theaters and On Demand on the same day. The films will be released by First Take, the "day-and-date" division of IFC. Previous attempts at day-and-date films have been extremely controversial with theater owners, who often refuse to book the movies, claiming, perhaps rightfully so, "Why would anyone leave the house and come to our theater if they can get the movie in the comfort of their own home?" Currently, Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban's Landmark Theaters are one of the few chains who will book day-and-date films, and even have their own day-and-date program, Sneak Preview. I'll stop saying day-and-date, I promise. You can read genius Cinematical writer Patrick Walsh's report on Steven Soderbergh's adventures with the distribution practice here, and Ryan's interview with Cuban right here.

What are the two new films? The crime drama Savage Grace, directed by Tom Kalin (his first feature-length film since 1992's Leopold and Loeb story Swoon) stars Julianne Moore and Hugh Dancy. Grace tells the "true story of socialite Barbara Daly Baekeland's 1972 murder," and was a $5 million production. Finishing the Game, a Bruce Lee mockumentary, was directed by Justin Lin (the very cool Better Luck Tomorrow, Fast and the Furious 2: Tokyo Drift). Game features cameos by James Franco and...uh...MC Hammer (how'd they get Hammer to sign on? Offer him a hot meal?), and "imagines the recasting of Lee's final role in Game of Death before filming was completed." You can read Scott's generally positive Sundance review of Death here. Grace will premiere in theaters and on IFC next year; Death next month.

It's official, Mark Ruffalo will pretend to be a doctor with no sight in the upcoming film Blindness. See, he doesn't start out with no sight but is struck with the devastating ailment during the film -- actually, that's what the flick is about. Ruffalo takes over for Daniel Craig who dropped out of the project due to scheduling conflicts. Blindness is based on the novel by Jose Saramago, and revolves around a town that erupts with a blinding epidemic. Everyone is affected except Ruffalo's wife, played by the oh-so-wonderful Julianne Moore (someone please hand her an Oscar!)

Ruffalo's senses are far from taking a break anytime soon. He's been working non-stop since Zodiac (probably before that even) and will begin filming Blindness in Brazil following the three films he just wrapped. He is currently working with the likes of Terry George and Spike Jonze. Blindness will be directed by Fernando Meirelles who is responsible for 2005's Constant Gardner and the sad but beautiful film about Brazilian street gangs City of God. With the stellar cast and more than able director you would have to be blind not to see something good in the making.

It looks like the marketing machine is at full tilt for Nicolas Cage's upcoming thriller Next. Already we have had the trailer and some poster art that was less than eye-catching, but now there is a fancy new website. There are plenty of bells and whistles, including do-it-yourself ESP tests, the promise of a "Nuclear Countdown" game, and something vaguely titled "Experience". Next centers on Cage, a man who has the ability to travel through time and is being hunted by some shadowy government types -- is there any other kind? As if that was not enough, all the while he is trying to prevent the death of his girlfriend (Jessica Biel) and stop a nuclear annihilation. Also, Julianne Moore has something to do with it, and Peter Falk, TV's Columbo, also has a role in the film.

Directed by Lee Tamahori (XXX), the story is based on Philip K. Dick's The Golden Man, but the script was adapted by one of the writers of Navy Seals so I'm thinking it could go either way; even Patrick and Scott seemed undecided about the whole thing. In the end I guess it really doesn't matter, Cage seems to be going for the title of "Hardest Working Man in Show Business" so it will not take long before he is onto another film, and then another, and another. As for Next, it's currently scheduled to drop in theaters on April 27.

No matter how much crap Nicolas Cage throws at the screen, I still consider him one of the most inventive and exciting actors working today. His performances in Moonstruck, Leaving Las Vegas, Honeymoon In Vegas, The Rock, Wild at Heart, Bringing Out The Dead, Adaptation, and one of the best comedies of all time, Raising Arizona, are great enough to make you wish he would be a little choosier with his roles. The guy can still do great work, as he did in the unfairly overlooked The Weather Man, (not to be confused with Cage's The Wicker Man or The Family Man), but I always fear he's one or two movies away from becoming a joke. So it is with a heavy heart that I bring you the poster for his new project Next, which is exactly what I said when I read about the movie.

Next was directed by Lee Tamahori, best known for XXX: State of the Union, Die Another Day, and getting arrested for soliciting a prostitute while dressed as a woman. On the plus side, it does have Jessica Biel, who is so hot I can't look directly at her. And Julianne Moore is also in it, who I generally like but who is no stranger to unintentionally hilarious performances herself (Just crack a beer and rent Freedomland - hoo boy!). Next releases on April 27, and you can check out the trailer here. Cage stars as a Las Vegas showroom magician (what is it with him and Vegas movies?) who can see a few minutes into the future. (Reminds me of that old Saturday Night Live sketch with Christopher Walken -- "Ed Glosser, Trivial Psychic"). The plot concerns a terrorist group threatening to blow up Los Angeles, and Moore's character captures Cage's character in hopes of using his mind power to stop the destruction. The script is based on the Philip K. Dick story The Golden Man. Dick adaptations have made for some awesome movies - see Blade Runner and Total Recall, and some horrible ones - see Paycheck, which this movie reminds me of right down to their eerily similar posters. Put the two up next to each other on your screen and see for yourself.

As I watched this rather flashy new trailer for Paramount's sci-fi thriller Next, I found myself reminiscing over some old pals. Hey! There's Butterfly Effect and Paycheck! Ah look, it's Minority Report! Well, some of those comparisons might be unfair, considering that Next is based on a story called The Golden Man, which comes from Philip K. Dick, author of both Paycheck and Minority Report. (The Butterfly bit was my own revelation.)

From Lee Tamahori, the director of Along Came a Spider, Die Another Day and xXx: State of the Union, Next stars Nicolas Cage as a man who can see into his own future. Needless to say, this skill causes all sorts of problems, both internally and externally. Also along for the mayhem are Julianne Moore, Jessica Biel, Peter Falk and Thomas Kretschmann. Check out the trailer and see if this one will command your $9.00 come April 27. I think it looks pretty nifty, plus it comes from a rather colorful trio of screenwriters -- so I'm pretty curious to see how it all turns out.

(And no disrespect to the man, but does Nicolas Cage have to be in every movie released these days? Take a year off, man!)

Eight days after Slate's film critic Dana Stevens declared Children of Men to be the best film of the millennium, she's now quietly backing off that dubious claim. Tucked into her top ten list, released today, is the following statement: "Ok, maybe I was feeling a burst of yuletide generosity last week when I labeled this 'the movie of the millenium', but it's been a long time since a filmmaker has brought together intellectual rigor, technical prowess and compassion the way Alfonso Cuaron does.'" A look at the latest readings from Metacritic also show that the initial burst of praise that accompanied the film's release may be receding. Children of Men is now only the 19th-best reviewed film of the year, one slot above Lassie. The sustained praise from all quarters is for Alfonso Curaon's direction will no doubt earn him an Oscar nod and could actually re-ignite the category that most had written off as "Marty's year," but will Children of Men be nominated for the Best Picture award?

I was unimpressed by the film when I first saw it the day after Christmas, but a lot of critics and non-critics I respect seem to heartily disagree, so I have made a half-hearted promise to a couple of people to see it again before rendering my final judgment. The theater I saw the film in was almost completely empty, which may have contributed to the low-energy I felt. I should also point out that it happens to be the choice of both Cinematical's James Rocchi and Kim Voynar for best film of 2006. ...

A few weeks ago (early on a Saturday morning, to be precise -- what's that about?), Fox Searchlight brought together five rooms full of journalists and the stars and writer-director of Trust the Man for a few hours of friendly grilling about the film, which opens this Friday (Kim's review will go up soon). Each star -- David Duchovny, Julianne Moore, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Billy Crudup -- as well as writer-director Bart Freundlich (AKA Mr. Julianne Moore) came into the rooms separately, and spent about 20 minutes taking questions. What follows are the five most thrilling tidbits from each person's stint in my room.

Julianne Moore

• Is really, really, really tiny. Like, porcelain doll tiny.
  
• Likes to be left alone on movie sets; working with her husband makes that easy because he knows not to bug her when she's busy trying to act.
• The thing in the movie about the retainer in bed? Straight out of the Moore-Freundlich bedroom. Yes, Julianne Moore sleeps with a retainer -- even she isn't perfect.
  
• Their kids (four and eight) get to travel with them to cool locations when possible, but haven't seen any of her movies. Which is good, because everything Jurassic Park is way too scary for anybody younger than, like, 25.
• When Gyllenhaal was nervous about the rest of the cast being so close, Moore said "Don't worry. Everybody's an asshole." And then everything was fine.