MatthewRhys Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Cinematical has just received this exclusive clip from The Edge of Love, and while we won't spoil it for you, we will say that it features Keira Knightley and Sienna Miller rubbing, hugging and touching one another. Um, yeah. Seriously, though, The Edge of Love is quietly sneaking up on all of us with its solid ensemble cast (Knightley, Miller, Cillian Murphy and Matthew Rhys) and fascinating story somewhat based on real events surrounding poet Dylan Thomas (Rhys) and the two crazy women vying for his attention.

Poets are nuts -- and the people who fall in love with poets are even nuttier (don't look at me; I'm a blogger, not a poet). Check out the scene below, along with a whole bunch of images; The Edge of Love hits theaters in Los Angeles on March 13 and New York on March 20.

From parents to friends to struggling lovers, here's the latest casting news, courtesy of Variety:

First up is one of the Desperate Housewives -- Marcia Cross. While her other co-stars have been dipping their toes into the cinematic waters, Cross has only spent her time on the boob tube, until now; she's starring in a new indie comedy called Peck. In yet another Hollywood science fair story, there's a kid named Peck (Keir Gilchrist) whose parents (Cross and Adam Arkin) force him to compete in a science fair (according to IMDb). There also seems to be some romance to the story, as Variety says that the kid "develops an unlikely friendship with the school's golden girl."

Let it be known that little live but lies,
Love-lies, and god-lies, and lies-to-please. Dylan Thomas

Back in 2006, I couldn't say that I was itching to see The Edge of Love, which was then titled The Best Time of Our Lives. Keira Knightley was attached to star, which wasn't surprising since her mom wrote the script, but Lindsay Lohan was attached to co-star. LiLo was already getting into tabloid trouble and it seemed like a slap in the face to Dylan Thomas fans, and a moment of insanity within the casting powers that be. Luckily, she dropped out, and Sienna Miller stepped in.

Now, finally, we've got a trailer. I could do without the first pointless closeup of Keira's face, but the trailer soon goes through the basics of the story, and it's looking like a sweet literary drama. Edge focuses on the love triangle between Caitlin (Miller) and Dylan Thomas (Matthew Rhys) and friend Vera Phillips (Knightley), and how this led Vera's husband, William Killick (Cillian Murphy), to open fire on the Thomas home with a machine gun and hand grenade in retaliation. Normally, I get a bit perturbed about literary dramas that focus on the romance rather than the writer, but this is a strange story, and it looks like it was captured well for the big screen.

I'd be remiss to not mention that this certainly has Atonement similarities (although one quote in the movie says that this flick is better!), but as a Thomas fan, I'm hoping it can shine in its own light.

The Edge of Love currently has no US release date, but is scheduled to arrive in the UK at the end of June.

For those just joining us, The Edge of Love is a semi-biopic of *poet Dylan Thomas that's currently filming in some bog in the U.K. (When I tried to interview one of the stars, Cillian Murphy, by phone for a Tribeca film a couple of weeks ago, I was told that he was "filming somewhere so remote that he's even unreachable by phone.") The story of Edge will revolve around a bitter rivalry between two of the poet's muses, who will be played by Keira Knightley and Sienna Miller. Lindsay Lohan was originally set to play the Miller role, but this became one of the many films she's opted out of lately. Thomas will be played by Matthew Rhys, Miller will play his wife Caitlin, while Knightley has the role of a chlidhood friend and Murphy is the friend's husband. Got all that? Okay, good. We now have, from a gossip rag, the first pic from the film, of Keira Knightley looking very dowdy and black-haired. She's got the whole 'jealous harpy' thing going on, I think.

By the way, if you're wondering how rising star Murphy got aced out of what would seem like the plum role -- the poet himself -- from what we know of the film it seems like he actually has the good part. His jealous husband character is actually a military nut who ends up attacking Thomas with a machine gun and a grenade! No doubt he'll make the most of that. One final note about the film -- there are two different titles floating around for it, the one mentioned above and The Best Times of our Lives, which I could have sworn was the official title up until a couple weeks ago. I have to say I'm not really crazy about either of them. They should put their thinking caps on while there's still time and come up with something better, don't you agree?

*I originally wrote Irish poet, while thinking of Irishman Cillian Murphy.

It's too bad that this Dylan Thomas biopic is filming now and not 10-20 years ago, because Tony Goldwyn looks a hell of a lot like the poet. Nevertheless, I guess that Matthew Rhys is a decent subsitute. No, this isn't Jonathan Rhys Meyers, the Match Point star. He's got his own bag of period pieces to star in. This Rhys is the man who plays Kevin Walker on that television show, Brothers and Sisters, and who played Demitrius in Julie Taymor's flipping wonderful Titus. With him and Cillian Murphy joining the cast, we've got four players in a rather dangerous true story.

The film will center on a love triangle between Thomas, his wife Caitlin (Lindsay Lohan) and his childhood friend Vera Phillips (Keira Knightley), who was married to a man named William Killick (who will be played by Murphy). Less than happy about his wife's close relationship with Thomas, and being less-than-centered after a military mission in Greece, he grabbed a machine gun, a grenade, and then attacked the poet's house. While no one was hurt, it's a bit of emotional overkill, don't you think? And then there's Murphy cast as a crazed man under great stress. I just can't imagine it! Okay, I can. With the cheeky title of The Best Time of Our Lives, the feature will begin shooting this May. So, now the question becomes: will production run smoothly, or should we get some popcorn and prepare for La Lohan Round two, three, or whatever number it is now?