RobMarshall Tagged Articles at Cinematical

I may not be the biggest devotee of movie musicals, but I've been keeping an eye on Rob Marshall's adaptation of Nine (the Tony Award-winning musical) since the production was first announced back in 2007. The thought of some of the coolest chicks in Hollywood with Daniel Day Lewis in a musical about 8 1/2? Well, count me in. Despite early casting changes and rumblings about Lewis' singing abilities, I've held out hope for the flick, and now that the film's Christmas release date is a little over a month away the early reviews are trickling in. First up is AICN who scored an early review from a source going by the name of Tobby (You can read the entire review over there, but be warned, it's a little spoilery)

So let's start with the good news: according to this review, the film is pretty darn good. The reviewer had nothing but praise for Marion Cotillard as Lewis' wife, and even Fergie gets some love as the prostitute, Saraghina. As for Lewis in the role of the troubled director Guido Contini, it turns out those rumors of his lack of singing ability were just rumors, and he makes out pretty good in the review for the limited singing he does in the film (two songs) -- and I think we all knew his acting was never going to be the problem.

Of course, the film is far from perfect and there are some rough patches according to this reviewier. Most of the scorn was directed towards Nicole Kidman's performance as Contini's muse, and unfortunately one of the other problems with the film is Kate Hudson (who plays an American Vogue reporter) in what was described as a throwaway role. Bad timing, perhaps, now that Hudson's musical number, Cinema Italiano, is the bulk of the latest trailer for the film.

After the jump: Hudson's Go-Go debut and a musical layman's review of Cinema Italiano...

Those of us eager to see a movie based on a Broadway musical based on a play based on a Fellini film will have to wait just a little longer, perhaps to give us time to figure all that out. Nine, originally set to open on Nov. 25, has been pushed back a month. It will now open on Dec. 18 in New York and L.A. and Christmas Day everywhere else.

The move -- which was first announced at Rope of Silicon -- is sadly lacking in controversy. The distributor is The Weinstein Company, and they already have another movie opening on Nov. 25, The Road. (The real question is why two Weinstein films were ever scheduled for the same day in the first place.) Thanksgiving weekend is terribly crowded anyway; Christmas will give Nine a little more breathing room. The real scandal would have been if they'd pushed it all the way back to 2010, but nope. Unless someone has some juicy info we haven't been able to get our hands on, this appears to be purely a marketing decision.

The film is directed by Chicago's Rob Marshall, returning to musicals after Memoirs of a Geisha. The Chicago connection isn't the only reason people are talking about Oscar potential, though -- have you seen the cast list? Daniel Day-Lewis, Penelope Cruz, Marion Cotillard, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, and Sophia Loren -- all Oscar winners! And Kate Hudson, an Oscar nominee! Also, for some reason, Fergie!

Nine is based on a Tony-winning musical that opened on Broadway in 1982 and had a successful revival in 2003. The musical, co-written by Mario Fratti, was based on his own non-musical play, Six Passionate Women. That play, in turn, was based on Federico Fellini's autobiographical 1963 film 8 1/2. And the star of 8 1/2: Kevin Bacon. (Just kidding.)

In Hollywood, it's damned if you do, damned if you don't. Pointing to Steven Spielberg (remaking Harvey), Rob Marshall (considering Pirates of the Caribbean 4), Ridley Scott (prepping an Alien prequel), and others, Anne Thompson suggests: "It's about fear of failure. In today's Hollywood, it takes guts to be original."

A longtime industry observer whose essential Thompson on Hollywood blog is now hosted by indieWIRE, Thompson acknowledges that "books, plays, tv shows, videogames, theme park rides, comics and graphic novels are easier to make than anything original ... But these are Hollywood's best and brightest, the directors who can usually get anything made. But not if the studios don't give them the money. These are what the studios consider to be the most commercial projects ... Every studio is desperately seeking franchises, tentpoles, remakes, reboots, prequels and sequels. Original is a dirty word. It means having to start something from scratch with no safety zone."

Yet even when a studio does make an original or two, it still must have the "clout to wrangle filmmakers into submission" when needed, as she writes in a separate post, analyzing recent troubles at Universal Pictures. She feels that if the execs had exercised greater control over Michael Mann (Public Enemies) and Judd Apatow (Funny People), their films would have been better. So we have a fear of financial failure, coupled with an inability to "wrangle filmmakers into submission." I say the biggest problem is that too few studio executives know what they're doing. Is there any way to "fix" Hollywood? Or are we stuck with what they give us?

Are you ready for singing and dancing pirates? Rob Marshall, the director of the Academy Award-winning Chicago and the upcoming musical Nine, is "on the verge" of helming the next installment of Pirates of the Caribbean, according to Variety. If all goes well, Johnny Depp will return as Jack Sparrow and production will start next year.

Of course, I was only joking about the "singing and dancing," since there's no indication that Disney or producer Jerry Bruckheimer want to make a musical version of their blockbuster franchise. But they do want to move forward as expeditiously as possible, and thus have been talking with a variety of directors recently, in the hope that Depp can do the next Pirates before starring in The Lone Ranger. The first Pirates movies were all directed by Gore Verbinski, who declined to move forward with the franchise in favor of pursuing a movie version of Bioshock. That particular project hasn't worked out so far, though it seems that Verbinski is ready to do something that doesn't involve pirates and high seas.

Meanwhile, this would be a strikingly sideways move for Marshall. Coming on board a successful franchise that has already grossed more than $2.6 billion worldwide is fraught with peril. And Depp's performances as Jack Sparrow have become iconic, so where will Marshall put his own personal stamp? Sources told Variety that the studio is so confident that he will sign on, they have already begun casting new characters that will appear in the next installment. Uh, shouldn't they wait for Marshall to sign on the dotted line?

Now I know I'm not the only one who is fascinated by the prospect of watching the great Daniel Day Lewis singing and dancing in Rob Marshall's Nine. But the first trailer has been released on Apple for Marshall's adaptation of the Tony-nominated play of the same name, and if you were hoping for a glimpse of Lewis doing jazz-hands, then you're going to be disappointed. But, jazz-hands aside, after watching this trailer I think I may have to change my opinion of the directing talents of Mr. Marshall -- because Marshall's musical skills look better without Renee Zellwegger doing '3/4 shot' dance numbers while warbling her heart out.

Nine is based on the classic Fellini film, 8 1/2, and centers on the famous film director, Guido Contini. The story is set in early-1960s Venice, and on the eve of Contini's 40th birthday he is struggling to complete his latest film, and attempting to balance the women in his life. Those women include his wife Luisa (Marion Cotillard), his mistress Carla (Penélope Cruz), his muse Claudia (Nicole Kidman), his producer Liliane (Judi Dench), and his mother (Sophia Loren). But that's not all, because as Monika told us back in 2008, Stacy Ferguson (better known as Fergie) will play a whore from Contini's youth, and Kate Hudson also has a small role as an American fashion journalist. It's not often you get this many big name actresses in one film, but I'm sure Lewis won't have any trouble handling all that estrogen.

So to the strains of 'Be Italian' we finally get our first glimpses of the big-budget musical, and it looks like Marshall may owe a small debt to the style of Bob Fosse's production numbers once again. But that doesn't mean Nine won't be a good time at the movies for fans of both Broadway, and classic cinema. So take a look, and tell me what you think. Oscar contender?

Nine will arrive in theaters on November, 25th.

This just in to Cinematical headquarters: The Weinstein Co. announced that Kate Hudson has joined Rob Marshall's adaptation of the famed musical, Nine. Hudson will co-star alongside Daniel Day-Lewis, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, Sophia Loren, Penélope Cruz and Marion Cotillard -- and if that beautiful cast doesn't get asses in seats, I don't know what will. Day-Lewis will play director Guido Contini who, while preparing for his latest picture, has trouble balancing the many women in his life.

Personally, I've been waiting for Hudson to take a little departure from starring in cheesy rom-coms for awhile now, though I'm sure some of you would be happy if she disappeared forever at this point. That said, I still remain a Hudson supporter (damn you Almost Famous!), and I know she's got some good stuff holed up in places we just haven't been fortunate to discover yet. What do you think? A step up for Hudson, or a step down?

At the moment we have to consider this a rumor, but can you imagine an Academy Award-winning psychotic oilman in a musical? Daniel Day-Lewis is in talks to replace Javier Bardem in Rob Marshall's film version of the musical Nine, according to Variety. As Monika Bartyzel told us a couple of weeks ago, Bardem dropped out of the lead role due to exhaustion. A spokesman for distributor The Weinstein Co. denied that a new lead had been set.

What an exciting prospect, though! Day-Lewis is famously selective about the roles he chooses, which means it's safe to assume that he was impressed by the elements that have been brought together. Those elements include: (1) script by Michael Tolkin, re-written by Anthony Minghella shortly before he died; (2) a fabulous cast of women, led by Nicole Kidman and Judi Dench (as Elisabeth Rappe reported recently), but also Penelope Cruz, Marion Cotillard and Sophia Loren; (3) director Rob Marshall. I know that Marshall isn't universally loved -- I'm not a fan of Chicago -- but presumably he has some kind of dazzling vision that inspires confidence among actors with hidden musical talents.

If he takes the part, Day-Lewis would play Guido Contini, "a famous film director who experiences personal and creative crisis while trying to balance all the women in his life." In the 1982 Broadway musical, inspired by Federico Fellini's 8 1/2, Raul Julia originated the role. I'm hoping for confirmation soon.

According to the New York Daily News, Catherine Zeta-Jones will no longer co-star in Nine, the film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, which itself was an adaptation of Fellini's classic film 8 1/2. Zeta-Jones would have played the role of Claudia, "the alluring muse of skirt-chasing director Guido Contini." The reason for the falling out is allegedly -- it's always allegedly with the Daily News -- because director Rob Marshall (the inexplicably Best Picture-winning Chicago) "wouldn't give in to her demand to beef up her role." The script is adapted by Michael Tolkin (The Player), and apparently the creative team wasn't willing to change the story around. A friend of Zeta-Jones told the Daily News "She was never 100% committed to Nine. She had a meeting with Rob. She'd love to work with him again. But she felt she'd done the same sort of role in Chicago. The script wasn't an issue."

Marshall has moved on and is looking for a younger actress to hop in and play Claudia. The list of possibles includes Natalie Portman, Liv Tyler, Keira Knightley, Kate Hudson, and Gwyneth Paltrow. (In what world is Gwyneth Paltrow a reasonable substitute for Zeta-Jones?) The cast of Nine, one of the more attractive bunches of actors in recent memory, features Javier Bardem as Guido, Sophia Loren as Guido's mother, Penelope Cruz as his mistress Carla, and Marion Cotillard as Luisa Contini. Reportedly (another word for "allegedly"), Katie Holmes was "heartbroken" when Marshall turned her down for a role. Who would you guys like to see in the part? We'll keep you posted on how this drama turns out.

Additionally, Variety has announced today that the Weinstein Co. has officially delayed production on Nine due to the script not being ready.

Variety is reporting that director/choreographer Rob Marshall and uber-producer Harvey Weinstein have started putting together a cast for Nine, a film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. Javier Bardem was just offered the role of director Guido Contini, who "experiences a creative and personal crisis as he tries to balance all the women in his life." The musical was inspired by Federico Fellini's classic 8 1/2, and the Contini role was originated onstage by the great Raul Julia. In its recent Broadway revival, Contini was played by Antonio Banderas. I love Bardem, but I have to wonder why Banderas isn't reprising his role here. He played the part in 2003 and he still looks like a million bucks, so the reason can't be that he's gotten too old. Curious.

Regardless, the real appeal of this film is going to be its women. If Marshall gets his first choices, this will be one beautiful cast. Marion Cotillard (Russell Crowe's love interest in A Good Year) is set to play Contini's wife. Penelope Cruz, whom I never thought too highly of until her terrific work in Volver, is in talks to play Contini's mistress, Carla. Marshall hopes to sign his Chicago co-star Catherine Zeta-Jones to play "the director's muse." Zeta-Jones isn't signed yet, but judging by what she told MTV's Movie Blog last month, she's a done deal. Said Jones, "I'd read the phone book with Rob Marshall. To put a musical in a director's hands, for me it can only be [him]." Marshall is also trying to get Sophia Loren, one of the sexiest women of all time, on board to play Contini's mother, who comes to Contini as a ghost. Michael Tolkin, best known for adapting his novel The Player for Robert Altman, is adapting the script. I'm no fan of Marshall, I thought Chicago was insanely overrated, and Mem-Snores of a Geisha was agony to sit through. Still, I dig musicals and it'd be great to see all of these gorgeous women on the big screen at once.

It looks like we're getting another big-budget musical from the Weinsteins -- probably not a bad idea, since the last one they made won six Oscars. Variety recently reported that Rob Marshall has signed to direct the film version of the Tony Award winning musical Nine. The musical debuted in 1982 with Raul Julia and beat out Dreamgirls that year for Best Musical. In 2002, Antonio Banderas took on the lead and *won a Tony for Best Male Performance. The story was inspired Federico Fellini's 8½, and centers on an aging director suffering from his romantic entanglements and a creative dry spell. This is the first project for Marshall with the Weinsteins since Chicago, and he was eager for another film after Memoirs of a Geisha, saying, "I began looking intensely at (other projects), including remakes of movies, originals and Broadway musicals." Marshall will also help with the choreography for the film along with John DeLuca.

The project is still looking for a screenwriter, and casting has yet to begin -- there is no word on whether Banderas will return. Marshall warned that "This one needs to be created specifically for the talent involved, to suit their strengths, casting will be a big issue here, and if commitments complicate things, it will be 2009." We're not quite sure what that means since any movie that he started prepping now wouldn't likely arrive in theaters until 2009 anyway, but I'm sure the Weinsteins won't mind waiting, since it seems that their reputation at the box-office could use a little help.

*Correction: Banderas was nominated but the award went to Harvey Fierstein.