pierce brosnan Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Stanley Tucci Gets Ready to Hunt
Filed under: Comedy », Drama », Casting », Deals », Scripts »
It's been a while, but if you have a good memory, you might remember that I quite like The Tooch... Stanley Tucci. He whipped up magic as Puck in Midsummer Night's Dream, but more importantly, he's the man behind Big Night -- one of the best foodie films Hollywood has seen. (Of course, he's also heading back to food with the upcoming Julie & Julia, but that's not the same.)Now Variety reports that Tucci is gearing up to film a comedic drama called The Hunter, and he's grabbed Pierce Brosnan, Patricia Clarkson, and Julianne Moore to star. Written by The Tooch himself, the film is a coming-of-age story set in the aristocracy of New York's Upper Westchester County. Brosnan will play a middle-aged man clinging to the memories of his "once-charmed life and world." The Whit Stillman fan in me wants Chris Eigeman in a role like that, but I can dig Brosnan, and only hope that this finds the magic of Big Night ... even if food isn't involved.
This news also brings word that Blind Date -- Tucci's adaptation of Theo Van Gogh's film, the brother to Steve Buscemi's Interview -- will finally make its way to the big screen this year, sometime in September. The sky -- it's raining Tooch!
More Stars Gettin' Greek in 'Percy Jackson'
Filed under: Casting »
Percy Jackson: The Lightening Thief is the first in a series of young adult novels by Rick Riordan about a kid with dyslexia and ADHD who's also the kid of, you know, the son of Poseidon. As with most of us, he learns all about himself at summer camp -- except instead of mosquito bites and panty raids, Percy finds his camp is full of the sons and daughters of demigods. Since being optioned by Fox 2000 in 2004, it's acquired quite a roster of theatrical demigods to the cast, and its latest additions are pretty swell. Rosario Dawson (who was the only part of Seven Pounds that didn't make me want to throw a shoe at the screen) is playing a sexy Persephone who gets a little friendly with Percy's BFF Grover, who, as it turns out, is a satyr. Awkward!
Catherine Keener Is Loved By the Gods and 'Percy Jackson'
Filed under: Action », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Casting », 20th Century Fox », Family Films », Newsstand », Harry Potter »
I don't know if Chris Columbus' Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief will be the next Harry Potter, but it certainly has a cast that can rival the one living at Hogwarts. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the latest to sign on is the always lovely Catherine Keener, who will be playing Sally Jackson, mother to Logan Lerman's Percy. Of course, Sally isn't just any ordinary single mother, she's one beloved by at least one Greek god. A forbidden love affair with Poseidon produced Percy, who just might be the boy to fulfill a prophecy. Sally tries to conceal Percy's identity from the gods and from himself, but of course that never works.
The Olympians cast so far include Uma Thurman as Medusa (I know, right?), Pierce Brosnan as Chiron, Melina Kanakeredes as Athena, Kevin McKidd as Poseidon, and Sean Bean as Zeus. They're still looking for a Hades and probably annoyed Clash of the Titans nabbed Ralph Fiennes as theirs.
I share Peter Martin's doubts that this will be the next Potter (I think that's a one time thing), and I'm so-so on the story because it flouts mythological convention and gives the man-disdaining Athena a daughter. But I am a sucker for a lot of the cast members (especially McKidd and Bean), and the idea of McKidd and Keener being so overcome with passion that they flouted the decrees of the gods? That is the stuff Greek myths are made of, so who knows? It might be pretty fun.
Is the Next Harry Potter a Dyslexic New Yorker?
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Casting », Deals », 20th Century Fox », Family Films », Comic/Superhero/Geek »
Where, o where, will the next Harry Potter come from? Could it be from New York, via Texas? Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, and Sean Bean have signed up for Percy Jackson, according to The Hollywood Reporter, an adaptation of The Lightning Thief, the first book in a series by former Texas schoolteacher Richard Riordan. After the failure of various projects to become "the next Harry Potter," the news prompted Entertainment Weekly to wonder, "Could this finally be the next big family fantasy franchise?"
Based on the premise, Percy Jackson stands a good chance of appealing to a wide market, but much will depend on the script, since Chris Columbus is still on board to direct. As Christopher Campbell wrote two years ago, Columbus "may have been the least inspired director involved with the Harry Potter franchise," so big questions remain. Can he deliver a good-enough movie that won't disappoint fans of the books and whip up enthusiasm among non-readers for seeing a series of movies in the same vein?
The 12-year-old titular hero, to be played by Logan Lerman, appears to be "just another New York kid diagnosed with ADHD, who has good intentions, a nasty stepfather, and a long line of schools that have rejected him" before he discovers that his father is Poseidon (the Greek god, not the doomed ocean liner). He sets off on a cross-country journey to retrieve Zeus' lightning bolt, "the original weapon of mass destruction," which his father has been accused of stealing. Kevin McKidd will play Poseidon, which is inspired casting. Fox is aiming for release in February 2010.
Will you mark your calendars? Will Percy Jackson do better by avoiding comparisons with Harry Potter?
Cinematical (Double-O) Seven: Best Last Lines
Filed under: Action », Thrillers », MGM », Sony », Fandom », Cinematical Seven », James Bond », Remakes and Sequels », Daniel Craig »
Even as the franchise began to shed staples with 2006's Casino Royale and tomorrow's Quantum of Solace, the James Bond series is still known for several keystones across twenty other films: girls, gadgets, guns, martinis, silhouettes of female figures thrusting about during the credits, and so on. Some would say that these were the traditions that helped lead James Bond down the path that would end in 2002's Die Another Day, which some would say made them want to take a top hat to their own throats. (Me? I didn't hate it.)
Among these recurring touches were the last lines, often cheeky turns of phrase that seemed to suggest that everything was going to be just fine between Commander Bond and that chick who we'd never see or hear about ever again. So, out of twenty-one films, I humbly offer up my picks for the seven best of the bunch. I'll leave you to find out if Quantum ends more along the lines of Royale's "The name's Bond... James Bond", or with something a bit sexier...
'Quantum of Solace' Has Killer Opening Overseas
Filed under: New Releases », Box Office », Distribution », James Bond »
If you lived in England, you could have seen Quantum of Solace, like, six times already. Did you know that? How does it make you feel? Is it inappropriate, at this historic juncture, to say that I'm kind of outraged about this? Worse: it will open in fifty-seven (57) new markets this week, while we wait for November 14th. Casino Royale opened in a few countries a day or two ahead, which was mildly pride-rankling, but this is ridiculous.My (largely tongue-in-cheek) America-centrism aside, Quantum of Solace made $39 million last weekend in the U.K., France and Sweden. According to Variety, that's comfortably a record for a film opening in so few territories. In the U.K. alone, Quantum topped Casino Royale's first-weekend take by 35%.
In America (U-S-A! U-S-A!), Casino Royale opened to $40.8 million around the same time of year in 2006. A UK-type spike domestically would put Quantum at around $55 million in two weeks, which actually seems about right. Casino Royale came on the heels of a bunch of Pierce Brosnan installments that many people considered middling (though I should note that the series' grosses nonetheless rose steadily through the Brosnan years). Bond is back now, and everyone knows it. Quantum of Solace will be the biggest Bond yet.
First Clip(s) from 'Quantum of Solace'
Filed under: Action », New Releases », James Bond », Trailers and Clips »
As of this writing, it's just under a month until Quantum of Solace's November 14th release date. The buzz on it has been oddly neutral; no one's seen it, people still mock the title from time to time, but everyone seems to be calmly assuming that the acknowledged awesomeness of Casino Royale will just sort of carry over. It's been nice to have a build-up to a blockbuster without too much undue hysteria. Apropos of the calm seas, MSN offers the fairly placid first clip from Quantum of Solace. In it, Craig's Bond has a heart-to-heart with Mathis (the great Giancarlo Giannini), whom he pegged as a double agent at the end of Casino Royale. ("Oddly, right now you're the only one I can trust," he says.) They mourn the death of Vesper Lynd, with Bond understandably conflicted seeing as she betrayed him before she died. Bond drops some pictures on the table and asks for information.
It's not much, but at least it's apparent that Quantum of Solace will embrace Casino Royale's earnestness rather than the Pierce Brosnan films' often annoying snark. And it's good to see that, while I'm sure Quantum will stand alone in most respects, plot threads from Casino Royale haven't just been forgotten, as has been the franchise's unfortunate practice.
UPDATE: Moviefone has just launched a clip from Quantum of Solace as well, and this time Bond and M chat about revenge and Vesper and all sorts of groovy things. Check it out.
'Mamma Mia!' to Become Louder, More Annoying Via 'Sing-Along Edition'
Filed under: Music & Musicals », New Releases », Universal », Fandom »
If you're one of the many moviegoers who loved Mamma Mia!, perhaps you thought the only thing missing from the experience was the shrill sound of your fellow audience members screaming the lyrics of "Dancing Queen" along with Meryl Streep and her lady friends. Well, Universal Pictures has read your mind, and Mamma Mia!: The Sing-Along Edition will open on Aug. 29 in select theaters. It'll be the same movie, only with all the musical numbers subtitled and audience members encouraged to join in on the vocals. All we have so far is a press release from Universal, which doesn't say how many theaters the sing-along edition will be in. You are encouraged to visit the Mamma Mia! website for updates, however. These will be regular screenings at regular movie theaters for the regular prices; all that's different is that the lyrics will be on the screen, karaoke-style. And the best part is, even if you're a terrible singer, you can take comfort in knowing you're still better than Pierce Brosnan.
ABBA's music is famous for being catchy, and as a result many people overlook the actual words. This sing-along event will be an opportunity to really notice and pay attention to the subtle complexities of lines like this, from "Money, Money, Money":
In my dreams I have a plan
If I got me a wealthy man
I wouldn't have to work at all
I'd fool around and have a ball
Hooray for girl power and rhyming!
Review: Mamma Mia!
Filed under: Comedy », Music & Musicals », Romance », Universal », Theatrical Reviews »
I'm slightly mistrustful of titles that include exclamation points. They always remind me of the musical version of The Elephant Man, Elephant!, in The Tall Guy ("... there's an angel with big eeears..."). But in the case of Mamma Mia!, I'm actually surprised the title only included one exclamation point -- you can imagine the filmmakers or the creators of the stage version embracing even more emphatic punctuation, just to let you know that This! Is a Musical! And also Wacky!! As if chorus lines of men in flippers, Meryl Streep waving a feather boa, and enough ABBA music to sate the leads of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert wouldn't have clued you in.
The movie, like the stage musical it's adapted from, is essentially and unabashedly an extended gimmick -- an excuse to sing and perform songs that originated from the Swedish musical group ABBA. Characters spontaneously burst into song not because they're aspiring performers (Chicago), or because their singing is meant as a melodious soliloquy (Sweeney Todd), but because the situation or their emotional state reminds them of an ABBA song (sometimes more tangentially than others), and they decide to share it with everyone. I've had friends like this in real life, although that seems to have been a college-age thing.
Danny DeVito Going Back Behind the Camera
Filed under: Comedy », Casting », Deals », Family Films », Newsstand »
I have a soft spot for nearly everything Danny DeVito's directed. Death to Smoochy was a waste of a cast and a concept, but most everything else -- The War of the Roses, Matilda, and yes, even the underrated Duplex (I haven't seen Throw Momma from the Train in forever, but toss that one in too) -- has a dark, unforgiving sensibility that I really appreciate. For one thing, I'm pretty sure that DeVito is the only filmmaker to truly get what Roald Dahl was all about.DeVito's next directing project, and his first for the big screen since Duplex flopped in 2003, will be an adaptation of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, a young adult book by a dude named Avi (yes, just Avi). It's about a 13 year-old girl who's crossing the Atlantic on her own in 1832 and gets caught in the middle of a mutiny. Saoirse Ronan, Morgan Freeman and Pierce Brosnan are attached to star.
The funny thing is, I read The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle at some point while traversing the middle school netherworld back in the mid-to-late 90's, but I'll be damned if I remember a single thing about it. (The plot does sound vaguely familiar. I think there might be a parrot involved, but I'm not sure.) To Kill a Mockingbird it ain't. But if DeVito (who also wrote the screenplay) can give it some character, I'm down.
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