the best times of our lives Tagged Articles at Cinematical

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.

There's a fascinating little chain of command that's starting to form as far as certain actresses go, and you'd be surprised to see who's at the top. The Hollywood Reporter tells us that for the second time in two months, Sienna Miller has landed a role that, at one point, was owned by Lindsay Lohan. First, she replaced La Lohan on The Best Times of Our Lives (which has since changed its corny title to The Edge of Love). Now, Miller replaces Jessica Biel (who originally replaced Lohan) on Importance (which was previously known as A Woman of No Importance). Are you still with me? Good.

Loosely based on the Oscar Wilde play, Importance tells of a 19 year-old American girl (a bit of a stretch for the 26 year-old Miller, but okay) who falls madly in love with the womanizing Lord Illingworth (Sean Bean) in the English countryside, but must fend off the menacing mother (Annette Bening) of Illingworth's illegitimate child who, come to think of it, might have a thing for the pretty American too. Right now, there's no word on why Biel has left the project; we recently reported that she's signed on to star in the ensemble drama Powder Blue, but I can't imagine that had anything to do with it. Needless to say, it appears Miller and Biel are now in a position where they're fighting over Lohan's sloppy seconds. How, exactly, did that happen? Unlike Biel, however, Miller is having no trouble lining up projects left, right and sideways; aside from Importance, her Stardust will be released this summer, they're in post production on another one of her pics, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, she's currently filming Edge of Love and she just signed on to star in Hippie Hippie Shake. Hey, but Biel was the Sexiest Woman Alive a few years back. I think. Shouldn't that count for something?

In Steve Buscemi's new film Interview, Sienna Miller plays an actress much like Lindsay Lohan -- an actress who is more known for her off-screen antics than her on-screen performances (after the whole Jude Law fiasco, you can probably shove Miller into that category as well). So, it's only fitting that Miller would be the one chosen to replace Lohan in The Best Times of Our Lives, a period drama based on a very real night in the life of poet Dylan Thomas. We told you last week how Lohan dropped out of the film (which was set to start filming this week) due to problems with her contract. Unlike Lohan (who's bailed on roughly four different projects in the last year), Miller has managed to take on every role she's signed up for; following the recent Factory Girl, Miller will star in the aforementioned Interview, this summer's Stardust and the recently completed Michael Chabon adaptation, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh.

Starring Keira Knightley, Cillian Murphy and Matthew Rhys, The Best Times of Our Lives (and no, something tells me that Green Day song will not be on the soundtrack) was written by Sharman Macdonald, who also happens to be Knightley's mom. Pic revolves around a rivalry between the two women in Dylan Thomas' (Rhys) life: His wife Caitlin (Miller), and his childhood friend Vera (Knightley). Apparently, at one point, Vera's husband William (Murphy) gets so fed up with his wife's close relationship to the poet that he attacks the dude's house with a machine gun and a grenade. Ah, those poets and their crazy ideas of a fun Friday night at home. There's no word on whether the Lohan snafu has delayed production; most likely, things are still right on schedule. So, here's where you get to decide: Is Miller an adequate replacement? (Then again, when it comes to Lohan, even 13 year-old Dakota Fanning would have turned in a more convincing performance.)

Well it's a new day and, yes, Lindsay Lohan has apparently dropped out of another movie. For those of you keeping count at home, this marks the fourth film La Lohan has bailed on in the past year. Life&Style Weekly claims to have the exclusive scoop, saying Lohan passed on The Best Times of Our Lives (which was to begin production next week) because she wasn't happy with changes that were being made to her contract. While it's the fourth film she's bolted from, this is the first time the whole "shady contract" reason was given.

In the past, Lohan has ditched a project because she's either been "too busy" or "not interested in working with anyone who isn't a big name director." Oh, and she did have to take a brief hiatus from a project due to a stint in rehab -- but before that, folks on the set of Georgia Rule were pissed that the girl was showing up late or, in some "heat exhaustion" cases, not showing up at all. If you or I were to pull these kinds of stunts at our jobs, we'd be fired in an instant. But, see, in Hollywood the rules are reversed -- the more drama you cause, the more people write about you and, subsequently, the more people show up to watch you on the big screen. See, it's the little things that make the entertainment industry so damn special.

It's probably best that La Lohan dropped out, as I could not see her in this role at all. Based on the real-life story of a night in the life of poet Dylan Thomas, Lohan was supposed to star alongside Keira Knightley, Cillian Murphy and Matthew Rhys. This isn't to say Lohan's appearance would have cheapened what, essentially, looks like a pretty interesting film -- well, okay, I guess I am saying that. Here's hoping they find an adequate replacement on such short notice, or else The Best Times of Our Lives might turn into The Worst Production of the Year.