The East
Director: Zal Batmanglij
Writer(s): Batmanglif and Brit Marling
Producer(s): Marling, Michael Costigan, Jocelyn Hayes, Ridley Scott, Tony Scott
U.S. Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Cast: Ellen Page, Alexander Skarsgård, Patricia Clarkson, Brit Marling, Julia Ormond, Toby Kebbell, Shiloh Fernandez
Thanks to his remarkable directing debut with 2011′s Sound of My Voice, Zal Batmanglij quickly found himself in a deal where the cash was frotned for his second project – and no other than Fox Searchlight was the one putting a cash down on his sophomore feature — this is rarely how things work in the indie biz these days. Loads of time to prep on The East, meant that a second Sundance berth is upon us – and his good luck charm in writer/actress rejoins the filmmaker but this time we’ve got Alexander Skarsgård, Ellen Page, Julia Ormond, Patricia Clarkson, Toby Kebbell and Shiloh Fernandez joining the pic.
Director: Zal Batmanglij
Writer(s): Batmanglif and Brit Marling
Producer(s): Marling, Michael Costigan, Jocelyn Hayes, Ridley Scott, Tony Scott
U.S. Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Cast: Ellen Page, Alexander Skarsgård, Patricia Clarkson, Brit Marling, Julia Ormond, Toby Kebbell, Shiloh Fernandez
Thanks to his remarkable directing debut with 2011′s Sound of My Voice, Zal Batmanglij quickly found himself in a deal where the cash was frotned for his second project – and no other than Fox Searchlight was the one putting a cash down on his sophomore feature — this is rarely how things work in the indie biz these days. Loads of time to prep on The East, meant that a second Sundance berth is upon us – and his good luck charm in writer/actress rejoins the filmmaker but this time we’ve got Alexander Skarsgård, Ellen Page, Julia Ormond, Patricia Clarkson, Toby Kebbell and Shiloh Fernandez joining the pic.
- 1/13/2013
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Zal Batmanglij (see on set above) barely had time to unpack his bags after showing Sound of My Voice (11′ Sundance) and he quickly rejoined Brit Marling and a huge cast comprised of Alexander Skarsgård, Ellen Page, Julia Ormond, Patricia Clarkson, Toby Kebbell and Shiloh Fernandez for The East, a Fox Searchlight project that the distributor has been tight-lipped about – no updates have been made since he project has been in post production of January of this year.
Gist: Co-written by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, this centers on a private contracting firm tasked with protecting big corporations from radical environmentalists and anti-business extremists, who tasks its best and brightest agent, Sarah Moss (Marling), to infiltrate a mysterious terrorist organization known only as ‘The East’.
Production Co./Producers: Marling, Michael Costigan, Jocelyn Hayes, Scott Free Productions’ Ridley and (R.I.P) Tony Scott.
Prediction: Premieres section
U.S. Distributor: Fox Searchlight...
Gist: Co-written by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, this centers on a private contracting firm tasked with protecting big corporations from radical environmentalists and anti-business extremists, who tasks its best and brightest agent, Sarah Moss (Marling), to infiltrate a mysterious terrorist organization known only as ‘The East’.
Production Co./Producers: Marling, Michael Costigan, Jocelyn Hayes, Scott Free Productions’ Ridley and (R.I.P) Tony Scott.
Prediction: Premieres section
U.S. Distributor: Fox Searchlight...
- 11/20/2012
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Win tickets to a promo screening of Lola Versus, starring Greta Gerwig, Zoe Lister-Jones, Joel Kinnaman, Hamish Linklater and Debra Winter! Greta Gerwig plays Lola, a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola embarks on aseries of desperate encounters in an attempt to find her place in the world as a single woman approaching 30. Also in the cast of the Daryl Wein film, scripted by Zoe Lister Jones and Wein, are Bill Pullman, Cheyenne Jackson and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Jocelyn Hayes, Michael London and Janice Williams produce.
- 6/1/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Win tickets to a promo screening of Lola Versus, starring Greta Gerwig, Zoe Lister-Jones, Joel Kinnaman, Hamish Linklater and Debra Winter! Greta Gerwig plays Lola, a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola embarks on aseries of desperate encounters in an attempt to find her place in the world as a single woman approaching 30. Also in the cast of the Daryl Wein film, scripted by Zoe Lister Jones and Wein, are Bill Pullman, Cheyenne Jackson and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Jocelyn Hayes, Michael London and Janice Williams produce.
- 6/1/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Greta Gerwig starrer Lola Versus helmed by Daryl Wein, adds first poster. The Fox Searchlight Pictures' film opens June 8th, with names like Hamish Linklater, Zoe Lister Jones, Joel Kinnaman, Bill Pullman, Debra Winger, Cheyenne Jackson and Ebon Moss-Bachrach in the cast. Daryl Wein directs as well as scripts alongside Zoe Lister Jones, the film which stars Gerwig as Lola, a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola embarks on aseries of desperate encounters in an attempt to find her place in the world as a single woman approaching 30. Michael London and Jocelyn Hayes Simpson produce the comedy which is rated R for language, sexuality and drug use.
- 4/6/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Greta Gerwig starrer Lola Versus helmed by Daryl Wein, adds first poster. The Fox Searchlight Pictures' film opens June 8th, with names like Hamish Linklater, Zoe Lister Jones, Joel Kinnaman, Bill Pullman, Debra Winger, Cheyenne Jackson and Ebon Moss-Bachrach in the cast. Daryl Wein directs as well as scripts alongside Zoe Lister Jones, the film which stars Gerwig as Lola, a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola embarks on aseries of desperate encounters in an attempt to find her place in the world as a single woman approaching 30. Michael London and Jocelyn Hayes Simpson produce the comedy which is rated R for language, sexuality and drug use.
- 4/6/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Greta Gerwig starrer Lola Versus helmed by Daryl Wein, adds first poster. The Fox Searchlight Pictures' film opens June 8th, with names like Hamish Linklater, Zoe Lister Jones, Joel Kinnaman, Bill Pullman, Debra Winger, Cheyenne Jackson and Ebon Moss-Bachrach in the cast. Daryl Wein directs as well as scripts alongside Zoe Lister Jones, the film which stars Gerwig as Lola, a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola embarks on aseries of desperate encounters in an attempt to find her place in the world as a single woman approaching 30. Michael London and Jocelyn Hayes Simpson produce the comedy which is rated R for language, sexuality and drug use.
- 4/6/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
#63. Lola Vs. Director: Daryl WeinWriters: Wein and Zoe Lister JonesProducers: Jocelyn Hayes, Michael London and Janice Williams Distributor: Fox Searchlight The Gist: This tells the story of Lola (Gerwig), a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola embarks on a series of desperate encounters in an attempt to find her place in the world as a single woman approaching 30...(more) Cast: Greta Gerwig, Bill Pullman, Debra Winger, Joel Kinnaman, Hamish Linklater, Zoe Lister Jones and Cheyenne Jackson List Worthy Reasons...: The 2010 Black List favorite screenplay from Breaking Upwards pairing of Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister Jones has plenty going for it. Firstly it helps when an indie distributor gets behind the project before production and the awkward cast of characters and Greta Gerwig in the driver's seat has got our attention.
- 1/5/2012
- IONCINEMA.com
Michael London and Groundswell Productions have set up the horror comedy "Final Girls" at New Line and Groundswell Productions reports Variety.
The story follows a girl grieving the loss of her mother, who was a scream queen in movies in the 1980s. When she and her friends are mysteriously sucked into the world of her mother's most famous horror movie, Max is reunited with her mom and must face the pic's crazed killer.
Todd Strauss-Schulson ("A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D") directs from a script by Mark Fortin and Josh Miller. London and Jocelyn Hayes-Simpson are producing.
The story follows a girl grieving the loss of her mother, who was a scream queen in movies in the 1980s. When she and her friends are mysteriously sucked into the world of her mother's most famous horror movie, Max is reunited with her mom and must face the pic's crazed killer.
Todd Strauss-Schulson ("A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D") directs from a script by Mark Fortin and Josh Miller. London and Jocelyn Hayes-Simpson are producing.
- 11/22/2011
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Here's a combination you don't see very often... Back to the Future meets Friday the 13th. Apparently that's exactly what we're going to get with New Line's latest horror comedy, Final Girls.
According to Variety Michael London and his Groundswell Productions have set up the horror comedy Final Girls at New Line with A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D helmer Todd Strauss-Schulson directing.
The story follows a girl grieving the loss of her mother, who was a scream queen in the 1980s. When she and her friends are mysteriously sucked into the world of her mother's most famous horror movie, Max is reunited with her mom and must face the flick's crazed killer.
Scribes Mark Fortin and Josh Miller are currently doing revisions on the spec script they sold to Groundswell.
New Line will distribute, with London and Jocelyn Hayes-Simpson producing through Groundswell. David Neustadter and Walter Hamada will oversee for New Line.
According to Variety Michael London and his Groundswell Productions have set up the horror comedy Final Girls at New Line with A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D helmer Todd Strauss-Schulson directing.
The story follows a girl grieving the loss of her mother, who was a scream queen in the 1980s. When she and her friends are mysteriously sucked into the world of her mother's most famous horror movie, Max is reunited with her mom and must face the flick's crazed killer.
Scribes Mark Fortin and Josh Miller are currently doing revisions on the spec script they sold to Groundswell.
New Line will distribute, with London and Jocelyn Hayes-Simpson producing through Groundswell. David Neustadter and Walter Hamada will oversee for New Line.
- 11/22/2011
- by Uncle Creepy
- DreadCentral.com
With his latest project currently in the negotiations stage, it looks like A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas director Todd Strauss-Schulson is adding another picture to his directing list. According to Variety, Strauss-Schulson has signed on to direct the horror comedy Final Girls for New Line.
Sideways‘ Michael London and his Groundswell Production Company will produce with the help of Jocelyn Hayes-Simpson, with Mark Fortin and Josh Miller writing the script.
The project has been “described as a mix between Back to the Future and Friday the 13th” which will follow a young girl mourning the death of her mother, who was a 1980′s “scream queen.” After traveling back in time to the world of her mother’s most famous horror flick, the young girl and her mother reunite to fight off the film’s main villain.
Although I’m a little skeptical at how well the script will turn out,...
Sideways‘ Michael London and his Groundswell Production Company will produce with the help of Jocelyn Hayes-Simpson, with Mark Fortin and Josh Miller writing the script.
The project has been “described as a mix between Back to the Future and Friday the 13th” which will follow a young girl mourning the death of her mother, who was a 1980′s “scream queen.” After traveling back in time to the world of her mother’s most famous horror flick, the young girl and her mother reunite to fight off the film’s main villain.
Although I’m a little skeptical at how well the script will turn out,...
- 11/22/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
#37. Lola Versus - Daryl Wein This might be the year where writer-director David Wein gets to showcase his skillset in January instead of March. A SXSW regular (2008's Sex Positive and 2009's Breaking Upwards), Wein has parlayed a rising indie career with co-consiprator Zoe Lister-Jones into a Fox Searchlight backed production -- the distributor bought the project at the script phase and set him up with old school thesps Bill Pullman and Debra Winger and the next gen in Hamish Linklater and Greta Gerwig. With the film currently in post, we think there is a good chance for Lola Versus to show up in Park City. Gist: Scripted by Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister-Jones, this tells the story of Lola (Gerwig), a 29-year-old woman dumped by her longtime boyfriend Luke (Kinnaman) just three weeks before their wedding. With the help of her close friends Henry (Linklater) and Alice (Lister-Jones), Lola...
- 11/10/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
At the beginning of every month, Ioncinema.com's "Tracking Shot" features a handful of projects that are moments away from lensing and that we feel are worth signaling out. This October 2011, we are keeping tabs on a five projects including an Arnold Schwarzenegger, 30 million dollar action project which we would normally never include on such a list. Last Stand has I Saw the Devil's Kim Jee-woon directing which means this could be bad-ass in terms of tone and style. This tells the story of a drug cartel leader who busts out of a courthouse and speeds to the Mexico border, where the only thing in his path is a sheriff and his inexperienced staff. The craft services budget on that project is probably close to the budget of another project we're looking forward to on the U.S indie front which appears to be a fresh take on what Van Sant explored with Gerry.
- 10/4/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
Ellen Page is once again workign with Fox Searchlight. Variety reports that the Juno star is in final talks to join Brit Marling and Alexander Skarsgard in Zal Batmanglij's thriller The East. The film is being produced under Ridley and Tony Scott's Scott Free Prods. banner. The script was written by Marling and Batmanglij.
The story follows "a private contracting firm tasked with protecting big corporations from radical environmentalists and anti-business extremists that assigns its best and brightest agent to infiltrate a mysterious anarchist organization known only as 'The East.'"
Marling will play an "undercover agent, who finds herself falling for the leader of The East, who will be played by Skarsgard." Page will star as "Izzy, a member of The East who used to be Skarsgard's lover and is now jealous of the attention he pays Marling's character."
Page's role was originally set to go to Felicity Jones,...
The story follows "a private contracting firm tasked with protecting big corporations from radical environmentalists and anti-business extremists that assigns its best and brightest agent to infiltrate a mysterious anarchist organization known only as 'The East.'"
Marling will play an "undercover agent, who finds herself falling for the leader of The East, who will be played by Skarsgard." Page will star as "Izzy, a member of The East who used to be Skarsgard's lover and is now jealous of the attention he pays Marling's character."
Page's role was originally set to go to Felicity Jones,...
- 9/29/2011
- by Tiberius
- GeekTyrant
Production has begun on Daryl Wein's Lola Versus. The film is from Groundswell Production's and Fox Searchlight Pictures and stars Greta Gerwig, Joel Kinnaman, Zoe Lister-Jones, Hamish Linklater, Debra Winger and Bill Pullman. Kinnaman (AMC's The Killing) replaces Orlando Bloom, who was initially cast in the role. Keep reading for the full press release for more details.
Official Press Release:
Groundswell Productions and Fox Searchlight Pictures announced today that principal photography for Lola Versus began today in New York City starring Greta Gerwig (Greenberg), Zoe Lister-Jones (Breaking Upwards), Joel Kinnaman (AMC’s "The Killing"), Hamish Linklater (The Future), three time Academy Award® nominee Debra Winger (Rachel Getting Married) and Bill Pullman (Igby Goes Down). Acclaimed New York-based filmmaker Daryl Wein (Breaking Upwards) is directing from an original screenplay he co-wrote with Lister-Jones. The film has been acquired and will be released in North America, UK, France and other major...
Official Press Release:
Groundswell Productions and Fox Searchlight Pictures announced today that principal photography for Lola Versus began today in New York City starring Greta Gerwig (Greenberg), Zoe Lister-Jones (Breaking Upwards), Joel Kinnaman (AMC’s "The Killing"), Hamish Linklater (The Future), three time Academy Award® nominee Debra Winger (Rachel Getting Married) and Bill Pullman (Igby Goes Down). Acclaimed New York-based filmmaker Daryl Wein (Breaking Upwards) is directing from an original screenplay he co-wrote with Lister-Jones. The film has been acquired and will be released in North America, UK, France and other major...
- 6/13/2011
- by Tiberius
- GeekTyrant
hollywoodnews.com: Groundswell Productions and Fox Searchlight Pictures announced today that principal photography for Lola Versus began today in New York City starring Greta Gerwig (Greenberg), Zoe Lister-Jones (Breaking Upwards), Joel Kinnaman (AMC?s “The Killing”), Hamish Linklater (The Future), three time Academy Award® nominee Debra Winger (Rachel Getting Married) and Bill Pullman (Igby Goes Down). Acclaimed New York-based filmmaker Daryl Wein (Breaking Upwards) is directing from an original screenplay he co-wrote with Lister-Jones. The film has been acquired and will be released in North America, UK, France and other major international territories by Fox Searchlight Pictures. Groundswell Productions is financing with Michael London and Jocelyn Hayes Simpson producing and Janice Williams executive producing. Lola Versus will be shot entirely on location in New York City.
With Lola Versus, Wein and Lister-Jones, a unique couple both professionally and personally, have crafted a comedic take on modern relationships told from the female perspective.
With Lola Versus, Wein and Lister-Jones, a unique couple both professionally and personally, have crafted a comedic take on modern relationships told from the female perspective.
- 6/13/2011
- by Josh Abraham
- Hollywoodnews.com
Looks like Romantic Comedies aren't dead. After backing James Franco lead perf in 127 Hours, Fox Searchlight will attempt to lure the actor with beaut Olivia Wilde under the mantle of the 2010 Black List favorite co-penned by Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister-Jones. Lola Versus originally had Anne Hathaway and then Nathalie Portman attached, but Wilde has been offered the part in a production I imagine Groundswell producers Jocelyn Hayes and Michael London are looking to set up sometime soon. Update: ThePlaylist have squashed this casting mention - Wilde is not onboard. Gist: A 29-year-old woman has to reevaluate her life after her longtime boyfriend calls off their wedding at the last minute. Worth Noting: This received 6 votes on the last year's Black List. Do We Care?: We imagine that this is a NYC-set comedy in the same tone as the pairs' previous Breaking Upwards - could be a breakout lead...
- 2/15/2011
- IONCINEMA.com
"Breaking Upwards" filmmakers and stars Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister Jones have sold the comedy pitch "Motherf*er" to 20th Century Fox reports Variety.
The story centres on a man who falls for a woman and when he is taken to meet her parents, he ends up falling for the girlfriend's mother.
Wein will direct from the script he co-wrote with Lister Jones. Michael London and Jocelyn Hayes will produce. The pair are also developing "Lola Versus" at Fox Searchlight with Anne Hathaway attached.
The story centres on a man who falls for a woman and when he is taken to meet her parents, he ends up falling for the girlfriend's mother.
Wein will direct from the script he co-wrote with Lister Jones. Michael London and Jocelyn Hayes will produce. The pair are also developing "Lola Versus" at Fox Searchlight with Anne Hathaway attached.
- 8/13/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
After working with the Duplass bros., Fox Searchlight are enlisting the help of another indie duo to fill up their future production slate. The creative team and real-life lovebirds behind the SXSW hit Breaking Upwards, have struck not one, but a second deal with Searchlight. Backed by Michael London's Groundswell Productions (whose All Good Things is currently looking for a huge festival release and a second buyer after the Weinsteins gave up on the title), Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister-Jones who just sold Lola Versus with Anne Hathaway attached, then successfully pitched another rom com going by what will be a fun title to market in Motherf***er. Wein and Lister-Jones will probably flesh out that script before Wein jump onto Lola Versus. Lister-Jones is pegged to co-star with Hathaway in Motherf***er, which tells the story centers on a man who falls in love with a woman, is...
- 8/12/2010
- IONCINEMA.com
Ewan McGregor and Carey Mulligan are in talks to star in Myriad Pictures' The Electric Slide , on which Tristan Patterson will make his directing debut. Patterson's screenplay is based on the article "The Yankee Bandit: The Life and Times of Eddie Dodson, World's Great Bank Robber," written by Timothy Ford for Gear magazine. In the 1980s, Dodson (McGregor) robbed more than 72 banks in the Los Angeles area before the FBI nailed him. Christine Vachon, Brad Simpson, Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Jocelyn Hayes are producing.
- 2/6/2009
- Comingsoon.net
- Like Gwyneth Paltrow before her, Julia Stiles is looking to fill the shoes of the the novelist and American poet Sylvia Plath. Plum and Stiles purchased the project from StudioCanal - Plum Pictures will produce in association with Killer Films. While Paltrow’s Sylvia directed by Christine Jeffs focused on the relationship aspects with her husband British poet Laureate Ted Hughes, this might peer into the author's alter-ego of sorts as it will be based and named after her autobiographical novel The Bell Jar. Playwright and screenwriter Tristine Skyler will adapt.This tells the story of Esther Greenwood, a young reporter who seeks to make a name for herself in New York but spirals into depression and moves back to Boston. She eventually undergoes electroshock therapy and makes several attempts to take her own life. Stiles will play Greenwood – who as Variety states is regarded as a veiled account of Plath's own life.
- 4/25/2007
- IONCINEMA.com
NEW YORK -- Julia Stiles will star in an adaptation of Sylvia Plath's autobiographical novel The Bell Jar and produce the feature with Plum Pictures in association with Killer Films.
Stiles and CAA spent two years optioning rights to the coveted project from French producers StudioCanal and closed the deal Friday. Plum partners Celine Rattray, Daniela Taplin Lundberg and Galt Niederhoffer will produce with Stiles. Killer Films' Christine Vachon and Jocelyn Hayes Simpson will executive produce.
The 1950s-era drama centers on young book editor Esther Greenwood (Stiles), who grows troubled by the social trappings of her time and slowly descends into mental illness. Principal photography is tentatively expected to begin in early 2008.
The film originally was brought to the screen in 1979 by AVCO Embassy Pictures with director Larry Peerce and star Marilyn Hassett. Since then, rights to the only novel by the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet (published around the time of her suicide in 1963) have been held by several parties.
Stiles and CAA spent two years optioning rights to the coveted project from French producers StudioCanal and closed the deal Friday. Plum partners Celine Rattray, Daniela Taplin Lundberg and Galt Niederhoffer will produce with Stiles. Killer Films' Christine Vachon and Jocelyn Hayes Simpson will executive produce.
The 1950s-era drama centers on young book editor Esther Greenwood (Stiles), who grows troubled by the social trappings of her time and slowly descends into mental illness. Principal photography is tentatively expected to begin in early 2008.
The film originally was brought to the screen in 1979 by AVCO Embassy Pictures with director Larry Peerce and star Marilyn Hassett. Since then, rights to the only novel by the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet (published around the time of her suicide in 1963) have been held by several parties.
- 4/25/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
It wasn't intended this way. Nevertheless, "Infamous" gives you the unique opportunity to see how two sets of filmmakers can take exactly the same story, make extremely tough though different choices in emphasis and tone and achieve brilliant movies. "Infamous" follows Truman Capote on his tortuous and ultimately soul-damaging six-year quest to write his masterpiece, "In Cold Blood", just as the Oscar-winning "Capote" did last year.
Which raises the question: Will "Infamous" be hurt by being released a year later? You would think people who enjoyed "Capote" and Philip Seymour Hoffman's amazing impersonation of that famous, self-aggrandizing writer would want to see the new film. Then again, there may be "Truman fatigue". "Capote" grossed $28.7 million at the domestic boxoffice, so you figure "Infamous" should at least make it past the $20 million mark.
Naturally, both films rely heavily on the central performance. English stage actor Toby Jones certainly looks like Truman Capote. Jones is small, and he makes this one of the keys to understanding this contradictory figure. His imitation of Capote's high-pitched voice and gloriously fey manner is equal to Hoffman's, but his emphasis is less on Tru the tortured author than on his lonely, yearning soul.
His Truman is a man on a lifelong, unrequited search for love. The great irony is that he comes closest to achieving this quest with four-time killer Perry Smith.
Here is where the two movies crucially diverge. "Infamous" spends much longer in the prison cell where the writer and his subject engage in a courtship that results in Perry opening up to Truman and allowing him to write his book. Daniel Craig plays the psychopath with a divided heart. As Truman says, "the tender and the terrible" dwell within him side by side. One side wars against the other, igniting rages that may well have fed the 1959 killing spree in Holcomb, Kansas.
"Infamous" covers the same time period as "Capote": from 1959 until the executions of Perry and his partner Dick Hickock (Lee Pace) in 1965. There are superficial similarities in how the movies juxtapose two dramatically different worlds -- plain-folks Kansas and forbidding prison cells in contrast to the martini-soaked, name-dropping, gossip-fixated Manhattan set where Truman's wit and literary fame made him the toast of many parties.
"Infamous" adds one more juicy ingredient. The movie is based on George Plimpton's oral biography, "Truman Capote: In Which Various Friends, Enemies, Acquaintances and Detractors Recall His Turbulent Career." So you get not only barbed "interviews" with the likes of author Gore Vidal (Michael Panes) but parties and boozy lunches with Babe Paley (Sigourney Weaver), wife of CBS chairman William Paley; Neapolitan princess Marella Agnelli (Isabella Rossellini); socialite Slim Keith (Hope Davis); and Vogue editor Diana Vreeland (Juliet Stevenson). The movie even opens with Gwyneth Paltrow as Peggy Lee, singing and breaking down over "What Is This Thing Called Love?" That question haunts the rest of the movie.
According to "Infamous", Truman and Perry fall for each other. The author's seduction of the murderer for the sake of his book exposes each to a weird sort of alter ego: Both men had fathers who disappeared and disappointed and mothers who committed suicide. Both were greedy for attention. Truman earned his, but Perry had to kill four people.
Truman is accompanied to Kansas by childhood friend and fellow author Harper Lee (Sandra Bullock). She acts as guide and guardian for this strange little man, who initially is hapless and lost in the Midwest. But in this version, she gradually drifts to the sidelines while remaining a confidante and sounding board as the movie shifts from mannered comedy to gripping drama.
Jeff Daniels finds many layers in the role of Alvin Dewey, the Kansas police inspector who must be gradually and grudgingly won over to Truman's cause. Peter Bogdanovich is quite good as Bennett Cerf, the affable editor who ushers "In Cold Blood" into print.
Without the usual fuss and feathers of period pieces, cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel and designer Judy Becker make the past come wonderfully alive. Rachel Portman's melancholy score contributes to the film's sense of regret. For in "Infamous" Truman finds himself in love with a man who needs to die for him to achieve his goal. That kills him spiritually. It is a fact that Capote never finished another book.
INFAMOUS
Warner Independent
Killer Films/John Wells Prods.
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Douglas McGrath
Based on the book by: George Plimpton
Producers: Christine Vachon, Jocelyn Hayes, Anne Walker-McBay
Executive producer: John Wells
Director of photography: Bruno Delbonnel
Production designer: Judy Becker
Music: Rachel Portman
Costumes: Ruth Myers
Editor: Camilla Toniolo
Cast:
Truman Capote: Toby Jones
Harper Lee: Sandra Bullock
Perry Smith: Daniel Craig
Dick Hickock: Lee Pace
Bennett Cerf: Peter Bogdanovich
Alvin Dewey: Jeff Daniels
Slim Keith: Hope Davis
Peggy Lee: Gwyneth Paltrow
Marella Angelli: Isabella Rossellini
Diana Vreeland: Juliet Stevenson
Babe Paley: Sigourney Weaver
MPAA rating R
Running time -- 118 minutes...
Which raises the question: Will "Infamous" be hurt by being released a year later? You would think people who enjoyed "Capote" and Philip Seymour Hoffman's amazing impersonation of that famous, self-aggrandizing writer would want to see the new film. Then again, there may be "Truman fatigue". "Capote" grossed $28.7 million at the domestic boxoffice, so you figure "Infamous" should at least make it past the $20 million mark.
Naturally, both films rely heavily on the central performance. English stage actor Toby Jones certainly looks like Truman Capote. Jones is small, and he makes this one of the keys to understanding this contradictory figure. His imitation of Capote's high-pitched voice and gloriously fey manner is equal to Hoffman's, but his emphasis is less on Tru the tortured author than on his lonely, yearning soul.
His Truman is a man on a lifelong, unrequited search for love. The great irony is that he comes closest to achieving this quest with four-time killer Perry Smith.
Here is where the two movies crucially diverge. "Infamous" spends much longer in the prison cell where the writer and his subject engage in a courtship that results in Perry opening up to Truman and allowing him to write his book. Daniel Craig plays the psychopath with a divided heart. As Truman says, "the tender and the terrible" dwell within him side by side. One side wars against the other, igniting rages that may well have fed the 1959 killing spree in Holcomb, Kansas.
"Infamous" covers the same time period as "Capote": from 1959 until the executions of Perry and his partner Dick Hickock (Lee Pace) in 1965. There are superficial similarities in how the movies juxtapose two dramatically different worlds -- plain-folks Kansas and forbidding prison cells in contrast to the martini-soaked, name-dropping, gossip-fixated Manhattan set where Truman's wit and literary fame made him the toast of many parties.
"Infamous" adds one more juicy ingredient. The movie is based on George Plimpton's oral biography, "Truman Capote: In Which Various Friends, Enemies, Acquaintances and Detractors Recall His Turbulent Career." So you get not only barbed "interviews" with the likes of author Gore Vidal (Michael Panes) but parties and boozy lunches with Babe Paley (Sigourney Weaver), wife of CBS chairman William Paley; Neapolitan princess Marella Agnelli (Isabella Rossellini); socialite Slim Keith (Hope Davis); and Vogue editor Diana Vreeland (Juliet Stevenson). The movie even opens with Gwyneth Paltrow as Peggy Lee, singing and breaking down over "What Is This Thing Called Love?" That question haunts the rest of the movie.
According to "Infamous", Truman and Perry fall for each other. The author's seduction of the murderer for the sake of his book exposes each to a weird sort of alter ego: Both men had fathers who disappeared and disappointed and mothers who committed suicide. Both were greedy for attention. Truman earned his, but Perry had to kill four people.
Truman is accompanied to Kansas by childhood friend and fellow author Harper Lee (Sandra Bullock). She acts as guide and guardian for this strange little man, who initially is hapless and lost in the Midwest. But in this version, she gradually drifts to the sidelines while remaining a confidante and sounding board as the movie shifts from mannered comedy to gripping drama.
Jeff Daniels finds many layers in the role of Alvin Dewey, the Kansas police inspector who must be gradually and grudgingly won over to Truman's cause. Peter Bogdanovich is quite good as Bennett Cerf, the affable editor who ushers "In Cold Blood" into print.
Without the usual fuss and feathers of period pieces, cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel and designer Judy Becker make the past come wonderfully alive. Rachel Portman's melancholy score contributes to the film's sense of regret. For in "Infamous" Truman finds himself in love with a man who needs to die for him to achieve his goal. That kills him spiritually. It is a fact that Capote never finished another book.
INFAMOUS
Warner Independent
Killer Films/John Wells Prods.
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Douglas McGrath
Based on the book by: George Plimpton
Producers: Christine Vachon, Jocelyn Hayes, Anne Walker-McBay
Executive producer: John Wells
Director of photography: Bruno Delbonnel
Production designer: Judy Becker
Music: Rachel Portman
Costumes: Ruth Myers
Editor: Camilla Toniolo
Cast:
Truman Capote: Toby Jones
Harper Lee: Sandra Bullock
Perry Smith: Daniel Craig
Dick Hickock: Lee Pace
Bennett Cerf: Peter Bogdanovich
Alvin Dewey: Jeff Daniels
Slim Keith: Hope Davis
Peggy Lee: Gwyneth Paltrow
Marella Angelli: Isabella Rossellini
Diana Vreeland: Juliet Stevenson
Babe Paley: Sigourney Weaver
MPAA rating R
Running time -- 118 minutes...
ROME -- The world premiere of Douglas McGrath's Infamous, a biopic about writer Truman Capote, will open the 63rd Venice International Film Festival, organizers said Tuesday. The film will screen Aug. 31 as the Horizon Selection at the Venice event. It stars Toby Jones as Capote and features a star-studded cast including Sandra Bullock, Daniel Craig, Lee Pace, Peter Bogdanovich, Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis, Gwyneth Paltrow, Isabella Rossellini, Juliet Stevenson and Sigourney Weaver. Based on George Plimpton's book "Truman Capote: In Which Various Friends, Enemies, Acquaintances and Detractors Recall His Turbulent Career," Infamous recounts the part of Capote's life in which he investigates the crime that became the central part of his classic book In Cold Blood. With the help of Harper Lee (Bullock), Capote interviews murderers Perry Smith Craig) and Dick Hickock (Pace) in order to explore their psychologies. Produced by Jocelyn Hayes, Anne Walker-McBay and Christine Vachon, the film will be released worldwide by Warner Independent Pictures in October. The Venice festival runs Aug. 30-Sept. 9.
- 6/27/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
LONDON -- U.K.-based production company Number 9 Films has teamed with New York based Killer Films to produce The Lonely Doll, based on the life story of Dare Wright, the author and photographer of the children's book of the same name. Number 9 chief Elizabeth Karlsen will produce the project alongside Killer's Christine Vachon, Pamela Koffler and Jocelyn Hayes. John Wells, Stephen Woolley and Paul White will serve as executive producers.
Michael Cunningham's 1990 novel makes an assured, if not entirely satisfying, transition to the big screen in this terrifically acted exploration of the bonds that transcend traditional notions of family.
Although gay men will identify most with the story of love between longtime friends, the literary pedigree and tender emotional tone of "A Home at the End of the World", as well as the presence of Colin Farrell, could attract a far broader art house audience. The film closed Los Angeles' Outfest on Monday before its theatrical bow Friday as the second release from Warner Independent Pictures.
In adapting his novel -- which traverses two decades, from the giddiness of the late '60s to the onset of the AIDS epidemic -- Cunningham ("The Hours") has reduced its complexity and detail. While accomplished theater director Michael Mayer ("Side Man") orchestrates the material with a feel for its intimacy as well as its social sweep, the later sections of the story are more static than they should be, muting the film's impact.
Without the book's penetrating descriptive prose, the dialogue too often sounds like the pointed eloquence of literary characters -- especially in the late going, when the story grows increasingly episodic and the characters begin to feel less like individuals than generational symbols.
Still, Mayer displays a true affinity for actors, and his cast delivers subtle work. As the central character, a young man caught between innocence and experience, joy and loss, versatile Irish actor Farrell evinces more vulnerability and ingenuousness than he's yet shown onscreen. (But he doesn't show everything: A full-frontal shot of the actor proved too distracting for audiences and didn't make the final edit.)
The story begins in 1967 Cleveland, where 9-year-old Bobby (Andrew Chalmers) worships his older brother, Carlton (Ryan Donowho), a lanky, self-possessed teen so at ease in the world that he seems to lower its pulse. They trip together on acid and their own wild potential. When Carlton dies in a horrific accident, it's the beginning of Bobby's unmooring from his nuclear family.
By the time he's orphaned at 16 (Erik Smith plays the teenage Bobby) and moves in with his best friend, Jonathan (Harris Allan), he has long since become an integral part of that household. He and Jonathan's mother (Sissy Spacek) enjoy a deep connection, beginning with the lovely scene, complete with Laura Nyro on the stereo, when Bobby turns Alice on to pot.
Having experienced brutal loss so young, Bobby looks upon the people he cares about with a sweetly unfocused gaze, as though he dare not tempt fate by attaching himself to anyone again. Even when he and Jonathan add sex to their relationship, Bobby views their actions merely as an expression of free-floating love.
When Bobby and Jonathan reconnect as young adults -- played by Farrell and the impressive Dallas Roberts, in his first major screen role -- Bobby is yet again joining Jonathan's household. This time it's an East Village walkup Jonathan shares with the exuberant Clare (Robin Penn Wright), survivor of a bad marriage. She's in love with Jonathan, who's still in love with Bobby and moving restlessly through a succession of one-night stands. The trio navigate their unresolved longings, toward a tentative equilibrium.
Clare is the kind of role that could be a bohemian cliche in lesser hands, but the redoubtable Wright Penn transcends the character's showiness, infusing her with an aching hope. She and Roberts convey the fragility beneath their characters' banter, while Farrell embodies Bobby's guileless charm.
But as strong as the performances of Farrell, Roberts and Wright Penn are, the film's early sections are its most affecting. From the apt period tracks by Nyro, Leonard Cohen and the Band to the patterned fabrics of Beth Pasternak's costumes and Michael Shaw's evocative production design, the Ohio scenes are alive with the birth pangs of a new world. The young actors, who are excellent physical matches for their adult counterparts, provide outstanding work.
Throughout, Enrique Chediak's widescreen camerawork is intimate and vivid. Duncan Sheik's understated score enhances the polished production.
A HOME AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Warner Independent Pictures
Killer Films/John Wells Prods./Hart Sharp Entertainment/Plymouth Projects
Credits:
Director: Michael Mayer
Screenwriter: Michael Cunningham
Producers: Tom Hulce, Katie Roumel, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon, John N. Hart Jr., Jeffrey Sharp, John Wells
Executive producers: John Sloss, Michael Hogan
Director of photography: Enrique Chediak
Production designer: Michael Shaw
Music: Duncan Sheik
Co-producers: Jocelyn Hayes, Bradford Simpson, Robert Kessel, Julia Rask
Costume designer: Beth Pasternak
Editors: Lee Percy, Andrew Marcus
Cast:
Bobby Morrow: Colin Farrell
Clare: Robin Wright Penn
Jonathan: Dallas Roberts
Alice Glover: Sissy Spacek
Bobby (1974): Erik Smith
Jonathan (1974): Harris Allan
Carlton: Ryan Donowho
Bobby (1967): Andrew Chalmers
Ned Glover: Matt Frewer
Running time -- 97 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
Although gay men will identify most with the story of love between longtime friends, the literary pedigree and tender emotional tone of "A Home at the End of the World", as well as the presence of Colin Farrell, could attract a far broader art house audience. The film closed Los Angeles' Outfest on Monday before its theatrical bow Friday as the second release from Warner Independent Pictures.
In adapting his novel -- which traverses two decades, from the giddiness of the late '60s to the onset of the AIDS epidemic -- Cunningham ("The Hours") has reduced its complexity and detail. While accomplished theater director Michael Mayer ("Side Man") orchestrates the material with a feel for its intimacy as well as its social sweep, the later sections of the story are more static than they should be, muting the film's impact.
Without the book's penetrating descriptive prose, the dialogue too often sounds like the pointed eloquence of literary characters -- especially in the late going, when the story grows increasingly episodic and the characters begin to feel less like individuals than generational symbols.
Still, Mayer displays a true affinity for actors, and his cast delivers subtle work. As the central character, a young man caught between innocence and experience, joy and loss, versatile Irish actor Farrell evinces more vulnerability and ingenuousness than he's yet shown onscreen. (But he doesn't show everything: A full-frontal shot of the actor proved too distracting for audiences and didn't make the final edit.)
The story begins in 1967 Cleveland, where 9-year-old Bobby (Andrew Chalmers) worships his older brother, Carlton (Ryan Donowho), a lanky, self-possessed teen so at ease in the world that he seems to lower its pulse. They trip together on acid and their own wild potential. When Carlton dies in a horrific accident, it's the beginning of Bobby's unmooring from his nuclear family.
By the time he's orphaned at 16 (Erik Smith plays the teenage Bobby) and moves in with his best friend, Jonathan (Harris Allan), he has long since become an integral part of that household. He and Jonathan's mother (Sissy Spacek) enjoy a deep connection, beginning with the lovely scene, complete with Laura Nyro on the stereo, when Bobby turns Alice on to pot.
Having experienced brutal loss so young, Bobby looks upon the people he cares about with a sweetly unfocused gaze, as though he dare not tempt fate by attaching himself to anyone again. Even when he and Jonathan add sex to their relationship, Bobby views their actions merely as an expression of free-floating love.
When Bobby and Jonathan reconnect as young adults -- played by Farrell and the impressive Dallas Roberts, in his first major screen role -- Bobby is yet again joining Jonathan's household. This time it's an East Village walkup Jonathan shares with the exuberant Clare (Robin Penn Wright), survivor of a bad marriage. She's in love with Jonathan, who's still in love with Bobby and moving restlessly through a succession of one-night stands. The trio navigate their unresolved longings, toward a tentative equilibrium.
Clare is the kind of role that could be a bohemian cliche in lesser hands, but the redoubtable Wright Penn transcends the character's showiness, infusing her with an aching hope. She and Roberts convey the fragility beneath their characters' banter, while Farrell embodies Bobby's guileless charm.
But as strong as the performances of Farrell, Roberts and Wright Penn are, the film's early sections are its most affecting. From the apt period tracks by Nyro, Leonard Cohen and the Band to the patterned fabrics of Beth Pasternak's costumes and Michael Shaw's evocative production design, the Ohio scenes are alive with the birth pangs of a new world. The young actors, who are excellent physical matches for their adult counterparts, provide outstanding work.
Throughout, Enrique Chediak's widescreen camerawork is intimate and vivid. Duncan Sheik's understated score enhances the polished production.
A HOME AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Warner Independent Pictures
Killer Films/John Wells Prods./Hart Sharp Entertainment/Plymouth Projects
Credits:
Director: Michael Mayer
Screenwriter: Michael Cunningham
Producers: Tom Hulce, Katie Roumel, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon, John N. Hart Jr., Jeffrey Sharp, John Wells
Executive producers: John Sloss, Michael Hogan
Director of photography: Enrique Chediak
Production designer: Michael Shaw
Music: Duncan Sheik
Co-producers: Jocelyn Hayes, Bradford Simpson, Robert Kessel, Julia Rask
Costume designer: Beth Pasternak
Editors: Lee Percy, Andrew Marcus
Cast:
Bobby Morrow: Colin Farrell
Clare: Robin Wright Penn
Jonathan: Dallas Roberts
Alice Glover: Sissy Spacek
Bobby (1974): Erik Smith
Jonathan (1974): Harris Allan
Carlton: Ryan Donowho
Bobby (1967): Andrew Chalmers
Ned Glover: Matt Frewer
Running time -- 97 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
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