Tag: casey affleck

Watch Universal Pictures TOWER HEIST Trailer

Director Brett Ratner is at it again in this new trailer for the comedy caper TOWER HEIST. The film stars Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, Casey Affleck, Alan Alda, Matthew Broderick, Judd Hirsch, Téa Leoni, Michael Peña and Gabourey Sidibe.

Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy lead an all-star cast in TOWER HEIST, a comedy caper about working stiffs who seek revenge on the Wall Street swindler who stiffed them. After the workers at a luxury Central Park condominium discover the penthouse billionaire has stolen their retirement, they plot the ultimate revenge: a heist to reclaim what he took from them.

Queens native Josh Kovacs (Stiller) has managed one of the most luxurious and well-secured residences in New York City for more than a decade. Under his watchful eye, nothing goes undetected. In the swankiest unit atop Josh’s building, Wall Street titan Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) is under house arrest after being caught stealing two billion from his investors. The hardest hit among those he defrauded? The tower staffers whose pensions he was entrusted to manage.

With only days before Arthur gets away with the perfect crime, Josh’s crew turns to petty crook Slide (Murphy) to plan the nearly impossible…to steal what they are sure is hidden in Arthur’s guarded condo. Though amateurs, these rookie thieves know the building better than anyone. Turns out they’ve been casing the place for years, they just didn’t know it.

TOWER HEIST breaks into theaters November 4, 2011

Visit the film’s official site: http://towerheist.net/#home “Like” the film on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/towerheist

Affleck Announces I’M STILL HERE is FAKE!

I don’t like to brag… BUT I TOLD YOU!!!

Casey Affleck admits that I’M STILL HERE is fictional.

The New York Times spilled the beans today:

“It’s a terrific performance, it’s the performance of his career,” Mr. Affleck said. He was speaking of Mr. Phoenix’s two-year portrayal of himself — on screen and off — as a bearded, drug-addled aspiring rap star, who, as Mr. Affleck tells it, put his professional life on the line to star in a bit of “gonzo filmmaking” modeled on the reality-bending journalism of Hunter S. Thompson.

Virtually none of it was real. Not even the opening shots, supposedly of Mr. Phoenix and his siblings swimming in a water hole in Panama. That, Mr. Affleck said, was actually shot in Hawaii with actors, then run back and forth on top of an old videocassette recording of “Paris, Texas” to degrade the images.

“I never intended to trick anybody,” said Mr. Affleck, an intense 35-year-old who spoke over a meat-free, cheese-free vegetable sandwich on Thursday. “The idea of a quote, hoax, unquote, never entered my mind.”

So, there you have it folks… Also, they report that David Letterman was never knowledgeable about what was going on. I am guessing there will be some pretty interesting jokes about this to come!

Source: The New York Times

Review: I’M STILL HERE

Wow, this movie is…um… something else.

I’m Still Here is a (supposed) look into the life of Joaquin Phoenix. Casey Affleck films a year of Phoenix’s life as he tries to reinvent himself as a hip hop artist. You see Phoenix flip out, take a ridiculous amount of drugs, order prostitutes, and get shit on by his longtime friend and assistant. I meant that last part literally. Phoenix let his appearance and sanity go for the length of the film, looking like he hadn’t showered in months.

Let’s go ahead and point out the loopholes in this film. In order to do this I am going to start at the end. In the credits it says that the film is written by Casey Affleck and Joaquin Phoenix. Why would a documentary need to be written? Secondly, in the credits, Danny DeVito’s stand in was said to be named one thing, and actually has a different name. He was playing a role. This whole thing makes no sense.

If you are a two time Oscar nominee, with a successful career, I can see being overwhelmed and going crazy, or even giving it up to do something else. Phoenix doesn’t talk the same as he once did, his hair is filthy and matted, and he decides to let film get out where he is taking a ton of drugs? This just doesn’t make sense. Also, for someone as musically talented as he is, his rap music is horrible! Either he went off the deep end and his brother in law Affleck is making a profit off it, not caring about Phoenix’s well being, or this is a hoax. My guess is that this is a hoax.

Plus, if this is a serious film, would Phoenix or Affleck really want to show their families that Phoenix is snorting cocaine, smoking weed, and drinking all the time? Or that he has resorted to ordering prostitutes for company? This has to be a hoax… Otherwise it is career suicide!

And I am just going to throw this out there… WHY WAS HIS BEST FRIEND/ASSISTANT ALWAYS NAKED??? We are talking full penis action! I don’t need to see this! It only added to the bizarre nonsense of the film.

This movie is either an extremely sad look into the life of someone in need of some serious help, or just one big joke. If this is fictional, I hope that they aren’t trying to pass it off as a serious  film. Sure, it’s entertaining… but I don’t think that it is anything that special.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 out of 5 stars

I’M STILL HERE Teaser Trailer

From Magnolia Pictures (via YAHOO! Movies) comes this first teaser trailer for Casey Affleck’s documentary I’M STILL HERE.

Boy I hope this just a “Leaf” phase that Phoenix is going through. I guess all my hopes for a SPACECAMP 2 are just a sad pipedream now.

Synopsis:

The directorial debut of Oscar-nominated actor Casey Affleck, I’M STILL HERE is a striking portrayal of a tumultuous year in the life of internationally acclaimed actor Joaquin Phoenix. With remarkable access, I’M STILL HERE follows the Oscar-nominee as he announces his retirement from a successful film career in the fall of 2008 and sets off to reinvent himself as a hip hop musician. Sometimes funny, sometimes shocking, and always riveting, the film is a portrait of an artist at a crossroads. Defying expectations, it deftly explores notions of courage and creative reinvention, as well as the ramifications of a life spent in the public eye.

I’M STILL HERE will be in theaters on September 10, 2010. Click here to see the film’s official website, become a fan on Facebook and follow it on Twitter.

Magnolia Pictures Takes World Rights to I’M STILL HERE

It’s been talked about since June, but now its official…

New York, July 14, 2010. The Wagner/Cuban Companies’ Magnolia Pictures announced today that it has acquired world rights to Oscar-nominee Casey Affleck’s directorial debut, I’M STILL HERE, a striking portrayal of a tumultuous year in the life of internationally acclaimed actor Joaquin Phoenix.

With remarkable access, I’M STILL HERE follows the Oscar-nominee as he announces his retirement from a successful film career in the fall of 2008 and sets off to reinvent himself as a hip hop musician. Sometimes funny, sometimes shocking, and always riveting, the film is a portrait of an artist at a crossroads. Defying expectations, it deftly explores notions of courage and creative reinvention, as well as the ramifications of a life spent in the public eye.

Magnolia will release I’M STILL HERE on Friday, September 10th.

The deal was negotiated by Magnolia’s SVP Tom Quinn, Acquisitions VP Dori Begley and Head of Business Affairs Chris Matson, with Liesl Copland for WME Global.

Review: THE KILLER INSIDE ME

Review originally published on June 11, 2010

Based on the pulp novel of the same name by Jim Thompson, this film follows West Texas deputy sheriff Lou Ford (Casey Affleck) as he somewhat abruptly succumbs to the sociopathic tendencies that apparently have troubled him since childhood.  I suppose I could elaborate a little more on the finer points of the plot, but honestly, there isn’t much else to it.  While I have not read the source material for the film, I would expect that the plot was full of twists and surprises, lots of sex and violence, and at least a modicum of moral anguish from the central character as he spirals out of control.  If any of those things were executed well in the book, they were poorly adapted on-screen.

The opening scenes show a seemingly-upstanding Ford commence a violent affair with Joyce (Jessica Alba), a prostitute whom Ford eventually agrees to help in a blackmail scheme against a man that Ford claims as a friend.  As this early twist proceeds, we see pieces of Ford’s past and learn why he would agree to something that initially seems so out out of character for him.  After the scheme is played out, the rest of the movie is focused on Ford’s attempts to escape the ramifications of his actions.  In a better written movie, it would seem like Ford was caught in a web of his own deceit, but here it seems more like a linear path of predictable obstacles and even more predictable solutions.  There are subplots involving Ford’s dead half-brother, a union boss and the District Attorney (both of whom may or may not be wise to Ford’s crimes), and flashbacks of Ford’s mother, who apparently is to blame for his currently unbalanced mental state.  Ultimately, none of these stories are very well explained or resolved.

The tone of the movie certainly has the darkness you would expect from a pulp film, perhaps a little too much.  The sex scenes are graphic and the violence is not shied away from, but both elements are overplayed and seem less like necessities and more like distractions from an otherwise empty plot.

The one compelling element of the film was Casey Affleck.  I may catch some flak for this, but I thought his performance was quite good considering how little help he had in the script.  His quiet, high-pitched voice and polite demeanor are stark contrasts to the acts of gruesome violence he perpetrates.  Kate Hudson also shines as Ford’s smart, gritty, and long-suffering girlfriend Amy Stanton.  Jessica Alba, however, is vapid and unbelievable as the scheming prostitute, Joyce.

This film is certainly engrossing, but in all the wrong ways.  The plot is confusing, the tone is unsettling and awkward, and even the better actors’ performances are stunted by a clunky script.

Overall Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Review: THE KILLER INSIDE ME

Based on the pulp novel of the same name by Jim Thompson, this film follows West Texas deputy sheriff Lou Ford (Casey Affleck) as he somewhat abruptly succumbs to the sociopathic tendencies that apparently have troubled him since childhood.  I suppose I could elaborate a little more on the finer points of the plot, but honestly, there isn’t much else to it.  While I have not read the source material for the film, I would expect that the plot was full of twists and surprises, lots of sex and violence, and at least a modicum of moral anguish from the central character as he spirals out of control.  If any of those things were executed well in the book, they were poorly adapted on-screen.

The opening scenes show a seemingly-upstanding Ford commence a violent affair with Joyce (Jessica Alba), a prostitute whom Ford eventually agrees to help in a blackmail scheme against a man that Ford claims as a friend.  As this early twist proceeds, we see pieces of Ford’s past and learn why he would agree to something that initially seems so out out of character for him.  After the scheme is played out, the rest of the movie is focused on Ford’s attempts to escape the ramifications of his actions.  In a better written movie, it would seem like Ford was caught in a web of his own deceit, but here it seems more like a linear path of predictable obstacles and even more predictable solutions.  There are subplots involving Ford’s dead half-brother, a union boss and the District Attorney (both of whom may or may not be wise to Ford’s crimes), and flashbacks of Ford’s mother, who apparently is to blame for his currently unbalanced mental state.  Ultimately, none of these stories are very well explained or resolved.

The tone of the movie certainly has the darkness you would expect from a pulp film, perhaps a little too much.  The sex scenes are graphic and the violence is not shied away from, but both elements are overplayed and seem less like necessities and more like distractions from an otherwise empty plot.

The one compelling element of the film was Casey Affleck.  I may catch some flak for this, but I thought his performance was quite good considering how little help he had in the script.  His quiet, high-pitched voice and polite demeanor are stark contrasts to the acts of gruesome violence he perpetrates.  Kate Hudson also shines as Ford’s smart, gritty, and long-suffering girlfriend Amy Stanton.  Jessica Alba, however, is vapid and unbelievable as the scheming prostitute, Joyce.

This film is certainly engrossing, but in all the wrong ways.  The plot is confusing, the tone is unsettling and awkward, and even the better actors’ performances are stunted by a clunky script.

Overall Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Casey Affleck Speaks Out About Joaquin Phoenix

What happened to Joaquin Phoenix? That’s a question lots of people have asked, and whether you feel he’s has a real change in his life or if this is merely a gigantic publicity stunt, one thing is for sure… Phoenix has been a little weird lately.

Now, Casey Affleck has spoken out about the last year of Joaquin Phoenix’s life and the “documentary” that he has made of that year of the former actor, now turned rapper. The film is called I’M STILL HERE: THE LOST YEAR OF JOAQUIN PHOENIX and is currently looking for distribution.

Anyone who watches TV is surely aware of Phoenix’s most recognizable moment of weirdness lately, when he appeared bearded and shaded on the LATE SHOW with David Letterman. It was one of those “What the… this can’t be for real” moments.

Well, according to early reports from west coast sources who’ve seen the film and the interview with Casey Affleck on ABC News Now’s Popcorn with Peter Travers, the film contains some things that may just make you believe, without a shadow of a doubt, that I’M STILL HERE is either a BORAT-style mockumentary, or else Joaquin Phoenix truly has blown a fuse.

Paramount Lets Rights to ‘Torso’ Lapse

Evidently, it doesn’t matter that a director can bring a studio a film that grosses over $100 million and 13 Oscar nominations.   Paramount has let the rights to David Fincher’s next project, ‘Torso’, lapse.

The film, based on the graphic novel by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Andreyko, tells the story of the real life “Torso Murderer”, who killed people between 1934 and 1938 and only left the torsos of his victims.   The investigator on the case of Eliot Ness, the former head of The Untouchables.

Paramount and Fincher had been planning to do the film since 2006.   Matt Damon and Casey Affleck were among the stars on board.

Paramount had the ability to re-up the rights option up until last month.   At that time, the studio would have had to purchase the rights altogether.   Paramount still owns the rights to Ehren Kruger’s screenplay adaptation, and discussions are underway with the graphic novels writers to strike a new deal.   Fincher and the producers are still attached.

“It’s a weird and odd situation,” Bendis said. “We heard it was green lit one day, then the next we heard it wasn’t. Hopefully, it’ll have a happy ending.”

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Review: ‘Gone Baby Gone’

Zac:

Another movie dealing with the loss of a child, this one excels on pretty much every level. Gone Baby Gone is an adaptation of the Dennis Lehane(Mystic River) novel by Ben Affleck in his directorial debut. I have always been a fan of Affleck and I am glad that he does a great job here which is supported by his great cast.
Leading the cast is Ben’s brother Casey who, along with Jesse James, is having a breakthrough year. Casey is just as good here as he is in Jesse James but is playing a completely different animal. As a private investigator contracted to help with the “neighborhood” investigation of the disappearance of a little girl he is a great as the evolving investigator gaining experience on the job. Affleck is accompanied by his girlfriend, Michelle Monaghan who helps with the detective work; though Affleck is usually figuring out most of the turns. As Affleck moves through his investigation we find twists and turns and fall onto some unexpected paths with some amazing tense scenes that get the blood rushing and wont let up.
The rest of the cast is rounded out by a couple of legends, Morgan Freeman as a police captain and Ed Harris as the cases detective. Freeman is more in the background, but good as always, while Ed Harris is fantastic as the rough detective willing to do anything to get the girl. He gets so intense and so scary with some of the investigated sometimes you are glad you don’t have to deal with his tactics.
Another great turn is by, Amy Ryan, as the mother of the missing girl. You completely forget she is some actor and totally buy into her as this horrible druggie mother that is lost in the trash and underworld of Boston. You just don’t really like her, might even hate her, yet she maintains some sympathy. But when you really hate a character, you know the actor is doing a pretty damn good job.
Ben Affleck does a great job at making this movie feel real as well, which makes it easy to buy into the world. No one is really attractive in this, its gritty and dirty, and it’s a place I wouldn’t want to be in. Even Amy Ryan and Michelle Monaghan some how manage to be not very appealing for being beautiful women. As the rest of the directing duties go, Affleck has some great moody scenes and shoots tension incredibly well and crafted a story that for the most part stays entertaining; rarely slowing up at all.
The movie is carried by a good story with great actors doing what they are supposed to do for a fantastic debut for Ben Affleck as a director. I hope he gets behind and in front of the camera a lot more in the future and that is brother becomes the star that he deserves to be sooner, rather than later.

[rating: 4.5/5]