Vertical has acquired U.S. rights to the sci-fi thriller, ELEVATION, helmed by director George Nolfi (The Adjustment Bureau) and from A Quiet Place and The Purge franchise producer Brad Fuller. With a screenplay penned by the creative minds of John Glenn (Eagle Eye), Jacob Roman and Kenny Ryan (SEAL Team), the film is set in a post-apocalyptic Rocky Mountains, where a single father and two women venture from the safety of their homes to face monstrous creatures to save the life of a young boy. Starring Anthony Mackie (Marvel’s Captain America Franchise), Morena Baccarin (Deadpool franchise), Maddie Hasson (Malignant), and Danny Boyd Jr. (Bruised), the film is set to release in U.S. theaters later this year.
Vertical Partner Peter Jarowey commented, “Elevation brings together a world-class group of seasoned professionals, who have combined the fruits of their craft to deliver a film that is not only thrilling but also delivers a cinematic scope that we seldom see outside of the studio system. Its compelling visual elements provide an elevated feel that sets the film apart from the traditional ‘creature feature.’ We look forward to working with George, Brad, and the team to unveil the film to audiences.”
“Working with Anthony Mackie, for a third time now, Morena Baccarin, and the rest of our exceptional cast and crew to bring this innovative screenplay to life was a blast. Anthony, Morena, and the rest of the team dove in head first (sometimes literally) as we shot action scenes in some extremely challenging places — from a working ski lift high in the Colorado Rockies, to an active mine under a mile of rock — all to enhance the theatrical experience of the film. We are thrilled to partner with Vertical to put this film in theaters all across the country later this year.”
The film’s producers include Fuller, Nolfi, John Glenn, Lyrical Media’s Alex Black and Natalie Sellers Jeremy Kipp Walker, Joel Viertel, and Anthony Mackie. Lyrical’s Jon Rosenberg served as executive producer and the company led the development, production, and financing of the project.
Vertical’s Jarowey and SVP of Acquisitions Tony Piantedosi negotiated the deal on behalf of Vertical; UTA’s Independent Film Group and CAA Media Finance negotiated the deal on behalf of the production.
THE LAST STAND is the movie you didn’t even realize you wanted to see. With his return to motion picture stardom, after a decade of “favor to a friend” cameos in movies like THE RUNDOWN and THE EXPENDABLES 1 and 2, this is the action superstar’s first leading role, having left acting to serve as the “Governator” of California, and while it may not have occurred to you to miss him during that time, it’s still surprisingly good to see him on the big screen again. Korean director Kim Jee-Woon’s, working from a script by Andrew Knauer, Jeffrey Nachmanoff and George Nolfi, keeps things moving quickly in his American film-making debut turns out to be an extremely Schwarzeneggerish Schwarzenegger film, full of big, violent set pieces and broad comedy. Now he’s not exactly pushing himself here and he may look a little out of it these days, but Arnold proves he’s still game for the mayhem as he fires off rounds and tosses off one-liners, and the movie at least has the decency to acknowledge that it knows that you know that he’s old, he is 66 after all.
Schwarznegger stars as Ray Owens, a former L.A. narcotics cop who left the big city long ago to settle in as sheriff of Summerton Junction, a tiny town on the Arizona/Mexico border. With the local high school football team off at an away game and basically the whole town follow suit to cheer them on, Ray looks forward to a quiet weekend. Yeah, fat chance on that. Drug lord Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega) gets sprung from U.S. custody in an elaborate escape in Las Vegas, taking off in a Corvette with kidnapped federal agent Ellen Richards (Genesis Rodriguez) at his side. As FBI Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker, who seems one dimensional through out the film), tries and fails to capture or even tail the car, a group of suspicious characters turn up in Summerton led by the icy Burrell (Peter Stormare). By the time Ray and his motley bunch of deputies (including Jamie Alexander, Zach Gifford and Luís Guzman) figure out what’s going on, it’s clear that Summerton Junction’s police force are the only thing standing between Cortes and the border. Strapped for manpower, Ray is forced to deputize local gun nut Dinkum (Johnny Knoxville) and war-veteran-turned-town-drunk Frank (Rodrigo Santoro).
It’s like director Kim Jee-woon knew we’d been waiting to see Arnold Schwarzenegger kick butt for a decade, and decided to wait until the very last minute to actually deliver. But THE LAST STAND gets away with this because the cast is lovable enough to maintain our interest and when the time comes for the big showdown, everything goes absolutely insane for a whole third of the movie. I mean Luis Guzmán gets to fire an old-fashioned Tommy gun at Peter Stormare because, well, why the heck not?!
As for Schwarzenegger himself, he’s practically a visual effect here and the fact that we’re seeing him at all is a tiny wonder in and of itself. THE LAST STAND gives him the opportunity to flex his action muscles a bit, and while he goes through an unrealistic amount of punishment for a man his age by the end of the movie, the script also gives him an opportunity to crack jokes, impart wisdom and even express a modicum of vulnerability right when the stakes need to be raised. It’s not his finest role, but Schwarzenegger does at least prove that he still has a place in pop culture history and that he has a decent understanding of what audiences expect from him, as well as what they can realistically get from a 66-year-old actor with more precedent on his side than actual, plausible action movie ability. He’s a big action star now because he was a big action star then, and it works, at least this time, because his very casting imbues the main character in THE LAST STAND with godlike abilities fueled by memories of CONAN THE BARBARIAN, PREDATOR, and of course TERMINATOR.
The shootouts and showdowns are muscular, high-energy and consist of an insane amount of gunfire, although there are some bursts of squirm-inducing, creative carnage. Much of the hand-to-hand combat is shot and edited in a way to obscure what Schwarzenegger is actually doing while creating the illusion that he’s kicking all kinds of butt. And no matter how shameless a product placement it might be, the car stuff is so exciting, you’ll wish there was more of it, heck the car chase through a cornfield somehow alternates between being thrilling and quietly suspenseful.
I totally recall better Arnold Schwarzenegger movies than this, but I wouldn’t say we got a raw deal either, I mean this is no TRUE LIES but at least it’s no COP LAND either. Arnold Schwarzenegger may still have new and interesting tricks up his sleeve as he commences the twilight phase of his screen career but with a fleet of Schwarzenegger movies in the pipeline, those afraid THE LAST STAND indeed would be Arnold’s last stand can breathe a sigh of relief.
The concept of fate in cinema is one that’s been around for ages, even longer if you consider it’s prevalence in literature and longer yet when you consider that storytelling itself is nearly as old as the conscious man himself. So, this raises the question of how one makes a film about fate that’s not been done before, or more precisely… how to do it well?
Writer and first-time director George Nolfi had his head in the right place with THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU, given that it all began with Philip K. Dick. The film is adapted from Dick’s short story called “Adjustment Team” and carries the trademark science-fiction fingerprint of the late, beloved genre author. The film toys playfully with the idea of there being a creator, or more accurately a controller in this case, and a special breed of beings tasked with enforcing that creator’s plans.
Matt Damon (HEREAFTER, INVICTUS) stars as David Norris, a young up-and-coming politician with a penchant for being a loose cannon, but powers beyond his perception have special plans for him. The Adjustment Bureau is determined to see these plans come to fruition. Enter the girl… Elise Sellas — played by Emily Blunt (THE WOLFMAN, SUNSHINE CLEANING) — is a talented ballerina with a predetermined future of her own, but what neither of them know upon meeting and falling in love, is that fate will work to keep them apart at any cost.
Nolfi had previously written screenplays for TIMELINE, OCEAN’S TWELVE and THE SENTINEL, but his best-known work is likely THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM. Intentionally or not, BOURNE has it’s influences seeping through into THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU, and I don’t just mean with it’s shared star. The SteadiCam action and feel of controlled chaos in the film make it impossible not to recall Damon’s super-soldier-on-the-run trilogy, but this also isn’t detrimental to the story. This essence of following Norris in real-time in his mad dash to prove he is in control of his own life, collides successfully with the breaks in reality as The Adjustment Bureau defies the laws of physics as we know them, giving the sense of something surreal in the real world.
While the premise may sound cheesy or sappy on it’s surface, Nolfi managed to do a great job keeping the pretentious nature of such a story at a minimum, never taking itself too seriously, but also staying firmly rooted in reality. Special effects are used sparingly, only as absolutely necessary. To make up for the lack of high-dollar visual extravagance, the film employs some subtle visual queues and a well-planned color palette to help lead the audience through the shifting emotions and conscious progression of David Norris. Likewise, the original music from Thomas Newman plays a significant role in carrying the proper tone thought out the film; high-tempo pace with low-key undertones.
Damon and Blunt played off each other well. Damon upheld his more typical Bourne-esque persona, but it works here. Anthony Mackie (THE HURT LOCKER), who plays a troubled Bureau Agent named Harry, gives yet another understated performance that hits a nerve. John Slattery (MAD MEN) plays Richardson, the Bureau Field Agent in charge of Norris’ case, and serves as both a friendly conflict to Norris and a pitch-perfect source of comic relief.
In addition to a handful of well-placed and enjoyable celebrity cameos, Terence Stamp (THE LIMEY, GET SMART) appears in an extremely fitting surprise role that fans of his career should greatly appreciate. Overall, THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU feels awkwardly familiar, but coincidentally this adds to the effect of a story about accidentally stumbling upon the truth behind fate and free will.
Universal Pictures has released three new clips for the upcoming thriller THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU. Take my word for it, the film is an exhilarating, sci-fi trip which poses the question – Is your life determined by Fate or Free Will?
Synopsis:
Based on a short story by Philip K. Dick (“Total Recall,” “Minority Report” and “Blade Runner”), THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU is a new thriller where a man glimpses the future Fate has planned for him and realizes he wants something else. To get it, he must pursue the only woman he’s ever loved across, under and through the streets of modern-day New York.
From Universal Pictures, THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU will be in theaters on March 4, 2011. Visit the film’s official site HERE and on Facebook HERE. Your fate will be adjusted.
Here’s the first trailer for THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU, the new dramatic, sci-fi thriller written and directed by George Nolfi () based on the Philip K. Dick story “Adjustment Team”. This is Nolfi’s first outing as a director, but has written screenplays for OCEAN’S TWELVE, THE SENTINEL and THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM. The film stars Matt Damon and Emily Blunt, with Terrence Stamp in a mysterious, semi-villainous role.
The affair between a politician (Matt Damon) and a ballerina (Emily Blunt) is affected by mysterious forces keeping the lovers apart.
The trailer as it is presented, boasts an intriguing philosophical/sci-fi concept revolving greatly around the idea of free will, but the overall tone of the trailer felt slightly too familiar. Hopefully, there’s an edge to the film that we’ll see in theater that simply doesn’t come through in the trailer. THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU is due out in theaters on September 17, 2010.
Universal and Matt Damon are becoming quite the pair with the ‘Bourne’ franchise. While the fourth film waits in the wings, however, the studio and the star are moving forward on another project. ‘The Adjustment Bureau’ is billed as a contemporary love story with sci-fi overtones written and to be directed by George Nolfi. Nolfi is also working on the fourth ‘Bourne’ film for Damon and Paul Greengrass.
In “The Adjustment Bureau,†Damon will play David Norris, a charismatic congressman who seems destined for national political stardom. He meets a beautiful ballet dancer named Elise Sellas, only to find strange circumstances keeping their sparks from catching fire. Norris discovers forces are at work to keep them apart, and he peels the layers to find out why. The action takes place all over Manhattan. No one has been cast as the female lead yet.
The film’s rights came with premiums that made studio chiefs think hard. The original offer sheet required a studio to commit to a budget near $62 million, with Damon realizing a 20% first dollar gross back-end. The studio puts up P&A, and gets worldwide distribution rights.
That seems reasonable for a big-scale PG-13 Damon vehicle with a premise that mixes action, romance and science fiction. But Universal is essentially licensing the film for a term that will run about 20 years.
Production on ‘The Adjustment Bureau’ begins in September.
