Tag: Johnny Depp

JEANNE DU BARRY – Review

Maiwenn as Jeanne du Barry and Johnny Depp as King Louis XV, in JEANNE DU BARRY. Courtesy of Vertical

Johnny Depp as France’s King Louis XV? Speaking French? Yeah, I want to see that. That was my first thought on French director/star Maiwenn’s JEANNE DU BARRY, her costume drama about the king’s scandalous commoner mistress in pre-Revolution France.

Expecting a lot of historical accuracy seems foolish for a film like this but entertainment and lush period details seem a a more realistic hope. So does it deliver?

Well, yes, it does. And Johnny Depp is pretty darn good too as King Louis XV, the French king in between the Sun King and the one who lost his head in the Revolution. Depp plays an older king, and the actor is about the right age for the role. Depp does speak French, having lived there on and off for several years, and his French sounds good, although director/star Maiwenn (she uses just one name) limits his dialog so as to reveal any American accent. However, the king isn’t the star of this movie – that role belongs to Maiwenn as the king’s mistress Jeanne Du Barry, also known as Madame Du Barry.

JEANNE DU BARRY is about the last mistress of the penultimate Bourbon king of France. King Louis XV (Depp) may really have loved Jeanne du Barry, and certainly he elevated her to a prominent place in the court, far beyond what any commoner could have dream of, much less one born out-of-wedlock and with a past as a courtesan. JEANNE DU BARRY leans into the love story and generally has splendid, enjoyable time with Jeanne’s unlikely story.

First off, the film does the visuals right. Lush costumes, wonderful locations (including Versailles) and wonderful period sets, all shot with lovely photography, as essentials for a costume drama and director Maiwenn gets all that just right. Maiwenn plays the grown-up Jeanne Vaubernier, later Madame du Barry, but the film starts with her as a young girl, the illegitimate daughter of a cook and mostly likely a monk. Her mother is the cook in the manor house home of a prosperous man, and her employer is fond of the pretty little blonde girl, and he pays for her education at a convent. In the film, Jeanne gets kicked out for reading racy novels but in fact, she just aged out of the school at 15, then considered the age when girls were considered marriageable age. With the girl developing into a beauty and now in their home, the lady of the manor, concerned about her husband’s interest in the teenager, fires her mother after falsely accusing her of theft, and mother and daughter make their way to Paris to live as best they can. Young Jeanne wants something more than life than being a cook like her mother and sets out to get it.

Of course, the film departs from facts more than a few times, mostly to make Jeanne appear more ahead of her time than she likely was, and perhaps more book-obsessed. Clearly she had to be smart, bold, and ambitious to get as far as she did, but she was also reportedly strikingly beautiful.

The real Jeanne reportedly was strikingly, an angelic looking blonde with ringlet curls and almond-shaped blue eyes. Little of that describes Maiwenn, who is also about twenty years older than the real Jeanne was when she met King Louis XV. But Maiwenn’s performance is bold and entertaining, and she commands attention when she is on screen. In the film, the young Jeanne became a courtesan in Paris, steadily trading up in her lovers. Through that work, she meets both Le Comte du Barry (Melvil Pompaud) who wants to mold her into a great courtesan moving in the highest social circles, and the elderly Duc de Richelieu, advisor to the King, who wants to introduce her to Louis XV. The king has been going though mistresses at a good pace, and Richelieu wants to find someone who can help steady the situation. Although the details of all of that are not entirely historically accurate, it’s close enough to serve this story and put us on our way.

When the two noblemen do arrange for Jeanne to meet the King, all beautifully dressed and properly made-up, of course, and escorted to court by du Barry. When he passes her in his procession through the line of nobles, the King seems taken with her. Depp plays this moment just right, keeping the king’s face still and dignified but allowing a longer pause and a direct. studying look at this new face. When the king sends for her, via his reliable courtier La Borde (Benjamin Lavernhe), all is discreet, but the king is quickly smitten with her, and wants Jeanne come live at court. That means she has to be the wife of a noble, as the king’s mistresses are required to be, and so a marriage to du Barry is quickly arranged (in reality, a marriage to his brother), so she can be at Versailles.

Having a connection like that to the King’s inner circle benefits du Barry, and a less-restless king has benefits for his minister Richelieu. In the film there is a scene where du Barry beats Jeanne but no there is no historical evidence of that, and despite that scene, Jeanne seems to remain on friendly terms with du Barry and close to his young son, who she regards almost as her own in the film.

Maiwenn plays Jeanne as a bold rule-breaker, who looks the king in the eye and flaunts the rules. But she is smart enough to know what the rules are, when to break them and when to follow convention, usually with a flourish. The movie has Jeanne dressing in men’s clothing and being a rather feminist figure. There is no historical evidence for that, although it does make for a fun movie. Other things that seem highly unlikely, like the King gifting Jeanne an African child, really did happen.

Johnny Depp (left) as King Louis XV and Maiwenn (center) as Jeanne du Barry, in JEANNE DU BARRY. Courtesy of Vertical

The French court had seen its share of mistresses, to the current Louis XV and his great-grandfather Louis XIV, and the court even had formal title for the recognized favorite. The king’s mean-spirited daughters (wonderfully played by India Hair, Suzanne de Baecque, and Capucine Valmary) disapproved of but tolerated others, but they were appalled by this particular mistress. Jeanne’s combination of low-birth and past history as courtesan was a step too far, even compared to past paramours like Madame Pompadour.

If Jeanne’s greatest adversaries at court are the king’s daughters, she does have a helpful ally in LaBorde, and to a lesser extent Richelieu. Early on, Jeanne is a bit more of a rebel than she is later in the film, but LaBorde helps guide her. Later, she becomes more sweet and caring, to the king and others in the inner circle. The film ends with a well-done deathbed scene, with Depp’s Louis dying of small pox with dignity and grace, and a post script sequence of what became of Jeanne afterwards.

There is plenty of glittering, gilt gorgeousness and Versailles pomp in JEANNE DU BARRY, enough to satisfy any fan of the genre. The film is well-made and well-acted, and does provide entertainment as a polished, pretty costume drama if an imperfect history lesson. The acting is overall very good, and Maiwenn comes on strong as Jeanne, filling the screen with high energy, although some of what the character does seems a bit far-fetched.

Strong supporting performances come from Pierre Richard as the elderly Richelieu and Melvil Pompaud as the often-smirking, always-calculating Comte Du Barry. As LaBorde, Benjamin Lavernhe is a standout. He does a fabulous job in this role, presenting the courtier as stiff and overly-formal at first, but gradually softening, developing layers of caring and even humor beneath his precise facade. He becomes a true friend to Jeanne as well, and at the end, even someone who offers a kind of comfort and a bit of human kindness towards the dying king, although still within the rules of his position.

JEANNE DU BARRY maybe overstates Jeanne’s case a bit as an intellectual bookworm or basically good-hearted soul but it does make for an enjoyable film. Certainly, the film focuses only on what is happening at court, and fully ignores the brewing storm of Revolution out in the streets where Jeanne came from. Nor does the film acknowledge that when Louis XV died, he was nearly as hated has his Sun King predecessor Louis XIV, although he had been popular at the start of his long rule. Two back-to-back hated kings helped set in motion the Revolution, and at the film’s end, we learn Jeanne’s fate in that too, having erased her commoner roots. Certainly, JEANNE DU BARRY has all the gorgeous bells-and-whistles of a fine, polished historical drama, and the fine acting increases the enjoyment and entertainment. But it also might leave one wanting to add a little “vive la Revolution” as all that is swept away.

JEANNE DU BARRY, in French with English subtitles, opens Friday, May 3, in selected theaters.

RATING: 2.5 out of 4 stars

Tim Burton’s THE CORPSE BRIDE Starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter Screening at The Wildey Theater in Edwardsville October 26th

“With this candle… I will set your mother on fire.”

Nothing’s more fun than The Wildey’s Tuesday Night Film Series. Tim Burton’s THE CORPSE BRIDE (2005) starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter will be on the big screen when it plays at The Wildey Theater in Edwardsville, IL (252 N Main St, Edwardsville, IL 62025) at 7:00pm Tuesday October 26th.  Tickets are only $3  Tickets available starting at 3pm day of movie at Wildey Theatre ticket office.  Cash or check only. (cash, credit cards accepted for concessions)  Lobby opens at 6pm.

Set back in the late 1800s in a Victorian village, a man and woman by the names of Victor Van Dort and Victoria Everglot are betrothed because the Everglots need the money or else they’ll be living on the streets and the Van Dorts want to be high in society. But when things go wrong at the wedding rehearsal, Victor goes into the woods to practice his vows. Just as soon as he gets them right, he finds himself married to Emily, the corpse bride. While Victoria waits on the other side, there’s a rich newcomer that may take Victor’s place. So two brides, one groom, who will Victor pick?

Johnny Depp Investigates The Notorious B.I.G.’s Murder in CITY OF LIES – Coming to Blu-ray and DVD June 8th

Some secrets just won’t stay buried — and City of Lies reveals all when it arrives on Blu-ray (plus Digital) and DVD on June 8 from Saban Films.

City of Lies is currently available on Digital and on Demand, and stars Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe Award winner Johnny Depp (Academy Award: 2007, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street; Golden Globe: 2008, Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical/Comedy, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street), Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Primetime Emmy Award winner Forest Whitaker (Academy Award: 2007, Best Actor in a Leading Role, The Last King of Scotland; Golden Globe: 2007, Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, The Last King of Scotland; Primetime Emmy: 2003, Co-Executive Producer, Outstanding Television Movie, Door to Door), and Rockmond Dunbar (TV’s “Sons of Anarchy,” “9-1-1,” “Prison Break”).

City of Lies will be available on Blu-ray (plus Digital) and DVD for the suggested retail price of $21.99 and $19.98, respectively.

What is worse, the crime or the cover-up? Based on the book, LAbyrinth, by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Randall Sullivan, this compelling crime-thriller follows the investigation into the infamous murder of iconic rap artist Christopher Wallace aka The Notorious B.I.G. Oscar® nominee Johnny Depp stars as determined LAPD detective Russell Poole, who spent nearly 20 years trying to solve the murder, and Oscar® and Primetime Emmy® winner Forest Whitaker as Jack Jackson, a journalist who teams up with Poole in search of the elusive truth. Together they explore why the case remains cold — and why a secretive division of the LAPD is seemingly set on keeping it that way.

BONUS MATERIALS:

  • 7 Deleted Scenes
  • Crafting the Characters in City of Lies
  • Audio Commentary with Director Brad Furman and Author Randall Sullivan

CAST & CREW

  • Directed by:  Brad Furman
  • Screenplay by: Christian Contreras
  • Cast:
    • Johnny Depp                          Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Charlie                                                               and the Chocolate Factory, Black Mass
    • Forest Whitaker                      Black Panther, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, The Last                                                     King of Scotland
    • Rockmond Dunbar                 TV’s “Sons of Anarchy,” “9-1-1,” “Prison Break”

SPECS

  • Blu-ray:
    • Feature: 1080p High Definition, 16×9 (2.39:1)
    • Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio™
    • Subtitles: Spanish, English SDH
  • DVD:
    • Feature: 16×9 (2.39:1)
    • Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio
    • Subtitles: Spanish, English SDH

Run Time: 112 Minutes

Rating: Rated R for language throughout, some violence and drug use

Genre: Thriller, Drama

WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS – Review

(l-r, foreground) Johnny Depp as Colonel Joll and Mark Rylance as the Magistrate, in WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS. Photo courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films.

If all you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail, the old saying goes, and if you assume everyone is your enemy, they might become exactly that. WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS is drama based on J. M. Coetzee’s novel, that presents a cautionary tale about nations or empires sowing the seeds of their own destruction in their search for imagined threats. Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp and Robert Pattinson star in director Ciro Guerra’s powerful adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s classic novel of the same name, in a haunting cautionary tale of empire and cultural misunderstanding, with a striking contemporary echoes.

There is a lot of talent assembled in this film – an Oscar-nominated director, a Nobel Prize-winning author, an Oscar winning cinematographer, and Oscar winners and nominees among the fine cast. Such as assemblage doesn’t guarantee success but it has worked here. Although this myth-like story takes place in an unspecified time and place, the points it makes are universal, concerning the dangers of the false assumptions of torture and militaristic mindsets. Torture tends to extract the information you want – even if it is not true. History has shown this time and again, from the Inquisition to Abu Ghraib.

WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS fits in well with the anti-colonial message of the director’s previous work. This is the first English-language film by Colombian director Ciro Guerra, whose previous films include the Oscar-nominated EMRACE OF THE SERPENT. Guerra has long been an admirer of the novel WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS by Nobel Prize-winning South African author J. M. Coetzee. The director made at least two previous efforts to bring the award-winning novel to the big screen before succeeding – oh-so-well – with this one.

Mark Rylance plays the Magistrate, a mild-mannered colonial administrator who has long been in charge of a remote garrison outpost on a quiet, sparsely populated border of an unnamed colonial empire. The Magistrate efficiently and fairly handles the few problems that arise in this sleepy corner of the unnamed empire, which leaves him plenty of time for his hobby of amateur archaeology exploring the ancient history of the region.

When an official from the empire’s center, Colonel Joll (Johnny Depp), arrives in his fine carriage with a small contingent of soldiers, the Magistrate is not concerned. He greets the officious Joll politely and prepares to make his report on conditions around the garrison. As the Magistrate tells one of his assistants, he has seen this before. Every ten years, he says, the empire feels the need to send someone to check on the “barbarians” on the border, just to make sure all is right, and then they leave.

The Magistrate expects the same from this colonel but Joll is different. With a decidedly unpleasant, even arrogant manner, Joll constantly wears his newly-invented sunglasses which conceal his eyes and seems little interested in the Magistrate’s efforts to tell him about the current conditions on the border. Instead, Joll’s focus falls on a pair of nomads, “barbarians” he arrested on the way to the garrison, and Joll’s methods involve torture. The Magistrate is shocked but, suppressing his feelings, he calmly quizzes Joll about the usefulness of the torture. Joll reveals his belief that “the enemy,” meaning the nomads just beyond the border, are planning an attack on the empire, and then extols his own skill at extracting information, never once acknowledging that his victims might have no secret information to tell.

When Joll leaves the garrison to check on other parts of the border, the Magistrate’s disgust spill overs, and he cleans the garrison of all traces of the colonel’s visit, restoring it to its usual peaceful, orderly life. But then another the officer of the empire shows up, an assistant to Joll named Mandel (Robert Pattinson). Mandel as even more brutal and committed to ferreting out a secret invasion by the barbarians.

Two-time Oscar winning cinematographer Chris Menges (THE KILLING FIELDS, THE MISSION, THE READER) fills the screen with sweeping desert vistas, dusty interiors of the garrison, and views of the Magistrate’s neat, book-filled office. The photography is stunning, imbuing the film with a sense of its remoteness and isolation, and setting the characters in that same overwhelmingly stark place.

The story is very much in the vein of the mythic, and the actors play characters that are symbolic of forces within human nature as much as people. Rylance, Depp and Pattinson are all superb, although the greatest load in telling this tale falls to the gifted Rylance, who plays both the human heart and a voice of decency overwhelmed by drive to war and suspicions of the “other.”

Beyond the lead actors, fine performances are offered by Greta Scacchi as the Magistrate’s housekeeper Mai, a sympathetic ear who also represents the civilians buffeted by the dangerous decisions of Joll and Mandel, and Harry Melling as a young soldier serving under the Magistrate, torn by what he sees. Both actors make the most of these small but important roles. Gana Bayarsaikhan, a striking Mongolian model-turned-actress who had minor roles in WONDER WOMAN and EX MACHINA, appears as a pivot character identified only as the “barbarian girl,” in a nice performance in her first major screen role.

Although the story seems to take place in a distant time and place, what it is saying about human nature is chillingly contemporary and timeless. The story takes place at a purposely vague place and time, at an outpost at the a distant border of an unspecified empire, a deliberate choice of the novel. The dusty, windswept desert location and the Asian features of the nomad suggests Central Asia, the uniforms suggest the French Foreign Legion, and other details suggest the 19th Century, but nothing is definite. In fact, the film was shot in Morocco and Italy,and the cast playing the garrison’s officials and solders sport British accents. All that matters is that it is some colonial power and an outpost on a remote border, in a quiet, sparsely populated area very far from the center of the empire.

WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS is divided into four chapters labeled by season but not quite in order. Colonel Joll arrives in the heat of summer, where his brutality scorches the landscape. Mandel does not arrive until the cold, dark winter, bringing dismay that the chapter opened in summer continues. There is another chapter set in spring, centered on a teen know only as “the barbarian girl” (Gana Bayarsaikhan), who turns up at the garrison, an apparent victim of torture. The final chapter, tellingly, is set in fall.

This is an impressive piece of mythic film making, powerful parable about colonialism, brutality toward the “other,’ and how we can inadvertently create the danger we fear. The drama sends a powerful message about torture in particular, and the danger in the ignorance of other cultures and misunderstandings arising out of mistaken assumptions. WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS is available on demand and on digital starting on Friday, Aug. 7.

RATING: 3 1/2 out of 4 stars

Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp And Robert Pattinson Star In First Trailer For WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS – On Demand August 7

Samuel Goldwyn Films has released the first trailer to Ciro Guerra’s feature film WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS. The film stars Academy Award Winner Mark Rylance, Academy Award Nominee Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, and Greta Scacchi. WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS will be released on cable On-Demand & Digital platforms August 7.

The Magistrate (Mark Rylance) of an isolated frontier settlement on the border of an unnamed empire looks forward to an easy retirement until the arrival of Colonel Joll (Johnny Depp), whose task it is to report on the activities of the ‘barbarians’ and on the security situation on the border. Joll conducts a series of ruthless interrogations, which leads the Magistrate to question his loyalty to the empire.

WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS was directed by Ciro Guerra (his first English Language film) and written by Nobel Prize winning author J.M. Coetzee, who adapted the screenplay from his own novel. Two-time Academy Award winner Chris Menges was the cinematographer. The film was produced by Michael Fitzgerald, Olga Segura, Andrea Iervolino of Iervolino Entertainment, and Monika Bacardi with executive producers Sir Martin Franklin, Cristina Gallego, Danielle Maloni, Deborah Dobson Bach, and Penelope Glass.

AMBI Distribution, the worldwide sales arm of Andrea Iervolino and Monika Bacardi’s AMBI Media Group, announced today a slew of major international territory sales for “Waiting for the Barbarians” during the Virtual Cannes market. The film has been acquired in Germany (Constantin Film), France (SND), UK (The Movie Partnership), CIS (Paradise), Middle East (Falcon Films), CEE (Vertical, Monolith and Blitz Films), Indonesia (Artist View) and Taiwan (Cai Chang International).

Photo Courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films

Johnny Depp in THE PROFESSOR Arrives on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital July 9th

Oscar® nominee Johnny Depp (2007, Best Actor, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street) stars in the hilarious and heartwarming dark comedy The Professor, arriving on Blu-ray™ (plus Digital), DVD, and Digital July 9 from Lionsgate. This film is currently available On Demand. Depp plays a college professor who decides to live his last chapter with reckless abandon after being diagnosed with a terminal illness alongside A-list costars Rosemarie DeWitt, Zoey Deutch, and Golden Globe® nominee Ron Livingston (2002, Best Supporting Actor, TV’s Band of Brothers). Produced by Oscar®-winner Greg Shapiro (2008, Best Picture, The Hurt Locker;  with producers Kathryn Bigelow, Mark  Boal, and Nicolas Chartier), Braden Aftergood (Hell or High Water), and Brian Kavanaugh-Jones (Midnight Special), and written and directed by Wayne Roberts, this rogueishly humorous and touching film is not to be missed!. The Professor Blu-ray and DVD will include a making-of featurette and will be available for the suggested retail price of $21.99 and $19.98, respectively.

Johnny Depp delivers a wickedly funny performance as Richard, a buttoned-down college lecturer who, after learning he has six months to live, transforms into a rebellious party animal. To the shock of his wife (Roasmarie DeWitt) and school chancellor (Ron Livingston) — and the delight of his students — Richard leads a hilarious crusade against authority and hypocrisy in this dark comedy costarring Zoey Deutch.

BLU-RAY / DVD / DIGITAL SPECIAL FEATURES

·         “Death and How to Live It: Making The Professor” Featurette 

CAST

Johnny Depp               Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of 

Fleet Street, Rango

Rosemarie DeWitt      Black Mirror, La La Land, The United States of Tara

Zoey Deutch               The Disaster Artist, Vampire Academy, Flower

Ron Livingston            The Conjuring, Swingers, Office Space, Boardwalk Empire

First Look Photo Of Johnny Depp As War Photographer W. Eugene Smith From MINAMATA

Principal Photography has begun on Minamata, directed by filmmaker, writer, and acclaimed artist Andrew Levitas and starring three-time Academy Award® nominee and Golden Globe winner Johnny Depp as celebrated war photographer W. Eugene Smith.

Bill Nighy (The Kindness of Strangers, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest) has joined the cast of MINAMATA which will co-star Minami (Vision), acclaimed actor Hiroyuki Sanada (Avengers: Endgame, Westworld, Mr. Holmes, The Twilight Samurai), Tadanobu Asano (Silence, The Outsider, Thor, Midway), Ryo Kase (Letters from Iwo Jima, Restless, Silence, Like Someone in Love), and Jun Kunimura (Kill Bill: Vol 1 and 2, Midway). The famed Yôko Narahashi (Earthquake Bird, Unbroken) is the casting director on the film which is currently underway in locations in Japan, Serbia, and Montenegro.

Developed by Depp’s production entity Infinitum Nihil, Depp will also produce along with Infinitum Nihil’s Sam Sarkar, Levitas under his Metalwork Pictures banner and Academy Award® nominee Gabrielle Tana (The White Crow, Philomena). Jason Forman, Stephen Deuters, Peter Watson, Phil Hunt, Compton Ross, Gabrielle Stewart, Stephen Spence, Peter Touche, Norman Merry and Peter Hampden will executive produce. Heads of department include César Award nominated cinematographer Benoit Delhomme (At Eternity’s Gate, The Theory of Everything, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas), production designer Tom Foden (Mirror Mirror, The Village, One Hour Photo) and line and executive producer Kevan Van Thompson (JoJo Rabbit).

Minamata is based on the book by Aileen Mioko Smith and W. Eugene Smith and adapted by David K. Kessler (A Hard Day’s Day). The redemptive thriller, a real-life David versus Goliath story, pitts Smith against a powerful corporation responsible for poisoning the people of Minamata – Japan in 1971. Minamata is an extremely moving story of how one man’s powerful photograph impacted the world to take action.

With the glory days of World War II far behind him Smith (Depp) has become a recluse, disconnected from society and his career. But an old friend and a commission from “Life Magazine” editor (Nighy) convinces him to journey back to Japan to expose a big story: the devastating annihilation of a coastal community, victims of corporate greed and complicit local police and government. Armed with only his trusted camera, Smith must gain the trust of this struggling community and find the images that will bring the story to the World.

The victims’ case against the corporation responsible for this environmental disaster represents one of the biggest payouts of all time, with present day sufferers of Minamata disease still in court today seeking compensation. Production has spent time in Minamata meeting some of the victims and their families and the film is being made with their support.

Director Andrew Levitas said of the film, “I am thrilled to be working with such a talented and dedicated team on the story behind one of the most devastating and relatively unknown catastrophes of the past 100 years. Told through the eyes of the extraordinary W. Eugene Smith, widely regarded as one of the most passionate, ground-breaking and uncompromising photojournalists of the 20th century. In his bid to bring the world’s attention to atrocities including the bloodiest conflict in human history, World War II and the horrors of Minamata he put his own life at risk to bring the truth out in his work and capture some of the most poignant images ever taken. Every one of the cast and crew is determined to make the people of Minamata’s voices heard as we begin shooting this film.”

HanWay Films are handling international sales and distribution on Minamata, which will continue in Berlin during EFM next week. The HanWay slate also includes Lone Scherfig’s The Kindness of Strangers, starring Zoe Kazan, Tahar Rahim, Andrea Riseborough, Caleb Landry Jones, Jay Baruchel and Bill Nighy which will open the festival.

Minamata is an Ingenious Media and Rogue Black presentation of a Metalwork Pictures production in association with Infinitum Nihil, WindHorse Entertainment, Magnolia Mae Films, Hanway Films, Headgear Films, Metrol Technology and Lipsync Productions.

CAA Media Finance will handle US rights. Depp, Levitas are represented by CAA along with Sanada who is also represented by Lighthouse Entertainment and Nighy is represented by CAA and Markham Froggatt Irwin.

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD – Review

Prior to my film screening, a man walked about the auditorium performing card tricks for audience members. Kids and adults alike were wowed by his magic tricks, but as everyone knows, the deck was stacked in his favor. He didn’t have to worry about what cards he held, which seems like a problem J.K. Rowling had to face when establishing the FANTASTIC BEASTS universe. Establishing characters that were only hinted at in the Wizarding World and some not even mentioned at all was perhaps the biggest of many challenges. Ultimately, the first film was a tonal mess of jumbled themes that didn’t know exactly what it wanted to do – the equivalent of not knowing whether to go for a full house or three-of-a-kind. And unlike the entertainer with the deck of cards, J.K. Rowling had to lay on the table a number of weak cards in the first film before she was able to play a stronger hand with the second film in the series.

At the end of the first film, the powerful wizard Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) was captured by MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America), with the help of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne). But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escapes custody and begins gathering followers to fulfill his mission: to raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings (No-majes). In an effort to thwart Grindelwald’s plans, Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) enlists his former student Newt Scamander to stop him, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead.

THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD opens with an exciting breakout as Grindelwald is attempted to be transported from one jail to another. It sets the tone for an espionage-heavy story that also weaves a cat-and-mouse chase across multiple countries. A wave of a wand and characters pop up in a new place, and then leave soon after to pop up in another. While on paper, it sounds like an exhilarating departure from the first film’s childlike hijinks, it’s told without much conviction and lacking any forward trajectory. The story is much more focused than its predecessor, but director David Yates seems more interested in the intimate character moments than the fear of a growing evil presence that looms over the characters. Cinematographer Philippe Rousselot highlights this through a number of extremely tight close-ups on the characters, something that was practically non-existent in the previous film’s visual storytelling.

The fantastic beasts from the title are more cleverly woven into the fabric of the story than they were previously. In the first film, they acted as cute distractions from the witch-hunt, here, they pick locks for characters to escape and act as guardians when trouble arises. In fact, one of the shining characters in the film is a large fanged dragon-looking cat that resembles something in a Chinese Dragon Dance. Compared to the first entry, Newt Scamander’s role as a magical zookeeper doesn’t get in the way of his new role in helping to save the world (as silly as that may sound).

The magical world is central to the story, and the numerous flashbacks and new reveals will excite fans of this universe. Hearing the iconic John Williams score once again and taking a trip back to Hogwarts was a welcome return. Who is particularly strong in these scenes is Jude Law as a young Dumbledore. He is able to perfectly balance the scholarly manner of the character along with a hint of mischievousness that comes through at times in something as subtle a passing comment and slight smirk. Because of his relationship with Newt Scamander and others, the first film suddenly is given new purpose – something that I question whether was actually planned out from the start.

As I was expecting yet another over-the-top performance from Johnny Depp, I was shocked to see how restrained he is with Grindelwald’s line delivery and mannerisms. Under the pale skin and white hair, he plays the villain as an all-seeing, stoic British gentleman, not unlike David Bowie late in his life. David Yates appropriately limits his screentime until the finale, where we see just how much power he has in the wizarding world. His roaring speech to his followers is a moody show-stopper. While it may take a little too long to get to that point, he casts a spell over the audience and his followers through his manipulation of fear and the threat of war – it becomes an effective allusion to Hitler’s rise to power in pre-WWII Europe.

While THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD suffers at times from many crimes, they are far fewer and less offensive than FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM. Just as the original series of films balanced an innocent sense of wonder with an intriguing dissection of the blurred line between good and evil, here’s hoping that this new series continues to figure out its own unique style between wowing kids and adults and engaging wizards and no-majes.

 

Overall Score: 3 out of 5

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD opens in theaters November 16th, 2018

 

Johnny Depp, Forest Whitaker Star In CITY OF LIES Trailer – Story Of The Notorious B.I.G./Tupac

Who shot Biggie?  Today would have been The Notorious B.I.G’s 46th Birthday….

Based on the true story of one of the most notorious and unsolved cases in recent time, CITY OF LIES is a provocative thriller revealing a never-before-seen look at the infamous murder of The Notorious B.I.G. shortly following the death of Tupac.

Watch the trailer now and see CITY OF LIES in theaters everywhere September 7th.

Written by Christian Contreras, the film is based on the novel by Randall Sullivan.

L.A.P.D. detective Russell Poole (Johnny Depp) has spent years trying to solve his biggest case, but after two decades, the investigation remains open. “Jack” Jackson (Forest Whitaker), a reporter desperate to save his reputation and career, is determined to find out why. In search of the truth, the two team up and unravel a growing web of institutional corruption and lies. Relentless in their hunt, these two determined men threaten to uncover the conspiracy and crack the foundation of the L.A.P.D. and an entire city.

Visit the official site: cityofliesfilm.com

SHERLOCK GNOMES – Review

 

So Easter’s just around the corner, and most kids are already enjoying that great Spring-time break from school. So where are the “all ages” movies at the multiplex? Those fightin’ giant robots may be a bit too violent for the wee ones (the same could be said of a trip to Wakanda). And that “Time Wrinkle” is a quite a “snoozefest”(if it’s still playing “first run”). Peter Rabbit and Paddington may have hopped and scampered away, on the road to VOD and DVD. Before the Incredibles return, how about a sequel to a modest kid flick from seven years ago? Wish granted as the lovebirds from 2011’s GNOMEO AND JULIET are back, and they’re not alone. Another famous literary property (in the public domain, too) joins the talking ceramics fun. As he states several times in the film, he’s the world’s greatest detective AND the protector of gnomes everywhere. He’s non other than super-sleuth SHERLOCK GNOMES. Oh, his side-kick Dr. Watson’s lends a hand, along with a grappling hook cane.

 

As the film starts, a trio of tiny gnomes (called goons) are debating what new story to tell. As they rest on a big volume of A.C. Doyle’s’ masterworks, it’s decided that they’ll tell a tale of Sherlock Gnomes (voice of Johnny Depp). Actually they begin near the end of an adventure as Gnomes and Watson (Chiwetel Ejiofor) rescue of group of gnomes about to be smashed by a criminal mastermind, that tasty pie marketing mascot, Moriarty (Jamie Demetriou). The heroes triumph and the villain is smashed by his own trap. All’s well…for now. Meanwhile Gnomeo (James McAvoy), Juliet (Emily Blunt) and all their ceramic pals are getting a new home. Their human owners have moved from the country into a cozy London house complete with a much smaller garden. With the new surroundings, the groups leaders, Lady Blueberry (Maggie Smith) and Lord Redbrick), decide to retire and hand over their duties to Gnomeo and Juliet. Unfortunately the new job keeps the lovers apart. To rekindle the romance Gnomeo decides to procure a special flower from a nearby shop. Just before he’s caught, Juliet arrives in the nick of time to rescue him. When they return home, all their friends are gone…as Sherlock and Watson arrive. They’re investigating a string of gnome disappearances from London gardens (the locales form a massive “M” on the city map). Could Moriarty still be on the loose? The two duos team up to find clues that will hopefully lead them to their missing friends. But can they locate them before the criminal kingpin smashes them to bits?

 

 

As far as animated flicks for the kiddies go, this trifle lands just about in the middle, nowhere near the glorious heights of COCO or PADDINGTON 2 but more bearable than the migraine inducing ANGRY BIRDS or HOODWINKED! The voice cast does their best to give the story an energetic boost, though the countless supporting gnomes began to sound a bit alike. Depp does a serviceable take on the master sleuth, only dropping into a touch of Jack Sparrow sporadically while Ejiofor is almost unrecognizable as his put-upon aide. Full disclosure: I’ve never seen the former film in this series, but I recall that one of its big selling points was the use of Elton John’s song catalog (he’s also one of the producers). The same is true this time around, with one song becoming a sexy show-stopper from a sultry Mary J. Blige as a doll (literally) from Sherlock’s’ past (I was reminded of Rihanna’s big number from last Summer’s sci-fi flop VALERIAN AND THE CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS). Unfortunately the background score is annoyingly intrusive in the film’s first act, trying way too hard to establish a “whimsical” vibe (really, it’s okay to just listen to the dialogue and sound effects). Fortunately the movie calms  as the mystery unfolds and the manic gnome slapstick is toned down. Their character design is good, but I was impressed with the looks of Moriarty (a distant cousin of THE SHAPE OF WATER’s diner mascot crossed with an unhinged menace from John K’s “Ren and Stimpy” TV cast) and his two creepy, dimwitted gargoyle henchmen. The CGI rendered London backdrops are well done as are two detours, one to an oriental emporium (ninja cats) and a toy shop with a hulking teddy bear bouncer. One very pleasant surprise was the use of “old school” 2D drawn animation to show the inner workings inside Sherlock’s head (the end credits call it his “mind palace”). In one sequence his Baker Street digs become an M.C. Escher maze of curling staircases, all rendered in a “pen and ink” style that recalls master animator Richard Williams (happy belated 85th to the genius behind WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT and the Pink Panther feature titles). At least the flick’s 90 minute running time doesn’t give it a chance to drag (with previews, well…). It may amuse the youngest of viewers , but if you want to introduce them to Doyle’s detective, THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE is a summit that’s well beyond the grasp of SHERLOCK GNOMES. That comparison is  truly elementary.

 

3 Out of 5