New image from “Two Faces of January” featuring Oscar Isaac and newcomer Daisy Bevan

December 21, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Images Leave a comment

A new image from upcoming psychological thriller “Two Faces of January” has been released and it’s a far cry from the dark and morally ambivalent nature of its story. Britain’s The Daily Mail has the new still image featuring Oscar Isaac as charming con man Rydal and newcomer Daisy Bevan as his latest mark, an American heiress named Lauren.

Hossein Amini makes his directorial debut on the film which also stars Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst as a married couple with a checkered past of their own who Isaac’s character runs into and decides to aid in their escape from the law. If 20 year old Bevan, making her big screen debut here, looks familiar to you, that’s because she’s a dead ringer for her mother Joely Richardson, who herself is part of a bona fide acting dynasty that also includes Vanessa Redgrave and Natasha Richardson.

We unveiled the first photo from “Two Faces of January” a couple of months ago, and the film will be released on December 18, 2013. See the new image of Isaac and Bevan below.

REVIEW: Walter Salles’ adaptation of “On The Road”, the Kerouac classic, ‘explodes like spiders’ across the screen

October 29, 2012 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Reviews 1 Comment

In 1957 American author Jack Keroauc wrote to Marlon Brando asking him to buy the rights to, and star in, Kerouac’s novel “On The Road“. Brando never replied and it took another twenty two years for Francis Ford Coppola to purchase the rights and then spend decades hiring different screenwriters all of whom tried, and failed, to adapt the notoriously tricky spontaneous prose; after all, even Kerouac knew the story could not work on screen, telling Brando “Don’t worry about the structure, I know to compress and re-arrange the plot a bit to give a perfectly acceptable movie-type structure … ” Fifty five years after Kerouac’s letter, Brazilian director Walter Salles has finally succeeded in being the one to take the unfilmable and turn it into a thoughtful character study – one that burns and explodes, but ultimately, still remains too long.

First look at Kirsten Dunst and Oscar Isaac in “Two Faces of January”

October 1, 2012 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Images 1 Comment

Filming may have only started today on “Two Faces of January” but the production team aren’t wasting any time getting buzz going. Starring Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst, the first image from the film (via Playlist) has been released, and it’s definitely got us intrigued.

Also starring one of our favourite rising stars, Oscar Isaac, the film follows Mortensen’s con artist whom, along with his wife played by Dunst, flees to Greece after being involved in the killing a police officer. Isaac is set to play an American tutor who decides to help the couple as they run away to Istanbul.

Based on the book by Patricia Highsmith, the film will be directed by Hossein Amini, who will sit in the director’s chair for the first time. The film has an international release date set for December 18th 2013, so we think it’s fair to bet on seeing this film at Fall festivals next year.

Click below for a larger image.

Watch: Kirsten Dunst, Lizzy Caplan and Isla Fisher star as catty bridesmaids in first trailer for “Bachelorette”

July 24, 2012 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Videos Leave a comment

It could have just followed in the footsteps of last year’s massive hit “Bridesmaids”, but this year’s pre-wedding party film “Bachelorette” seems to be far bitchier and cynical.

Kirsten Dunst, Lizzy Caplan and Isla Fisher star as bitter bridesmaids of a blushing bride they called “Pigface” (Rebel Wilson) in high school. Also featuring James Marsden, Adam Scott and Kyle Bornheimer, we saw the first promotional images late last year and the film premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival to mixed reviews, with Screen Daily suggesting it “doesn’t reinvent anything, but it keeps the bile flowing”.

Directed by Leslye Headland, US audiences will get to see the pic when it goes on limited release September 7th and European fans later in the year, but the recently released trailer gives us all a teaser of what’s to come.

Watch: two new clips give us a glimpse into the lives of Sal and Dean “On The Road”

May 24, 2012 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Videos Leave a comment

Walter Salles’s “On The Road“, the long-awaited adaptation of the Jack Keroauc classic, may have premiered yesterday at Cannes Film Festival to mixed reviews but for those of us who have to wait until closer to the release dates to watch the film, we have two newly released clips giving us a glimpse into the big screen lives of Sal, Dean, Marylou and Camille.

An adaptation thirty years in development, the film finally moved into pre-production in 2010, with Salles behind the camera and Garrett Hedlund as the wild and crazy Dean Moriarty and Sam Riley as our protaganist Sal Paradise, the dreamer searching for the elusive It.

With a great supporting cast including Kristen Stewart, Kirsten Dunst, Viggo Mortensen, Amy Adams and Tom Sturridge, “On The Road” still has no definitive release date for the US, although we’re sure it will be looking at an awards friendly date. Lucky European fans can see the film on the big screen from today and over the next few months.

Full Cannes 2012 Lineup: “Twilight” invasion, Sarah Gadon on double Cronenberg duty and the return of Jessica Chastain

April 18, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Awards, General News Leave a comment

The official Cannes Film Festival lineup has finally been unveiled and looks like we can expect a more than usual number of up and coming young actors to head to the French Riviera next month. As expected, teen phenomenon “Twilight” will be well represented with stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart each headlining a Cannes-bound flick for the very first time. Pattinson stars in David Cronenberg’s adaptation of Don DeLillo novel “Cosmopolis”, while Stewart plays a supporting role in Walter Salles’ long-gestating, highly anticipated adaptation of Jack Kerouac classic “On the Road.” Also perhaps hoping to shed that teen idol image and gain some serious acting cred at the festival is former “High School Musical” star Zac Efron, who stars in Lee Daniels’ “The Paperboy.” Daniels’ “Precious” played Un Certain Regard two years ago and went on to earn a boatload of Oscar nominations.

“Cosmopolis”, “On the Road” and “The Paperboy” will all play in competition and will be eligible for awards at the end of the festival. “On the Road” will also bring to Cannes promising young talents Sam Riley and Garrett Hedlund, as well as a return for last year’s Best Actress winner Kirsten Dunst.

Meanwhile, Pattinson’s “Cosomopolis” co-star Sarah Gadon, also a first-timer, will represent not one but two Cronenbergs a the festival. In addition to “Cosmopolis”, she is also the star of David’s son Brandon Cronenberg’s first feature, the futuristic sci-fi thriller “Antiviral”, accepted into the Un Certain Regard lineup for this year. “Antiviral” co-stars “X-Men: First Class”‘s Caleb Landry Jones.

Also pulling double duty this year is returning vet Jessica Chastain, who wowed with her performance in the Palm d’Or winner “The Tree of Life” last year. She returns this year as an Oscar nominee touting two films, the animated “Madagascar 3″ and John Hillcoat’s Prohibition-era drama “Lawless” (previously titled “The Wettest County in the World”, and not to be confused with Terrence Malick’s next feature). “Lawless” also stars Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf and recent “Chronicle” breakout star Dane DeHaan.

Other up and comers we’ll be keeping an eye on include Bella Heathcote in Andrew Dominik’s “Killing Them Softly”, Michael Shannon’s reunion with “Take Shelter” director Jeff Nichols on “Mud”, and Sundance breakout star Quvenzhané Wallis of “The Beasts of the Southern Wild.”

We here at Up and Comers will be at Cannes for the very first time this year too, so expect news, reviews and exclusives straight from the Croisette!

See the full line-up of films below.

Watch: highly anticipated first trailer for Walter Salles adaptation of the Kerouac classic “On The Road”

March 9, 2012 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Videos Leave a comment

One of my most anticipated films this year is Walter Salles adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s generation-defining novel “On The Road”.

An adaptation thirty years in development, the film finally moved into pre-production in 2010, with Salles behind the camera and Garrett Hedlund and Sam Riley in front as Dean Moriarty and Sal Paradise.

This evening, the official Facebook page released the first trailer and I have to admit that despite my many, many, reservations Salles may have just about pulled this one off.

It’s slick and highly stylised (and I’m wondering where the promised black and white is), but Riley looks convincing as Sal, Jack Kerouac’s semi-autobiographical character who goes on a journey of booze, drugs and self-discovery, and Hedlund as Moriarty (based on real life Beat icon Neal Cassady) looks to have nailed all of Cassady’s mannerisms.

With a great supporting cast including Kristen Stewart, Kirsten Dunst, Viggo Mortensen and Amy Adams, we’re looking forward to the reviews coming out of this year’s Cannes Film Festival where the film is expected to premiere.

Watch the trailer below, and let us know your thoughts on this long-awaited adaptation.

First poster and new stills of Sam Riley, Garrett Hedlund and Kristen Stewart in “On the Road”

February 29, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Images Leave a comment

After more than thirty years in development, a big screen adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s iconic “On the Road” is finally headed to theaters this year. British up and comer Sam Riley plays Sal Paradise, Jack Kerouac’s semi-autobiographical portrait of a Beat Generation writer who goes on a journey of booze, drugs and self-discovery with his best friend, Dean Moriarty, played by Garrett Hedlund and based on real life Beat icon Neal Cassady. Kristen Stewart joins them for part of the journey as Dean’s wife Marylou, and others including Viggo Mortensen, Amy Adams, Kirsten Dunst, Tom Sturridge and more meander in and out of the path of the two friends.

The new stills show Riley doing what Paradise does best, writing and wandering, while the poster, unfortunately, mostly looks like a messier and more nonsensical version of the artful and understated teaser poster released last May. The concept is there, but the execution has us scratching our heads and wondering why a magical rearview mirror is floating in the sky.

Nevertheless, the Walter Salles directed film has been receiving very positive early buzz and is expected to bow at the Cannes Film Festival this May, with a France release date to match, while we’re betting a date that’s a little more Oscar-friendly is being eyed for its US release. See the poster and new stills below.

Dominic Cooper replaces Clive Owen in “Cities”, may leave “Motor City” behind

February 13, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 2 Comments

Looks like conquering “Motor City” just isn’t enough for Dominc Cooper, who’s setting his sights on something more global, as Variety reports the busy and rising actor has replaced Clive Owen in international thriller “Cities”. The new casting could call into question Cooper’s previous commitment to “Motor City”, the ambitious dialogue-free revenge thriller he was slated to star in opposite Amber Heard.

Cooper will join Orlando Bloom, Kirsten Dunst and Anil Kapoor in “Cities” for director Roger Donaldson, which will tell “stories of characters around the globe, including a New York hedge fund manager, a Mumbai police officer and a couple who are house-hunting in London” in the months leading up to the Dow Jones stock market high. Filming will begin this spring in London, Mumbai and New York.

Cooper is currently filming romantic drama “Summer in February” with Emily Browning and appeared in several of 2011′s biggest movies, including superhero blockbuster “Captain America: The First Avenger”, Sundance hit “The Devil’s Double” and current awards contender “My Week with Marilyn.” He’ll next be seen as Abe’s vampire mentor Henry Sturgess in “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”, which just released a pretty epic first trailer.

London Critics Circle nominate Gosling, Fassbender and add some fresh new names to the awards season

December 20, 2011 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Awards Leave a comment

Critic’s Circles and Guilds across America have already begun their awards season but today has brought the first set of critics nominations from across the pond in Britain, courtesy of the London Critics’ Circle, and we’re pleased to see some fresh rising stars joining those we’ve already come to expect.

The Best Actress category brings the two big surprises, with Kirsten Dunst being nominated for her stunning performance in Lars Von Trier’s “Melancholia” – a role which won her Best Actress at Cannes – and Anna Paquin, in the little-seen but much-hyped “Margaret.”

Similar to the BCFA Critics Choice Awards, the London Critics Circle has a category focusing specifically on young rising British stars. Nominated this year are John Boyega (“Attack the Block”), Jeremy Irvine (“War Horse”), Yasmin Paige (“Submarine”), Craig Roberts (“Submarine”) and Saoirse Ronan (“Hanna”).

One film which has been mostly left out in the cold this awards season is Tomas Alfredson’s brilliant crime thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”, which stars some of Britain’s most exciting rising stars. But it leads the pack here with six nominations, including Best Director and Best Actor for Gary Oldman. Also with six nominations is Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive” starring Ryan Gosling. Gosling was nominated in the Best Actor category, and joining him in this category are some more familiar names – Jean Dujardin for “The Artist” and Michael Fassbender, for both “Shame” and “A Dangerous Method. “

The London Critics’ Circle Film Awards will reveal their winners on Thursday, January 19th. The full list of nominations are below.

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